In maybe the most interesting AFC playoff picture of the century, the Broncos have a clear path to the No. 1 seed. Las Vegas certainly expects the Patriots -- 4-13 in Jerod Mayo's one-and-done season -- to add the No. 2 seed to their bounce-back dossier, while the Jaguars have made a climb nearly as stunning to move the precipice of the No. 3 slot.
Recent playoff bastions Houston and either Baltimore or Pittsburgh will also be present, and Jim Harbaugh will end his second Chargers season 5-for-6 in postseason qualifications as an NFL head coach. The first AFC playoff bracket excluding the Chiefs since 2014 and including a host of favorites with nuclei lacking postseason experience opens the door wide for the Bills, who are now riding the NFL's longest active playoff streak at seven.
While it is arguable the Bills had the better team than the Chiefs in 2021, 2023 and 2024, various issues interfered as Kansas City's AFC dominance persisted. A Chiefs-less playoff field opens the door for the Bills, but they will need to leave their home blues in Buffalo after failing to win the AFC East for the first time since Tom Brady's 2019 Patriots finale. Although the Brady-led Buccaneers advanced to Super Bowl LV in 2020, that journey came with few (or no) fans present at home venues. The last true all-road Super Bowl venture came when the Packers made that trek 15 years ago.
The Bills are also lacking in run defense, with Ed Oliver's injury absence looming large. Injuries, however, are not affecting Buffalo at wide receiver. That personnel issue has persisted since the team traded Stefon Diggs in April 2024. These playoffs promise to be quite interesting for the Bills since they will have a potentially significant edge at quarterback in every AFC game they play, but the wide receiver issue that has nagged the franchise could undercut it to a notable degree.
BTJ
I think the uninspiring routes and offensive plays run by their Cordinator contribute greatly to the issue