The Detroit Lions playing on Thanksgiving have become as synonymous with the holiday as carving a turkey and enjoying pumpkin pie with the family.
Although the Lions have opened up as 2.5 point underdogs, here are four reasons why the Lions can prove Vegas wrong and upset the Bears on Thursday.
Linebacker Danny Trevathan won't be playing
Detroit Lions fans know better than anybody that the offensive line has struggled with keeping the pocket clean for their starting quarterback, and Pro Bowl linebackers such as Danny Trevathan have had the Lions' number in the past.
Although he didn't have that big of an impact in the last Lions-Bears match-up a few weeks ago (three total tackles and one quarterback hit), Trevathan is unlikely due to playing on Thanksgiving Day thanks to a broken elbow that may put him on IR.
This gives the Lions offensive line one less talented defender to worry about and could help a young back like Bo Scarborough break more tackles once he gets into the second level.
Marvin Jones Jr. likes to ball out on Thanksgiving
Detroit Lions wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. is quietly making a case for his first career Pro Bowl appearance this season, as he has already totaled more than 700 yards to go along with eight touchdowns.If the Lions had one their Thanksgiving game in 2017, the last time Jones was healthy on the holiday, he most likely would have won the coveted Turkey Leg award given out annually by Fox, as he had an impressive performance racking up 109 yards and two touchdowns against a talented Minnesota Vikings secondary.
Jones is hungry to win that award and likes to go off against divisional opponents, so expect him to have another multiple-touchdown performance on his way to a Lions victory.
Mitchell Trubisky will struggle in front of millions of people
Stop me if you have heard this before, but third-year passer Mitchell Trubisky struggled in last Sunday's win over the Giants, as even though he threw for 278 yards, he threw two costly picks and could have had a few more thanks to some ugly throws.
What makes this performance even worse for Bears fans is it came against a putrid Giants defense who have proved to be a bottom-5 defense in the league this season. Their inability to cover anyone helped the Lions to their last win, as Matthew Stafford threw for 342 yards and three touchdowns.
While the Lions defense has had struggles of their own, expect young corners like Justin Coleman and rookie Amani Oruwariye to blanket the Bears wide receivers and force Trubisky to make more than a few mistakes.
The Lions are used to playing on Thanksgiving and will be comfortable at home
One advantage that the Detroit Lions have every Thanksgiving that can not be ignored is that they have played every year on Thanksgiving, as the franchise has been playing on the holiday for over 80 years.'
With this long-standing traditions, veteran Lions such as Jones and Darius Slay have gotten used to not being with their families on the holiday. That's not something the Bears are used to, which coincidentally helps the Lions.
Additionally, the Lions faithful always comes out and fills Ford Field to the brim, always donning their Turkey costumes and rooting for their lovable losers on the holiday.
Expect Trubisky and a young Bears offense to get a few off-sides penalties thanks to the loudness of the usual Thanksgiving crowd. In a game as close as this one according to oddsmakers, that home-field advantage causing a raucous maybe just enough to give the Lions the victory on Thursday.
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