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The Detroit Lions Week 12 matchup has them preparing for their annual Thanksgiving Day game. This year, the Lions will play host to the super talented Buffalo Bills in a game that is sure to have some fireworks. For many years, football fans had been stuck watching a low-scoring, defensive affair between the Lions and their opponents as they cook their turkeys. But that will not be the case this year.
The Lions are coming off a huge, upset victory over the New York Giants, 31-18. Lions QB Jared Goff played very well on the road for the second straight game, which was something he had really struggled with previously. Now, they return home looking for their fourth straight victory.
As unlikely as it sounds, the Lions are still in playoff contention. Much of that has to do with the lack of depth in the NFC. But currently, the Seattle Seahawks hold the final playoff spot. They are 6-4 and two games ahead of Detroit. That makes this game a must-win for the Lions. It will not be easy as the Bills are have fallen to the fifth seed in the AFC. They need this game as much as Detroit does.
So, let's dive into our Lions Week 12 predictions.
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4. Lions QB Jared Goff throws for 270+ yards
As I touched on above, Jared Goff tends to play much better at home. During his time with the Lions, he has thrown 26 touchdown passes to just six interceptions on the road. That's far better than what he does on the road.
His opponent Thanksgiving morning, the Buffalo Bills, boast one of the league's best defenses. But that is primarily on paper. In actuality, their defense has been giving up a ton of big plays over the last month or so. Last week, Browns QB Jacoby Brissett found guys running free in the secondary, which put the Bills in an early deficit. The week prior, Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson ripped them apart.
Their lack of success on defense has dropped them to the middle of the pack in passing yards allowed. In what should be a high-scoring, fun offensive game, look for Goff to find plenty of success through the air.
3. Jamaal Williams finds the end zone once again
If I were to take a poll of football fans on who they think leads the NFL in rushing touchdowns, not many people will guess Lions running back Jamaal Williams. Yet, that would be the correct answer. He has 12 rushing touchdowns despite not even being the team's starting running back.
Of course, the injury to D'Andre Swift opened up a ton of playing time for the former Packers running back. Williams has certainly made the most of it. Even though Swift has played the last couple games, it's been Williams making the big impact. He scored three more rushing touchdowns against the Giants last week.
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That brought his season total to 12, one ahead of Nick Chubb. The Bills once stellar rush defense has also got worse as of late. They have fallen to 8th in the NFL, allowing over 106 rush yards per game. It would make sense for the Lions to try and control the clock and keep Josh Allen off the field. That means plenty of rushing attempts for the Lions and both Williams and Swift. But when they get in close, they rely on the big man to find paydirt.
2. Bills QB Josh Allen has over 400 total yards vs. Lions defense
Even though I expect the Lions offense to find some success in this matchup, they have almost no shot at stopping Josh Allen and the Bills offense.
Detroit's secondary has been atrocious this year. They rank 28th in passing yards allowed per game. That is not a good recipe to slow down the high-flying Bills. Allen does a bit of everything for his team. He leads the team in rushing yards with 483, to go with four scores on the ground.
You obviously know what he can do through the air. Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis might have big time games on Thanksgiving here. Marquis players tend to want to shine on the biggest family holiday. Buffalo is likely to move the football at ease with Allen doing most of the damage, going over 400 total yards.
1. Lions hang around into 4th quarter but fall short
It's been years since we all got to enjoy a shootout with great players on both sides of the field on Thanksgiving morning. The Lions have been so inept offensively for so long. But that is no longer the case. Amon-Ra St. Brown is a legit top tier receiver. D'Andre Swift is a stud. Even first round pick Aiden Hutchinson has really come lately.
I think Detroit will be able to do enough offensively to hang with the Bills for much of this game. But ultimately, they will fall short dropping 34-26 to the Bills.
