Getty Darius Slay runs in a touchdown for the Eagles in Detroit during the 2021 season.
The Detroit Lions saw their 2022 schedule revealed last week, and ever since, folks have been taking time out to ponder how the games could play out for the team.
In Week 1, the Lions will take on the Philadelphia Eagles at Ford Field. That’s a redux from a 2021 game that the Lions lost in very embarrassing fashion. Heading towards a new year, the Lions have a shot at redemption in a big way. One problem, however? The sharps don’t exactly believe Detroit is set up to get it.
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With the NFL schedules a week old, already, some early lines have been revealed as it relates to the first week of the season. The Lions are underdogs to begin the year, seen as four point underdogs to the Eagles for the home opener according to Draft Kings. Justin Rogers of the Detroit News was quick to point out the line right after the schedule’s release.
Draft Kings already has lines for Week 1. Lions are four-point dogs against the Eagles.
“Draft Kings already has lines for Week 1. Lions are four-point dogs against the Eagles,” Rogers tweeted.
The Lions not being a favorite for Week 1 right off the bat is not a shock. Many folks are all-in on Philadelphia being the team to beat in the NFC East, and they beat the Lions easily in the same game. Obviously, Detroit has changed a lot since then, but it feels fair for the Lions to start out as early underdogs.
Lions Played Well Against Spread in 2021
Last season, Detroit was a team that never generated much hype in terms of the bettors. The Lions were routine underdogs going into games and weeks, no matter how much of an edge they could have had on their competition. In spite of that, the Lions performed reasonably well against the spread. At one point late last year, Detroit was 10-5 last season in such a scenario, and they routinely kept games close if not beat the spread plenty of times. This happened in late wins against Minnesota, Arizona and Green Bay. It shows the Lions can be a team that manages to perform on the biggest of stages no matter how the odds feel they will perform any given game.
Though Detroit lost in blowout fashion against Philadelphia last year, they could be primed to do more damage like this in 2022.
Breaking Down Lions’ 2022 Schedule
Detroit’s slate is very interesting this coming season indeed, and if the Lions can build some momentum, it could be easy to see how the team could get things going and generate some positivity. The team will play at home three out of the first four weeks of the season. Detroit starts with Philadelphia and Washington at home before hitting the road to take on a Minnesota team they narrowly lost to on the road in 2021. Then, they come back home to take on a drastically changed Seattle team that has seen some major reconstruction this offseason. The Commanders aren’t trending toward being one of the best teams in the league, and whether the Eagles look as good as they did at times in 2021 is anyone’s guess. That’s a very friendly way to start the year for Detroit.
Fans may roll their eyes, but there is a good shot for the Lions to start out 3-1, or at the very least 2-2 with this home-friendly setup. That could prime them for a solid finish to the year after a tough middle of the slate plays out.
In terms of the finish, this year, providing Detroit doesn’t flail early, there is a chance the Lions could use a late post-Thanksgiving push to perhaps get themselves into playoff contention. From Week 13-17, the Lions will play teams that on paper, they should have a good chance at beating prior to finishing at Lambeau Field. Over that stretch, their toughest games could well be against either Minnesota at home or the New York Jets on the road. That sets Detroit up for either an epic fail to finish a lost season of tanking, or a legendary push to write an improbable playoff story.
No matter what happens, the road to finding out will start in Week 1. Early on, the Lions are still underdogs, but it will be interesting to see how much that may change in 2022.
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