Odds Lions Beat Chargers in Week 10

Will Lions start off second half of season on winning note?

On Sunday, the Lions will have their hands full in their first taste of game action after the bye. 

They're set to travel to Los Angeles to take on Justin Herbert and the Chargers. The Chargers are winners of two in a row, and sit in second place in the AFC West (4-4).

Luckily for Dan Campbell's squad, it's getting healthy at the right time. On Tuesday, all 53 members of Detroit's active roster were seen on the practice field. This included offensive starters Frank Ragnow, David Montgomery and Jonah Jackson, all of whom had missed the Lions' Week 8 contest with the Raiders.

It bodes well for a Detroit rushing attack that accumulated a season-best 222 yards on the ground its last time out against Las Vegas. It came on the heels of a career-best performance from rookie back Jahmyr Gibbs, who amassed 152 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries. 

Montgomery and Gibbs, especially while running behind a healthy offensive line, have a chance to be one of the league's best running back duos the rest of the way this season.

Lions signal-caller Jared Goff, meanwhile, should be in store for a solid game against a L.A. defense that has been very lackluster against the pass. In fact, through eight games, Brandon Staley's defense has allowed the most passing yards in the NFL (2,288). It's also permitted the sixth-most passing yards per attempt (6.6).

Despite Sack Drought, Aidan Hutchinson Is Focused on Bigger Goals

Expect Detroit offensive coordinator Ben Johnson to take advantage of this weakness in the Chargers' defense early and often Sunday.

Now, on the opposite side of the ball, it will be paramount for Aidan Hutchinson & Co. to get in the face of Herbert as often as possible. It might be easier said than done for the Lions' pass-rushing unit, which sits tied for 17th in total sacks (21). 

Outside of Hutchinson, only two Detroit players have produced north of five QB hits and at least three sacks so far this season (linebacker Alex Anzalone and defensive tackle Alim McNeill).

That could spell trouble against Herbert, who has thrown for the 12th-most yards (2,026) and the ninth-most touchdowns (13) through the first nine weeks of the season. The fourth-year passer has also generated the fifth-best QBR (66.6).

Hutchinson, who hasn't recorded a sack since Week 5 against the Panthers, expressed this week that he and his teammates are ready to make a stretch run. 

"We have that in mind, so it's a little bit different than the usual around here. But, it's a good different," Hutchinson said of the Lions being focused on playing their best ball come January. "We feel in a point of control and when you can control your own destiny, things are different. And, I feel like the mindset over here is not just play 17 games and head to Hawaii. It's play 17 games and now the real season starts."

At this present juncture, I'll give Detroit a 52 percent chance to capture the Week 10 victory at SoFi Stadium.