The inconsistency has once again continued to plague the Buffalo Bills. Previously a major problem for Josh Allen specifically, the rollercoaster seems to be back in full effect for the quarterback, and in turn, the team as a whole. Back-to-back dominant victories over the Carolina Panthers and the Kansas City Chiefs seemed like they would get them back on track.
However, in the three weeks since, they have somehow lost to the lowly Miami Dolphins, handily beaten the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and now lost to the C.J. Stroud-less Houston Texans. After a loss to the New England Patriots put them behind in the division, do they have a chance of climbing back to the top?
Buffalo Bills Giving Up AFC East Stranglehold
Since Allen took over as the franchise quarterback, Buffalo has ruled at the top of the division. Consistently dominating relatively mediocre competition has enabled the Bills to dominate the AFC East.
After winning the first MVP of his career last season, the hope was that the team could continue that streak and potentially take another step forward in the playoffs in their chase for the elusive Super Bowl.
Unfortunately, it seems that the 2025 season will be one of major regression for them. Starting the season slower than usual, they conceded the division lead after losing to the Patriots in Week 5.
As Drake Maye continued his MVP-caliber sophomore jump, the Bills were marred with inconsistencies. Now, after losing to the Texans in an ugly defeat, their hopes of winning the AFC East are rapidly diminishing.
That is reflected in PFSN’s NFL Playoff Predictor, which indicates the team has just a 15.50% chance to overtake the Patriots in the closing stretch of the season to win the AFC East. Thankfully, their playoff chances remain exceptionally high at 80.20%.
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The two most significant problems for the team have been its defense and the growing number of turnovers. The former has regressed significantly this year, with the rushing defense allowing the third-most yards and most touchdowns in the entire league. According to PFSN’s Defense Impact metric, the Bills have the 13th-ranked defense in the league while the Texans have the second-best unit.
The latter, though, is a problem that reared its ugly head on Thursday night as well. After throwing just six interceptions the entirety of last season, Allen had already eclipsed the mark coming into tonight’s game.
But he added two more to the tally tonight to bring his season total of interceptions to nine. Add in two lost fumbles, and the problems start to become far too obvious. Moreover, they have directly affected the outcome of some of their worst losses of the year.
Against the Dolphins, a back-breaking interception told the story of how the hapless Miami team could steal a victory from a potential Super Bowl contender. Similarly, this week, the game against the Texans saw Allen give up two more interceptions, the second one coming with less than 30 seconds remaining on the clock.
It killed any hopes of a potential game-winning drive that would have allowed the Bills to live to fight for another day, and significantly worsened their chances of maintaining their dominance over the AFC East.
