The Lions won’t be sneaking into Buffalo in Week 2 as the quiet side of the matchup. They’ll be walking into one of the league’s loudest first-night scenes, with the Bills set to christen Highmark Field in their first regular-season game at the new site. That alone is enough to have plenty of people already circling Detroit as a likely early-season casualty.
CBS Sports analyst John Breech is among those leaning that way. In his early season picks, while trying to identify teams that could run the table, he projected the Lions to drop their first game of the year on the road in Buffalo.
"This Thursday night matchup will mark the first game at the Bills' new stadium and it's almost impossible to see the Bills losing the first game at their new stadium."
That word - impossible - is doing a lot of work. The NFL has a habit of humiliating certainty, whether the stage is a brand-new stadium, a playoff game or the Super Bowl. Upsets are part of the league’s DNA, and the Lions have already shown they can be the team that spoils somebody else’s celebration.
Detroit enters Week 2 as a clear underdog, but there’s a reason to be cautious about writing off the road team before kickoff. The old version of the Lions might have looked like an easy fade in a spot like this. The current version, under Dan Campbell, has already shown it can handle pressure away from home.
That shift has been on display since the end of the 2022 season, when Detroit knocked the Green Bay Packers out of the playoffs in the final game of the year with nothing on the line for itself. Few saw that coming. Since then, the Lions have kept stacking road wins in places like Chicago, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, Kansas City and San Francisco.
They’ve also already done the primetime spoiler act. In the first game of the 2023 season, Detroit spoiled the Chiefs’ Super Bowl ring ceremony in a setting that was as charged as it gets, and the Lions still found a way to come through.
That’s part of the backdrop here. Campbell has the Lions thinking about something much bigger than one noisy Thursday night in Buffalo, with a chance to contend for the franchise’s first Super Bowl. A new stadium crowd and all the pageantry around it may be aimed at the Bills, but the bigger test could be how the home team handles the pressure of opening the building under the lights.
And that’s why this one feels a lot less settled than it might look from the outside. In the NFL, declaring anything a sure thing is usually a bad bet.
In Other News...
Taylor Decker's Next Move Has Become A Real Lions Offseason Twist
Taylor Deckers status has turned into one of the more unusual offseason storylines around the Lions. After asking for and getting his release from Detroit, the veteran lineman is still on the market with final preseason roster cuts looming, even as teams such as Washington and the Rams have shown interest along the way. For a player who has long been a familiar piece of the Lions offensive front, the lack of a landing spot has made this a far different finish to the summer than anyone would have expected.
The real wrinkle is that Deckers next move may not be a simple choice between one team and another. He has made it clear he would be reluctant to land with NFC North rivals like the Bears or Packers, which narrows the options even more, and his playing future is now genuinely uncertain. Retirement is on the table, but so is the possibility that he waits for the right opening and resurfaces in season if the right opportunity finally comes along. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Preseason Win Came With New Roster Concerns
The Lions got what they wanted out of their only home preseason game against Washington, leaving with a 17-13 win and a few encouraging signs on both sides of the ball. Even without some of the key backs in uniform, Detroit still showed a sturdy running game, while the defense chipped in with sacks and steady quarterback pressure that helped keep the Commanders from settling in.
Cedrick Wilson Jr. also went down, adding another name to a roster that is still being sorted out, and offensive lineman Michael Niese was hurt as well. Jabari Small was part of the injury mix too, entering concussion protocol, which means the postgame mood in Allen Park carried the usual preseason split: some optimism about depth, and some fresh concern about availability as the roster picture gets tighter. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Suddenly Have A Running Back Fight Worth Watching
The running back room has been one of the quieter trouble spots in camp, but the Lions are adding another body as the final week of training camp gets underway. Detroit is reportedly signing undrafted rookie Roydell Williams to help with depth after a stretch in which injuries have thinned the group and forced the team to keep shuffling answers at the position.
Williams comes in with a decent pedigree, having played at Alabama and Florida State before a recent release from the Indianapolis Colts. For a team already navigating injuries to Jahmyr Gibbs, Isiah Pacheco, Sione Vaki, Jacob Saylors and Jabari Small, the next question is less about whether there is room for another back and more about whether Williams can make this late push matter. [Read more 🡒]