Fox Sports is sending their No. 1 team into Ford Field to call the broadcast of the Washington Commanders vs. Detroit Lions game Saturday night in prime time. The Divisional Round clash will start at 8 p.m. ET.
This year’s Cinderella story will face off against last season’s Cinderella story as the Commanders travel to Detroit to face the Lions. The voices you can expect to hear during the Commanders vs. Lions game will be Kevin Burkhardt, Tom Brady, and Co.
Announcers for Commanders vs. Lions
- Lead Play-by-Play Announcer: Kevin Burkhardt
- Color Commentator: Tom Brady
- Sideline Reporters: Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi
The team of Burkhardt and Brady is the No. 1 team at Fox Sports — this is the first year for the duo being paired together as Brady. After retiring from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2022, he took off the 2023 season and started broadcasting in 2024.
Brady replaced Greg Olsen, who was formerly Burkhardt’s partner and the No. 1 analyst at Fox.
Commanders vs. Lions Game Preview
- Location: Detroit, Michigan; Ford Field
- Time: 8 p.m. ET
- Channel: Fox
The winner of this game will face the winner of the Philadelphia Eagles vs. Los Angeles Rams game for the NFC Championship and the right to go to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans on Feb. 9.
Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels has already defied the odds by winning a road playoff game. Now, he becomes just the seventh rookie quarterback to face a No. 1 seed in the playoffs since seeding began in the 1975 season.
Five of the previous six quarterbacks in similar situations lost, and most of those games were not competitive. The only win came from Joe Flacco and the Baltimore Ravens in the 2008 Divisional Round against the Tennessee Titans. However, that victory was largely driven by the defense, as the Ravens managed just nine first downs and averaged 4.1 yards per play.
Collectively, the rookie QBs in this game scenario have combined for five passing touchdowns and four interceptions, while averaging 194 passing yards per game. Their teams have posted an average point-per-game (PPG) differential of -10.8 in these matchups.
The Lions scored 41 points against the Los Angeles Chargers last season coming off their bye. They hung 47 on the Dallas Cowboys this season and are now coming off another bye week.
Quarterback Jared Goff finished the season with a 93.2 grade in our QB+ metric, the 11th-best mark in our six years of tracking (second-best this season, trailing Lamar Jackson).
Detroit’s offense gets the attention, but their defense, for the season, ranked seventh in turnover rate and red-zone efficiency.
Just how significant was Detroit’s Week 18 win over Minnesota? The victory not only secured the NFC North crown but also earned the Lions the top seed in the conference.
Patrick Mahomes is widely regarded as the best clutch-time performer in the sport — the quarterback you trust most when the game is on the line. However, when comparing Mahomes’ last 16 home games against playoff-level competition to those of Jared Goff, the “King of Clutch” title might be up for debate.
Expect Dan Campbell and Dan Quinn to take plenty of risks on fourth down in this game. Including playoffs, the Lions have gone for it on fourth down at the highest rate this season (32%), while the Commanders rank seventh in fourth-down attempts (24%). Both teams have reaped the rewards of their aggressiveness. Washington leads the league in fourth-down EPA (57.9), while Detroit ranks fifth (35.2).
In the Wild Card round, the Commanders went for it on five of their seven fourth-down opportunities. Their 71.4% go-for-it rate was the fourth-highest in a playoff game since 2000.
Per Pro Football Network’s Playoff Predictor, with 10,000 simulations, the Commanders are an underdog and given just a 35.4% chance of winning against the Lions.