Playing in front of a national audience
Over the years, the Buffalo Bills have been an afterthought and the NFL hasn’t positioned them to be viewed by a national audience regularly. This certainly makes sense during a time that the Bills were struggling to get above .500 and were a safe bet to have a Top 10 pick.
However, since Sean McDermott has taken over the Buffalo Bills have developed into one of the more well-rounded rosters and the perception has begun to shift around the league. It was starting to show last year with a game against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving and having their game against the Pittsburgh Steelers flexed to Sunday Night Football.
The league gave the Bills a vote of confidence with four primetime games this coming season, including the chance at a fifth in front of a national audience against the Denver Broncos. This type of audience for a player like Tremaine Edmunds, who should be in the discussion for Defensive Player of the Year is invaluable.
Over the past four seasons, three of the four players that has won the Defensive Player of the Year has appeared on primetime in four or more games.
Now that Tremaine Edmunds is going to be showcased in front of a national audience, combined with the development he has shown over the past two years, this could be a breakout year for Edmunds resulting in a Defensive Player of the Year award at the end.