Do the Bills make the playoffs?

[Ya Digg?]

18 minutes ago, Back2Buff said:

 

People also forget they barely beat the Chargers with a back up QB, and NE that had like 4 turnovers in the first quarter.

 

This team is going to STRUGGLE.

You think that’s bad, you should check out how bad the Chiefs did towards the end of the regular season…probably means they will struggle even more than the Bills!

Edited August 16 by Ya Digg?

[H2o]

Do we? I think so. Josh is still Josh. He IS still Superman. We may not win the division though. We have the hardest schedule out of the rest. 

 

The OL makes me nervous, the Safety depth chart makes me nervous, and Milano going down adds to the uncertainty on the defensive side of the ball. The OL, if it has taken a step back, will drastically affect the running game and put even more weight on Josh. I don't want to see Hamlin on the field except for ST's. If he's starting, we're in trouble. I have faith that Williams can be solid in Milano's place, but our depth just took a huge hit. The WR group, though not the greatest, Josh has succeeded with less.

 

I think we can get in the Playoffs. I think we could win the division still. But this schedule, more than years past, could put us in a bind quick.

[DeltaDigital]

1 hour ago, Low Positive said:

I agree. But you did say never...

Just think of it as "the Dolphins NEVER beat the bills"... 1 time in 8 years... pretty much never. 

[Mojo44]

6 minutes ago, DeltaDigital said:

Just think of it as "the Dolphins NEVER beat the bills"... 1 time in 8 years... pretty much never. 

If it’s true that you should never say never about something. Then you should never say never about saying never. But I have to stop there, my brain just shut down.

[Chandler#81]

No.

[mjd1001]

If Allen is healthy the whole year and they are not further destroyed by injuries up and down the Roster, yes, they make it.

 

Losing Milano hurts.  I'm not sure the reason behind what I'm going to say, but I kinda feel like losing him lowers your ceiling for wins, but doesn't really lower your floor for win total.  

[Orlando Buffalo]

The team should absolutely make the playoffs because we have Josh. If we miss the playoffs, especially if it is due the defense collapsing, then McDs job is likely on the line. 

[DaVinci]

Defense will be the weak link, Injuries. No playoffs. I'm curious to see how well the Bears do. We were in a similar situation with a top draft pick Quarterback.

[Dablitzkrieg]

2 hours ago, Gregg said:

 

The Bills are tough at home. They won't be easy games for sure, but the Bills can win them.  

They can, but they wont

[Airseven]

Can't hide from this roster...danger everywhere. I expect 8-10 wins and hope they're mathematically alive through December. 

[ColoradoBills]

Do the Bills make the playoffs?

 

LOL

 

I'm a fan of the Buffalo Bills.  I will watch the games and hope they do.

Remember when fans did that?

 

[Rich Stadium Original]

I expect the offense to be very competitive.  I really don't think they will miss Diggs as long long as the play design and calling is creative.

Defense is a different story. Hoping for a revived pass rush. Think the middle of the secondary may be soft. Even if the safties both come off injury before the start of the season, there won't be much continuity. 

...and if the injury bug bites like last year, it's see you next season.  This defense is razor thin on talent, and more injuries will make it look worse than the Chiefs playoff game last year.

[folz]

A positive outlook:

 

I think the offense will actually be better this year. No Diggs distraction. Kincaid and Shakir with another year under their belts. Brady with a whole offseason to put his offense together. Hopefully, no changing of the OC mid-season. Though we don't have a typical #1 receiver right now, I think the sum of the parts is more than the whole from last year. We are bigger, stronger, faster, and they have better hands in the receiver corps this year (plus more variety, more options)...and there is still a lot of untapped potential with Kincaid, Shakir, Coleman, and even Samuel to an extent (despite his age). We should be able to cope better with weather and stronger, bully teams since we got bigger/stronger and will have a larger focus on the run game and moving the chains with the short and intermediate throws. We might not be as flashy or explosive, but they should be better at controlling and/or closing out games. Our only major losses were Diggs and Morse. Right now (and how he played in the last 10 games last year), Diggs seems like an addition by subtraction thing. And though it will be tough to match his leadership, knowledge, communication, and chemistry, Morse was also never the most stout center up the gut. McGovern is a much bigger player and they are very high on him taking over the center position in the building (like they were with Bernard at LBer last year). There may be some growing pains, etc. but by mid-season, that might be an upgrade as well.

 

The defense was a tough call even before the injuries. The return of Milano, Jones, and Miller kind of offset the losses of Tre, Hyde, Poyer, Floyd. Rasul was a great pickup last year to cover Tre's spot. And with age and injuries, it probably was the right time to get younger in the safety department. I expected the safeties to be faster and more hard-hitting, but less disciplined, etc. due to age/experience. So, I wasn't too worried about that position, but did expect a bit of a drop-off at least early in the year (maybe more big plays allowed). However, the injuries to Milano and Bishop really sucks and complicates the picture. Good news is both could be back by the end of the year. Now, if Miller is back to even 80% of what he was and Daquan stays healthy, that alone is still a huge boost from last year's D. So, a lot falls on Dorian (and the other backers) and Damar/Edwards to really step up in the meantime (they don't have to be elite, just solid). At least we have a coaching staff that is really good coaching up DBs and coverage LBs. And speaking of coaching, I think Babich as the DC will also add some juice to this defense. McD is a very good DC, but he is not really that fiery motivator type. Babich is. I think that helps in the toughness department. So, it's a bit of a wait and see with the defense (a number of question marks right now---particularly the safety position), but if they can avoid further major injury, they should at least be a stronger unit than the one that limped into the playoffs last year. There will probably be a little step back early on, but I do not expect any type of collapse (McDermott's defenses have been pretty consistent regardless of personnel), and they'll get stronger as the year wears on with the young guys getting more playing time and then Milano and Bishop returning.

 

So, I really do not see any major step back for the Bills this year. They will look a bit different, and it may take them a little while to get on their feet, but I think they will be every bit as dangerous as they have been the last few years, imo. There may be a couple of areas where we are weaker, but there are also a number of areas where we should be stronger/better. 

 

As to the competition:

The Dolphins still have Tua and McCarthy. They are still a warm climate team that struggles down the stretch when the weather turns. Josh seems to own the Phins. So, I'm really not too worried about them.

 

The Jets could be a real threat if Rodgers stays healthy and is playing well. Their defense is very good and has been able to keep Buffalo in check. But, that is also partially why our offense is changing (not just for the Jets, but it does help against them). We got stronger and will have a heavier run-focus, which may be a better strategy against that team. They definitely have some excellent skill players on offense too, but have they solidified the line in front of Rodgers enough? We split with them last year and I could see it going the same way this year. But as it stands, I still take Allen/McDermott over Rodgers/Saleh (especially with Rodgers at 40 years old---41 by the playoffs and coming off an achilles injury), not necessarily head-to-head (not saying the Jets can't beat us), but over the long haul of the season (in order to win a division). Plus, there is only one thing that is more Billsy than being Billsy...and that's being Jetsy.

 

So, I do not see any reason why the Bills shouldn't win another AFC East Title and get another playoff berth. We do still have Josh Allen, right? And I think we see a looser, but more in charge Josh this year. Go Bills!

[Fan in Chicago]

With no changes to the roster, we narrowly miss the playoffs.

 

Dolphins win AFCE . 

 

I know I am going to get a bunch of vomit and disagree emojis but that's my opinion and I am going to stick with it. 

[Utah John]

I'm sorry but I don't think so. Before Milano's biceps injury, there were a small handful of Bills the team could not afford to lose.  Well they just did lose one of them, and the playoffs are out of reach, i think.  If they lose another key player, they won't even have a winning record.  

[FireChans]

4 hours ago, Radar said:

That's the reason I said stats or no stats. Third and long, protecting leads. A touchdown lead minutes to go time and time again they played soft but we all have rights to our opinions. Stats aren't unimportant but don't always tell the whole story.

These posts are always so funny.

 

how many nfl games did you watch last year?

[frostbitmic]

Definitely maybe.

[RoyBatty is alive]

3 hours ago, LEBills said:

Eventually it happens. But think of all the times those teams stumbled trying to get out of their own way. It’s hard to break the cycle and I’m not sure the combination of Rogers, Saleh, and Johnson are up for it. But that roster is talented if everything goes right they could win the division.

IMO, the Texans, being in Houston faced reality, the doofus son of the owner was not up to the job, but someone relinquished the control to his B*%$& wife is a winner.

 

All three got "lucky" with franchise QBs, the Jets, LOL.  Actually the most impressive to me are the Lions.

[oldmanfan]

They win the division.  11-6 or 10-7.  Fish?  They lost a ton on D, Josh owns them, and McD has ways to bottle up Hill and Waddle.  Jets?  Rogers is old, we can score against their D.  Pats?  Don’t make me laugh.

 

Full year of Brady’s offense.  Balance of run and pass.  We’ll be fine on that side of the ball.  Defense losing Milano isn’t good but we said the same thing about Edmunds and then Bernard stepped up.  I expect Williams to be a capable Milano replacement.  And no D backfield will ever be bad on a McD coached team.

[Brianmoorman4jesus]

Bills win the division. Yesterday sucked but I have been thinking our defense is going to be lights out. Everyone sleeping on it. Can’t wait to see it.