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The Lions hit the road this weekend, but for Eric Ebron, that's home. And he has no intention of losing.

(Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)

ALLEN PARK -- Eric Ebron grew up watching Michael Strahan eat up quarterbacks and Tiki Barber snack on linebackers. And he wasn't the only one.

Where he's from, everybody is a Giants or Jets fan.

And if you were an Ebron, there was only one option.

"I was the biggest Giants fan there was," Ebron said.

The Detroit Lions tight end hails from Newark, N.J., which sits just 10 miles down Route 21 from MetLife Stadium, and he comes from a long line of Giants fans. His father, his grandfather. His aunts and uncles and all his siblings. Everybody except his mother.

They all bleed blue and red.

And now they're all going to be able to watch one of their own return home an NFL starter, when Detroit (9-4) travels to MetLife Stadium on Sunday to face the Giants (9-4) in a clash of NFC contenders.

"It's going to be a dream come true, in my eyes," Ebron said. "It should be fun. I'm just going to unleash everything I got within that four quarters. I'm going to give every ounce of energy I got."

Ebron said he's rounded up 36 tickets and passed them out to his closest friends and family, though the freebies come with one stipulation.

"There's no Giants gear to be worn by family," he said. "It's all either Lions stuff, or you come neutral. So that's how this works, or your ass ain't getting a ticket."

Ebron was born and raised in Newark before eventually moving to Rhode Island to be closer to his ailing grandfather, then to North Carolina. But he's always considered himself a Jersey boy. It's where he calls home.

And being able to go home as an important member of the Lions is a special opportunity for him.

Ebron missed three games because of knee and ankle injuries, but has otherwise been very good for Detroit. He has 521 receiving yards this year, which is just 16 short of his career high with three to go. His 51.3 receiving yards per game is eighth league wide among tight ends.

Now he's set his sights on the Giants, the team he lived and died with as a kid, though never actually got to see play live. Not even once. Sunday will be his first time.

And he has no intention of seeing them win.

"I don't plan on leaving my hometown without that 'W,'" he said. "I plan on going in there and giving it everything I've got."