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Best of Patriots.com Radio Wed Apr 24 - 04:00 PM | Thu Apr 25 - 07:25 PM

Game Preview: Patriots at Lions

The New England Patriots head to Detroit to take on the Lions in their third preseason game.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (0-2) at DETROIT LIONS (2-0)
Friday, Aug. 25, 2017 at 7:00 p.m. ET. Ford Field (64,500)

The New England Patriots and Detroit Lions will meet in the preseason for the ninth time overall and the first time since 2013, when the Lions defeated the Patriots, 40-9, on Aug. 22, 2013, at Ford Field in Detroit. Detroit owns a 6-2 edge in the eight previous preseason meetings.

New England and Detroit last met in the regular season in 2014 when the Patriots beat the Lions by a 34-9 margin on Nov. 23, 2014, at Gillette Stadium. Prior to the Week 3 preseason matchup, the Patriots and Lions will meet for a joint practice/walkthrough on Thu., Aug. 24, ahead of their Friday matchup. The joint practice/walkthrough will mark the third straight week of joint practices for the Patriots.

New England enters this week with a 0-2 record after losing 31-24 at home to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the preseason opener and then dropping a 27-23 decision to Houston last Saturday night.

Detroit enters Week 3 of the preseason with a 2-0 record following a 24-10 win at Indianapolis and a 16-6 victory last week vs. the New York Jets.

SERIES HISTORY

The New England Patriots will travel to face the Detroit Lions in a preseason game for the ninth time and for the first time since Week 3 of the 2013 preseason when Detroit beat the Patriots 40-9 on Aug. 22, 2013 at Ford Field. This week's preseason game will be the fourth straight preseason game between the two teams in Detroit. The Patriots traveled to Detroit for the preseason in 2000, 2011 and 2013.

This week's game will be the third time since 2011 that the Patriots and Lions met in the third preseason game at Detroit. The Patriots lost 34-10 on Aug. 27, 2011 and 40-9 on Aug. 22, 2013.

Overall, the Lions are 6-2 against the Patriots in preseason games. The Patriots lead the all-time regular season by a 7-4 margin. The teams last played in 2014 when the Patriots hosted the Lions at Gillette Stadium on Nov. 23, 2014, a 34-9 Patriots win.

In 2000, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady made his NFL debut against the Lions in a 34-9 Detroit win at the Pontiac Silverdome on Thanksgiving Day on Nov. 23, 2000. Brady entered the game late in the fourth quarter and completed on of three passes for six yards.

SERIES TRENDS

Overall Record, 7-4

Overall at Home, 3-2

  • Schaefer/Sullivan/Foxboro Stadium, 2-2
  • Gillette Stadium, 1-0

Overall on Road, 4-2

  • Pontiac Silverdome, 1-2
  • Ford Field, 3-0

Tale of the Tape

**2016 Regular Season****New England****Detroit**
Record14-29-7
Divisional Standings1st2nd
Total Yards Gained6,1805,421
Total Offense (Rank)386.3 (4)338.8 (21)
Rush Offense117.0 (7)81.9 (30)
Pass Offense269.3 (4)256.9 (11)
Points per Game27.6 (3)21.6 (20)
Total Yards Allowed5,2235,676
Total Defense326.4 (8)354.8 (18)
Rush Defense88.6 (3t)106.3 (18)
Pass Defense237.9 (12)248.4 (19)
Points Allowed/Game15.6 (1)22.4 (13)
Possession Avg.31:1329:54
Sacks Allowed/Yards Lost24/14837/216
Sacks Made/Yards34/22726/161
Passing TD/Int (off.)32/224/10
Passing TD/Int (def.)21/1333/10
Total Touchdowns5136
Penalities Against/Yards93/819100/861
Punts/Avg.72/44.762/48.5
Field Goals Made/Att.27/3231/26
Takeaway/Giveaway Ratio+12 (3)-1 (20)

BROADCAST INFORMATION

TELEVISION: This week's game will be broadcast by the Patriots Preseason Television Network and can be seen in every New England state, as well as Alaska and Hawaii. The preseason network's flagship station is WBZ-TV CBS in Boston. WBZ-TV's Dan Roche provides play-by-play and is joined by former Patriots tight end Christian Fauria in the broadcast booth. Former Patriots linebacker Matt Chatham will provide sideline analysis along with WBZ-TV's Steve Burton. Patriots Football Weekly's beat writers Paul Perillo and Andy Hartwill also provide insight and analysis.

Massachusetts
Boston, Mass. WBZ-TV Ch. 4
Springfield, Mass. WWLP-TV Ch. 22

Connecticut
Hartford, Conn. WTNH-TV Ch. 8

Maine
Portland, Maine WMTW-TV Ch. 8
Bangor, Maine WVII-TV Ch. 7

New Hampshire
Manchester, N.H. WMUR-TV Ch. 9

Rhode Island
Providence, R.I. myRI Ch. 64.2

Vermont
Burlington, Vt. WCAX-TV Ch. 3

Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska KYUR-TV Ch. 13
Fairbanks, Alaska KATN-TV Ch. 2
Juneau, Alaska KJUD-TV Ch. 8

Hawaii
Honolulu, Hawaii KFVE-TV Ch. 5

RADIO:98.5 FM, The Sports Hub, is the flagship station for the Patriots Radio Network. A complete listing of the network's 40 stations can be found here. Play-by-play broadcaster Bob Socciwill call the action along with former Patriots quarterback Scott Zolak, who will provide color analysis. The games are produced by Marc Cappello.

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