Washington Redskins at Detroit Lions, Ford Field, Detroit, MI
Sunday, October 31, 2010, 1:00 pm EST, TV: FOX
Opening Line: Lions -1
Current Line: Lions -2.5
Opening Total: 44.5
Current Total: 45
Money Line: Lions -145 / Redskins +125
The Detroit Lions (1-5) return from their bye week with a healthy starting quarterback in Matthew Stafford while the Washington Redskins (4-3) visit an NFC North opponent for the second straight week after pulling off a 17-14 win at Chicago a week ago. The Lions (-2.5) will find themselves favored on the NFL point spreads for just the second time in 12 games on Sunday and face a Washington team that has seen each of its last three games decided by only a field goal.
The Redskins took advantage of four Jay Cutler interceptions to edge the Bears – all by cornerback DeAngelo Hall – including one that was returned 92 yards for the game-winning touchdown in the third quarter. Washington quarterback Donovan McNabb did not play particularly well in his return home to Chicago, throwing for 200 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, but running back Ryan Torain helped move the chains by posting his second consecutive 100-yard game with a career-high 125 on 21 carries.
Torain will look to exploit a Detroit run defense that has given up an average of 138.8 yards per game on the ground and seven rushing touchdowns. He faced a similar defense two weeks ago against Indianapolis and ran for 100 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-24 home loss.
The Lions could not stop Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw two weeks ago in a 28-20 road loss, as he totaled 133 yards on 19 carries while Brandon Jacobs added 35 yards on nine attempts and scored two touchdowns. However, Detroit was down to third-string quarterback Drew Stanton in that game and welcomes back Stafford for the first time since he exited in the first half of the season-opening 19-14 loss at Chicago with a shoulder injury.
Stafford posted his first career win against the Redskins last season, throwing for 241 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions in a 19-14 home victory. He will be facing a Washington secondary that has surrendered 292.1 passing yards per game and 10 touchdowns. Half of eight interceptions for the Redskins took place against Cutler and the Bears last week.
Despite a 1-5 straight-up mark, Detroit is 5-1 against the spread this season, covering each of the last three games. The OVER is 3-0 in the last three for the Lions due to the fact that they are averaging 30 points per game during that stretch. The same can’t be said for the Redskins, who have seen the UNDER cash in three of their last four games. They are 3-0-1 ATS in their last four.
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