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Buffalo Bills
Aug 29, 2025 7:00 AM EDT
The Buffalo Bills have too many positive vibes surrounding them for a team that should be desperately unhappy. They need to stop being lovable and start winning Super Bowls. No one in that building has the right to act like they’ve done something, because without a ring none of it matters.
Over the last several years fans have grown to resent winners. The Chiefs became unpopular after their back-to-back Super Bowls. And most everyone outside of Philadelphia already disliked the defending champion Eagles. The Bills are universally appreciated even though they haven’t achieved as much.
Former ESPN host Chris Berman, originator of “nobody circles the wagons like the Buffalo Bills,” recently addressed the team’s popularity at Jim Kelly’s charity golf event.
“If somebody’s team plays the Bills,” Berman said, “you root for your team. Other than that, I think every neutral fan group would root for Josh [Allen] and the Bills in any game.”
The Bills’ turn on HBO’s Hard Knocks this summer should have been renamed “Soft Knocks.” It’s been the most positive Hard Knocks in series history. It’s been a pure celebration instead of a fair-handed examination of where they are as a team. The producers highlighted the team chemistry and the love affair with the region. That’s wonderful… but the NFL is about winning championships, not creating a family atmosphere.
In some ways, the Bills are a funhouse mirror version of the Dallas Cowboys. Buffalo gets a lot of attention for positive stories, whereas Dallas more often gets negative headlines. But just like Dallas, something is holding back the Bills; the amount of attention they get doesn’t match the bottom line.
Everyone seems pretty pleased with themselves in Buffalo right now. If I ran the team, the atmosphere would be different. Here are five steps I would take to create a Super Bowl-winning formula….
1. Put Sean McDermott on the hottest of seats
McDermott is a very good coach. Sometimes the message gets old or a coach’s strengths don’t match the team. It happened to McDermott’s mentor, Andy Reid, in Philadelphia. If Buffalo doesn’t at least reach the Super Bowl this season, it’s time to look in another direction.
Firing a coach who makes the playoffs perennially is tough. But the Bills are at the point where they should be judged on titles. They’re repeating the same mistakes every postseason. What’s the point of continually running it back?
McDermott, while intense, comes off as likeable… like everyone else in Buffalo. If they do bring in another coach, they might want to consider a Bill Parcells-type. Someone who will shake up everything and make enemies. Everyone in the building should be a little bit less comfortable.
2. Change the approach to the roster
They need to stop bringing everyone back. In Hard Knocks, GM Brandon Beane bragged about re-signing their own guys. Maybe that’s out of necessity because they’re in a cold-weather city and can’t attract outside free agents. Or maybe Beane should be more like Bill Belichick was with the Patriots and continually churn the lineup. Loyalty means nothing in a salary-cap league.
This offseason they signed a couple of Buffalo legends – CB Tre’Davious White and S Jordan Poyer. The problem is that they’re not on one-day contracts. They need them to contribute in their 30s. Those players couldn’t get to the Super Bowl in their prime. How are they going to do it now?
They also bragged about having good guys up and down the roster on Hard Knocks. Over on Netflix, the Cowboys explained in their documentary how Charles Haley was the missing piece for a Super Bowl run despite his character flaws. It’s time for the Bills to find their version of Haley even if it threatens camaraderie. There’s too much continuity. They need to act as if they are nowhere near getting to where they want. Once again, this sense that they have already accomplished something permeates the team, including roster construction.
3. Don’t over-rely on Josh Allen
Allen covers up a lot of flaws. Instead of riding his coattails to the playoffs every year, try focusing on lifting him up so he can finally win at the highest level. Everyone in that building should wake up every day and ask themselves one question: How am I going to help get Allen over the top?
NFL historians won’t blame Allen if he doesn’t win a championship. They will say the Bills didn’t do enough to support him. Like the Dolphins with Dan Marino. At certain points it’s been Buffalo’s defense that let Allen down. Other times it’s been his lack of offensive help. We’ll see how the young receivers develop, but having former fifth-round pick Khalil Shakir as your top target is not ideal.
Allen himself seems way too nice to make noise. He’s obviously as competitive as any player in the league. If he hopes to reach his goals he may have to change his approach as well.
4. Stop bragging about the new stadium
If you saw the Bills play their one home game during the preseason, you couldn’t help but notice the monstrosity looming over the current Highmark Stadium. They are getting the largest public subsidy of any football stadium in history – reportedly $850 million. Owner Terry Pegula seems quite proud of his new building– which surely came to fruition only after he threatened to leave Western New York.
Meanwhile, Pegula’s $100 million yacht was recently seen off of Rhode Island and fans killed him online for relying on taxpayer dollars. During Hard Knocks, Pegula and Allen tour the new site and the owner brags about how majestic the Jacuzzis are going to be. As a New York state resident, I don’t want to hear it.
It’s great that the Bills are staying in Buffalo long term. Just don’t celebrate it as much. The message we are currently getting is … “We’re doing great. We make the playoffs. Look at this beautiful stadium that’s coming soon.” This isn’t a time to be satisfied with anything on or off the field.
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5. Cut the woe-is-me act
A subtle yet consistent victim mentality has been cultivated ever since Scott Norwood missed that field goal to the right in Super Bowl XXV. The lovable loser tag fits but that’s because they haven’t worked hard enough to shed it. We always hear about the near-misses as if it was the fault of the football gods and not Buffalo’s own mistakes. Yes, the Chiefs came back in 13 seconds in the 2021 postseason, but that’s only because the Bills let them.
This version of the team has no right to feel sorry for themselves. They have been gifted five straight AFC East titles because the Dolphins, Patriots and Jets are all dysfunctional. They have a clear path to the playoffs once again and a clear path to get homefield advantage throughout the postseason.
Buffalo definitely can’t complain about losing to the Chiefs – like an NBA team that kept falling to Michael Jordan’s Bulls. The Bills traded Kansas City the pick that was used for Patrick Mahomes in the 2017 draft. That’s like Portland using the Jordan excuse after it passed on him in the draft. Buffalo also sent the Chiefs the pick that allowed them to take receiver Xavier Worthy last year. Not only did Worthy score a touchdown against Buffalo in last season’s AFC title game, he is exactly the kind of fast weapon that Allen needs right now.
The Bills weren’t dealt a bad hand. They’ve been choosing the wrong cards or playing them the wrong way. They have a chance to win the Super Bowl this season. If they don’t, it’s time to completely reshuffle the deck.
About the Author
Andrew Perloff