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The New York Jets are nearing their Week 10 matchup against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday at Highmark Stadium.
We know where the Jets land in power rankings ahead of their next game. Now, how about where NFL analysts across the media landscape have ranked their upcoming opponent in the Bills?
Here is Jets Wire's roundup of national media power rankings for their next opponent, the Bills, heading into Week 10:
2. (▲1)Buffalo Bills (6): The last three times they started 7-1, the Bills went to the Super Bowl in each instance. Adding a safety of Amani Hooker's caliber makes what seems to be an improving defense even more formidable.
1. Bills (last week No. 1; 7-1): If they’d been playing a team with a borderline functional offense, they may have surrendered the top spot to Jacksonville.
1. Buffalo Bills (7-1)Last week: 1
Monday: Beat Vikings 23-6
Midseason grade: A
The first nine weeks of the Joe Brady era have been impressive for the Bills offense as Josh Allen continues to look like the game’s best quarterback. And a defense that has struggled quite a bit in the first half of the season was excellent against a putrid Minnesota offense on Monday night. It wasn’t always pretty, but the Bills dominated the time of possession to nab an impressive road win.
Up next: at Jets, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
1. Buffalo Bills (7-1)
Last Week: 1
Week 9 Result: Won at Minnesota 23-6
The Buffalo Bills needed a different approach when facing the Minnesota Vikings' aggressive defense during Monday Night Football, especially with both left tackle Dion Dawkins and Alec Anderson out of the lineup due to injuries.
Buffalo bludgeoned the Vikings with body-blow after body-blow. James Cook III ran the ball a season-high 31 times for 107 yards. As the game wore on, Cook found a little more available space with each carry.
Josh Allen is always going to be Josh Allen—whether the quarterback is lighting up defenses as a passer, extending plays to ensure the Bills offense keeps on track or as a runner helping Cook hammer an opponent.
However, the Bills showed they can get down and dirty, while roughing up their opponent during a road contest, including an excellent defensive performance in their own right. These types of wins translate to the playoffs far more than any shootout the team experienced during Allen's nine-year career.
1. Bills (-)
If the defense continues to grow, which they have the past two weeks, they are even more of a threat to win it all. That unit is growing up by the game.
1. Buffalo BillsRecord: 7-1
Previous ranking: 1
Super Bowl odds: +620 (2nd)
The Bills’ slugfest win over the Minnesota Vikings was Exhibit A for why I think they’re the best team in football. We already knew that they're explosive enough to win 41-38 shootouts. Now, we know that they're tough enough to win old-fashioned, grind-it-out games like they had to do Monday night. Josh Allen is so tough and good under pressure, and they’ve got such a strong ground game with RB James Cook at that offensive line. They truly won a heavyweight fight Monday night, even if the Vikings’ offense doesn’t pack much of a punch. Now the Bills just have to avoid the letdown with two obvious trap games coming up with the Jets and Dolphins in the next two weeks.
Next game: @ Jets (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)
Stat To Know: With his 15 rushing yards on Monday night, Josh Allen is now just the fifth quarterback in NFL history to reach 5,000 career rushing yards, joining Lamar Jackson, Michael Vick, Cam Newton and Russell Wilson
1. Buffalo Bills (7-1)Week 9 result: Beat the Vikings 23-6Week 9 ranking: 1
Most important game of the second half: Week 16 at the Broncos
Any game from the Bills' gauntlet between Thanksgiving and Christmas could be the choice, especially the road trip to New England in Week 13. But the one matchup that could determine the Bills' chances of home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, and potentially force the road to the Super Bowl to pass through the Buffalo winter, is the Christmas Day rematch of last season's playoff loss. That game marked the fifth time in NFL history that the losing team in a postseason game did not punt once, per ESPN Research.