The Buffalo Bills came into the 2008 season with more-or-less the opposite expectations as the New England Patriots. New England came into the season with huge expectations after one of the best seasons in history that ended abruptly in the Super Bowl. It’s pretty safe to say that nearly everyone expected a repeat performance by the Pats this year.

Buffalo, on the other hand had a very mediocre year last year and entered the season with low expectations and weren’t really expected to make too much noise in the AFC, both because of New England, and Indianapolis as well.

However, expectations have been checked at the door as Buffalo has separated itself as one of the best teams in the AFC, while New England has struggled to stay afloat. New England leads the AFC East, while the Patriots are very disappointingly in 3rd place. Sunday’s game is a huge opportunity for the Bills to announce their AFC East presence and take over for the ailing Patriots.

Matt Cassel had his coming out party, and the Denver Broncos were invited. Tom Brady’s early season replacement has been a huge question mark for the Patriots so far this season, but he did all he could to help repel the critics with his 185 yard, 3 touchdown performance against a lackluster Denver Broncos defense.

Fueled by offensive mistakes, Denver turned the ball over 5 times, by fumbling it away 3 times – once on each of their first two offensive possessions. Additionally, Jay Cutler – who has set himself apart as one of the League’s great young QB’s – threw two interceptions that helped the Patriots keep great field position and kept the struggling Denver defense on their toes.

Patriots ticket holders have definitely been less than thrilled with the team’s success this year, coming off of unimaginable expectations after last year’s almost undefeated campaign. With Lawrence Maroney now out for the season as well, it’s not only up to Cassell to carry the load, but also to Sammy Morris who will be the featured back from now on.

Up next for the Pats, are the newly revamped St. Louis Rams who are looking to continue their winning ways after a very slow start that ushered their head coach out the door. Look for a tough matchup from two teams with something to prove.