Detroit's side of the ledger runs the other way. The Lions are coming off their bye, and on Friday they put 3 players on IR to clear roster spots for safety Brian Branch and center Cade Mays. That puts Branch on track for his season debut against Green Bay, coming back from the Achilles. A rested team getting a starting safety and its center back is a healthier Lions team than the one that won at Arizona.
The matchup to watch is Jahmyr Gibbs against a Packers interior that just lost 2 defensive tackles. Gibbs ran 25 times for 151 yards and 2 touchdowns against Arizona and added 56 receiving yards. Green Bay's run defense now leans on Devonte Wyatt, who is active, and a rotation that got thinner in the last week. Add Sam LaPorta catching all 5 of his targets for 88 yards last time out, and Detroit has plenty of ways to move the ball between the hashes.
The Packers' defense, though, has been a turnover machine. Evan Williams and Brandon Cisse both picked off Dak Prescott on Sunday night. Cisse is the question mark after the neck injury that made him questionable to return in that game. Detroit's defense, meanwhile, has given up 30, 41 and 32 in its 3 worst outings. Green Bay's receivers, led by Matthew Golden, should get chances downfield, provided Golden holds onto the ones he dropped against Dallas.
Kickoff is 4:25 PM ET on Sunday, October 25, indoors at Ford Field, so weather won't be an excuse for anybody. It's a division game between two teams with winning records. Detroit has the rest and its returning starters, and Green Bay has the better recent run plus its lead back coming home. Whoever controls the line of scrimmage on the inside likely wins it.