It hasn’t been pretty but the Broncos have a chance to improve to 3-0 when they visit winless Detroit on NBC’s Sunday Night Football.
Denver failed to produce an offensive touchdown in the opener and scored two touchdowns nine seconds apart in the final minute to eke out a win in Kansas City last week. The Lions are the last team in the NFL to play a home game and look to get in the win column in primetime against a Broncos team that is 1-5 SU and ATS in its last six against the NFC North.
ODDS
Denver opened as a 3-point road favorite with a total of 44.5. Both the spread and total have remained firm throughout the week. The Broncos are 2-0 ATS this season while the Lions have won their last five at home.
KEY INJURIES
Louis Vasquez – Was limited in practice this week due to a knee injury. He is the only returning starter on the Broncos’ offensive line, but is expected to play, according to coach Gary Kubiak. Overall the Broncos are a healthy group with every player on the team’s roster participating in some way in practice this week.
Matthew Stafford – Was beat up in the loss to Minnesota last week. He had X-rays on his ribs and chest after the loss and finished the game with a bloodied elbow. Stafford took part in practice this week and, though not 100 percent, will play.
DeAndre Levy – Has not returned to practice after sitting out last week’s game with a hip injury. His absence would be a big blow to a pass defense that will need all the help it can get against the Broncos.
KEY MISMATCH
The Broncos have proven to have one of the NFL’s best defenses through two games, bailing out Peyton Manning, who has not looked like himself so far this season. The Denver D has taken a lot of pressure off Manning and given the team confidence they can pull out a victory. The defense supplied the game-winning touchdown last week with a fumble return for a touchdown in the waning seconds to stun Kansas City and stymied Baltimore in the opener, winning a game without the help of an offensive touchdown. The group has played superbly in the first two games, registering seven sacks and four interceptions while leading the league with an average of 133.5 passing yards allowed. Linebackers Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware will be bringing the heat against Stafford, who will be dealing with a rib and chest injury while trying to avoid the ferocious pass rush.
KEY STAT
7.0 – Denver has allowed the fourth-most quarterback sacks in the NFL. Manning has been dropped seven times in two games after getting sacked just 17 times all of last season. Detroit has three sacks, but there were several near misses last week.
BETTING ANGLE
A year ago, the Broncos cut kicker Matt Prater as he was coming back from a four-game suspension for a violation of the league’s substance abuse policy. Eight years in Denver, including setting the league record for longest field goal, washed away. The Lions had major problems in their kicking game last season and snapped up Prater when he became available. He stabilized Detroit’s kicking game and the Lions gave Prater what he wanted: another shot in the NFL. Prater said he doesn’t expect Sunday’s game to be too emotional for him, but you know he’d like to kick John Elway in the rear end if given the chance.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
After two terrible losses on the road, the Lions become the last team in the NFL to play a home game when they kickoff Sunday night. Detroit has been good at Ford Field and will feed off the home crowd to put out a good effort. Though Stafford got banged up last week, he is expected to play and that will rally the troops. Watch for a little more attention paid to the running game with Joique Bell and Ameer Abdulah to keep the pressure off Stafford, but the plays downfield will be there and Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate will make them. I feel the Lions are much better than what they’ve shown and will come together at home for the win. But an aging Manning and an ailing Stafford give the under plenty of value.
Detroit 23, Denver 20
The NFL odds for this Sunday contest were first released by BookMaker and the Broncos were positioned as 3-point favorites with a total of 44.5. Now you can wager in-game while the action unfolds with BookMaker's live betting option.
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