Our staff makes their picks and predictions for the NFC Divisional Round game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Detroit Lions.
The Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers will face off at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday for a chance to head to the NFC Championship game. There, the San Francisco 49ers await after their thrilling win over the Green Bay Packers on Saturday night.
The Lions are hoping to reach their second NFC title game in franchise history, riding what has already been a historically good season for the team. The Buccaneers have largely been an afterthought this year, barely escaping the poor NFC South as the victors. However, they’ve parlayed that into a nice little streak here, winning six of their last seven games.
But the Lions have run into hot teams before and cooled them off considerably. Consider the Denver Broncos —who had won six of seven games before the Lions blew them out on a Saturday night. Or the Los Angeles Rams , who had won seven of eight before the Lions sent them packing last week.
Will the Lions be able to take down another streaking team, or is this where their magical season ends?
Here are our expert picks for Lions vs. Buccaneers:
Brandon Knapp (16-2): 27-17 Lions
Ryan Mathews (14-4): 35-24 Lions
Alex Reno (14-4): Lions win
Jerry Mallory (13-4): 27-17 Lions
Kellie Rowe (13-5): 31-28 Lions
Meko Scott (13-5): 27-13 Lions
Jeremy Reisman (13-5): 27-23 Lions (On Paper preview
)
Morgan Cannon (12-6): Lions 31-20
Erik Schlitt (12-6): Lions 28-23 (10 keys to victory
)
Kyle Yost (12-6): Lions 28-21
Hamza Baccouche (12-6): 28-23 Lions
John Whiticar (10-8): 33-27 Lions
Chris Perfett (0-0-18): I’m just happy to be along for the ride
Check out all of our divisional round picks right here .
Now it’s time for you all to make your predictions. In the poll below, pick the winner. Then scroll down to the comment section and share your score prediction!
GO LIONS!