Are Josh Allen and the Bills just mediocre? NFL power rankings still holding out hope
Are the Buffalo Bills just not that good anymore?
That's the headline on Yahoo! Sports latest NFL Power rankings after Buffalo's disheartening 29-25 loss to Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.
It's a legit question given how the Bills played against the Jets, Jaguars, Giants and Patriots.
Not surprisingly, Sunday's loss has the Bills (4-3) teetering on the edge the NFL's Top 10 teams. Buffalo has an average ranking of 9.6 in the power rankings surveyed below, with six putting them as the 10 best team in the NFL.
With a one-dimensional offense and a good defense, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ( 3-3) have an average ranking of 18.1.
Then again, we all know how the Bills played this season against, so-called "weaker teams."
Here is how the Bills and Buccaneers match up in the various NFL power rankings.
USA Today
Bills ranking: 5 (⬇ three spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 18 (⬇ one spot)
Bills: They're 23-5 at Highmark Stadium in the regular season since the start of the 2020 season, the best home mark in the NFL over that stretch. Spending three of the next four in Orchard Park seems like fortuitous timing for a reeling herd.
Buccaneers: They're about to play four of their next five (and six of eight) on the road … which might be a good thing given the Bucs are 1-3 in Tampa this season.
NFL.com
Bills ranking: 9 (⬇ two spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 17 (⬇ five spots)
Bills: It’s instinctive to ask what’s wrong with the offense because we’ve come to expect Josh Allen and Co. to solve mid-game problems, or at least overwhelm them. But the Bills scored enough to beat a Patriots team that hadn’t topped 17 points since mid-September. Buffalo’s defense and special teams typically have been reliable more often than not. Sunday they were not. Taron Johnson’s penalty wiped out a sack, then he allowed the go-ahead TD in Sunday's 29-25 loss. The pass rush was quiet against a bad Patriots O-line. They couldn’t tackle Rhamondre Stevenson. The Bills just can’t expect a unit missing Tre’Davious White, Matt Milano, Ed Oliver and DaQuan Jones (and with Von Miller working back into form) to carry this team when the offense gets off to slow starts.
Buccaneers: The good vibes of the Bucs' 3-1 start have fizzled. They have gone backward offensively since the Week 5 bye. The run game remains MIA. The defense has played well enough two straight games, and they've lost both at home. On the surface, Baker Mayfield's stat line of 275 pass yards and a 31-yard run on Sunday look pretty nifty. But his play, along with much of the offense, has dipped in recent outings. Is there hope for improvement in the passing game? Perhaps some, maybe in the big-play department? That said, Tampa has protected Mayfield well this season, and he hasn't been throwing balls up for grabs. What we've seen to this point just might be somewhat close to the Buccaneers' offensive ceiling.
CBS Sports
Bills ranking: 13 (⬇ five spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 20 (⬇ six spots)
Bills: They suddenly don't look close to being a Super Bowl-type of team. The defense has been crippled by injuries — and it shows.
Buccaneers: Two straight losses has this team reeling a bit. The offense couldn't seem to get it going the past two weeks.
Pro Football Talk
Bills ranking: 12 (⬇ four spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 15 (⬇ two spots)
Bills: The offense needs an intervention.
Buccaneers: Baker Mayfield is getting a little too banged up.
Sports Illustrated
Bills ranking: 10 (⬇ five spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 20 (⬇ four spots)
Bills: I knocked the Bills for this loss, but I am less aghast by it than others (perhaps because I am the doofus who picked the Patriots to win the AFC East). Bill Belichick is always going to pick off a few wins against divisional opponents during the year. Buffalo, though, tackled poorly, they allowed themselves to get corralled defensively and they gave Mac Jones a chance to get comfortable, which few teams have done this year. It’s proof that any team can lose, but certainly, the Bills are deciding to go through their slump right now. This is a loss they would like to have back.
Buccaneers: Now that we’re in a scoring drought, I think quarterbacks like Baker Mayfield are sneaky valuable. Like I mentioned with Gardner Minshew, there is something to a fearlessness to keep plugging along against brick wall defenses. Obviously, you’d rather someone who just outscores the opponent, but Mayfield’s defense keeps him in games long enough for second and third chances. He is not fazed by the need for second and third chances.
Touchdown Wire
Bills ranking: 7 (⬇ five spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 21 (⬇ six spots)
Bills: Buffalo has played poorly in four of their seven games thus far, and still has games against the Bengals, Chiefs, Eagles, Cowboys, Chargers, and Dolphins. The road doesn’t get any easier — wake the hell up.
Buccaneers: The Falcons tried to help the Bucs win, but Tampa insisted that Atlanta leave Raymond James Stadium with a victory. The offense needs to help the defense out more. Three takeaways inside the 20 and you still lose? Unacceptable.
33rd Team
Bills ranking: 10 (⬇ four spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 21 (⬇ three spots)
Bills: The Buffalo Bills are 1-2 over their past three games, and they’ve struggled in some fashion in each of them. This week, their defense gave up 29 points to a Patriots’ offense that just scored 20 combined points in their previous three games. Josh Allen’s Bills have been a factor for years now, so there is a real hope they right the ship. But for now, we can’t treat the Bills as a reliable team.
Buccaneers: Little has changed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers since the start of the season. The Buccaneers are allowing the sixth-fewest points per game in the league. Unfortunately, they’ve had a non-existent running game for two years, and QB Baker Mayfield isn’t equipped to carry an NFL offense consistently. The NFC South is up for grabs, but Tampa Bay is a one-dimensional team.
Pro Football Network
Bills ranking: 10 (⬇ three spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 16 (⬇ three spots)
Bills: What are the Buffalo Bills? Who are the Buffalo Bills? Are they the team that dominated the Dolphins from start to finish, or are they the team that lost to the Jets and Patriots? We’ve seen this from them over the years. They’re a talented roster that often underwhelms sporadically. But they’ve consistently figured it out as the season progresses. Will that be the case again in 2023?
Buccaneers: The Buccaneers can’t run the ball. And despite still being relatively impressive on third down, they didn’t have enough juice to score more than a single touchdown against the Falcons defense.
The Sporting News
Bills ranking: 10 (⬇ two spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 17 (⬇ four spots)
Bills: After escaping the Giants with sloppy play in Week 7, the Patriots didn't let them get away with more mistakes and missteps with Josh Allen. The more disturbing trend is that their defensive strengths seem to be gone with a rash of injuries.
Buccaneers: The Buccaneers' offense has stagnated more with Baker Mayfield condensing the offense too much and and making critical mistakes. The defense can still keep them in the NFC South race, but they might be regressing below the mean as expected.
Yahoo! Sports
Bills ranking: 10 (⬇ five spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 19 (⬇ four spots)
Bills: The Bills will need more out of rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid. Dawson Knox needs wrist surgery, adding to the Bills' issues. But they drafted Kincaid in the first round for a reason. He had a promising game Sunday with eight catches for 75 yards.
Buccaneers: The Buccaneers are coming back to Earth. They have lost three of four since a 2-0 start, had a damaging loss to NFC South rival Atlanta on Sunday and this week will play at Buffalo on a short week. The Bucs weren't expected to be very good this season but a solid start led to optimism. We're probably seeing Tampa Bay's true level these past couple weeks.
Fox Sports
Bills ranking: 10 (⬇ four spots)
Buccaneers ranking: 16 (⬇ two spots)
Bills: The Bills’ offense struggled for far too long in this matchup, but it’s hard not to feel like the defensive injuries are showing up in a big way. The Patriots’ offense has been a wreck for the past month, but you wouldn’t know it from the way Mac Jones dissected Buffalo. There's plenty of soul-searching to be done on both sides of the ball, but how does the defense overcome injuries to so many quality starters?
Buccaneers: It’s been a talking point all season that the Bucs’ offense leaves a lot to be desired. Very quietly, their defense struggled mightily with an Atlanta offense that didn’t even have Bijan Robinson. Yes, they forced three red zone turnovers, but is that a sustainable model for success? If not for some Herculean plays near the goal line, Tampa loses to Atlanta in a blowout.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Bills and Buccaneers fall in NFL power rankings before Thursday game
