There are three Thursday Night Football games on November 24. Why? Because it’s Thanksgiving! The first of those is the clash between the Buffalo Bills and the Detroit Lions. Both teams are going into Week 12 with high spirits after doing great last weekend.
The Bills defeated the Cleveland Browns 31-23 at Ford Field in Detroit – they had to play there due to horrible weather in Upstate New York. Meanwhile, the Lions’ running backs absolutely demolished the New York Giants the same day, with the final score being 31-18 for Dan Campbell’s boys.
The Lions upset the odds last weekend, but can they do it again? We’re not so sure because the Bills seem to know how to play against them. Since Sean McDermott took over as Buffalo’s boss, the Bills are 3-0 against the Lions.
Buffalo Bills vs Detroit Lions Week 12 Odds
Spread
| Buffalo Bills -9.5 | -105 |
| Detroit Lions +9.5 | -115 |
Moneyline
| Buffalo Bills | -460 |
| Detroit Lions | +360 |
Points
| Over 52.5 Points | -115 |
| Under 52.5 Points | -105 |
*Odds taken from FanDuel on Monday, November 21.
When, Where, and How to Watch?
- Place: Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan
- Date: Thursday, November 24, 2022
- Time: 12:30 PM ET
- How to Watch: CBS
What’s With the Lions Running Game? It’s Awesome!
The Lions are 4-6 on the season, with three of those wins happening in the previous three games. Their surge started with a 15-9 win over the Green Bay Packers. Next came a 31-30 win over the Chicago Bears. Finally, last Sunday, they beat the New York Giants 31-18.
As you can see, their offense has been doing a pretty decent job. In fact, with 25.0 points per game, they rank eighth in the NFL in scoring offense. When you think of their offensive team, your mind probably goes to quarterback Jared Goff. The former LA Rams signal-caller has been decent so far in 2022, throwing for 2,442 yards and 15 touchdowns so far. What’s very interesting is that his team has scored the same number of rushing TDs.
Twelve of those were the work of Jamaal Williams, a running back who’s established himself as a sort of end zone specialist. The good news is that he’s not the only one. The Lions have another talented RB in D’Andre Swift whom we saw score three TDs in 2022 – two of which happened in the previous two games.
Are we going to see these guys continue to bully their opponents? We might, because Buffalo isn’t that great in rushing defense.
Rushing Defense Might be Buffalo’s Achille’s Heel in 2022
The Bills are widely considered the best team in the NFL in the 2022 season. Their offense ranks second in the league in PPG with 28.1 (just behind the Kansas City Chiefs who are 30.0). Their defense is also great this year – with 17.4 points conceded on average, they rank fourth in the NFL.
What needs to worry them (at least slightly) ahead of the clash with the Lions is that their rushing defense hasn’t been too impressive this season. With 0.7 rushing TDs conceded per game, they’re 10th in the league, while an average of 106.6 opponent rushing yards puts them in the no.8 position.
Still, to be fair to them, they did play against some really good runners in 2022 – the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland, Browns, and so on.
Buffalo Bills vs Detroit Lions Predictions
We’re sure the Lions offense is going to put on a good show on Thanksgiving. Still, that probably won’t mean a lot. The thing is that no matter how good Jared Goff, Jamaal Williams, and others play, the Bills’ offense will do even better.
Buffalo’s QB Josh Allen is playing at an MVP level, throwing for 21 TDs already. It’s easy for him to do that when he has Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis in the WR position. Plus, the Bills also have fantastic runners in Devin Singletary and Ames Cook.
Knowing all this, it’s only logical to expect a win for the visiting team, but with plenty of excitement on both ends.
Picks: Buffalo Bills to win but not cover the 9.5-point spread; over to hit