The Detroit Lions hit the road for the first time this season as they take the short trip to Buffalo for the debut of the Bills' new Highmark Stadium. It's a matchup on primetime against two heavyweights in their respective conferences.

Here are five things to watch out for Thursday night:

1. HOSTILE ENVIROMENT

Head coach Dan Campbell has a simple message to his team as they get ready to enter what's expected to be a loud and hostile environment.

"Drink it in," Campbell said this week. "Enjoy this."

The new $2.1 billion stadium in Orchard Park is engineered with steep vertical seating bowls and a protective 360-degree canopy designed to trap and reflect crowd noise directly back down onto the field.

Buffalo has one of the most loyal fanbases in football and is expected to be out in full force tonight.

"Enjoy every bit of it," Campbell said. "That's part of all this too, man. Being able to play at a high level … the best against the best in that environment on the road in a new stadium. That's stuff you never forget. You're telling your grandkids one day."

2. SECONDARY BOUNCE-BACK

Bills quarterback Josh Allen averaged 13.2 air yards per pass attempt and had five completions of 30-plus yards, the most of any regular season game in his career, against a good Texans defense in Buffalo's Week 1 win.

"We love chunk plays. That's how you score 36 points," Allen told buffalobills.com. "You give yourself the opportunity to score on four or five plays in a drive instead of the long methodical you know 13, 14, 15 plays."

For Detroit's defense, particularly the secondary, the Week 1 win vs. New Orleans was a tale of two halves. The defense was terrific in the first half, helping hold the Saints to just 111 total yards and 77 yards passing. The second half was a different story, as Saints quarterback Tyler Shough ended up throwing for 410 yards and three touchdowns, though Detroit did intercept two passes.

The Lions gave up six passing plays of 20-plus yards against the Saints. Only Minnesota (7) allowed more.

3. JAHMYR GIBBS ENCORE

Bills defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard said this week that stopping Gibbs and a Detroit run game that manufactured 165 yards on the ground against New Orleans last week is 'priority No. 1' for his defense.

Gibbs carried the football 29 times for 156 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 30 receiving yards on five catches. It was touchdowns No. 50 and 51 for Gibbs in his career, and the 11th game in just his fourth season that he recorded at least 100 scrimmage yards and multiple touchdowns in the same contest.

Former Lions running back David Montgomery, who is now in Houston, had two rushing touchdowns against the Bills last week, but overall, Buffalo limited Montgomery to a 3.0-yard average per rush and Houston as a team to 124 yards and a 3.9 average.

It's a point of emphasis for the Bills heading into tonight's matchup to limit that aspect of the Lions' offense.

4. ELITE QUARTERBACK PLAY

It's not a direct matchup between the lines tonight, but when two elite quarterbacks like Allen and Jared Goff square off in a big game under the bright lights of primetime football, there's always that competitive fire within to out-duel the other player.

The last time these two faced off in Detroit in 2024, they combined for 856 passing yards and nine total touchdowns with Goff accounting for 494 passing yards and five touchdowns in a 48-42 Bills win. Could we get another shootout between these two?

Allen went for 334 passing yards last week with four total touchdowns. He brings the added element of making plays in the run game with his legs, so it will be up to Detroit's front seven on defense to keep him contained in the pocket as best they can and try making him as one-dimensional as possible.

5. OFFENSIVE LINE HEALTH

The Lions will be without starting right tackle Blake Miller (knee) and starting left guard Christian Mahogany (hip) for tonight's contest as both were ruled out on Wednesday's injury report.

Miller was able to finish Sunday's win over New Orleans after suffering the injury earlier in the game. He said Monday adrenaline got him through the game, but he felt some discomfort afterward and came into the Meijer Performance Center early Monday to start getting treatment. The short week certainly didn't help his chances of playing.

Veteran Larry Borom is likely to fill in at tackle for Miller. Borom was a free-agent target by the Lions this offseason and has started 38 games in the NFL in previous stops in Chicago and Miami.

Mahogany is out after injuring his hip in the first quarter of the Saints game. The Lions will likely turn to veteran Ben Bartch to start in his place. Bartch played well filling in for Mahogany last week.

Buffalo's defensive front should present a good test. The Bills had nine quarterback hits, eight tackles for loss, three sacks and two fumble recoveries in a Week 1 win over Houston.