For the Buffalo Bills, the 2024 season will be about proving that the Super Bowl window is not closing in Western New York. Fresh off their fourth straight AFC East title in 2023, Sean McDermott's team rattled off five consecutive wins after sitting at 6-6. However, the Bills fell to the Kansas City Chiefs for the third time in four years in the postseason.
Buffalo, set to feature a new look, was forced to part ways with multiple players in the offseason in a salary cap purge. Gone are Stefon Diggs, Jordan Poyer, Mitch Morse, Tre'Davious White, and Gabriel Davis. To offset those losses, the Bills will bank on the continued development of their young talent.
Make no mistake: as long as Josh Allen is the quarterback, the goal remains championship or bust every season, even in a transitional year. Here are six hot takes for the Bills as training camps open across the league.
Lukewarm
James Cook Finishes Top Five in Scrimmage Yards
Following the change to Joe Brady as offensive coordinator, Buffalo took on a run-centric approach. As a result, Cook took off during the second half of the year. Highlighted by a 25-179-2 performance against the Dallas Cowboys, the former second-round pick racked up 507 rushing yards during the season's final seven games. Poised to take on an even larger role in 2024 on the heels of the departures of Diggs and Davis, expect Cook to get more touches as the team relies on an even heavier ground-and-pound attack. Furthermore, the Georgia Bulldogs product is a strong receiver out of the backfield. He has recorded 65 receptions for 625 yards and five touchdowns during his two seasons with the franchise while moving all over the formation.
Matt Milano Makes First-Team All-Pro and Receives DPOY Votes
Back healthy after suffering a broken leg in the Week 5 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London, Milano saw his 2023 season cut short. Still one of the best linebackers in the league, the Boston College product has recorded 488 tackles, 39 pass deflections, 10 interceptions, and nine fumble recoveries during his seven seasons in the NFL. Moreover, the 29-year-old also earned First-team All-Pro honors in 2022 after producing a team-high 12.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and seven quarterback hits. The heartbeat of McDermott's defensive scheme, Milano is excellent in coverage while maintaining the ability to come up and make splash plays near the line of scrimmage.
Hot
Von Miller Records 7+ Sacks
Miller struggled to return to form last season after tearing his ACL on Thanksgiving in 2022. Appearing in just 12 games, the former Super Bowl MVP racked up three tackles while failing to record a sack. In an interview, the Texas A&M product told Sports Illustrated that he should not have played the year and could have sat out to rehab his knee. Ultimately choosing to restructure his contract in the offseason to stay in Buffalo, the former second-overall pick has reportedly shown more juice and explosiveness during the early days of training camp. The biggest x-factor on the team heading into the year is that they should look for him to return to his pre-injury form and put pressure on opposing quarterbacks across the AFC.
Dalton Kincaid Eclipses 1,000 Receiving Yards
Buffalo will need Kincaid to take on a larger role in its passing attack. Poised to make a sophomore leap, the University of Utah product played a more significant role last season after Dawson Knox underwent wrist surgery. He caught more than 80 percent of his passes. The 24-year-old hauled in 73 receptions for 673 yards and two touchdowns while surpassing Pete Metzelaars’ record for most receptions by a tight end in a season (68). With Diggs and Davis no longer in the equation, the duo combined for 240 targets in 2023, meaning the former 25th overall pick should see a significant uptick in volume. Furthermore, his touchdown output should also increase after finding the end zone just twice as a rookie.
On Fire
Keon Coleman Sets the Bills Rookie Receiving Yards Record
After selecting him with the 33rd overall pick in April's draft, the Bills have high expectations for Coleman. The projected centerpiece of a revamped pass-catching core, he is a big-body possession wide receiver who can go up and make plays on the football in the air. Additionally, the Florida State Seminoles product can use his large frame to box out opposing defenders in the red zone. Projected to play both as the X and in the slot in Brady's offense; if Coleman can establish a rapport with Allen early on, look for him to shatter Sammy Watkin's franchise record for rookie receiving yards (982) set in the 2014 season.
Josh Allen Captures His First MVP Award
Once again a finalist for the NFL's MVP Award in 2023, Allen was brilliant for Buffalo. He completed 66.5 percent of his passes for 4,306 yards, averaging 11.2 yards per completion. Along with this, the California native added 527 yards on the ground on 111 attempts. Furthermore, the two-time Pro Bowler also became the fourth player in league history to eclipse 40 total touchdowns in four consecutive seasons. Without his number-one weapon in Diggs for the first time since 2019, the Bills will rely on Allen's game-changing abilities to win games in the ultra-competitive AFC. This will lead him to become the first player in franchise history to receive the MVP Award since Thurman Thomas in 1991.
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