After an impressive 35-14 win over the New York Giants in week one, the Lions (1-0-0) embark on their first road trip of the 2014 season when they take on the Carolina Panthers (1-0-0) who are coming off a week one win of their own.
Last week Lions QB Matthew Stafford looked very sharp going 22/32 for 346 yards and two touchdowns to Calvin Johnson who once again looked like a man among boys. In addition to the two TD’s, Megatron also racked up 164 total yards. The Detroit defense was pretty stellar holding the Giants to 197 total yards including two sacks for a total of 19 yards lost.
Meanwhile Carolina is expected to get a boost this weekend as starting QB Cam Newton will return after sitting out last weeks opener against Tampa Bay with a rib injury. In fact last weeks game was the first Newton missed for the Panthers since being drafted by the team back in 2011.
Kickoff: 1PM ET
Location: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
Kickoff Forecast: 69 degrees and partly sunny. Winds out of the NE at 7 mph. Chance or rain is 4 percent.
Tailgate Forecast: Sunny and 75 degrees. Winds out of the ESE at 10 mph. Chance of rain is zero percent.
Spread: Lions +2.5, T:44.0
TV: FOX
Radio: 97.1FM The Ticket (click for affiliates)
Follow: Follow the game on our Facebook and Twitter pages.
Last Meeting with the Panthers
The Lions defeated the Panthers 49-35 from Ford Field on November 20th, 2011. Carolina was able to take an early 10-0 lead after the first half and a 27-14 lead into halftime. However Detroit was able to force Cam Netwon into throwing four interceptions which helped propel the Lions to 35 second half points en route to the win.
Why the Lions will win
Matthew Stafford continues to impress in the pocket
A lot of Matthew Stafford’s success last week came looking incredibly good working in the pocket. Like most starting quarterbacks in the NFL if you give them time they’ll more than likely make you pay downfield. However if Stafford can make his own time with another strong week he’s going to have plenty of opportunity to dissect that Carolina secondary.
Making Cam Newton one-dimensional
Last week the Lions did an extremely good job putting tons of pressure on Eli Manning forcing him to roll out and scramble something he isn’t particularly good at. This week going up against Cam Newton the Lions will be taking on a multi-dimensional QB that can make you pay on the ground with his legs or through the air with his arm. If the Lions can once again put pressure on the QB and perhaps make Newton more one-dimensional it would greatly help that already depleted Detroit secondary.
The ground game gets going
The Lions’ biggest perceived strength this season is their ability to spread the ball out. We kinda saw that spread last week against the Giants however New York was able to keep the Lions to just 76 total yards on the ground. Still despite that the Lions accumulated 341 total passing yards which really ended up being a huge difference maker. Carolina is a much better team than the Giants and if Detroit is going to get out of Charlotte with a win they’ll definitely need to be more effective with a balanced offensive attack starting on the ground.
Why the Lions will lose
They beat themselves with penalties
Monday night the Lions looked very 2013ish racking up 8 penalties for 85 total yards. I guess the positive out of that though was most of those penalties happened in the first half and Detroit looked like a much more disciplined team coming out of the break. Still the Lions can ill-afford to make those same mistakes against Carolina on the road. If they have to compete with themselves as well as the Panthers we’re going to be looking at a 1-1 Lions team heading into Week 3.
The secondary gets exposed
An already thin secondary got thinner Monday when they lost Bill Bentley or the season with a torn ACL. Whether or not the secondary gets torched is going to a be a running theme the entire season with this Lions team and can most certainly contribute to a loss on a week-to-week basis.
The short week blues
I usually hate using the short week as an excuse but this early in the season it could be an issue for the Lions, especially when they have to go on the road.
Lions Players to Watch
Golden Tate – WR
Last week Tate has 6 receptions for 93 yards and was vital on third down situations. His production as well was extremely beneficial to Calvin’s 164 yard performance as well. If Tate has another big game Calvin will most certainly have a big one as well.
Ndamukong Suh – DT
Once again Suh was the target of a double team Monday night against the Giants. Heading into today’s game though how much fuel to the fire did Cam Newton add by referring to Suh as ‘Donkey Kong’? Probably not a whole lot but if the Lions are going to continue to show blitz more Suh will be a guy to watch when it comes to take away that extra lineman enabling easier access for the Lions pass rushers.
Reggie Bush and Joique Bell
In week one Bush and Bell rushed for just 15 and 51 yard respectively. Luckily the Lions where able to keep the passing game going despite but again 66 total yards on the ground from this duo isn’t going to cut it, not in today’s NFL. Look for these two to get the ball early and often to establish something on the ground from the get go.
Carolina Players to Watch
Cam Newton – QB
Newton can make you pay in multiple aspects whether it’s on the ground or through the air. However how are those ribs going to respond this week, especially against a more aggressive Lions pass rush?
Kelvin Benjamin – WR
Benjamin certainly didn’t look like a rookie last week catching six passes for 92 yards and a touchdown that many other receivers in the League couldn’t catch. Benjamin also made a good case that the Panthers are better off at wide out now than they were last season. Nonetheless it’s going to be interesting to see what he can do against the Lions secondary which isn’t as good as it was last Monday and not quite as talented as Tampa Bay is who had their trouble with Benjamin last weekend.
Greg Olson – TE
The Panthers in a way can run spread things out much like the Lions can and Greg Olson is a big reason why that can happen. In week one Olson had eight catches for 83 yards and a touchdown opening things up for Benjamin on the outside and down field. This may force the Lions to load the box opening up the middle for Olson to once again have another big day.
The Majors Detroit Staff Predictions
Adam Hernandez – @TMSNXAdam
I think there’s a couple of vital things working against the Lions heading into today’s match up with the Panthers. One is the short week which normally I wouldn’t think would be too big of a deal except when it happens this early in the season and when the they have to go on the road. Not to mention the bumps they took in the secondary will certainly set things back on defense against a Carolina team that could offer up a dose of the Lions’ own medicine.
Carolina 31, Detroit 24
Dorf
The Lions will have a difficult time emerging victorious today, especially if Cam Newton is truly one hundred percent. The Panthers offense isn’t good enough to butcher the Lions’ defense, but the Lions offense will be in for a major adjustment, going from facing one of the three worst defenses in football to one of the three best.
Carolina 24, Detroit 20
Downtown
The run game won’t look good but Stafford throws 3 touchdowns as well as his first pick. The Lions’ defense plays alright but the big stat is that Ansah and Suh will both have a sack on Cam.
Detroit 24, Carolina 21
John Czech
The Lions fall back to earth when they actually play a team that has a defense and Eli Manning isn’t at the helm.
Carolina 31, Detroit 24
Detroit Lions Injuries
Out: D. Carey (hamstring), L. Waddle (calf), C. Hilliard (foot), B. Bentley (torn ACL), K. Van Noy (sports hernia surgery)
Doubtful: J. Ihedigbo (knee, neck)
Questionable: None
Probable: B. Pettigrew (foot), R. Bush (knee),
Carolina Injuries
Out: K. Kugbila (back), M. Blanchard (undisclosed), K. Matthews (knee), K. Hughes (undisclosed),
Doubtful: None
Questionable: J. Williams (thigh), D. Williams (thigh), G. Williams (hip)
Probable: G. Olsen (non-injury related), G. Hardy (likes to beat women), C. Newton (ribs)