The opening betting lines for Week 11 have been released and the Detroit Lions opening line is the highest it’s been in nearly 30 years.
The Detroit Lions (8-1) are back home for only the second time in the last six weeks, and they welcome in the Jacksonville Jaguars (2-8).
The Lions and Jaguars are teams on opposite sides of the football universe right now. While Detroit has the second-best record in the NFL, Jacksonville is tied for the worst record in football. The Lions have won their last seven games, while the Jaguars have lost their last three and have yet to win a road game this season.
Both teams are coming off close contests that were decided in the game’s final minute, but the Lions pulled off a game-winning 52-yard field goal to beat the Texans , while the Jaguars lost after Travon Walker commented a personal foul penalty, awarding the Vikings an unnecessary first down and the opportunity to run the clock out.
While the Jaguars have done a decent job of keeping games close, they face the possibility of not having quarterback Trevor Lawrence (AC joint sprain) again this week. And with replacement quarterback Mac Jones leading the Jaguars offense to just seven points this past week, the good folks over at FanDuel Sportsbook aren’t expecting them to put up much of a fight in Detroit. As a result, FanDuel has set the opening betting line at Lions -12.5 points.
That’s a significantly large number, and one not often associated with the Lions. In fact, the last time the Lions were favored by at least 12.5 points was in Week 16 of the 1995 season. In that game, the Lions—who were in the middle of their third consecutive season making the playoffs—were favored by 13 points over a brand new NFL expansion team that was in its first season in the NFL… the Jacksonville Jaguars.
While it’s been nearly three decades since the Lions have been favored by a spread this large, it’s worth pointing out that this is the second time this season that they have been favored by double-digit points, as they were 10.5-point favorites over the Tennessee Titans in Week 8 .