Where the Buffalo Bills fall in ESPN's post Super Bowl power rankings
Immediately after the conclusion of Super Bowl LVII, ESPN put out their very early 2023 NFL power rankings. And they have the Buffalo Bills near the top of the list. ESPN placed the two Super Bowl participants, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles, at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. They put the […]
Immediately after the conclusion of Super Bowl LVII, ESPN put out their very early 2023 NFL power rankings.
And they have the Buffalo Bills near the top of the list.
ESPN placed the two Super Bowl participants, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles, at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively.
They put the San Francisco 49ers at No. 3, the Cincinnati Bengals at No. 4, and then the Bills at No. 5.
There's some work to be done on the roster, and the Bills sit more than $18 million over the cap. The team has big free agent decisions to make with linebacker Tremaine Edmunds and safety Jordan Poyer, both of whom would not be easy to replace. QB Josh Allen and the offense also need help, especially at wide receiver and interior offensive line. General manager Brandon Beane said there won't be a splash move like signing Von Miller last offseason, but the Bills will have to get creative in building the roster and avoid spreading too much cap down the road.
ESPN got really close to getting this right, but they made one mistake.
There's no way the 49ers should be ahead of the Bills. I get it with the Bengals. While I think Buffalo and Cincinnati are evenly matched and would probably split a 10-game series if they played, I can understand the Bengals getting the nod after beating the Bills in the divisional round of the playoffs.
But how are the 49ers above Cincy and Buffalo? Just because they reached the NFC Championship game?
We don't even know what the 49ers' quarterback situation will look like next season. And whatever it is, it won't be nearly as good as the Bills' situation with Josh Allen.
If the 49ers and the Bills met in the playoffs, I'm taking Buffalo all day. And I don't think I'd be alone. The team with the better quarterback usually wins. And that's going to be the case in most games that Buffalo plays.
It's obviously way too early to be debating 2023 power rankings, but ESPN missed the mark a bit on these.
Featured image via USA TODAY Sports
