How to bet Detroit Lions in 2025: Super Bowl odds, win total, props, best bets and what you need to know

After a successful 2023 season that saw the Detroit Lions win their division for the first time since 1993 while matching the franchise’s highest win total ever, there was speculation the team could lose key pieces, most notably offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, which would make Super Bowl contention challenging. Instead, the team’s nucleus stayed in place for another run at a title, resulting in three more wins, the No. 1 seed in the NFC, the No. 1 scoring offense and even the No. 7 scoring defense in football despite a rash of injuries on that side of the ball. However, the season still ended with disappointment as the Lions failed to win a single playoff game, instead giving up 45 points to the Commanders in the Divisional Round.

The brain drain feared after 2023 did indeed happen this offseason, with Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn taking head coaching jobs and Glenn bringing along potential Johnson replacement Tanner Engstrand to serve as OC on his staff in New York. Kelvin Sheppard steps up as DC in Detroit following four years working with the team’s linebackers, while John Morton comes over from Denver after two seasons as passing game coordinator under Sean Payton. How Sheppard and Morton deliver in their new roles will ultimately go a long way towards determining whether the Lions still have Super Bowl upside moving forward.

On offense, the biggest challenge may be overcoming the losses of Frank Ragnow and Kevin Zeitler on the interior of the offensive line. Detroit has had one of the best O-lines in football during its ascension to perennial contender, and losing two key pieces of that O-line leads to more uncertainty over the upside of the entire offense. On the defensive side, Sheppard will have to hope first and foremost for better health after only two defenders started all 17 games while top edge rushers Aidan Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport combined to play only seven games. Any dip the offense faces with Johnson no longer calling the shots will have to be made up by the defense functioning like a top-tier unit, and staying healthy is the first step to making that happen.

We’re going to take a quick look at the Lions’ 2024 season and the rest of their offseason moves before getting into their track record in NFL futures over the last five years. After that, you can find the odds available at top sportsbooks for their 2025 win total along with Super Bowl and playoff odds as well as key player props to know. Finally, we’ll take a look at the pros and cons of betting on the Lions in 2025 and give out our best bets.

2024 Detroit Lions season review

• Regular season: 15-2 (NFC North champs)
• Playoffs: Lost to Commanders in Divisional Round 45-31
• Second 15-plus win team in NFL history to lose playoff opener (2011 Packers)
• Franchise-record 11-game win streak
• No. 1 seed for first time in team history
• Team records for wins (15), points per game (33.2) and point differential (+222) in a season
• First team in NFL history to increase win total by three-plus wins in three straight seasons 

2025 Detroit Lions offseason review

Five-year futures odds and trends

Historical betting data via Pro-Football-Reference.

2025 Detroit Lions futures odds

Odds subject to change.

2025 Jared Goff props

Odds subject to change.

Reasons to back the Lions

The offense ranked first in points and second in yards last season, so even if there is some drop-off without Ben Johnson, it’s still likely to remain an above-average unit. Morton’s Denver offense was 19th in scoring in 2023 but jumped to 10th last year despite starting a rookie quarterback and not having a notable group of pass-catchers, and that should be considered the baseline for this Detroit offense that has better running backs and receivers along with a veteran quarterback in Goff.

The defense also figures to be much healthier after all the injuries up front. Along with Davenport barely seeing the field and Hutchison playing just five games, the team saw top defensive tackles D.J. Reader and Alim McNeill miss five games combined while linebackers Alex Anzalone and Malcolm Rodriguez each played just 10 games. The addition of D.J. Reed should help overcome the team’s biggest departure in Carlton Davis, as well.

Reasons to fade the Lions

We’ve covered the loss of Johnson and key offensive lineman and a defense that could play better if it can stay healthier, but it’s hard to see where else improvement could come from. The offseason didn’t see any free agent or trade acquisitions of note other than Reed, while the team used its first-round pick on a defensive lineman that may be more about lining up an eventual replacement for Reader than adding the final piece of the puzzle to win a Super Bowl. Second-round pick Tate Ratledge will likely be relied upon to help overcome the losses on the offensive line, while the only other player picked higher than the fifth round, receiver Isaac TeSlaa, was generally not considered a top-100 prospect heading into the draft.

The Lions will also face one of the most difficult schedules in the league this year, and it starts with playing eight playoff teams in their first 10 games and another in the Bears who figure to be much improved thanks to hiring Detroit’s former OC as HC. Their road slate during that opening stretch involves playing the Packers, Ravens, Bengals, Chiefs, Commanders and Eagles, all teams expected to be in the playoff mix in 2025. They’ll also close the season with three of four games on the road against the Rams, Vikings and Bears, all winnable matchups but none likely to be pushovers. 

How to bet the Lions in 2025

• Under 10.5 wins -120 (DraftKings)
• Miss playoffs +180 (Caesars)
• Jared Goff Under 28.5 passing TDs -110 (DraftKings)

There’s too much to not like about the Lions this year to make a positive play considering how high their projection is in the market as the second favorite in the NFC. No Johnson, a likely less effective offensive line and basically no improvement on the roster from last year aside from expected better health on defense is a lot to overcome when you’re playing one of the toughest schedules in the league, particularly on the road. They should still be in the mix for a playoff spot, but I see this as more of a nine- or 10-win team that has a much better chance of missing the postseason than the +180 odds at Caesars suggest.

I also think taking Under on Goff’s passing touchdowns makes a lot of sense even after he threw 37 last year. He had 30 and 29 touchdowns the previous two seasons while missing no time, and those came on more attempts than he threw last year. I’ll write 2024 off as an aberration in terms of touchdown efficiency as Goff adjusts to a new play-caller, and it might take another 600 pass attempts to get to 29-30 TDs again, which I think is a reasonable ceiling.

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Author: R.J. White
July 11, 2025 | 8:20 am