Updated after Week 18
Before the season, we decided to take on an experiment based around the following question: What would happen if you bet $100 on the Detroit Lions moneyline every week of the season?
It ended up being a bit more of a roller coaster than we were expecting. But in the end, our once lovable losers actually came through.
Not only did the Lions slay the dragon that is Aaron Rodgers and the Packers to close the season, they made it a profitable season for bettors.
While we’ll explain the process in detail below, after 17 games and an 18-week season, a bettor who wagered $100 on the Lions every week finished: UP $157.11.
What is the Detroit Lions moneyline tracker?
The thought behind this is simple. If bettors at Michigan sportsbooks wagered on the Detroit Lions moneyline in every game this season, how much would they be up, or down, at the end of the year.
Now, to be clear, we didn’t actually making these bets, and we certainly were not recommend that you do. This was a fake exercise for fun.
But in our fictional exercise, $100 was wagered on the Lions moneyline each week. For simplicity sake, the moneyline we used was the final one offered at DraftKings Sportsbook MI.
Why the moneyline? Because of the variance. Betting against the spread gets you near even odds every game. Moneyline bets, meanwhile, could have much higher payouts if the Lions win as an underdog — which they commonly are. Theoretically, they could’ve gone 7-10 or 6-11 and put Lions bettors ahead at season’s end.
On the other hand, they could go 9-8 (which they did), only winning as favorites, and still put bettors in a deficit (which they didn’t).
Detroit Lions moneyline season tracker
There was some crazy movement toward the Lions on DraftKings before the game, which hurt the profits. The Lions were +200 around 8 p.m., but that fell to +155 before the ball was kicked off.
One would have thought money would have flooded in on the Packers late, as the Lions were dealt the blow of being eliminated from the playoffs at about 7:30. But nope, people were smart.
The Lions were playing for pride. The Packers were playing for the playoffs. Pride won out.
It didn’t come with a playoff berth, but the win closed out an 8-2 final 10 games for Detroit and the moneyline tracker.
Here’s the season breakdown:
- Week 1 vs. Philadelphia Eagles (+215): Loss of $100
- Week 2 vs. Washington Commanders (-105): Profit of $95.24
- Week 3 vs. Minnesota Vikings (+235): Loss of $100
- Week 4 vs. Seattle Seahawks (-150): Loss of $100
- Week 5 vs. New England Patriots (+130): Loss of $100
- Week 6 BYE
- Week 7 vs. Dallas Cowboys (+240): Loss of $100
- Week 8 vs. Miami Dolphins (+110): Loss of $100
- Week 9 vs. Green Bay Packers (+145): Profit of $145
- Week 10 vs. Chicago Bears (+130): Profit of $130
- Week 11 vs. New York Giants (+125): Profit of $125
- Week 12 vs. Buffalo Bills (+340): Loss of $100
- Week 13 vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (-115): Profit of $86.96
- Week 14 vs. Minnesota Vikings (-140): Profit of $71.43
- Week 15 vs. New York Jets (+105): Profit of $105
- Week 16 vs. Carolina Panthers (-135): Loss of $100
- Week 17 vs. Chicago Bears (-230): Profit of $43.48
- Week 18 vs. Green Bay Packers (+155): Profit of $155
Detroit Lions record against the spread
The Lions finished the season 12-5 against the spread.
Here’s how each week went:
- Week 1: Eagles 38, Lions 34 (Lions +6)
- Week 2: Lions 36, Commanders 27 (Lions -1)
- Week 3: Vikings 28, Lions 24 (Lions +6.5)
- Week 4: Seahawks 48, Lions 45 (Seahawks +3)
- Week 5: Patriots 29, Lions 0 (Patriots -3.5)
- Week 7: Cowboys 24, Lions 6 (Cowboys -6.5)
- Week 8: Dolphins 31, Lions 27 (Dolphins -3.5)
- Week 9: Lions 15, Packers 9 (Lions +3.5)
- Week 10: Lions 31, Bears 30 (Lions +3)
- Week 11: Lions 31, NY Giants 18 (Lions +3)
- Week 12: Buffalo Bills 28, Lions 25 (Lions +8.5)
- Week 13: Lions 40, Jacksonville Jaguars 14 (Lions -1)
- Week 14: Lions 34, Minnesota Vikings 23 (Lions -2.5)
- Week 15: Lions 20, NY Jets 17 (Lions +2.5)
- Week 16: Carolina Panthers 37, Lions 23 (Panthers +2.5)
- Week 17: Lions 41, Chicago Bears 10 (Lions -5)
- Week 18: Lions 20, Green Bay Packers 16 (Lions +4.5)
