The Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots are similar in one big way...
Doug Marrone on @Patriots: "They've been a standard, not just in our division but in the @nfl"
— Buffalo Bills (@buffalobills) December 23, 2013---------------------------
When the Patriots and Bills met in week one, we knew every little of either team.
It was the first game of the season, one week of 17.
It's now the last week of the season, and the Patriots and Bills meet again. Except that now, they're on very different paths. The Patriots have locked up the AFC East at 11-4 and the Bills are way on the outside looking in as they have locked up yet another losing season at 6-9.
Still, while those records are vastly different, there's one record where the two teams are identical, and that should concern the Patriots.
Both teams are 3-2 in the division, with the Patriots splitting with the Dolphins and Jets and beating the Bills in their first meeting and the Bills sweeping the Dolphins, splitting with the Jets and losing to the Pats.
The Bills' success in the division hasn't gotten past Bill Belichick.
Michael Whitmer, Boston.com
"[They] lost to us on the last play (23-21), lost to the Jets on the last possession (27-20), and won three games in the division," Belichick said on Tuesday, before the team's practice. "I’m really impressed with the way they’ve been playing, obviously the way they played last week against Miami."
The Bills are on their way up, and though their record doesn't quite show it, their division record and some key stats do.
Tom Brady praised the Bills defense this morning, noting that the team has an impressive 56 sacks and 22 interceptions. That's quite the task for Brady and co, especially if they are to continue to go without starting left tackle Nate Solder.
It's not just on defense that the Bills can impress, but it's on offense as well, as they currently have the league's 2nd best running offense led by C.J. Spiller (822 yards, 2 TDs) and Fred Jackson (836 yards, 8 TDs).
The Bills record isn't great, but they also haven't gotten consistent play from the quarterback position, with E.J. Manuel appearing in only 10 games.
New England should certainly be favored to win this game, but that doesn't mean we should write the Buffalo Bills off. They've had as much success within this division as the Patriots have, and while the Pats might be the standard of the NFL, according to Marrone, they each own an equal share of the AFC East opponents.
That might at least say something about where the Bills are headed beyond this year.
