Buffalo Bills head coach Rex Ryan was at it again by making news at another press conference, this time by saying his Buffalo Bills “won the offseason”.
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Rex Ryan is on his second year as the head coach of the Buffalo Bills. Known for his prowess as a defensive-minded coach and the loquacious gabber during press conferences, Ryan made another bold claim on Thursday by stating that the Bills “won the offseason.”
Will Buffalo be able to build on its so-so 2015 NFL season where the Bills finished 8-8 and missed the AFC Playoffs for the 16th straight year? Sure, but the Bills do play in a tough AFC East division with the juggernaut New England Patriots and a near playoff team in the New York Jets. The Miami Dolphins aren’t great, but can certainly hang with any of their three primary rivals.
Often times teams improve greatly from years one to two under a coaching staff. Buffalo has a strong defensive identity and several talented players on the offensive end. However, to say that Buffalo “won the offseason” is a bit of a stretch at this point.
2016 first round pick in defensive end Shaq Lawson is recovering from shoulder surgery and will miss most of his rookie year. Buffalo draft the standout pass rusher out of Clemson to offset the massive loss of disgruntled defensive end Mario Williams now with Miami.
Buffalo is also dealing with a major injury to one of its best skill position players, as No. 1 wide receiver Sammy Watkins suffered a broken foot and will most almost all the offseason, possibly a few games at the start of the year.
Let’s not forget that teams like the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Oakland Raiders absolutely crushed the offseason in both NFL free agency and the NFL Draft. Buffalo is still potentially a playoff caliber team coming out of the AFC East this fall, but have at best had the third best offseason behind Jacksonville and Oakland in the AFC, respectively.
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