Trio of Bills among the most influential people of upcoming NFL season

Some players on the Buffalo Bills may be more valuable than others when it comes to the team as a whole, but in the race to the Super Bowl, where there are only a handful of teams with realistic chances of making it to the big game, others take the spotlight.

In honor of the 2026 Super Bowl, the 60th iteration of the fight for the Lombardi Trophy, Matt Verderame of Sports Illustrated made a list on Friday of the 60 most influential people for the upcoming NFL season, which starts on Thursday, and three Bills made the list.

Josh Allen, the reigning NFL MVP, is the headliner, and free agent edge rusher Joey Bosa and third-year tight end Dalton Kincaid were the other two who made it. They were given the No. 2, 26 and 56 spots, respectively.

Allen, in the first-year of the post-Stefon Diggs era, accounted for 40 total touchdowns en route to his first MVP award despite having no receiver with more than 850 yards receiving.

"The Bills have a roster similar to last year’s, giving Allen the challenge of winning with Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman and free-agent addition Joshua Palmer as his primary targets," Verderame wrote. Allen rose to the challenge in 2024, so there's no reason to think he can't.

Bosa, who was signed to a prove-it contract in free agency, has been healthy throughout the preseason and is poised to be a force, but there's always some risk because he's only played in 28 games in the last three seasons.

"If he can be healthy in January and help Buffalo get a pass rush on Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes, the one-year, $12.6 million contract is worth it," wrote Verderame.

Jul 23, 2025; Rochester, NY, USA; Joey Bosa (97) during training camp at St. John Fisher University. | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

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Kincaid, the Bills' first-round pick in 2023, dealt with injuries in 2024, and that caused him to have a down year. This could be it for him to prove himself as Allen's safety valve, and Verderame says it'd be a big boon for Buffalo.

"With Buffalo having question marks in the receiving corps behind slot extraordinaire Khalil Shakir, the re-emergence of Kincaid would be enormous," he wrote.

The Bills have many cogs that will tell the tale of their 2025 season, and Allen, Bosa and Kincaid are just a few.

Aug 9, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Dalton Kincaid (86) carries the ball after making a catch against the New York Giants. | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

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