How The Josh Allen Effect Influences NFL's Primetime Schedule Placements for Bills

The NFL has frequently deployed the Buffalo Bills to primetime viewership windows over the past five seasons, and fans can expect more of the same in 2026.

While the Bills made a coaching change, firing Sean McDermott after an emotionally-devastating 33-30 playoff loss to the Denver Broncos, their profile remains highly attractive to the league's schedule-makers.

"No luster lost. Not at all," said NFL VP for broadcast planning Mike North on the It's Always Gameday in Buffalo Podcast.

With offensive coordinator Joe Brady having been promoted to lead the charge, Buffalo is still viewed as a top-tier television commodity for the league to share with its network partners.

"Obviously, anytime there's a coaching change, there's going to be an adjustment period for the locker room and for the players. But it's obviously a guy that the organization knows well. [We] don't expect to drop off at all, certainly at least on the offensive side of the ball," said North, who provided insight into the schedule-making process during his annual conversation with Buffalo-based reporter Sal Capaccio.

The NFL will unveil its complete 2026 schedule on Thursday, May 14 at 8 p.m. ET. We wrote about the Bills' 2026 opponents in anticipation of the schedule release earlier this offseason.

The Josh Allen effect

Despite missing out on a sixth consecutive AFC East title, the Bills recorded 12 regular season victories while quarterback Josh Allen finished as a NFL MVP finalist for the fifth time in 2025.

"I think we believe in that quarterback," said North.

With Allen considered one of the NFL's most exciting and marketable personalities, every Bills' game is essentially a candidate for prime placement.

"Are the Bills going to be one of the teams that are at or near the max in terms of prime time games and national television appearances? Yeah, as long as that guy is your quarterback. Yeah," said North.

Allen, who has accounted for the most touchdowns (301) through the first eight seasons of a career in NFL history, has led Buffalo to double-digit win totals seven years in a row. Additionally, he's married to renowned actress Hailee Steinfeld, who has 20.5 million Instagram followers and starred in the 2025 Best Picture runner-up "Sinners."

"It's an easy thing for the Josh Allen-led Buffalo Bills. Like we said, early in the season, they're going to be top of mind, top of our list for national windows, primetime games," said North.

Probable primetime picks

While Allen and the Bills' presence is more than enough to draw robust viewership numbers in featured windows, there are naturally certain matchups that will be extra attractive to the NFL's network partners.

With quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson viewed similarly to Allen in terms of the ability to attract interest, the Buffalo's head-to-head meetings with the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens seemed destined for prime placement again this season.

“Certainly, your guy [Allen], 15 in red out there in Kansas City [Mahomes], Lamar [Jackson] - those are guys [most fans identify with]. I still think that Holy Trinity kind of still resonates in the AFC," said North.

Last year, the Bills hosted the Ravens for the Sunday Night Football opener in Week 1. We wrote about the massive ratings that the SNF instant classic registered. The viewership numbers were even higher when the Bills faced the Chiefs in a standalone 4:25 p.m. ET window in Week 9.

Buffalo is seemingly likely to face the New England Patriots again in primetime this season, especially considering the latter dethroned the Bills in the AFC East last year. The Patriots won the first meeting on a last-minute field goal on Sunday Night Football in Week 5, and the Bills got payback with an exhilirating December win in Foxboro.

"Obviously, New England deserves to be considered in there having gone to the Super Bowl," said North.

The Bills will travel west to face Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams in addition to making a rare visit to Lambeau Field this season. Both road games carry significant appeal and could land in a special time slot.

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