Six weeks into the 2008-2009 Season, The Buffalo Bills were sitting pretty. Sporting a 5-1 won-loss record, they were in first place in the tough and competitive AFC East Division, looking down on The Miami Dolphins, The New York Jets and perennial division champion, The New England Patriots.

In the NFL, however, change comes fast. As quickly as the Bills had risen to the top, they fell, with a thud, and hit rock bottom. After the fast start, loss followed loss followed loss , seemingly forever.

In fact, the losses piled up over much of the remainder of the NFL season. And, when the smoke cleared and the dust settled, The Buffalo Bills, the team that had been in first place in October, were bringing up the rear. They finished Dead Last in the AFC East, behind the Jets, the Patriots and the surprising division winner, The Miami Dolphins.

So how did a team that looked so good in the early going fade badly as the season wore on? There were lots of reasons, inconsistent and even poor play at the key position of quarterback , an innefective offensive line protecting the qb , virtually no game-breakers on offense , a defense losing one of its best rushing linemen to a season-ending, and season-crushing, injury.

Add to that the problems compounded by a tough schedule that, of course, included home-and-home games with their intra-divisional opponents, the Dolphins, the Patriots and the Jets , and its easy to see why the Bills performance suffered in the second half of last season.

Yet, many pundits, experts and NFL analysts expected great things out of Buffalo before the season began Some actually picked this team from western New York to win their division and play deep into the playoffs. It never happened, of course, because they became a divisional and league patsy , an easy mark for hungry teams pushing toward their own playoff spots.

NFL teams can rebuild and recover quickly, especially if a core of solid professionals are already in place. That may be the case with Buffalo. They have good players, on offense , on defense , and especially, on special teams. Their injured stars will be back in the upcoming season, as well , healthy and ready-to-go.

And, according to most NFL analysts, the Buffalo Bills had a great draft. So, its also possible that they will start the new season with several recent college grads ready to help and contribute from Day One.

They could catch some teams off guard , especially in the first few games of the new season. After all, they finished last season looking like a weak sister. Opponents have every reason to believe theyll be just as weak and easy-to-beat when September rolls around.

If you like to bet, approach games with Buffalo cautiously. It may be wise to watch a game or two before investing any money on them or against them..