'Thursday Night Football' prediction, odds, time: Lions vs. Bills picks from expert on 22-11 roll — SkimNews
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- Detroit Lions and Buffalo Bills arrive at Thursday Night Football both 1-0 after the Lions' 31-30 overtime win over the Saints and Buffalo's 36-31 win over the Texans.
- Buffalo officially opens its new Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., with kickoff at 8:15 p.m. ET; the Bills are 4.5-point favorites with an over/under of 54.5 — the highest on the Week 2 NFL odds board.
- Larry Hartstein is leaning Over 54.5, citing two high-powered offenses against two defenses that struggled in Week 1, and enters on a 22-11-1 run across his last 34 Lions picks, returning $966 to $100 players.
- Jahmyr Gibbs powered Detroit's attack with 156 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 29 carries, while Amon-Ra St. Brown caught 10 passes for 67 yards and two scores against New Orleans.
- Josh Allen threw for 334 yards and two touchdowns for Buffalo in the Week 1 win over Houston.
- The Lions' defense will be without safeties Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch and was on the field for 86 plays against New Orleans, a workload Hartstein flagged as a factor against Allen and the Bills.
- Dan Campbell's Lions seek their fifth straight winning season, while Joe Brady's Bills aim for an eighth consecutive winning season — their first under Brady.
Why it matters: The 54.5-point total is the highest on the Week 2 NFL odds board, and Hartstein — 643-555 ATS lifetime — is backing tired defenses to keep yielding points, with Detroit missing starting safeties Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch after logging 86 defensive snaps Sunday; bettors following his Lions-specific 22-11-1 run have the most actionable track record in the piece.
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