Josh Allen absolutely took over the Bills’ game in the first quarter, leaving zero doubt who was in charge even as the Lions managed to put up a respectable 31 points. If Detroit found the end zone, Allen responded immediately. Just to make a point. Just to show who runs the show. I gotta be honest, I didn’t expect a blowout, especially with both these squads looking like playoff contenders. But that’s what we got: the Bills humbling the Lions, 41-31, on Thursday night.
This Is a Whole New Era in Buffalo, And It’s Wild
We keep asking if this is their year, right? Well, there’s more reason than ever to believe it might be. This could actually be their Super Bowl run year, and it all comes down to what’s new. Listen, Josh Allen is straight-up the best player on the planet. Period. But you could feel like former coach Sean McDermott was holding back the organization sometimes, with some super conservative calls and a defense that could be a little too predictable. That’s why coach Joe Brady’s promotion from offensive coordinator last year feels like a truly new era. His offense has been incredible. They pulled off a massive win in Houston just last week and then absolutely blew up the scoreboard with huge numbers again this week.
The Defense Is Back (And Maybe The Lions Should Call The Steelers?)
But get this: the offense wasn’t even the biggest story! It was the defense where coordinator Jim Leonhard has that unit absolutely humming right out of the gate. You know how hard it is for a defensive coordinator to come in and just completely change a scheme, especially when players might have been a better fit in the old system? That’s not happening here. The guys who returned are playing amazing. And the new blood , edge Bradley Chubb, safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and cornerback Dee Alford , they’ve plugged up the holes from last year like it was nothing.
Now, we gotta talk about the Lions. It’s tough to heap praise on them after a night like that. They just didn’t have it. Maybe it’s because they’re still super young, ranking as the 11th-youngest roster in the whole NFL. Or maybe it’s their offensive line, which replaced two starters and needs time to mesh. Same story with the secondary, replacing two starters there, too. It’s probably all of that, a lot of work for coach Dan Campbell, OC Drew Petzing, and DC Kelvin Sheppard. But they’ve got talent: Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Sam LaPorta, Penei Sewell, Aidan Hutchinson. Those guys are studs, but they just didn’t show up like they should have. Don’t count them out completely, though. They’ll fix this. (And maybe they’ll pick up the phone and ring the Steelers about cornerback Joey Porter Jr.)
Meanwhile, Josh Allen just dropped five total touchdowns on Thursday, adding to the four total he put up last week. Seriously, if the season ended this week, he’d be the MVP, no question. There’s plenty of football left, and it’s gonna get even more interesting every single week.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Fox Sports.
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