WhitewalkerInPhilly

I'd join you. With a tire iron

If so he won't for long.

At this point, I'm fine if the Bills forfeit. I can't imagine seeing that happen in front of me, not knowing it a coworker will live or die and then being told "ok, warm yourselves up and get back to work"

I mean targeting RT was always the game plan.

I'd honestly rather be a Jets fan than a Dolphins fan. With the Jets, you knew that the Zach Wilson gamble would have to play itself out. And while they still need a QB, that they need one is a foregone conclusion. They've hit on draft picks more than I'd like. In comparison, you have the Dolphins who are up against the cap, have no 1st round picks and no idea on Tua's long term viability

I don't think it was ever truly in doubt

I don't know why, but I feel good. There has been so much Bengals hype, and they've talked so much trash while the Bills remained quiet and focused. Bengals rely on running an airshow and beating teams on the blitz. The Bills defense is about forcing precision drives and getting there with 4 rushers. Bengals starting RT is out. Bengals D is bottom 1/3 of the league at stopping scrambling QBs. That's where Josh eats. I'm not saying it's a done deal, but I legitimately like the way we line up against the Bengals. I think all the hardship the Bills had is making them gel at the right time. I don't think it's easy but as long as 17 is under center I won't count the Bills out of anything.

Yup. At this point they are handing over billboard material. It's not that talking heads are pointing out scheme matchups. It's "Burrow good, Chase good, Josh Allen inconsistent" and that's where it stops

Thank you! That's what has been driving me crazy. The Bengals are legit, but we have more wins against a tougher resume.

That's what the Bengals did vs Mahomes. And, due respect meant, I think there's a few reasons why Burrow is a different beast. The comparisons I keep hearing to Burrow are Brady: throws accurate, can run better than you think. He is a classic drop back passer working at a high level. When a play breaks down. In comparison Mahomes is more willing to improvise. I want Burrow to feel the heat more aggressively.

That's part of why I am hopeful for this matchup. La'el Collins is now out for the season and their O-line is battered. If there is a time and place for our front four to be able to get consistent pressure against an O-line like we did vs the Rams in the opener it's now. That lets us play our standard nickel D that we got to at the start of the season.

My annoyance isn't that people are picking the Bengals to win. They are a good team. It's a combination of two things: One, the sheer volume of people taking the Bengals over the Bills. Two, the reasons I keep hearing are problems with the Bills that the Bengals also are dealing with to an extent or have it worse, and yet those issues are somehow backbreaking killers for the Bills and no big deal for the Bengals. This illustrates my point nicely. I have heard time and time again about how insane the receiving group the Bengals have. That Chase, Higgins and Boyd are the most dangerous trio in the NFL, moreso than Hill and Waddle. At the same time, I keep hearing about how Josh is a one man show with no one but Diggs pulling their weight. And look, the Bills have done more with seemingly less.

I know I griped about it before but I am seeing A LOT of love for the Bengals. Not that they are a bad team, but apparently our secondary is cooked despite being healtier than most of the season and being second in points allowed. The Bills won't be able to run on the Bengals despite the fact that running made our offense click against the teams immediately behind the Bengals in run defense, which is the rest of the AFC East. Joe Burrow is the best pure pocket passer in the NFL, except his numbers the past few weeks have looked comparable to Allen despite Allen playing in worse conditions and better defenses. The more I see, I get the feeling that something is brewing. The defense is healthier than it's been in a while while the Bengals Oline is very banged up. This is the first clear weather game for the Bills really since Thanksgiving and they've now had some time to work in Beasley and Brown, while the run game has gotten clicking. I don't have anything hard to back it up, but things seem to be coming together for a playoff run.

Morse back in full practice is big. I am also happy to see Benford working his way back. Any Hyde updates?

I'm kind of amazed at some of the national media I'm hearing. I'm hearing a lot of Bengals predictions. Pretty much every soundbite I hear as to why the Bills won't make the super Bowl applies to them: they've won ugly the past few weeks. They've beat up on bad teams with the NFC South looking like a dumpster fire. Am I missing something? Because I get that Burrow throws a pretty ball and Jamar Chase is hell on wheels. Is there some facet of their team we haven't seen. I know their receivers are good but I don't know if they are better than Hill, Waddle and Gisecki. Burrow is great but he's not as mobile as Mahommes and can be sacked. Their D is ok to good but the Ravens, Jets and Patriots is better. What am I not getting?

It's more Nick Wright overall being a heel for clickbait. Basically, anything that is a threat to Chiefs dominance sets him off. The man has argued that Josh is an below average QB and that Tua/Herbert/Lawrence should be in the Pro bowl over Allen

No I hear you. The only teams that give me pause to say that we are better than are the Chiefs and Eagles. Cincinnati is uncomfortably close though.

With the game Monday night I don't think that we get injury reports until Wednesday. He's been concussion free for a while before this. Median recovery time is 9 days, he's currently at 10 and counting. So nothing hard but I am optimistic

I don't wish for injuries. But boy, do the Dolphins deserve this. They are hanging by a thread and I want to see them tumble off

I mean that's the basics of what I knew. If so, I have to say that I like our scheme. Limiting explosive plays is what the Bills hang their hat on and with our CBs finally getting healthy and a statue pocket passer I like what I see Of course, individual talent can still break us and Josh is going to need to be Mr. Primetime but I like the setup

Sadly I don't know the Bengals as well as a lot of other teams we've faced. I know Burrow is a great pocket passer and has a phenomenal #1 WR. Does anyone know a breakdown of the schemes they run? Is the offensive line as bad as in recent years?

I agree. They definitely had some new coach sheen. And credit to him, McDaniel saw what he could get out of Tua and picked up two great offensive weapons to make him lethal. But they've come to rely on it so much that when the Bills were sticking with a Cover 2 shell and Mostert was pounding the ball on us that McDaniel can't help but get cute. Add in December weather and a formula on how to win appears It's an interesting thought. Concussions do build up over time (see Ray, Rob and LaFontaine, Pat) I am not rooting for Tua to have life altering medical trauma. But if he really got brained it is yet another indictment on the Dolphins staff.

Hey, anyone can make you nervous when you owe them money and they show up in the middle of the night with a crowbar. Or so I've been told.

I have not seen any breakdowns, were the Bears in heavy shell coverage and inviting the Bills to run? Because it seems like a normally terrible secondary did a good job limiting Josh with help from the wind while the running game hadn't looked that dominant any time in decent memory. I think Singletary was close to 10 yards a carry? I know the Bears Dline isn't good, but this seems purposeful

Effectively yes. I remember trying it at the Bidwell market before they got a space. It has the coffee notes of Guinness but with a fae lighter body. I rarely drink now but that it one I still crave