Patriots practice squad tackle Lorenz Metz savors Munich homecoming before Lions game

The New England Patriots brought one player to Munich this week who doesn't need directions. Practice squad offensive tackle Lorenz Metz grew up about an hour outside the city, and he's spending the week before Sunday's game against the Detroit Lions on the practice fields of FC Bayern Munich, the club he followed as a boy.

Metz, 29, told reporters Thursday that he idolized Bayern stars such as Thomas Müller and Manuel Neuer. Standing on their training ground, he said, was a moment he could hardly believe: "And now standing out there on the field is unbelievable," he said, as reported by Bernd Buchmasser of SB Nation via Yahoo Sports. He has also taken on the role of host. He got more than 30 tickets for friends and family and took the offensive line, along with a few other teammates, to dinner Thursday night.

His road to this game was a long one. Metz is from Neuötting, a town of about 9,000 east of Munich. He first got to know the NFL when German free-to-air television began showing regular-season games around 2012, during the Tom Brady years in New England. He didn't start playing until he was 18. He spent one season as a defensive lineman with the Kirchdorf Wildcats, then went to Cincinnati, where he switched to offensive tackle. Over five seasons there he played in 39 games, made 26 starts and was named first-team All-AAC once. He went undrafted in 2023 and spent time with Chicago and Tampa Bay before joining New England's practice squad for the playoff run last January. Fantasy Nerds reported over the summer that the 6-foot-9 tackle signed a futures deal that used the international player exemption, which keeps him off the 90-man count. As of this week, his NFL action has been limited to the preseason, according to Fox Sports.

The game also connects to his family. His brother attended the first NFL game in Munich, the 2022 meeting between Seattle and Tampa Bay, on tickets Metz got for him while he was in college. Metz isn't on the active roster, and his status for Sunday is unclear. Either way, he called the trip something close to a full-circle moment.

What it means for Sunday

New England arrives in Germany at 5-4 after a rough finish at home. Green Bay put up 45 points in a 27-45 loss, the most the Patriots have allowed all season. That followed a 24-19 win at Miami. The defense has been uneven. New England held Pittsburgh to 3 points and Seattle to 13 but gave up 35 at Jacksonville and 30 at Chicago. The Patriots have also shown they can win on the road, as in the 29-26 result at Buffalo.

The Lions are listed as the home side, and the market has them favored. On Novig, Detroit is -135 and New England is +133. The best Patriots moneyline across the 12 venues on this site's board is Polymarket's +134, essentially the same as Novig. The spread shows more variation. Novig has Detroit -2.5, with the Patriots at +108, while Hard Rock Bet offers New England +3 at -115. That half point covers the most common margin in the sport. Novig's total is 50.5, with the over at +102, and bet365 has the over at 49.5 for -114. Sportsbook hold runs from 2.8% to 5.6% across the three markets.

Kickoff is Sunday, November 15, on Fox.