Category: Vegas Watch

Vegas Watch: Lions open Week 3 as 5 1/2 point underdogs at Cardinals

Examining the open betting odds for the Detroit Lions (0-2) Week 3 game at the Arizona Cardinals (2-0).

According to BetMGM, the Detroit Lions (0-2) open Week 3 of the 2020 season as five and a half point underdogs as they prepare to travel to the desert to face off with the Arizona Cardinals (2-0).

The Cardinals beat the defending NFC champion 49ers 24-20 in Week 1, then doubled up Washington 30-15 in Week 2, while the Lions lost a last-second game 27-23 to the Bears in Week 1, then got doubled-up themselves in Week 2, losing to the Packers 42-21.

The betting line seems a bit low considering both teams appear to be headed in opposite directions. In this week’s Touchdown Wire’s Power rankings, the Lions dropped to 29th, while the Cardinals climbed to 9th overall. Stay tuned to Lions Wire to see if there is movement ahead of Sunday.

BetMGM has a lot of various bet lines to wager on in this game, but here’s a look the basic concepts most would be interested in, including the Moneyline, points spread, and over/under.

Moneyline

Lions +215
Cardinals -250

Spread

Lions +5.5 -110
Cardinals -5.5 -110

Over/Under

Total points scored Over Under
54.5 -110 -110

There will also be a considerable amount of player prop bets added throughout the week, including touchdowns scorers, first player to score, quarterback passing props (yards, touchdowns, interceptions, attempts, completions, longest completion), running back props (rushing yards, attempts, rushing + receiving yards), and receiver props (receiving yards, receptions, longest reception).

[Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.]

Updated Vegas Watch: Lions now 6 point underdogs at Packers in Week 2

Updated Vegas Watch: Detroit Lions now 6 point underdogs at Green Bay Packers in Week 2

According to BetMGM, after opening up Week 2 as 5.5 point underdogs, the Detroit Lions (0-1) at Green Bay Bay Packers (1-0) line has moved to the Lions getting +6 points. The over/under line has also risen from 47.5 up to 50.5 points scored.

BetMGM has a lot of various bet lines to wager on in this game, but here’s a look the basic concepts most would be interested in, including the Moneyline, points spread, over/under, and total Lions points scored

Moneyline

Lions +225
Packers -278

Spread

Lions +6 -110
Packers -6 -110

Over/Under

Total points scored Over Under
50.5 -110 -110

Lions points scored

Lions points scored Over Under
19.5 -176 +135
20.5 -134 +105
21.5 -112 -115
22.5 -106 -121

There are also a considerable amount of player prop bets, including touchdowns scorers, first player to score, quarterback passing props (yards, touchdowns, interceptions, attempts, completions, longest completion), running back props (rushing yards, attempts, rushing + receiving yards), and receiver props (receiving yards, receptions, longest reception).

[Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.]

Vegas Watch: Lions open Week 2 as 5 1/2 point underdogs at Packers

Examining various betting lines at the beginning of Week 2 of the 2020 season as the Detroit Lions travel to Green Bay to face the Packers.

According to BetMGM, the Detroit Lions (0-1) open Week 2 of the 2020 season as 5.5-point underdogs as they prepare to travel to Green Bay to face the Packers (1-0).

The Lions are coming off yet another disappointing loss, this time to the Chicago Bears, while the Packers took down the Vikings 43-34 behind a big game from quarterback Aaron Rodgers and wide receiver Davante Adams — connecting on 14 receptions for 156-yards, and two touchdowns.

Both teams have starters injured for this matchup, with the Packers losing right guard Lane Taylor for the season, while three of the top four Lions corners are dealing with hamstring injuries.

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BetMGM has a lot of various bet lines to wager on in this game, but here’s a look the basic concepts most would be interested in, including the Moneyline, points spread, over/under, and total Lions points scored

Moneyline

Lions +205
Packers -250

Spread

Lions +5.5 -110
Packers -5.5 -110

Over/Under

Total points scored Over Under
47.5 -110 -110

Lions points scored

Lions points scored Over Under
19.5 -162 +125
20.5 -121 -106
21.5 100 -125
22.5 +105 -134

[Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.]

Lions remain definite longshots to win Super Bowl LV

The Lions are tied with the Jets and Raiders in the latest odds

A largely positive training camp and the annual preseason swigs of Honolulu blue Kool-aid have many Lions fans dreaming of a parade down Brush Street and finally seeing the Lombardi Trophy in the Detroit Lions’ possession.

If that is to happen, if the Lions are to indeed win Super Bowl LV next winter, it will pay out handsomely for those who put their money where their mouths are. The Lions remain decided longshots to capture the next NFL title, based on the latest release of Super Bowl winner odds.

At BetMGM, the Lions are in a pack of teams listed with +8000 odds, looking up at most of the rest of the league. Detroit sits with the Las Vegas Raiders and New York Jets. Only the Panthers, Football Team, Bengals, Dolphins, Giants and Jaguars have longer odds of winning Super Bowl LV.

The defending champion Kansas City Chiefs remain the favorite to repeat at +600, followed by the Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers and New Orleans Saints.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship, and there is no influence on news coverage.

D’Andre Swift rushing yards over/under level now set

Will Swift top the mark?

How many yards will Lions second-round rookie RB D’Andre Swift run for in his first season in Detroit? The early over/under projection from one sportsbook might be lower than you would expect.

At BetOnline, the bookmakers have set Swift’s total at 625 rushing yards.

That’s a figure that 10 rookie RBs have topped in the last two seasons, a group that includes 2018 Lions second-rounder, Kerryon Johnson. At 641 rushing yards in his rookie campaign, Johnson has the lowest total of the ten. He did accomplish that in just 10 games, however.

If you’re a believer in Swift and his potential, you can put your money where your mouth is. Fellow Georgia Bulldog RBs Sony Michel and Nick Chubb both topped the 625-yard mark as rookies in 2018 as part of shared backfields

Lions open as slight favorites over Bears in Week 1 odds

Lions open as slight favorites over Bears in Week 1 odds

The Detroit Lions did not land a single prime-time game on the 2020 NFL schedule. The Chicago Bears maxed out with four dates under the national spotlight.

Yet in the first week of the season, the lowly Lions are favored to beat those popular Bears. The Week 1 matchup in Ford Field in September features an opening line with the Lions favored by 1.5 points over the visiting Bears. That’s the line at BetMGM and most sportsbooks in the first few days after the schedule release.

Some of that might stem from the Bears’ uncertainty at quarterback. Nick Foles has the best odds to start ahead of returning incumbent Mitchell Trubisky. The Lions have no such QB issues with Matthew Stafford returning for his 12th season at the helm.

Maybe if the Lions win convincingly the NFL can kill the Bears hype machine…

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship, and there is no influence on news coverage.

Lions draw one of the easiest schedules based on 2020 win total odds

Warren Sharp based the projections on win total odds for 2020 instead of 2019 outcomes

It’s an easy exercise to look at the Detroit Lions schedule for the 2020 season and instantly look back at what happened with all the foes in 2019. But that’s not necessarily the best way to determine the true strength of schedule for the Lions this coming season.

Sports data analyst Warren Sharp looked forward, not back, to create his strength of schedule calculation. Instead of looking at wins in 2019, Sharp used the projected win totals from a conglomeration of various sportsbooks for each team in 2020.

That approach helps the Lions achieve one of the top 10 easiest schedules…on paper. Detroit’s slate comes in 8th overall and the 2nd-easiest in the entire NFC, after the division rival Chicago Bears.

Playing the NFC East and AFC South, projected with the NFC North as the weakest top-to-bottom divisions based on win total odds, helps the Lions. Of course, Detroit’s win total projection at most sportsbooks is either 6 or 6.5, so they help some of those teams also achieve high rankings on Sharp’s strength of schedule metric.

Matt Patricia faces longest odds to win NFL Coach of the Year award

Patricia is tied with Bill O’Brien and Doug Marrone for the longest odds

Detroit Lions coach Matt Patricia has won just nine games in his first two seasons at the helm. Patricia is back for a third season and the team’s outlook is growing in optimism, but the professional oddsmakers are not sold on Patricia leading a radical turnaround in 2020.

Patricia is tied for the longest odds to win the NFL Coach of the Year honors. At BetMGM, the Lions coach is tied with Houston’s Bill O’Brien and Jacksonville’s Doug Marrone at +5000 to win the honor.

Bill Belichick in New England has the best odds at +1000, followed by Mike McCarthy in Dallas and Mike Vrabel with the Titans.

Last year’s winner was John Harbaugh of the Ravens, who is in a large group of coaches with the 8th-best odds at +2000.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship, and there is no influence on news coverage.

D’Andre Swift has 2nd-best odds to win Offensive Rookie of the Year

Lions 2nd-round pick D’Andre Swift opens with the 2nd-best odds to win Offensive Rookie of the Year

D’Andre Swift might have fallen to the third pick of the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft, but the Lions running back is expected to make a huge impact. Swift opens with the second-best odds of any draftee to win the 2020 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

Swift trails only No. 1 overall pick Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals in the odds to win at BetMGM, released on Monday morning. At +850, he’s ahead of Tua Tagovailoa, CeeDee Lamb, Jerry Jeudy and all the other first-rounders taken on offense. That includes Clyde Edwards-Helaire, the only first-round running back selected.

Swift has a real opportunity to establish himself quickly with the Lions, given Kerryon Johnson’s injury issues and a newfound dedication to running the ball under offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell. The oddsmakers seem bullish on Swift making that pay off.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship, and there is no influence on news coverage.

 

Lions fans can forget about Miami trading up for Tua Tagovailoa

It doesn’t mean that a trade back for the Lions is dead. Not by any means. But it does mean that fans will need to recalibrate who that potential target might be for a team wanting to move up to Detroit’s pick. 

For months now the talk about “trading for Tua” involving the Detroit Lions moving out of the No. 3 spot in the 2020 NFL Draft has dominated the Lions conversation. Fans desperate to move back have pleaded for other teams to fall in love with Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa in order to foster a trade up to land the dynamic but durability-challenged passer.

It seems those wishes have been dashed on the rocky shoreline of a bitterly cold Lake St. Clair. Many national draft analysts have all but ruled out Tagovailoa as a top-5 pick.

“The big mystery continues to be the fate of Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa. I can’t find anyone who thinks Miami is taking him,” Breer writes for NBC Sports.

He is not alone. The bookmakers at BetMGM and other online wagering sites continue to have Justin Herbert with the best odds to be the second QB off the board. Presumably, that is with the Dolphins at the No. 5 overall pick. Joe Burrow and Chase Young are overwhelming favorites to be the first two picks, and neither the Lions at three nor the Giants at four appear to have any valid interest in selecting any first-round quarterbacks.

If Miami isn’t taking Tua, and no other teams believe Miami is taking him, there is no real point for the Chargers to trade up from No. 6 to No. 3. Any other team looking to make a move to land Tagovailoa is coming from farther back in the draft than Lions GM Bob Quinn has stated he’s comfortable falling.

It doesn’t mean that a trade back for the Lions is dead. Not by any means. But it does mean that fans will need to recalibrate who that potential target might be for a team wanting to move up to Detroit’s pick.

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