At the beginning of the week the betting line between the Oakland Raiders and Detroit Lions had the Lions as a one point favorite heading into the weekend, but has already jumped to 1.5, a strong indicator that people are putting their money on Detroit so far this week.
With all of the injury questions and two straight weeks of abysmal play on both sides of the ball, it's easy to see why many feel less than optimistic about the Raiders chances this week. Even though they may have been playing poorly, they now know their backs are against the wall if they want to make the playoffs, so hopefully they can ring out some competitive juices this weekend at the Coliseum.
Another factor is the return of the Lions dominate defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who comes back after serving his suspension for stomping on Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith during their loss to the Pack on Thanksgiving Day. Suh will be hungry for some Carson Palmer for sure, as will all of the Lions defense undoubtedly, but with Suh out there they definitely seem much scarier, if not actually being scarier.
Both these teams have their playoff hopes dangling by a thread and will likely be a tightly contested match. Bet wisely on this one, as even with Suh in the lineup the Lions can definitely be taken out by the Silver and Black.
For more on the Raiders, head over to Silver and Black Pride.