Jaguars vs Lions Preseason Picks and Predictions: Roster Battles Take Center Stage in Motown

The Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions face off in Week 2 of NFL preseason action on Saturday. Both of these rising teams are filled with young talent fighting for roster spots, making this the featured game on the NFL Network.

NFL odds opened with the Jaguars as 4-point road favorites with the Over/Under listed at 39.5 for this exhibition showdown. Here are my best free NFL picks and predictions for Jaguars vs. Lions on August 19.

Jaguars vs Lions odds

Jaguars vs Lions predictions

The Detroit Lions barely played any starters in their preseason opener vs. the New York Giants. The Lions opted to rest quarterback Jared Goff, their entire offensive line, their top receivers, and every projected defensive starter except for a pair of linebackers. They still managed to beat the Giants 21-16 in that contest but looked far from impressive on offense as they averaged just 4.81 yards per play. 

Nate Sudfeld took the majority of snaps under center and completed just 15-of-28 passes for 194 yards with no touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. It will also be interesting to see if the Lions give any reps to veteran Teddy Bridgewater, who was signed to be their backup QB last week. Bridgewater has started 36 games for four different franchises over the last four years and would be an upgrade over Sudfeld, but he's barely had any reps with his new teammates.

Lions head coach Dan Campbell has already said that the Lions won't play their starters on Saturday, which isn't exactly a surprise given last week's lineup. Considering wideouts Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams went down with niggling injuries during joint practices on Wednesday, Campbell is bound to be cautious with his approach. 

As for the Jacksonville Jaguars, they beat the Dallas Cowboys 28-23 in their first preseason contest. Jacksonville's offensive starters saw 13 snaps in that game, culminating in a first-quarter touchdown drive orchestrated by Trevor Lawrence. While Jags' coach Doug Pederson hasn't indicated whether his starters will get any burn this week, I expect many of them to sit after a physical week of joint practices. 

To be fair, quarterback Nathan Rourke (a former MAC and CFL star) looked like a stud last week, passing for 153 yards and a touchdown while adding another score on the ground. With Rourke battling C.J. Beathard for the backup QB job, the Jags offense will be in good hands but their offensive line is decimated by injuries and they won't find it easy to move the ball against Detroit. Although the Lions have been terrible on defense over the last few years, they've invested plenty of draft picks on that side of the ball which gives them the depth to shine during the preseason. 

They limited the Giants to just 216 total yards and had five sacks last week. A big reason for that was the home-field advantage at Ford Field, with Detroit's crowd creating so much noise that the G-Men were forced to use a silent count. Clearly, the long-suffering Lions fans are energized by the optimistic projections of the upcoming season, and that enthusiasm will be on full display even during the preseason. 

The Jaguars still have rotational spots up for grabs on defense, and with several young players fighting for them, expect Jacksonville to also be very competitive on that side of the ball.

Play the Under here.

My best bet: Under 39.5 (-110 at bet365)

Jaguars vs Lions spread and Over/Under analysis

This line opened with the Lions as 4-point home underdogs and has shortened to -3.5, with the total ticking up from 39 to 39.5. 

Surprisingly, Pederson gave Lawrence 21 pass attempts in Jacksonville's second preseason game last year. If it looks like T-Law will play again, we will likely see the spread grow before kickoff.

The Lions covered as 1-point home underdogs last week against the Giants. The total closed at 35.5 in that game and although both offenses struggled to get going, we're seeing a higher total in this contest. A big reason for that is the fact that Jacksonville just appeared in the highest-scoring contest of the preseason. 

Both of these teams went 0-2-1 against the spread in the preseason last year, with the Jags failing to win a single game and the Lions coming out on top just once. 

Jaguars vs Lions betting trend to know

Jacksonville is 0-4 SU and ATS in its last four regular season meetings against Detroit. Given the Jaguars' 40-14 beatdown at the hands of the Lions last year, they might be more motivated than usual for this preseason affair. Find more NFL betting trends for Jaguars vs. Lions.

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