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Josh Allen Announces Highmark Stadium as His Kingdom in Bills’ 41-31 Win
Allen threw three touchdown passes, ran for two more and paced Buffalo to a 41-31 victory over the Detroit Lions in the new stadium’s regular-season debut.
ORCHARD PARK — Josh Allen treated the new Highmark Stadium like his personal domain, throwing three touchdown passes and running for two scores as the Buffalo Bills beat the Detroit Lions 41-31 on Thursday night. Allen scored the first touchdown in the building with a 1-yard plunge at 5:51 of the first quarter, and said he felt a rare moment of emotion just before kickoff while taking in the national anthems. “My job is the coolest in the world,” he said. “It’s everything I ever wanted, to be the quarterback of an NFL franchise.”
Allen finished 20 of 31 for 248 yards and added 69 yards on the ground while the Bills scored on each of their first four possessions — Josh Palmer’s 43-yard catch and run, Dawson Knox’s 2-yard reception, and Dalton Kincaid’s 16-yarder among them. James Cook rushed for 134 yards and sealed the win with a 1-yard touchdown with 2:50 remaining. Coach Joe Brady, who elected to take the opening kickoff, said he wanted the offense to set the tone in the new venue, and Buffalo’s 41 points were the third-most by a team in its regular-season stadium debut.
Detroit was hamstrung by injuries and a struggling offensive line as it fell into a 21-0 hole with 11:48 left in the second quarter. Jared Goff completed 26 of 38 passes for 327 yards and four touchdowns, with Amon‑Ra St. Brown hauling in nine catches for 142 yards and two scores. Jahmyr Gibbs, limited to 52 yards rushing, caught an 11-yard touchdown, and Sam LaPorta’s 1-yard score cut the deficit to 34-24 early in the fourth, but the Lions went three-and-out from their own 10 on the next possession after two tipped passes and a stopped run, allowing Cook’s score to put the game away.
The Bills piled up 299 yards in the first half and 446 overall. Buffalo also had to cope with pregame and in-game personnel losses: starting defensive lineman Ed Oliver was ruled out after a hip injury in warmups, and receiver DJ Moore was ruled out after sustaining shoulder and head injuries on a play in the end zone. Detroit lost defensive back Avonte Maddox to a right-foot injury in a second‑quarter collision; he did not return. A holding penalty on Rock Ya‑Sin wiped out a Skyler Gill‑Howard interception early, and Buffalo’s second rushing TD by Allen — a 2-yard run — was his 83rd career rushing score, tying him with Jim Taylor and marking his sixth career game with five touchdowns.