As each day passes by, we get closer to the start of the NFL season. It is going to feel real once the NFL schedule is released this Wednesday at 8 PM EST. The Buffalo Bills already know who they will be facing, but now they will see when they will face their scheduled opponents.
After going 11-6 and taking the AFC East division from the Miami Dolphins last season, things are up in the air as to how the Bills will perform in 2024. They lost a lot of solid pieces in free agency and traded away Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans.
For the first time in a while, Bills fans should be worried about how this season will play out. This offense will look somewhat new and the biggest “what if” is how rookie wide receiver Keon Coleman will perform this season. It would be one thing if the Bills still had Diggs and/or Gabe Davis, but both of them are gone. It is time for the rookie to step up immediately.
Along with Coleman, Buffalo will also have a new secondary that won’t have veterans Jordan Poyer, Micah Hyde and Tre’Davious White. Long story short, the Bills have a great amount of new pieces to the team that will need to mesh well in training camp before Week 1.
The AFC East is an interesting division this year. The Jets look better as long as Aaron Rodgers stays healthy and the New England Patriots did the smart move by trading away Mac Jones to draft Drake Maye. However, the Miami Dolphins have been breathing down the Bills’ neck for two seasons. The Bills are already going to have potential challenges within the division.
Outside of the AFC East, the Bills have four opponents that will give them a tough challenge. Whether it was how they ended their season last year, or improving throughout the offseason.
Here are the four non-AFC East opponents that will be major challenges to the Bills in 2024.
4.) Detroit Lions
Much like how the Bills were in 2020, is how the Lions performed last season. They had one of the best offenses in the league last season and they have properly addressed their pressing needs in free agency and the NFL Draft. With news about quarterback Jared Goff signing a massive four-year extension, the Lions are ready for the 2024 season and the Bills will travel to Detroit for a Goff vs. Josh Allen matchup.
The Lions were ranked fifth in scoring and third overall in yards across the league. They have improved their defense by getting multiple cornerbacks in the NFL Draft which includes Terrion Arnold who they traded up for the first round.
Dan Campbell is the most fiery coach in the league and his players play hard for him. Buffalo is going to have their hands full with a Lions team that has a lot of momentum heading into this season. They were one half away from making it to the Super Bowl and they are looking to get back to the NFC championship game at the minimum.
3.) Baltimore Ravens
It seems like the Ravens always have the talent and will to go all the way but they always find a way to mess it up. However, they are always one of the most dangerous regular season teams in terms of domination.
With Lamar Jackson’s MVP season and dominance of the Texans in the Wild Card round game, the Ravens only got stronger in the offseason by signing Derrick Henry to a two-year deal and drafting cornerback Nate Wiggins in the draft. Baltimore is a physical team that can put a beating on their opponents.
A duo of Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry in the same huddle is going to cause some damage throughout the season and the Bills get the pleasure of having to stop that running attack. While Baltimore’s defense took a little bit of a step back in terms of losing Patrick Queen, they did not lose anyone major and they will be looking to dominate the AFC once again.
The Bills defeated the Ravens back in 2022 off of a game-winning field goal and it would not be surprising to see the winner of this game having the ball last.
2.) Kansas City Chiefs
How can we make a list like this and not include the Chiefs? Since this rivalry began between Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen, it has been Buffalo dominating the regular season but the Chiefs have the Bills’ number in their last three matchups in the playoffs.
Since the 2020-21 playoffs, the Chiefs have defeated the Bills in the playoffs three times (twice in the divisional round and once in the conference championship game). However, Buffalo has beaten the Chiefs in the regular season every season since 2021.
These two teams will once again face off for the fourth consecutive team with the game taking place in Orchard Park. The Chiefs traded up with the Bills in the first round to select wide receiver Xavier Worthy out of Texas (who set the 40-yard dash record at 4.21).
While the Chiefs do not have the greatest weapons on the roster (aside from Travis Kelce), Mahomes is still the best quarterback in the league which is a big enough problem already. In addition, the Kansas City defense is the best it has been since Mahomes was named the starter. Steve Spagnoulo will look to stop Josh Allen in 2024 with this defense, while Mahomes and the offense look to take advantage of this new-look Bills defense.
1.) Houston Texans
The NFL world should be tuned in for this exciting matchup between the Bills and Texans. C.J. Stroud was a dynamic rookie quarterback last year and helped lead the Texans to the playoffs and even defeated the Cleveland Browns.
The Texans have turned around the franchise in a short time with Stroud and head coach DeMeco Ryans. This past offseason, the Texans’ front office attacked the offseason by signing Danielle Hunter from the Minnesota Vikings, as well as trading for running back Joe Mixon from the Cincinnati Bengals.
Then in a shocking trade, the Texans traded for former Bills’ star wide receiver Stefon Diggs and trade compensation for a future second round pick. Houston loaded up this offseason and will be looking to compete in the very competitive AFC. When these two meet, it will be interesting to see how Diggs performs against his old team and how Allen performs without Diggs for the first time without Diggs to throw the ball to.
At the end of the day, Houston on paper is a better football team. The Bills will have to find a way to slow down Stroud and keep Diggs from lighting up the scoreboard.