Media Mashup: Buffalo Bills Week 11 Power Rankings

After the game was moved amid a ‘flurry’ of weather emergencies, the Bills made their first of two visits to Detroit in only four days. In a surprising swap of offensive identity, the boys in blue brought a backbreaking run game to put the Cleveland Browns away. They may have come home victorious, but there’s still work to be done. The Buffalo Bills might be back on track, but what does the media have to say about in in their Week 11 Power Rankings?

NFL.com: 4th

Author: Dan Hanzus

Last Week: 5th

“The most trying stretch of the Bills’ season entered theater-of-the-absurd territory when a massive snowstorm buried Western New York and forced the team to move shop to Detroit for a “home” game against the Browns. The Bills then played like a team that had literally shoveled its way out of Buffalo in the first half before finding itself in a 31-23 win at Ford Field. The emergence of the running game was notable: The Bills dialed up a season-high 33 runs for 171 yards — James Cook and Devin Singletary each rushed for 86 yards in the win. We’ll see if Buffalo commits to this new balance on offense on Thanksgiving against the Lions.”

theScore: 5th

Author: theScore Staff

Last Week: 5th

“[The Bills Should Be Thankful For] Tre’Davious White’s impending return: Justin Jefferson and Amari Cooper totaled 306 yards and three touchdowns versus Buffalo over the last two weeks. White, the Bills’ No. 1 corner, has yet to play this season as he recovers from a torn ACL but is expected to return soon.”

Bleacher Report: 4th

Authors: NFL Staff

Last Week: 5th

“It was quite the week for the Buffalo Bills. After back-to-back losses, grumbles had begun to swirl. Josh Allen was turning the ball over. Buffalo’s usually stout defense had sprung a few leaks. Maybe the Bills weren’t the AFC’s best team after all. As if that weren’t enough, the Bills also faced an unexpected road trip after a winter storm that dumped several feet of snow on Buffalo caused Sunday’s game with the Browns to be moved to Detroit.

As it turned out, that may have been good for the Bills. Buffalo started slowly against the Browns but took control in the second half before prevailing in a game that was nowhere near as close as the final score. Head coach Sean McDermott told reporters he thinks everything the team went through this week could pay dividends down the road.”

“We got into a good rhythm… We were a little bit off early… When you go through a shared experience like this, it can bring a team closer together.”

McDermott on this week (via ESPN)

“The biggest payoff may have been a ground game that gashed Cleveland for 171 yards. If the Bills can run the ball and get more offensive balance, it’s only going to make Allen, Stefon Diggs and the passing game that much more dangerous.”

The Ringer: 3rd

Author: Austin Gayle

Last Week: 3rd

“Bills head coach Sean McDermott was right when he told reporters that “everyone expects Josh [Allen] to be Superman, every game, all the time, and every throw.” Allen wasn’t Superman out of the gate against Cleveland in Week 11 but rallied the team back from an early 10-3 deficit to stomp on the Browns and improve to 7-3. The offense is no. 3 behind the Chiefs and Dolphins in EPA per drive, and Allen himself is no. 3 behind Tua Tagovailoa and Mahomes in EPA per dropback. That’s Superman enough for the Bills to have their sights set on Super Bowl contention.”

ESPN: 3rd

Author: ESPN Staff

Last Week: 5th

“What/who is underachieving? Ball security

“This Bills offense started the season looking unstoppable, and while Josh Allen’s overall performance has been down over the past four weeks since the bye, the unit has been hurting itself by turning the ball over. The Bills have the third-most turnovers in the league (18) — eight in the past four games — and Allen is second in the NFL in interceptions (10). The Bills also lead the league in turnovers per drive (17%). Protecting the ball consistently with four AFC East games to go will be key down the stretch.” — Alaina Getzenberg

The Athletic: 5th

Author: Bo Wulf

Last Week: 5th

“After a slow start in their thundersnow-forced home game in Detroit, the Bills settled in behind a non-Josh Allen running game for the first time in a while. Devin Singletary and James Cook combined for 172 rushing yards on 29 carries while Allen rushed just three times — his fewest since Week 2. Then again, this was against the Browns’ run defense, which is among the worst in modern history. Maybe snowblowers are the answer.”

NBC Sports: 3rd

Author: Josh Schrock

Last Week: 4th

“It’s Squirrel Winters’ world, and we’re just living in it. All of Buffalo is going nuts for the man who helped plow Josh Allen’s driveway so he could make it to the airport and play Sunday vs. the Browns.”

CBS Sports: 4th

Author: Pete Prisco

Last Week: 5th

“They put all the snow issues behind them and looked like the team we expected to see before the season. Now they play the hot Lions on the road on Thanksgiving, which won’t be easy.”

Fox Sports: 5th

Author: David Helman

Last Week: 5th

“It says a lot about our expectations for the Bills that they struggled a bit coming out of the gate — on a weekend when they had to be shoveled out of their homes by helpful Bills fans — gradually built a 28-10 lead, and their win against Cleveland still didn’t seem all that impressive.”

Yahoo Sports: 5th

Author: Frank Schwab

Last Week: 6th

“In 1997, the Broncos were almost trapped in Denver by a blizzard. They found some creative ways to make it to the airport and got to their road game against (of all teams) the Bills. The Broncos won that game and years later the players from that team would talk about how the entire ordeal built character and helped them win the first Super Bowl in franchise history. Whether or not the Bills win a Super Bowl this season might have nothing to do with their travel ordeal to Detroit to play the Browns, but they have to feel pretty good to come out of last week with a win.”

USA Today: 2nd

Author: Nate Davis

Last Week: 3rd

“Has a team ever played a home and away game… in the same building… in a city it’s not based in… in a five-day span? We doubt it but expect Buffalo might soon consider Detroit’s Ford Field its vacation house.”

Sporting News: 4th

Author: Vinnie Iyer

Last Week: 5th

“The Bills were thrown off by a weird schedule of practice during the week and a shocking relocation of their game with late travel to Detroit. They showed moxie by not being fazed by that or falling behind early to the Browns. It worked out nicely as a get-well game for the Josh Allen-led offense. Now the defense needs one of those games against the Lions.”

WalterFootball.com: 1st

Author: Walter Cherepinsky

Last Week: 1st

“The Bills had a very unimpressive win over the Browns in a vacuum, but think about what they endured during the week. They had to deal with the snow, late travel, and also a flu outbreak in the locker room that caused them to miss a day of practice. They survived all of that, to their credit.”

Sportsnaut: 3rd

Author: Matt Johnson

Last Week: 7th

“Sunday represents a nice step forward for the Buffalo Bills, but it’s becoming increasingly apparent just how many key absences are hurting the defense. When Tre’Davious White, Tremaine Edmonds and Greg Rousseau return, the Bills are the best team in the NFL.”

Athlon Sports: 4th

Author: Bryan Fischer

Last Week: 5th

“The first half against the Browns looked like the Bills hadn’t practiced and spent most of the week dealing with several feet of snow. The second half, however, looked much more like the team we expected to see even if Josh Allen doesn’t look completely 100 percent healthy right now.”

Power Rankings Summary

It seems that the media is regaining its faith in the Buffalo Bills after a midseason slump threatened to derail the season. The rise in favour is earned, but it’ll take a lot more than what we’ve seen so far to gain back the notoriety we opened the season with.

Sample Size	First	Second	Third	Fourth	Fifth	Average
15	1	1	4	5	4	Fourth

For last week’s power rankings, click here, and come back next week for a fresh round of Power Rankings as the Buffalo Bills return to Detroit for a Thanksgiving throwdown. Have a “Power Ranking” that you think I should include? Reach out to @IestynTHarris on Twitter to let me know!

Featured Image: AP Photo/Paul Sancya