BUFFALO (WBEN) - One of the brutal realities of the NFL playoffs is how an entire season's worth of work and success can be completely over in just three hours. There's no seven-game series or second chance - if a team falters even a little bit, there's a good chance its season is done and it's on to next year.
When the Bills snapped the drought and made it to the playoffs in the 2017-2018 season, BillsMafia was elated to simply be there, and the fact that there was an actual game to be played after qualifying for the playoffs was a sort of afterthought.
Last year, there was increased expectation compared to the miracle run two season prior, but there was never any real hope of competing for a Super Bowl. Some were confident the Bills could pull off a slight upset as they traveled to Houston for Wild Card Weekend, but there wasn't much serious thought about a serious run.
But this season is much different.
No longer is it crazy to say "Bills" and "Super Bowl" in the same sentence, and for many in BillsMafia, the idea of expectation is both foreign and perhaps even a little scary. What's even more interesting is that this isn't just a local expectation - many within national sports media circles are saying the same thing - the Bills are legitimate Super Bowl contenders.
"There are teams that make the playoffs because somebody's got to make the playoffs to fill out the field - no names mentioned, you can probably do the math," said Jim Rome of the CBS Sports Network. "You have those teams, and then you have 'playoff' teams - teams for whom making the playoffs is just the beginning - these are teams that are not looking to take part, they're looking to take over; these are the teams that scare you in the postseason; these are the teams that you want no part of...the Buffalo Bills are one of those teams.
"There was a time when making the playoffs was a reason to party in Buffalo, but not anymore," Rome continued. "They aren't just happy with showing up, they're looking to win the whole damn thing."
"They are going to have fans in Buffalo on Saturday when the playoffs get started - 6,700 of them will get to finally witness their team which has been phenomenal this year, and better and better each and every week," said Mike Florio of NBC Sports. "They are blowing teams out, they have that glow of a special team, of a team of destiny - that's what it feels like for the Buffalo Bills right now."
Need even more proof of sky high expectations? As of Monday evening, the Bills are favored by seven points, which is a significant margin for a playoff game.
Buffalo hosts Indianapolis on Saturday, with kickoff scheduled for 1:05.
