Bills could match NFL record for fastest to clinch division title: Here's when
The AFC East was predicted to be a tight race, with the Buffalo Bills' quest for a fifth straight championship facing stiff challenges from the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets.
It's the most lopsided division in the NFL.
The Buffalo Bills could potentially clinch the AFC East in Week 11. No team in league history has wrapped up a division title sooner.
Four teams have secured a division championship in Week 11. The Bills may become the fifth.
The last team to do it was the New England Patriots in 2007, who walloped the Bills 56-10 fueled by five Tom Brady touchdown passes in Week 11 in Orchard Park.
Buffalo has six wins, which is the combined total of the rest of AFC East. The Bills (6-2) hold a 3 1/2 game lead on the Dolphins (2-5) and a four game lead on the Jets (2-6) and New England Patriots (2-6).
If the Bills win their next three games and the Dolphins, Jets and Patriots lose their next three games, Buffalo would lock up the division before Thanksgiving.
It gives a new meaning to holiday break. Buffalo's bye is Week 12.
The Bills-Dolphins game is the only intradivision game in the AFC East over the next three weeks, so no other team in the AFC East is guaranteed a win or tie.
Here's is the scenario for AFC East crown in mid-November: Buffalo is 9-2 with three straight victories in Weeks 9-11. Miami falls to 2-8 with three consecutive losses and New York and New England drop to 2-9. The worst possible Bills record thereafter is 9-8. Miami's ceiling would also be 9-8 but the Bills would clinch the division by sweeping the head-to-head tiebreaker.
The Bills host the Dolphins on Sunday, travel to play the Indianapolis Colts in Week 10 and the Kansas City Chiefs visit Orchard Park in Week 11 on Nov. 17. Then Buffalo doesn't play until the San Francisco 49ers come to Highmark Stadium for Sunday Night Football at 8:20 p.m. on Dec. 1.
Buffalo Bills playoff picture
The Bills would be the No. 4 seed behind the Kansas City Chiefs (7-0), Houston Texans (6-2) and Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2) if the season ended today. Buffalo currently has a 96% chance to make the playoffs.
The earliest Buffalo can lock up the division is Week 11. Here's what would need to happen from Weeks 9-11.
Bills: beat Dolphins, Colts and Chiefs
Dolphins: lose to Bills, Chargers and Raiders
Jets: lose to Texans, Cardinals and Colts
Patriots: Lose to Titans, Bears and Chargers
What's the earliest an NFL team has clinched a division?
Four NFL teams clinched a division title in Week 11:
2007 New England Patriots: New England became the only team to go undefeated in a 16-game regular season schedule. The Patriots lost 17-14 to the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLII.
2004 Philadelphia Eagles: Philadelphia began the season 13-1, rested its starters for the final two regular season games and finished 13-3. The Eagles advanced to the NFC championship game for the fourth straight time, won the conference championship and lost 24-21 to the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXIX.
1997 San Francisco 49ers: San Francisco went 13-3 under first-year head coach Steve Mariucci and was the No. 1 seed in the NFC. The 49ers lost 23-10 to the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship.
1985 Chicago Bears: Chicago had one of the greatest seasons in NFL history. The Bears won their first 12 games en route to a 15-1 regular season record. Chicago routed the New England Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Buffalo Bills could clinch division among fastest in NFL history
