Thursday Night Football Best Bets at Sweepstakes Sportsbooks for Lions at Bills on 09-17-2026

The first game at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park (NY) promises to be like Christmas and Dyngus Day rolled into one. The tail-gating and table-smashing is sure to be epic as zealous members of Bills Mafia gather for the inaugural game at this new football mecca in northwestern New York.

The Buffalo Bills are priced as 4-5 point favorites, depending on which sports betting app you like to use. The game could be packed with excitement: the Bills and Detroit Lions tied for 4th in the NFL in scoring last season. The Lions were 3rd in passing yards and touchdowns through the air. Buffalo was No. 1 in rushing yards in 2025.

(Photo by: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Football fans can find odds from any of the top sweepstakes sportsbooks. *Not available in all jurisdictions, please check the available betting options in your state.

Here are odds from Sportzino for this Thursday Night Football matchup, which will be seen on Amazon Prime:

• Detroit Lions at Buffalo Bills (-5.5 from Sportzino)

Quick Thursday Night Football Preview: Lions at Bills

• Both teams won their season openers on Sunday and enter at 1-0 for this first game-ever at Highmark Stadium.
• Detroit will be missing two starting offensive linemen: Christian Mahogany and Blake Miller.
• Buffalo is not expected to be missing any players to injury for this game.
• TV: Amazon Prime (subscription required) at 8:20 PM ET
• RADIO: ESPN Radio

The Lions stumbled to a win on Sunday, surviving a late rally by the Saints. Detroit had to score in overtime to win that contest, 31-30. Even in victory, it's clear the Lions have issues with their secondary (again) and pass rush. Besides All-Pro Aidan Hutchinson, the Lions don't have a steady pass rush.

Josh Allen was wearing his Superman cape last Sunday. He led his Bills to a come-from-behind win over the Houston Texans, 36-31. Allen rushed for two TDs and threw for two more. He's the best player in the sport, but he can't always be the defining reason this team wins. The Bills will need every point they can muster to outscore a desperate Lions team that will want to air it out behind a banged up O-line.

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TNF Best Bets

Jahmyr Gibbs might be lonesome (and tired). The Detroit RB no longer has is his backfield mate David Montgomery to share the load. Instead, Gibbs touched the ball 34 times in Week 1, the most by any player in the NFL.

As dynamic as Gibbs is, the Lions can't keep up his pace: he played 74% of Detroit's offensive snaps on Sunday against the Saints.

The other factor which leads me to lean away from Gibbs production is the depleted Detroit offensive front. The Lions are missing not one, but two starting O-linemen. It's not like the Detroit line played particularly well vs. New Orleans. There are big questions about the Detroit offensive line in the wake of center Frank Ragnow's retirement.

That's why I like Detroit's new offensive coordinator Drew Petzing to scheme plays that involve Jameson Williams and Isaac TeSlaa as ball carriers (and receivers, of course).

Jameson Williams TNF Player Prop

One way to hide a deficiency at O-line is to run sweeps and counters, or even some pitch plays. Look for TeSlaa, especially, to get touches that will be designed to mislead the Buffalo defense. The Lions love to use Williams on reverses and short catches to give the speedster an opportunity to "road runner" his way downfield. I expect he will have many chances following a poor game on Sunday.

• BEST BET: Jameson Williams 70+ Receiving Yards (+120 from Onyx Betting App)

Josh Allen Passing Yards

There is no better hybrid in the NFL than Josh Allen. He's a beast who can run over linebackers and also pass the ball 60 yards with a flick of his wrist off his back foot while running away from a 300-pound lineman. He's part runner, part thrower, part linebacker, part fullback, part Canton.

But it's a mistake to forget about his ability to rack up passing yards. In six of his last eight games at home, Allen has topped 250 yards. Against the porous Detroit secondary, I expect Allen will have lots of fun finding DJ Moore, Khalil Shakir, and Keon Coleman. He'll also be able to dump the football off to James Cook.

In a new stadium on a state-of-the-art playing surface, I expect Allen to go to the air a lot to his speedy receivers. Sportzino has a very reasonable player prop based on his passing yards that I like for TNF.

• PICK: Josh Allen 260+ Passing Yards (+110 from Sportzino)

If you think Allen will get to 300 yards passing, you can find odds of +290 from Sportzino.

First Reception of the Game: DJ Moore

In its Week 1 victory over the Texans, DJ Moore was harassed a lot by the Houston secondary. Moore started very slowly because of the physical play by the Texans. But he's tough: running more than 80% of the routes and being targeted 30% of the time he ran a route. Against Detroit, he can be used more modestly, but have a much bigger impact.

I always like a fun "First Of" bet for TNF, and here's my pick for then first reception in new Highmark Stadium.

• PICK: DJ Moore First Reception of the Game (+750 from Betr)