NFL Picks Week 6: Detroit Lions Will Stay Perfect Against San Francisco 49ers

If you'd have told me six weeks ago that this weekend's game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Detroit Lions would be a marquee matchup in the NFL, I'd have thought you were crazy, perhaps even certifiably so.

Not that I didn't think these two teams would improve on their respective 6-10 records from 2010. Rather, like just about everyone else who follows the NFL, I thought these teams would be on track for maybe eight or nine wins apiece.

And while I may not be wrong yet, the football gods seem to be favoring the Niners and the Motor City Kitties to outpace expectations on the way to playoff berths in the NFC, while granting a distinct edge to Detroit on Sunday.

The Lions sport the stronger, more explosive and more consistent offense of the two, one that matches up well against San Fran's defense. Matthew Stafford will steward the league's seventh-most prolific passing offense against a Niners unit that ranks 23rd against opposing aerial attacks.

Jim Harbaugh's revamped secondary has performed above and beyond expectations thus far, but will be hard-pressed to hold down the talented trio of Calvin Johnson, Nate Burleson and Brandon Pettigrew, the likes of which Carlos Rogers and company have not yet seen.

As such, San Francisco's stingy run defense, which is seventh in the NFL in yards per rush and fourth in yards per game allowed, won't prove nearly as big an impediment to victory for the Lions as it has for the Bengals, the Eagles and the Buccaneers in weeks past.

Meanwhile, the Lions defense, though only placing middle-of-the-pack in most statistical categories, should be more than effective enough to slow down the Niners offense. As surprisingly efficient as Alex Smith has been this season, he has yet to face a pass-rush quite like Detroit's, which features one of the most terrifying tackle tandems in the league in Ndamukong Suh and rookie Nick Fairley. The Silver Crush will be ready to feast on a San Fran offensive line that's given up 14 sacks this season, the sixth-most of any group in the NFL.

Throw in the fact that this game will be played at Ford Field, where the Lions posted perhaps their most impressive performance of the season against the NFC North rival Bears, and the momentum shifts even further in Motown's favor.

Look for Detroit's D-line to give San Fran's passing game fits, and for Stafford to pick apart the Niners' suspect secondary on the way to a 24-17 victory and a perfect 6-0 start.