Jameson Williams has been a bit of an afterthought in this Lions offense to start the season. So what does John Morton do during the bye week? He takes accountability for that and says we have to get a playmaker of this caliber involved. Who are we to argue in him getting touches against a familiar foe? Last year Jamo was targeted 8x in the regular season finale and came away with six receptions...here's to hoping for more of the same today.

This is soaring and may hit 9.5 or 10 before kickoff. The Lions are juggernauts at home, winning by 23.3 points per game this season. The Vikings are a step up in class from a playmaker standpoint, but JJ McCarthy is back coming off five games sidelined having previously completed 59% of his passes with 2 TD and 3 INT in the first two games of the season. Despite Minnesota’s weaponry with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, it’s going to be too much too consistently from Detroit for the visitors to stay in this game. Jared Goff and the Lions offensive have a clear edge, and the defense is beginning to gel again. Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery should both have a day.

It may be in the best interest long term for the Vikings to get QB JJ McCarthy on the field right away, but man what a draw for him in his first game back. This Detroit Lions team looks to be in playoff form right now and will make the Vikings offense look pedestrian to put it nicely.

We're going to double up on this game based on the Friday injury reports, which have both of Minnesota's starting tackles as questionable to play. If either one of them miss, J.J. McCarthy is going to have an awful time trying to deal with a quality pass rush that abused the Bucs' shorthanded line in Week 7, holding Baker Mayfield to just nine points despite the absences in Detroit's secondary. Kerby Joseph remains sidelined but Detroit has reinforcements back to help deal with Minnesota's excellent receivers if McCarthy can get the ball to them consistently. The Lions run game should also feast in the second half and limit Minnesota's offensive possessions in this matchup.

The Lions have been dominant at home this season, going 3-0 SU and ATS and winning each game in blowout fashion. This Detroit team is loaded and has its sights set on a Super Bowl run in January. J.J. McCarthy will be back at QB for Minnesota, and I expect him to be rusty and facing constant pressure from the likes of the $180 million-man Aidan Hutchinson. Play Detroit here.

The Lions are once again a public darling as a big favorite at home and, once again, I am perfectly fine backing them to cover said large number. The Vikings run defense is struggling this year, the Lions can run the ball as well as anyone with their two-headed monster of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, Jared Goff has a great track record versus Brian Flores and the Lions are getting several pieces from their secondary back against J.J. McCarthy making his first start in a good while.

Jahmyr Gibbs has played three home games this season, running for 94, 91 and 136 yards. He's facing a Vikings defense that allows 149.3 rushing yards on the road. While Minnesota's defense will be healthier coming off the bye, so will Lions left tackle Taylor Decker. Last season against the Vikings, Gibbs ran for 116 and 139 yards. Look for Detroit to be playing with the lead and for Gibbs to enough volume to blow past this number.

The Lions have won and covered the last five games against the Vikings, but this spread is 4.5 points higher than any of those games. J.J. McCarthy starts at quarterback, and he's had one good quarter of play this season. He's the major variable in this line and where it's at today. The Lions have covered the last nine meetings with the Vikings. They also have the sixth-ranked defense and the 10th-ranked offense, but they're third in scoring at 30.7 a game. The Vikings have averaged a 22-23 score this season. This bet is against McCarthy and on the Lions running game with Jared Goff as the puppet master. Lions to win.

J.J. McCarthy is expected to return to action in this game, but we have no idea if he can make the Vikings offense competitive in this matchup. He was terrible for seven of his eight quarters played prior to missing six weeks with a high ankle sprain, and now he returns against a Lions defense that should be more whole in the secondary than the unit that shut down the Bucs two weeks ago. The Vikings defense struggled to stop Kimani Vidal, so I don't like their chances against the Lions' star RB duo. This feels like a game the Lions should lead by double-digits by the third quarter, and I don't like McCarthy's chances of getting a backdoor cover.