Tampa Bay @ Detroit preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 24, 2013 ) Tampa Bay 24, Detroit 21

Calvin Johnson has moved on from his ankle woes and has regained his form as the Detroit Lions prepare to host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. Johnson missed three games and was severely hampered in two others but the receiver displayed he was back with 146 yards and two touchdowns on a season-high 11 receptions in the Thanksgiving Day rout of the Chicago Bears. Johnson is closing in on his fifth straight 1,000-yard season for the Lions, who are one game behind Green Bay in the NFC North.

Buccaneers coach Lovie Smith saw a lot of Johnson when he was coach of the Bears and rising corner Johnthan Banks is motivated by the challenge of defending Johnson. “It’s always fun going against the best in the league,” Banks told reporters. “I’m a young guy, still learning. … Just getting to go out there and compete with Calvin Johnson and being on the same field as Calvin Johnson, it’s an honor.” Detroit, which is battling Dallas and Seattle for the NFC’s two wild-card berths, is 5-1 at home. Tampa Bay aims to halt its late-game struggles as it has let final-quarter leads slip away in five of its 10 defeats.

TV: 1 p.m. ET, FOX. LINE: Lions –10. O/U: 41.5

ABOUT THE BUCCANEERS (2-10): Quarterback Josh McCown has more interceptions (9) than touchdowns (7) as the offense has struggled with Tampa Bay ranking 28th in scoring (18.3) and 26th in total offense (313.6). “When you’re 2-10, yeah, you expect a lot more out of all of us – Josh included in that,” Smith told reporters. “All of us. I’m not going to put it all on Josh. When you put it on Josh, it’s all of us.” The attack has been hurt by an ankle injury to Doug Martin, who has just 251 rushing yards and ran for a season-high 58 yards against Cincinnati last Sunday. Defensively, Banks is tied for the NFC lead with four interceptions while defensive tackle Gerald McCoy has a team-best 8.5 sacks.

ABOUT THE LIONS (8-4): Quarterback Matthew Stafford had his best yardage game of the season against the Bears, throwing for 390 and two touchdowns. Running back Reggie Bush (ankle) is expected back after missing four of the last five games and it is hoped he can pump some life into the ground game as well as be a threat to catch short passes to help Johnson get loose deep. “He’s got the skill set where he can do a lot of things,” Detroit coach Jim Caldwell told reporters. “The good thing is he’s practicing and looks good.” The Lions rank second in total defense (300.9 yards per game) and free safety Glover Quin is tied for the NFC lead with four interceptions while defensive end Ezekiel Ansah has a team-leading 6.5 sacks.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Tampa Bay defeated the Lions 24-21 last season when Stafford was intercepted four times.

2. Buccaneers WLB Lavonte David (ankle) is on track to return after missing two games.

3. Detroit OLB DeAndre Levy has nine double-digit tackle games this season, the club’s most since MLB Chris Spielman recorded 13 such games in 1994.

PREDICTION: Lions 30, Buccaneers 9