New York Jets (5-2 SU, 5-2 ATS) at Detroit Lions (2-5 SU, 6-1 ATS), Week 9, NFL, Ford Field, (Field Turf) Detroit Michigan, Sunday, November 7, 2010, 1:00 PM Eastern, TV:CBS – HD (Regional)
By Jeff Hochman of JHSportsline.com
Betting Odds: NYJ -4/Det +4
Over/Under Total: 42
Two teams heading in totally different directions, meet in this Week nine match-up at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. The New York Jets look like an Elite team with a 5-2 SU & ATS record. The Detroit Lions are heading for another high draft pick, but this team is moving in the right direction. The Lions are one of my Top 5 NFL teams to “play on” this season and they are making me look good with a 6-1 ATS record.
The New York Jets were shutout at home by the crazy score of 9-0 against Green Bay, as 6-point home chalk. Mason Crosby kicked three field goals for Green Bay, and that was all the Packers needed as they held the Jets off the scoreboard. The Jets are not happy aboutthe way they played with two weeks to prepare.
“I wish we could play it again, do it over,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “But there are no do-overs in this league.”
Even the players know it.
“It felt embarrassing to be shut out at home,” right tackle Damien Woody said. “Our personnel and our coaching staff is too good for us to be shut out at home.”
With two weeks to prepare, the Detroit Lions defeated Washington 37-25, as 2.5-point home favorites. Matthew Stafford threw four touchdown passes, including the go-ahead 10-yarder to Calvin Johnson with 3:12 left, and Ndamukong Suh helped the Lions score nine more points in a 14-second span. Donovan was benched for the two-minute offense in favor of Rex Grossman. Not a smart move! Grossman fumbled on his first play, Suh scooped up the football and returned it 17 yards for a touchdown. The No. 2 pick in this year’s draft had two sacks in a three-play span.
This will be a very interesting matchup as the Jets bring in the better defense while the Lions have the better offense. The Jets are a run first, pass second team, while the Lions are the exact opposite. Detroit passes for 250 yards per game and the Jets only throw for 184 per game. On the ground is a much different story. The Jets have a massive offensive line and are racking up 153 rushing yards per game. The Lions have a better offensive line than most people think and have been solid in pass protection. If the Lions tried to run the ball more, they would probably average more than 82 yards per game.
The Jets are only allowing 88.7 yards rushing per game, so look for the Lions to pass early and often. The Jets can be passed on if teamspick up the blitz. I believe the Lions will be prepared for the multiple blitz packages that the Jets like to employ.
The big matchup in this contest will be Darrelle Revis going up against Calvin Johnson. If Revis isn’t physical with Johnson at the line of scrimmage, than the Lions passing attack will be successful against the blitz happy Jets. LaDainian Tomlinson has been absolutely dynamic for the Jets coming out of the backfield with Shonn Greene. This two-headed monster has done a terrific job all season long and will look to exploit a Lions’ run defense that allows 130 rushing yards per game.
The Jets and Lions have only played four times since 1997. Each team has two wins with the most recent coming in 2006, a 31-24 triumph by the Jets, as 4-point home favorites.
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The Lions blitzed more often than not in last week’s victory. All season they had relied on their front four to provide pressure on the quarterback.Last Sunday, they mixed in more blitz packages than they had all season. Also, Defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham created schemes up front that bewildered the Redskins. The Lions moved their defensive linemen around throughout the game, at times having one or more standing up at the line of scrimmage. They were able to create and exploit any mismatch they wanted. The Jets will be facing a much improved defense from what the Lions have shown so far.
This one could be a high-scoring game. The total has gone OVER in 5 of the NY Jets last 6 games. The total has gone OVER in 5 of Detroit’s last 6 games. The Jets are 14-8 SU and 14-6-2 ATS vs. NFC North division foes. The Lions are 1-33 SU and 15-17 ATS as an Underdog. Trends are for your info only. I don’t use trends to handicap.
Jeff’s Pick to Cover the Point Spread: Detroit Lions +4 & Over 42
Mark Sanchez has a career QB rating of 55.9 in all Dome games. This will be his first dome game start this season. Look for Sanchez to improve on that rating with another year under his belt. Both offenses will be able to score points. I like the Lions and Over!