Detroit Lions (1-4) at New York Giants (3-2), 1 p.m. Sunday at New Meadowlands Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
By Ben Kelly - InReeseWeTrust.com 10/17/10
What happened last week?
Detroit earned its first win of the season last week beating the St. Louis Rams 44-6. The Lions’ 0-4 start was deceptive however, featuring close losses at Chicago, against Philadelphia, and at Green Bay. Has Detroit finally turned the corner? Unlikely, seeing as the Rams were the only team worse than Detroit last year and are starting rookie Sam Bradford at quarterback. Still, these aren’t your 0-16 Lions of 2008. Detroit’s core talent features young defensive and offensive skill players, not to mention second-string quarterback Shaun Hill, and we won’t know what Lions team we’re going to see from week to week. On Sunday, it will be the 1,085th day since Detroit has won a road game: Detroit’s last road win came against Chicago on October 28, 2007.
What to expect from the Lions:
Although Detroit has missed second year quarterback Matt Stafford since week one with a shoulder injury, the Lions have posted the sixth best passing attack under Shaun Hill at 250 yards per game. One fifth of those yards are earned by rookie tailback Jahvid Best, who is averaging 10.2 yards per catch. With star wide receiver Calvin Johnson dinged up but expected to play with a shoulder injury, Detroit’s passing and running attack will flow through Best and second year tight end Brandon Pettigrew, who has caught 25 passes the past four weeks and recorded his first touchdown of the season last week.
What to expect from the Giants:
Detroit is 28th against the run this year, allowing 4.8 yards per carry and 133.2 per game. Rams running backs gained 128 yards on 28 carries despite an ineffective day from Sam Bradford, who completed just fifty per cent of his passes with two for interceptions. With Eli Manning conducting the offense, the Giants should have no trouble running to create passing opportunities and passing to open running lanes. Expect either Ahmad Bradshaw or Brandon Jacobs to break the 100 yard mark and also either Steve Smith or Hakeem Nicks again to break 100 in receiving yardage.
Prediction:
The future looks bright in Detroit and its growing core of young offensive and defensive playmakers, including second year safety Louis Delmas in the secondary and Ndamukong Suh at tackle. Still, this team is 1-4 and inconsistent. The Giants shut down Matt Schaub and the NFL’s best running game on the road in Houston last week, and I do not foresee Shaun Hill or Jahvid Best accomplishing much more than that. They simply are not the same caliber players yet, and although confident after dismantling St. Louis, Detroit has yet to prove they can follow a strong performance with another, or even win back-to-back games, which they have not done since 2007. Giants win 38-17.
Week 5 prediction: 34-17 Giants (34-10 actual)
Season prediction record: 4-1
