Despite an impressive regular-season turnaround, the Buffalo Bills’ 2023 season ended in heartbreaking fashion, as they suffered their third playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the past four years.
Although some have questioned whether Buffalo’s Super Bowl window is closing due to its recent wave of cuts and contract restructurings, the team remains a serious contender in the AFC. However, several members of the organization need to prove themselves this season to ensure their inclusion in the Bills’ long-term plans.
With that in mind, here are three Bills on the hottest seats in 2024.
Outside linebacker Von Miller
The two-time Super Bowl champion’s Bills tenure has been a massive disappointment since he signed a six-year, $120M deal during the 2022 offseason.
After collecting eight sacks in his first 11 games with the team, Miller tore his ACL, which still hindered his performance upon his return to the lineup this past season. Across 12 games in 2023, Miller failed to collect a sack and racked up just three combined tackles, along with three QB hits.
Miller’s lack of production, coupled with the Bills’ salary cap issues, ultimately resulted in his deal being reworked earlier this offseason. Whether Miller shows flashes of being his old self or not, it’d be surprising if Buffalo didn’t take advantage of the opportunity to cut him after the 2024 season and save even more cap space.
According to Over the Cap, Buffalo would save $17.5M in cap space by designating Miller as a post-June 1 release next offseason while incurring roughly $6.8M in dead money.
Wide receiver Stefon Diggs
If Diggs’ latest string of cryptic posts on X isn’t actually a sign that he’s leaving Buffalo this offseason, 2024 could be his final season with the team. There was some drama between Diggs and the organization last offseason, but it didn’t seem to impact his performance in any way. Diggs had five 100-yard outings in his first six games this past season before his production began to decline.
Then, following Buffalo’s Week 10 loss to Denver, where he caught three passes for 34 yards, Diggs’ brother Trevon took to social media to say that the star wideout should request a trade. Even though the 30-year-old downplayed his brother’s comments, his play didn’t improve from that point on, with Diggs recording 40 receptions for 361 yards and one touchdown over his final eight games.
There’s no denying that Diggs is one of the most talented wideouts in the NFL; however, that doesn’t mean he should be entitled to play out his current deal in Buffalo. Diggs will have to prove that he’s still worth the headache that comes with having him on the roster. The only way he can do that is by looking more like the dominant receiver he was in the first half of 2023.
Head coach Sean McDermott
While McDermott changed the culture in Buffalo and remains one of the top coaches in the NFL, if the team flops in the playoffs again, it might be time to change things up. The Bills have gone 73-41 in the regular season and won four division titles under McDermott, but they’re 5-6 in the playoffs and have only made it past the divisional round once.
Additionally, since McDermott was hired in 2017, Buffalo has posted a 32-29 record in one-score games, including in the playoffs. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations and an MVP-caliber quarterback, McDermott’s difficulties in one-score games should outweigh his regular-season success, even if he’s one of the greatest coaches in franchise history.
Although it may not seem like there’s a candidate who would be a clear upgrade over McDermott if he gets fired, Buffalo would have no shortage of options, considering it’d instantly become the NFL’s most sought-after coaching job
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