Author: nfltalk

The stage is set for Super Bowl LVIII, which means that one game stands between the end of the NFL season and sole focus shifting to the talent acquisition portion of the offseason. Preparation for the 2024 NFL Draft has already begun, especially for those participating in the Reese’s Senior Bowl this week. 

Here is an early look at some of the storylines from Mobile:

How to watch and what to know

Date: Saturday, Feb. 3 | Time: 1 p.m. ET
Location: Hancock Whitney Stadium (Mobile, Alabama)
TV: NFL Network | Stream: fuboTV (try for free)

A year ago, the annual college football showcase pitting NFL hopefuls featured over 100 prospects who were drafted from the game. A week of practices and interviews leading up to the game draw over 900 NFL personnel from all 32 teams. 

Underclassmen welcome

The Reese’s Senior Bowl has always accepted juniors who met graduation requirements but the game is now an option for all underclassmen prospects who have declared for the NFL Draft regardless of whether or not they have completed degree requirements. 

There are roughly a dozen junior prospects that have been invited and accepted an invitation to the 2024 NFL Draft, including Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson, Texas defensive tackle Byron Murphy II, Kansas edge rusher Austin Booker, Miami safety Kamren Kinchens and BYU offensive tackle Kingsley Suamataia. Murphy is CBSSports.com’s highest rated junior participant.

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Dan Campbell danced with the one who brung him. That his dancing partner tripped and fell on their face and shattered their orbital bone is another story entirely.

The muscle-bound, overly-caffeinated, swashbuckling Detroit Lions head coach, hyper aggressive on fourth downs throughout his head coaching tenure, continued his unorthodox points-maximizing ways into the most important game in Lions’ history: A road affair in the NFC Championship Game against a heavily-favored 49ers team sporting the league’s second highest point differential in 2023.

Campbell during the regular season outpaced all coaches in fourth down aggressiveness, going for it on 34 percent of Detroit’s fourth down conversion opportunities. That, in fact, made the 2023 Lions the most aggressive fourth down team of the 21st Century, according to ESPN Stats & Information Research.

It tracks that Campbell went for it on two second-half fourth downs in Detroit’s title game loss to San Francisco. The Lions failed on both conversion attempts, one of them a fourth and two from the Niners’ 28-yard line early in the third quarter, the other a fourth and three from the 49ers’ 30-yard line with roughly 10 minutes to go in the game.

From the cold, bloodless perspective of the numbers, Campbell’s fourth down decision making was sound, per Ben Baldwin’s Fourth Down Decision Calculator, which accounts for all manner of factors and offers a calculation on what a team would gain (or lose) by converting on fourth down.

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ESPN Analytics was in agreement: Going for it on the third quarter fourth down attempt would have bumped Detroit’s odds of winning the game from 90.3 percent to 90.5 percent. The fourth quarter attempt would have nudged their win probability from 38.8 percent to 39.1 percent (the tiny discrepancy makes one wonder why the anti-analytics crowd is warring online with the analytics nerds).

These fourth down attempts, as you surely know by now, did not…

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Detroit Lions fans deserved a better ending than the one they received on Sunday night. With the Super Bowl beckoning, Lions fans were instead treated to one of the biggest collapses in NFL playoff history, as Detroit was unable to parlay a 17-point halftime lead into an NFC title. 

The Lions’ 34-31 loss is going to hurt for some time. After dominating the first half, the Lions looked like they were playing on quicksand in the second half. They didn’t come through in pivotal moments, gave up too many big plays and failed to counter whenever the 49ers hit them with an uppercut. In short, the Lions didn’t do the things that had gotten them to that point. 

Given what was at stake, it’s fair to say that the Lions’ loss is one of the most heartbreaking defeats in playoff history. Below is a look at the unfortunate company the Lions now keep. 

5. Oilers: 1992 AFC wild card 

Houston owns the distinction of blowing the biggest lead in playoff history. Led by Warren Moon, the Oilers raced out to a 35-3 lead but were unable to stop the runaway train that was the Bills in the second half. The 41-38 loss had to hurt more for Houston fans given the fact that Buffalo’s historic comeback was led by backup quarterback Frank Reich, who threw four touchdown passes. 

4. Vikings, 1998 NFC Championship 

The Vikings looked like a shoo-in to reach the Super Bowl that season. After a 15-1 regular season, Minnesota led the upstart Falcons by a touchdown and had Gary Anderson — who hadn’t missed a field goal all year to that point — lining up to attempt a 38-yard field goal that would have put the game away. 

Anderson, shockingly, missed the kick, giving the Falcons life with just over two minutes left. Atlanta took advantage by tying the score, forcing overtime, and ultimately winning the game on a Morten Andersen field goal. The Vikings have only been back to two NFC title games since, losing…

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The San Francisco 49ers find themselves on the doorstep of the Super Bowl for the fourth time in the past five seasons and will try to punch their ticket to the promised land when they host the Detroit Lions in the 2024 NFC Championship Game on Sunday. The 49ers (13-5) have lost back-to-back NFC title games, including last year’s 31-7 road defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles. Four seasons ago, they beat the Green Bay Packers, 37-20, in the NFC Championship Game, but fell 31-20 to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV. Meanwhile, the Lions (14-5) are looking to break years of futility by reaching their first Super Bowl should they pull the upset.

Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET from Levi’s Stadium. San Francisco is a 7.5-point favorite and the over/under for total points scored is 51.5 in the latest Lions vs. 49ers odds from the SportsLine consensus. Before you make any 49ers vs. Lions picks, you need to see what proven SportsLine NFL expert R.J. White has to say, considering his mastery of picks involving the Lions.

White, a Fantasy and gambling editor for CBS Sports, consistently crushes against-the-spread picks. He went 535-450-30 on his ATS picks from 2017-22, which returned more than $3,500 to $100 players. 

What’s more, he has emerged as SportsLine’s top NFL expert again this season, posting a documented record of 97-76-4 on all his NFL picks to net his followers a profit of more than $2,000. White also has a read on the pulse of the Lions. He is 61-43-2 (+1285) on his last 106 picks in games involving Detroit. Anyone who has followed him is way up.

Now, White has broken down Lions vs. 49ers and just revealed his picks and predictions. You can visit SportsLine now to see his picks. Here are several NFL odds and betting trends for 49ers vs. Lions:

49ers vs. Lions point spread: 49ers -7.549ers vs. Lions over/under: 51.5 points49ers vs. Lions money line: 49ers -348, Lions…..

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