What’s on the line in Bills-Ravens clash, Christian Benford’s shutdown status, and more
There's a good chance the Bills and Ravens meet again later in the season.
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After a somewhat surprising 2024 season that resulted in a 13-4 record and a trip to the AFC Championship Game, the Bills have rolled back almost their entire team. Only four starters have changed since last year, and they get to begin their Super Bowl chase in Orchard Park on Sunday Night Football against the Ravens.
But before that first game arrives, let’s dive into some hypotheticals for the season, because who doesn’t love some logically based forecasting? With enhanced expectations, what could happen both from a player and team perspective?
Based on what we’ve seen this summer, here are our annual Bills predictions, along with some Week 1 prognostications, too.
Christian Benford enters shutdown CB status
Of all the second star candidates for the Bills that we mentioned this week, Christian Benford is the one who could truly arrive in 2025. He already put together an incredible season as one of the Bills’ best players in just his third NFL season. Benford was one of the best cornerbacks in the league in 2024, proving technically savvy as a high-level zone defender with elite instincts and as someone who has become a great man-coverage defender when asked to do so. He only turns 25 in September, and the shocking part about his game is that he still has room to grow. He is already one of the better cornerbacks in the NFL, but without an outlier interception year. His game and reputation stem from technique and the speed at which he’s progressed since his rookie year in 2022. Benford is consistently around the ball, and it seems only a matter of time before the interceptions start piling up for him.His game has progressed to the point that the Bills trust him to run with the opponent’s top receiver and effectively leave him on an island, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if that started as early as Week 1 against the Ravens. That’s something they haven’t been able to do since 2021, when a still healthy Tre’Davious White was at the top of his game. If there’s one thing that can help the Bills’ questionable secondary, it’s Benford helping them with the ability to roll coverage over to the other boundary cornerback. As the season progresses, he has the ability to force teams to avoid throwing to his side altogether, possibly nullifying an opponent’s top target. The Bills’ search for a true game-changer on defense might just be Benford in 2025.
Keon Coleman leads the Bills WRs in snaps, targets and yards
Slot receiver Khalil Shakir has done a good job of it while building a good rapport with quarterback Josh Allen, though his ceiling is a bit limited based on the role he plays and where they generally target him. That leaves a void for someone else to take a step forward, and despite some questionable 2024 metrics, the Bills have loved what they’ve seen from Coleman this summer and are optimistic a breakout could occur. Even if a traditional breakout into him becoming a true No. 1 NFL receiver doesn’t occur, the table is set for Coleman to lead the Bills in almost everything. As the team’s locked in X-receiver and a trusted blocker, he is going to be on the field a lot. On top of that, his top backup, Tyrell Shavers, will likely be more of a special teams presence to begin the year. That means snaps for Coleman, and lots of them. It wouldn’t even be shocking to see him reach the 85 to 90 percent snap levels that Gabe Davis had a few years ago.
See the full QB Tiers
Being on the field as much as Coleman could be is the best way to get opportunities, and if there was one thing that was apparent throughout training camp, it’s that Allen loved targeting Coleman. Whether it was on a short target, in the red zone or in a contested catch opportunity, Allen was unafraid to put the ball up to Coleman in any situation. That trust level is likely to carry over into the regular season. Along with his time on the field and the frequency with which the Bills targeted him deep down the field in 2024, leading the Bills in both targets and receiving yards is entirely possible. Coleman did not lead the way in receptions, but that might be more of a product of his usage, considering his air yards per target average was 15.2 yards in 2024, and he is likely to get more lower percentage passes that yield more yards when he comes down with them. Either way, the Bills are hoping for big things from Coleman in 2025.
T.J. Sanders becomes one of the Bills’ most important defenders by the playoffs, if not sooner
Much of the Bills’ early-season inactive list will likely consist of a lot of their rookie class. But one first-year player who likely won’t sniff that healthy scratch list this season is second-round pick T.J. Sanders. Without question, Sanders has been the team’s most impressive rookie this summer. For the team to have the type of defensive roster that can challenge their opponents more consistently in the playoffs, they need an improved pass rush. Sanders represents their best hope in doing so, especially against the quick-strike passing attack they fell victim to against the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.Bills head coach Sean McDermott has long talked about the importance of interior pressure, due to it being the shortest path to the quarterback compared to edge rushers. Since Ed Oliver has been the team’s top interior pass rusher, he has never had a consistent running mate in obvious passing situations — and they have tried a lot of different things over the years to find that answer. This draft year, they thought enough was enough and traded up to invest in Sanders, who could potentially win as an interior rusher as much as Oliver. The way Sanders uses his hands to get himself free, along with his athleticism to disrupt the pocket, can make him into an impact pass rusher this year if his strong play continues. It won’t be a surprise if the Bills insert Sanders into an obvious passing-down role next to Oliver early in the season, possibly even as early as Week 1.
No big moves at the trade deadline, barring a significant injury
Even though the Bills have some weaknesses, specifically on defense, they have insulated themselves with depth they trust should injuries or poor play occur. Defensive ends have four depth players already, defensive tackles have Larry Ogunjobi on the way with Jordan Phillips on the practice squad, linebackers have Dorian Williams and Shaq Thompson providing vast starting experience, cornerbacks will get Maxwell Hairston back at some point along with Dane Jackson on the practice squad, and safeties have the quartet of Damar Hamlin, Jordan Hancock, Cam Lewis and practice squad veteran Jordan Poyer available to make starts.Additionally, as of now, the Bills will have to create four roster spots with returning players from various lists. That group includes the rookie Hairston (injured reserve), offensive tackle Tylan Grable (IR), defensive end Michael Hoecht and Ogunjobi (suspensions), so difficult decisions could be ahead even without a deadline acquisition. On top of that, the Bills are tight to the cap as it is, without an obvious lever to pull with contract restructures to make more room. If there were a position or two they could add, backup middle linebacker or cornerback are two to look at for now, but even that isn’t easy to project with all of the current depth they’ve invested in.
Rookie DE Landon Jackson is inactive more games than he’s active
This is not rooted in what Jackson is as a player or his future role with the team, but a lot is working against the team’s third-round pick being an every-week contributor to begin the 2025 season. There is a clearly defined top three ahead of him in Greg Rousseau, Joey Bosa and A.J. Epenesa. Jackson was also outplayed this summer by second-year player Javon Solomon, and Solomon provides the added benefit of likely playing on all four of the core special teams units as he did in 2024.Jackson is not much of a special teams player, which makes it difficult to justify making him active as a fifth defensive end. And if those weren’t enough reasons, the Bills will get Hoecht back after six games, which pushes Jackson down the depth chart by one more spot. Jackson seems much more like a 2026 and beyond piece than a 2025 one, barring injuries to the position.
The Bills go undefeated in AFC East play, but with some close calls
As the AFC East teams formed this offseason, it became apparent that, for the most part, 2025 could be somewhat of a transitional year for the Patriots, Jets and Dolphins. The Patriots have a new coach in Mike Vrabel and seem to have their quarterback in Drake Maye, though it’s reminiscent of the Bills back in 2019, being perhaps a year shy of really making noise in the AFC East until the young quarterback gets a full year of experience. The Jets seemed to make a good hire in new head coach Aaron Glenn, though they don’t quite have their long-term quarterback in place just yet and have several questions on offense outside of that.The Dolphins have been knocking on the playoff door since coach Mike McDaniel was hired, but they are a franchise seemingly going in the wrong direction. They have a highly questionable defense this season and an offense that didn’t do enough in the offseason, putting McDaniel potentially on the hot seat this year. With that trio of opponents, the Bills will have every opportunity to go 6-0 in division contests this season, but both Patriots games could be tough outs this season. We’re potentially a year away from that being a legitimate battle for the division crown. For now, the Bills should extend their title reign to six straight.
The Bills end the year 12-5, play the Ravens in the AFC Championship Game
How’s this for poetic? The two teams that open up the nationally televised AFC games will be the ones to close them this season, with Allen and Lamar Jackson having an opportunity to get to the Super Bowl, finally. The Bills and Ravens will both face difficult opponents on the way, and someone is going to need to cast aside the Chiefs in the postseason. However, these two teams head into the season with a lot of talent and depth, and despite having a different formula for success, it sets up for fascinating matchups every time they play one another.While in this prediction, the Bills drop one more game than they did during the 2024 regular season due to some genuinely difficult games on the schedule, the ultimate goal is to reach a destination they have never been before with McDermott and Allen, and that’s the Super Bowl. The ramifications of the Bills and Ravens Week 1 matchup are massive, as a potential tiebreaker in seeding — and maybe even who would host a playoff game between these two likely AFC behemoths.
Bonus! Week 1 predictions
Projected practice squad elevations: OL Kendrick Green, K Matt PraterProjected Bills inactives: WR Curtis Samuel, OL Sedrick Van Pran-Granger, OL Chase Lundt, DE Landon Jackson, CB Tre’Davious White, S Jordan Hancock, K Tyler Bass
(Subject to change following Friday’s practice)
Prediction: Ravens 27, Bills 23
In a game that will make Allen and Jackson the focal point for obvious reasons, both the Bills and Ravens enter the game with some prohibitive injuries. For the Bills, starting cornerback Tre’Davious White is trending toward not playing against the Ravens, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they started sixth-round rookie Dorian Strong in his place. For the Ravens, they are likely down two offensive players in tight end Isaiah Likely and fullback Patrick Ricard, who help them with their overall offensive versatility.Although the injuries are a detriment to both sides, starting a late-round rookie, along with some major questions at safety could be a bit too much to overcome for the Bills in the Week 1 setting. Meanwhile, the Ravens’ defense is one of the most talented units in the NFL heading into the season, which could limit the Bills offense more often than they’re used to. Ultimately, I expect the Ravens to hit a few more explosive plays against a Bills defense that is more likely to play their best football near the end of the season, not in Week 1.