Buffalo got the answer it wanted on DJ Moore.
After the wide receiver left his debut with an ankle injury, the Bills have now cleared him for Thursday night. Moore is not listed on Buffalo’s injury report ahead of the matchup with the Detroit Lions, a welcome development after the final snap against the Carolina Panthers briefly put his status in doubt.
The injury happened at the end of a big opening act in Buffalo. Moore finished with five catches, 100 receiving yards and one touchdown as the Bills’ primary WR1. He looked like exactly the kind of difference-maker the offense has been searching for, especially with Josh Allen still in his prime and Buffalo still without a long-term partner for its star quarterback.
The concern came when Moore went down and reached for his ankle, a moment that made the injury appear serious in real time. But head coach Joe Brady told reporters after the game that Moore is “good to go.” Now the official report backs that up.
That matters because Moore’s first game in Buffalo did more than fill a stat sheet. He made a quick impression on Bills Mafia after arriving via trade from the Bears, even reportedly buying a stack of jerseys from a local store and handing them out for free. According to the source report, the store staff did not initially recognize him, but once they realized who he was, they went along with the request.
For a veteran settling into a new team, that kind of start goes a long way. Moore has already shown Buffalo he can make an immediate impact on the field and, just as importantly, make himself part of the building right away. Against the Lions, that connection with Allen gets its next test.
In Other News...
Lions Have Clear Risers And One Growing Concern Before Buffalo
The Lions got the kind of win that can strengthen a locker room and sharpen a coaching staffs eye at the same time. After building a 21-point lead and then surviving overtime against the Saints, Detroit had plenty to like from a handful of players who helped steady the finish, including Alex Anzalone, DAndre Swift and Aidan Hutchinson, with several rookies also making useful contributions along the way.
Buffalo is waiting on Thursday night, which means the turnaround is short and the margin for slippage is thinner than usual. A comeback win can buy some goodwill, but the Lions still have a growing concern to sort through before they line up against one of the AFCs tougher opponents, especially after letting a big lead turn into a longer, more stressful afternoon than it needed to be. [Read more 🡒]
Lions May Have Finally Found The Defensive Edge They Needed
For all the attention on Detroits second-half defensive wobble against the New Orleans Saints, the opening act was hard to ignore. The Lions came out with the kind of front-seven energy that can change a game, finishing Week 1 with a league-leading 26 pressures and turning that heat into five sacks. Aidan Hutchinson was right in the middle of it, and the overall rush gave the defense something it can build on even as the rest of the unit tried to settle in.
The challenge now is making that edge a weekly identity instead of a promising flash. Detroit still has work to do in the secondary, and the pass rush will not always get to feast the way it did in the opener. But if the Lions can keep forcing quarterbacks off their spots while the back end tightens up, they may have found the kind of defensive formula that changes the tone of their season. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Already Face A Jahmyr Gibbs Problem They Can't Ignore
The Lions spent the offseason reshaping their backfield around Jahmyr Gibbs, moving on from David Montgomery with the idea that Gibbs would become the featured running back. In the opener against the Saints, that plan was on full display, as Gibbs handled a massive share of the offense and turned it into 186 yards from scrimmage while looking every bit like the centerpiece Detroit wants him to be.
The bigger question now is how often that kind of workload can hold up. Dan Campbell acknowledged after the game that what Gibbs took on in the opener may not be something the Lions can ask of him every week, and that leaves Detroit with an immediate depth issue behind him. For a team built to lean on the run, finding a reliable backup plan is no small matter, especially with the season still just getting started. [Read more 🡒]