The Bills (7-3) are back on Thursday Night Football for the second time in the 2025 season. On Nov. 20, they go head-to-head with the Houston Texans (5-5) with kickoff slated for 8:15 p.m. ET on Prime Video.
In 2024, Buffalo visited Houston on the road and lost 23-20. The Texans kicked a last-second field goal and came away with the walk-off win. Prior to their most recent meeting, Buffalo shutout Houston 40-0 at Highmark Stadium. The last time the Bills beat the Texans on the road was 2006.
Heading into Thursday night, both teams are coming off Week 11 wins. Buffalo beat Tampa Bay 44-32 while Houston scraped out a 16-13 win over Tennessee. Head coach Sean McDermott emphasized to his locker room after the game that whichever team has the freshest legs in the quick turnaround will be the better team.
"We love to compete. You get to play within four days instead of waiting for seven days," McDermott said on Monday. "Our fans get to watch us middle of the week; they've got something to look forward to."
Injury updates from second practice of Week 12
McDermott gave an injury update on Tuesday before Thursday night's game.
Tight end Dalton Kincaid (hamstring), wide receiver Mecole Hardman Jr. (calf), wide receiver Curtis Samuel (elbow/neck) and wide receiver Khalil Shakir (personal) did not practice on Tuesday's walkthrough.
Cornerback Christian Benford (groin), linebacker Terrel Bernard (ankle), defensive end Joey Bosa (wrist), cornerback Taron Johnson (groin), defensive tackle DaQuan Jones (vet rest), defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis (shoulder), center Connor McGovern (ankle), wide receiver Joshua Palmer (knee/ankle), defensive tackle Jordan Phillips (wrist), safety Jordan Poyer (vet rest) and linebacker Dorian Williams (groin).
Linebacker Shaq Thompson practiced in full.
Bills return to primetime game slot
While Buffalo doesn't lead the all-time series with Houston, the Bills show out for primetime Thursday Night Football games.
They haven't lost a game since 2017 in that time slot, owning a 16-10-1 record on Thursdays. Buffalo registered its 16th win in Week 3 of 2025, beating Miami 31-21 at home.
Recovering from a Sunday game, McDermott emphasized efficiency in putting a whole week of preparation into three days. Now in his eighth season in Buffalo, he developed a routine in simplifying the process and allotting time for the players to rest.
"Efficiency is critical, but also trying to be as thorough as you can be, trying to skinny it down for the players into boulder form that they can take onto the field and execute with it," McDermott said on Tuesday.
On top of prioritizing the right things during the week to recover and put the past game behind, center Connor McGovern said it's also about being the most mentally prepared and not beating up their bodies.
Going up against the No. 1 defense in the country, that physical and mental preparedness can get Buffalo's offense ready for the chaos in front of them on the field. Fullback Reggie Gilliam said the Texans are tenacious on defense, and that aggressiveness is something that extends across the defensive line. Allen doubled down on Gilliam's statement, adding Houston's defense is going to challenge everyone on the field.
"If we go out there and be fresh [on] Thursday, we'll have a lot of success," McGovern said.
My Cause My Cleats
The 2025 My Cause My Cleats campaign is underway and Bills-Texans will be the first game during the campaign. Players, coaches and staff across the NFL will unveil different organizations and initiatives they chose to support through creative cleat designs. Over 1,800 players, legends and coaches around the league chose to represent their causes on their cleats in 2025.
"Another cause beyond the football field, which I believe is tremendous for our country, tremendous for all those affected by the causes that the guys get behind across the league," McDermott said. "You get to see behind the curtain a little bit of what's in the hearts of our players and that's really good for society and great for the causes that they support."
This season, 28 Bills players will spread awareness for their cause. Scroll through the gallery to see every custom cleat and the cause associated.
During Week 12, players and coaches participated in My Cause My Cleats that allows them to customize cleats with an organization of their choice.
Josh Allen is representing John R. Oishei Children's Hospital for the seventh consecutive year to spread awareness for children and teens overcoming critical injuries, diseases and conditions in Western New York. Running back Ray Davis is supporting Beating the Odds Foundation to help students overcome obstacles and adversity to achieve their dreams. Offensive lineman Dion Dawkins is representing Dion's Dreamers, raising awareness for young men and women in underserved communities. Tight end Dawson Knox is supporting P.U.N.T. Pediatric Cancer Collaborative for children overcoming cancer.
McDermott, offensive coordinator Joe Brady and defensive coordinator Bobby Babich are also representing their causes for Food Allergies and Leukemia Awareness, Ovarian Cancer Awareness and Project NICU, respectively.
"Last five, six years, I've done ovarian cancer awareness. My mother-in-law, Jackie Johnson, she passed away, I believe in 2018 from ovarian cancer. She battled it for a long time. And just to bring awareness to the people it affects – it certainly affected our family," Babich said. "It's something that is harsh – she battled it for 10 or 12 years – and certainly showed how tough she was. Maybe that little piece right there gives someone a little bit of hope, that maybe has ovarian cancer. So that's her story and just want to bring awareness."
