Since the start of this century, every team in the AFC East has one the division atleast one time. The New York Jets won it in 2002, and the Miami Dolphins won it twice in 2000 and 2008. The Buffalo Bills have won it the past five consecutive seasons. Then there are the New England Patriots who have won the AFC East 17 times (including 5 times and 11 times consecutively).
Tom Brady made life miserable for the entire AFC East, but that momentum shifted into Buffalo’s direction once he left the Patriots for Tampa Bay. The Bills have won the division in dominant fashion, as well as stealing it away in Week 18 when they defeated the Miami Dolphins in the 2023 season.
Heading into 2024, all we heard was the debate on whether the Jets or the Dolphins would be winning the AFC East. Due to the fact that the Bills had a roster overhaul, no one expected them to keep their dominance going. Well, they were wrong by a mile. Even Hailee Steinfeld had some fun talking about the Bills and “the Bills’ three sons”.
Bills lead 2024 AFC East grades and it’s not even close
CBS Sports writer Bryan DeArdo gave out final grades for every NFL team for the 2024 season and when you compare the whole AFC East, the Bills are the clear leader and no other team is within a mile of them.
DeArdo gave the Bills a B+, even though they went 5-1 in the division, finished 13-4 and made it all the way to the AFC championship. Maybe it’s a little bit of a lower grade, but it’s definitely higher than what people were expecting to think of them going into the season.
"The Bills overachieved this season. They won two more games than they did the previous year despite parting ways with former All-Pro wideout Stefon Diggs. Buffalo received an NFL MVP season from quarterback Josh Allen, who proved he can still play at a high level while taking better care of the football. "Bryan DeArdo, CBS Sports
As for the rest of the division, it wasn’t pretty at all. The Dolphins received a D+, the Patriots received a D, and the Jets (to no one’s surprise) received an F.
It’s amazing to see how two of the teams in Miami and New York completely fail despite analysts making predictions on who would take the AFC East away from the Bills. We all knew that the Patriots were going to have a rough season, but they do have promise moving forward with Drake Maye and new head coach, Mike Vrabel.
Buffalo won the division in Week 13, before even playing the Patriots in their first meeting that took place in Week 16. Josh Allen played like the MVP down the stretch and the Bills were playing great situational football that really separated themselves from the rest of their division rivals. Going into 2025, maybe people will think again before doubting the Bills.