Believe it or not, the Detroit Lions are one of the 10 unbeaten teams left in the NFL after two weeks. They’ll put that on the line this weekend when they visit the Philadelphia Eagles. Game time is at 1:00 EST on Sunday, September 22 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. The game will be broadcast on Fox, but only in local markets.
Based on the Week 3 NFL odds, the Eagles are 7-point favorites at home. The over/under for the Eagles and Lions is listed at 48 points.
As mentioned, Detroit is undefeated, although the kind of undefeated that consists of one win and one tie. The Lions may live to regret letting their 24-6 lead over the Cardinals disappear in less than a quarterback back in Week 1, especially after they settled for a tie with both teams kicking a field goal in overtime. However, the Lions should be proud of their effort last week, scoring a fourth-quarter touchdown to knock off the Chargers 13-10 in their home opener.
However, Detroit’s schedule gets rather challenging moving forward. After facing the Chargers last week, the Lions have two more games against teams that went to the playoffs last season with the Eagles this week and the Chiefs coming to the Motor City next week. Those two games should tell us a lot about whether or not we should believe Detroit’s early success.
As for the Eagles, they’ll be disappointed not to be 2-0 at this point of the season. The Birds were able to overcome a sluggish start in Week 1 to beat Washington 32-27. However, they gave up a fourth-quarter lead last week against the Falcons, losing 24-20 to fall to 1-1.
With Dallas leading the division at 2-0, the Eagles can’t afford any more early-season slip-ups if they want to remain in the NFC East race. Philadelphia’s schedule appears favorable leading up to a Week 7 showdown with the Cowboys. But the Eagles do have a Thursday game next week and are dealing with a rash of injuries, so they could be a little vulnerable this week, even at home.
For the record, I’m not ready to buy stock in the Lions just yet. However, Philadelphia’s injuries have me a little worried. The Eagles have also failed to put together four good quarters in a row over their first two games. Playing well for a half might be enough to win, but it makes me nervous about the Eagles being able to cover a touchdown. I’ll lean toward the Lions to keep it close enough to beat the spread.
The upside of the Philadelphia offense makes them a dangerous team in the long run, but I worry about them not being full strength this week. DeSean Jackson is out this week after a massive game in Week 1. Alshon Jeffery is also questionable to play on Sunday. Those are two huge pieces that the Eagles could be without this week.
To be fair, Nelson Agholor stepped up in their absence last week, while Zach Ertz remains an important part of the offense. The Eagles also have a trio of running backs that have been productive this season. That being said, the Eagles have sputtered at times, especially with Carson Wentz throwing two interceptions last week. Consistency could continue to be an issue with Jackson and Jeffery out.
I’ll admit that the Detroit defense has looked a little vulnerable early in the year when it comes to giving up massive chunks of yards. But outside of the fourth quarter against the Cardinals, the Lions have clamped down in the red zone. Despite giving up over 400 yards against the Chargers last week, the Lions conceded just 10 points. The Lions should have enough of a pass rush to keep the Philadelphia offense out of rhythm, especially with a couple of key receivers missing.
On the other side of the ball, I like what the Lions have on offense. The offensive line looks much-improved from last season and has been able to keep Matthew Stafford better protected. Stafford, of course, is sometimes prone to turnovers. But I like Detroit’s receiving corps with Kenny Golladay, Danny Amendola, and Marvin Jones. Rookie tight end T.J. Hockenson is also an option after a big-time performance in Week 1.
Meanwhile, the Eagles are also a little banged up on defense. They’ve managed just two sacks in their first two games, and one of those came from Tim Jernigan, who won’t play on Sunday due to injury. Keep in mind that the Eagles gave up two touchdown passes of over 30 yards last week against the Falcons. The Eagles could continue to be vulnerable on the deep ball if their pass rush doesn’t improve. More importantly, it’s a weakness that Stafford and the Detroit receivers are capable of exploiting.
If the spread were a few points lower, I might have enough faith in the Eagles to cover at home. But given their injuries and the number of weapons the Lions have on offense, I don’t see the Eagles winning this game comfortably. The Lions won a low-scoring game last week and I think they’re equally capable of keeping up in a shootout. I wouldn’t rule out a Detroit win on the road, so I’ll take the Lions and the points in this game.