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Week 5: Bills vs. Lions
 at 
Sunday, Oct. 5th
1:00pm ET
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The Bills close out the 55 year run of the Wilson family owning the team with a game in Ralph's hometown of Detroit against the team he owned a piece of in the 1950s. The Lions are playing great football on both sides of the ball which makes this an extremely tough matchup. Everyone is anxiously waiting to see how Kyle Orton performs in his first game under center as a Bill.
FACTS AND FIGURES
| Matchup: |
Buffalo (2-2) vs. Detroit (3-1) |
| Place: |
Ford Field |
| TV/Radio: |
Network: FOX; DirecTV: 709; Sirius: 126 |
| Announcers: |
Sam Rosen, Ronde Barber, and Jennifer Hale |
| Spread: |
Lions by 7 |
| Series: |
Series tied 4-4-1 |
| Streak: |
Bills Won 1 |
| Last Meeting: |
Bills 14-12 in Buffalo (2010) |
| Lions Offense: |
Rush (25th); Pass (7th); overall (12th) |
| Lions Defense: |
Rush (6th); Pass (2nd); overall (1st) |
| Bills Offense: |
Rush (13th); Pass (31st); overall (27th) |
| Bills Defense: |
Rush (3rd); Pass (25th); overall (10th) |
INJURY UPDATE
The Bills may be without Kyle Williams and Nigel Bradham for this game as they have missed practice time this week with knee injuries suffered against the Texans. Ron Brooks injured his shoulder in that game but has practiced this week. Marcus Easley is out with a sprained MCL. Marquise Goodwin is battling a concussion suffered in practice last week but is back on the field and should play. Chris Williams has been battling a back problem that caused him to miss last week's game against Houston. He is still missing practice time while Randell Johnson is back on the field after missing two games with a knee injury.
The Lions are banged up too as their best player is hampered by an ankle injury. Calvin Johnson played through the injury last week but didn't do his normal damage. He did not practice on Wednesday but says he's fine. They are also banged up at running back with Joique Bell out with a concussion and backup Theo Riddick is sidelined with a hamstring injury.
Check out our  Bills Daily Injury Page throughout the week for the latest updates on the injured players.
KEY MATCHUPS
C Eric Wood vs. DTs Nick Fairley and Ndamukong Suh:
Wood will have to help both guards in stopping the very talented tackles from causing havoc in the middle of the line.
WR Sammy Watkins vs. CB Rashean Mathis:
Watkins needs to get back on track after back to back poor games. Everyone is wondering if the quarterback change will be good for the rookie. He goes against wily 12 year veteran Mathis who has seen everything during his long, solid career.
DE Mario Williams vs. RT LaAdrain Waddle:
Williams goes against another young player in the second year pro making his 10th career start.
DBs Leodis McKelvin and Stephon Gilmore vs. WRs Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate:
The Lions may have the best receiving duo in the league but are a bit hampered with Johnson being slowed by his injury. The Bills defensive backs have struggled at times this year and now have their biggest battle of the year this week.
KEYS TO THE GAME
1. Open Up The Offense: This offense has been painfully conservative this year. That might have to do with the coaching staff not fully trusting EJ Manuel. They may look to make more plays downfield with Orton in and stop using short passes almost exclusively.
2. Stick To The Running Game: If they do take shots downfield it should open up the run game which won't be easy with the solid front four of the Lions but it is necessary. Even if yards are tough to come by they need to keep at it and hopefully the big plays will come as they game progresses.
3. Quick Start Necessary: If the Bills fall behind early against the high powered attack of the Detroit lineup it will be real tough to get back into the game against their top ranked defense.
BILLS DAILY PREDICTION
I don't think it matters much who is at quarterback for the Bills this week at least. Detroit is playing great football and they are one of the best all around teams in the league. They are also at home going against a reeling Bills team. This looks like it has potential to be an old fashion road blowout loss:
Lions 34, Bills 14
Season Prediction Record: (1-3)
Season Record Against The Spread: (1-3)
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