Breakdown: Rex Ryan's new-look squad will be put to the test early when the Buffalo Bills host the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots -- who faced off in last season's AFC title game -- in back-to-back games at Ralph Wilson Stadium to begin the season. The schedule eases up in the ensuing weeks, and the first half culminates with the Bills' London tilt against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The second half is tougher and includes five road games in six weeks (Weeks 10-15), a stretch that could make or break the Bills' season.

Complaint department: About those five road games in six weeks ... yikes. That doesn't happen often in the NFL, and the Bills could have a legitimate gripe about that. The worst part of that stretch could be a Monday night game in New England followed by a Sunday afternoon trip to face the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, one of the loudest venues in the NFL. It's not an insurmountable obstacle -- the Bills should beat lesser opponents like the New York Jets and Washington Redskins, even on the road -- but it won't get any easier when they return to Ralph Wilson Stadium on Dec. 27 for a tough matchup with the Dallas Cowboys.

Monday Night Football drought ends: The Bills' five-year drought of not appearing on ESPN's Monday Night Football will end this season on Nov. 23, when they travel to Gillette Stadium to square off with the Patriots. That will be the Bills' first nationally televised Monday night game since 2009, when they opened that season at New England. While the trip will snap the Bills' streak of not playing on Monday Night Football -- which had been the longest current drought in the NFL -- they won't play on Sunday Night Football this season, barring a flexed game. The Bills haven't played on NBC's Sunday night telecast since 2007, the longest drought in the NFL.

Strength of schedule: 19th, .486

Bills regular-season schedule (all times Eastern)

Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 13, Indianapolis, 1 p.m.

Week 2: Sunday, Sept. 20, New England, 1 p.m.

Week 3: Sunday, Sept. 27, at Miami, 4:25 p.m.

Week 4: Sunday, Oct. 4, N.Y. Giants, 1 p.m.

Week 5: Sunday, Oct. 11, at Tennessee, 1 p.m.

Week 6: Sunday, Oct. 18, Cincinnati, 1 p.m.

Week 7: Sunday, Oct. 25, at Jacksonville, 9:30 a.m.*

Week 8: BYE

Week 9: Sunday, Nov. 8, Miami, 1 p.m.

Week 10: Thursday, Nov. 12, at N.Y. Jets, 8:25 p.m.

Week 11: Monday, Nov. 23, at New England, 8:30 p.m.

Week 12: Sunday, Nov. 29, at Kansas City, 1 p.m.

Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 6, Houston, 1 p.m.

Week 14: Sunday, Dec. 13, at Philadelphia, 1 p.m.

Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 20, at Washington, 1 p.m.

Week 16: Sunday, Dec. 27, Dallas, 1 p.m.

Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 3, N.Y. Jets, 1 p.m.

* game to be played in London