On Sunday Night Football, the Detroit Lions will play their much-anticipated home playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams.
Last time out: Detroit defeated Minnesota 30–20 to end the regular season. Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown had a monster seven-catch, 144-yard performance. Jared Goff, the quarterback, passed for two touchdowns and 320 yards. The Lions leaned on Goff in a game where they managed just 70 yards on the ground.
Despite almost reaching 500 yards of total offense, the Vikings were unable to convert it into points. With four sacks and fifteen quarterback hits, the Lions demonstrated their effectiveness in pressing the quarterback. Minnesota was limited to just two of thirteen third down attempts, and they were unable to score on their one red zone possession. The Lions’ victory was ensured by late interceptions from C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Cam Sutton.
Both the Rams and the 49ers, their opponent, rested many of their starters because they had already guaranteed a postseason berth. The Rams prevailed in a close game, 21–20. Carson Wentz, who relieved quarterback Matthew Stafford, rushed for one touchdown and completed two passes for touchdowns. With 56 yards on 17 attempts, Wentz was the team’s top rusher, making frequent use of his legs.
Los Angeles shut out the opposition in the second half as a result of defensive halftime adjustments. San Francisco’s hopes of a comeback were dashed by a forced fumble by Desjuan Johnson and a recovery by Byron Young.
Comparatively, the Lions will be highlighted in primetime for the sixth time this season. With their lone defeat coming at Dallas in the contentious two-point conversion game, Detroit has gone 4-1 in their prior night games. Los Angeles is 1-0 and has only been featured twice in primetime.
Matchups: There’s a good chance this game on Sunday night will end in a shootout. The Rams rank seventh in the league for total offense and eighth for scoring offense. They will be facing a Detroit defense that is ranked 19th overall and 23rd in terms of points allowed per game. Detroit’s offense, which ranks third overall and fifth in scoring, will face Los Angeles’ defense, which is ranked 20th overall and 19th in points allowed.
In their most recent encounter, Goff’s comeback to Los Angeles resulted in a 28-19 loss. The Rams of 2021 eventually won the Super Bowl.
In the series as a whole, Los Angeles leads the Lions 45–41-1. There have only been three meetings between the two teams since the franchise relocated from St. Louis to Los Angeles, with the Rams winning two of those games.
Matchup odds: Detroit has a 53.9 percent chance of winning according to ESPN Analytics.