The fact that this is a legitimate question is a testament to just how unpredictable the 2025 NFL season has been. With parity as high as it has ever been, it has been impossible to predict how the year will unfold for well-established teams like the Buffalo Bills.
After dominating the division since Josh Allen stepped into the fold, Buffalo has given up its lead in the AFC East to the New England Patriots, with some truly horrifying losses on the calendar. Now, after Week 13, are the playoffs also in jeopardy for them?
Can the Bills Still Make the Playoffs?
At 8-4, Buffalo is at least in the playoff bracket as things currently stand, unlike the other two juggernauts of the conference, the Baltimore Ravens (6-6) and the Kansas City Chiefs (6-6).
However, with losses to the C.J. Stroud-less Houston Texans and the Miami Dolphins on their resume, their week-to-week variance has been impossible to predict. With Josh Allen turning into a rollercoaster again, their year could hinge on how he performs in the closing stretch of the season.
This year, Allen has four games with two or more turnovers, all but one of which have resulted in an ugly loss for Buffalo. After it seemed like he’d fixed his turnover problems last year (6 in 17 games), he’s once again become prone to mistakes (12 in 12 games).
As they stand substantially behind the Patriots (10-2), while also losing their tiebreaker against them, the Bills’ rest of the season is going to be an uphill climb. However, they have proven time and again that they are capable of pulling off the unthinkable.
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According to PFSN’s Playoff Predictor, there is very little reason to doubt Buffalo’s chances of making the playoffs, as they stand at 82.80% to make the postseason. However, the division that they have dominated seems to be out of their reach.
At just 10.60% to win the AFC East, it seems like the Bills might have to concede ground to New England, who have a legitimate MVP candidate in Drake Maye and has won nine consecutive games heading into Week 13.
Although the Pittsburgh Steelers rank 19th on PFSN’s Defense Impact, the Bills completely dominated them in Week 13 and came away with a blowout win.
Following their win against the Steelers, the Bills now have an 86.9% chance of making the playoffs and a 14.6% chance of winning the AFC East.
For Allen and the Bills, this might be the perfect win to build on and stack some wins to put pressure on the New England Patriots for the AFC East division title.