Bills’ schedule at the start of the season is not as daunting as initially thought after two games

Doomsayers and doomsayers predicted the Buffalo Bills’ demise throughout the 2024 offseason. The team’s poor schedule early in the season was one of the reasons people cited as evidence of Buffalo’s impending collapse. Most agreed that the Bills had started the season with a winnable game against the Arizona Cardinals, but their next five games — away against the Miami Dolphins, at home against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and then three straight road games against the Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans, and New York Jets — could spell disaster.

The 30,000-foot view is a little friendlier in the first two games of the season. Buffalo has done everything it needed to do in the young season, coming back from a deficit to beat the Cardinals in Week 1 before dismantling the Dolphins in Week 2. Football on Thursday evening Clash. The Bills, now without former pillars like Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer, Tre’Davious White, Mitch Morse and Stefon Diggs, certainly see different than in previous years, but in two games they have proven that they are still one of the best teams in the league and are not going away.

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And Buffalo’s early-season success, combined with the relative lack of imminent opponents, makes the early games a little more palatable than initially expected, 13WHAM’s Mike Catalana noted this on Twitter Monday morning.

It’s important not to overlook or underestimate any opponent, but as Catalana notes, the stretch – while still challenging and far from a walk in the park – is not as intimidating as once thought. The Jaguars have been extremely disappointing to begin the season; there are questions about head coach Doug Pederson’s long-term stability, as the team blew both 14-0 and 17-7 leads, losing to the Miami Dolphins in Week 1 before falling to the Deshaun Watson-led Cleveland Browns in Week 2. The Ravens are also 0-2 after two games, losing a thrilling game to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1 before blowing a 10-point fourth-quarter lead to lose to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.

Houston and the Jets have had comparatively better starts, as the Texans lead the AFC South 2-0 and are the only team in their division to have won a game. However, they don’t seem to be the dominant force some expected, as they beat the Indianapolis Colts by two points and the Chicago Bears by six points. The Jets lost to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1 before beating the Tennessee Titans last weekend; below is a fun highlight for no particular reason.

The Jets have an immensely talented roster, but quarterback Aaron Rodgers no longer seems to be the player he was in his 40th season.

Games aren’t played on paper and the dynamics can obviously change over the next few weeks. Still, Buffalo’s early season schedule doesn’t seem as daunting as initially expected right now. Some had expected a 1-5 or 2-4 start, but given what we’ve seen from both the Bills and their opponents over the last two games, Buffalo’s next four games seem incredibly winnable. If the team builds a good record during this stretch, it could pave its way to a fifth straight AFC East title.

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