The Detroit Lions and Buffalo Bills square off this afternoon at Ford Field in a highly anticipated interconference matchup between two of the best teams in the NFL. Important playoff positioning is on the line for both teams.
Here are five things to watch out for today:
1. MVP favorites square off
Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Lions quarterback Jared Goff are two of the leading candidates for NFL MVP honors with a month left in the season.
Allen's dual-threat ability was on full display last week, throwing for 342 yards and three touchdowns and rushing for 82 yards and another three scores in a 44-42 loss to the Rams. Detroit has to find a way to make Allen and the Bills' offense one-dimensional. That's the best chance to limit their production as Buffalo is looking to score at least 30 points for the eighth straight game Sunday.
Goff ranks second in the league in passer rating (109.1) and completion percentage (72.4) and can become the second quarterback ever with a completion percentage of 75 percent-or-higher in eight games in a season, joining Tom Brady (eight games in 2007).
2. Lions getting healthier
The expectation is for left tackle Taylor Decker, defensive tackle Alim McNeill, defensive tackle DJ Reader, defensive end Josh Paschal and defensive lineman Levi Onwuzurike to all be back in the lineup today for Detroit. That's a huge boost, especially for a Lions' defense given the difficult task of trying to limit Allen and Co.
Kudos to the backups and newly signed veterans for stepping in last week and playing significant roles in a tight spot. The return of McNeill, Reader, Onwuzurike and Paschal now gives that defensive front seven some terrific depth to throw at Buffalo's No. 2 scoring offense (30.5).
3. Third-down success
One of the best ways to limit Allen and the Bills' offense is to keep them on the sideline. Driving the football and winning the time of possession is key for Detroit Sunday. 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) as the Rams were 11-for-15 on third down last week.
"Our guys, we just watched all those third downs back-to-back-to-back and our guys understand what the task is at hand," Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said Thursday of the third-down success the Rams had against Buffalo last week.
4. Sonic & Knuckles
This has the making of a physical football game. The team that establishes the run and is able to dictate the pace of the game with it has the edge.
David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs are the best running back tandem in the NFL as Detroit has rushed for 100-or-more yards in each of their first 13 contests. Can Detroit dominate the line of scrimmage and run the football with the kind of success we've seen from them all year against Buffalo's 19th ranked run defense?
5. Making history
Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown has 396 receptions since entering the NFL in 2021. With four catches this afternoon against the Bills, St. Brown can join Michael Thomas (470) and Jarvis Landry (400) as the only players with 400 receptions in their first four seasons in NFL history.
