Detroit Lions at Los Angeles Chargers odds, picks and predictions

Payton Shanks | Staff Writer

The Detroit Lions (6-2) visit the Los Angeles Chargers (4-4) Sunday. Kickoff from SoFi Stadium is set for 4:05 p.m. ET (CBS). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's lines around the Lions vs. Chargers odds, and make our expert NFL picks and predictions.

The Lions, who had a bye last week, enter this matchup with a top-5 defense and top-2 offense in terms of yards per game. Detroit's last outing came against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 8, where the Lions came away with a much-needed 26-14 victory. QB Jared Goff has had a very good season, completing 68.2% (200 of 293) of his passes for 2,174 yards, 12 TDs, and 5 INTs.

Los Angeles has now picked up back-to-back wins after securing a 27-6 victory vs. the New York Jets on Monday Night Football in Week 9. The Chargers' defense has looked very good during the current win streak, only allowing 19 total points the last 2 weeks, while the offense has scored 27 or more in each of the victories.

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Lions at Chargers odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access Paste BN Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Friday at 11:35 a.m. ET.

Moneyline (ML): Lions -160 (bet $160 to win $100) | Chargers +135 (bet $100 to win $135)
Against the spread (ATS): Lions -3 (-110) | Chargers +3 (-110)
Over/Under (O/U): 48.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)

Lions at Chargers key injuries

Lions

DT Levi Onwuzurike (hip) questionable
WR Donovan Peoples-Jones (ribs) questionable
OT Dan Skipper (ribs) questionable
OG Halapoulivaati Vaitai (back) questionable

Chargers

LB Joey Bosa (illness) questionable
WR Joshua Palmer (knee) out

Lions at Chargers picks and predictions

Prediction

Lions 27, Chargers 21

Moneyline

BET LIONS (-160).

Detroit is the better team on both sides of the ball and should be able to pick up the win here. Los Angeles' defense has played very well over the last 2 weeks, but that is partially because it happened to be playing against 2 of the worst offenses in the NFL, and that trend won't continue to that extent here.

Against the spread

LEAN LIONS -3 (-110).

This is a game that will be competitive, but I don't see the Chargers keeping this one to within 3 points. The Lions have an offense that attacks via the ground and via the air while also having a defense that can shut opponents down, and the Chargers simply don't have those same threats. Detroit's offense gains an average of 390.6 yards per game, good for 2nd in the league, while its defense allows only 296.9 YPG (5th). Los Angeles' offense only gains 341.0 YPG (15th), while its defense allows a whopping 375.8 YPG (30th).

Over/Under

LEAN UNDER 48.5 (-110).

Both teams have very high-powered offenses that will likely put up 20 or more points, but I still expect this game to slightly miss the Over number of 48.5. Despite Los Angeles having a bad defense and a solid offense, all of its last 6 games have hit the Under. Detroit has a very good defense that will be able to force turnovers and get stops on this Chargers offense. Look for this game to be pretty high scoring but still miss the mark of hitting the Over.

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