Bills Central

ESPN 'Experts'? Bills No Longer AFC East Favorites

Among four ESPN analysts, none picked the Buffalo Bills to win the AFC East this season.

Jon Alfano

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The Buffalo Bills have been the class of the AFC East recently, winning three straight division titles and being among the conference's elite.

This season, though, the quest for another division title will be more of a challenge. The Miami Dolphins were already a playoff team last season and played the Bills tightly in the Wild Card Round, and they added former All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey this offseason. Meanwhile, the New York Jets fixed their long-standing quarterback issues with a big splash, acquiring future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers to instantly make them a popular pick for the playoffs.

Even with the new challengers, the Bills still have largely the same roster as the past few years and should be in the division race once again. To ESPN, though, the Bills' days of dominating the AFC East are over.

Four analysts on ESPN's "First Take" were asked this week who would win the division. None of them picked Buffalo. Louis Riddick and Dominique Foxworth went with the Dolphins, while Harry Douglas and Mike Greenberg took the Jets.

While the Dolphins and Jets may have made bigger headlines this offseason, the Bills have also made some notable upgrades to the roster. New acquisitions such as offensive lineman Connor McGovern, edge rusher Leonard Floyd and rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid should give Buffalo some added juice. Considering the Bills' lack of cap space, they did a solid job of improving the roster.

The AFC East race will likely be very close this season, and the Bills could easily lose their grip on the division if they aren't careful. However, writing them off completely seems like quite the overreaction.

You can follow Jonathan Alfano on Twitter at @JonAlfano_News

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Jon Alfano
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