Don't look now football fans, but we are less than one day away from the NFL season kicking off! On Thursday night, the Detroit Lions will travel to the extremely hostile environment of Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Super Bowl defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. Without further ado, it is time to check out our NFL odds series, where our Lions-Chiefs prediction and pick will be made.

Coming into the 2023 season with more hype than many teams around the league, the Detroit Lions are ready to finally take that next step in year three of the Dan Campbell experiment in the Motor City. On paper, the belief is that the Lions finally have the necessary talent on both sides of the ball to compete. After going 6-1 in their final seven games of the 2022 campaign that saw them almost clinch a playoff berth, can the Lions carry that momentum into the new season?

Without a doubt, the Kansas City Chiefs have officially become the poster boys of the NFL after their second Super Bowl championship in four years. With a generational quarterback in Patrick Mahomes under center and an all-time great head coach pulling the strings behind the scenes in Andy Reid, the Chiefs are here to stay for the foreseeable future en route to attempting to become the next great NFL dynasty. With an unveiling of their new championship banner on Thursday night in front of their diehard fans to kick off the new season, can KC pick up right where they left off?

Here are the Lions-Chiefs NFL odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

NFL Odds: Lions-Chiefs Odds

Detroit Lions: +5.5 (-115)

Kansas City Chiefs: -5.5 (-105)

Over: 52.5 (-112)

Under: 52.5 (-108)

How to Watch Lions vs. Chiefs Week 1

TV: NBC

Stream: fuboTV, NFL+

Time: 8:20 ET/5:20 PT

*Watch NFL games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why The Lions Could Cover The Spread

It is certainly well-documented that the Lions haven't had the easiest times on the football field over the years. In fact, Detroit has not been to the postseason since the 2016 season and have obtained only six winning seasons since the turn of the 21st century. Simply put, Detroit fans are sick of the losing and are ready for the Lions to win the NFC North for the first time in 30 years.

At first glance, the football world will definitely get a good taste of what them 2023 Lions are all about with an extremely difficult test against the reigning world champs on the road. However, the main thing that Detroit has going in their favor is a fairly clean bill of health. Compared to Kansas City who is already without All-Pro defender Chris Jones and may be without tight end Travis Kielce after he tweaked his knee in practice on Tuesday, expect the Lions to take advantage of the Chiefs' shortcomings on both sides of the ball.

Even though the Lions will be somewhat short-handed as well due to some suspensions being handed out to some Detroit players getting in trouble with sports betting, the Lions still should have no issue moving the football against a Chiefs defense that ranked 22nd in total defense a season ago. Returning with a main offensive core that was fifth in the NFL in scoring and fourth in total yards, Detroit decided to get that much more dynamic on offense by drafting Alabama standout Jahmyr Gibbs who is a bonafide do-it-all back. Don't be alarmed if the Lions have their way on Thursday with a Chiefs defense that isn't all that on paper.

Why The Chiefs Could Cover The Spread

Furthermore, the legend of Patrick Mahomes continues. After a severe high-ankle sprain that occurred against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Divisional Round last year, Mahomes still carried the load all the way to a supreme Super Bowl victory over the Philadelphia Eagles basically on one leg. Obviously, a fully healthy Mahomes is preferred if you're a Chiefs fan, but is there truly anything that this man cannot do?

Obviously, the greatness of Patrick Mahomes will shine bright on Thursday fresh off of his second championship, but others will arguably need to step up especially if Kansas City is missing some of their top players. Clearly, the troubling news about Jones and Kelce are concerning, to say the least, but this isn't the first time KC has faced adversity. Prior to the start of the season a year ago, the departure of electric and explosive wideout Tyreek Hill was all anyone could talk about, and many expected the usual exhilarating offense of the Chiefs to not be the same without their top weapon. However, that couldn't have been further from the truth, as Kansas City still went on to be the top offense that the NFL has to offer in 2022.

While those betting against the Chiefs due to injuries should tread lightly, who are quick to forget that KC is nearly flawless in season openers. Within the Reid-Mahomes era, the Chiefs are a remarkable 4-1 against the spread in season openers and are averaging a stupendous 37.8 PPG over that span. Simply put, these are not numbers that should be suggested to bet against on Thursday.

Final Lions-Chiefs Prediction & Pick

No doubt about it, the Lions will be a popular betting pick to upset the Chiefs on Thursday night to kick off the NFL season, but I'm afraid the Chiefs are the defending champs for a reason. At the end of the day, it will be the Chiefs who out-coach the Lions and will be backed by a hysterical KC fan base that is rabid for more football.

Final Lions-Chiefs Prediction & Pick: Chiefs -5.5 (-105)