This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill. The 2019 NFL regular season is upon us and in several days football will hit us square in the face and continue for 21 weeks straight. For the Buffalo Bills, their regular season opener vs the New York Jets is important. Yes, the opener is important for every team and every game matters. But for the Bills, and their fans, this game means a lot. The difference between a win and a loss in Week One is the difference between legitimacy and another “here we go again” season. A win vs the Jets gives hope and the potential of promise fulfilled. While a loss continues the Bills on an all too familiar path of irrelevance and scrutiny.
The Season Opener For The Buffalo Bills
On the one hand, this is only one game of 16 and teams really don’t know who they are until at least a quarter of the way through the season. On the other hand, this game means everything. First, it’s against the Jets. A division rival and a team that Buffalo may be fighting against for a playoff spot. Second, it’s Josh Allen vs Sam Darnold. It’s Allen, who even when he succeeds he fails, vs Darnold who even in failure is praised. Lastly, a win for the Bills adds more steam to the hype train that is this season.
A Win Is Better Than A Loss
Let’s start with the simple and practical side of things. Any time a team can win a game instead of losing one, it’s better. Unless of course you’re the Miami Dolphins and you’re doing everything you can to lose this year. Winning in week one vs the Jets is nice because it means the Bills are 1-0 instead of 0-1. Being 1-0 sounds better, looks better, feels better.
Also in a simple and practical sense, a win vs the Jets means the Jets are 0-1. The AFC this year is almost wide open from top to bottom and several non-playoff teams from last year will be looking to make the jump to the postseason. The Buffalo Bills and New York Jets are two of those teams. The Bills beating the Jets in week one gives them a one-game lead against a team in their own conference, and in their own division. That helps a lot come playoff tiebreaker time once the postseason comes around.
Furthermore, this game is in New York (technically New Jersey but whatever). A win for the Bills on the road is a major confidence booster to start the season. Plus, road games are generally tougher than home games. Beating the Jets on their turf in the regular season opener gives the Bills the advantage when they play again in Buffalo come week 17. Simple, practical, but very important.
Josh Allen vs Sam Darnold
Allen and Darnold are both top 10 picks from the 2018 NFL draft who have the potential to shape the AFC East for years to come. They both have their strengths and both have their opportunities. However, Allen is often painted in a negative light and his accomplishments are often overlooked in favor of his faults. No, he’s not the most accurate passer and yes, he could make better reads. But he had little-to-no help from his supporting cast last year and did what he could with what he had. Breaking records in whatever form or fashion seems to be a pretty decent start to a career.
Juxtapose that with how the narrative for Darnold is spun, and it’s night and day. I like Sam Darnold, and I believe he’ll be the best quarterback out of his draft class when it’s all said and done. That being said, he didn’t have a great rookie year and yet his mistakes are often seen as “learnings” through rose-colored lenses. Whereas Allen’s mistakes are fundamental flaws that he’ll never be able to overcome and he’s awful and should run less yada yada.
Allen vs Darnold is a microcosm of the Bills vs the Jets. It’s the overlooked vs the spotlight. The marginalized vs the promoted. It’s something the fans are aware of, and the teams are aware of as well. A Buffalo Bills win in the regular season opener helps to lend credibility to Josh Allen and shine some positive light on him. Quarterbacks receive too much credit for wins and too much credit for losses. Winning in week one allows for a potential positive turn in the Josh Allen narrative.
Full Speed Ahead Or Hype Train Derailment
Hope is high in Buffalo and Bills fans know what they want this year. Losing in the regular season opener is a massive blow to the hype for this season. It may seem dramatic, but it’s the reality. Bills fans are extremely paranoid and prone to bouts of “oh no we’re doomed”. It’s due to years and years of promises undelivered and traumatic losses that rival scripts in a drama rather than a team in sports.
The Bills overhauled their offensive line and offensive weapons this offseason via free agency and the draft. Their defense last year ranked second in yards per game allowed and first against the pass. The belief and the hope is that the offense can catch up to the defense and provide more balance. That in turn, will yield a season that sees the Bills in the playoffs. Again, hope and belief. Things Bills fans don’t usually get rewarded for having.
Winning week one vs the Jets validates the hope and belief Bills fans have right now and that the players have as well. The stigma of the Buffalo Bills extends from the fans all the way to the players and front office. They know what it means and the consequences of it. Beating a team in a similar position to you, that’s looked at more favorably than you, that’s a division rival, on the road to start your season is a good way to keep the positive momentum from the offseason and undefeated preseason going. Losing, doesn’t do any of that. It almost undoes all of that.
Why Buffalo Bills Regular Season Opener Matters
It may seem foolish or unnecessary to place so much stock in a regular season opener for a team. But this one really matters. It carries logistical and practical weight, along with weight in the form of underlying meaning and subtext. The fans know what’s on the line, and the team knows it too. Sunday, September 8th could very well launch the Buffalo Bills into relevance. Or keep them stuck in neutral as they have been for years.
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