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Despite defeating the two teams in last season’s Super Bowl in back-to-back weeks, the Dallas Cowboys are three-point underdogs for tonight’s Thursday Night Football matchup against the Detroit Lions.
Cowboys vs Lions Betting Predictions
All odds are courtesy of bet365, correct at the time of publishing, and subject to change.
- George Pickens 90+ Receiving Yards @ 29/20 with bet365
- Jahmyr Gibbs 80+ Rushing Yards @ 13/10 with bet365
- Over 53.5 Points @ 17/20 with bet365
Pickens Picking Apart Defenses - George Pickens 90+ Receiving Yards
Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens’ first season with the Dallas Cowboys has been a resounding success. Pickens has already set a career high with 1,142 receiving yards, even though the Cowboys have five games left this season.
In the 31-28 Thanksgiving win over the Cowboys, Pickens caught six passes on 13 targets (a career high) for 88 yards. In the preceding two games, against the Eagles and Raiders, he picked up 146 and 144 receiving yards, respectively.
Pickens was a limited participant in practice on Monday, as he continues to recover from calf and knee injuries, but they haven’t seemed to limit him in games. He is a big play threat who has quickly become QB Dak Prescott’s favorite target this season.
The Lions have allowed 251 passing yards and 7.9 passing yards per attempt over the last three games. Pickens could burn the Lions’ secondary tonight en route to 90+ receiving yards.
- Cowboys vs Lions Prediction 1: George Pickens 90+ Receiving Yards @ 29/20 with bet365
Big Game Gibbs - Jahmyr Gibbs 80+ Rushing Yardw
As expected, Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs came back down to earth last Thursday against a dominant Green Bay Packers run defense. Just a few days after gaining 215 yards on the ground against the Giants, Gibbs totaled 68 on 20 carries against the Packers.
While the Packers only concede 3.9 yards per opponent rush attempt, the Cowboys’ defense gives up 4.7 yards per opponent carry, which ranks 27th in the NFL this season.
Gibbs has alternated between having huge games and disappointing ones, for his standards, for the last six weeks. If the trend continues, he should be in line for 80+ rushing yards tonight.
With Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown nursing an ankle injury and TE Sam LaPorta potentially out for the season, the Lions’ running game becomes even more important. If Gibbs gets close to the 20 carries he had in Week 13, he shouldn’t have problems reaching 80 yards.
- Cowboys vs Lions Prediction 2: Jahmyr Gibbs 80+ Rushing Yards @ 13/10 with bet365
Elite Offenses, Shaky Defenses - Over 53.5 Points
Both the Cowboys and the Lions have top-three scoring offenses this season. Dallas has averaged 29.3 points per game this season, while the Lions are just behind them, with 29.2 PPG.
While the Cowboys have shown some defensive improvement since the trade deadline, neither defense is lights out. In fact, the Lions rank in the bottom three in the league in opponent yards per pass attempt over the last three games.
The Cowboys are also allowing the most third-down conversions in the league, along with the second-most points per game (28.5). However, the Lions have given up more points than the Cowboys over the last three.
Still, the over is 4-1 in the Lions’ last five games and 7-2 in the Cowboys’ last nine. With impressive offenses and questionable defenses on display, bet on over 53.5 points.
- Cowboys vs Lions Prediction 3: Over 53.5 Points @ 17/20 with bet365