The set-up: Detroit head coach Matt Patricia was the Pats defensive coordinator, but his first year with the Lions didn't go as he planned. Patricia is on "hot seat" as he enters the 2019/20 season and I believe he's going to have his team ready to play vs. his former boss and the defending Super Bowl champs. Note that when the Patriots came to Detroit in Week of the regular season last year, Detroit pulled away for an impressive 26-10 victory, as the Lions held the Pats to 12 first downs and 209 yards.

The pick: New England isn't expected to play any of its star players on either side of the ball. Detroit has many new faces on both sides of the ball, which leads to chemistry issues obviously. In this meaningless contest, I believe the offenses take a back seat and that the defensive units become the main story lines in tomorrow's summaries. This number is high.

NE Patriots/Detroit Lions UNDER 10* play