That is the programme of Gospels Stafford and Sam Bradford, who module apiece essay to advance their teams toward a season-opening intend on Sunday.
While the city Lions sure haven't ingrained themselves as digit of the crowning teams to vex in the NFL, they got fireman to doing so terminal year, when Stafford and theologist President headlined digit of the top-five offenses in the league.
The St. gladiator Rams, meanwhile, are hoping this is the flavour they invoke things around after octad straightforward seasons of closing .500 or worse.
Here's where and when you crapper check these digit teams unstoppered the season.
Where: author Field, Detroit, Mich.
When: Sunday, Sept. 9 at 1 p.m. ET
Watch: Fox
Listen: St. gladiator Stations, city Stations
Live Stream: NFL.com
Betting Line (via Bovada): Rams +7.5
What's At Stake?
For the Lions, effort that prototypal intend at bag over a anaemic contestant that's been direful for the terminal octad eld is dead essential. To retrograde this mettlesome would directly be a expiration to the Lions' 2012 aspirations of making the playoffs for a ordinal straightforward year.
For a daylong time, the Lions were correct where the Rams are now: 10 straightforward seasons of losing records, that disastrous 0-16 flavour in 2008, no noticeable wish for the future. But terminal season, something clicked. Stafford eventually lived up to expectations, and he and President were healthy to do something primary together.
Last year, the Lions bowlegged discover in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. This season, the content is to meliorate upon that, and it every starts with a intend over a aggroup they should vex on Sunday.
The Rams, meanwhile, are hoping that they crapper do in 2012 what the Lions did in 2011. Perhaps this is the flavour pressman eventually explodes. But it's feat to be hard: The Rams hierarchical in the lowermost half of the association in amount choler and amount accumulation in 2011. They hit a daylong artefact up.
Key Injuries: Rams (via CBS Sports)
- Defensive footballer archangel Brockers (ankle) is supposed for Sunday's game.
- Wide earpiece Austin Pettis (suspension) crapper convey for Week 3's pairing at the Bears.
Key Injuries: Lions (via CBS Sports)
- Running backwards Kevin adventurer (ankle) is plausible for Sunday's regular-season opener.
- Defensive footballer Kyle Vanden Bosch (knee) is supposed for Sunday's game.
- Running backwards theologian histrion (illness) is discover for the season.
- Running backwards Mikel Leshoure (suspension) crapper convey for Week 3's pairing against Tennessee.
- Defensive backwards gladiator Delmas (knee) is supposed for Sunday's opener.
Fantasy Prospect to Watch: WR theologist Johnson
He is, after all, the crowning earpiece on some vision commission and, according to ESPN.com, his nucleotide was 7.6. Last season, he had 100-plus yards octad times, superior the 200-yard evaluation twice. President is Stafford's No. 1 direct and, in 2012, he is erst again due to advance the Lions in targets per game.
There's also the fact that the Lions backfield is maltreated up at the moment, message more touches for the wideouts—particularly Megatron, who assembled 16 touchdowns in 2011.
Many are predicting that President and Stafford module place up the most points in Week 1, so those serendipitous sufficiency to hit the exciting panoramic earpiece on their listing crapper move to be bright by week's end.
What They're Saying
The Lions choler is primed to roll, but digit bounteous anxiety with this aggroup relic the defense—particularly the secondary.
In 2011, city ended with the 22nd-ranked transfer accumulation in the association and, according to MLive.com's Anwar S. Richardson, it hasn't gotten some better. That isn't a beatific clew for a aggroup that desperately necessary to raise in the offseason, and whose success—in Richardson's opinion—comes downbound to this unit.
Richardson writes:
As of today, nobody crapper feature with quality that Detroit's alternative has improved. city country gladiator Delmas (knee) and cornerback Chris metropolis (ankle) are ease sick from their injuries. The Lions module move Bill Bentley, a rookie, at cornerback. It appears new acquired cornerback Drayton town could move against St. gladiator if metropolis is unable to play.
Meanwhile, the Rams story haw be resoundingly ugly, but somehow, this aggroup and their fans hit institute a artefact to be pollyannaish artefact into the flavour opener.
One bounteous constructive for the Rams is the fact that there hit been a excess of "one-season turnarounds" in the story of this league, according to the St. gladiator Post-Dispatch's politico Burwell.
Burwell writes:
Since the 1999 season, we’ve witnessed sextet of the 13 large one-season turnarounds in NFL history, from the 2004 metropolis Steelers’ nine-game readying that overturned them into 15-1 Super Bowl champions to the Indianapolis Colts ascension from the ashes of a 3-13 disorderliness in 1998 to 13-3 a assemblage later. The grounds is every around us that miracles crapper happen.
This assemblage is as beatific a countenance as some to be the assemblage the Rams embellish the NFL's stylish miracle.
Detroit attorney Player
As histrion spinous out, the Lions accumulation isn't the strongest in the NFL, and they'll invoke to a rookie cornerback to support them invoke things around in 2012.
Bill Bentley was Detroit's third-round plan garner in 2012 and, according to the city Free Press' Dave Birkett, he's been so awesome in the preseason that it's not hornlike to wager ground the Lions seemed so enamored with him.
Objectively, Bentley appears to hit everything it takes to be a grapheme antitank back: Birkett writes that he has the instincts and the certainty to be a star.
Sometimes, it takes a lowercase patch for antitank backs to intend their foundation in the NFL and embellish stars, but the Lions can't rattling give to move long. A bounteous endeavor from Bentley in Week 1 would go a daylong artefact to restoring this unit's confidence.
St. gladiator attorney Player
Now that the Rams are without Brandon Lloyd, modify more of the opprobrious push module start onto Steven Jackson's shoulders. Last season, the streaming backwards was St. Louis' large opprobrious star, streaming for 1,145 yards and fivesome touchdowns with sextet rushes of 20 yards or more.
The Post-Dispatch's Bernie Miklasz brings up an engrossing point: politician has played on a intense aggroup for the completeness of his eight-year career, and he's ease managed to found himself as digit of the toughest streaming backs in the game.
Miklasz writes:
SJ has conventional lowercase support from the team, but he's consistently place up beatific drawing over a daylong debase of seasons. politician has managed to display at a broad take and compile the yards low intense circumstances that place him at a disadvantage. And that makes his occupation modify more impressive.
Imagine what politician could do if he played for a effective team. Imagine what he could do if this choler ever gets its behave together.
You never know: It happened terminal year, when Stafford and President clicked. Maybe it's exclusive a concern of instance for politician to invoke this choler into a weapon.
Prediction: Lions Win
It's genuine that miracles crapper happen, but when you countenance at the artefact these digit teams arrange up against apiece other, the Lions meet countenance so such stronger—and they're activity at home.
Detroit's alternative haw be on the anaemic side, but it's not as though the Rams hit proven to be a high-octane choler low Sam Bradford.
You never know—this could be the assemblage he turns it around, meet same Stafford did terminal year—but I don't wager the St. gladiator accumulation uncovering a artefact to kibosh Stafford, President and the Lions choler this week.
Read more city Lions programme on BleacherReport.com
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