The Detroit Lions hit the road for the first time this season when they face the Buffalo Bills at the new Highmark Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 17.
Both teams are coming off nail-biting wins, with the Lions holding off the New Orleans Saints' comeback for a 31-30 win, and the Bills rallying past the Houston Texans in a 36-31 victory. The Lions will be missing two starting offensive linemen.
Which team stays undefeated? Our Free Press experts give their Lions-Bills picks:
Dave Birkett
The Lions and Bills combined for 90 points the last time they met two years ago late in the 2024 season. Both were Super Bowl contenders then and still are now, but I don't expect nearly as high-scoring a game on a short week and early in the season when there's still some sloppiness
to flush out. The Lions need to find more balance on offense, both to keep Jahmyr Gibbs fresh and to be more efficient on that side of the ball. The way to beat Josh Allen is to keep him off the field, and the Lions can't be one-dimensional again and expect to win on the road. Communication could be an issue for the Lions' banged-up offensive line in what should be an electric environment in the first game at new Highmark Stadium. And if the Lions can't win the time of possession battle, I think Allen and the Bills offense will be too much for their secondary to handle.
The pick: Bills 27, Lions 20.
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Rainer Sabin
For more than 2½ quarters, Kelvin Sheppard’s defense held strong in the Lions’ 31-30 overtime conquest of the Saints last Sunday. But the rampant leaks that occurred over the final 33 minutes of the game were enough to make anyone skeptical that it can provide much resistance to Josh Allen and Buffalo. The Bills put up 36 points on the road against Houston – one of the NFL’s stingiest teams in 2025 – and now they will be playing in front of a fervent crowd in the regular season opener at their brand-new stadium. The circumstances simply don’t favor the Lions, who must tackle this enormous challenge on three days’ rest.
The pick: Bills 34, Lions 24.
Shawn Windsor
They'll hang around till the end to the surprise of some, the delight of many and the dismay of a few. Then Josh Allen will do what he does, at least to the Lions, and make a play to win the game.
The pick: Bills 31, Lions 27.
Jeff Seidel
Let’s see. A short week. Going on the road. Facing a great QB. In the immortal words of Scooby-Doo: “Rut roh!” Jahmyr Gibbs will need to do another Superman impersonation, just to keep it close. But you know something? The Bills have this dude named Josh Allen, who is going to carve up the Lions secondary when it matters the most.
The pick: Bills 35, Lions 30.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Lions vs Bills predictions in NFL Week 2: Who stays unbeaten?
