Media Mashup: Buffalo Bills Week 9 Power Rankings

Things are pretty bleak all of a sudden. Call it one loss, call it a slip, call it whatever you want; It shouldn’t have happened. The Buffalo Bills are far too good of a team to allow these mistakes. It was unexpected, and Josh Allen’s injury casts things into further doubt. After this disappointing loss, speculation is running rampant. What did the media have to say about us in their Week 9 Power Rankings?

NFL.com: 2nd

Author: Dan Hanzus

Last Week: 1st

“Consider Sunday’s stunning 20-17 loss to the Jets a wakeup call to the Bills. Long an AFC East doormat, Gang Green has quickly built up a smothering and dynamic young defense that matches up well with Buffalo’s powerful attack. New York’s spectacular cornerback duo of Sauce Gardner and D.J. Reed largely neutralized Stefon Diggs, while a surging Jets defensive front regularly harassed Josh Allen without the need to blitz. Allen tossed two interceptions and fumbled twice, his second consecutive sloppy performance. The question coming out of the Meadowlands: Were the Jets fortunate to catch the Bills on a bad week — or has this division suddenly been turned upside down?”

theScore: 3rd

Author: theScore Staff

Last Week: 2nd

“We’re not going to drop the Bills too far based on a loss to the Jets. But that’s two weeks in a row the passing game hasn’t quite been in sync.”

Bleacher Report: 4th

Authors: NFL Staff

Last Week: 2nd

“If you want to know why the Buffalo Bills were stunned Sunday by the New York Jets, just ask quarterback Josh Allen. He made it quite clear to reporters who was to blame for the loss.”

“It’s tough to win in this league when you’re playing a good team, and your quarterback plays like s–t. I made some bad decisions tonight, it really cost our team.”

Allen on his performance (via Dan Fetes/13WHAM Rochester)

“Allen’s brutal honesty aside, one loss is hardly the end of the world for the Bills. Buffalo is still in first place in the AFC East and still the No. 1 seed in the AFC. But there are issues in Buffalo that go beyond one loss. For all the success the Bills have had this season, they are 0-2 in the division. Over the last six quarters, Allen has tossed four interceptions. And now Allen is nursing a sore right elbow, although Allen downplayed the injury after the loss.”

The Ringer: 2nd

Author: Austin Gayle

Last Week: 1st

“Josh Allen summed up the Bills’ stunning Week 9 loss to the Jets perfectly when he told reporters after the game, ‘It’s tough to win in this league when you’re playing a good team and your quarterback plays like shit.’ Allen fumbled twice, threw two ghastly interceptions, and finished the game with a season-low 205 passing yards on 34 attempts. The Bills are still the rightful Super Bowl favorites, but Sunday needs to be Allen’s last shitty game if Buffalo is going to stave off the Chiefs and secure the bye as the AFC’s top seed in January.”

ESPN: 3rd

Author: ESPN Staff

Last Week: 1st

“Non-QB MVP: LB Von Miller”

“The Bills brought in Miller to be the dominant pass-rusher they were missing and to use his experience to help better the team and its young defensive linemen. He has done just that. Miller has a team-high seven sacks and is sixth in the league in pass rush win rate (23.4%). His performance has impacted the rest of the D-line, with second-year pass-rusher Greg Rousseau already setting a career high in sacks (five). The Bills have issues to fix, including run defense, but Miller has been a stellar addition so far.” — Alaina Getzenberg

The Athletic: 2nd

Author: Bo Wulf

Last Week: 1st

“Trade recall: Wyatt Teller and seventh-round pick (Jermar Jefferson) for fifth-round pick (Trevis Gipson) and sixth-round pick Tyler Bass (trade with Browns, August 2019)”

“The real question here is whether the Bills opt to wind the clock back to their 2017 draft-day trade with the Chiefs that landed Kansas City Patrick Mahomes. But Buffalo has spent too long chasing Mahomes to cast Josh Allen aside now, even after his uncharacteristically sloppy game in the loss to the Jets Sunday. Plus, that would mean getting rid of Tre’Davious White, who was selected with one of the picks returned by Kansas City and is expected to return next week for his season debut. Instead, they bring back a Pro Bowl-caliber guard in Teller.”

NBC Sports: 3rd

Author: Josh Schrock

Last Week: 2nd

“Josh Allen is one of the best quarterbacks in the league, but some 2019 stuff is leaking back into his game that should concern a team with title aspirations.”

CBS Sports: 4th

Author: Pete Prisco

Last Week: 2nd

“They have to get back to playing up-tempo offense again, although Josh Allen’s elbow injury bears watching. They face a tough challenge against the Vikings this week.”

Fox Sports: 3rd

Author: David Helman

Last Week: 2nd

“Josh Allen’s careless mistakes felt harmless when the Bills were manhandling the Packers last week. On Sunday, an interception in the Jets’ red zone and another one on his own 22-yard line made a much bigger difference. It’s too early to be legitimately nervous about Allen, but the Bills look significantly more vulnerable when their MVP candidate isn’t playing like one.”

Yahoo Sports: 2nd

Author: Frank Schwab

Last Week: 1st

“The Bills can’t lose games like Sunday. They were double-digit favorites. Give the Jets a lot of credit; they played well and won it. But the Bills have Super Bowl hopes this season, and that’s the type of loss that can cost a team the No. 1 seed. But, really, the top seed and Super Bowl talk ends if Josh Allen’s elbow is seriously injured.”

USA Today: 2nd

Author: Nate Davis

Last Week: 2nd

“Not quite ready to overreact to a road loss to a tough, physical NYJ squad. And Buffalo’s Week 6 win at Kansas City keeps Bills on the inside track for the AFC’s No. 1 seed. But their lack of aggression at the trade deadline could come back to haunt them … as could an 0-2 division record that threatens to undermine Super Bowl darlings if they don’t get right quickly.”

Sporting News: 2nd

Author: Vinnie Iyer

Last Week: 2nd

“Josh Allen didn’t play well again beyond his early big running as the Jets’ defense with Sauce Gardner under Robert Saleh was up to the task in a big spot. Buffalo is also showing a major issue against teams that stick with the running game against its defense.”

WalterFootball.com: 1st

Author: Walter Cherepinsky

Last Week: 1st

“The Bills lost to the Jets, but I still consider them to be the best team in the NFL. Only two teams have ever gone undefeated throughout the regular season, and even great teams suffer defeats they shouldn’t. Josh Allen will bounce back.”

Sportsnaut: 2nd

Author: Matt Johnson

Last Week: 1st

“The Buffalo Bills have been guilty of playing with their pray and it came back to bite them on Sunday. Josh Allen is the problem right now, playing far too careless for an MVP candidate. If losing to New York doesn’t serve as his wake-up call, there is a serious problem.”

Athlon Sports: 2nd

Author: Bryan Fischer

Last Week: 1st

“Not only did the Bills drop a game to a division rival but now Josh Allen might be injured. That sound you now hear is mounting concern from upstate New York.”

Power Rankings Summary

Well, that stings. The Buffalo Bills may not be flawless, but they’re still a powerhouse. Kudos to an opponent who allowed us to beat ourselves, and hope for Josh Allen to recover quickly to get this team back where it belongs: On top.

Sample Size	First	Second	Third	Fourth	Average
15	1	8	4	2	Second

For last week’s power rankings, click here, and come back next week for a fresh round of power rankings as the battered Buffalo Bills take on the 7-1 Minnesota Vikings. Have a “Power Rankings” that you think I should include? Reach out to @IestynTHarris on Twitter to let me know!

Featured Image: NBC Sports