Bills Central

3 best revenge games on Bills' 2024 NFL schedule

Revenge is a dish best served on turf.

McKenna Middlebrook

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs (14) can t make the catch on this deep throw by Josh
Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs (14) can t make the catch on this deep throw by Josh / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and
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The Buffalo Bills' 2024 schedule has been released, and it contains a number of contests that feature pre-existing animosity and built-in storylines. We're breaking down a few of the bigger 'revenge games' on the team's 2024 slate.

Kansas City Chiefs - Week 11

The must-see grudge match of the current generation will have its eighth installment since the start of the 2020 season as the Buffalo Bills will host the Kansas City Chiefs at Highmark Stadium in Week 11.  

Related: Ranking Bills' 2024 opponents by Josh Allen's career passer rating against them

These two sides faced each other twice last season, where the Bills beat the Chiefs 20-17 in Arrowhead, but Kansas City got the last laugh in the playoffs; the Bills suffered another heartbreaking loss at the hands of their newfound rivals, as Tyler Bass pushed his game-tying field goal… wide right. 

This box office clash has been centered around the two premier quarterbacks in the NFL, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. What makes this matchup even more interesting is how similarly the two teams are constructed. Along with their two electrifying quarterbacks both teams have a wide receiving corps without a bonafide star, a reliance on their tight ends in the passing game, and two aggressive defenses. Where the Chiefs have the biggest edge over the Bills though is in coaching. The Chiefs coaching staff is wildly more experienced than that of Buffalo. The Bills have a rookie defensive coordinator in Bobby Babich, and Joe Brady, their offensive coordinator is entering his first full season at the position in Buffalo. 

As we edge ever closer to the start of the 2024 season, this current rendition of the Bills-Chiefs rivalry has the Chiefs leading with a 4-3 advantage. The Bills have a chance to even the series in the regular season, but we’ll most likely see these two battle it out in the playoffs next season as well.

Houston Texans - Week 5

The Buffalo Bills haven’t played the Houston Texans since the 2021 season where the Bills beat them 40-0. Before the offseason had started, this was going to be an interesting matchup. The Texans are a team on the rise. They have an astonishing duo of second-year head coach DeMeco Ryans and second-year quarterback CJ Stroud. They also have a young talented receiving duo with Tank Dell and Nico Collins. On paper, all the makings for an explosive shootout in Houston.

But it became about revenge on April 3rd, 2024. It became about revenge when the Bills traded Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans.

We don’t need to go into incredible detail on how important Diggs was for the Bills, and how important he was for his former quarterback. Allen himself has stated that himself numerous times since the arrival and now departure of Diggs. But during the final two seasons of his tenure in Buffalo, there was a growing sense of dread from Bills Mafia that Diggs was going to leave Western New York, even after Diggs signed a lucrative contract extension during his stay in Buffalo. 

Related: Instant analysis of each game on Bills' 2024 schedule

These feelings though seemed mostly narrative and media driven, pinning a label on Diggs from his time in Minnesota. But unfortunately, there was smoke with this fire. After a series of on-the-field and off-the-field drama during the end of the 2022 season and the start of the 2023 season, GM Brandon Beane traded Diggs after the final straw, a, perhaps coincidentally timed, social media post that stated Josh Allen needed him to be a top quarterback in the NFL. 

It’s going to be a game full of mixed emotions for Bills Mafia, because as much as the way Diggs left hurts, they will always have the great memories of Diggs in Buffalo. 

Jacksonville Jaguars - Week 3

In their last two meetings the Jacksonville Jaguars have beaten the Buffalo Bills… twice. Both of these games were ugly, in 2021 the Jags beat the Bills 9-6. Then last season, the Bills lost 25-20 in London. That was a notable game because it’s where the Bills lost not only the game, but star linebacker Matt Milano for the rest of the season. They also lost defensive tackle DaQuan Jones for a majority of the season. 

What makes these losses sting even more is that the Bills are a better team than the Jaguars. On paper, they have more talent across the board, and statistically they are the better team. Last season the Bills were fourth in total yards earned and sixth in points scored while Jacksonville was 13th in both of those statistical categories. The Bills also allowed fewer points and yards than Jacksonville, and the Bills had a better turnover differential; they finished the season at +2, while Jacksonville finished at -3. 

For Buffalo, if they want to be a Super Bowl contender, they need to beat teams like the Jaguars, a team the Bills are better than in terms of talent and better than statistically. So, we’ll see if the Bills can shake this mini-losing streak against the Jags and start making their claims as Super Bowl contenders.

Related: Ranking Bills' Top 5 most exciting games on 2024 NFL Schedule

Honorable mention: Arizona Cardinals - Week 1

The Bills and the Cards don’t have any sort of long history or modern rivalry, this tends to happen with out-of-conference but opponents. But, they’re the only team on the schedule that Josh Allen hasn’t beaten in his career. The last time these two teams met, the Cardinals had one of the most miraculous finishes in NFL history. 

The Hail Murray. 

Everyone who watched the game remembers the finish, and everyone who didn’t watch, eventually saw it. 

While there isn’t much history between the teams, beating Arizona would be a great palette cleanser for the Bills and their fans to start the season.

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McKenna Middlebrook
MCKENNA MIDDLEBROOK

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