A pair of teams coming off impressive wins will do battle on the gridiron in Week 5 as Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions welcome Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers to town in a showdown in the Motor City.
Sportsbook opened the Lions as 3-point home chalk with a total of 43.5.
- The total has gone OVER in three of the Panthers’ last four games against the Lions.
- The Lions are 9-3 SU in their last 12 games in the early afternoon.
- The total has gone OVER in nine of the Panthers’ last 11 games on the road against teams with winning records.
The Lions continue to be underestimated in the eyes of oddsmakers, but they proved the doubters wrong in a 14-7 Week 4 triumph over the division rival Minnesota Vikings while easily covering as 3-point road dogs. Detroit’s offense is well known throughout the league, but the defense has taken a major leap in 2017, as the unit is allowing 17.5 points per game and 322.5 yards per game.
This contest marks the first time the Panthers have made the trip to Michigan since 2011 when they came out on top in a 49-35 shootout. It’s only the seventh meeting between the teams all-time, and the Panthers own a 5-2 SU record in that span.
For some reason, the Lions haven’t been getting the job done at the betting window in October in recent years. In Detroit’s last 10 October matchups, the Lions are a paltry 3-7 ATS.
The Panthers are fresh off a massive 33-30 victory over the reigning Super Bowl champion New England Patriots and have been fairly impressive at 3-1 SU. Cam Newton’s recent struggles have been well documented, but the 28-year-old resembled the player who took the Panthers to the Super Bowl in an MVP-winning 2015 campaign while showing no signs of an offseason shoulder surgery that wiped out his training camp and preseason.
Carolina had the NFL’s top defense entering Week 4 but were 27th in the league offensively, so if the defense can continue to get the job done and Newton takes more positive strides, the Panthers could be in for a bounce-back season in the wake of a 6-10 clunker in 2016.
Betting on Carolina as a road underdog has been an extremely profitable strategy of late. In the Panthers’ last nine when given the underdog label away from home, they’re a ridiculous 7-1-1 ATS.
Sportsbook Odds & Computer Pick
Oddsmakers at Sportsbook had the Detroit Lions as 2.5-point favorites in the game, while the betting total was sitting at 43.5.
NFL prediction models run by the computers at OddsShark picked a 23-21 result in favor of the Lions earlier in the week. Watch matchup reports and the picks page for any changes, due to injuries or suspensions this week. View the computer score prediction and who will win the pick on the moneyline for all upcoming NFL matchups here.
Carolina Panthers vs Detroit Lions Matchup
Team Betting Records & Power Rankings
The Detroit Lions sport a record of 3-1 and 3-1 ATS heading into this betting matchup, while the Carolina Panthers sit at 3-1 and 2-1-1 ATS on the season. The OVER/UNDER totals records are 2-2 for the Lions and 2-2 for the Panthers. Stay Informed: follow us on Twitter for odds specials, betting line moves and Detroit vs Carolina injuries news.
The OddsShark Power Rankings have the Detroit Lions at No. 17 and the Carolina Panthers at No. 25 heading into this contest.
Statistical Matchup
The game also pits Detroit's No. 10-ranked offense, averaging 24.75 PPG, against a Panthers defense that ranks No. 4 this week at 17.5 PPG. The Lions aerial game is averaging 202.75 yards per game, more than the Panthers secondary allows through the air, 194.75 YPG per game.
Defensively, the Carolina Panthers feature the league's No. 2-rated road run defense, allowing 65.5 yards per game. The Detroit Lions, meanwhile, rank No. 27 in rushing offense at home.
Recent Outings Betting Recap
In their last game, the Panthers got 3 passing scores out of Cam Newton en route to a 33-30 win over the Patriots on Sunday at Gillette Stadium.
In their last game, the Lions were Week 4 Sportsbooks, coming out on top of the Vikings by a score of 14-7.
- Carolina is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
- Carolina is 4-8 SU in its last 12 games on the road
- Carolina is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Detroit
- Carolina is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Detroit
- Detroit is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Detroit's last 15 games
- Detroit is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games at home
- Detroit is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games at home
Next Betting Matchups
Carolina home to Philadelphia, Thursday, October 12
Detroit at New Orleans, Sunday, October 15
