Lions vs. Falcons 2021 NFL Week 16 Odds, Analysis and Prediction

By Carlos Chacon • December 22, 2021

The Detroit Lions got our attention again this past week after pulling off a massive upset against one of the best teams in the league. Meanwhile, the Atlanta Falcons dropped another contest as their playoff window is on the verge of being totally shut. Who’ll prevail with a morale-boosting win this Sunday in Atlanta?

NitroBetting is ready to equip its bettors with all the latest previews and odds for Week 16 of the 2021 NFL season. This time, we look at the fascinating NFC matchup between the Detroit Lions and the Atlanta Falcons. Find out more about the teams and the key players, event information, the latest NFL odds, and of course, helpful betting trends and expert betting predictions.

Lions vs. Falcons Game Information

Our updated depth chart ahead of #DETvsATL ⤵️https://t.co/yA65w9PCxO
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) December 21, 2021

When: Sunday, December 26, 2021, 1:00 PM ET
Where: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
TV: FOX
Radio: 760 AM WJR (Lions) / 92.9 The Game FM (Falcons)
Live Stream:NFL Game Pass
NFL Odds: Lions (+6) / Falcons (-6)

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Why Bet on the Detroit Lions?

2021’s NFL season of upsets continued in Week 15, with the Detroit Lions stunning the 10-win Arizona Cardinals Sunday en route to a 30-12 victory. First-year head coach Dan Campbell has his Lions playing with a lot of pride and energy of late, as they’ve now won two of their last three games after going winless through the first 12 weeks of the campaign.

Jared Goff was amazing facing his former division rival, completing 21 of 26 passes for 216 yards and three passing touchdowns against Arizona. While Goff improved to 8-1 lifetime against the Cardinals, he won’t be facing a very familiar face up ahead to keep his confidence flying as high as ever.

Thankfully, rookie running back Craig Reynolds was a beast this past weekend as well. Reynolds ran for 112 rushing yards on 26 carries to give him 195 rushing yards across his first two NFL starts. The Lions have one of the worst defensive units in the league (even considering the D’s strong effort versus a potent Cards offense), which means their offense must be able to keep up with Atlanta’s own resurgent attack.

Why Bet on the Atlanta Falcons?

The Atlanta Falcons still can’t seem to get any momentum going as they fell to the San Francisco 49ers this past weekend, 31-13. With a 6-8 record, a loss to the Lions this coming Sunday will likely mean the end of the Falcons’ playoff dreams in the first year under head coach Mike Smith.

Matt Ryan had another middling effort under center, going 19-of-32 for 236 passing yards and a single TD against the Niners. San Francisco neutralized Atlanta’s top offensive weapon as well in Cordarrelle Patterson, who was held to just 11 carries and two receptions for 20 measly offensive yards.

The Falcons are allowing the second-most points to their opponents this season (27.4 PAPG) and the seventh-most in terms of yardage (366.9 YAPG). With this in mind, they’ll need to prove once more that they’re better against teams that are seemingly worse than them. All but one of Atlanta’s six wins this season have come against teams with losing records to date, with the lone exception being a victory over the now 7-7 Dolphins back in late October.

Lions vs. Falcons Betting Trends

The Lions are winless in their last eight road games, with one of those contests ending in a tie. Although, they’re a respectable 4-4 against the spread during this road stretch.
The Lions are 2-4 in the last six meetings against Atlanta since 2008 (1-5 ATS).
The totals went under in five of Detroit’s last six road games.
The Falcons are 1-7 in the last eight regular-season home games (2-6 ATS).
The Falcons are 4-2 in the last six games wherein they were favored to win (SU/ATS).
The totals went under in five of Atlanta’s last six games in general.

Lions vs. Falcons Expert Betting Predictions

While being a middling team at best, the Falcons are deserving favorites to win this contest, especially if Patterson gets over his dud performance immediately. Then again, the Lions are playing some spirited football themselves and have just enough positive momentum from their upset of the Cards to have us believe that they can cover the relatively wide spread as road dogs at the very least.

Check out our latest sports betting guides for the 2021 NFL Regular Season. Stay tuned for more Football previews and articles and don’t forget to check out the latest Football betting odds at our online Bitcoin sportsbook.

*All odds stated are subject to change without prior notice.