This season is going from bad to worse for Chip Kelly in Philly. His Eagles are having a horrific campaign, which just got a lot worse after they were absolutely stuffed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ahead of their Thanksgiving trip to Detroit. The Lions have also had a pretty disappointing year, but they can finish it strong by claiming a third-straight win against the free-falling Eagles.
Get a complete breakdown of the first of the NFL’s three-game Thanksgiving slate below. Meanwhile, don’t forget to check out our previews for the other two Thanksgiving games, the Panthers vs. Cowboys and Bears vs. Packers.
[sc:Football ]Philadelphia Eagles vs. Detroit Lions Preview
Where: Ford Field, Detroit
When: Thursday, November 26, 12:30 PM ET
Line: Philadelphia Eagles (+2.5) at Detroit Lions (-2.5); total 46.0 – view all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: FOX
Betting on the Philadelphia Eagles (4-6)
With each passing week, it’s getting harder and harder to tell exactly what the Eagles actually do well. It sure wasn’t defense against the Bucs, who ran riot in a 45-17 road win. Not only did Philly allow a record-tying five touchdown passes to rookie quarterback Jameis Winston, it also gave up 235 rushing yards to Doug Martin, the most rushing yards by a single player this season.
[sc:NFL240banner ]The Eagles defense, which had been the team’s big strength this season, is fading down the stretch. Prior to the meltdown against Tampa, the Philly D coughed up 27 points to the Matt Cassel-led Cowboys a couple weeks ago, and also couldn’t hold a 13-point lead in their heartbreaking 20-19 loss to the Dolphins.
Of course, this team’s biggest strength was supposed to be its offense, led by the offensive mastermind that is Chip Kelly. Well, that offense was bad with Sam Bradford at quarterback and has gotten worse with Mark Sanchez. In two games with Sanchez at the helm, the Eagles have scored just 36 total points, with Sanchez throwing four interceptions.
The bright side for the Eagles, though, is that as bad as ineffectual as they’ve been in terms of scoring points, so have the Lions. Detroit has broken the 20-point barrier just twice all season, so it likely won’t be building any big leads, even at home. With a couple of good breaks and a bounce-back effort from the defense, the Eagles can be right in with a chance to come away with a big road win.
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Betting on the Detroit Lions (3-7)
For the first time in about a year, the Detroit Lions have a winning streak going. The previously 1-7 Lions have now gone 2-0 since returning from their bye with impressive wins against the Packers and Raiders. The win against the Raiders on Sunday was the Lions’ first cover at home this season. They’re now 1-5 ATS at Ford Field.
The offense is still very limited, in large part due to the complete absence of a running game. The Lions have scored just 18 points in both of their wins. However, Matthew Stafford has come up big in the past two weeks, and is looking increasingly more comfortable in new offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter’s scheme. Stafford had 282 passing yards against Oakland, and rushed for the big go-ahead touchdown.
With the Eagles secondary struggling for two of the last three weeks against the pass, Stafford should be able to continue moving the ball with some success through the air.
The bigger part of the Lions’ recent resurgence, though, has been the outstanding play of their defense, which has limited two high-powered passing offenses to just 31 total points. Cornerback Darius “Big Play” Slay dominated his matchups with the Packers’ James Jones and the Raiders’ Amari Cooper and turned those capable receivers into non-factors. Meanwhile, the run defense has been just as good, giving up just 97 total rushing yards in the two games.
The Lions have a very good chance to make it three strong defensive performances in a row against a vastly underperforming Eagles offense and the turnover-prone Mark Sanchez.
Writer’s Prediction
The Lions compound the Eagles’ misery with a 21-14 home win.
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