The Buffalo Bills got a scare just before kickoff against the Detroit Lions when defensive tackle Ed Oliver went down with a hip injury during pregame warmups. Oliver was ruled inactive about 90 minutes before kickoff, leaving Buffalo with a thinner defensive line rotation for the regular-season debut at the new Highmark Stadium.

As per the early update, however, it gave the Bills reason for optimism. According to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport, the team hopes Oliver avoided a significant structural injury.

“They also lost one of their star players before the game. That was Ed Oliver, actually, in warm-ups, suffering a hip injury, one of the first big decisions of Joe Brady's career as a head coach, he had to make the decision. ‘Do we try to have him gutted out or not?’” Rapoport recently said during SportsCenter’s NFL segment.

From @SportsCenter: The #Bills got good news on WR DJ Moore, who suffered an AC joint sprain. Plus, the latest on DT Ed Oliver. pic.twitter.com/PetbM8RDCL

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 18, 2026

“They elected to be safe, and Oliver did not play yesterday. The Hope, again, is that this is not a significant injury for all of them,” he further added.

Oliver entered the game after making an impact during Buffalo’s Week 1 victory over the Houston Texans. He recorded five tackles, one tackle for loss, and a fumble recovery while playing 65 defensive snaps.

His absence against Detroit forced Sean McDermott’s defense to rely more heavily on the rest of its interior rotation.

DaQuan Jones and the remaining defensive tackles took on additional work against Detroit. Despite losing Oliver before kickoff, Buffalo’s defense managed to adjust and help the team secure a 41-31 victory, moving the Bills to 2-0 on the season.

Oliver’s potential return would still be important for Buffalo moving forward. The 28-year-old missed 14 games during the 2025 regular season after suffering a torn biceps.

The Bills will now wait for further evaluation before determining Oliver’s status for their next game.