Patriots-Lions Week 12 Predictions
BOSTON (CBS) -- The 98.5 The Sports Hub, WBZ-TV and WBZ NewsRadio 1030 sports teams make their predictions for Sunday's game between the Patriots and Lions at Gillette.
Scott Zolak, 98.5 The Sports Hub
The bottom line is that the Patriots have a secondary this year, and that is the biggest difference in this defense. The front compliments the secondary and they're able to cover.
I don't see this defense giving up more than 24 points to the Lions. It's going to be a great game, and I have the Patriots somewhere around 30 points. Detroit will come in and play well, but New England will come out on top.
Patriots 28, Detroit 20
Andy Gresh, 98.5 The Sports Hub
This is a difficult matchup, because I wonder how the Patriots will respond if Detroit decides to attack with both of their tight ends. Luckily it's the Lions, and they don't really do that.
I expect the Patriots to hold them to 20 points, unless they decide to ride the tight ends. Then it could be a different game, but again, it's Detroit and Jim Caldwell is their coach. Enough said.
Patriots 28, Lions 20
Jon Wallach, 98.5 The Sports Hub
The Patriots are coming off back-to-back impressive wins. The Lions may be 7-3, but they're not that impressive.
The Detroit defense is solid, but I think the Patriots defense can slow their offense down enough. I think they'll win fairly easily.
Patriots 24, Lions 10
Rob "Hardy" Poole, 98.5 The Sports Hub
I'm predicting no more than four safeties for these two teams. It will probably be lopsided; three safeties for the Lions and just one for the Patriots.
Patriots 16, Lions 6
Steve Burton, WBZ-TV Sports
Not only are the Patriots rolling, other teams are helping them out.
Oakland won their first game of the season Thursday night, beating the Kansas City Chiefs. Thank you Raiders!
The Patriots should have no problems with the Lions on Sunday. The Pats haven't lost a regular season home game since December 2012. The last time the Lions won in Foxboro was 1993.
Patriots 34, Lions 17
Dan Roche, WBZ-TV Sports
The Patriots play well at home and are rolling. This is a tough one for the Lions as it's wrapped around Arizona (a loss) last week and Green Bay (a very big one) next week. The only hiccup is how good the Detroit defense is at getting to the quarterback with just down linemen.
However, the Pats should get around that and win going away.
Patriots 41, Lions 17
Levan Reid, WBZ-TV Sports
I actually feel this game is going to be the toughest one the Pats will face during this six-game stretch. The main reason is the Lions defense is that good and they can cause a lot of problems.
The Detroit front seven is huge and athletic. They are led by Ndamukong Suh and his skill, size and speed is matched by maybe one other player in the league (Houston's J.J. Watt). He anchors a group that is the best in the NFL and they will give the Patriots a challenge.
The Lions are going to try and put a stop to Gronk, but I'm not sure that's ever going to happen. If they can get after Brady, then keeping Gronk out of the end zone will be a lot easier. The Patriots offensive line's blocking skills will be put to test against this group.
Then on offense, Detroit will bring the force that is Calvin Johnson to the field. When he's covered, he's open; he's maybe the best wide receiver the game has ever seen. "Megatron" makes the other players on that offense better; from quarterback to running back to the tight ends. They all benefit because Johnson can draw double and triple coverage.
But the Patriots have plenty going for them. They have Rob Gronkowski, which allows them to have match up problems on the defense and open up the middle of the field. They have enough smaller receivers that they will be able to spread the Lions out and keep them off balance. Plus, Brady may be the best at creating open spaces for his targets.
On defense, New England has seen a team like this before. They still may struggle with the tight ends that the Lions are going to bring to the table but they should be able to cover and slow down the wide receivers. The Pats have been good against the running game and that has to continue or forget about a victory.
Maybe this last item is the biggest. Of the last 101 road games, the Lions have won 23. That is just bad. Detroit plays horrible away from their dome. They are better than they were years ago, but not close to being good.
Patriots 27, Lions 14
Adam Kaufman, WBZ NewsRadio 1030
Expect a closer game than the blowouts we've seen lately (the Patriots have won their last three games by an average 24 points), but the Pats will beat the Lions on Sunday.
As remarkable as Detroit's defense is -- the best scoring defense (15.6 points per game), tops against the run (68.8 yards), fewest average yards allowed (290.3), etc. -- its offense won't be able to keep up, even if defensive coordinator Teryl Austin's group is able to hold Tom Brady and company in the 20's and not the 40's.
The Lions' have name-recognition on offense, but simply play better on paper. Matthew Stafford puts up a lot of yards, but he is mediocre at best in most quarterback categories (including completion percentage, TDs, INTs, and QB rating), All-Pro Calvin Johnson isn't fully healthy, and the Patriots have shut down much tougher foes than Golden Tate (Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffrey, Julius Thomas, and T.Y. Hilton, to name a few). As for the run-game, Joique Bell and Reggie Bush lead an "attack" that averages a paltry 79.8 yards a week, tied for 30th in the NFL.
Oh, and the Lions have only beaten the Jets, Vikings, and Falcons on the road this year. Make it seven straight for Bill Belichick's boys.
Tune in to Sunday's Patriots-Lions game on 98.5 The Sports Hub — the flagship station for the New England Patriots. Pregame coverage begins at 10am, with three full hours of postgame coverage following the game. On the TV side, tune in to Patriots GameDay at 11:30am on WBZ-TV and Patriots 5th Quarter following the game over on myTV38.
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