Who Will Win Green Bay Packers vs. Detroit Lions? A.I. Predicts
Pride is on the line, if nothing else.
It’s been a disappointing year for both teams involved, but the Detroit Lions have the rarest of opportunities to prove they are definitively better than the Green Bay Packers. A hive mind of about NFL fans predicts the Lions win Sunday.
The Packers were eliminated from long-shot playoff contention in week 15 when a returning Aaron Rodgers couldn’t rally Green Bay past the Carolina Panthers, while the Lions lost to a bad Cincinnati Bengals team last week to officially end their season. That just leaves this as a grudge match for pride. The Detroit Lions can win both games against their NFC North rival for the first time in a quarter-century and post consecutive winning seasons for the first time since 1995, while the Green Bay Packers need the victory here to avoid their first losing season since a 6-10 campaign in 2008. Plus, both Lions coach Jim Caldwell and Green Bay quarterback Brett Hundley are probably looking for good performances here to shore up their job prospects moving forward.
From their game earlier this season.
To predict the result of this and other games, Unanimous A.I. used what’s known as swarm intelligence to forecast the week’s slate. About 30 NFL fans worked together as a hive mind to make picks. As you can see in the animation below, each participant controlled a little golden magnet and used it to drag the puck toward the answer they thought was the most likely outcome. As the users saw the puck move toward a particular outcome, it triggers a psychological response. They readjust their decision-making, building toward a consensus. Here’s Unanimous A.I. founder Louis Rosenberg explaining swarm intelligence at a recent TEDx Talk.
Unanimous A.I. has made some scarily accurate predictions in the past using swarm intelligence, as our previous article explains. For instance, the swarm went a perfect 7-0 in its most recommended picks for an English Premier League slate earlier this season.
The hive mind predicts Detroit wins, though with low confidence and 81 percent brainpower.
The swarm predicts Detroit wins by four to six points, with 81 percent brainpower behind that pick. The Vegas line has the Lions by 7.5 points.
The game kicks off 1 p.m. Eastern Sunday on Fox.
