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Determining most-appealing Buffalo Bills' road trip on 2025 NFL schedule

Originally posted on Buffalo Bills on SI | By Owen Klein | Last updated Jul 9, 2025 7:13 AM ET

Buffalo Bills' home games will be extra special in 2025, with it being the final year of Highmark Stadium before the new venue opens, but that won't take away what will be a very fun year for road games.

If you've wished to see the Bills play on the road, you're in luck, as there's a great and very accessible lineup of road games to go to. This year's slate features the Falcons, Panthers, Texans, Steelers and Browns as non-AFC East foes. But which game looks like the best to go to?

Before the criteria are explained, I'll say that I've excluded each of the Bills' games against the AFC East because people can go to these games every year and know what to expect from them.

I've come up with four categories for each of the sites to measure which one is the best. The highest score wins. Now, let's get started with the first category:

Category 1: Proximity to Buffalo

Atlanta, GA (Falcons): 7/10

Charlotte, N.C. (Panthers): 8/10

Houston, TX (Texans): 5/10

Pittsburgh, PA (Steelers): 10/10

Cleveland, OH (Browns): 10/10

For every 250 miles a city is from Buffalo, I deducted one point off of a 1-10 scale, which is the scale I'll generally use.

Being close to home can be a deal-breaker for fans who want to go, and fortunately enough, this year's slate features the two NFL cities that are closest to Buffalo: Cleveland and Pittsburgh. It doesn't take longer than a three-and-a-half-hour drive to get to those towns.

Atlanta and Charlotte are a bit further away, while Houston is the farthest the Bills will travel unless they face a longer trip in the postseason.

Category 2: Magnitude of Game (Time)

Atlanta: 4/10

Charlotte: 3/10

Houston: 7/10

Pittsburgh: 9/10

Cleveland: 6/10

This category was calculated based on when the Bills play opponents and their connections to potential playoff seeding. For example, a game against a non-conference opponent early in the season will rank lower than a game against a conference foe late in the year when the playoff race heats up.

The games against the Falcons and Panthers won't matter much since they're in the first half of the season and against the NFC South. The tension heats up a bit against Houston before being taken to its highest point against Pittsburgh while cooling down a tad against Cleveland, but it'll still be important this late in the year.

Category 3: Magnitude of Game (Opponent)

Atlanta: 7/10

Charlotte: 3/10

Houston: 7/10

Pittsburgh: 8/10

Cleveland: 4/10

This category was calculated based on the opponent in general and how they will perform in a season. The better the opponent, the higher the ranking given the Bills' high expectations.

Carolina and Cleveland look like they'll be near or at the bottom of their divisions, Atlanta and Houston are expected to compete for fairly weak divisions, while Pittsburgh looks more and more like a team to make a deep playoff run with what they've done this offseason.

Category 4: Rest of Town

Atlanta: 5/5

Charlotte: 2/5

Houston: 4/5

Pittsburgh: 3/5

Cleveland: 3/5

This category was calculated based on what else there is to do in the city, although I did it on a 1-5 scale with the thinking that people who go will focus on the game and not what else to do maybe the day before.

Charlotte has the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Pittsburgh has stunning sights of the city from Emerald View Park and Cleveland is the place for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. However, the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta and the Space Center in Houston lead the two cities to the highest rankings in this category.

Final Ranking

5th: Charlotte, N.C. (Carolina Panthers, Week 8): 16/35

T-2nd: Atlanta, GA (Atlanta Falcons, Week 6/MNF), Houston, TX (Houston Texans, Week 12/TNF), Cleveland, OH (Cleveland Browns, Week 16): 23/35

1st: Pittsburgh, PA (Pittsburgh Steelers, Week 13): 30/35

All said, the Bills' game against the Steelers in the Steel City, the first such matchup in Pittsburgh since 2019, is set to be most likely the best overall road matchup for the Bills in the 2025 season for fans to go to, so keep an eye out for plenty of blue and red and "Go Bills!" chants come September through December.