Bills Prove They Can Play With League’s Best
After failing their two previous toughest tests of the season against Tennessee and Kansas City, the Bills needed to prove they were capable of actually beating one of the best teams in the league. That is something that has not happened often for Buffalo over the last few years.
Since Sean McDermott took over in 2017, the Bills have just two wins against teams that would finish the season with 10 or more wins (at Atlanta and at Kansas City in 2017). For as much winning as McDermott’s teams have done since he arrived, they have struggled to prove their legitimacy among the best teams in the league.
Those questions continued to be raised in October when the 4-0 Bills took a step up in weight class and fell to the Titans and Chiefs. With two chances missed to prove themselves against some of the NFL’s best, many began to see the Bills as a good team, but not an upper-echelon team that can win against the really good teams in the league.
The Bills would have to show they belong in the discussion with the league’s best by beating the best they have to offer. The second half of the 2020 season includes four games against teams that finished the first half with a winning record (Seattle, Arizona, Pittsburgh, Miami). They got the back-half of the schedule underway by facing a Seattle team that came in with a 6-1 record and the potential league MVP running the show. It’s not just good teams that have taken it to the Bills over the past few years, but many of the best quarterbacks in the league. The Bills have struggled when they have faced some of the league’s best signal callers. They had a monumental task in front of them on Sunday against Russell Wilson.
Finally, the Bills have a signature win against one of the league’s best team and best quarterbacks to point to. Not only did the Bills beat the Seahawks, they controlled the game from the start and laid a beatdown on them. This was the first time Seattle’s defense has given up 40+ points in a game since Week 15 of the 2017 season. It’s also the first time Seattle has lost by 10 or more points since Week 16 last season. By any measure, this was an impressive performance by the Bills.
The win will go a long way to giving the Bills credibility in the AFC, a conference which features five teams with records of 6-2 or better. It no doubt opened some eyes around the league from those who may have been skeptical of Buffalo. It is perhaps the most impressive victory of Sean McDermott’s Buffalo tenure. Now it’s up to the Bills to build off this victory and continue to cement their legitimacy heading into January, where they still have to prove themselves.
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