With the ups and downs and twists and turns of this season, we’re not sure how much Bills Mafia trusts their team these days. But the analysts at CBS Sports sure do.
The Buffalo Bills have looked like a Super Bowl team in wins over the Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Pittsburgh Steelers, but more like a team headed for a high draft pick in ugly losses to the Atlanta Falcons and Houston Texans.
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Entering Week 14’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Highmark Stadium, who exactly are these Bills? According to CBS, they’re a team — and a player — that is trustworthy.
The 8-4 Bills enter Sunday as only the 7th seed in the AFC, but CBS believes that because of quarterback Josh Allen they are the 4th-most trustworthy team. In ranking teams by tiers based on trust, only the Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs are ahead of the Bills.
Josh Allen | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
“Allen has been as individually brilliant as any quarterback in postseason history, and if Mahomes didn’t exist, he may well be a multi-time Super Bowl champion,” CBS writes. “Allen’s been more up-and-down this year than he was in last year’s MVP campaign, but he remains a singular force who can take over. Just ask the Buccaneers, against whom Allen accounted for six touchdowns in Week 11.”
Pulling back on Pats
CBS isn’t so bullish on the New England Patriots, who lead the AFC East with an 11-2 record and the AFC with a +110 point differential (the Bills are +78). The Bills are Tier 2; Pats Tier 3.
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“The 11-2 Patriots, meanwhile, are 13th in offensive success rate and sixth in explosive play rate but 24th in defensive success rate,” says CBS. “Drake Maye has ascended to stardom. Still, until the Patriots beat some more of the league’s best, they can’t be in Tier 1. They won’t get that opportunity until the postseason.”
What felt like respect for the Bills just turned into a slap in the face. The Bills travel to Foxboro on Dec. 14. Shouldn’t that be considered a chance to beat one of the “league’s best”?
Josh Allen | Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
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