Week 2 of NFL action kicks off with a thrilling Thursday Night Football battle between the Detroit Lions and the Buffalo Bills. Both teams have deep playoff aspirations and picked up Week 1 victories. The Bills fended off the Texans 36-31, while the Lions were pushed to the limit in a 31-30 overtime victory against the Saints. They will now square off in a measuring stick matchup against each other to kick off the second week of the season.
Looking at the odds, the Bills enter as 5.5-point favorites with -230 Moneyline odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Lions hold +190 odds to pull off the upset, with the game total set at 54.5 points.
But there are plenty of ways to get involved in the action beyond backing a side or total. Let’s take a look at my top three favorite player props for the Week 2 Thursday Night Football matchup.
Lions vs. Bills NFL Player Prop Bets for Thursday Night Football
Dalton Kincaid Over 50.5 Receiving Yards (-111)
The Buffalo Bills added D.J. Moore this offseason to provide Josh Allen with a top wide receiver threat. But the star quarterback has traditionally leaned heavily on his tight ends for production through the air, and the opening week matchup proved this is not fully changing. Dalton Kincaid led all Bills’ pass catchers, pulling in five of his six targets for 130 total yards.
Kincaid averaged 47.6 yards per game through the air last year, and has tallied 1,692 receiving yards through the first three years of his career. This is a great opportunity to build off this, as the Detroit Lions’ defense looked like it could be carved up by an adequate high school team in the season opener. The New Orleans Saints marched down the field with little resistance, putting up 469 total yards of offense and scoring 30 points in the matchup. This includes 378 yards through the air, and both tight ends were heavily involved in the attack. Juwan Johnson pulled in three receptions on seven targets for 54 yards and a touchdown, while Noah Fant added four receptions on eight targets for 33 yards and a score of his own
The Bills lean on Kincaid at an even greater rate than the Saints do in their offensive attack, and he is a superior talent to the New Orleans tight ends. While the 130 yard output is not sustainable to repeat at a frequent rate, count on him remaining a key part of the gameplan and a safety valve for Allen throughout. Detroit should improve to some extent in their pass defense, but the matchup problem at the tight end position was evident in Week 1, and this is a difficult fix on a short week. Count on Kincaid remaining heavily involved in the Bills’ offense, and for over 50.5 receiving yards to be a comfortable bar to clear.
Josh Allen Over 253.5 Passing Yards (-111)
The 2024 NFL MVP got off to a strong start to this season, throwing for 334 yards on just 29 pass attempts against the Houston Texans. This is a Texans’ defense that finished last season ranked second in opponents’ points allowed, first in yards conceded, and sixth in opponents’ passing yards last season. They were widely expected to have a case for one of the top defensive units in football this year, but will need to make some major improvements from their Week 1 performance if this is to be the case.
But the impressive output should say more about Allen than the Texans’ defense. The Bills’ star had a bit of a down season last year in his passing metrics, averaging 215.8 passing yards per game. But he is averaging 235.9 passing yards per game in his career and tallied as many as 284.0 over a season. Allen still tallied 253 passing yards or greater in seven games ,even with it being a down year in passing production last year.
Allen will also be able to feast on this Lions’ defense, given the concerns mentioned above. Tyler Shough aired the ball out for 410 passing yards and three touchdowns against them last week to provide the upset scare. Even if you are not the biggest Allen fan, it is difficult to argue against the four-time Pro Bowler having significantly more arm talent than Shough. With better receiving talent around him and holes across this Detroit defense, expect plenty of passing success and for the 253.5 passing yard line not to be nearly high enough. For the sake of the article, we will stick to the standard passing prop, but some alternate lines also stand out for the Bills’ star, such as 280+ passing yards at +170 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Jahmyr Gibbs Over 90.5 Rushing Yards (-110)
There is plenty of talent across this Lions’ offense, but it has become increasingly evident that Jahmyr Gibbs is the foundation of the attack. After splitting carries with David Montgomery to start his career, Detroit now leans on the Alabama product as their bell-cow back. Gibbs tallied a career-high and NFL-leading 29 carries in Week 1, turning these opportunities into 156 yards and two touchdowns.
Buffalo holds plenty of defensive concerns of their own entering this matchup. In the opening week of the season, the Texans tallied 31 points and 381 total yards of offense against them. This includes 124 rushing yards on the ground, with former Lions standout Montgomery ripping off 60 yards and two touchdowns on his 20 carries while Woody Marks added 42 rushing yards of his own. Run defense was a concern for the Bills coming into the season, as they finished last year ranked 28th in the league in rushing yards allowed, 31st in rushing touchdowns conceded, and 30th in net yards per rush attempts.
Gibbs has game-breaking speed and can take any given carry the length of the field for a touchdown score. With no real competition looking over his shoulder for carries, expect plenty of these chances and for the 24-year-old to find the open field at least once. He has tallied over 90.5 rushing yards in 13 games already in his career, and is receiving the largest opportunity in the offense thus far. Count on the Lions continuing to make it a clear effort to put the ball in the star running back’s hands and for Gibbs to have success against this porous defense. Back the Lions’ star to record over 90.5 rushing yards for the second straight week, and don’t be fully surprised if he exceeds last week’s massive 156 yard rushing output.
