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🏈 (Updated 6:57 pm) Monday Night Football: Raiders at Lions

PLUS: Betting Odds, Predictions, Week 9 Injury Report & 5 Big Questions

Author

Kevin Draft
October 30, 2023

Game Day Insights
Read Time: 4.6 mins

NFL Week 8 Monday Night Football

MONDAY, OCT. 30

In the Raiders' "Monday Night Football" matchup with the Lions in Detroit tonight, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is making his return from the back injury he suffered against the Patriots in Week 6.

The offense struggled mightily without him last week against the Bears, but the truth is it hasn't been good even when Garoppolo plays. They're averaging just 16 points per game and have been ineffective all season.

In order to turn things around, they need Garoppolo to operate at a much higher level. He has eight interceptions in just four-plus games of action, he's been unwilling to push the ball downfield and has often looked unsettled when navigating the pocket. That simply isn't going to cut it if this offense has any hope moving forward.


It’s almost game time. Let’s get it!


  1. Tonight’s Game: Raiders at Lions

  2. Injury Report (updated as of 6:57 pm)

  3. Inactive List (updated as of 6:57 pm)

  4. Week 8 Winners & Losers

  5. 5 Big Questions from Week 8

  6. Week 9 Early Injury Report

Raiders (3-4) vs. Lions (5-2)

The Take

Dan Campbell's Lions were served a healthy slice of humble pie last week. You could say the same for the Raiders, who suffered a blowout loss to rookie quarterback Tyson Bagent and the lowly Bears.

It's unclear if Jimmy Garoppolo will play as he deals with a back injury, and after watching Brian Hoyer lay an egg last week, I have to believe there's a possibility Aidan O’Connell starts the game under center.

Jimmy G, Hoyer or the rookie -- it won't matter.

Detroit is the better team on both sides of the ball. Plus, the Lions are averaging 31 points per game at home this season, while the Raiders have reached 20 points just once (a 21-17 win over New England in Week 6).

This has get-right game written all over it for Detroit.

Betting Odds Trend:

For those looking to place a wager on tonight’s game, here some odds trends:

  • Lions QB Jared Goff is at his best playing at home in the dome, averaging 7.8 yards per pass play this year. Under top-rated offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, PFF had QB Jared Goff as the best-graded quarterback in the NFL through six weeks until last week’s loss at Baltimore.

  • Detroit’s offensive line surrendered 2 sacks versus the Ravens after allowing only 4 in the first 6 games and they should get back on track this week. Raiders edge defender Maxx Crosby is responsible for a league-high 41% of his defense’s pressures but he should be slowed down by RT Penei Sewell, who leads the NFL in pass blocking efficiency.

  • Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs is averaging 1.21 yards per route run (9th) but he will be contained by a Las Vegas defense conceding just a 35% pass success rate to running backs (5th).

  • Jared Goff will look to the slot if Raiders starting nickelback Nate Hobbs remains out. WR Amon-Ra St. Brown has a 61% success rate (13th) and backup Amik Robertson is surrendering a 7.4% explosive pass rate, which ranks 39th out of 43 qualifying nickelbacks.

  • Las Vegas RT Jermaine Eluemunor has surrendered 5 sacks (2nd-most) and he is currently rotating with backup Thayer Munford. Eluemunor and Munford will struggle across from edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who has 42 pressures (2nd).

  • Detroit CB Cameron Sutton is allowing 0.96 yards per cover snap (20th) and he will limit WR Jakobi Meyers, who has a 59% success rate (15th). Garoppolo will look for All-Pro WR Davante Adams.

  • Lions first-round rookie LB Jack Campbell moved up the depth chart and played a season-high 90% of Detroit’s defensive snaps. Campbell allowed receptions on all four of his targets for 44 yards and a touchdown last week and Garoppolo can attack him with RB Josh Jacobs, who is gaining 1.57 yards per route run (4th).

Updated as of 6:57 pm ET

Raiders

Lions

Updated 6:57 pm ET

Raiders

  • Divine Deablo (LB)

  • Nate Hobbs (CB)

  • Kristian Wilkerson (WR)

  • Jakorian Bennett (CB)

  • Nesta Jade Silvera (DT)

  • Jimmy Garoppolo (QB)

  • Amari Burney (S)

Lions

  • David Montgomery (RB)

  • Isaiah Buggs (DT)

  • Steven Gilmore (CB)

Week 7

Week 8 was a wild one in the NFL on Sunday. Almost a half-dozen quarterbacks were replaced due to either injury or performance, the Dolphins rolled over the Patriots again, the Panthers got their first victory of the season, and Will Levis chucked four deep touchdowns in his first career game for the Titans.

And that doesn't even account for half of it.

Winner: Will Levis

The Titans turned to their second-round rookie in place of an injured Ryan Tannehill against the Falcons, and just like that, it's possible the starting job is Levis' to lose. The Kentucky product chucked deep shot after deep shot, unlocking DeAndre Hopkins as a downfield threat, en route to four touchdowns and the most promising win by Tennessee in a long time.

Loser: The Chiefs

Touchdown favorites in Denver two weeks after silencing Russell Wilson and Sean Payton in prime time, the reigning Super Bowl champions fell to the Broncos for the first time since Peyton Manning wore blue and orange. And it wasn't pretty, either, with Patrick Mahomes tossing two ugly picks. K.C. is still 6-2, but it's been harder than usual for the offense to move.

Winner: Seahawks

It's not that Seattle is cruising. It's just that the rest of the NFC West is falling apart. The 49ers have now dropped three straight and have some growing concerns at the most important position in sports (more on that below). And the Rams just got embarrassed by the Cowboys while losing Matthew Stafford to a throwing-hand injury.

Loser: Brock Purdy

The second-year phenom is quickly losing the "phenom" label for his crunch-time results, or lack thereof. While Purdy opened 2023 with the same poise that marked his improbable 2022 debut, he's suddenly building a reputation as a late-game turnover magnet, and his two picks against the Bengals were a big reason San Francisco's 5-3 after a 5-0 start.

Winner: Rashid Shaheed

The Saints may not inspire a ton of confidence with the ball in their hands, but this guy should. Any time Derek Carr has chucked it up in his direction, the second-year wideout has put a highlight on tape. Shaheed topped 150 yards on just three catches to help New Orleans past the Colts, and he's easily averaging more than 16 yards per reception early in his big-play career.

Losers: Vikings

When has a road win over the Packers felt so deflating for this group? Minnesota is definitely on the rise, now 4-4 after a third straight win Sunday. But all hope for a wild card push seemed to vanish upon news that Kirk Cousins suffered a likely Achilles tear in the victory. Where do they go from here? Lean into the rebuild? Desperately scramble for QB help? Such misfortune.

Winner: Bryce Young

The No. 1 pick has struggled to elevate the Panthers for much of 2023, and plenty of his early critics were looking forward to watching Texans rookie C.J. Stroud run away with a victory on Sunday. Instead, Young delivered veteran-level throws in a close game to give Carolina its first "W" of the season. That'll build confidence right there.

Loser: The Giants

You somehow manage to hold a late fourth-quarter lead against the Jets and their vaunted defense even after losing Tyrod Taylor to injury? Solid. You then proceed to forfeit said lead and lose to Zach Wilson in overtime? Not solid. Brian Daboll's squad was already ailing, barely beating the Commanders a week ago. But to squander a very winnable one this time out still hurts.

Winner: Sam Howell

Speaking of the NFC East, the Commanders may not be ready to contend. But they at least briefly scared the Eagles for the second time this season, and the second-year QB was once again chiefly responsible for it. On a day A.J. Brown dominated the stat sheet for Philly, Howell was just as lethal, approaching 400 yards and four scores against the Eagles' opportunistic "D."

Why did the Bears' defense regress after two good weeks?

All the goodwill Matt Eberflus' defense built up against the Vikings and Raiders quickly dissipated when the Bears allowed Justin Herbert to complete his first 15 passes and throw for 298 yards and three touchdowns. Chicago did not generate pressure on 30 of Herbert's 40 dropbacks (he completed 86.7% of throws in those situations) and missed countless tackles en route to allowing 202 yards after the catch and 58 yards after contact. The Bears allowed long drives (three TD drives of 92, 55 and 75 yards) and looked completely overmatched by an offense that went 7-of-12 on third down and found a workaround through the air when it couldn't run the ball.


Having ended the 16-game losing streak against the Chiefs with it, will coach Sean Payton lean more on the run game?

The Broncos are better, more efficient and can hang with the best the AFC has to offer if they muscle up and run the ball. There were times Sunday the Broncos controlled every bit of the tempo and the line of scrimmage with a methodical rushing attack that consistently bore first-down fruit. But then Payton will drift into a pass, pass, pass, punt series that is too often a rally killer. The Broncos' run game passes both the eye test as well as the advanced metrics -- they have been among the league's best in percentage of explosive runs and run block win rate all season -- and until somebody stops it they should lean on it.


How damaging is the Chief’s loss in the bigger picture?

It's not ideal. The Chiefs were the only AFC team with one loss entering Sunday but are now in a 6-2 group with the Dolphins, Jaguars and Ravens. It now feels like next week's game against Miami is a must-win for the Chiefs if they are going to claim the AFC's No. 1 seed at the end of the season.

Are the Ravens the best team in the AFC?

The Ravens made that argument by following up a blowout of the Lions with a road victory over the one-win Cardinals. It wasn't a blowout, but now the Ravens are tied with the Chiefs, Dolphins and Jaguars for the best record in the AFC at 6-2. Baltimore has the most favorable schedule for landing the top seed in the conference as it plays six of its last nine games at M&T Bank Stadium, where QB Lamar Jackson is 26-8 for his career. That's the third-best home mark since 2018 (minimum 10 starts) behind Patrick Mahomes (34-8) and Aaron Rodgers (33-8-1).

Why isn't the Cardinals' offense more consistent?

It's the question that plagues Arizona week in and week out, including Sunday. After an impressive, methodical opening drive, the Cardinals didn't score again until late in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Joshua Dobbs missed too many easy passes, throwing high on a few, and threw two interceptions, one costly. When the Cardinals' run game gets stagnant, as it did at times Sunday, the pass game can't make up for it and the entire offense looks like it's stuck in the mud.

Fantasy Football Week 9

After a few quiet weeks on the injury front, we saw some major injuries to fantasy football rosters this week. Many managers may be scouring the waiver wire for replacements, but as we enter the halfway point of the season, some of the options might be pretty scary - just in time for Halloween.

  1. QB Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings | Achilles Tear | Season-Ending

  2. TE Darren Waller, New York Giants | Hamstring | Projecting Week 14 Return

  3. QB Tyrod Taylor, New York Giants | Rib Injury | Projecting Week 12 Return

  4. QB Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh Steelers | Rib Injury | Projecting Week 10 Return

  5. QB Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams | Thumb | Projecting Week 10 Return

  6. WR Drake London, Atlanta Falcons | Groin | Projecting Week 10 Return

  7. WR Curtis Samuel, Washington Commanders | Toe Injury | Timeline TBD

  8. WR Kendrick Bourne, New England Patriots | Knee Injury | Season Ending

  9. WR Joshua Palmer, Los Angeles Chargers | Knee Injury | Projecting Week 10 Return