We're a few days out from one of the biggest games of Week 15, and it feels like the Detroit Lions are about to get their best test of their Super Bowl contending status yet.
While we believed that previous games against the Kansas City Chiefs or Philadelphia Eagles could've been benchmarks for the Lions in that respect, it's really their next game against the Los Angeles Rams that should show fans whether this team is built for a postseason battle against the NFC, and one in the Super Bowl. That's, of course, if they even get to the playoffs.
NFL writer Sayre Bedinger wrote of the huge matchup for NFL Spin Zone that, despite the similarities between these two offenses and both teams' ability to break a game open with their defense, the Rams have the obvious leg up in the contest.
"As good as the Lions are, and as good as they have been, they look completely overmatched in a situation like this. They are going to need another legacy game from Jahmyr Gibbs to pull off an upset, which would be significant, according to the oddsmakers. The Rams are hefty 5.5-point home favorites this week."
Bedinger's final score prediction for this game somewhat reflects those odds: 34-32, Rams.
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While it's fair to assume that Los Angeles has the leg-up in this contest, especially as they're battling it out for the 1 seed in the NFC as opposed to being on the outside looking in as the Lions are this week, their offenses are a lot closer than people realize.
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Detroit gets their work done on the ground behind Gibbs, while the Rams are getting an MVP caliber season out of Matthew Stafford and his receiving corp led by Puka Nacua. A healthier Amon-Ra St. Brown as well as the refound chemistry between Goff and Jameson Williams could match up with that corp well, although, it all depends on how clean the Lions' offensive line can keep Goff.
We're likely to see lessened confidence in the Lions as we approach this game as they're on the road, facing down the likely best team in the NFL, and will be freshly coming off Brian Branch's injury from their Week 14 win against the Dallas Cowboys. But, these two teams are a ton closer in talent than these predictions, and odds, would like to suggest.