The Detroit Lions (1-0) showed why they were a trendy pick to win the NFC North with a 21-20 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1. They’ll look to improve to 2-0 when they take on the Seattle Seahawks (0-1), who were darlings last season but suffered a blowout 30-13 loss to the Rams in Week 1. Kickoff for Sunday’s Week 2 matchup between the two teams is set for 1 p.m. on FOX. The Lions enter play as 5.5-point favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook.
Seahawks vs. Lions, Week 2: Pick against the spread
As mentioned above, the Lions picked up a huge upset win over the Chiefs in Week 1 in a game they entered as underdogs. Jared Goff was solid under center (25-for-33 for 253 yards), Amon-Ra St. Brown continued to look like one of the best receivers in football (6 receptions, 71 yards, TD) and the Lions’ defense forced Patrick Mahomes to throw an interception. But at the same time, the Chiefs did their part to squander the loss away, as Kadarius Toney had three drops (one of which resulted in the interception), and Travis Kelce didn’t play, which limited the verticality of KC’s offense. There’s no denying the Lions are much better than last year, but there’s still a lot of additional context to consider when talking about their win.
And then there’s the Seahawks. Seattle was on the other end of that equation in Week 1, as the Seahawks laid an absolute egg against the Rams in a game that quickly became a boat race. Geno Smith averaged a measly 4.3 yards per pass, while Matt Stafford gashed the Seahawks defense for 334 yards on the other side. Kenneth Walker showed some fight on the ground (12 carries for 64 yards), but the Seahawks had to turn towards their ineffective passing game early and often due to the large deficit.
All that being said, I’m still going with the Seahawks. While they had a worse Week 1, they’ve got a veteran coach in Pete Carroll who will coach his team up after an embarrassing loss to a division opponent. The Lions are good, but they’re not good enough to be favored against a team that made the playoffs last season.