Lions quickly turning page to high-tempo Bills’ offense

DETROIT — Just 24 hours after the Detroit Lions’ thrilling 31-30 overtime win against the New Orleans Saints, coach Dan Campbell has already turned the page to their next opponent.

Detroit faces a high-powered Buffalo Bills‘ offense at Highmark Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 17.

The game — already shaping up to be a tough one — will mark the official opening of the Bills’ new grounds, adding a massive shot of emotion to the affair. The Bills went 12-5 last season and made the AFC divisional round before opening the season this past Sunday with a 36-31 win over the Houston Texans.

“It’s opening night out at their place Thursday night. It’ll be electric. It’s going to be a great atmosphere,” Campbell said. “We’re looking forward to that, but excellent opponent. This will be a big-time game here early in the year.”

After a shutout performance in the first half against New Orleans in the opener, the Lions‘ defense allowed 252 passing yards and 54 rushing yards in the second half as the Saints stormed back from a 21-0 deficit to send the game to overtime, 24-24.

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Lions players said after the game that the Saints took advantage of a tired Lions defense by using tempo, which Campbell acknowledged the Bills use quite a bit.

“You understand what you’re getting ready to face and why wouldn’t they test us there? We would do the same thing,” Campbell said. “So, we got to be prepared and you do it the best that you can in a walkthrough fashion. You get through some of these place looks you think you’re going to get and then you tempo it.

“Everything is not the physical, it’s the mental now. You’re just trying to plant that seed of urgency mentally to be prepared and there’s a good chance this is what you could get.”

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Against what many believed to be the league’s best defense coming into the season, the Bills scored four touchdowns and kicked three field goals in their opener. Bills quarterback Josh Allen, one of the odds-on favorites to win the MVP, was 20-for-29 passing for two touchdowns, no interceptions and a 130.5 passer rating.

The Bills have a new, offense-minded head coach in Joe Brady, who hopes to supercharge an already potent attack.

“The big thing for us is to trying to focus on us,” cornerback Rock Ya-Sin said. “[Allen is] a great player, he’s gonna make plays, he’s gonna do what he does, that’s why he’s an MVP-caliber player … but it’s about us, taking care of the details, communicating, being on the same page.”

Easier said than done — especially on a short week.

nbianchi@detroitnews.com

@nolanbianchi

This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Lions quickly turning page to high-tempo Bills’ offense