The Lions had one of their finest season-debuts in recent memory, maybe ever. Their 35-23 upset of the favored Arizona Cardinals had them performing well in every area.
On offense, their $135 million-dollar quarterback, Matthew Stafford, threw for 292 yards and four touchdowns on 29-for-41 passing. Golden Tate and rookie receiver Kenny Golladay became his premiere targets for the contest, with the former recording 10 receptions for 107 yards and the latter opening his career with 69 yards and a pair of TD grabs.
Stafford will continue eyeing those guys moving forward, but we should also see Marvin Jones and pass-catching backs Theo Reddick and Ameer Abdullah be regular parts of the scoring attack.
The defense, meanwhile, will try to build something from their good showing in Week 1. Their pass defense, in particular, was superb, as it picked off Carson Palmer thrice and deflected 11 of his passes.
Such performance will be a good momentum and confidence-booster Detroit, who’s only 3-5 on the road in 2016 (SU and ATS), and was held to just six points in their Week 15 match-up with the Giants last season (lost, 17-6).
An ugly, ugly scene transpired in the Giants’ season-opener. It wasn’t a disturbing sight, but watching it makes you wonder just what the heck this team is doing, both offensively and defensively. It’s given that the absence of the injured Odell Beckham Jr. (ankle) played a part, but it’s a 19-3 loss that was lopsided everywhere. The Dallas Cowboys seemingly toyed with them for 60 minutes.
Eli Manning surprisingly went 29-for-38 for 220 yards, because for much of the game, he appeared to be clueless and overwhelmed by the defense. Two guys emerged as his favorites for the night – Sterling Shepard, who had seven catches for 44 yards, and pass-catching back Shane Vereen, who got plenty of check down throws, resulting in nine receptions for 51 yards. Number two receiver, Brandon Marshall, had one of the worst nights of his career, and his only catch for the contest came at the latter parts of the fourth quarter, wherein the game was pretty much over.
The running game had no surprising factor; they flat-out stunk it up, as they could only record 35 yards on 2.9 yards per carry. Paul Perkins led the team in the category, and he only ran for 16 yards.
The defense got punished by the very determined Cowboys offense. They couldn’t stop the Dak Prescott and Zeke Elliot express, allowing 392 total yards and 22 first downs.
Both of the Giants’ units should be able to perform better against the Lions, especially since it’s their 2017 home debut. They also have confidence going against Stafford and company, as fueled by the G-Men’s aforementioned victory over them just a season ago.
The Giants closed the 2016 regular season winning six-straight home games (5-1 ATS).
Writer’s Prediction
It will depend heavily on Beckham’s health, but I see the Giants slowing down the game and messing the Lions’ rhythm. They win a slow-paced game, 20-13.
