Buffalo Bills Week 9 rooting interests

The Buffalo Bills won on Sunday, and they won big with Josh Allen and James Cook (who went over 200 yards on the ground for the first time in his career) sitting out the final quarter as they cruised to

a 40-9 win over the Carolina Panthers. Unfortunately, all the teams ahead of the Bills won too, most importantly the New England Patriots.

That means Buffalo’s still sitting a half game out of first place in the AFC East. The Kansas City Chiefs have crept their way up to the seven seed, the Indianapolis Colts have a strong-arm hold on the conference’s one seed, and the Denver Broncos are clinging to the AFC West lead.

So, with all that in mind, here’s a look at what the standings look like before we begin a weekend full of big games.  

AFC East Week 9 standings

1. New England Patriots (6-2) 
2. Buffalo Bills (5-2) 
3. Miami Dolphins (2-6)
4. New York Jets (1-7)  

AFC Playoff Picture heading into Week 9

1. Indianapolis Colts (7-1)
2. New England Patriots (6-2)
3. Denver Broncos (6-2)
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3)
5. Buffalo Bills (5-2)
6. Los Angeles Chargers (5-3) 
7. Kansas City Chiefs (5-3)
8. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-3)
9. Houston Texans (3-4)
10. Cincinnati Bengals (3-5)
11.  Las Vegas Raiders (2-5) 
12. Baltimore Ravens (2-5)
13. Cleveland Browns (2-6)
14. Miami Dolphins (2-6) 
15. New York Jets (1-7) 
16. Tennessee Titans (1-7)

The Chiefs are in the playoff picture this week thanks to a win paired with a Jacksonville bye. If the Jaguars win this week, whoever loses the game between Buffalo and Kansas City is the team looking in from just outside the Playoff Picture window next week. It will be temporary (surely both of these teams will find themselves still playing football in January), but it won’t feel good for Bills Mafia if Buffalo has fallen from one to eight in a month’s time. On the flip side, if the Bills win and the Patriots lose, Buffalo can jump back into the top three.

So, here’s a look at how we’d like to see things go this weekend. Get ready Bills Mafia, it’s going to be a wild weekend!

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AFC East Week 9 Bills rooting interests

Buffalo Bills (5-2) over Kansas City Chiefs (5-3), Sunday 4:25 p.m. EST (CBS) 

This one goes without saying, but root for the Bills. Yes, over the past several seasons Buffalo has come out on top during the season and been on the wrong end of the scoreboard when facing the Chiefs in the playoffs. We don’t want a reversal, we want to win them both. Obviously, avenging the loss in Orchard Park, NY this past January is going to be a hot topic. Getting a win over a team with a winning record is going to be important too.

Keeping pace (or hopefully surpassing) the Patriots is the real story here. It doesn’t matter who the opponent is, the answer is “just win,” but this week, it may take Josh Allen returning to MVP form to get the job done. Go Bills!

Miami Dolphins (2-6) over Baltimore Ravens (2-6), Thursday 8:15 p.m. EDT (Prime Video) 

We’ve reached the point of the season where it’s okay to root for division rivals… sometimes. This is one of those times. While the Bills have defeated both of these teams, and they have the same record, the rooting interest here lies in which team has the better chance of being a threat later on.

Let’s face it, the Dolphins, despite a win over the Atlanta Falcons last week, aren’t going to do enough to make the playoffs. The Ravens are getting quarterback Lamar Jackson back this week and could make a push to find themselves in the AFC’s top seven teams by Christmas.

Atlanta Falcons (3-4) over New England Patriots (6-2), Sunday 1 p.m. EST (CBS)

This is on repeat: The Patriots are currently the AFC East’s leaders, and New England fans believe quarterback Drake Maye is the second coming of Tom Brady. The Bills need to do their part to silence all that noise coming from the east.

The Falcons weren’t supposed to beat the Bills, so they could make up for that error by taking down the Patriots too. A Buffalo win coupled with a New England loss would make the division leader board look the way we know it was meant to be.

Week 9 games that impact the Bills

Las Vegas Raiders (2-5) over Jacksonville Jaguars (4-3), Sunday 4:05 p.m. EST (FOX)

How fitting that the NFL has this game scheduled at (practically) the same time as the Bills’ game. As I mentioned above, a Jaguars win means that Buffalo or Kansas City falls to the number eight seed (at least temporarily) — aka the first loser, watching the playoffs from home.

While it would be great to have the Chiefs be “that guy,” we’re going to go with what we do know (nothing), so lets root for the Raiders. We can always reverse stance if the Bills are running away with their game early on.

Tennessee Titans (1-6) over Los Angeles Chargers (5-3), Sunday 1 p.m. EST (CBS) 

This one is about keeping pace. Should the Falcons fail to do their job on Sunday, the Bills, with a win, would still be in a Wild Card position. The Chargers are a half game behind Buffalo, so it would be nice to keep them there. Plus, keeping Los Angeles ahead of Kansas City is nice as well.

Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3) over Indianapolis Colts (7-1), Sunday 1 p.m. EST (CBS) 

Anything to bring the Colts down a peg, right? An Indianapolis loss, coupled with a Buffalo win, would just separate the two by a half game. At the same time, a Steelers victory added to a Bills victory won’t move Pittsburgh up a notch. Plus, the Bills head to Pittsburgh at the end of November, so a Steelers win would improve Buffalo’s SOV score.

Houston Texans (3-4) over Denver Broncos (6-2), Sunday 1 p.m. EST (Fox) 

Yes, not having KC at the top of the AFC West’s leader board has been nice — really nice. But having any team ahead of Buffalo in the conference standings has not been the same. So, a Denver loss plus a Buffalo win (and a New England loss) would take care of all but the Colts. And, if the Bills trump the Chiefs Sunday afternoon, a Broncos loss won’t affect the standings in the West. So, Houston, try not to have any problems.

The rest of the NFL Week 9 Bills rooting interests  

Chicago Bears (4-3) over Cincinnati Bengals (3-5)
Carolina Panthers (4-4) over Green Bay Packers (5-1-1)
New Orleans Saints (1-7) over Los Angeles Rams (5-2)
Dallas Cowboys (3-4-1) over Arizona Cardinals (2-5)

Games that do not impact the Bills this week

Minnesota Vikings (3-4) at Detroit Lions (5-2)
San Francisco Giants (5-3) at New York Giants (2-6)
Seattle Seahawks (5-2) at Washington Commanders (3-5)

Teams on Bye
Cleveland Browns, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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Optimistic AFC standings after Week 9 

So, if all the bounces go the Bills’ way and all the right teams win, this is what the standings in the AFC would look like on Tuesday morning:

1. Indianapolis Colts (7-2)
2. Buffalo Bills (6-2)
3. Denver Broncos (6-3)
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3)
5. New England Patriots (6-3)
6. Los Angeles Chargers (5-4) 
7. Kansas City Chiefs (5-4)
8. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-4)
9. Houston Texans (4-4)
10.  Las Vegas Raiders (3-5) 
11. Cincinnati Bengals (3-6)
12. Miami Dolphins (3-6) 
13. Baltimore Ravens (2-6)
14. Cleveland Browns (2-6)
15. Tennessee Titans (2-7)
16. New York Jets (1-7) 

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Now we know who to root for and, more importantly, who to root against, as we hope to see that the NFL rights itself this weekend.

Go Bills!