The Buffalo Bills move up in the latest round of Power Rankings.
There is no question that fans felt like this was one of the biggest wins in recent memory for the Buffalo Bills. It came on primetime, against one of the top teams in the NFL and the latest power rankings took notice. The Buffalo Bills continue to rise and this is a recap of some of the power rankings for this week.
ESPN: Buffalo Bills move into Top 3
Last Week: 5
This week, ESPN included the rankings of offense (9th), defense (15th) and special teams (18th) from their Football Power Index. Marcel Louis-Jacques provides more detail about how each unit ranks:
"The Bills’ offense is a complete turnaround from last season’s anemic unit, as Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs have combined to form one of the most potent QB-WR duos in the NFL. Although their defense began the season hemorrhaging yards, it has regained its 2018 and 2019 form over the past few weeks. Mix in a special-teams unit that features the league’s most efficient returner in Andre Roberts, and you’ve got a team ready to make a deep playoff run. — Marcel Louis-Jacques"
The Buffalo Bills are one of those teams that they don’t have a clear weakness, especially with how the defense has played recently as Louis-Jacques notes in his writeup. One player that hasn’t gotten as much credit as he deserves, and this is mostly because he hasn’t been on the field much, is Corey Bojorquez.
The Bills starting punter has been excellent this season and when the offense sputtered in the first half against the Steelers, he was able to keep them pinned deep in their end of the field.
NFL.com: Buffalo Bills ranked fourth in the NFL
Last Week: 5
Dan Hanzus at NFL.com moved the Buffalo Bills up one spot, behind the Chiefs, Packers, Saints. He wrote about this past week:
"The two teams danced around each other like a pair of heavyweights in the early going, but once Buffalo landed the first big overhand right — a pick-six by Taron Johnson — the much-anticipated showdown between two AFC favorites turned into a beatdown by the pugilists from Western New York."
The boxing analogy is perfect for what fans saw on Sunday night as two good teams doesn’t always mean good football. In the first half, these two teams were evenly matched and the defenses weren’t really budging. However, that play by Taron Johnson in the closing minutes of the first half gave the Bills the momentum and they didn’t let up.
Bleacher Report: Buffalo Bills move up to spots to number three
Last Week: 5
Is it time to start thinking of the Buffalo Bills as Super Bowl contenders? Brad Gagnon thinks so:
"“For a while, I was afraid to trust the Bills because they lack experience and their so-so scoring margin was concerning,” he said. “But they’ve now won four of their last five games by double-digit margins, and their only loss since Week 7 came on a Hail Mary on the road against a playoff-caliber team. It’s time to admit they’re a true contender.”"
One of the things the Buffalo Bills have struggled with early in the season was putting teams away. They would build big first half leads and watch teams come storming back. That really hasn’t been the case as Gagnon notes with the double-digit margins wins recently.
CBS Sports: Buffalo Bills ranked third
Last Week: 5
Pete Prisco shares a similar sentiment, that this team is a Super Bowl contender.
"Josh Allen is proving to a lot of people he’s now a star quarterback. This team is legit and can be a Super Bowl team."
While it wasn’t his biggest stat line, this was another impressive performance by Josh Allen and the way he was able to bounce back in the second half.