Chargers vs Lions Prediction: Take Detroit against the Spread

The primetime (21:00) fixture on Sunday night is from SoFi Stadium, where the Los Angeles Chargers host the Detroit Lions. Our NFL expert Liz Bhandari is back with her thoughts and predictions. 

The Los Angeles Chargers are going into a high-profile matchup with the Detroit Lions, one that might show what these two teams are made of moving into the second half of the season. A win for either of these teams might set the tone for the remainder of the year.

Let’s talk about the Los Angeles Chargers first. Now, what’s interesting is that their defense has really stepped up in the last few games now that they’ve cut ties with JC Jackson, the disgruntled cornerback. However, that really doesn’t tell the entire story.

The Chargers last two matchups were against the Chicago Bears and the New York Jets, and they limited them to a combined 19 points. While those are two very good performances, those are also two very bad offenses, with each of them missing their starting quarterbacks.

The Chargers have really lost every other major game that they’ve had heading into this point of the season. They were knocked down by the Kansas City Chiefs, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Miami Dolphins. If the Chargers want people to start taking them seriously as a team, they are going to have to start winning these massive games.

Justin Herbert has continuously put-up numbers though it’s not always translated to success in the win column. I’d like to see more out of the Chargers, and it might be difficult with Mike Williams and Joshua Palmer both missing this matchup. A lot of focus will fall towards Keenan Allen and Austin Ekeler, so expect a few other guys to make some plays if they want to win.

Looking at the Detroit Lions, they were humbled a little bit. Many people anticipated a strong season from them, though Super Bowl expectations should be downplayed for the time being. They have a similar situation to the Chargers, losing those big matchups so far. Detroit lost to the Seattle Seahawks and the Baltimore Ravens, with the latter crushing them by a score of 38-6.

Although, this is a bit nitpicky as the team did upset the Kansas City Chiefs on the road in the season opener and limited the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to only six points. But still, it does feel like this group needs to keep growing and developing through adversity, and the Chargers offense has a lot of weapons to stress them out.

Game odds

The Lions are favs on the moneyline at 8/13, with the home side at 13/10. The Chargers are a +2.5 underdog at Even money. 

Over 49.5 points – 10/11

It might even be likely that we see a high scoring type of shootout here in Detroit, one that’ll really see what these groups are made of. Luckily, Detroit has shown that they can handle business when they’re favored to win games. They easily handled the Atlanta Falcons, Buccaneers, Carolina Panthers, Las Vegas Raiders, and the Green Bay Packers.

Lions -2.5 Handicap – 5/6

I really like what the Lions are doing down here in Detroit, and a win here against the Chargers could show people that they really do feel like a new franchise in 2023. Another win puts them at 7-2, further pushing themselves apart from the rest of the division.