Detroit Lions open as three point underdogs to Atlanta Falcons
By Zac Snyder
The Detroit Lions’ Monday Night Football win over the New York Giants sets up a big week 3 showdown with the Atlanta Falcons, who will be road favorites.
Through two weeks of the 2017 NFL season, just three teams sit at 2-0 in the NFC. Two of those teams, the Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons, will meet in a big week three matchup at Ford Field on Sunday.
The Lions’ 2-0 start has been a pleasant surprise, but it comes with questions about just how good the Arizona Cardinals and New York Giants really are. Both have been recent playoff teams but neither has looked good through two weeks of play. The Lions have nothing to apologize for and have plenty they should feel very good about through two weeks, but their game against the Falcons sets up to be a big early-season measuring stick game.
According to the early betting line, the Lions will be slight underdogs as they open at +3 against the Falcons. That’s right where the Lions’ week two line closed after opening with the Giants as five point favorites.
Is spotting the Falcons three points enough? too much? just right? A Lions fan riding a wave of optimism might say it’s too much while the skeptic will say it should be an easy Falcons cover. Taking emotion out of it, the line looks either just right or too heavy in the Falcons favor.
FiveThirtyEight’s Elo ratings-based prediction system favors the Falcons by just one point. Jeff Sagarin’s NFL ratings like the Falcons over the Lions by just a hair more than one point.
However, it’s not unanimous among the computer rankings. The Massey ratings see a Falcons cover more likely with 3.5 point margin and 28-24 score prediction.
The meeting with the Falcons went down as a sure loss when playing the “schedule game” as soon as the schedule was released last April but now that the week of the game is here, it is looking like it will be a competitive game.
Next: What they're saying about Lions win over Giants
After watching the Lions through two weeks of play, what is your read on the week three game against the Falcons? Leave a comment below or connect with us on Twitter or Facebook.