Bills Clips
One week into the 2026 season, Bills quarterback Josh Allen remains the favorite to be named the NFL Most Valuable Player. But there’s a new contender in second place.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams’ odds have skyrocketed after his performance in Chicago’s 59-37 Week 1 win at Carolina.
Allen’s odds improved from +600 to +500, while Williams is now just behind Allen at +600. Prior to Week 1, Williams was at +1200.
The next-best odds belong to Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson at +650, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow at +900, 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy at +1200. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes at +1600, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott at +1800 and Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence at +1800.
Last year’s MVP, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, saw his odds drop to +2000 from his preseason odds of +1400 after the Rams’ ugly Week 1 loss.
The Bills’ 36-31 win over the Texans could have gone the other way if some fumbled footballs had bounced a little differently.
Both teams fumbled twice in the game, and the Bills recovered all four fumbles. In a one-possession game that was decided when the Bills recovered C.J. Stroud’s second fumble with nine seconds left, any one of those fumbles landing in a Texan’s hands could have altered the outcome. All four fumbles going the other way almost certainly would have given the Texans the win.
Another crucial fumble recovery came when Bills running back James Cook put the ball on the ground with three minutes left in the fourth quarter and the Bills trailing 31-30. If the Texans had recovered that, they might have been able to run out the clock and win the game. Instead, Bills offensive lineman O’Cyrus Torrence recovered the fumble and the Bills scored the game-winning touchdown later in that drive.
Bills head coach Joe Brady noted that the hustle of Torrence, whom the team calls Cyborg or Cybo, was crucial to the win.
“We put the ball on the ground there,” Brady said. “If our offensive line isn’t doing the little things we ask and run to the football, and Cybo doesn’t recover that football, and we end up losing that game, a lot of people will point to the fact that we fumbled. And we did fumble. It can’t be just because we won the football game that, ‘Oh, that didn’t happen, we had no turnovers.’”
Brady said Cook was mad at himself for fumbling and that the Bills aren’t overlooking how fortunate they were on fumble recoveries.
“He was pissed. I talked to him on the plane. He knows how important he is to our football team,” Brady said of Cook. “He understands that when he has the ball he has all of our jobs on the line. He was not happy after that. Even through the win, we’ve got to clean that up.”
Brady knows the Bills can’t count on recovering 100 percent of fumbles every week.
The condition of the playing field at the new Highmark Stadium became a talking point after the Bills played their first preseason game at the building this summer.
Some players aired concerns about the size and frequency of divots that came up during the course of play, which led the Bills to replace the field ahead of Thursday night’s inaugural regular season game against the Lions. The Bills worked out at the stadium on Tuesday and head coach Joe Brady said that the team will not go into the game with reservations about the condition of the field.
“I really don’t have many concerns with it,” Brady said, via Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News. “There wasn’t a lot of concerns with it the first go around with it in terms of there was stuff that was moving. I credit our leadership that I understand that they want to have the best surface out there and be able to make the decision and kind of go with it. But, yeah there’ll be no concerns come Thursday. Our guys are excited just to be on grass.”
Linebacker Greg Rousseau agreed with Brady’s closing statement and said he believes “it’ll be smooth” based on Tuesday’s experience. The Bills will be hoping that’s the case so they can avoid the playing surface overshadowing anything about the game itself in the aftermath of the home opener.
Bills defensive lineman T.J. Sanders did not play in Week 1 due to a knee injury and a different issue kept him off the field on Tuesday.
Sanders did not participate in practice because of an illness that led the team to send him home. Sanders had been listed as a limited participant in practice on Monday.
Linebacker Terrel Bernard (calf), safety Cole Bishop (knee, groin), and running back Ty Johnson (hamstring) were listed as limited participants. Bishop was listed as a full participant on Monday.
Linebacker Bradley Chubb (thumb) and defensive back Jordan Hancock (quad) were full participants for the second straight day.
The Bills will issue injury designations for their home opener on Wednesday.
The Lions made one change to their injury report on Tuesday.
Cornerback D.J. Reed is listed as a limited participant due to a foot injury. The Lions only held a walkthrough on Tuesday, so the report is an estimation of what Reed would have done in a full practice.
Left guard Christian Mahogany (hip) and right tackle Blake Miller (knee) were listed as out of practice for the second straight day. Mahogany left Sunday’s overtime win over the Saints, but Miller played every offensive snap. Center Juice Scruggs (knee) drew another limited tag and cornerback Christian Izien (groin) remained a full participant.
The Lions will issue their final report for Thursday night’s game in Buffalo on Wednesday afternoon.
The Bills will be playing their first regular season game at the new Highmark Stadium on Thursday night and the Lions drew the spot as the guests of honor for opening night.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell said on Tuesday that his message to the team’s players about getting the opportunity to be part of the festivities is to “drink it in [and] enjoy this.” He also said players will need to take care to avoid being overwhelmed by the situation.
“This will be one of those places it’ll be loud. Their fanbase is outstanding,” Campbell said, via the team’s website. “They are a lot like our fanbase, man. They love it and they show up and they’re loud and they’re all in and now you’re in a new stadium. It’s a new environment and this is the first one in that place — the christening. It’ll be special. I’m telling our guys to embrace it. Keep your composure. Don’t forget it’s one play at a time. Stay focused on your job and keep your head about you, but man, enjoy it.”
Buffalo would be a tough place to play on a short week in any circumstances, but the atmosphere will be even more heightened for this Lions visit.
Bills wide receiver DJ Moore had quite the debut with his new team on Sunday, catching five passes for 100 yards and a touchdown. He also drew a 46-yard interference penalty in the end zone.
“This is a preview,” Moore said, via Tim Graham of TheAthletic.com. “It can only get better from here.”
It was Moore’s first 100-yard game since Nov. 24, 2024, with the Bears against the Vikings, although he needed overtime to get there. His last 100-yard regulation game happened Oct. 6, 2024, against the Panthers.
He limped off on the final drive and was in the sideline medical tent twice. He said once was to get “stretched out,” and the second time was to make sure he was OK. Moore returned to the game, and he is not on the Bills’ injury report Monday.
The Bills did not practice Monday but had to issue an estimated injury report with Thursday’s game against the Lions looming.
They list inside linebacker Terrel Bernard (calf), running back Ty Johnson (hamstring) and defensive lineman T.J. Sanders (knee) as limited.
Safety Cole Bishop (knee/groin), outside linebacker Bradley Chubb (thumb) and defensive back Jordan Hancock (quad) as full participants.
The Lions will have a quick turnaround from Sunday’s overtime win over the Saints to Thursday’s road game in Baltimore and they issued their first injury report for that game on Monday.
The team did not actually hold a practice, so the report is only an estimate that left guard Christian Mahogany and right tackle Blake Miller would have been out of practice. Mahogany injured his hip early in Sunday’s game, but Miller, who is listed with a knee issue, played every snap in the 31-30 win.
Ben Bartch replaced Mahogany after competing with him for the job this summer.
Center Juice Scruggs (knee) would have been a limited participant and cornerback Christian Izien (groin) would have been a full participant.
It’s hard to come up with too many examples of how thin the line between winning and losing can be than back-to-back plays that the Bills ran late in the fourth quarter in Houston on Sunday.
On a second down from the Texans’ 34-yard-line with just under two minutes to play and the Bills down one, quarterback Josh Allen chucked a pass into the end zone and Texans cornerback Kamari Lassiter was the only player in position to catch it. Lassiter was unable to make the interception while stumbling backward, however, and Allen got another chance. He made good on it with a perfect strike to Josh Palmer for the game-winning touchdown.
“Hey, it’s football. What can I say? Sometimes the ball bounces your way,” Allen said in his postgame press conference.
Allen was 0-4 in previous trips to Houston and the Bills had not won there since 2006. That stretch included Allen taking eight sacks in a loss last season, but the Bills only allowed two this time and Allen had enough time to average 11.5 yards per attempt. That and a little good fortune made all the difference for the Bills on this trip to Texas.
C.J. Stroud threw for 274 yards and two touchdowns. He had a 106.7 passer rating.
The Texans quarterback also lost two fumbles on strip sacks by Greg Rousseau, and the Bills won 36-31 as Stroud couldn’t get them in the end zone despite a first-and-goal at the 9.
Coach DeMeco Ryans thought Stroud played well enough to win, pointing to the 409 yards his vaunted defense gave up. That included 334 passing yards by Josh Allen.
“C.J. was very much in control the entire game,” Ryans said, via texanscommenter. “Took what the defense gave him. Made great decisions with the football. Proud of the way he played today. He showed what he’s been showing all camp, that confidence, that growth. Was very calm, great demeanor, putting us in a great position to win the game.
“Unfortunately, we lost the football there two times. Don’t want those plays at all, but not going to let that overshadow the game that he had. Offense put up way more points than needed for us to win this game. Could’ve definitely played much better defensively.”
The Texans had first-and-goal at the Buffalo 9 with 25 seconds left, but Deone Walker sacked Stroud for a 9-yard loss. After an incompletion, Rousseau had a strip-sack of Stroud that Terrell Bernard recovered with 9 ticks left to end it.
“Got down there,” Stroud said. “Can’t get stalemated like that. That sack kind of made it tougher, but even then, we still had a chance. I’m trying my best to protect the ball but also to make plays. We needed seven right there, so I can’t be super conservative. I’ve got to be able to take shots. Sometimes it doesn’t roll your way. We’ll try to fix that and go forward.”
