Commanders vs Lions: AI Prediction

With AI sports betting, dive deep into trends, performance analysis, and betting insights for this NFC Divisional playoff game between the Washington Commanders and Detroit Lions.

Let's have a look at the app I use for my NFL predictions that includes trends, player props, AI generated predictions and best odds all curated from the Rithmm App. At the end of this post, you'll see how Rithmm's AI-driven models can help you make a more informed decision when placing your weekly bets.

How to Watch Commanders vs Lions NFL Game

• Date: Saturday January 18
• Time: 8:15 PM ET
• Location: Ford Field, Detroit, MI
• Surface: FieldTurf
• How to Watch: Fox

Preview and Analysis for Commanders vs Lions AI Prediction

Let's preview these two teams before I show you how I used the Rithmm App to create custom sports betting models to get my AI prediction.

Commanders Preview

Washington enters this weekend's Divisional round coming off of a big win against Tampa Bay last week 23 - 20 on a Zane Gonzalez 37-yard doink that bounced through the upright as time expired. This was Washington's first playoff win since 2006 when they beat these same Bucs, again in the wild-card round, 17 - 10.

Jayden Daniels threw for 268 yards on 24 of 35 passing (68.6%) with two touchdowns, no interceptions and one sack. He also ran 13 times for 36 yards including the final fourth down in the remaining seconds to set up the Gonzalez game winner.

"It means a lot, man," Daniels said. "You could just see all the fans over here, man, they’re waiting for us. They’ve waited a long time for this moment and this feeling, so I’m just so happy for them."

Wide Receiver Terry McLaurin and Dyami Brown both had 89 yards receiving on 10 and 5 catches respectively and both had one touchdown in the win. Daniels was the primary rusher with his 38 yards followed by Austin Ekeler who had 27 yards on 8 rushes.

Washington is ranked 10th in the ESPN NFL Power Index 2024.

Lions Preview

Detroit enters their second divisional playoff game in as many years this weekend as they look to continue their three-game winning streak to end the season.

Lions running back David Montgomery was fully ready for Tuesday's walk-through practice after missing the final three games of the season with an MCL injury to his right leg.

"It's refreshing," Montgomery said. "Kind of to be back in the position to where I can help the team, yeah, I missed it, so happy to be back."

Montgomery has 775 yards rushing on the season with 12 touchdowns and will join Jahmyr Gibbs in the backfield this weekend. Gibbs has had a fantastic year rushing for 1,412 yards on 250 carries with 16 touchdowns.

Quarterback Jared Goff completed 72.4% of his passes this season for 4,629 yards and 37 touchdowns with only 12 interceptions and has thrown for 300 or more yards in six consecutive games. Goff's favorite target, Amon-Ra St. Brown, has 1.263 receiving yards on 115 receptions (74.3 average) and 12 touchdowns.

Detroit is ranked 1st in the ESPN NFL Power Index 2024.

How I Used Rithmm Models for Commanders vs Lions AI Prediction

I am very much looking forward to this game to see the veteran Goff go up against the rookie Daniels in a pivotal game. Can Daniels outgun Goff? Can the Lions 20th ranked defense stop Daniels legs (he leads the team in rushing with 891 yards)? Will Goff show off that 111.8 passer rating and pick apart the Commanders 13th ranked defense?

There's so much to like about this game and the books and the public seem to have it figured out as this line opened with Detroit laying -10.5. The money is also heavy on Detroit to cover the -9.5 that it sits at now to the tune of a  61% bet split.

But not so fast. The smell test senses something fishy here and that's where we head to our trusty Rithmm app to see what's up. And what's up is all three of the models love the Commanders to cover the +9.5 and one of my models has it at a 67.7% win probability. These are numbers I like to see!

There really wasn't much to consider here. I think the line is inflated and other known models out on the internets think this should be closer to -7. So before the public wises up and that line starts to come back, I'll be getting on board here.

I'll be taking the Commanders +9.5.

Explore More Predictions Like Commanders vs Lions

This AI-driven analysis is just a glimpse of what you can expect when using Rithmm. Whether you’re looking to refine your betting strategy or want to explore in-depth data trends, Rithmm's AI tools for sports betting has all you need. Don't miss out on making more informed decisions—download the Rithmm app today for full access to our, AI Sports Picks, AI NFL predictions, NFL Computer Picks, and custom sports betting models.