Buffalo Bills the team to beat in AFC if they win today vs. New England?
There is a lot on the line in the AFC East today, but exactly how much? We asked the Paste BN NFL staff the following: Are the Buffalo Bills the team to beat if they defeat the New England Patriots today? their opinions:
Nancy Armour
I think they'd have to be. Two quality wins, and they've got a coach who knows how to get a team to the playoffs. There have been questions about the Patriots, but the thinking has always been, as long as they have Tom Brady, they'll be a contender. If Rex Ryan can figure Brady out, you know the rest of the AFC will copy that gameplan.
Chris D'Amico
No. New England is the team to beat. Until someone does it through 16 weeks. But there is another side to this. It will be a huge setback for the Bills if they lose. It is vital, from a Bills perspective, they win at home today. Lose this one and Ryan will have a tough time convincing everyone this is the season the Bills overtake the Patriots in the division. That Bills bandwagon, which was overflowing after Week 1, will lose quite a few passengers.
Tom Pelissero
No, the team to beat is the Patriots, and it will be the Patriots unless/until they don’t finish the season atop the standings. Everyone remembers their slow start last season. This is a franchise that once lost the 2003 opener to Buffalo 31-0 – only to beat the Bills by the same score in that season’s finale on the way to a Super Bowl win. Bill Belichick experiments this time of year. The Patriots have the better quarterback. One road loss in September wouldn’t change the fact the AFC East goes through Foxborough.
Lorenzo Reyes
A victory today for the Bills doesn’t make them the team to beat, but it does make them the early frontrunner in the AFC East. Even that statement needs to come with a disclaimer: It’s just Week 2. There are so many things (injuries, mid-season slumps) that can happen to derail what would be a blazing start to the season. Because of New England’s dominance in the division, a win Sunday would be huge in boosting the confidence of a team that has undergone quite a bit of transition. But we’re not even in October, and there’s a lot of football to be played, so it’s too early to put the team-to-beat tag on anyone.
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