By: Lawrence Lang
For the second consecutive season the Buffalo Bills won the AFC East with a record of 11-6. The Bills hosted the Patriots in the wild card round and had the first ever NFL perfect game by scoring a Touchdown on each of their possessions 6 in total, having no punts and no turnovers, as they would route the Patriots 47-17. For the second consecutive season the Bills season ended in Kansas City in what was one of the greatest games of all time. The game would go back and forth with under two minutes left and even saw the Bills go up with 15 seconds left. But the Chiefs wound up tying the game in regulation and winning in overtime with an opening drive touchdown, winning the game 42-36.
Josh Allen : 4,407 passing yards, 63.3 completion percentage, 36 TDs, 15 Ints and 6 rushing touchdowns.
Rushing : Devin Singletary : 870 rushing yards and seven TD’s
Receiving
Stefon Diggs : Diggs has found new life since being in Buffalo and it showed this season racking up 1,225 yards and being Allen’s favorite target he averaged 11.9 per reception and racked up 10 tds.
Cole Beasly : For Beasley he didn’t show much on field but if views and opinions on Covid-19 and vaccination status put him in the spotlight he still racked up 693 yards, averaged 8.5 per reception and had 1 td. But his actions off the field with the pandemic and status on certain things might see some reaction from the Bill front office this offseason. If Beasley is cut it could save Buffalo six million dollars with a 1.5 million dollar dead cap hit.
Gabriel Davis Davis gets the out of nowhere award for the Bills because come postseason time this man was always open in the endzone while others like Diggs, Beasley and Emmanuel Sanders were being covered. Davis had 549 yards, averaged 15.7 per reception and had six tds.
The Bills had the number one ranked defense. Here are some of their numbers.
- Total yards allowed per play (4.6)
- Passing yards per play (4.65)
- First downs allowed per game (16.7)
- Third down conversion rate allowed (30.8%)
- Nobody from the Defense was elected to the Pro Bowl for the first time since the 2012 Steelers team.
Notable free agents
Jerry Hughes DE : 18 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles
Mario Addison DE : 7 sacks, 2 forced fumbles
Mitchell Trubisky QB
Vernon Butler DT
Emmanuel Sanders WR : 42 catches 626 yards, four touchdowns
Isiah Mckenzie WR : 20 catches, 178 yards, one touchdown.
Jake Kumerow WR
With free agency on the horizon The Bills are in a slight bit of trouble on the offensive side losing three wide receivers on Diggs and Beasley left.
Looking at the Bills they can go out and maybe land a WR in free agency Davante Adams would be out of the picture because of the amount of money he would be asking for if he decides to leave Green Bay since is destination is up in the air until Aaron Rodgers decides what he is doing.
Two names come to mind for the Bills starting with Allen Robinson. Robinson has been looking for a QB to feed him the ball and find success with. Robinson has had success with average quarterback play. Andy Dalton gets a slide here. He played only 12 games this season and had 38 catches for only 410 yards, the lowest of his career so far. Buffalo would be a good fit because let’s face it Josh Allen is a good QB and Robinson would be fit right in with Diggs and Beasley ( if he his still there) and this would brig new life to his carrer cause he would finally be on a team that can actually win more than five games a year.
The other notable WR that could be a good fit in Buffalo is D.J. Chark the 25 year old is ending his time in the nightmare that is the Jacksonville Jaguars and he could use a fresh start as well and showcase his talents in the 2022 season he only had 7 receptions for 154 yds and two touchdowns. Going to Buffalo he can be a young WR for Allen to go to when Diggs is being doubled covered and could be a good fit for Alllen in the long run if a multi year contract would be offered.
Now at the back up QB position there is one of two things the Bills could do here and that’s just resign Trubisky or test the water. Maybe it will be time for a little magic in Ryan Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick is 39 now and is an ageless beardless wonder who seems to always find himself on a team and this would be a fairytale ending if he were to come back to the Bills and call it a career. Fitzpatrick from 09-12 was the Bills QB. Fitzpatrick can also be the teacher even at the back up spot by helping Allen understand the game maybe just a little bit more.
NFL Draft
One move the Bills could do is trade away a few draft picks to land Cameron Jordan from New Orleans. With the Saints potentially going into a rebuild after former head coach Sean Peyton left the team. Also with Hughes and Addison in free agency this could persuade them to resign with the Bills.
If they are looking to make a splash in the draft go out there and get themselves a few young WR’s. Garret Willson a 21 years old out of The Ohio State had three solid years in college racking up 2,213 yards and 23 td’s.
A second choice the Bills could go with is Jameson Williams out of Alabama in three years he racked up 1,572 yards and 15 tds. Coming from Alabama you are on the radar since it’s Alabama and there is always high praise from their players. Williams tore his ACL during the national title game.
Whether it’s through free agency or the draft expect the Bills also to target the cornerback position and add another edge rusher. The Bills are interesting because either they make moves in the offseason to get players or they rely on the draft. With this case I would go after a player in the offseason then rely on the draft. Relying on the draft wouldn’t be a bad thing you save money and would just be giving out rookie contracts. Plus you can stockpile young talent but also with having seven draft picks you can also make moves to get players. In the Brandon Beane/ Sean Mcdermott era the Bills have drafted very well.
The Bills should be fine heading into the 2023 season as they should be the favorites to win the AFC East for a third consecutive season. Ever since TB ( you know who) The Bills have controlled the East and it’s their time to shine and for them to rule. They should be one of the heavy favorites in the AFC.
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