Thanksgiving is this week and is a turning point in every NFL season. Buffalo Bills fans have much to be thankful for this year, especially since the team is on its way to a fifth-straight AFC East title. Once the calendar turns to December, teams are either coming together at the right time or defining themselves as playing for next year.
The Bills sit at 9-2 after a thrilling win over the rival Kansas City Chiefs. They enjoyed a bye week immediately after the big win and will host the flailing San Francisco 49ers on Sunday Night Football in Week 13. Buffalo will try to build on the momentum it collected by beating the Chiefs.
Other teams haven’t been as lucky or successful in 2024. The New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys were both saddled with high expectations before the season. Some of those expectations were warranted. Adding Aaron Rodgers, even at 40, should have been an upgrade over Zach Wilson. It hasn’t panned out.
The Cowboys did little in the off-season other than singing quarterback Dak Prescott to one of the richest contracts in NFL history. With a full slate of family and football slated for Thursday, Buffalo Bills fans are in a position many teams are envious of heading into the home stretch of 2024.
What Buffalo Bills Fans Should Be Thankful for This Season
The Rest of the Division is in Shambles
If a team has eight or nine wins through 11 or 12 games in a season, it’s usually a good sign that the squad will be playing in January. The Bills could win another AFC East crown this week before they even hit the field. If the Miami Dolphins fall in their Thanksgiving night tilt with the Green Bay Packers in Green Bay, Buffalo will be the first division winner to lock down its crown.
Miami has played better over the last few games, beating the Los Angeles Rams, Las Vegas Raiders, and New England Patriots in the last three weeks. While that’s encouraging for Mike McDaniel’s team, Tua Tagovailoa’s health will always be an issue due to his concussion history.
The Jets fired both their head coach and GM this year and are strongly reconsidering their quarterback situation beyond this season. New York is wasting what should have been one of the best defenses in the year. The Patriots had the biggest excuse to be bad in 2024 due to turning the page on legendary coach Bill Belichick.
New England has an entirely new staff, and a new quarterback, and can’t figure out its offensive line. The Bills don’t suffer from any of these issues due to the stability the team has built over the last six seasons.
The Benefit of Smart Owners and a Savvy GM
Some NFL teams have meddlesome owners who lord over head coaches and general managers. They think they know better than anyone and hold their teams back. Others have owned teams for years but continually make bad moves that keep their franchises out of relevancy and the playoffs.
The Pegulas may have sold a minority stake in the team recently, but they are among the better owners in the NFL. They don’t overstep their bounds or make every win or loss about themselves rather than the players. The Pegulas also let the general manager be the general manager, making roster moves that won’t break the team but are right for their franchise.
New York football this week:
🏈Jets fire GM Joe Douglas
🏈Giants bench Daniel Jones, then grant him his release. pic.twitter.com/zaN4eoxpH6
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 22, 2024
Signing Von Miller two years ago made sense since he was a step slower than usual. He knew it was time to be a rotational player rather than someone playing every defensive snap. The Bills also moved on from veterans Jordan Poyer and Tre’Davious White in the off-season.
GM Brandon Beane traded for Amari Cooper at this year’s trade deadline. He’s not the flashiest pass catcher but is a reliable target who doesn’t routinely lash out when not getting the ball. That consistency puts the onus on the player and the execution on the field instead of on someone in charge of building the team.
Having One of the Best Quarterbacks in the League
Quarterback Josh Allen overtook the role of the best quarterback in the AFC East once Tom Brady moved on to Tampa Bay in 2020. Buffalo has won the division every year since, filling the slot as the AFC East’s new top dog. Allen is routinely in the MVP conversation and has grown every year of his career.
That's our quarterback.
We've nominated Josh Allen for the 2024 Art Rooney Sportsmanship Award: https://t.co/jXMSmjpoLS pic.twitter.com/rnfbOcPzfv
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 25, 2024
Almost every NFL team would love to have a starter with Allen’s tools (Except maybe Kansas City). The Raiders, Jets, New York Giants, Tennesse Titans and Cleveland Browns would look much different with a franchise quarterback like Allen.
Buffalo Bills fans are enjoying what Patriots fans did with Brady – one of the best players in the league playing for them. A big win over the Chiefs is also something to be thankful for. However, Bills fans know beating Kansas City in the playoffs would make it all worthwhile.
Main Photo: Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
