Sunday Night Football debuts this season with a match-up of last year's NFC Wild Card game with the Los Angeles Rams traveling to Detroit to take on the Lions. Matthew Stafford, who spent 12 seasons in Detroit, will be making another return to Ford Field to face his old team.
The Lions edged out the Rams 24-23 holding off Stafford on a final drive to secure the win. The big story for this game will always be the monumental trade sending Matthew Stafford to LA in exchange for Jared Goff and a heap of picks, but it will be exciting to see how these two teams improved over the offseason.
The Lions
Many people see the Lions as legitimate contenders in the NFC this season. Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and Jahmyr Gibbs lead an offensive unit that ranked 3rd in yards per game last season. Gibbs looks to be a breakout star in his second year behind a stout offensive line, sharing backfield duties with veteran David Montgomery. St. Brown emerged as one of the top pass catchers in the league last season, so it will be interesting to see if he and Jared Goff can keep their connection rolling.
They also have made progress on the defensive side of the ball. Aiden Hutchinson has lived up to the hype as the number 2 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, totaling 21 sacks in his first two seasons.
Along with Hutchinson on the defensive side, there are a load of young players who are looking to improve this season. MLB Jack Campbell is heading into his second year and is likely going to be starting as the MIKE.
Brian Branch is another young star in the making. With three interceptions and seven tackles for loss, he was impactful in every way for the defense.
The Rams
While the Lions have been on the rise over the last few years, the Rams have been pushing through a retooling project in the wake of their Super Bowl victory in 2022. To make matters worse, Aaron Donald announced his retirement over the offseason, leaving a serious hole in the defensive front.
The Rams exceeded expectations last year, so they will be looking to live up to that standard this season. Matthew Stafford is aging, but he has shown he still has the skills to keep the Rams alive when he is healthy. Puka Nacua went from being almost completely unknown to setting the NFL Rookie season record for Receptions and Receiving Yards.
Adding him in with Cooper Kupp, who is hopefully back to 100%, makes Stafford's life much easier. The Rams also had a resurgence in their rushing game last season with Kyren Williams emerging as their lead back. They brought in Blake Corum from Michigan in this year's draft, so look out for him to help ease Kyren’s load this season.
As I mentioned earlier, losing Aaron Donald is practically irreplaceable. However, the Rams did a good job in drafting talent on the defensive side. Braden Verse and Jared Fiske were both brought in from Flordia State and will look to have an immediate impact on this defense. Without Donald eating up double teams on the inside, the Rams will need their edge rushers to cause havoc.
Prediction
I am going to take the Lions covering at -3.5 in this game. We saw a tight game last season, but I think the Lions will come out with something to prove after a disappointing loss in the NFC Championship last year.
Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford will obviously be the big topics in this game, but I think the Lions' defense will make a major difference. Look for an improved young group to cause problems for Sean McVay’s offense.
Lions 24 - Rams 17
