Week 16, at Minnesota Vikings
A scheduling quirk has the Lions playing the division rival Vikings twice in the last three weeks of the season. As mentioned before Kirk Cousins is out for the season with a torn Achilles, and it'll be either rookie Jaren Hall or well-traveled veteran Josh Dobbs under center for them now.
Division games are a unique challenge, and can be weird. But it would take a whole lot of weird for the Vikings to beat the Lions.
Prediction: Lions 23, Vikings 14
Week 17, at Dallas Cowboys
The Lions will get a Saturday night primetime stage against the Cowboys on the night before New Year's Eve. Dallas is the aforementioned only team left on Detroit's schedule who currently has a winning record, and thus this game is easiest to mark in the loss column as the Lions make a push to the playoffs.
Prediction: Cowboys 27, Lions 20
Week 18, vs. Minnesota Vikings
This game may not be mean anything for the Lions' presumed playoff seed/having a home playoff game, and starters would then be rested for some or all of it. But there's a decent chance it does matter, and the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs is attainable with a win. On the other side, the Vikings' players may be waiting for their season to come to an end with one eye on the clock.
Prediction: Lions, 23, Vikings 14