NFL Football
2026-09-17 - Detroit Lions at Buffalo Bills
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States : NFL Week 2
Thursday 17th September 2026 - Scheduled 8:15pm EST
1:15am (British Time)
Preview
Thursday Night Football is a feature of the NFL regular season and Week 2 of the 2026 season will see the Buffalo Bills (1-0) open their new home against the Detroit Lions (1-0).
Both teams earned wins in Week 1, although they came in very different fashion.
The Buffalo Bills won on the road against the Houston Texans who are another AFC team expected to push towards the Playoff and it is all the more impressive when you think of the issues Josh Allen has had when facing Houston in the past.
New Head Coach Joe Brady has to be really happy with what he saw from the Bills Offensively, but he will also be aware that there has to be some improvement Defensively if Buffalo are finally going to crack through and reach the Super Bowl.
The Detroit Lions were bigger favourites than the Buffalo Bills in Week 1, but they needed Overtime and then a stop on a two point play to earn the victory against the New Orleans Saints. This is a team that has played well under Head Coach Dan Campbell and one that steps up when they are set as the underdog, but a short week after an Overtime game to open the season places the Lions in a difficult spot.
However, they have to be happy with the way the Offensive Line played in opening up the running lanes and the Lions are going to look to keep the Bills quiet on the sidelines by handing the ball to Jahmyr Gibbs.
Last season the Bills Defensive Line struggled to stop the run, but they have made an encouraging start to the 2026 season. This is a big test for that Line to see where they stand, but failing to stop or slow the run would open up the Secondary to be attacked by Jared Goff and the Detroit passing game.
If the Bills can rush the Quarter Back as they did last week, that will help, but the Detroit Lions should feel they can have some success in Buffalo's new home.
Of course you have to expect plenty of success from Josh Allen and the Buffalo Offensive unit.
There was little wrong with the way the Lions Defensive Line played up front against the run in the win over New Orleans, but the Secondary were banged up last season and Detroit's Defensive Backs struggled in Week 1. Allowing the Saints to put up almost 400 passing yards is not ideal preparation for the Buffalo Bills, although the Lions will feel the pass rush can get into the backfield and at least force the Quarter Back to go through his reads that much quicker than he may want.
Even then, Josh Allen and company should be comfortable moving the ball and this could end up being another shootout as was the case when the teams met in December 2024.
That ended with both teams surpassing the 40 point mark in a game played in Detroit and both Offenses have to believe they can move the ball with confidence in this Week 2 clash in 2026.
The short week should make it that much more difficult for the Defensive units to make the adjustments needed after the issues in Week 1 and that should allow Jared Goff and Josh Allen to lead their team to plenty of successful drives and these two teams may end up surpassing the total points line set.
Prediction
Look for the two teams to combine and surpass this total points line.
The Pick :
Buffalo Bills 34-28 Detroit Lions
