NFL Teams Betting - Detroit Lions - NFC North

Prior to the NFL season, it was understood that the Lions hopes would hinge on the arm of quarterback Matthew Stafford. More than 5,000 passing yards later, the franchise earned its first playoff berth in more than 10 years and appears destined to make another run in 2014. A top-five offense returns, buoyed by the dynamic combination of Stafford and wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who proved virtually unstoppable last season. Defensively, the Lions are anchored by defensive tackles Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley, and newly re-signed middle linebacker Stephen Tulloch, a key piece the team hopes will help improve upon last years 23rd-ranked unit.

The Lions went from 0–16 to the playoffs in three seasons under a new regime. And the pieces are in place for Jim Schwartz’s team to take another step this season. Detroit returns 21 of 22 starters from a team that went 10–6 and looks like a dark horse Super Bowl contender in the NFC.

With a dynamic offense led by budding star quarterback Matthew Stafford and a defensive line built to create havoc around controversial star Ndamukong Suh, the Lions are thinking big again. But the big question is whether they can handle success after making the playoffs for the first time in a dozen years. And what once seemed like a laughable notion in Detroit — fighting complacency — is now one of the big challenges for Schwartz and his staff. Because for once the immediate help isn’t coming via the draft or free agency; it has to come from within.