Previewing high-octane Bills-Lions matchup; LSU QB Sam Leavitt doubtful for Ole Miss game

Plus, we predict the entire NFL playoff bracket after Week 1

Sep 17, 2026 at 9:00 am ET • 5 min read

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🤯 Five things to know Thursday

1. The Bills and Lions will kick off Week 2 tonight. After escaping with thrilling wins in Week 1, the Bills and Lions will square off as Buffalo debuts its shiny new stadium, and both teams are loaded with firepower. A potential offensive bonanza is just one of many storylines worth following as these two Super Bowl hopefuls meet. Unfortunately for Jared Goff and Jahmyr Gibbs, the Lions' offensive line will be down two starters.
2. LSU QB Sam Leavitt is listed as doubtful vs. Ole Miss. There are suddenly questions about the health of LSU's quarterback heading into a highly anticipated top-10 matchup against Ole Miss. Leavitt was listed as doubtful on the official SEC availability report. Now, is there a legitimate chance Leavitt misses this game, or is this just Lane being Lane yet again? We'll know for sure in a few days, but it's worth monitoring. Meanwhile, LSU edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen has been served papers in a lawsuit filed by Ole Miss. Yeah, Saturday's game will have a little extra juice.
3. Aaron Judge exited the Yankees game with an injury scare. Judge hasn't even been back in the Yankees' lineup for two weeks, and he has already given the team and its fanbase a scare. He left Wednesday night's loss to the Twins with lower-leg "tightness," and his status for the immediate future is up in the air. New York has already clinched a playoff spot, so the club might just want to play it safe with Judge down the stretch.
4. Vikings RB Jordan Mason has been place on IR. We're just one week into the NFL season, and the Vikings are already battling the injury bug on offense. Kyler Murray was knocked out of the season-opener with a concussion, and now running back Jordan Mason will hit IR due to a fractured thumb. Mason will miss at least four games, and Aaron Jones will get a larger workload. Fantasy managers with Jones can see where he stands in our Week 2 rankings.
5. The WNBA season returns for the home stretch. The FIBA Women's World Cup break is over, and WNBA action returns tonight. All eight playoff spots have been secured, but that doesn't mean it will be a drama-free sprint to the finish. There's a lot still at stake -- including a battle for the No. 1 seed and a tight race for home-court advantage.

🏈 Do not miss this: 'Lane Being Lane'

Lane Kiffin has a knack for being the villain -- intentionally or unintentionally. He'll play the role of super villain on Saturday night when he leads No. 7 LSU into Oxford for a showdown with No. 8 Ole Miss.

With Kiffin ditching the Rebels right before the College Football Playoff to accept his current gig with the Tigers, there will be a lot of bad blood in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to find a kind word about Kiffin in that environment.

That will certainly be the the case thanks to the latest nugget our own John Talty dropped about Kiffin's departure from Ole Miss in his just-released book "Lane Being Lane," which is available now. The scene chronicles how, in the immediate aftermath of the Rebels' top-15 win over Oklahoma, Kiffin already had his eyes on another job.

• Talty: "Instead of basking in perhaps his most important win as Ole Miss's head coach, Kiffin turned to defensive coordinator Pete Golding on the field and asked him, 'Are you ready to go to Gainesville?'"

Few games epitomize college football as much as this one. A spurned fan base is getting ready to greet its former coach with whatever the polar opposite of southern hospitality is, and the Oxford Police Department is calling in reinforcements ahead of Kiffin's arrival.

So, will Ole Miss get its revenge on Kiffin, or will the LSU coach have the last laugh? Brad Crawford and Chris Hummer predicted the final score in their Week 3 picks.

🏆 Predicting NFL playoffs after Week 1

They say you shouldn't overreact to Week 1 of the NFL season.

Well, perhaps someone should have told that to our own John Breech, who has predicted the entire 2026 NFL playoff bracket after the robust sample size that is Week 1. Notably absent are the 0-1 Cowboys, and notable present are the Falcons and Broncos -- both also 0-1.

The really interesting part comes a couple rounds into the predicions. Breech has Josh Allen and the Bills reaching the AFC Championship again. Is this the year they finally break through for a Super Bowl appearance? Nope. The Ravens are simply too much.

• Breech: "With Patrick Mahomes eliminated, we get an absolute showdown in this game with Lamar Jackson facing Allen with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. Neither quarterback has ever made it to the Super Bowl, and according to our projection, the drought is finally going to end for Jackson. The Bills end up losing here because their defense can't stop Baltimore's offense."

Here's a quick look at how Breech sees the AFC playoff picture shaking out:

1. Ravens
2. Bills
3. Chiefs
4. Jaguars
5. Bengals
6. Texans
7. Broncos

For teams that are already behind the playoff eight-ball, avoiding an 0-2 start is absolutely critical. Here are five teams with must-win games as we look toward the weekend.

If you're going to make a deep postseason run, it certainly helps to have an elite quarterback. Do the Giants have one of those in Jaxson Dart? He made a massive leap in our NFL QB Power Rankings after a big showing in the opener.

👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest

• Chargers RB Omarion Hampton is due for a bounce-back in our Fantasy Start 'Em and Sit 'Em.
• Joe Burrow is battling back tightness but aims to play against the Texans.
• Should Steve Sarkisian issue an apology and take some heat off Arch Manning?
• The NCAA just confirmed that Western Michigan should have beaten Michigan.
• Good tipper: Oregon QB Dante Moore was tipping plays to the Oklahoma State defense.
• Bill Belichick simply cannot escape drama at North Carolina.
• These five Big Ten games will determine which team finishes atop the conference.
• LSU will honor women's basketball legend Sylvia Fowles with a statue on campus.
• Julian Hall earned a USMNT call-up as Mauricio Pochettino opts for a youthful squad.
• Still got it: Lionel Messi scored his 100th goal with Inter Miami.
• Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy tops our list of the best UFC 331 undercard fights.

📺 What we're watching Thursday

⚽ Norwich City at Manchester City, 2:30 p.m. on Paramount+
⚾ Phillies at Mets, 7:15 p.m. on Fox
⚾ Royals at Astros, 7:15 p.m. on Fox
🏈 Syracuse at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Sparks at Wings, 8 p.m. on USA Network
🏈 Lions at Bills, 8:15 p.m. on Prime Video
🏀 Aces at Storm, 10 p.m. on USA Network