The 2025 schedule release turned out to be quite favorable for the Buffalo Bills. Not only do the reigning AFC East champions face the ninth-easiest slate of games, but the schedule also offers a subtle advantage during a critical stretch.
In the offseason, Buffalo brought in defensive linemen Michael Hoecht and Larry Ogunjobi to help strengthen their run defense. However, shortly after joining the team, both players were hit with six-game suspensions for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy.
While losing two significant additions for the opening portion of the season is a tough blow, the Bills’ schedule offers a bit of a reprieve.
As Buffalo Rumblings pointed out, “A potentially more significant benefit has to do with a couple of players new to the roster in 2025… Both Hoecht and Ogunjobi will miss the first six weeks of the season while serving PED-related suspensions. But with Buffalo’s bye coming in Week 7, it gives both players a chance to ease back into practice and regain their form from training camp and the preseason. It’s a silver lining to what were otherwise disappointing developments for GM Brandon Beane.”
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Since suspended players cannot participate in team activities, the timing of the Week 7 bye is crucial. It gives Hoecht and Ogunjobi a full week of practice before potentially returning to game action, increasing the chances they can contribute right away.
All in all, it’s another way the 2025 schedule seems to be working in the Bills’ favor.