What we learned in Lions-Bills matchup
By Trevor Speetzen December 17, 2024 13:38
The Buffalo Bills and the Detroit Lions faced off against each other in a crucial week 15 matchup. The Bills were able to take control of the game early and hung on to win 48-42.
This critical game between these two contending teams revealed a lot of their identities as a team as we head towards the final stretch of the regular season.
The Lions went from security to vulnerability in a moment's notice. Detroit has had control of the NFC north division for most of the season and have been looked at as the odds-on favorite to win the NFC.
However, with the Minnesota Vikings beating the Chicago Bears and with Detroit’s loss on Sunday against Buffalo, the Lions now find themselves tied with Minnesota for the NFC north lead.
The Lions could easily go from being the top seed to fifth seed any second. Their loss also opens the door for the Philadelphia Eagles, who just won their tenth consecutive game against the Pittsburgh Steelers and are now tied with Detroit for the best record in the NFC.
The Buffalo Bills are probably the best team in the AFC. While the Kansas City Chiefs currently hold the best record in the AFC, it’s well-known that this hasn’t been their strongest team compared to their Super Bowl winning seasons.
Buffalo’s offense has put up 40 points in two consecutive games while the Chiefs have only scored 30 points once this year. Josh Allen and the Bills offense are red hot as it looks more likely that this will be the year Buffalo tops KC in the playoffs.
Jared Goff is not the problem. Goff has received a lot of criticism this season for being a game manager and being along for Detroit’s wild ride.
However despite the loss, Goff’s 400 yard performance proved that any other quarterback in that system would not do as well as him.
With the loss of David Montgomery due to a torn MCL, Goff will now have extra pressure to guide this team through the playoffs. With more solid performances like the one on Sunday, that shouldn’t be an issue.
Injuries are taking its toll. As mentioned before, Montgomery will undergo season ending knee surgery to repair his torn MCL. The Lions have already faced the injury bug on defense this season and now the offense has begun to face them.
The Lions aren’t the only team with this problem, Buffalo had three starting defenders missing due to injury in their game against Detroit. This has had a clear effect on their defense as the Bills have given up 40 points in two consecutive games.
If the injuries continue to pile up, then both Buffalo and Detroit will likely be short handed entering the playoffs. The two most hyped up teams this season could likely be first-round exits if their luck with health doesn’t turn around.
The matchup between these two teams revealed a lot, but a couple things are for sure: the Buffalo Bills are a serious contender and the Detroit Lions could be in trouble.
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