As the Bills pull onto the Thruway this week heading to Rochester for training camp, they’ll need a convoy of tractor-trailers to haul the colossal load of expectations Buffalo is carrying in 2025.
In 2024, NFL MVP Josh Allen delivered a masterclass on offense that got them all the to way to the AFC Championship Game. Now in 2025, the camera crews from HBO’s “Hard Knocks” following the team say all you need to know about what’s expected from the Bills.
Like tailgaters pregaming in a stadium parking lot, NFL analysts are getting increasingly bullish about the Bills with every shot of liquid courage.
Buffalo has an average ranking of 3.125 as the team gets set to kickoff training camp at St. John Fisher University in Pittsford. That’s an improvement over where the experts had the Bills just two months ago.
Here’s what the experts are saying about the Bills now:
The Sporting News
Bills ranking: 6
Bills: Josh Allen keeps them relevant every year, but this version of the Bills isn’t the same. They’ve lost key pieces. This looks more like a team trying to survive than a team trying to finally win it all. — Alec Sanner
Bleacher Report
Bills ranking: 3
Bills: The 2024 season followed an all-too-familiar script for the Buffalo Bills. There was regular season success—13 wins. Another AFC East title. And then a loss to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs. It was the fourth time in the past five years that Kansas City ended Buffalo’s season.
That end to the season put a damper on Bills quarterback Josh Allen being named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player for the first time. While speaking to Sports Illustrated, Allen made it clear that individual accolades aside, the Bills have just one goal in 2025—victory in Santa Clara in Super Bowl LX:
“You know, it is such a great honor, and I do appreciate being honored for my work. But at the same time, I still didn’t win a Super Bowl. Didn’t win a ring, and that is the only goal. It’s the only focus that I’ve ever had going into this league. The one positive, I will say, about winning an MVP means that your team is in a good position. You’re making the playoffs, you’re playing well and you’re doing whatever you can to help your team win football games. But at the end of the day, you got to make the playoffs and then you got to win three, maybe four games. And that’s what we need to do. And we’re going to continue to work as hard as we can and myself included. What can we do to find a way over that hump? So that’s the only goal going forward.”
Analyst’s Take
Buffalo is absolutely a Super Bowl contender—the team sports an MVP quarterback and the AFC’s highest-scoring offense from a season ago. But a sixth straight AFC East title won’t matter much in Western New York. Neither will more hardware for Josh Allen at the next NFL Honors. Only one thing will afford the Bills a successful season in 2025 —finally getting past the Chiefs and back into the Super Bowl. — Gary Davenport
The Mina Kimes Show (with Chris Long)
Bills ranking: 4
ESPN’s Mina Kimes and former NLF player Chris Long put the Bills just behind the Kansas City Chiefs and just ahead of the Detroit Lions.
Long’s take: “The Bills have had a lot of playoff success but not against that team (the Chiefs). Therefore it would be disrespectful to put the Bills ahead of the Chiefs. Talk to me Week 5 of season and I might tell you the Bills are going to the Super Bowl. It’s just going to depend on the vibe at that point, but on paper you’ve gotta give it to the Chiefs. “
Kimes ranks Josh Allen ahead of the Lions’ Jared Goff: “But it’s not just Josh Allen, (it’s) the run game, (it’s) the offensive line, the Bills offensive line is one of the most slept on, not slept on, one of the most dominant groups. I like that they added to the defense and get some players back.”
Sportsnaut
Bills ranking: 3
Bills: The Buffalo Bills‘ offseason moves were low-risk with a moderate reward. Larry Ogunjobi and Joey Bosa add depth to the Bills’ defensive line, but there’s a reason just beyond money that they were released by their former teams. Buffalo also didn’t adequately address its receiving corps, with this unit still lacking a true No. 1 receiving option. With that said, Josh Allen has already proven he can carry the Bills roster even when the defense is decimated by injuries. Buffalo’s defense is healthier and deeper right now, which makes this one of the three best NFL teams. — Matt Johnson
Pro Football Talk
Bills ranking: 3
Bills: The window is still wide open, but the Chiefs are still blocking full daylight. — Mike Florio
NFL Spin Zone
Bills ranking: 1
Bills: The Buffalo Bills rank no. 1 in our power rankings as training camps roll on. Buffalo was seen as being the heavy favorite in the AFC last year, but their playoff run ended in an unsurprising fashion – losing to the Kansas City Chiefs, again. Can Buffalo’s revamped defensive line fill in the weak spots enough for them to finally get over the hump? What more do they have to do roster-wise? Nothing, honestly… It’s now or never for the Bills entering 2025. — Lou Scataglia
NFL Trade Rumors
Bills ranking: 3
Bills: Last year was expected to be a reset year for the Bills after their offseason was marked more by significant departures, like WR Stefon Diggs, than it was by significant additions. Ultimately the Bills maintained their status as one of the best teams in the AFC and were knocking on the door of the Super Bowl yet again before being denied (again) by the Chiefs. The Bills have everything they need to keep knocking, starting with QB Josh Allen, who earned MVP honors last season. Buffalo was able to replace Diggs in the aggregate, getting a breakout from new slot WR Khalil Shakier and contributions from a wide variety of players. They also benefited from OC Joe Brady’s emphasis on the run game and a career year by RB James Cook with a staggering 18 total touchdowns. Barring a few tweaks, it should look similar in 2025. The defense was 11th in scoring last year and was the focus of a lot of the offseason’s efforts to improve. All three levels of the defense got reinforcements, but the focus was definitely the defensive line. The Bills have been chasing a front four that can win without blitzing to help close out these high-profile games against star quarterbacks, which is why they poured three draft picks and three major free agent signings into the unit. Time will tell if the Bills can emerge as the last team standing in the ring of fire that is the AFC, but once again they have a shot. — Logan Ulrich
Clutch Points
Bills ranking: 2
Bills: A heightened focus on upgrading the defense was evident throughout the Buffalo Bills offseason, as they added some real beef in the defensive trenches throughout the NFL Draft. Adding Josh Palmer on a three-year deal gives Josh Allen another receiver, pairing him up with recently-extended Khalil Shakir. But offseason uncertainty surrounding James Cook and his desire for a new contract cloudies a potential stepping stone season for the BUF offense as they look to try and get over the hump in the AFC. — Mike Johrendt
— Bill Wolcott is a producer who helps cover the Buffalo Bills, high school and Rochester sports in general. The lifelong New Yorker has been a journalist for 31 years.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: ‘It’s now or never:’ What NFL power ranking experts think as Bills enter training camp
Reporting by Bill Wolcott, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
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