NFL Football Betting – Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions
The Green Bay Packers (1-0 SU & ATS) will try to build on the momentum from their first game of the season as they venture to the Motor City to take on the Detroit Lions (0-1 SU & ATS) in an NFC North game that is set to begin at 1 PM ET at Ford Field (artificial turf) in Detroit.
Sunday, September 14
BetUS NFL betting odds: GREEN BAY -3, Total 44.5
NOTABLE STAT: Aaron Rodgers completed 18 of 22 passes last week
KEY NFL FOOTBALL BETTING TREND: Packers have covered 10 of their last 13 games
In the BetUS NFL football betting odds, the Packers are listed as a three-point favorite, with a posted total of 44.5 points.
Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):
* GB has covered 10 of its last 13 games
* GB has won 19 of its last 23 games SU
* GB has played nine of its last ten games OVER the total
* GB has won and covered eight of its last ten road games
* GB has played four of its last five road games OVER the total
* DET has lost eight of its last nine games SU
* DET has covered one of its last nine games
* DET has played six of its last seven games OVER the total
Also…
* GB has won the last five meetings SU
* GB has covered the last four meetings
* DET has covered eight of the last 11 meetings as the home team
* GB has won five of the last seven meetings SU as the road team
* Six of the last eight meetings in Detroit have gone OVER the total
Okay, here they go, getting a little over-enthusiastic about Aaron Rodgers after watching the Packers’ first-time starting quarterback chase away the ghosts of Brett Favre (well, not really) by completing 18 of 22 passes against Minnesota.
Rodgers was undoubtedly very efficient, and he got some great help from his veteran receivers, as well as the special teams and Ryan Grant, who had a 57-yard run. But this is Rodgers’ first road start in the NFL, and there could be more advantageous places to go than Detroit, where Green Bay has covered on only three of its last eleven trips.
Of course, we couldn’t have been that crazy about the way Detroit’s defensive line dealt with Atlanta’s new go-to back, Michael Turner, who shredded them for 220 yards and took the Lions’ own running game out the contest early, as the Falcons jumped to a 21-0 lead. Kevin Smith, who drew a lot of praise from pundits around the league during the pre-season, had just 48 yards on 16 carries. Do not expect Rod Marinelli to abandon his philosophy of establishing the running game first.
But also know that the combination of Calvin Johnson (seven catches for 107 yards against Atlanta), Roy Williams, Shaun McDonald and Mike Furrey figure to test Green Bay’s secondary a heck of a lot more than Minnesota’s very limited crew of wideouts did last week. Jon Kitna may be more mistake-prone than many (nine INT’s in his last four games), but he also is capable of making more plays than Rodgers at this point in time. This veteran will stretch the field, and if Smith can get anything at all going on the ground, Detroit will, not surprisingly, be able to take advantage of a Packer defensive backfield that some believe may be in the process of slipping due to age.
Sure, we may be giving Detroit a little too much credit, but this is the NFL, where unexpected things often happen. We want to see what Rodgers can do over 60 minutes in a noisy, hostile environment before laying points on the road with him. As such, while it’s not a huge recommendation, we’ll nonetheless go with the home-standing Lions, the three-point underdog in the BetUS NFL football betting odds.
JAY’S PLAY: DETROIT +3 **
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If you don’t buy into our Lions pick of them keeping the game close try Ben Burns on for size this weekend.
***HUGE*** NFC TOTAL OF THE YEAR (78% TOTALS RUN!)
Well known for his over/under prowess, Ben Burns enters the weekend having gone a SIZZLING 7-2 his last nine football totals. This afternoon, he tests that 78% TOTALS RUN with his #1 NFC TOTAL OF THE YEAR. Ben’s 2007 NFC Total of the Year was a BIG WINNER but didn’t come until Oct. 21. This year’s BLOCKBUSTER comes EARLY!
