Can the Rams make amends for their playoff exit in January?

The packed NFL calendar is probably at least some consolation for the fact that the days are getting shorter again and summer is slowly coming to an end. The first “Sunday Night Game” of the new season will be played between the Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams. Find out our predictions for the game in the following lines! The last time the two teams faced each other was in January in the wildcard round of the National Football Conference

The team from the “Motor City” can still be considered the surprise of the past season. It was only in the NFC Championship Game, one game before the Super Bowl, that they lost 31:34 to San Francisco. Will it be a similar story this year? The signs are not bad at all, especially on offense. On the first matchday, they start as the favorite at home, and the Lions vs. Rams game has maximum odds of 1.50.

The Los Angeles Rams were also somewhat surprisingly involved in the postseason last season. The “Super Bowl LVI” champions finished second in the NFC West thanks to a strong final spurt with seven wins from the last eight games. After a 23:24 defeat against Detroit in the first play-off round, it was all over

Detroit Lions – Statistics & current form

If there had been a poll after Detroit’s elimination, the answer would have been pretty clear. With a solid defense, the game against the 49ers could have been won. That’s why the franchise invested in this unit and now hopes to have taken a step towards stability. Superstar Aidan Hutchinson is of course the anchor of this defense, but it lacks an established second defensive end – also due to injuries. Nevertheless, the team should be somewhat improved in run defense.

There are numerous new faces in the unit’s secondary. In the draft and in free agency, several upgrades were brought in for the safety and cornerback positions. On the one hand, this suggests that the passing defense group needs to be given some time, but also that it is probably quite a bit stronger and broader

Brown, LaPorta and then?

“Broadly manned” is a good keyword, although it’s more a lack of width that stands out when you look at the Lions’ depth chart. Especially at the wide receiver position, there is not much coming after last year’s shooting star Amon-Ra St. Brown. Like quarterback Jared Goff, St. Brown was given a generous contract in the offseason and will probably spend his NFL future in the Motor City. The franchise has high hopes for the first-round pick from 2023, Jameson Williams. He has to fill the gap left by Josh Reynolds. Of course, tight end Sam LaPorta, who is now entering his second NFL year, should not be completely forgotten as a pass catcher.

The two running backs Gibbs and Montgomery are set in the backfield. These two probably have the best offensive line in front of them, which is why Detroit’s rushing game must once again be a force to be reckoned with. However, it is questionable whether this will be visible in the “Sunday Night Game”, as Los Angeles had the fourth-best run defense last season. Between the Lions and Rams, that leads us to predict that the Detroit offense will have to move the ball mostly through the air.

Key Players:

• QB: Jared Goff
• RB: Jahmyr Gibbs
• WR: Amon-Ra St. Brown
• TE: Sam LaPorta
• K: Jake Bates

Los Angeles Rams – stats & current form

However, the question arises as to how well the Sean McVay team’s defensive line is set up. With the loss of Aaron Donald, not only did the unit lose an absolute X-factor, but the franchise also lost one of its superstars. Donald had played for the Rams since 2014, was named Defensive Player of the Year three times, was voted into the Pro Bowl ten times and played a key role in the Super Bowl victory. His retirement leaves a gaping hole in this unit that seems almost impossible to compensate for.

So the task for the new defensive coordinator Chris Shula seems huge! Nevertheless, his first official act was to rejuvenate this unit. Now rookies like Braden Fiske and Jared Verse, who were teammates in college at Florida State, are part of this personnel group. Both were also brought to the “City of Angels” in this year’s draft because of their ties. If the defense still has problems at the start of the season, this would not be a surprise due to the changes. Nevertheless, it seems undisputed that the unit has great potential

Good prognosis thanks to proven offensive power

In a head-to-head matchup, relatively little has changed on the offensive side. Quarterback Matthew Stafford is now entering his 16th NFL season and his fourth season with the LA Rams. He previously spent twelve years in Lions kit. Nothing has changed at pass receiver, where Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua are still set. Assuming Kupp stays fit and Nacua confirms his historic rookie season in parts, the two are one of the best wide receiver duos in the league. Tutu Atwell and Demarius Robinson occupy the third and fourth spots in the position group. Between the Lions and Rams, one of our picks is that these four starting spots will take center stage in week one.

In addition to Nacua, running back Kyren Williams made a splash last season in his second year. His resume includes a season with 1,144 yards and 15 touchdowns. The McVay team found a copy of this running back in the third round of this year’s draft in Blake Corum, who is now the backup to Williams.

Key Players:

• QB: Matthew Stafford
• RB: Kyren Williams
• WR: Puka Nacuca
• TE: Colby Parkinson
• K: Joshua Karty

Detroit Lions – Los Angeles Rams head-to-head comparison / H2H record

There’s a bit of a special connection between the two teams, as Goff and Stafford – the franchises’ then and now starting quarterbacks – swapped teams in 2021. Goff went to Detroit, Stafford to LA. Now the playmakers will face each other for the fourth time overall and the second time after swapping teams. When the Lions host the Rams on Monday night, betting odds of up to 2.65 are possible in the bookies’ comparison when betting on the McVay team’s success.

Detroit Lions – Los Angeles Rams betting tip

The bookmakers give the role of favorite, measured by the Lions vs. Rams odds, to the home side. That is entirely justified in view of last season and the offseason. Nevertheless, we believe that the visitors will be able to keep up in this game. They lost by a meagre one point in the play-off game in January, which is why we are happy to accept the handicap on offer at bet-at-home. We are therefore placing our main recommendation on Los Angeles losing by a maximum of three points at Ford Field.

Since there have been numerous changes in the defensive personnel groups, we could imagine that the offenses can take over the game. That’s why there will be some touchdowns to marvel at. In the search for a touchdown scorer, we finally ended up with St. Brown, who is looking to build on his strong performances from the previous season.