How to watch, what to watch for Lions vs. Cardinals in Week 3

If you’re looking for a matchup of teams heading in opposite directions, here you go. The Detroit Lions are taking on the Arizona Cardinals. The winless Lions are reeling after back-to-back losses where they had sizeable leads. The Cardinals couldn’t be more confident after wins over the San Francisco 49ers and Washington Football Team.

The Lions get some good news with Pro Bowl wideout Kenny Golladay reportedly set to return after missing the first two weeks. Golladay led the league in touchdown catches with 11 last season. Matthew Stafford has missed the deep threat of Golladay in the first two weeks of the season and the Lions QB has yet to throw a completion over 40 yards this year.

Kyler Murray’s much hyped dual-threat abilities have been on display in the Cards first two games. Murray ran for two touchdowns in the win over Washington. The passing game still feels like it has room to grow, and luckily the Lions might be the team to grow against. If the Cardinals are able to hold themselves under the 97 and 102 penalty yards they’ve cost themselves in the first two weeks, they’ll be in good shape.

TV Info

Date: Sunday, September 27
Time: 4:25 p.m. ET
Channel: FOX
Broadcast map

Notable Statistical rankings (Football Outsiders)

Lions: 24th vs. Pass, 32nd vs. Rush
Cardinals: 7th vs. Pass, 19th vs. Rush

DraftKings Sportsbook odds

Lions: +5.5, +195
Cardinals: -5.5, -245
Total: 54.5

Injury report

Lions

OUT: TE Hunter Bryant (hamstring), CB Desmond Trufant (hamstring)*

QUESTIONABLE: WR Kenny Golladay (hamstring), S C.J. Moore (calf), T Halapoulivaati Vaitai (foot)

Cardinals

OUT: C Mason Cole (hamstring), WR Christian Kirk (groin)

QUESTIONABLE: CB Dre Kirkpatrick (neck), DT Jordan Phillips (ankle)

Fantasy football start/sit advice

Lions

Matthew Stafford, Quarterback, $6,300

Starting Stafford is always going to be a risky move. Given the offensive power of the Cardinals, Stafford will be keen to air it out like usual. The difficulty comes in the efficiency. Kenny Golladay’s assumed return should be enough to fuel a decent enough week from Stafford.

Kenny Golladay, Wide Receiver, $6,200

Sitting Golladay in his first week back might be the wise move. But, there’s little doubt that Stafford has missed his deep threat and red zone target. As long as he gets in a full practice by Friday, he should be safe to start.

Cardinals

Kenyan Drake, Running Back, $6,000

Already averaging 4.1 yards-per-carry this season, Drake’s productivity should only go up the more scared teams are of Kyler Murray. As the Cardinals offense learns more about itself, immature defenses like the Lions will lag behind. Expect another solid game out of Drake.

Larry Fitzgerald, Wide Receiver, $4,600

The Lions are going to make every attempt in the world at stopping DeAndre Hopkins. They’ll likely fail and Hopkins will dominate, but the emphasis Matt Patricia enjoys placing on star receivers means the Cards number two in Fitzgerald should be open for some decent action.