GREEN BAY PACKERS (10-0) at DETROIT LIONS (7-3)
Thanksgiving Day, 12:30 P.M. ET, FOX, Sirius (GB 92, Det 86), Westwood One Radio
Why Watch
For years, the first turkey of your Thanksgiving Day was the Detroit Lions in their annual Thanksgiving Day game. In the Digital Age, the Lions game was as relevant as Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, you know, a once an important tradition that faded to white noise for the holiday.
Everyone loves a Cinderella story and the Lions were certainly that. They raced off to a 5-0 start, then began losing to quality teams San Francisco, Atlanta and Chicago. Last Sunday, Detroit fell behind the then 2-7 Carolina Panthers 27-14 at the half. On the edge of the abyss, the Lions found something deep inside that can only help them in the playoffs—how to win no matter the chasm. Matthew Stafford threw five touchdown passes in the last two quarters to beat Carolina going away. That kind of thing sticks with a team.
What Stafford really did was to stare down defeat to save Thanksgiving Day for America.
Count on one thing. Neither team will look past the other on this nationally televised contest. The Lions certainly looked forward to this one. They trail the Packers by three games. A loss devastates their minuscule title hopes and helps those pesky Bears who have problems of their own.
What To Watch
Even if Peyton Manning were playing, the national debate would still be whether Aaron Rodgers is a better quarterback than Tom Brady. Rodgers is quite good and, if he is truly lucky, he will not be selected for the cover of Madden 13. It has become cliché that the NFL has become a passing league, but fans (and a few coaches) take it too far when they say it is a quarterback-centric game. That puts too much weight on one guy.
The true impact of becoming a passing league is the impact on defense. It’s true that defenses must stop the run, but it is more important that they disrupt the pass with turnovers. The Packers get it. Their defense may rank 30th in yards per game, but they top the chart in passes defended (83) and interceptions (19). Detroit is not far behind (60 and 15) and has three more sacks (27) than Green Bay (24).
Packers at Lions shapes up as a defensive battle with the game going to the most disruptive defense. Green Bay is favored by 7, but that only shows how little faith the betting public has in the Lions. This game will be much closer.
Who Will Win
Yes, the Lions can win this game, but losses to quality teams is evidence that they have a ways to go with the psychology of winning. The clock strikes midnight for Cinderella at 12:30 P.M. Green Bay.
