The Buffalo Bills christened their new home, Highmark Stadium, with a 41-31 victory over the Detroit Lions in their first regular-season game at the venue.
Quarterback Josh Allen led the way, throwing three touchdown passes and running for two scores to power the Bills to a 27-10 halftime lead. Allen's performance was reminiscent of his outing against the Houston Texans last week, where he threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more in a 36-31 win. This was the fourth five-touchdown game of Allen's career.
The Bills' running back James Cook added 134 yards rushing and sealed the game with a 1-yard touchdown run with under three minutes remaining. Allen's two rushing touchdowns brought his career total to 83, tying him for 18th on the NFL list with Jim Taylor. He also became one of just four quarterbacks to reach 90 regular-season victories in their first nine seasons.
The Lions struggled with an injury-depleted defense and a battered offensive line, which had difficulty creating holes for running back Jahmyr Gibbs and protecting quarterback Jared Goff. Despite rallying from a 21-0 deficit to cut the Bills' lead to 34-24, the Lions' offense stalled in the fourth quarter. Goff finished 26 of 38 for 327 yards and four touchdowns, while wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown had nine catches for 142 yards and two scores.
Highmark Stadium, which opened last month, features a 360-degree canopy designed to shield fans from the wind, and underground heating coils to prevent the natural-grass field from freezing. The stadium seats 60,108 fans, about 10,000 fewer than its predecessor.
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