If the Buffalo Bills reach their fifth straight Super Bowl, it will be through no fault of their own. Blame the Miami Dolphins or the New England Patriots or the New York Jets. Blame Jim Harbaugh. Somebody no doubt will.

The annual chase of the Bills begins with the annual prediction of their imminent demise. This year, it's the loss of Pro Bowl offensive tackle Howard Ballard and Pro Bowl cornerback Nate Odomes to Seattle.

Rivals have loaded up. The Dolphins have Bernie Kosar behind Dan Marino. The Patriots look like they know what they're doing under coach Bill Parcells. The Jets have added even more old guys to go with new young coach Pete Carroll. The Colts have Marshall Faulk to take the pressure off Harbaugh.

Whether any of that will affect the Bills depends a lot on the Bills' mood. For if Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, Andre Reed, Bruce Smith, Cornelius Bennett and Darryl Talley decide five is the charm, they will be difficult to unseat.

Buffalo Bills: To replace Odomes, the Bills plugged in last year's No. 1 draft choice, Thomas Smith. To replace 340-pound "House" Ballard, they are going with 350-pound Jerry "Condo" Crafts.

Coach Marv Levy called off training camp early, figuring his guys are ready and he doesn't want them injured. An injury in the offensive line could prove devastating.

Reed is being moved from the slot to outside receiver, and rookie Bucky Brooks has looked good enough to thoroughly confuse everyone who thought Billy Brooks was the second-best receiver.

A key to Buffalo's season again is Thomas, and it's important to note that even great running backs can hit walls. Now 28, Thomas' yards-per-carry average dropped to 3.7 last year, a yard less than the three previous seasons. His per-catch average dropped more than 2 yards to 8.1, his first season under 10. One of the great workhorse producers of all time, Thomas is pushing the law of averages.

Smith remains the one pass rusher everybody would love to have. His prowess is all the more remarkable because the Bills don't have much of a supporting cast on the line. They must rely on linebackers Bennett and Talley instead.

Miami Dolphins: If this is 64-year-old coach Don Shula's last season, contract extension notwithstanding, more than nostalgia could make it memorable.

Marino is a quarterback who thought this Super Bowl stuff would be easy when he made it his second season, way back in 1984. Coming off an Achilles' tendon injury that still nags, Marino's appreciation of NFL mortality is heightened. The urgency increases.

The pieces could be there, provided the defense improves, as usual. The Dolphins slid from the best record in the league to the playoff sidelines after Marino got hurt, but it was the defense that gave up four touchdown passes to New England rookie Drew Bledsoe on the last day.

The defense fell to 20th and is counting on rookies Tim Bowens and Aubrey Beavers and free-agent safeties Gene Atkins and Michael Stewart for rejuvenation. A healthy cornerback Troy Vincent is important. Losing middle linebacker John Offerdahl to retirement hurts.

Young Terry Kirby is a nice addition to Keith Byars in the backfield, and the Dolphins added a touch of excitement in rookie Irving Spikes, who averaged nearly 50 yards on his first six kickoff returns of the preseason.

New England Patriots: Parcells is responsible for a bandwagon currently boarding in New England. Optimists think it's bound for the playoffs right away; others would rather wait until it picks up speed.

Bledsoe is the real deal, leading the team to four straight victories at the end of his rookie season. Of all the statistics that marked him as a future superstar, the mere 16 sacks he took may be most telling. When Jim Plunkett started for the Patriots the year before Bledsoe was born, he was dumped so many times he became shell-shocked.

Parcells, who loves to run, added San Diego's Marion Butts and Pittsburgh's Leroy Thompson and subtracted last year's leading rusher, Leonard Russell.

No. 1 draft pick Willie McGinest got three sacks in his first preseason game, so it doesn't look like he'll hurt a defense that finished 13th last year.

New York Jets: Receiver Art Monk, 36, and placekicker Nick Lowery, 38, are the latest additions to the Jets, home to the NFL's version of the seniors tour. A wrist injury to receiver Rob Moore could make Monk more than an antique poster. Boomer Esiason needs all the help he can get.

Johnny Johnson paid off immediately at running back, but the Jets are still waiting for linebacker Marvin Jones. Esiason's blockers are underrated, but the defensive line is still looking for a dominant pass rusher.

With Ronnie Lott still hitting, the Jets have plenty of leaders. They are also the only team that hasn't won a single division title since the 1970 merger.

Indianapolis Colts: Even though Harbaugh has small shoes to fill with Jeff George gone, it will be a big job. Harbaugh enjoyed a statistically impressive preseason but was pressed in the minds of fans by ex-Packer Don Majkowski.

After drafting Faulk and Trev Alberts with their first two picks, the Colts once again suffered a blow when Alberts was lost for the season with an elbow injury. He follows Steve Emtman, still recovering from knee surgery, and Quentin Coryatt, who has been hampered by injury.

The Colts had the worst defense in football last year, and operations chief Bill Tobin expects brother Vince to fix it, with help from Faulk and Harbaugh.