Lions schedule sends them to Buffalo Bills on Thursday Night Football

A last-place finish in the NFC North last season hasn’t done anything to diminish the Detroit Lions as a primetime draw.

The Lions will play the Buffalo Bills in a Week 2 Thursday night game to open Buffalo’s new stadium, Highmark Stadium, on Sept. 17. The game was announced by Prime Video, which airs "Thursday Night Football" all season, via social media.

The Lions played five primetime games last season, seven more in the 4:25 p.m. national window – including on Christmas Day – paus their regular Thanksgiving game.

DETROIT, MICHIGAN - DECEMBER 15: Jared Goff #16 of the Detroit Lions shakes hands with Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills after the Bills 48-42 win at Ford Field on December 15, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 776151543 ORIG FILE ID: 2190137811

The NFL and its broadcast partners are in the process of announcing this year’s schedule, with networks dropping specific games as part of their upfront meetings with advertisers.

Earlier Monday, Fox announced it would host the Lions’ Nov. 15 game in Germany against an opponent that will be announced on Wednesday.

Prime Video – which will broadcast the Lions-Bills game at 8:15 p.m. – and NBC also had their upfront presentations Monday.

The Bills and the Lions, who are coming off a 9-8 season, finished fourth and fifth in the NFL, respectively, in scoring last season and have two of the NFL’s top offenses.