The Los Angeles Rams will travel to the Motor City to take on the Detroit Lions in this intriguing Sunday Night Football matchup. These teams met in the Wildcard last postseason, with the Lions winning by a final score of 24-23.
The Lions are currently favored by 3.5 points with a total set at 50.5, which is the highest week 1 total. It should come as no surprise that Vegas expects points in this one, both teams were top 10 scoring offenses in 2023.
We analyzed all of the player props available for this matchup and have identified our 4 best bets. From breakout candidate Jameson Williams to our favorite defensive prop, we've got SNF covered.
Kupp has scored in four of his six Week 1 matchups including each of the last two seasons if you take away his absence in 2023’s opener. Coming off an injury-riddled season, look for McVay to continue to slowly incorporate the aging star wideout in red zone schemes during this potentially high-scoring game against Detroit.
Kupp’s most recent game against Detroit came in their final game of the 2023 campaign where he caught just 5 balls for 27 yards. This is unacceptable for an offense of this caliber, so McVay will most likely look at those stats as a sign to get Kupp the ball in red zone situations, a place they struggled in the 2nd half of that playoff game.
While Kyren Williams is still the starter for this team, 228 carries should get shredded down to around 200 this season. With Blake Corum due to help carry the load off the workhorse breakout in 2023, a potential breakthrough opener is on tap for the National Champion. Corum will eat into Kyren’s 95 yards per game from last season and will look to take over some goal line opportunities.
In 2023, Williams led all RBs with 84% of his team’s snap share and remember - he hasn’t played more than 12 games in a season. All signs point towards Corum having a share of the rushing work this season and we should bank on that Week 1 as everyone tries to find their footing.
Jamo is going to be an X-factor for Jared Goff and company at some point this season. The question will remain - can he become a consistent X-factor? The Alabama product has not had that breakthrough game yet, but it will be coming this season. With this being said, Williams is a deep ball threat who hit this prop in 7 of 13 games in 2023 and is coming off a high note after producing a solid offseason while coming fresh off a 2 TD game against San Francisco in their tight Conference Championship loss. The keys to the WR2 role are within reach for Jameson Williams, who should catch at least one or two deep balls against a weak Rams secondary in this one.
As a rookie last season, Brian Branch was a key part of the Lions’ playoff and near Super Bowl push as a safety who could tackle and break up plays with his elite athleticism. Heading into the home rematch against Los Angeles, remember that Branch tends to play with a different energy at home, securing 8 TFL last season in 9 home games against just 2 TFL in 9 away games last season.
Branch also secured more tackles in fewer games during September of last season in comparison to games held towards the end of the season. A safety that can fly around and will need to fly around and make plays in order for Detroit to have a chance, Brian Branch is a solid bet to finish with the most tackles on this Lions secondary.