2015 Buffalo Bills Schedule: Full Listing of Dates, Times and TV Info

One year ago, the future of the Buffalo Bills was highly uncertain. Now the franchise is once again stable in its Western New York roots thanks to the Pegula family, and a big-spending offseason has one of the league's most rabid fanbases dreaming of its first playoff appearance in 16 years.

Longtime owner Ralph Wilson passed away last March. He did everything in his power through his trust to ensure the organization would remain in the Buffalo area, but there were no long-term guarantees. That's why the fans breathed a sigh of relief when Terry Pegula and his family won the bidding.     

Not only did the Pegula victory end imminent concerns about a potential move, but his deep pockets allowed the Bills to make some marquee additions. It's the type of overhaul the fanbase rarely witnessed during the team's extended playoff drought.

Buffalo brought in the outspoken Rex Ryan to become its new head coach following the exit of Doug Marrone. To upgrade the roster, it brought in LeSean McCoy, Percy Harvin, Charles Clay and Matt Cassel among others. The only notable losses were Da'Norris Searcy and C.J. Spiller.

Even those high-profile moves were made, Ryan made his expectations for 2015 clear during his introductory press conference, as Mike Rodak of ESPN noted:

Now the Bills know the road they will need to travel in order to make a return to the playoffs. Let's check out the team's schedule for next season followed by some analysis.    

2015 Buffalo Bills Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Time (ET)	TV
1	Sep. 13	vs. Indianapolis Colts	1 p.m.	CBS
2	Sep. 20	vs. New England Patriots	1 p.m.	CBS
3	Sep. 27	at Miami Dolphins	4:25 p.m.	CBS
4	Oct. 4	vs. New York Giants	1 p.m.	Fox
5	Oct. 11	at Tennessee Titans	1 p.m.	CBS
6	Oct. 18	vs. Cincinnati Bengals	1 p.m.	CBS
7	Oct. 25	at Jacksonville Jaguars (in London)	9:30 a.m.	TBD
8		Bye
9	Nov. 8	vs. Miami Dolphins	1 p.m.	CBS
10	Nov. 12	at New York Jets	8:25 p.m.	NFLN
11	Nov. 23	at New England Patriots	8:30 p.m.	ESPN
12	Nov. 29	at Kansas City Chiefs	1 p.m.	CBS
13	Dec. 6	vs. Houston Texans	1 p.m.	CBS
14	Dec. 13	at Philadelphia Eagles	1 p.m.	CBS
15	Dec. 20	at Washington Redskins	1 p.m.	CBS
16	Dec. 27	vs. Dallas Cowboys	1 p.m.	Fox
17	Jan. 3	vs. New York Jets	1 p.m.	CBS

Analysis

It's a schedule that could yield 12 or 13 wins and a possible first-round bye if the Bills had a top-10 quarterback to go along with the rest of their roster. That's not the case. They don't have a top-20 QB. Heck, they might not have a top-30 QB.

While it may seem simplistic to place so much emphasis on one position, Buffalo's long absence from the postseason is linked with its inability to fill that singular void. Quarterbacks are the league's most important players, and the value of a great one has only increased since the team's drought began.

Unfortunately for the Bills, acquiring one to build around is an extremely difficult task. They will head into training camp hoping somebody steps up to earn the job. Cassel, EJ Manuel, Tyrod Taylor and potentially a draft pick will battle it out.

Mark Ludwiczak of Bills Digest summed up the competition another way:

The good news for Buffalo is the offense it's built around those quarterbacks should make the job a lot easier. It starts with what's likely to become a heavily utilized rushing attack featuring McCoy, Fred Jackson, Bryce Brown and Anthony Dixon.

In the passing game, the Bills added Harvin and Clay to what was already a solid trio of Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods and Chris Hogan. It may not be the most star-studded group in the NFL, but it definitely has a lot of potential if one of those quarterbacks plays even average football.

Cassel had 27 touchdowns and just seven interceptions with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2010 when asked to play a "safe" role.

Defensively, the Bills should rank among the league's best once again. Combine an outstanding core group up front that features Mario Williams, Marcell Dareus, Kyle Williams and Jerry Hughes with Ryan's prowess coaching that side of the ball, and big things are possible.

Basically, the Bills are betting that they will be competitive in almost every game thanks to their rushing attack, defense and special teams. The unknown is whether any of the quarterbacks can come up with the clutch throws they will need to make the playoffs.

They won nine games last year. Given the upgrades and a middling schedule in terms of difficulty, the playoffs are a distinct possibility with 10 or 11 wins. Another year with a single-digit victory total would be a major disappointment.

Pivotal Matchups

Brett Carlsen/Getty Images

It always starts with the New England Patriots. They have dominated the AFC East for the past decade and are coming off another Super Bowl title. Attempting to dethrone them should be the main focus coming into the season.

Getting at least a split out of those two games would be a success. Of course, Buffalo would love to sweep the defending champs, but getting one win is a solid result.

Chris Trapasso of NFL.com highlighted the "to be the best, you have to beat the best" mentality:

The other games that stand out are those against the Houston Texans, Cincinnati Bengals and Kansas City Chiefs. All three are squads that could end up in the wild-card race with the Bills during the final weeks of the campaign.

Last season, there were six teams with either nine or 10 wins in the AFC. That's a lot of competition for two playoff spots. So winning those games to bolster their head-to-head tiebreaker situation would go a long way for the Bills.

For Buffalo, it comes down to upending the Patriots. If that doesn't happen, then winning those other games becoming vitally important. Fail in both respects, and the playoff drought continues for at least another year.