Looking to the Future

The Buffalo Bills are for real this year, right? Nope, keep dreaming.

By Michael Quagliana 

The Buffalo Bills’ chances at making the playoffs appear to be slipping away yet again. In 2011 the Bills began the season 4-1 and for the first time in years, Buffalo fans had plenty of reason to be excited. Then, before you could blink, the Bills, lost seven games in a row in route to a 6-11 record.

(AP Photo/Gary Wiepert)

This year, the Bills carried a 2-1 record after Week 3 and looked to be a team on the rise once again. Unfortunately, the Bills loss to the Tennessee Titans on Sunday puts them at 3-4, and last in the division heading into their bye. Coming off of the bye, the Bills are slated to play the Houston Texans (6-1), the New England Patriots (4-3), and the Miami Dolphins (3-3).

On top of the demanding schedule, the Bills have arguably the worst defense in the NFL. Buffalo is statistically the league’s worst team against the run, giving up 176.9 yards a game. And if a struggling Chris Johnson can run for over 190 yards against them like he did last Sunday, the Bills’ defensive struggles will continue to cost them games.

This year might not be the Bills breakout year, but there is good reason to be hopefully in Buffalo. Though short-lived, the glimmers of hope the Bills have shown in the past two seasons are without a doubt impressive, and are more to show for than other below .500 teams.

For now the division belongs to the Patriots, but the Bills have youth to their advantage. Their offensive weapons just need help on the other side of the ball for the team to start converting losses to wins within the next few years.

Running back CJ Spiller is one of the most explosive in the game. He is leading the league in yards per rush, with a most impressive 7.3 on 72 carries. He is a threat out of the backfield on screen and dump passes as well, and has a rare combination of power and elusiveness at the position. The third year back out of Clemson can very well be one of the best rushers in the league for years to come.

Wide receiver Steve Johnson is of Pro Bowl caliber, and Mario Williams, who has been the best defensive end in football since he was drafted first overall by the Texans in 2006, is new to the team this year and is still looking to make his mark.

However, quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick is not the long-term answer, and the defense is not playoff caliber. Those two areas need to be the target of the upcoming drafts for the Bills, because once the offense has a leader to do more than just manage the game, and the defense can be trusted on, the Bills could actually pose a solid threat in a wildcard race.

Patience, patience, patience. The Buffalo Bills have potential. They have talent. It is up to the organization to work on the areas in need, and harness the talent that’s there with strong coaching and discipline. Once they’ve done so the Bills may finally submerge from the trenches of the AFC East.