NFL Week 14 opening odds: Despite win, Lions 8-point dogs to Broncos

The Detroit Lions are coming off their first win of the season, having beaten the Minnesota Vikings on the last play of the game. It was a long time coming, seeing as Detroit’s previous three games had been decided by a total of five points and they had lost three games on the last play of the game already in 2021.

Meanwhile, the Lions’ upcoming opponent this week—the Denver Broncos—are coming off a somewhat embarrassing performance on Sunday Night Football. In the middle of the playoff hunt, the Broncos needed a win against their division rivals, the Kansas City Chiefs. But the game was never really all that close as the Chiefs walked away with a 22-9 victory.

But despite those results, the Vegas oddsmakers believe the Broncos should be heavily favored in the teams’ matchup this week in Denver. According to DraftKings Sportsbook, the Broncos are eight-point favorites over the Lions this Sunday. That’s the fifth highest line for all Week 14 games.

To be fair, the Broncos have far more on the line on Sunday. At 6-6, the Broncos are just a single game out of the final AFC Wild Card playoff spot. Meanwhile, the Lions are only playing spoiler at this point. Additionally, in series history, the Lions are just 2-4 against the Broncos in Denver.

Still, the line seems a bit high for this matchup. Each of Detroit’s last four games have been decided by three points or less, and while the Broncos have a 14-point win over the Cowboys and a 15-point win over the Chargers, they’ve also recently lost to the Eagles, Browns and Raiders.

But, hey, the Lions are 8-4 against the spread this year. So maybe Vegas is continuing to underestimate them.