Josh Allen accounted for five touchdowns as Buffalo moved to 2-0 on the season, christening its new home with fireworks, a Bruce Smith appearance, and one of the most explosive stadium debuts in NFL history.
The Buffalo Bills gave their fans a show worthy of the occasion, defeating the Detroit Lions 41-31 on Thursday night in the first regular-season game at the team’s new Highmark Stadium.
A Big Night in Orchard Park
The $2.2 billion stadium’s debut had all the trimmings: fireworks to open the night, a pregame appearance from Buffalo Hall of Famer Bruce Smith leading the crowd in a “Let’s Go, Buffalo” chant, and two national anthems, with Barenaked Ladies performing the Canadian anthem. Head coach Joe Brady said afterward that he intentionally kept his emotions in check during the festivities so his players would stay composed — but for most everyone else in the building, that wasn’t the case.
“The atmosphere was incredible,” Brady said. “It was the game Buffalo deserved.”
The Bills’ 41 points marked the third-most by any team in a regular-season stadium debut, trailing only the Dallas Cowboys’ 44-point debut at Texas Stadium in 1971 and the Miami Dolphins’ 42-point debut at Joe Robbie Stadium in 1987.
Josh Allen Puts on a Show
Buffalo wasted no time turning the new stadium’s opener into a rout. The Bills scored touchdowns on their first three drives, racing out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter and never trailing.
Josh Allen was the catalyst, accounting for five total touchdowns — three passing and two rushing — finishing with 248 passing yards and 69 rushing yards. It marked the fourth time in his career he’s posted at least three passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns in a single game, a feat matched by only one other player in NFL history, Kordell Stewart.
Allen also crossed 40,000 career passing yards in the game, reaching the milestone in just 153 games — the sixth-fewest games any quarterback has needed to hit that mark.
Running back James Cook III added a strong ground performance, rushing 21 times for 135 yards and a touchdown, while tight end Dalton Kincaid hauled in a touchdown reception as well.
How the Game Unfolded
Buffalo jumped out to a 27-10 halftime lead after a 16-yard touchdown pass from Allen to Kincaid, though a missed extra point kept the margin from growing further before Detroit added a late field goal. The Lions battled back behind quarterback Jared Goff, cutting the lead to 27-17 to open the second half on a short touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown.
Buffalo answered with an extended, clock-eating drive — 15 plays covering 75 yards over more than eight minutes — capped by an Allen bootleg touchdown run that pushed the lead back to 34-17. Detroit continued to chip away, narrowing the gap to 34-24 on a touchdown pass to tight end Sam LaPorta, but Buffalo closed the door with a late touchdown run from Cook to seal the 41-31 final.
Lions Still Searching for Answers on Defense
Detroit’s injury-depleted secondary struggled throughout, including a blown coverage that left receiver Joshua Palmer wide open for a 43-yard touchdown in the first quarter. The Lions have now allowed 62 points through their first two games as first-year offensive coordinator Drew Petzing’s unit works to find its footing and the team works to get healthy on defense.
One surprise for Detroit: receiver Jameson Williams, who entered the season expected to break out as the team’s No. 2 receiver, was targeted just four times and finished with only two catches for 33 yards.
Bills Move to 2-0
The win makes Joe Brady the first head coach in Buffalo Bills franchise history to win his first two games, and it sends an early message that the move to a new stadium hasn’t dulled one of the NFL’s most difficult home-field environments.
Buffalo will look to keep the momentum going as the season continues, while Detroit — despite a 15-win season two years ago and much of that roster still intact — will look to shore up its defense heading into Week 3.
