Every week during the regular season Tim Twentyman will answer 10 good questions from his X account @ttwentyman in a feature we call "10 Questions with Twentyman."
20man: Bills quarterback Josh Allen is such a terrific talent and he is playing the best football of his career. You go into this one expecting him to make plays and get out of the pocket at times, you just have to limit it if you're Aaron Glenn and this Lions' defense. You can live with that as long as it's just him and the passing game.
I thought the Rams did a great job taking James Cook out of that contest (20 rushing yards) and making it all about Allen. Allen still almost won Buffalo the game nearly single-handedly, but if Detroit can't stop the run and they have to deal with Cook and Allen, that's not a recipe for success in my book.
Detroit's secondary and their ability to cover has been the defense's strength this year and they'll need all those players in the backend to be good again on Sunday. Make this a game where Allen has to beat you with his arm.
20man: Those two have really stepped up along with a bunch of other players as the Lions have navigated through injuries along their front seven on defense. Detroit could get Levi Onwuzurike and Josh Paschal back this week, and maybe DJ Reader too. I think O'Connor and Muhammad will continue to be part of the rotation because of the way they've played. It allows the players coming back from injury to ease their way back into the fold a little bit. If nothing else, it shows this defense has built good depth with some of the players Brad Holmes has brought in and Dan Campbell and his staff have developed to fit Glenn's scheme.
20man: One of the best ways to limit Allen and the Bills' offense is keeping them on the sideline. Driving the football and winning the time of possession is key for Detroit Sunday. Third down will be big for quarterback Jared Goff and the offense this week.
Detroit's offense ranks fourth in third-down efficiency (45.8 percent). That's an area where Buffalo's defense has struggled this season. They rank just 25th getting off the field on third down (43.2 percent). The Rams were 11-for-15 on third down against them in the win last week.
20man: I expect there to be an opportunity here or there to make a big play for safeties Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch. If they get one, it's imperative they take advantage because that's one area where I think Allen has really taken a big step forward this season. He's not making a lot of mistakes.
Allen threw 18 interceptions last season and had 14 in 2022, 15 in 2021 and 10 in 2020. He only has five this season and those came in a four-game stretch from Weeks 8-12. He's not giving opponents many takeaway opportunities and it's part of the reason why he's considered a favorite to win the MVP. Hopefully Detroit's defense can change that Sunday.
20man: It's a good question. I don't think coach will ever lose his aggressiveness, though I don't expect him to be as ultra-aggressive as he was last week in terms of going for it deep in his territory. It's actually a good point by you because it's something Campbell brought up this week talking to us.
"I see us playing better defensively," he said. "I think we're going to show up. We're going to do some things. Offense has got to, certainly, score points, preferably touchdowns, not field goals, and then we need something out of our special teams. Our special teams unit needs to show up for us, field position will be huge in this game."
20man: Well we can start with Kansas City. That's the only loss the defending Super Bowl champs have this season and that was a 30-21 win for the Bills. Arizona was a good win. Blowing out Miami (31-10) in Miami isn't easy. Going to Seattle and beating the Seahawks 31-10 is impressive in my book, knowing how difficult it is to play there.
They lost at Baltimore, at Houston and at the Rams. Make no mistake, this is a good football team and Detroit will have their hands full Sunday.
20man: The easy answer would be Amon-Ra St. Brown, but I predict we get our first Jameson Williams touchdown since the Jaguars game Week 11, and he has a few explosive plays to boot. This is a Top 10 Bills pass defense, but in the losses to Houston and Los Angeles, they gave up big plays in the passing game. I think Williams has one or two of those up his sleeve Sunday.
20man: Decker was a full participant in practice Wednesday and that's usually a good sign a player is set to return, unless there's an unexpected setback of course. It would be good to get the veteran left tackle back.
That being said, I thought Dan Skipper played his butt off last week against Green Bay and more than held his own. That effort showed with his famous cameo in Campbell's locker room speech. Kudos to him for holding down the fort.
20man: The Texans and Ravens did the best job this season in wins over Buffalo. Allen was just 9-for-30 for 131 yards against the Texans and he was 16-for-29 for 180 yards with no touchdowns against Baltimore. In both those contests, the Texans and Ravens did a great job limiting Allen's playmaking out of the pocket.
That's really when Allen is at his best, when he's out of the pocket with a run/pass option and the receivers are able to play the scramble drill and find open spaces. Keep him in the pocket and force him to beat you from there. That's the recipe Houston and Baltimore showed can be effective.
20man: It's too bad Melifonwu suffered that finger injury right as he was getting ready to return from the ankle injury that had kept him out the first half of the year. He is eligible to return Week 16 vs. Chicago, and I think there's still a chance we see him on the field this season. He's a versatile weapon that can be a situational player with a track record of playmaking ability.
