Lions vs. Bills TNF Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Jahmyr Gibbs Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jared Goff, Josh Allen, James Cook, Dalton Kincaid, D.J. Moore and More

September 16, 2026

Fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em lineups advice for the Lions vs. Bills Thursday game in Week 2 (2026). NFL matchups analysis and TNF starts/sits for Week 2.

Week 2 of the 2026 NFL and fantasy football season kicks off Thursday night with what is probably the best game on the entire schedule. The Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions both escaped Week 1 with dramatic wins, but they did it in very different ways. Buffalo went into Houston and beat the Texans 36-31 with a last-minute strip-sack, while Detroit watched a 21-point lead disappear before eventually surviving New Orleans 31-30 in overtime after New Orleans did not convert a two-point try.

Plenty of fantasy points should be available when these two offenses meet. Josh Allen accounted for 357 total yards and four touchdowns in Week 1, while Detroit fed Jahmyr Gibbs a massive workload and got two touchdowns from him and from Amon-Ra St. Brown. Perhaps most importantly for fantasy managers, both defenses looked shaky in their opener. Houston scored 31 points against Buffalo, while the Saints piled up 469 yards against Detroit, including 410 passing yards from Tyler Shough.

I will bring you Thursday Night Football analysis all season, focusing on who to start, who is on the fence, and who should find the bench. Let's dive into this Week 2 matchup between two of the NFL's best offenses. You can also check out our main Week 2 rankings for all other players. Good luck in Week 2, RotoBallers!

Detroit Lions @ Buffalo Bills

Thursday, September 17, 8:35 p.m. ET

Notable Injuries:

• Ty Johnson (RB, DET) - Questionable - Hamstring

Lions vs. Bills Matchup Breakdown

Thursday night will be the first regular-season game at Buffalo's new Highmark Stadium, which should have the Bills and their fans in a frenzy. Both teams are 1-0, both have legitimate Super Bowl aspirations, and the early betting total well north of 50 points suggests plenty of offensive fireworks.

A classic look for our home opener. pic.twitter.com/OGxPbqnQpX

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) September 15, 2026

Both teams are battle-tested but survived despite taking some body blows from their Week 1 opponent. I'm not sure Buffalo wants to get into another track meet four days after its defense played 79 snaps in Houston. The Bills allowed 31 points, and Detroit just watched Tyler Shough throw for 410 yards in an overtime game against its defense.

That makes this look like one of those Thursday games where fantasy managers should want plenty of exposure. This ain't going to be your father's Jaguars vs. Raiders Thursday night tilt from yesteryear.

The last time Allen and Goff faced each other was also pretty entertaining. Buffalo won 48-42 in Detroit in 2024, with Allen accounting for four touchdowns and Goff throwing for 494 yards and five scores. I'm not expecting 90 points again, but another shootout is certainly on the table to kick off Week 2.

Must-Starts for Fantasy Football Lineups

Josh Allen (QB, BUF)

Allen opened 2026 with 334 passing yards and four total touchdowns against Houston. Now he gets a Detroit defense that allowed Tyler Shough to throw for 410 yards and three scores, giving Allen overall QB1 upside. This is not a situation for us to overthink with Allen and the Bills at home.

James Cook III (RB, BUF)

Cook managed only 69 total yards in Week 1, but his 72% snap share showed Buffalo hasn't changed his role. Keep starting the lead back (who scored 32 combined touchdowns the last two seasons) in an offense projected to score plenty of points Thursday. Josh Allen will always be a goal-line threat for the Bills, but this could be Cook's 2026 breakout game.

D.J. Moore (WR, BUF)

New wide receiver addition Moore immediately clicked with Allen, catching five passes for 100 yards and a touchdown on a team-high eight targets. After Detroit allowed Chris Olave to produce 182 receiving yards in Week 1, and another big game to Devaughn Vele, Moore belongs firmly in fantasy starting lineups.

DJ Moore'S FIRST TD AS A BILL 🚨

BUFvsHOU on CBS/Paramount+ pic.twitter.com/CiM8LpAQEc

— NFL (@NFL) September 13, 2026

Dalton Kincaid (TE, BUF)

Kincaid caught five of six targets for a career-high 130 yards while playing 72% of Buffalo's snaps. That combination of usage and production makes him an easy start against a Detroit defense that allowed touchdowns to both Noah Fant and Juwan Johnson in Week 1.

Jahmyr Gibbs (RB, DET)

Water is wet. The sky is blue. And the top running back in the world scored the most points in Week 1. What else is new? Gibbs handled a career-high 29 carries for 156 yards and two touchdowns while adding five receptions against New Orleans. With 34 Week 1 touches, Gibbs solidifies his spot at the top of the fantasy world.

Amon-Ra St. Brown (WR, DET)

A no-doubt-about-it top wide receiver play this week, St. Brown caught 10 passes for 67 yards and two touchdowns in the opener. He also saw a team-high 14 targets in Week 1, including four of them coming in the red zone. He is as dependable as they come.

Possible Starts for Fantasy Football Lineups

Jared Goff (QB, DET)

I'm really on the fence about Jared Goff as a starter this week. He was essentially a game manager for the Lions in Week 1 and threw for only 206 yards in Week 1 but still finished with two touchdowns. Buffalo's offense could force Detroit into a much more aggressive game script, putting Goff on the QB1/QB2 borderline. It just depends on how many scores come from Gibbs.

Jameson Williams (WR, DET)

Williams caught only four passes for 45 yards, but his nine targets were extremely encouraging. He had a 23.1% target share and 14.1-yard aDOT, giving him plenty of big-play upside in a potential shootout with Buffalo. The aDOT will always lead to some variance, but Williams can break a big touchdown at any time.

Dan Campbell "Not Concerned" About Jameson Williams' Drops https://t.co/PDGnVJyleX

— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) September 15, 2026

Sam LaPorta (TE, DET)

LaPorta's Week 1 production was underwhelming, but he still received eight targets, even though they went for five catches and 48 yards. That's enough involvement to keep him in most lineups, although Detroit's offensive-line injuries add some uncertainty to his role Thursday. His volume will keep him as a top-10 option all season.

Consider Sitting for Fantasy Football Lineups

Sione Vaki Jr. (RB, DET)

Gibbs' 34 touches in Week 1 didn't leave much fantasy opportunity for a backup like Vaki. He remains a useful real-life piece for Detroit but should stay on fantasy benches as long as Gibbs is healthy.

Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman, and Joshua Palmer (WR, BUF)

The longtime Bills wide receiver Khalil Shakir caught four of six targets for 50 yards in Week 1, giving him a reasonable PPR floor. Moore and Kincaid appear to have more upside, but Shakir remains a potential Flex option in what could be a shootout. But it does appear he has been passed in the pecking order by Kincaid and Moore.

Joshua Palmer caught the game-winning touchdown in Week 1, but neither he nor Keon Coleman has dependable volume with Moore, Kincaid, and Shakir ahead of them. These two wide receivers combined for just three targets in the Week 1 shootout, and none of them were in the red zone. I wouldn't bank on another long touchdown from Joshua Palmer

Dawson Knox (TE, BUF)

Knox played 67% of Buffalo's snaps, but Kincaid clearly provided the fantasy production managers want from this offense. Knox remains a touchdown-dependent tight end despite his role on the field as a blocker and a once-in-a-while pass-catcher.

Kirksey’s Thursday Night Football Picks

Current Spread: BUF -4.5
Over/Under: 54.5

We got both picks right last week, so naturally this section is going to go downhill from here. A game with a 54.5 implied total is rare, but essentially we are looking for whether or not both of these offenses can march up and down the field.

When it was BUF -3 a couple of days ago, I liked Buffalo laying a field goal, but -4.5 changes some things in my mind. The Bills scored 36 points in Houston, but they also allowed 31 and had their defense on the field for 79 snaps. Four days later, that's a tough turnaround against Gibbs, St. Brown, Williams, LaPorta, and an offense capable of keeping pace with Allen.

The 54.5-point total is enormous, but both defenses gave us reasons to believe points are coming. I'm expecting another shootout, something in the neighborhood of Buffalo 34, Detroit 31. Give me the Lions getting more than a field goal, and even though it's a monster number, I will take the over.

Am I just rooting for fantasy points? Perhaps, but I think this game can deliver.

The Pick: DET +4.5, OVER 54.5

2026 Overall Record:
Spread (1-0), Over/Under (1-0)

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