Detroit Lions vs. Arizona Cardinals first half open thread

The Detroit Lions have their hands full this Sunday as they host the 10-3 Arizona Cardinals. While the Lions can only play spoiler, the Cardinals are in the midst of the NFC playoff race. After losing to the Los Angeles Rams on Monday, their division lead is just a single game. So they would be wise not to slip up against the Lions.

Meanwhile, Detroit is shorthanded as they still work their way through the lastest COVID outbreak—on top of all the injuries they’ve been dealing with all year. On offense, the Lions will be without D’Andre Swift, T.J. Hockenson, and Jonah Jackson. Defensively, they’ll be missing Tracy Walker, Jerry Jacobs, and Julian Okwara.

Put it all together, and the Lions are nearly two-touchdown underdogs this week. But this team has been hard to count out completely with how competitive they’ve been in nearly every week.

Before we kick it off, why not catch up on some reading while you wait for kickoff? We’ve got a lot of it:

• Lions vs. Cardinals Bet of the Week
• Lions Week 15 Bold Prediction
• Lions vs. Cardinals expert picks
• Lions-Cardinals preview: On Paper
• 2 keys to a Lions victory over the Cardinals
• Week 15 rooting guide for the best Lions draft picks
• How to watch Lions vs. Cardinals
• Lions Week 15 comprehensive depth chart
• Week 15 inactives