The Bills have plenty to like after two straight wins in four days, and Josh Allen has been driving the whole operation at a ridiculous level. Buffalo’s offense looks every bit like one of the league’s best units.
The defense? That’s where the real work is.
Through two games, Jim Leonhard’s group has flashed the aggression Buffalo wanted when he installed his new 3-4 scheme, but it has also shown the kind of uneven play that keeps a coordinator up at night. Greg Rousseau and Deone Walker have stood out as bright spots. Beyond that, the picture has been far less clean.
The first test came in Week 1 against the Texans, when C.J. Stroud and Houston piled up 381 total yards and 31 points. For a Buffalo team that’s long been defined by defensive talent, that was a rough opening statement, even if it was only one game.
Then came Thursday night against the Lions, and the script changed only so much. The Bills looked sharp defensively in the first half, but the second half turned into a grind.
Detroit still has a dangerous offense, no question, but the way the Lions kept chipping away after Buffalo had built a 27-7 lead - eventually getting within 10 - was enough to raise eyebrows. Jared Goff finished with 327 yards and four touchdown passes, with most of that damage coming after halftime.
Leonhard didn’t try to dress it up. According to Sal Capaccio, he called the defense a “boom or bust defense” and said it’s “not a sustainable way to win and play good defense throughout the season.” He also said the unit has to “have more emotional stability as drives go on.” per Capaccio.
That last line lands hard because Buffalo has already been flagged 15 times in two games, and a chunk of those penalties have come from the defense. The secondary, in particular, has hurt itself with holding calls.
It’s still early, and those two games came in a tight four-day stretch. But Leonhard’s point is hard to argue with.
There’s plenty for Buffalo to clean up, even with the offense rolling. The good news is that Leonhard now gets extra time to get ready for a Chargers offense led by Mike McDaniel, who knows the Bills well from his time as head coach of the Miami Dolphins.
In Other News...
Bills Win Got Overshadowed By A Pregame Criticism Fans Will Debate
The Bills 41-31 win over the Lions at Highmark Stadium should have been the main talking point from Week 2, but a pregame gripe from Breiden Fehoko ended up pulling plenty of attention its own way. Before kickoff, Fehoko vented on Twitter about the Canadian national anthem being played, turning a routine bit of pregame ceremony into an unexpectedly noisy side story around a game Buffalo handled on the field.
Buffalos offense did its part to keep the focus on football, and the result only added to a strong early-season start for a team that still has plenty of bigger goals ahead. Even so, the debate around Fehokos comments is the kind of off-field flashpoint that lingers after a win, especially with the Bills moving on to a stretch that includes Joe Burrows Bengals and more chances for the conversation to shift back to what happens between the lines. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Win Just Sparked A Brutal Debate About Dan Campbell
The Lions 41-31 loss to the Bills in Week 2 did more than hand Buffalo another win. It also reopened a familiar conversation around Dan Campbell, with analyst Emmanuel Acho questioning how Detroit looks when it has to keep moving without former offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who left after the 2025 season to coach the Bears.
For a team that has spent the past few years building an identity under Campbell, the timing of the criticism matters. Detroit now gets a quick chance to reset at Ford Field against the Jets in Week 3, and the pressure is only growing to show that the offense can still function at a high level even with Johnson no longer on the sideline. [Read more 🡒]
Dalton Kincaid Is Creating A Bills Decision Much Sooner Than Expected
Dalton Kincaids strong start has already pushed the Bills into an uncomfortable but welcome place. Buffalo exercised the fifth-year option on the tight ends rookie deal, keeping him under contract through the 2027 season despite the knee injury that briefly complicated his early NFL arc, and the move looked like straightforward roster planning at the time.
Two games into the new season, Kincaid has made the decision feel a lot bigger. He has led the Bills in receiving yards and found the end zone, a reminder that his ceiling may be higher than just being a reliable target in the offense. If this kind of production keeps up, Buffalo could be staring at an All-Pro level player sooner than expected, and with that comes a much tougher contract conversation than the one the team thought it was buying time to postpone. [Read more 🡒]