An NFL playoff rematch from a season ago puts an end to the NFL’s Sunday betting schedule. The Detroit Lions won their first postseason game in over three decades taking down the Los Angeles Rams 24-23 in the Wild Card Round. In one of their more successful seasons ever, the Lions matched a franchise record for regular season victories, won a division title for the first time since 1993 and advanced to the NFC Championship putting them among the favorites to win the conference title.
The first Sunday Night Football game of the season also has the interesting side note of a quarterback duel. A few years ago the clubs swapped signal-callers with Matthew Stafford leading LA to a Super Bowl victory in his first season with the Rams. Reaching the Super Bowl for the first time is the goal of the Lions behind Jared Goff. The Lions failed to cover the 3-point spread in their playoff meeting with the Rams but they were among the most profitable teams in the NFL at Bitcoin sportsbooks going 12-5 ATS during the regular season and 14-6 ATS overall.
NFL Betting Lines
Rams at Lions Betting Lines
Los Angeles Rams +3.5 / ML +156
Detroit Lions -3.5 / ML -175
Total 51
Scoring half a hundred is a lot to ask for teams right out of the gate, and especially since the Rams, like they’ve done for the past several years, didn’t play their regulars during the preseason. That trend started in 2021 and the Rams went on to beat Cincinnati in the Super Bowl in their first season with Stafford at the helm.
The Rams should be fun to watch on offense with Stafford slinging it to guys like Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua and Demarcus Robinson. Kyren Williams was a revelation in the backfield as well. In his 15th NFL season Stafford appeared energized by the young playmakers that surrounded him throwing for nearly 4,000 yards with 24 touchdown passes. With Kupp missing time early last season, Nacua emerged as the top target with 105 receptions, twice as many as Kupp’s second-best total of 59.
Nacua and Williams, who rushed for 1,144 yards and 12 TDs in 2023, should be stronger in their sophomore season, and a full year from Kupp opens up the passing game. And the Rams will need all the points they can get since they are a work in progress defensively. They lost coordinator Raheem Morris and three-time DPOY Aaron Donald retired leaving a gaping hole in the middle of the line. And to boot they traded linebacker Ernest Jones during training camp.
With the defense missing a few key cogs you can expect the Lions to use all their weapons to exploit it. And they were exciting last year finishing third in total yards and fifth in scoring. Goff threw for 4,575 yards, the second-most yards in the NFL, and had 30 TD passes. David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs combined to rush for nearly 2,000 yards and Amon-Ra St. Brown tied for the second-most receptions and had the third most receiving yards a season ago.
The Lions failed to cover the 3-point spread in last year’s playoff game and the teams played below the closing total of 54. The Rams had chances to win the game and got an outstanding performance from Stafford in his return to Detroit. Stafford threw for 367 yards and two TDs but the Rams failed to score a TD in three red zone trips leading to their 1-point loss.
Looking like the better team on both sides of the football and with a Super Bowl or bust mentality instilled by Dan Campbell, I can’t help but back the Lions. And with them 19-8 as a NFL bet against the spread at home under Campbell, the decision is much easier.
Rams at Lions Same Game Parlay Picks
Detroit -3.5
LA / Detroit OVER 51
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