The Buffalo Bills haven’t been to the playoffs since 1999 when Doug Flutie was quarterback. There have been some seasons in which they have nearly finished with a winning record, but that hasn’t happened since 2004 under Mike Mularkey.

But general manager Buddy Nix has significantly improved the personnel over the past few seasons.

RealGM has been using a statistic called the Trench Counter to rank NFL teams since the 2007 season.

The Trench Counter accounts for average yards per pass, yards per carry, penalty yards, first downs and turnovers to determine how well teams control the game in the most meaningful ways.

The Bills rank 28th in Trench Counter from the 2007 season through 2011.

Below are Buffalo’s season-by-season rankings, Trench Counter totals and actual record in parentheses.

2007: 23rd, -3.3 (7-9)
2008: 24th, -3.1 (7-9)
2009: 22nd, -1.6 (6-10)
2010: 30th, -6.7 (4-12)
2011: 18th, -1.4 (6-10)