The Buffalo Bills are set to begin their season this Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals as they embark on another journey to bring a Super Bowl back to One Bills Drive.
While Buffalo is under the trusting guidance of their superstar quarterback, Josh Allen, there are questions that will get answered for better or worse throughout the year, and these are those questions:
What will the receiving group look like?
The Bills have almost an entirely new group of receivers in 2024 compared to 2023. Khalil Shakir is the only returning wide receiver from the 2023 squad. Curtis Samuel, Mack Hollins, Keon Coleman, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling are all new to the team. How will they gel with Josh Allen? Who will become the definitive No. 1 target? There are a lot of individual questions as well. Is MVS going to be able to become a viable deep threat? Can Khalil Shakir build off a big year two and turn it into a bigger year three? What will Keon Coleman look like as a rookie? There’s a lot of questions within the larger overall question about the new receiving group.
How will Joe Brady affect the offense?
I did a big deep dive into how Joe Brady saved the Bills’ season last year, and a lot of that was focused on two things: Becoming more efficient in the passing game rather than living and dying on deep balls and leaning into the run game. More James Cook touches, more Josh Allen carries, and taking the layups underneath while still taking deep shots, just not making it the base of the offense, is what will make the Bills’ offense a top 10 unit in 2024.
What will the defense look like?
Matt Milano being injured takes away the nucleus of Buffalo’s defense. However, they aren’t going to fall off a cliff. Terrel Bernard had a fantastic season in 2023, and the players they have scattered across all three levels are guys Sean McDermott and Bobby Babich will get the best out of. Rasul Douglas and Christian Benford are a good cornerback tandem. They brought in Mike Edwards to be a veteran safety presence alongside Taylor Rapp and rookie Cole Bishop. Ed Oliver is a good defensive tackle. The biggest question is can A.J. Epenesa or Greg Rousseau turn into upper-tier edge rushers. Can Von Miller look like his former self? If the Bills can get a strong bump from their edge rushers, then they may have a real shot.
