Packers vs. Lions 2013, Week 13: Detroit stuffs Green Bay in Thanksgiving showdown

Sitton’s comments are another page in the rivalry between these NFC North foes, and one that will continue to be written in 2014 when these teams next face off.

• NFL Week 13 expert picks | 3 teams can clinch playoff spot

Jason Hirschhorn at Packers blog Acme Packing Company didn’t spare his hyperbole in his recap of the loss. This was a bad, bad showing for the Packers on both sides of the ball:

Over at Lions blog Pride Of Detroit, the overarching feeling is relief. Thanksgiving Day was fun for the first in much-too-long for diehard fans, says Sean Yuille, and the Lions looked like a contender:

“One of the offensive linemen after they scored just kind of ran up into (me) and gave me a shoulder celebrating,” Williams said, via Silverstein. “I was walking, actually walking toward that way, going off the field. The referee must have come and just walked right in front of me and grazed me ... and I kind of knocked his arm off me. ... It was just an emotion thing.”

Whether, or more likely how much, the decision will cost Williams remains to be seen.

435-yards-considerable.

With Matt Flynn starting in place of Rodgers, under pressure all day long and inaccurate and inconsistent when given chances, Green Bay gained just 126 total yards. Despite four turnovers, the Lions gained 561 yards and were able to do something that they rarely get the chance to do:

There is “incidental contact” and then there is what Williams did to that referee. Already down 33-10, the Packers were hit with a 15-yard penalty for that infraction by Williams. Clearly frustrated by being down 23 points and outgained by more than 400 yards, we can understand frustration. This is a much different Williams than the one we saw after he intercepted Matthew Stafford in the second quarter when the game was still close.

But a move like that doesn’t just cost you yards, it’ll likely cost Williams a lot of turkey.

Despite three turnovers by Detroit, the Lions lead the Packers 17-10 at halftime.

Bush was able to atone for his early giveaway by rushing for a touchdown in the second quarter that gave his team the lead, and he already has 84 rushing yards and 48 receiving yards at half. That puts the veteran running back at 1,252 total yards from scrimmage this season, which is 130 yards shy of his career-high in that category.

Game Date/Time and Location: Thursday, Nov. 28, 12:30 p.m. ET at Ford Field, Detroit, Mich.

TV schedule and distribution map: Fox; The506.com

Things are much different for both teams this time around. Let’s take a closer look, starting with the home team:

As noted above, the Lions were without Johnson and Burleson in that first matchup. Johnson was dealing with a minor injury, while Burleson was dealing with, and is still recovering from a fractured arm. Johnson is the best wide receiver in football, and has 66 receptions for 1,198 yards and 11 touchdowns on the season. He leads all NFL receivers despite the fact that he missed time this season.

The over/under for this matchup is 50, and the expectation is that this will be the highest-scoring contest of the holiday slate. The two teams parallel each other when considering season averages, with both averaging around 26 points per game, while giving away 24-25 points to opposing teams. However, the Packers have averaged just 17.3 points in the three games since Rodgers have been out of the lineup.

The Lions will host the Packers on Thursday at 12:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

The Lions will host the Packers on Thanksgiving at 12:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

• NFL Week 13 expert picks | 3 teams can clinch playoff spot

The Lions host the Packers on Thanksgiving at 12:30 p.m. ET on FOX.

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The betting lines favor the Lions and it sounds like most experts around the Internet think the Lions can take advantage of this opportunity to split the series and get further ahead in the division. SB Nation’s panel of six experts -- Ryan Van Bibber, Jason Chilton, David Fucillo, Matt Ufford, Stephen White and Joel Thorman -- all picked the Lions to win this one.

There are similar trends over at CBS Sports, where guys like Pete Prisco and Jason La Canfora are picking the Lions to win. Two of their eight experts believe the Packers will manage the win, though (Will Brinson, Ryan Wilson). It will be interesting to see how this one plays out.