The Lions could not have a tougher challenge to start the 2023 season.
Walking out of Arrowhead Stadium with a win is exceedingly rare these days, but do the Lions have enough talent to make it happen?
With the season closing in, let’s take a deep dive into Lions vs. Chiefs, giving you all the necessary gameday information, offseason analysis for both teams and a final prediction for who scores the first win of the new season.
Lions vs. Chiefs: What You Need to Know
When: Thursday, Sept 7th, 2023
Where: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City
Stream Info: Streaming on NBC
Odds: Chiefs -6.5, O/U 54.5 (via DraftKings)
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Offseason Moves
Detroit: The Lions certainly wasted no expense in improving their secondary this offseason. With Cam Sutton (3 year – $33mil), Emmanuel Moseley (1 year – $6mil), and C.J. Gardner-Johnson (1 year – $8mil), Detroit added three starter-level DBs in free agency. And that’s not even mentioning safety Brian Branch out of Alabama, one of the steals of the draft at pick 45.
With Jamaal Williams and D’Andre Swift gone in the run game, Detroit replaced them with an arguably better one-two punch in David Montgomery (free agent acquisition from Chicago) and Jahmyr Gibbs (14th pick out of Georgia). Jack Campbell at pick 17 out of Iowa also has to be mentioned here and is just the type of sideline-to-sideline LB this team needs.
Kansas City: The Chiefs had some tough losses this offseason, but still made the right moves to build a quality roster around Patrick Mahomes. Losing 4x pro-bowl tackle Orlando Brown Jr. to the Bengals is a big hit to their offseason line, but they spent the money anyway on Jaguars lineman Jawaan Taylor who, while underrated isn’t on the same level as Brown.
Kansas City also made some savvy moves to bolster their pass rush after cutting Frank Clark, drafting reigning Big 12 DPOY Felix Anudike-Uzomah in the first round and snagging intriguing edge rusher BJ Thompson out of Stephen F. Austin in the fifth. JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman are both out the door, but Richie James from the Giants and second-round-pick Rashee Rice out of SMU are slept-on replacements who could thrive under Mahomes.
X-Factors
Which Secondary Will Step Up?
Possessing two of the poorer DB units in the league last season, this game might just come down to which group has improved the most. Kansas City brings back basically the same group, focusing on developing the young talent already on the team, most notably last year’s first-round pick Trent McDuffie.
The Lions opted to splash the cash to improve their DB room, bringing in multiple seasoned NFL starters to their stacked roster. Going against two potent passing offenses, any advantage in pass coverage could be the difference-maker.
Do the Chiefs Have Enough Weapons?
Patrick Mahomes is the type of quarterback who can make it work with basically anyone, but this is a very unproven receiver room he’s working with outside of Travis Kelce. Kadarious Toney and Skyy Moore were both more gadget players than serious cogs in the offense. Marquez Valdes-Scantling is a solid deep threat but far from a WR1, and Rashee Rice, while dripping with potential, hasn’t even played an NFL snap. If the Chiefs want to repeat last year’s success, someone will have to step up.
TL;DR (too long didn’t read)
- This is going to be a high-scoring affair between two of last season’s best offenses. The Chiefs might have a wide receiver room filled with question marks, but they still have the reigning MVP at the helm who can go off on any given night. Detroit brings back all the key pieces in the passing game while upgrading their running room.
- It might come back to which secondary has improved the most. These were two of the worst pass-defending teams in the league last season, and both took different approaches to improving their prospects in 2023, with the Chiefs focused on developing young talent while Detroit spent big in free agency.
- The Lion’s new running back room is facing an early test. David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs seem like a stellar combo on paper, but they’ll have to prove it by beating a top-10 Chiefs run defense. Bonus points if they look great and Chris Jones plays.
Bottom Line – A Tough, But Winnable, Battle
Going up against the defending Super Bowl champs on the road is about as tough a challenge as you could ask for in week one, but Dan Campbell and company certainly have a chance at pulling off the upset. The Chief’s secondary was susceptible last season, and they don’t exactly have anyone with clear WR1 potential on the roster. That being said, it’s just too hard to bet against Patrick Mahomes at home, although Detroit will cover the spread.
Lions vs. Chiefs Predictions: Kansas City – 31 Detroit – 28
