It is Week 18, and the regular season has come to an end. At this time last year I can recall how uncertain the Bills’ postseason fate was. Win and you take the division.
But, if you lose, you risk playing on the road or even worse: missing the playoffs entirely.
That scenario has flipped on its head, and the Bills are fortunate enough to be able to rest their starters in the final week of the season.
Do you remember how many injuries the Bills suffered in that Week 18 game versus the Dolphins? Wide receiver Gabe Davis had a knee ligament injury, cornerback Rasul Douglas, too, suffered a knee injury, safety Taylor Rapp hurt his calf, and linebacker Tyrel Dodson injured his shoulder.
None of them played in the wild card game the following week. So, locking up playoff seeding prior to the final week matters heavily.
When was the last time the Bills were able to do that in the Josh Allen era? Actually, I don’t believe that has ever been the case. In 2020, they needed a win versus the Dolphins in Week 17 to clinch the second seed.
Had they lost and the Steelers won, the Bills would have fallen to the third seed. In every season for the Josh Allen-led Bills, they’ve had something to play for in the final week. What a privilege it is to have a manufactured bye week prior to the playoffs.
For this article, there is not much I could write about. Most of the Bills’ starters will take limited snaps, so it’s hard to predict exactly what will happen.
To be honest, I couldn’t care less if the Bills lost! A win by the New England Patriots would actually be beneficial for Buffalo.
The Patriots would clinch the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft if they lose, and there’s a world in which they’d consider trading that pick for a haul. They already have their quarterback of the future and loads of cap space.
More draft picks would set them up nicely to turnover their roster, and that’s something Bills’ fans should not want. However, the Bills winning their 14th game of the season would set a franchise record for number of wins in the regular season, and that is something worth chasing.
Are there any other records that the Bills could top? How about we take a look!
Buffalo Bills Milestones
QB Josh Allen is an Iron Man
Josh Allen does not have to start this week, but he wants to! The Bills’ quarterback holds the longest starting streak for all quarterbacks who are in the league currently with 114 consecutive starts (including playoffs).
The next closest quarterback is Jared Goff with 51 consecutive starts.
Although this stat seems trivial, Allen considers it to be important. He has played through multiple injuries—from a broken hand to a torn elbow ligament— and it goes to show just how tough he is.
Most players to catch a touchdown pass in a season
In a year in which many predicted that the Bills’ offense would regress, they are slated to make history if one particular play happens. Currently, 13 different players on the Bills’ offense have caught a touchdown pass this season, including Josh Allen, which ties an NFL record.
That means one more player must catch a touchdown in order to break the record. Who will it be? Alec Anderson is the Bills’ sixth offensive lineman.
If he is declared as an eligible receiver, how cool would it be if he somehow leaked out into the end zone to catch a pass from Allen on the first drive?
Josh shouldn’t be playing very long, and if Alec is to take over as a first stringer on the offensive line for the rest of the game, his best opportunity to catch a pass from Allen would be as the sixth lineman. Other candidates could be fullback Reggie Gilliam or another offensive lineman later in the game.
The Bills are very aware of this potential feat, too. After the Jets game in Week 17, Josh Allen exclaimed in his press conference that they have another week to break the record. Everybody eats has been taken literally this season!
Tying the most 30 point games in a season by an NFL team
It is unlikely to happen, but if the Bills post another 30 point game, they would tie the 2013 Denver Broncos for the most games in a season scoring 30 or more points.
Josh Allen probably won’t play more than one drive, and despite the Patriots being one of the worst teams in the league, I would be hard-pressed to believe that the Bills’ backups would score 30 points against them.
Conclusion
This season was probably the most fun that I’ve had watching the Bills since 2020. Crazy, right? They were supposed to regress, but they ended up being better than ever.
Hold on—I’m feeling a little nostalgic. The losses to the Ravens and the Texans mirror the losses that the Bills had to the Titans and Chiefs in 2020. The eventful loss to the Rams reminds me of the last-second loss the Bills had on the Hail Murray against the Cardinals in 2020.
That season, despite those three losses, felt so easy. This one felt the same. 2020 was the year that the Bills traded for WR Stefon Diggs. It’s only ironic that the year that they moved on from him, the vibe would be similar.
That season, the Bills made it to the AFC Championship game. I don’t know what’s in store for Buffalo in the 2024-25 postseason run, but I have a feeling that they’d be better prepared to win the conference title if they were to make it that far.
