Team Profile
Detroit Lions
-
19.8% 3rdOff DVOA
-
25.9% 13thPassing DVOA
-
24.7% 1stRushing DVOA
-
-15.8% 3rdDef DVOA
-
-16.6% 3rdDef Passing DVOA
-
-14.3% 9thDef Rushing DVOA
2024 Team Stats
-
Points For31.6 2nd
-
Points Against19.0 8th
-
Yards Per Game367.0 7th
-
Yards Allowed Per Game345.0 20th
Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs rushed eight times for 25 yards and a touchdown and caught four passes for 48 yards in the NFC Wild Card win over the Los Angeles Rams. It was a solid performance for the rookie speedster, but his fantasy ceiling has proven to be much higher. Unfortunately, he's set to draw another tough matchup on Sunday against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense that surrendered the third-fewest fantasy points per game to running backs during the regular season. That said, Gibbs always has upside due to his explosiveness and pass-catching ability, meaning he should remain in consideration for GPP and cash game DFS contests. Ultimately, the 21-year-old has a boom-or-bust outlook in the second round of the NFL playoffs.
Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery rushed for over 1,000 yards and scored 13 touchdowns in the regular season, and he found the end zone in the Wild Card win over the Los Angeles Rams. However, a worrisome matchup with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense awaits in the NFC Divisional Round. In Week 6, Tampa Bay limited the Lions to just 40 rushing yards on 22 attempts. Although Montgomery suffered an injury and left that game early, he mustered only 14 yards on six rushes before exiting. The Buccaneers allowed the third-fewest fantasy points per game to running backs all season, meaning Montgomery will likely need multiple trips to the end zone to pay off in GPP DFS tournaments. He will likely have opportunities to score, but his overall ceiling is likely to take a hit in this matchup against a strong front seven.
Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff was excellent in the Wild Card win over his former team, the Los Angeles Rams. He completed 22 of his 27 passing attempts, threw a touchdown, and did not commit a turnover. On Sunday, he should be in for another efficient outing against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense that surrendered the eighth-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks during the regular season. The Buccaneers love to blitz, which could either affect Goff negatively or lead to busted coverage that he can exploit. He has a 300-yard, three-touchdown ceiling in this matchup, so he's an intriguing DFS option in single-game and full-slate contests.
Detroit Lions wide receiver Kalif Raymond (knee) was missing from the team's first practice of the week on Wednesday. Raymond's knee injury is improving, but he could still easily be held out of the Divisional Round playoff game on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers unless he's able to return to practice on Thursday or Friday. When healthy, the 29-year-old serves as the Lions' punt returner and in a depth receiver role, so he doesn't have much fantasy value to begin with. Raymond caught 35 passes during the regular season for only 489 yards and one touchdown on 44 targets. If he can return to practice later this week, he could draw a questionable tag for Sunday's game. Second-year pass-catcher Jameson Williams will have a bigger role again if Raymond misses another game.
Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell said that rookie tight end Sam LaPorta (knee) is "coming along" and making progress after hyperextending his knee and suffering a bone bruise in the Week 18 regular season finale. LaPorta was questionable going into the wild-card round game against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday night but ended up playing and caught three passes for 14 yards and his first postseason touchdown in the one-point win. The impressive rookie TE wasn't 100 percent in that game, but Campbell said LaPorta feels better than he did at this point last week, so that's encouraging for fantasy managers setting DFS lineups that want to use the 23-year-old in an excellent Divisional Round matchup against the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Unless he has a setback later this week, LaPorta should be ready to play and should be more involved. UPDATE: LaPorta practiced in full on Wednesday.