Bills named one of NFL’s most likely first-time Super Bowl champions in 2024 season

It’s a phrase that’s become a running joke in Western New York due to the locals’ propensity to use it — ”This is our year.”

The quote perfectly epitomizes the—sometimes blind—optimism that Buffalo Bills fans operate with; despite a heap of information and a bevy of circumstances suggesting otherwise, the Buffalo faithful is always confident that the Bills will finally get over the hump and hoist their first Lombardi Trophy in the upcoming campaign.

And the optimism, throughout the past several seasons, has been anything but “blind;” the team has been a perennial contender throughout the past half-decade, notching five consecutive postseason berths and four straight AFC East titles as quarterback Josh Allen has dragged the team from the depths of NFL irrelevancy into mainstream prominence. 

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Given Allen’s excellence—he’s a former All-Pro who has earned NFL MVP votes in three out of the last four seasons—the Bills will be a contender for as long as he’s manning the offense.

Despite this, some fans are pessimistic about the team’s Super Bowl aspirations in the 2024 campaign.

The team, admittedly, saw a fair bit of turnover in the 2024 offseason, moving on from stalwart starters Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer, Tre’Davious White, Mitch Morse, Gabriel Davis, and Stefon Diggs. These players were almost exclusively replaced internally or by rookies, leaving the Bills of today as a less experienced—and arguably less talented—team than the Bills of just a few months ago.

Buffalo, though seemingly positioned well for the future, has mixed national and local expectations attached to it entering the 2024 season, and there’s a bevy of question marks that need to be answered before we have a true read on its potential ceiling and floor. That said, the presence of Allen makes it impossible to cast the team off entirely. 

This sentiment has been reflected in NFL.com writer Eric Edholm’s recent article ranking the 12 NFL teams who have never won a Super Bowl by their immediate championship aspirations; the Bills come in at third on the list, with Edholm pinning their hopes on their signal-caller.

“. . . it’s hard to make a case Buffalo has more talent after moving on from WRs Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis, center Mitch Morse, a slew of defensive linemen and four key members of the secondary this offseason,” Edholm wrote. “. . . But Allen gives them a shot. Has he really been stripped of all his armament? If you look closer at last season, when Diggs’ production started waning, the Bills played some of their best ball and got back in the playoff race. Davis was always a wild card: hot or cold, no in between. 

“With James Cook, two good tight ends, Samuel, rookie Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir and others, there should be plenty of feedable mouths — and not as many yapping about getting the ball every play. It won’t be easy, although with the Bills, it seldom is. Write off their title chances this year at your own peril.”

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Edholm’s analysis is sound—Buffalo did strip its roster down in the spring, but there’s still talent throughout. The defense returns nine starters and is getting former All-Pro linebacker Matt Milano back from injury. The receiving corps, while less top-heavy than it was last year, is balanced, deploying several skill sets (or, as general manager Brandon Beane put it, “flavors”) that figure to make for a deep pass-catching unit that’s difficult to defend.

Combine these positives with the fact that the team still has a world-beater at quarterback, and it’s difficult to confidently say that they’re not a Super Bowl contender.

Only the Detroit Lions and Cincinnati Bengals appear above Buffalo on Edholm’s list; Detroit was a few points away from appearing in the Super Bowl last season, while the recently competitive Bengals missed the playoffs entirely due to quarterback Joe Burrow’s wrist injury.