Lions at Packers: Sunday Is the Day of Rest

To get you ready for week 17, FanHouse is previewing all 16 NFL games. Here is the Detroit Lions/Green Bay Packers preview.

2007 Records:

Detroit Lions 7-8 (3rd in NFC North)
Green Bay Packers 12-3 (1st in NFC North)

Last Game:

Lions 25, Chiefs 20
Bears 35, Packers 7

When the Lions have the ball: They'll surprise you by running the ball more than you'd expect. Mike Martz has already told T.J. Duckett to have an oxygen mask handy for the week since he'll be getting the ball plenty. In the cold conditions at Green Bay, passing the ball a ton won't be much of an option for the Lions who only attempted 16 passes last week. Perhaps it's a luxury to have a bruiser like Duckett available to carry the load.

When the Packers have the ball: Who knows? They've already locked up the second spot in the NFC playoffs, so they're likely to rest many of their starters. Brett Favre will start to keep his streak alive, but he probably won't play most of the game. The same can likely be said for Ryan Grant, Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, and many of the regulars on offense. What they do remains a mystery to me, though I'll guess they run the ball for the most part.

The Edge: The Packers are still favored in this one, but it's hard to say who gets the edge. Given the predicted weather conditions, I guess you have to give it to Green Bay since Detroit's bread and butter aerial attack will be taken away.

Keep an eye on:

Mike Martz: Will he stick to the gameplan of running the ball that he's publicized? Jon Kitna would probably like it so he doesn't have to worry about getting crushed standing back in the pocket with little protection. Furthermore, if the Lions can run the ball successfully, will that result in future changes in the way Martz calls plays?

Mike McCarthy: How long will he leave his starters out there? The outcome of this game weighs heavily on the answer to this question. If McCarthy calls off the dogs early, the Lions will be in it. If he lets his starters play more than a half, the Packers should win.