Bills and The AFC: Three Games In

[ngbills]

We are very early on in the season but lets take a look at the AFC landscape:

 

AFC East: We have the Bills and everybody else as expected. No real shockers here. The Bills look like the only legit team in the division and still conference champion favorite. Bills are tied for largest point differential in the league. Miami was the expected threat but a blowout lost to the Bills and now loss to LAV is a reason for concern. 

 

AFC North: The division is close but CLE looks like the favorite given the quality of wins. CLE could be 3-0 if they didnt blow the week 1 game to KC. PIT week 1 win looks more like a fluke. CIN and BAL are possibly both contenders. 

 

AFC South: Weakest division in the conference. TEN has not looked great but is still the favorite. IND had been a big disappointment at 0-3. Both JAC and HOU are not good. So I think TEN takes this division easy and the three other teams are all sub .500 by a lot.

 

AFC West: KC is a surprising 1-2 and could easily be 0-3. DEN and LAV are both a surprising 3-0. Then you have LAC at 2-1. This looks to be the best division in the conference. What is the reality here? The LAV start looks more legit than DEN given the quality of wins (BAL, PIT, MIA), but DEN has won big though its against NYG, JAC, and NYJ. Not ready to write KC off as I expect they will turn it on when they start feeling the pressure. So I still think KC wins this division but we get a potential for 2 wild card teams here. 

 

Predictions:

East: Bills (1)

North: CLE (4)

South: TEN (3)

West: KC (2)

Wild cards: BALT (6), LAV (5), LAC (7)

Edited September 27, 2021 by ngbills

[eball]

Just a bit different than after W1 when it was gloom, doom, Josh-can't-play-in-front-of-crowds mayhem around here and we were going to be lucky to sneak in as a wild card.

[Rubes]

Bills look to be in a good spot, but I wouldn't underestimate CLE and BAL. Those are two good, strong teams. And TEN is starting to look strong after that debacle in Week 1 (but we know what that's like).

 

[K-9]

Lemme know when we’re 15 games in. It’s a mighty weird game with an oddly shaped ball and crazy crap is bound to happen. 

[thenorthremembers]

I still think the winner of the West gets the 1st seed.  

[Ralonzo]

2 minutes ago, thenorthremembers said:

I still think the winner of the West gets the 1st seed.  

You don’t think a division with 3 contenders would cannibalize itself more than a division with one?

Edited September 27, 2021 by Ralonzo

[thenorthremembers]

1 minute ago, Ralonzo said:

You don’t think a division with 3 contenders would cannibalize itself more than a division with one?

I dont.  I think you'll see the Raiders stay in the playoff chase, but I dont think they can beat either KC or LAC.   My thought is either KC or LAC goes on a roll here soon and it plays out to the end of season.  

[May Day 10]

Weeks 5 and 6 is going to tell us a lot on where to slot the Bills.  Specifically the week 5 match up vs the Chiefs.  If they can get to the bye week at 5-1, or even 4-2 (preferably with a victory over the Chiefs)... We are going to feel pretty good about where they stand.  Especially with the next 3 games the Dolphins, Jaguars and Jets (then the Colts)

[GunnerBill]

Think the biggest thing for the Bills is that New England and Miami do not look as some (I include myself in that) expected to have closed the gap. 

 

6-0 in division again is very possible. If the AFC West continues to beat itself up with 4 legit teams then it might come down to the Bills and the Browns for the #1 seed.

[BuffaloBill]

There is a lot of season left. However, the Chiefs currently sitting at 1-2 has to be the biggest shock. Second to that would be Indy at 0-3.  Hopefully the Bills stay healthy and hungry. It’s way too early to know how the season will go.

[Don Otreply]

The AFCE doesn’t surprise me in the least, to include the pats, their team culture is crumbling bit by bit, mercenaries play there, and they don’t have a QB at present, Miami not having a QB that’s worth their time seals their fate, the jets, nuff said. 
 

Go Bills!!!

[eball]

9 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

Think the biggest thing for the Bills is that New England and Miami do not look as some (I include myself in that) expected to have closed the gap. 

 

6-0 in division again is very possible. If the AFC West continues to beat itself up with 4 legit teams then it might come down to the Bills and the Browns for the #1 seed.

The Pats*** are the biggest surprise. Just awful yesterday. We need for Baltimore and Cleveland to split. The Raiders have done well but I’m not yet a believer. Hopefully they and Denver do enough to saddle KC and LAC with another loss or two. 
 

It also looks right now as if drawing the AFC South this season was a blessing for Buffalo.

 

[Brennan Huff]

The amount of “experts” that picked the Patriots to win the division was comical. Better luck next year..

[Punching Bag]

33 minutes ago, eball said:

Just a bit different than after W1 when it was gloom, doom, Josh-can't-play-in-front-of-crowds mayhem around here and we were going to be lucky to sneak in as a wild card.

 

I know some were happier then so they could say "I was right".  

[GunnerBill]

3 minutes ago, eball said:

The Pats*** are the biggest surprise. Just awful yesterday. We need for Baltimore and Cleveland to split. The Raiders have done well but I’m not yet a believer. Hopefully they and Denver do enough to saddle KC and LAC with another loss or two. 
 

It also looks right now as if drawing the AFC South this season was a blessing for Buffalo.

 

 

Yea the Bills have been lucky in terms of their AFC draws last few years. Drew the AFC North in 2019 when Cleveland underperformed, Cincy were in a teardown and Pitt lost their starting QB. In 2020 drew the AFC West where the Chargers had a lame duck HC and a rookie QB and the Broncos were the most injured team in the league. 2021 by far the weakest division is AFC South. The rotation has been kind to us. 

 

Next year the AFC North will be tough you'd think but the NFC North when Rodgers might have left Green Bay, Chicago and Minnesota may have new coaches and Detorit will still be Detroit. That looks pretty nice too.

[BigAl2526]

If KC is not feeling the pressure yet, they must be brain dead. 

[snafu]

21 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

Think the biggest thing for the Bills is that New England and Miami do not look as some (I include myself in that) expected to have closed the gap. 

 

6-0 in division again is very possible. If the AFC West continues to beat itself up with 4 legit teams then it might come down to the Bills and the Browns for the #1 seed.

 

You could say the same thing about the Titans regarding their division.

Seems like they'll be in the mix for a top seed in the conference.  Week 5 (KC) and week 6 (TEN) are going to tell us a lot.

 

 

[PromoTheRobot]

14 minutes ago, Don Otreply said:

The AFCE doesn’t surprise me in the least, to include the pats, their team culture is crumbling bit by bit, mercenaries play there, and they don’t have a QB at present, Miami not having a QB that’s worth their time seals their fate, the jets, nuff said. 
 

Go Bills!!!

 

When the media were acting like the Pats were all set for a playoff run with Mac Jones, based on a couple of preseason games, all I could do was laugh. The Patriots are a hot mess right now. There will be no wild cards in the AFC East.

Edited September 27, 2021 by PromoTheRobot

[Nextmanup]

The AFC Looks pretty terrible and this is shaping up to be a pretty soft season/schedule for us.

 

No complaints here.

 

Can't wait to get to the KC game as it's probably the most important on our schedule this year.

 

 

Edited September 27, 2021 by Nextmanup

[FilthyBeast]

Not going to guess seeding but I could see the AFC shaking out something like this:

 

AFCE - Bills

AFCN - Browns

AFCS - Titans

AFCW - Raiders

Wildcard1 - Chiefs

WIldcard2 - Chargers

Wildcard3 - Ravens

 

On the fringe/just miss out - Dolphins, Bengals, Broncos

 

Biggest disappointment for me is Patriots, I thought they would be much better but it's clear their offense is an issue and simply not that good. Colts are up there as well and not likely rebounding this year.

[Lieutenant Aldo Raine]

Ravens are lucky to not be 0-3 as well.  

[FilthyBeast]

1 minute ago, Lieutenant Aldo Raine said:

Ravens are lucky to not be 0-3 as well.  

 

Naw they are still a contender this year, although yesterday was definitely serious luck with that FG.

 

But how serious a contender remains to be seen because the AFC WC picture is very crowded again their division is up there as one of the toughest in the league right now even with the Steelers magically struggling after their playing their SB against us in week one.

[ngbills]

38 minutes ago, BuffaloBill said:

There is a lot of season left. However, the Chiefs currently sitting at 1-2 has to be the biggest shock. Second to that would be Indy at 0-3.  Hopefully the Bills stay healthy and hungry. It’s way too early to know how the season will go.

Agreed - surprised at LAV start as well given the teams they beat albeit the games were close. DEN 3-0 looks more like a case of playing a soft schedule to start though it is still the NFL and they are taking care of business. 

[BigAl2526]

I think it is relatively easy to predict the AFCE and AFCS. I think way too many things can happen in the AFCN and AFCW to start etching anyone in stone.

Edited September 27, 2021 by BigAl2526

[x-BillzeBubba]

 

[Lieutenant Aldo Raine]

7 minutes ago, FilthyBeast said:

 

Naw they are still a contender this year, although yesterday was definitely serious luck with that FG.

 

But how serious a contender remains to be seen because the AFC WC picture is very crowded again their division is up there as one of the toughest in the league right now even with the Steelers magically struggling after their playing their SB against us in week one.

 

Again like I said, currently they are lucky to not be 0-3.  If not for a Chiefs last minute fumble - they probably lose; and if not for a 66yd NFL record FG - they lose.  I agree that they are a contender, just pointing out they had some good fortune late in their games.  On the flip side, they could also be 3-0;  they had their opportunity in overtime vs the Raiders.    

Edited September 27, 2021 by Lieutenant Aldo Raine

[RobbRiddick]

Cleveland is a damn good team, very well balanced. Yes I'll say it, they scare me come playoff time. They scared me last season as I saw them as the one team in the AFC capable of beating the Chiefs.

 

Broncos don't scare me too much as they've played bad teams but they are a very different outfit with Teddy in place of frat boy.

 

The Raiders I am still not convinced by. Maybe they maintain this all season but I still won't be surprised if they fall apart as the season goes on.

 

Chargers look like a class act this year and Herbert is a superstar in the making. He will take a lot of the Josh Allen hype this year I feel. I do think when the playoffs roll round they're the kind of team that will shoot themselves in the foot.

 

KC are still the ones to beat for me. They've lost 2 but both have been very close (they won these games last year) and they have the experience so they know how to ride it out.

 

Titans are always scary with Henry who is a monster. 

 

The games against the above two teams will be very interesting in a few weeks. Especially when you look at how they treated us last year. In a way I won't be devastated if we lose to KC as I have this thing where I believe we'll take them in the playoffs, but I hope we give the Titans a serious serving of revenge. I haven't forgotten Tannehill laughing his ass off during the last game against them and I've wanted to see us beat the crap out of him ever since

[GunnerBill]

31 minutes ago, snafu said:

 

You could say the same thing about the Titans regarding their division.

Seems like they'll be in the mix for a top seed in the conference.  Week 5 (KC) and week 6 (TEN) are going to tell us a lot.

 

 

I don't trust Tennesee's defense. They will be a playoff team and win their division easily enough and they will be a danger once in the post season but I think they will lose 5 or 6 games and that is too many to be the #1 seed.

22 minutes ago, Lieutenant Aldo Raine said:

Ravens are lucky to not be 0-3 as well.  

 

I'd say they are unlucky not to be 3-0. 

[chongli]

Still very early, but I hope the (unnecessary) loss to Pittsburgh does not come back to bite us.

[K-9]

1 hour ago, thenorthremembers said:

I still think the winner of the West gets the 1st seed.  

That or the West becomes a battle of attrition and none of them ends up with the best conference record. 

[FilthyBeast]

10 minutes ago, RobbRiddick said:

Cleveland is a damn good team, very well balanced. Yes I'll say it, they scare me come playoff time. They scared me last season as I saw them as the one team in the AFC capable of beating the Chiefs.

 

Broncos don't scare me too much as they've played bad teams but they are a very different outfit with Teddy in place of frat boy.

 

The Raiders I am still not convinced by. Maybe they maintain this all season but I still won't be surprised if they fall apart as the season goes on.

 

Chargers look like a class act this year and Herbert is a superstar in the making. He will take a lot of the Josh Allen hype this year I feel. I do think when the playoffs roll round they're the kind of team that will shoot themselves in the foot.

 

KC are still the ones to beat for me. They've lost 2 but both have been very close (they won these games last year) and they have the experience so they know how to ride it out.

 

Titans are always scary with Henry who is a monster. 

 

The games against the above two teams will be very interesting in a few weeks. Especially when you look at how they treated us last year. In a way I won't be devastated if we lose to KC as I have this thing where I believe we'll take them in the playoffs, but I hope we give the Titans a serious serving of revenge. I haven't forgotten Tannehill laughing his ass off during the last game against them and I've wanted to see us beat the crap out of him ever since

 

With Cleveland it's still going to come down to Baker Mayfield and I'm still not sure I trust him in big moments and as of today would easily still pick Allen over him if we match up in the playoffs home or away.

 

I also agree that the Chiefs are still the measuring stick and it will be interesting to see if McDermott and his coaching staff show the kind of balls that the Ravens and Chargers did the last few weeks because that's how you are going to ultimately beat them not settling for field goals and/or giving the ball back to Mahomes with 2 minutes or under left.

[Utah John]

Neither the Chiefs nor the Titans are playing as well this year as they did last year.  But you could have said the same thing about the Bills a week or so ago.  

 

The NFL is a very tough league, obviously.  HCs and coordinators are paid to figure out how to attack the other team, and no team is so completely stacked that there aren't opportunities for another good team to exploit.  The current jumble is a sign that league policies are working to make a complete product attractive and interesting.  Not like MLB where some teams in small cities need a miracle to be competitive.  

 

Baltimore has a good solid team but they don't seem to have the inner strength of character to show up every day.  A team that can beat the Chiefs has no business being in a position where they need an obvious mistake by the officials to beat the weak Lions on a record-setting FG.  (For those who don't know, just prior to the long FG, the Ravens had the play clock go to zero a full second or more before the snap.  That FG would not have been good from 71 yards, which is where it should have been kicked from.)

[Paup 1995MVP]

1 hour ago, thenorthremembers said:

I dont.  I think you'll see the Raiders stay in the playoff chase, but I dont think they can beat either KC or LAC.   My thought is either KC or LAC goes on a roll here soon and it plays out to the end of season.  

I like our chances against the Chargers. They are good but we are better on both sides of the ball.  I put them a notch or two below where Indy was last year when we played them in the playoffs.  But kudos to them for going into KC and beating them.  Raiders have Gruden.  That will be good for some losses in games that they should have win.  And they aren't stopping our offense.  Kansas City, Tennessee, Baltimore and Cleveland are all formidable.  But so are we.  Its going to be an exciting season.  

 

Our defense is playing well.  That makes us tougher to beat this year.  

[TFBillsfan]

For the Bills, assuming they execute against everyone else, games against KC, Tenn, Saints, TB and Carolina will go along ways to determining their playoff seed. Four of those games are on the road. Colts if healthy will be a tough game as well.

 

But then again after 3 games it’s all speculation at this point.

[Paup 1995MVP]

9 minutes ago, Utah John said:

Neither the Chiefs nor the Titans are playing as well this year as they did last year.  But you could have said the same thing about the Bills a week or so ago.  

 

The NFL is a very tough league, obviously.  HCs and coordinators are paid to figure out how to attack the other team, and no team is so completely stacked that there aren't opportunities for another good team to exploit.  The current jumble is a sign that league policies are working to make a complete product attractive and interesting.  Not like MLB where some teams in small cities need a miracle to be competitive.  

 

Baltimore has a good solid team but they don't seem to have the inner strength of character to show up every day.  A team that can beat the Chiefs has no business being in a position where they need an obvious mistake by the officials to beat the weak Lions on a record-setting FG.  (For those who don't know, just prior to the long FG, the Ravens had the play clock go to zero a full second or more before the snap.  That FG would not have been good from 71 yards, which is where it should have been kicked from.)

Agree Utah.  I was watching the end of the game and yelling at the TV, delay of game, delay of game.  And the Lions played the 4th and 19 as bad as you can.  Wow that was a gut punch.

[wjag]

Beware the Ravens...  They are playing like this with seemingly a third of their team on IR/covid.  They have played three cardiac kid games in a row winning two of them.  This is what builds character in the NFL.  They are the toughest out in the league right now.

[LABILLBACKER]

We just have to continue winning and not underestimate anyone. Obviously the KC game is huge for seeding. I'm not too concerned about LV or Denver as I think they'll come back to earth. Its KC, Balt. and Clev. that we need to prepare for with the Chargers lying in the weeds. Keep protecting JA, keep running the ball and let the young DL get after it.