An optimistic guide to the 2024 Buffalo Bills

After clearing out their roster earlier this offseason to free up cap space, many expect the Buffalo Bills to take a step back in 2024.

Even though the team may look different this season, Buffalo should still be firmly considered a Super Bowl contender. Here’s why.

Josh Allen is Josh Allen

As long as Allen is at the helm, Buffalo’s window of contention will never be closed. Say what you want about interceptions (he’s thrown the most since 2018), but Allen is still one of the top three quarterbacks in the NFL, and he’s not slowing down anytime soon.

In 2023, the two-time Pro Bowler has the most total yards (4,830) and touchdowns (44) among quarterbacks, marking his fourth straight season with at least 42 touchdowns. To put Allen’s dominance early in his career into perspective, his 221 total touchdowns are the most by any quarterback in his first six seasons in the NFL.

Although he was eliminated by the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisional Round last season, Allen’s performance provides optimism that he is still capable of giving Buffalo its first Super League. Bowl. After a disappointing playoff run in 2022, Allen completed 68.1% of his passes for 389 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions during the 2023 playoffs while rushing for 146 yards and three scores on the ground.

The Bills can count on Allen to carry a huge load in the playoffs, but they’ll need more from his supporting cast. Perhaps the changes the team made this offseason will make all the difference.

Better without Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis?

Buffalo’s most notable offseason losses were Davis (signed with Jacksonville) and Diggs (traded to Houston), leaving the team’s receiving corps in a state of uncertainty.

Last season, Diggs and Davis were Buffalo’s top two receivers, rushing for 1,929 yards and 15 touchdowns. While that seems like a significant amount of production to lose, it’s possible that each player’s departure is a case of addition by subtraction.

It’s no secret that Diggs was unhappy with his role in Buffalo. However, aside from the drama he stirred up, his play declined significantly once the team replaced former OC Ken Dorsey with Joe Brady.

Buffalo adopted a top-notch offensive approach under Brady, which resulted in Diggs averaging just 45 yards in his final seven regular season games, in which he scored just one touch. Given that Buffalo will be running the same offense this season, it likely won’t miss the 45 yards per game that Diggs was producing too much of.

Davis, on the other hand, struggled to make a consistent impact throughout his Bills tenure. Despite having the second-most receiving yards of his career last season (746), Davis failed to catch a pass in four games, and he also appeared in three other games during from which he did not gain more than 21 yards.

The Bills will now have to rely on talented, but rather inexperienced, pass-catching weapons consisting of second-year TE Dalton Kincaid, rookie second-rounder Keon Coleman, and WRs Khalil Shakir and Curtis Samuel. Kincaid could end up leading the team in targets this season, although Coleman (658 yards and 11 touchdowns for Florida State in 2023) should quickly emerge as Buffalo’s new No. 1 wide receiver.

The Rookie Class Could Have Multiple Instant Contributors

Coleman won’t be the only rookie getting significant playing time for Buffalo. General manager Brandon Beane made the most of his 10 draft picks and may have landed four players who could become starters down the road.

In addition to getting Coleman back, the Bills added two intriguing pieces to their defense in safety Cole Bishop and DT DeWayne Carter on day two of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Bishop, who accumulated 60 tackles, 6.5 for loss, three sacks, four assists and two interceptions at Utah last season, has a versatile skill set and could ultimately be a Week 1 starter. Meanwhile, Carter, a disruptive passer and the first three-time captain in Duke history, will likely be a rotation piece to start his career, but he is expected to fill several important roles for Buffalo.

In the fifth round, the Bills selected Georgian Sedrick Van Pran-Granger, a center who could take over if Connor McGovern’s transition to the position doesn’t pan out. In his three seasons as a starter at Georgia, Van Pran-Granger won more national championships (two) than he allowed sacks (one).