Detroit Lions vs. Dallas Cowboys Odds, Spread, Preview: NFL Week 7 Predictions

By Lawrence Smelser

Detroit Lions vs. Dallas Cowboys Week 7 matchup preview and current betting lines

Dallas will host Detroit at AT&T Stadium Sunday with kickoff set for 1 p.m. (ET). The matchup will feature two teams in very different situations.

The Cowboys (4-2) will try to bounce back after losing to NFC East rival, the Eagles, 26-17. Philadelphia ended the Cowboys’ four-game win streak.

Dak is back. The Cowboys’ starting quarterback, Dak Prescott will finally make his return to the gridiron after missing the previous four contests due to a fractured thumb. 

In his Cowboys’ career, Prescott has thrown for 22,217 yards, 143 touchdowns and 51 interceptions. The dual-threat signal-caller has also rushed for 25 scores. 

Dallas is in a crucial year where it must make the playoffs, preferably a run during them, to please owner Jerry Jones. The silver and blue fell last season, 23-17, in the wildcard round against San Francisco. 

The NFC East has been extremely competitive thus far in 2022. It’ll be important for America’s Team to win this game and keep pace with the Eagles (6-0) and Giants (5-1).

Against the Eagles, Mike McCarthy and company got off to a slow start, trailing 20-0 late in the second quarter. The Cowboys managed to score 17 unanswered points to cut the lead to 20-17, but Philadelphia added a late touchdown to secure a 26-17 victory.

The Lions appeared to be heading in a different direction after starting 2022 with a 1-1 record. In 2021, Detroit finished 3-13-1. Since beating the Commanders in week 2, Dan Campbell’s squad has lost three-straight games.

Detroit had a week 5 bye to try and sort its problems out. The week before, the franchise suffered an embarrassing 29-0 loss to the Patriots and rookie quarterback Bailey Zappe, in his first-ever start.

The current moneyline odds for this matchup on BetRivers Sportsbook are Detroit (+265) vs. Dallas (-345). Oddsmakers favor the Cowboys as 7-point favorites at -110 odds. Among the public, 86% of spread bets have been placed on Detroit to cover, while 54% of the money is on Dallas to win.

Players to watch in the Lions vs. Cowboys contest

Detroit

Amon-Ra St. Brown: The Lions’ leading receiver jumped out to a hot start in the first three games, recording 263 yards and three touchdowns. St. Brown missed the following week due to injury and only played 32% of snaps in the loss to New England. Goff’s favorite slot receiver has had two weeks to rest so should return to his usual form against Dallas.

Dallas

CeeDee Lamb: The 2020 No. 17 overall pick is Dallas’ top weapon out wide after Amari Cooper was traded to the Browns in the offseason. The former Oklahoma Sooner has posted at least 68 yards in four of the six contests this year. So far, Lamb has 409 yards on 33 receptions as well as two touchdowns. His stats should become even better with Prescott at the helm.

Our NFL bet of the week for the Lions vs. Cowboys

ESTNN is providing wagerers with two free selections for this game.

Lions vs. Cowboys Spread: Dallas -7 @ -110

After many circles in the NFL community debated whether Rush should continue to start even if Prescott returned from injury, the backup quarterback put that notion to bed with three first-half picks against the Eagles. It’s now time for Prescott to prove his critics wrong.

The Mississippi State product led Dallas in finishing as the top-ranked total offense in 2021 (407 yards per game). The unit also finished first in points per contest (31.2).

The following list contains the Cowboys’ rank in total offense with Prescott as the starter (played at least 16 games each season except for in 2020). 

2016: 5th

2017: 14th

2018: 22nd

2019: 1st

2020: 14th (only played five games)

2021: 1st

This year, with Rush playing 4.5 games, the Cowboys are ranked 27th in total offense (300.8 yards per contest) and 23rd in points per game (18.3). Dan Quinn’s defensive unit has been mostly responsible for Dallas’ success. 

The Cowboys rank first in the NFL in sacks, (24) third in points allowed per contest (16.3) and eighth in total defense (304.2 yards per game). The secondary has played stellar too, allowing just 183.5 passing yards per game (fourth). The rankings would probably be higher in specific categories had Rush not set the Eagles’ offense up with his three picks. 

Being the quarterback of the Cowboys invokes both pressure and criticism. With such a good defensive unit, all eyes will be on Prescott to perform well this season. The former fourth-round pick has a 53-33 regular season record in the NFL as a starter but is 18-24 (.428) against winning teams since he entered the league in 2016. In the playoffs, Prescott is 1-3. 

The Lions have the NFL’s worst-ranked defensive unit allowing 428.6 yards per game and is also last in points surrendered per contest (34). On the other side of the ball, the offense has been excellent, posting 411.8 yards per outing (2nd) and putting an average of 28 points on the board each week (3rd).

Jared Goff has played well for the Lions this season, with 11 touchdown passes, four interceptions and a quarterback rating of 57.6 (11th). The California Berkeley product has at least one pick in four of the five contests. Detroit is 1-13 since the start of the 2021 season when throwing an interception in a game (2nd-worst in the NFL). Dallas has intercepted opponents 31 times since the start of 2021, tied for first in the league.

So far this year, Dallas is 4-2 against the spread while Detroit is 3-2. The Cowboys are 4-1 ATS in their last five games and are 14-4 ATS in their last 18 matchups against NFC opponents. The Lions are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games but are 1-4 ATS in their last five contests played in October.

At ESTNN, we believe Dallas’ defense will create too many problems for Goff to get comfortable. With an upgrade under center as well, the Cowboys should cover the 7-point spread. BetRivers is offering -110 odds for this bet on its sportsbook.

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Lions vs. Cowboys odds: Dalton Schultz over 29.5 receiving yards @ -115

Cowboys’ tight end Dalton Schultz has struggled with injuries in 2022. He’s only played in four games this season. Aside from the opener against Tampa Bay, when he recorded seven catches for 62 yards, Schultz has played sparingly and was rarely targeted by Rush.

Schultz is both Prescott’s safety blanket and one of his favorite targets. Last year, while playing a full season with the Cowboys starter, the Stanford product had 78 receptions for 808 yards and eight touchdowns on 104 targets. 

The 26-year-old recorded more than 29.5 receiving yards in 12-of-17 contests. In those 12 games, the tight end had at least 43 yards. During 13 of the outings, Schultz saw at least five targets.

Schultz will return to action this Sunday and should resume his usual pass-catching role with Prescott as the starter. Our pick is to bet over 29.5 receiving yards at BetMGM Sportsbook (-115 odds).

BetMGM is also offering Prescott to throw over 1.5 touchdown passes at -145 odds. The Sulphur, Louisiana native threw two or more touchdowns in 11-of-16 games in 2021. In eight of those contests, he threw at least three touchdown passes. Prescott will likely pass for at least two touchdowns against Detroit’s 32nd-ranked defense.

If you’re interested in learning about more prop bets for week 7, read our NFL player props page.

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