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The Buffalo Bills are being predicted, by at least one outlet, to win less games than they did last season in 2023.
Bleacher Report projected the Bills to win only 10 games next season. That comes after the Bills won 13 a year ago despite playing in one less game due to the cancellation of their matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.
All in all, B/R doesn’t exactly knock Buffalo all the much. There is some concern about the lack of a wide receiver addition this offseason, but the Bills’ plan all along has been to put tight end Dalton Kincaid, the team’s first-round pick in 2023, into that role.
The real issue for B/R is Buffalo’s schedule.
The outlet notes the improvement in the AFC East and difficult slate the Bills have as reasons for why the projection is only 10 wins. If Buffalo does hit that total, it would be under the over/under win projection many sportsbooks have for the team: 10.5. Winning the division for a fourth-straight season could be in doubt at 10 wins as well.
Here’s the full B/R analysis on the Bills’ 2023 schedule:
2022 Record: 13-3
2023 Strength of Schedule: .542
The Buffalo Bills put a lot of effort into retaining players this offseason. They managed to re-sign Jordan Poyer, Shaq Lawson, David Quessenberry and Sam Martin, also signing linebacker Matt Milano to a two-year extension.
While the Bills didn’t add much in free agency, they did land a promising young tight end by taking Dalton Kincaid in the first round of the draft.
The problem is that Buffalo still doesn’t have a reliable third receiver behind Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis, and it did little to address the pass rush. The Bills logged 40 sacks in 2022, but their pass rush was never the same following Von Miller’s Week 12 ACL tear.
Buffalo still has Josh Allen at quarterback and a defense that ranked sixth in yards allowed and second in points allowed last season. It’s not suddenly going to fall out of the playoff mix. However, the Bills could see a slight drop in the win column.
The rest of the AFC East has improved while the Bills have maintained the status quo. A tough schedule and marquee road games against the Bengals, Eagles and Chiefs will make winning a fourth straight division title tricky.
Prediction: 10-7
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