Monday Night Football heads to Green Bay for an NFC North battle between the Packers and the Detroit Lions. Not only are we looking to see if Aaron Rodgers & Co. can bounce back from an atrocious Week 1 showing against the Saints, but we also need to see if the Lions are actually as resilient as they showed last week against the 49ers defense. Did San Francisco take their foot off the gas when they were up by 28 points and let the Lions creep back into the game or are the Lions buying into head coach Dan Campbell’s motivational speeches and taking on a “never say die” attitude? Based on how the 49ers defense looked against the Eagles on Sunday, it would seem to be more the former than the latter, but you know how these divisional games can get. The teams have split the last eight meetings evenly, but the Packers have won each of the last four. 

Now before we begin, please take a moment to understand what exactly you are getting yourself into by playing single-game Showdown Slates. We love to have some skin in the game, for sure, but these slates are, for all intents and purposes, a lottery ticket. Sure, there are times when the chalk hits and everyone shares in the prizes, but, more often than not, you need to hit on that random dart-throw that differentiates your lineup from that of the herd in order to claim the top prize. As a result, we encourage you to play responsibly and not over-invest. Stick to the GPP contests (single-entry preferred), don’t blow your whole bankroll, and understand that, unless you are a max-entry player, you should prioritize having fun.

OK. Lecture over. Let’s get to tonight’s action.

Detroit Lions at Green Bay Packers

Spread: Packers -12

O/U: 49

Weather: Partly-cloudy, low70’s with 15% chance of precipitation; winds blowing SSE at 13 mph

Notable Injuries:

Detroit Lions

D’Andre Swift, RB – groin (questionable)

Tyrell Williams, WR – concussion (out)

Kalif Raymond, WR – thigh (questionable)

Michael Brockers, DE – shoulder (questionable)

Trey Flowers, LB – shoulder (questionable)

Green Bay Packers

Josiah Deguara, TE – concussion (out)

DVOA Defensive Rankings

Lions

vs Pass: 30th 

vs Run: 30th 

Packers

vs Pass: 32nd 

vs Run: 21st 

**Please note that players not listed below are not necessarily a complete fade and any player listed can certainly be used as the MVP/Captain. These are merely suggestions for players to use when setting Showdown lineups.

MVP/Captain

Aaron Jones, RB GB – There is no way head coach Matt LaFleur doesn’t attack the Lions on the ground early and often, especially after the stinker of a game Aaron Rodgers put up last week. LaFleur gives his QB plenty of autonomy at the line, but he’s going to push the run heavily to open this game. Detroit gave up 131 rushing yards to the 49ers last week and they ranked 27th against the run last year. We expect a strong effort, worthy of a captain spot, here. 

Davante Adams, WR GB – He’s in-play as a captain/MVP each and every game. Rodgers shoots a ton of targets his way. Even in double-coverage last week, Adams saw seven targets. The Lions simply don’t have the horses to keep pace, especially with Jeffery Okudah on injured reserve. He’ll be chalky, for sure, but if you’re playing multiple lineups, you have to have him here for some of them.

Jared Goff, QB DET – The Lions are going to be playing from behind throughout this game which will put them into a much heavier passing attack, just like last week. In Week 1 during the Lions comeback against San Francisco, Goff threw for 338 yards and three touchdowns with just one interception. It doesn’t matter of his stats come from garbage-time. They still count. 

Mid-Tier

Aaron Rodgers, QB GB – You can certainly use Rodgers for your captain seat and many of his fans will as no one expects him to sit on his hands for a second week in a row. But there’s a potential power struggle still going on and you know LaFleur is going to want to run the ball heavy. This is one of those games where I could see Rodgers throwing for three easy touchdowns, but maybe not with the yardage upside you need to win one of these contests.

T.J. Hockenson, TE DET – He saw 10 targets in Week 1 which was the second-most on the team and with Tyrell Williams already declared out, you can expect Hockenson to see the bulk of the pass-catching, outside of the abundance of check-downs we can expect. He had 97 yards on eight catches and a touchdown last week, but before you pencil that in, be sure to expect the Packers will try to clamp down on him a little harder than the Niners did.

Robert Tonyan, TE GB – If Rodgers is having a solid game, you can expect Tonyan to be involved, especially once they get inside the red zone. Last week the Lions allowed just four catches on five targets for 78 yards to George Kittle, but it seems unlikely they will focus on Tonyan in the same way. Still, a trip to the end zone is worth its weight in gold when playing a Showdown slate.

Jamaal Williams, RB DET – It’s the ultimate revenge-game narrative as Williams said back in February that he wished he could just be a Packer for life, but the team let him walk as they remained more invested in A.J. Dillon. Williams recently told reporters that playing the Packers would be like seeing an ex-girlfriend while with your new one who is “feeding me good, taking me to dinners.” If setting multiple lineups, you may even want him in the captain’s seat for one.

D’Andre Swift, RB DET – You’ll have to check the reports leading up to game-time, but Swift has been having issues with that groin injury that plagued him towards the end of camp. If they say he’s 100-percent, then you have to love him for the check-downs in the passing game, but if they say he’s going to be limited, leave him out altogether.

Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR DET – With Tyrell Williams out and Kalif Raymond banged-up, the Lions are going to need a receiver to step up. The fourth-round pick out of USC has good speed and decent hands, so look for him to see an increase in opportunity this week. He’s right on the cusp of being just a dart-throw, but he’s the first Lions receiver I’d look at for tonight’s contests with his big-play upside and ability to pick up yards after the catch while working out of the slot.

Dart Throws

Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR GB – MVS actually led the team in targets last week, though he only managed to wrangle in three catches for 17 yards. This should be a much different story this week as the coverage is just not going to be as tight. Unless Rodgers freezes him out in favor of some of the other secondary targets, he should be worth a look as he does have big-play potential.

Randall Cobb, WR GB – One target last week? That’s it? I thought Rodgers demanded to have Cobb back in a Packers uniform. It certainly didn’t show last week, but perhaps Monday Night Football is a different story. It may take a couple of games before we see exactly how Cobb is going to be used by his quarterback, but if there was a game where he could get peppered with quick targets, this could be it.

AJ Dillon, RB GB – If the Packers are up big in the second half, perhaps they just feed Dillon a ton of carries and let him punish the Lions defensive line for a while. He only saw four carries in last week’s losing effort but he did have two targets, so while we don’t expect him to be active in the passing game, anything he gets in the catch department is a bonus. There is also the possibility of poaching some goal-line work, especially if Jones hits a big run and needs a breather.

Quintez Cephus, WR DET – He saw the most targets of any Lions wide receiver last week and he’s the only one who found his way into the end zone. He could also be the guy Jaire Alexander pays the most attention to, especially if Kalif Raymond is out. We don’t expect Alexander to shadow anyone so they’ll move Cephus around to free him up in coverage, but if he’s getting a lot of early attention, he’ll have a target on his back.

Trinity Benson, WR DET – He saw six targets last week, second-most among the receivers and with Williams out and Raymond questionable, he could end up lining up on the left side a bunch, opposite Kevin King. It’s not the greatest match-up, but it’s not Alexander and King grades out as a mediocre corner, at best.

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