NFL Sunday Night Football Preview & Free Pick- Week 3

Sep 2015

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Denver Broncos at Detroit Lions

Pointspread: Denver -3

Total Line: 48

The Denver Broncos pay a visit to Ford Field this Sunday night for an inter-conference clash against the Detroit Lions. Kickoff is slated for 8:30 p.m. and BetOnline has listed the Broncos as three-point favorites for this nationally broadcast tilt on NBC. The NFL betting odds for the total have been set at 48.

The Broncos’ 2-0 start both straight-up and against the spread have been a mixed bag of solid defense and a return to form for a future Hall of Fame quarterback. On opening day against Baltimore, it was the defense that rose to the occasion to help secure a 19-13 victory as 4.5-point home favorites. Peyton Manning struggled in that game, but last Thursday against Kansas City he threw for 256 yards and three touchdowns to help lead Denver to a 31-24 victory as a three-point underdog on the road.

Denver comes into this game with a 4-2 record ATS in its last six games on the road and it is 17-6 SU in its last 23 road games.

Detroit has stumbled out of the gate to a 0-2 start both SU and ATS with road losses to San Diego and Minnesota. Against the Chargers it managed to put 28 points on the board, but that was not enough to cover as a 3.5-point underdog. Last Sunday in a NFC North tilt against Minnesota, the Lions fell 26-16 as 2.5-point underdogs as the offense had its issues keeping pace this time around.

The Vikings pounded quarterback Matthew Stafford all day long to the point where he remains questionable for Sunday night with bruised ribs. The Lions have really struggled to move the ball on the ground so without Stafford it could be another long night for this offense. Defensively, Detroit has had some major issues stopping both the run and the pass so far with an average of 416.5 total yards of offense allowed in two games.

The Lions have failed to cover in five of their last six games, but they do bring a SU five-game winning streak at home into this game.

Even if Stafford is ready to go on Sunday night, it would be hard to go against Denver as a three-point road favorite in this matchup. The Broncos still have one of the better defenses in the AFC and if Manning can play like he did against the Chiefs this should be an easy cover on the road for the Broncos.