If it weren’t for one of the craziest couple of minutes in football history, the Bills could have been the Super Bowl champions last season. They had an excellent year, finishing 11-6 in the regular season, but fell to the Chiefs in the divisional round in a thrilling overtime matchup. The AFC is once again stacked in 2022, but the Bills will feel like they are in as good of a position as anyone this summer.
Offseason additions and losses
The Bills were clearly keen to keep the gang together for 2022, though they still lost a few notable starters. On offense they said goodbye to Cole Beasley and Emmanuel Sanders, who combined for 174 targets in 2021. On the defensive side of the ball they let Jerry Hughes walk after nine years with the team. Whilst Hughes might not be a household name, he quietly led the team in pressures for eight consecutive seasons. Levi Wallace was also an underrated contributor at corner who is no longer with the team.
The Bills will hope they can mitigate the loss of Hughes with one of the most high profile moves of the offseason. They won the Von Miller sweepstakes, signing him to a six-year, $120 million deal. Miller has accounted for an outstanding 60+ pressures in each season he has played since 2014. Their other moves focused on adding depth at key spots. Jameson Crowder comes in as their WR3, with O.J. Howard arriving to back up Dawson Knox at tight end. They added more to their defensive line too, bringing in DaQuan Jones from Carolina and bringing back Shaq Lawson.
2022 NFL Draft
| Pick | Player |
| 1.23 | Kaiir Elam – CB, Florida |
| 2.63 | James Cook – RB, Georgia |
| 3.89 | Terrel Bernard – LB, Baylor |
| 5.148 | Khalil Shakir – WR, Boise State |
| 6.180 | Matt Araiza – P, San Diego State |
| 6.185 | Christian Benford – CB, Villanova |
| 6.209 | Luke Tenuta – OT, Virginia Tech |
| 7.231 | Baylon Spector – LB, Clemson |
The Bills were one of a few fortunate teams to enter the draft without any glaring needs on their roster. They made the smart move of building on a strength, adding Kaiir Elam to what is already a talented secondary. The move for James Cook will also have silenced some sections of the fanbase after a clamour to address running back this offseason. The rest of the class was solid, if unspectacular. Matt Araiza will no doubt continue to make headlines in the NFL for his outstanding ability as a punter, and Khalil Shakir could surprise some people with his production as a rookie.
Offense
Sean McDermott and Josh Allen have worked together to develop this Bills offense into one of the league’s juggernauts. Anyone who watched that Chiefs-Bills playoff game last season will know just how deadly this team can be on their day. They have also managed to retain the bulk of last year’s unit too. Cole Beasley and Emmanuel Sanders are departing for pastures new, but the rest of the offense is likely to look almost identical, save the addition of Roger Saffold at left guard.
Allen is obviously the cog that turns the Bills’ offensive machine, and expectations will be high entering his fifth season in the NFL. His performances over the last two seasons have seen him enter the conversation for the best quarterback in the league. It looked warranted when we last saw him in the playoffs, completing 77% of his passes with nine touchdowns and no picks through two games.
The only real departure that matters for Buffalo is that of offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who earned himself a head coaching role with the New York Giants. He is replaced by Ken Dorsey, who spent three years as Allen’s quarterback coach. That continuity is positive, though this will be the first coordinator role of Dorsey’s career. As a result, it wouldn’t be surprising if it took a little while for things to get back to the heights of 2021.
Defense
The Bills really are working from a position of strength with their defense. The unit led the NFL in defensive DVOA in 2021 and allowed the second lowest explosive pass play rate. Their secondary has been a big part of that success. They have one of the game’s best safety duos in Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer, who combined for 18 forced incompletions in 2021 and allowed a passer rating of 78.8 and 15.1 respectively.
In Matt Milano and Tremaine Edmunds they have a strong linebacker duo that can play the run, tackle in space, and drop back into coverage. They top this all off with a really good cornerback room. Whilst the departure of Levi Wallace is more impactful than some might think, he is being replaced by Kaiir Elam, who has all of the traits you want from a lockdown corner. The rookie will play opposite Tre’Davious White, with Taron Johnson as the nickel giving them a trio capable of handling the best the NFL can throw at them.
The one weakness throughout Sean McDermott’s time with the team has been their pass rush. Over the last three seasons they have failed to have a single player rank inside the top 20 in pressures. GM Brandon Beane has thrown plenty of assets at the defensive line, with four top 75 picks spent in the last four seasons. Whilst they have helped, it still hasn’t got the unit over the edge. The team will be hoping that the acquisition of Von Miller will do just that. Whilst Miller might have turned 33 this offseason he hasn’t seen a downturn in his play, racking up 60 pressures in 2021. He could well be the last piece of Buffalo’s Super Bowl jigsaw.
Prediction
The Bills are preseason favourites to lift the Lombardi Trophy and for good reason. There are no obvious weak spots on this roster and they have tonnes of talent at the most important positions. Josh Allen can win them games on his own, but with an improved backfield and this remodelled defense he shouldn’t have to. If Von Miller can perform for Buffalo as he did with the Rams, this team could finally end their Super Bowl drought.
