The Lions flirted with a nice comeback against Philadelphia last week that led to an underdog cover. Now, they face a Commanders team that had issues but pulled through in Week 1 versus Jacksonville. Washington needs to take advantage of a favorable stretch of its schedule as it likely will go through a major slide at some point in the season. Take the Commanders as they get the necessary stops from their defense on the road.

The Lions covered the spread 11 times last season but weren’t favored in any game. They got the back-door cover in their Week 1 loss to Philadelphia with 14 unanswered fourth-quarter points. Detroit's ground game was good, but QB Jared Goff looked lazy. But now the Lions are favored. Commanders QB Carson Wentz made four TD passes in a win and cover against Jacksonville last week, with rookie WR Jahan Dotson hauling in two of them. Washington's receiving corps again will win the game. Take the Commanders to cover.

I thought both teams really competed well in Week 1. Both teams fought their way back into the game, with the Commanders being able to come all the way back to win it vs Jacksonville. The biggest matchup here is between the Lions defensive line vs the Commanders offensive front, and can Washington protect QB Carson Wentz throughout the game. On the other side, can Washington slow down the ground game of Detroit? Those two questions are where I have a hard time believing that Washington will have the answers.

Basic strategy suggests that in Week 2 you want to find 1-0 vs. 0-1 matchups and back the Week 1 loser, but that's built around Overreaction Week chatter putting too much stock into what they saw in one game. And in this matchup, the Lions are being treated like the 1-0 team after rallying back from a 17-point deficit in the fourth quarter to cover the number. They did something similar in Week 1 last year and failed to cover the following week. I still believe in the Lions, but I had both these teams even in Week 1 and again this week, and I don't think Detroit's home-field is worth 2.5 points. This line has moved too much at this point, and there's value on the Commanders.

Carson Wentz looked excellent for much of his Commanders debut. Yes, he got to take advantage of an awful Jaguars defense, but guess what? He gets another awful defense this week in the Lions, who look like they'll be one of the best Over plays on a week-to-week basis with their improving offense and still awful back-seven on defense. We're getting this at 49 here because I don't think this line is going to move down at any point, but you might still have 48.5s available in the market, and I'd encourage grabbing them before they disappear.