AFC Team Rankings: Bills 'Big Dogs' or 'Hovering'?

The Buffalo Bills have been one of the top teams in the AFC in recent years.

The Buffalo Bills have become one of the best teams in the AFC after winning their division in three straight years.

But do they rank in the upper echelon of their conference?

Good Morning Football broke the AFC into four tiers. Tier one: "big dogs," tier two: "hovering," tier three: "to be determined," and tier four, where Buffalo landed in: "hovering."

"This is not big dogs, this is hovering," GMFB's Kyle Brandt said. "I can't put them here with them (Kansas City Chiefs) ... This is the definition right now year after year of hovering." 

As for the rest of the AFC East, the Miami Dolphins also landed in hovering, while the New York Jets and New England Patriots were in to be determined. 

The Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals were the only teams ranked as a big dog. 

The Bengals and Chiefs are the two teams that eliminated Buffalo from the playoffs in the last three seasons. The Bills were eliminated by Kansas City in the AFC championship game in 2021 and AFC divisional round in 2022, then lost to the Bengals in the AFC Divisional last season, 27-10.

The loss to the Bengals has led to a noisy offseason for Buffalo. Bills receiver Stefon Diggs was visibly upset toward quarterback Josh Allen at the end of the game, and the star receiver didn't show up until the final day of offseason activities. 

While the Bills have become one of the best in the AFC, they're entering a key season for the team's direction. If Buffalo doesn't find itself among the unofficial tier of "big dogs" in the AFC by the end of the 2023 season, change may be inevitable. 

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