The Buffalo Bills are in the midst of their training camp in preparation for a 2023 season that ideally results in them representing the AFC in the Super Bowl. Despite being one of the best teams in the NFL for the past few seasons, there are some who believe that their time at the top could come to an end sooner than most expect.
Per Bleacher Report, one of their 10 bold predictions for the 2023 season is the Bills missing the playoffs entirely. Since 2017, when head coach Sean McDermott was first hired for the job, Buffalo has made the playoffs in every season except 2018 when Josh Allen was a rookie and played just 12 games due to injuries.
In addition, Buffalo has just won their third-straight AFC East title.
Coming into next year, the Bills still have players like Allen, Stefon Diggs, and Von Miller returning to give the team confidence in both sides of the ball. It seems that Allen and Diggs have resolved the drama that was happening and Miller, despite starting training camp on the PUP list, should be returning from his knee injury relatively soon.
Regardless, here’s why B/R made their bold prediction that Buffalo will miss the playoffs entirely:
“The Bills lacked the type of draft capital and financial flexibility needed to make sweeping changes in wake of such a humbling loss. Despite the running game stalling out during the playoffs, the team’s top backfield addition was Damien Harris—who regressed significantly last year—to replace the departed Devin Singletary. The club sorely needed some receiving talent to augment superstar Stefon Diggs, but only added an injury-plagued Deonte Harty, journeyman Trenton Sherfield and fifth-round pick rookie Justin Shorter in the offseason.
This club is also banking on an aging core of defenders to continue playing at a high level. Von Miller, Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer are all on the wrong side of 30. Tre’Davious White is amongst the league’s top corners when healthy, but he’s missed a full season worth of games over the last two years. The loss of supremely athletic linebacker Tremaine Edmunds will be felt this coming year.
While Buffalo finally may have found the type of playmaking tight end it has coveted since being thrashed by Travis Kelce during the playoffs in back-to-back years by selecting Dalton Kincaid in the first round, that pick alone won’t cure all the team’s ills. Josh Allen can only carry this team so much, meaning it should not come as a massive surprise if the Bills are not only overtaken by other teams in the division this year, but also miss the playoffs entirely.”
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