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The 2025 NFL Draft is done and the Buffalo Bills are riding high in the latest power rankings.
When we last looked at power ranking, NFL analysts had the Bills forecast as the No. 3 team in the league heading into 2025 season.
Let's take at where the experts see the Bills now that the team has bolstered its roster through the draft and free agency.
Because of the salary cap, Buffalo didn't make a big splash in free agency. The biggest names, Edge Joey Bosa and CB Tre’Davious White, are former great players who are now question marks. The Bills also signed WR Josh Palmer, a pair of defensive linemen who start the season on the suspended list, and re-signed fan-favorite S Damar Hamlin.
In the draft, the Bills focused on defense, selecting CB Max Hairston (first round), DT TJ Sanders (second), Edge Landon Jackson (third), DT Deone Walker (fourth), CB Jordan Hancock (fifth), TE Jackson Hawes(fifth) and cornerback Dorian Strong (sixth).
So where does that leave Buffalo after all those moves? The early power rankings are out and Buffalo is sitting right around No. 3 (3.25 average ranking). Compare that to last year, when the Bills were considered a top-5 team.
We'll keep updating this story as more rankings come out this week:
Bills ranking: 2
"The Buffalo Bills have focused on retention this offseason. The biggest re-signing was reigning MVP Josh Allen, who re-upped on a massive six-year, $330 million contract. However, Buffalo also took care of some in-house business by extending Christian Benford, Terrel Bernard, and Gregory Rousseau.
"While Allen will again be asked to do the heavy lifting, the team has added some starting-level talent in free agency. Former Los Angeles Chargers Joshua Palmer and Joey Bosa should each be impactful players. Palmer can provide the Bills a sorely needed deep threat, while Bosa could improve a defense that had the lowest pressure rate of any playoff team in 2024.
"Ultimately, Buffalo’s defense finished 18th in PFSN’s Defense+ metric, and improvement will be necessary for the Bills to finally usurp the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC. They drafted with this in mind, not touching the offensive side of the ball until the 37th pick of the fifth round (their sixth selection of the draft). However, this team has all the ingredients needed to cook up the first Super Bowl championship in franchise history."
Bills ranking: 3
"MVP Josh Allen allows you to infuse fresh blood into your defense early and often."
Bills ranking: 5
"Josh Allen gives Buffalo a chance every year, even if the Bills don't. Buffalo's defense looks pretty legitimate yet again."
Bills ranking: 3
"It's clear Sean McDermott was trying to replenish a defense that tailed off last year early in the draft. The Bills will need Maxwell Hairston to pan out better than Kaiir Elam, the last first-round cornerback they took."
— 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: NFL power rankings: Buffalo Bills considered a top 3 team post-draft
Continue reading...
When we last looked at power ranking, NFL analysts had the Bills forecast as the No. 3 team in the league heading into 2025 season.
Let's take at where the experts see the Bills now that the team has bolstered its roster through the draft and free agency.
Because of the salary cap, Buffalo didn't make a big splash in free agency. The biggest names, Edge Joey Bosa and CB Tre’Davious White, are former great players who are now question marks. The Bills also signed WR Josh Palmer, a pair of defensive linemen who start the season on the suspended list, and re-signed fan-favorite S Damar Hamlin.
In the draft, the Bills focused on defense, selecting CB Max Hairston (first round), DT TJ Sanders (second), Edge Landon Jackson (third), DT Deone Walker (fourth), CB Jordan Hancock (fifth), TE Jackson Hawes(fifth) and cornerback Dorian Strong (sixth).
So where does that leave Buffalo after all those moves? The early power rankings are out and Buffalo is sitting right around No. 3 (3.25 average ranking). Compare that to last year, when the Bills were considered a top-5 team.
We'll keep updating this story as more rankings come out this week:
Pro Football & Sports Network
Bills ranking: 2
"The Buffalo Bills have focused on retention this offseason. The biggest re-signing was reigning MVP Josh Allen, who re-upped on a massive six-year, $330 million contract. However, Buffalo also took care of some in-house business by extending Christian Benford, Terrel Bernard, and Gregory Rousseau.
"While Allen will again be asked to do the heavy lifting, the team has added some starting-level talent in free agency. Former Los Angeles Chargers Joshua Palmer and Joey Bosa should each be impactful players. Palmer can provide the Bills a sorely needed deep threat, while Bosa could improve a defense that had the lowest pressure rate of any playoff team in 2024.
"Ultimately, Buffalo’s defense finished 18th in PFSN’s Defense+ metric, and improvement will be necessary for the Bills to finally usurp the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC. They drafted with this in mind, not touching the offensive side of the ball until the 37th pick of the fifth round (their sixth selection of the draft). However, this team has all the ingredients needed to cook up the first Super Bowl championship in franchise history."
New York Post
Bills ranking: 3
"MVP Josh Allen allows you to infuse fresh blood into your defense early and often."
For The Win
Bills ranking: 5
"Josh Allen gives Buffalo a chance every year, even if the Bills don't. Buffalo's defense looks pretty legitimate yet again."
The Score
Bills ranking: 3
"It's clear Sean McDermott was trying to replenish a defense that tailed off last year early in the draft. The Bills will need Maxwell Hairston to pan out better than Kaiir Elam, the last first-round cornerback they took."
— 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: NFL power rankings: Buffalo Bills considered a top 3 team post-draft
Continue reading...
