Detroit Lions vs Tennessee Titans Point Spread Picks

Combine the Lions (-570) and the Jets (-330) into a 2-team parlay at -188 odds.

This is a big game for both teams. Detroit isn't going to the postseason, but interim coach Darrell Bevell and his staff want a strong finish to keep their job prospects alive. They beat the Bears two weeks ago, 34-30, and played well in a 31-24 loss last week to Green Bay as a +8.5 dog. QB Matthew Stafford (22 TDs, 9 INTs) leads a Top 10 passing attack that is throwing even more under the new coaching staff. The Lions are 7-3 ATS on the road against teams with winning home records. Tennessee is a run-oriented offense, while the defense is #25 in yards allowed and fourth-worst against the pass. Tennessee is 23-40 ATS versus opponents who average 260+ passing yards per game, plus 15-30 ATS against teams that force one or fewer turnovers per contest. Play Detroit.

A pair of bad defenses clash in Detroit, an indoor stadium. Tennessee is short on defensive talent, last year ranking #27 in points (26.4 points per game allowed), and #18 against the run. The offense is the strength behind mobile QB Marcus Mariota (19 TDs, 10 INTs in 2015, with 252 yards rushing, 7.4 yards per carry). After facing the dominant Minnesota defensive line last week he gets to face a soft Lions defense. Last season Detroit ranked #18 in yards allowed, #23 in points (25 ppg) and #19 against the run. The Lions can't run the football, so they will sling it often behind QB Matthew Stafford, which stops the clock on incompletions, helping the potential for points on both sides. Last week the offense struck for 39 points against the Colts as Stafford was 31-of-39 for 340 yards, three TDs and no picks. But the defense allowed 35 points and 467 yards, including 385 passing. The OVER is 8-3 for the Lions after allowing more than 350 total yards in their previous game. Play Tennessee/Detroit OVER the total.

The Detroit Lions won 10 games a year ago and made the playoffs. All is good right? Let's look a bit deeper. This team started out 5-0 in 2011 and looked to really be poised to have one of those special seasons, but they went just 5-7 from that point. The revealing part is that among their 10 wins, not one team they beat made the playoffs. When they got in the playoffs they promptly exited with a 17-point loss. So while many feel this team will get even better, the jury is more than out. They barely got by St. Louis at home 27-23 then lost once again to a good team at San Francisco. Tennessee has been blown out by a pair of really good teams in San Diego and New England, so most see Detroit as the third good team and another blowout. Well Detroit isn't there yet, and I look for Tennessee to come up big at home staring an 0-3 start in the face. They will have some extra motivation to take down Detroit head coach Jim Schwartz who was their defensive coordinator for eight seasons before taking the Detroit job. The Lions are still fighting to find their way on the road where they are 0-5-1 ATS in their last six. The Titans have come up big after scoring less than 15 points in their previous game at 19-7 ATS in their last 26. Play on Tennessee.