A column by CHUCK POLLOCK, Wellsville Sun Senior Sports Columnist
What an introduction to the National Football League for Joe Brady.
Brady, was the Bills offensive coordinator for most of the last four seasons after two years spent with the Carolina Panthers following two years at New Orleans and one at LSU (2019) when the Tigers won the NCAA Championship.
Now he’s stepped up in class having taken over as Buffalo’s head coach less than a week after Sean McDermott was fired the day after the Bills lost an overtime “wild card” playoff contest in Denver last season.
The first five games of the 2026 schedule for Buffalo are, in a word, brutal. Four of Detrot (9-8) in the first ever regular-season game at the new Highmark Stadium (Sept. 17) on a Thursday night
The opener is Sept. 13 at Houston (12-5), arguably the league’s best defensive team, which drilled the Steelers in last year’s playoff opener. Then, Game 3, brings the potent L.A. Chargers (11-6) to Orchard Park. The fourth game Buffalo will entertain Super Bowl loser, New England (14-3), though the Patriots are reeling from the affair involving head coach Mike Vrabel and former NFL Insider reporter for The Athletic Dianna Russini. Finally, Game 5 is a road Monday nighter against the L.A. Rams (12-5), loser in the NFC Championship game to eventual Super Bowl winner Seattle a year ago.
BUT THAT’S not the only test for Brady.
The standing joke was that Buffalo was overdue to play a holiday game.
Instead, the Bills got two:
First came long-time nemesis Kansas City (6-11) coming off its first losing season since 2012. The Chiefs will be in Orchard Park at 8:30 on Thanksgiving night.
It gets worse. Buffalo will then reavel to Denver to play the Broncos (14-3) on Christmas afternoon (4:25).
There are also two Thursday night games, Detroit in the home opener and the Thanksgiving meeting with Kansas City at Highmark.
And finally, there will be a pair of Monday nighters: Oct. 12 in Los Angeles agsinst the Rams and Nov. 9 at Minnesota (9-8).
Buffalo gets a near-perfect bye week in Game 7 preceding a game against the Ravens (8-9) at Highmark.
The Bills have a rare Saturday night game, Dec. 19, hosting Chicago (8:20) seven days before traveling to Denver to play the Broncos on Christmas Day before going to South Floriida to play the Dolphins (7-10).
The Bills would seem to have one six-day trip as they follow the game at SoFi against the Rams with a meeting with the Raiders at Las Vegas (3-14).
If you’re wondering, Buffalo has six prime-time games, plus three in the 4 o’clock hour and seven at 1 p.m.. The Bills and Jets are set for Dec. 9-10 in the regular-season finale with an uncertain starting time in Orchard Park and the last two games at Miami, and home with New York could be flexed .based on the standings.
AND FOR the curious, Buffalo’s preseason schedule is as follows: at Carolina 1 p.m. Sat. Aug. 15, at Cleveland, Sat. Aug. 22 1 p.m, and home with Pittsburgh, Thursday, Aug. 27, 7 p.m.
So how does Buffalo finish with a testing schedule, a new head coach, a shaken-up staff and likely eight new starters plus a punter?
The Bills benefit from playing the Jets twice (3-14) and Raiders (3-14) but the rest of the schedule is a test.
Las Vegas’ consensus is 11-6 but my prediction is 10-7, enough to make the playoffs but not enough to make the division finals.
(Chuck Pollock, a Wellsville Sun and Olean Star senior sports columnist, can be reached at cpollock@wnynet.net.)
