94 Percent of NFL Experts Predict Bills Will Defeat Lions

The Detroit Lions are not expected by many NFL pundits to defeat the Buffalo Bills in their Week 2 NFL contest.

According to NFL pickwatch, 94 percent of experts predict the AFC East powerhouse will defeat Dan Campbell's squad at Highmark Stadium.

One factor the Lions' defense must take into account is how well the Saints were able to push the football down the field and the success tight end Juwan Johnson had in Week 1. He was able to secure seven receptions for 54 yards and a touhdown.

The Bills feature a pair of tight ends who could make life difficult for Kelvin Sheppard's unit.

Dan Campbell was asked earlier this week how the defense will counter the Bills tight ends unit.

“I think the first answer to that question, they have three tight ends. They have three real guys that have three different roles that they're all three pretty good at. And (Jackson Hawes) 85 can block a little bit," said Campbell. "We liked him coming out and he proved to be a pretty good blocker last year. So, he's kind of their heavy-Y. And then Dalton (Kincaid), 86, he's a mismatch in the pass game, man.

"He's one of these big skill, get through the defense, one-on-one matchups. And then (Dawson) Knox does it all. He does everything. He's the guy, he's the jack of all trades and he makes it right. He's kind of the glue that, ‘What do you need? I'm the release guy, I'm the blocker, I'm the hybrid H-back, I'm the split me out one-on-one.’ He does it all."

The former NFL tight end indicated Josh Allen is going to present challenges, but he observed how the Texans utilized nickel coverage against the 13-personnel the Bills deployed at times.

"You've got three guys and so you can live in that personnel group a little bit and it gives you a lot of options. So, what are they playing? The second is, Houston plays a lot of nickel to 13. So, that would behoove you to play more heavy against those guys. So, doesn't mean we won't see it. We're prepared for it," said Campbell. "But normally if you think you're going to see nickel to 13, you're probably going to live in that quite a bit. And then you know what you're going to get. I brought this up before, your options are open. The candy store's open if you've got nickel and you can play everything in nickel. I'm talking about defensively.

"You’ve got all of your calls now, man, all your pressures, all your coverages. Whereas in base, you don't have everything. Now, at least you can start process of elimination. I'm getting heavy, I know I get base is what we're going to get," Campbell added. "And I know where my matchups are going to be. It just reduces that a little bit. So, they're good at it. Look, they're good in 11, they're good in 12. They've got personnel, they've got a quarterback who makes it go and they've got a coaching staff that can find those little nuggets and the mismatches.”

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