The 2023 NFL season has been a rocky one for the Buffalo Bills. They have been unable to consistently build positive momentum; every time they take a step forward, they are taking one back immediately.
Outside of a three-game winning streak from Weeks 2-4, this team has been alternating wins and losses on the season. Unable to find any consistency, the Bills seemingly have a 57.6 percent chance of making the playoffs according to ESPN.
Buffalo has had to overcome a lot of injuries to key players, espcially on their defense. Linebacker Matt Milano and cornerback Tre’Davius White are both sidelined with long-term injuries. That is on top of linebacker Tremaine Edmunds departing in free agency.
Despite that, the defense has remained stingy. The Bills are the No. 5 scoring defense in the NFL, but theri depth will be tested. A lot of pressure would be lifted off of their shoulders should the offense ever get on track.
The same questions that have plagued Buffalo the last few seasons continue to hamper them in 2023. Where are they going to find consistent production on the ground from and can Josh Allen limit his turnovers?
Both things have contributed to the one stat Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN believes has defined the Bills’ first half. Their inconsistency on offense, especially early in games, the last few weeks has doomed them.
“The offense has averaged 6.8 points per game in the first half since Week 5 (ranked 28th) and 13.4 points per game (first) in the second half during that stretch. It’s taking too long to get much of anything going on offense, and it has become a trend for Buffalo to rely on late drives to work its way back into games,” Getzenberg wrote.
There is too much talent on this Bills offense for them to be struggling the way they have. Allen is a perennial MVP candidate with a star No. 1 receiver in Stefon Diggs. But, finding consistent production behind him in the passing game has been challenging at times.
At the halfway point of the season, head coach Sean McDermott would have certainly hoped for more consistency at this point. The Bills have one of the better ranked offenses in the league, but that ranking is buoyed by a three-game stretch they scored 123 of their 240 points in.
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