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While there is no guarantee that the Buffalo Bills will win the Super Bowl this season, there is no reason to remove them from their perch as championship favorites.
Josh Allen & Co. were no longer a team on the rise coming into this season. They spent money to bring in Von Miller and guaranteed Stefon Diggs $70 million on a contract extension. This franchise was not going to stand pat after last season’s knee-weakening loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round, allowing their opponent to get within field-goal range to tie that game in less than 13 seconds.
Quarterback will likely not be a question for the Bills for many years as they have one of the best in the league, and at a bargain. They signed Allen to a contract extension in 2021 for less guaranteed money than what the Arizona Cardinals gave Kyler Murray this past offseason.
Allen is looking better than ever, making spectacular plays both on the ground and in the air. Green Bay Packers future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers was no match for him on Sunday night as the Bills won 27-17. Sure, Allen threw two interceptions, but he also ran for 49 yards and averaged 8.7 yards per pass attempt — nearly two full yards better than Rodgers.
It didn’t matter that the Bills didn’t play an ideally clean game, because they established early that they are a better team than the Packers. The Bills defense made it loud and clear by living in the Packers’ backfield all night, making Rodgers’ evening in Western New York miserable.
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The Bills’ win against the Packers put them at 6-1 on the season. They would be staring eye-to-eye with the Eagles at the top of the NFL as one of two undefeated teams if not for that humid nightmare of a loss to the Miami Dolphins in Week 3.
Having fended off both the Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens on the road, the Bills shouldn’t have another tough road game until Week 17 against the Cincinnati Bengals — if you watched the New York Jets yesterday there’s no reason to believe next week will be a challenge at MetLife Stadium. Home-field advantage in the AFC will likely belong to the Bills for the first time since the 1991 season.
What will happen come playoff time? At that point the season comes down to a one-game sample size and the Bills might have to see both the Ravens and Chiefs again come January. Those are the only two teams with quarterbacks in Allen’s stratosphere. That’s two more quarterbacks on his level than Allen would have to face if the Bills were in the NFC.
But that’s why the Bills were so active during the offseason. While other good teams were parting ways with their No. 1 wide receivers — like the Chiefs — the Bills re-upped Diggs. Even with that big contract they were still able to add defensive talent like Miller and Daquan Jones to their front seven. Those additions have kept the Bills near the top of the league on that side of the ball even after losing Micah Hyde for the season, and Tre’Davious White still not ready for game action.
For those hesitant to declare the Bills championship favorites to start the season, feel free to let those four Super Bowl losses and the Music City Miracle cloud your judgment if you like, but these Bills appear to have their sights set on Super Bowl Sunday in Glendale, Ariz., and a February parade in downtown Buffalo.
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