Lions will open Thursday night slate in Buffalo; Germany game gets a date

(Getty Images)

Allen Park — Does anything manage to dominate the news cycle quite like the NFL?

A few years back, the league made its schedule release a primetime event. Now, with a half-dozen broadcast partners, it’s evolved into more of a week-long process. And as one of the league’s bigger draws in recent years, the Detroit Lions were unsurprisingly involved in a pair of Monday announcements.

The bigger story is the Lions will open this year’s Thursday Night Football slate, heading to Buffalo to face the Bills in Week 2. Notably, it will be the first regular season game held at new Highmark Stadium.

It’s also a matchup between a pair of preseason Super Bowl contenders. The Bills are currently tied with the Baltimore Ravens for the best odds in the AFC, at 10-to-1, while the Lions lag slightly behind, at 17-to-1, trailing only the San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Rams and defending champion Seattle Seahawks among NFC teams.

In addition to the Week 2 game, set for Sept. 17, the world also learned the date for Detroit’s upcoming game in Munich.

Although an opponent has yet to be announced, the matchup will be help on Nov. 15 as part of a triple-header on Fox. Locally, it will air at 9:30 a.m.

The opponent for that game is expected to be named on Wednesday morning. The full NFL schedule, which will likely see many parts leaked before the formal announcement, will be revealed Thursday night at 8 p.m.