John Murphy: Bills in search of getting past Kansas City, Super Bowl
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — This is it. This is the year.
Right?
This is the year we’ve been waiting for. The year when the Bills finally get past the Chiefs, win the AFC, advance to the Super Bowl, exorcise the 30-year-old demons and win it all.
Isn’t it?
It very well could be. No team has come closer the last five years. No team has undergone such minimal changes to the roster. Nobody else has the NFL MVP coming back, a player who still gets better every year. No team has a more manageable schedule, with six of last year’s playoff teams - four at home.
And yet…
The 2025 Bills team is full of questions. But the roster is essentially the same as last year.
The biggest change is the most needed change - the defensive line. With T.J. Sanders, Landon Jackson and Deone Walker arriving in the draft and Michael Hoecht and Larry Ogunjobi late arrivals after their suspensions, the Bills have enough depth to play eight or even nine defensive linemen on a regular rotation, which they love to do.
Joey Bosa joins Greg Rousseau, Ed Oliver and DaQuan Jones in a better and much bigger defensive line.
The defensive front has been abused by the Chiefs in the playoff losses allowing 36.5 points per game in the four season-ending losses to KC. The Bills have addressed the problem, we’ll see if it works.
The other question mark on defense is the secondary. Injuries to cornerbacks will probably sort out by the opener but the issue is safety. Questions persist about Cole Bishop and Taylor Rapp, so much that the Bills brought back Jordan Poyer after a one-year stint in Miami. This bears watching.
Personnel remains the same at linebacker, offensive line, tight ends and running back.
The big question on offense is do they have any game-breakers at receiver? Look for Keon Coleman to double his production to 60 catches and eight touchdowns in his second year. He looks ready to explode in the preseason.
Khalil Shakir is good for another 75 catches.
Maybe they don’t need a bona fide gamebreaker. Maybe four years of 100+ catches from Stefon Diggs showed them they don’t need a big name pass catcher when they have a big-time pass thrower.
As stated before, Josh Allen improves his game every year. Last year, he threw only six interceptions after throwing 18 the year before. He kept his rushing attempts down but ran for 12 touchdowns. There’s no telling how he’ll improve this year (especially since he didn’t play in preseason) but he’ll probably improve.
The biggest question about Josh, and the Bills for that matter, is can he stay healthy?
He hasn’t missed a game since missing four midway through his rookie year. He’s played 115 consecutive games, regular and postseason.
The Bills have cut back slightly on Allen’s passing and rushing attempts in recent years but he is a tremendous competitor. He approaches 30 years old next May — if the clock isn’t ticking, it’s certainly warming up.
I’ve got the Bills going 13-4 again this year and running into Kansas City on the way to the Super Bowl. After four playoff losses to the Chiefs I think they’ll finally beat them.
Right?
Buffalo Bills
John Murphy, the longtime Voice of the Bills and former News 4 sports director, now writes columns for WIVB.com. Find more of his work here.