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Now that teams are entering Organized Team Activities with a pretty good understanding of where each roster stands, Vegas is starting to take notice and begin their preparation for 2019 NFL regular season betting lines.
We already know that Vegas has set the bar low for overall wins for the Detroit Lions. The current over/under stands at just 6.5 total wins for the season, and Lions fans don’t particularly agree with such low standards.
But how do the Lions match up to each of their opponents? CG Technology released their lines for every single NFL game from Week 1 to Week 16 (the final week is always excluded), and the outlook doesn’t look good for Detroit. Here’s a week-by-week breakdown:
Week 1: at Cardinals (Pick)
Week 2: vs. Chargers (Los Angeles by 4)
Week 3: at Eagles (Philadelphia by 8)
Week 4: vs. Chiefs (Kansas City by 7)
Week 6: at Packers (Green Bay by 7.5)
Week 7: vs. Vikings (Minnesota by 1.5)
Week 8: vs. Giants (Lions by 3)
Week 9: at Raiders (Oakland by 3)
Week 10: at Bears (Chicago by 8)
Week 11: vs. Cowboys (Dallas by 2.5)
Week 12: at Washington (Washington by 2)
Week 13: vs. Bears (Chicago by 3.5)
Week 14: at Vikings (Minnesota by 8)
Week 15: vs. Buccaneers (Lions by 2.5)
Week 16: at Broncos (Denver by 4.5)
Yep, the Lions are favored in just two games this year. And it’s probably safe to say that if the Week 17 line against the Packers was on the board, Green Bay would be favored in that game, too.
What’s even more surprising is how high some of these lines are. Detroit is at least a seven-point underdog in five games this year, including once at home (vs. Chiefs).
It’s not exactly a flattering look at the Lions, especially when you see them as underdogs or evens against a couple of bottom-tier teams last year (Broncos, Raiders, Cardinals).
Of course, these are all likely to change wildly as the season goes on. At this point, we only think we know anything about these teams, but undoubtedly our perceptions will change once the teams actually take the field. But for now, the Lions are very clearly seen as a bottom-tier team.