Alphadawg7

Well it certainly helps your pass defense statistics when your run defense is so bad that my 94 year old Grandma can go for 70+ yards and a Tuddy. That being said, its also not a surprise, we usually fare pretty well in pass defense statistics every year - atl least until we play Andy Reid in the playoffs and McD and his Defense who seem to have no answers for the Chiefs offense even when their offense is having a down year.

Yeah, I am not saying we can't - and I certainly hope we do. But this is more about my confidence in if we will. I have in the past seen things out of this team after mid season slumps to where I have gone on the record with a thread predicting we would win out, and we did every single time. This year though, something is off with this team. Just feels like there is less fire and fight in this team than years past. Allen seems off still - he looks less decisive, slower to evade and escape, less explosive with his legs, etc. The team was completely anemic the first half of football, I was at the point of ready to clean house at half time, especially with how defeated McD sounded being interviewed as he left for half time. As far as injuries go, I agree if we get some of those guys back we could see a boost. But, at the same time, many of the issues were there when those guys were not hurt too. I also think our biggest loss was Hoecht who is out for the season. And will the coaching staff have the balls to play the guys playing better when everyone is healthy, like Shaq for example at LB. Rooting for a win out and strong playoff run for sure -I just lack the high confidence this year that I have had in previous seasons at key turning points. Now we go out and look good and beat the Bengals I will start feeling a little better about it.

Can we? Yes of course, and we have done it multiple times before. Did Sunday's game boost my confidence in them doing that this year, no it did not. The team I watched on Sunday did not look like a team that I would be comfortable wagering on to win out. The offense was atrocious first half and then found some life only because we kept running the same running play over and over again with success, TJ Watt literally said he never seen anything like that before. Outside the same running plays over and over again, the rest of the offense did not look good again. And while the defense was dominant, beating up on a bad Steeler offense doesn't suddenly make me forget all the issues the defense has had all year to where I think this is what we can expect week to week. To again answer the title of this thread - Yes, the Bills certainly can, and have done it before. But - my confidence in them being able to do it isn't as high as its been in the past when facing this potential. The team has been so Jeckyl and Hyde this season that its hard to know what we can expect week to week. Four things concern me still right now: Brady's predictability Too many turnovers Undisciplined mistakes Defensive consistency I hope they use this game to go on a run, and Bengals will certainly immediately test that. But, I would be lying if I said I was highly confident in us doing it this year.

Super stoked we won - but taking off homer glasses and being unbiased, the team I watched play on Sunday didn't look like a team that can win out. 2 things happened that game that are pretty hard for me to come away feeling confident about on a weekly basis. How the offense produced - The offense greatly benefited from the Steelers offense being so bad and not capitalizing on all our mistakes and turnovers. But the more concerning thing for me was that the only way we could move the ball effectively was to keep running the same run play over and over again. Even TJ Watt said he had never seen anything like that where a team kept running the same play and they couldn't adjust or stop it. The rest of the offense was pretty bad again outside the success we kept having running the same runs over and over again. So I did not come away from this game feeling better about the offense personally. I still have a lot of concerns about Brady, I mean the first half was atrocious again, we were just lucky Steelers couldn't capitalize more. Our defense was dominant - great to see, but nothing about this defense overall this year makes me feel like what we saw on Sunday is something they can expect week in and week out. I hope they do, but after the season the defense has had, I can't just suddenly expect to see this kind of performance week to week and against better teams. So for me, I need to see the defense string together a series of games before I start buying maybe its figured something out. A win is a win, so very happy we beat the Steelers. But I would be lying if that game boosted my confidence back up. I hope they build on it for sure, but I didn't leave that game feeling like we turned a corner and about to go on a tear. We very well might, not saying we can't as we have done it before, but just saying how I felt after watching that game and what this team has looked like the past 8 weeks that resulted in a 4-4 record.

I mean you pretty much loaded up the answers here to get what you want. Not really a fair selection of choices so I will refrain from voting.

Maybe I am misremembering, but I don't recall them making any credible offers to him. I could be wrong, but they should have tried harder.

It was insane they didn’t try and keep Darnold IMO. I get it if someone out bids them, but they didn’t even try and banked on an unproven rookie coming off injury with no contingency.

No offense, but you don’t really leave any room for anyone else to get any credit when they do something by talking like this. He got open, he caught the ball. The thing you and everyone else says every day he can’t do. I don’t know what Coleman can be, but I know what he has been has not been good enough so far. So I’m not here to make excuses for him. But at the same time, it’s such a waste of energy to spend so much time trying to take away from him anything he does positive like you’re attempting to do here. It’s fine to still doubt him, not have confidence in him, etc. It’s another thing to go out of the way to discredit anything positive he does just to maintain that opinion. He made a big play in a big moment when this team really needed it. Just let the kid have that, why try and take that away, makes no sense. Let’s just hope he builds on it, hope Brady finds better ways to get him involved…because we will be a better football team if that happens. And who knows, maybe it’s more of the same issues moving forward that got him benched, if so, he probably won’t be on the team next year. But at least leave room for the kid to prove he has value to the team.

Don’t lump me into the crowd that thought Moore was going to be some impact player here, cuz I’m not. But Moore provided more downfield potential than Samuel does as at least a threats. Instead he was treated like he was McKenzie, and Samuel isn’t being used like he was in Carolina either. In 5 seasons between CAR and WAS when he was starting and healthy, Samuel averaged 796 yards a season. Including as you said his best one with Brady. But we just aren’t using him much either despite Brady’s familiarity with him and his time in the offense. Point was, dividing snaps between Samuel and Moore was stupid, pick one and get them involved more. I don’t even care which one, I just felt Moore had more of a threat downfield at this point than Samuel. I hope they use Cooks now more than Samuel for same reason - but we all know it’s not gonna happen.

To simplify the Moore stuff - he wanted more targets, an effort to get him involved rather than the tiny role he had. Not unexpected, it’s the issue with Brady’s offense and I had been saying for weeks stop trying to get every guy on the bench involved, especially splitting reps between Moore and Samuel, pick one and get that guy more involved in the offense. And that guy should have been Moore over Samuel.

If you dont know if the Bills are better or not next year - then you also don't know if the opponents are either. 2024 - Prediction: Struggles. Reality - one of best seasons in Bills history. 2025 - Prediction: Easy. Reality - 4 bad losses to teams we penciled in as wins. Looking ahead really didn't seem to matter. All good, I just think it is pretty see to start making conclusions and predictions this early on a future season before we know anything that is going to happen between now and then. I mean who had the 2 conference leaders being the Pats in the AFC and the Rams in the NFC heading into week 13? Who had Ravens, Bills, Chiefs, Lions, Packers, Bengals, Commanders in week 13 either barely on the edge of the playoffs, currently out of the playoffs, or pretty much eliminated from the playoffs right now? The combined record of all those preseason contenders and SB favorites right now is: 39-37 just 2 games above .500 a SOS consider some of the best teams in the NFL coming into the season. Meanwhile teams like Seahawks (+6000), Patriots (+8000), Colts (+10,000), etc are now amongst SB contenders, division leaders, and even a conference leader (Pats) with a combined record of 26-8. Worrying or being excited about the next years schedule this early has little to no value.

I am just saying, on this roster WR5 is like 9th on the peking order of weapons. Expecting a team with a tight cap to fill in that spot with anything other than available players like a Moore is a bit unreasonable and unrealistic. Just because we failed to use him here, like we fail to use Samuel as well, doesn't mean he isn't good enough to be WR5. And its already come out that Moore wanted to be released as he wanted more opportunities. Look at Samuel - in his 5 seasons starting for CAR and WAS averaged 796 yards a season. Yet he remains nothing here in this offense with Brady despite his single best season was with Brady in CAR. Diggs fell off a cliff production wise despite still seeing high targets under Brady, so much so that Shakir put up more yards on half the targets as Diggs. At some point, people need to realize its more than offense than the player here. I am not defending Moore as if he is some pro-bowler getting shafted, I am saying for a position that is essentially not only last in line at WR, but like 8th or 9th in line in usage on this team of weapons you are not going to find much more invested into the position than we did. In fact, most teams guys at the end of their weapons list are a lot worse than Moore.

Again, what teams fills WR5 with expensive contracts or high picks? WR5 is pretty much always filled by every team with developmental rookies or inexpensive and available free agents. So, we filled the WR5 spot with exactly the kind of player you fill a WR5 spot with, who in reality is like the 8th or 9th target on this team when you factor in Kincaid, Cook, Ty, and even Knox. So I am not sure what you expect a GM to do, spend, or use on the 9th player in the offensive peking order.

You and I are debating different things. You want to debate the SOS of last year and I am saying it doesn't matter what the perceived SOS is. And everyones optimism on the season CHANGED last year AFTER Diggs was traded and we drafted Keon and signed Mack. Everyone expected a REGRESSION last year going into the season...then we had the best offensive season in Bills history, still dominated our division and got on the door step of the SB until the refs flipped the game by 11-15 points in the 4th quarter stealing a first down from us, not once, but twice on the same series that took at least 3 points off our board, if not more, and gave KC 8 points instead. So again, last year we were supposed to struggle and we excelled. This year you say our schedule was supposed to be a cake walk and we have blown 4 games to bad teams. What value does guessing at our SOS have right now for next year? Seems like not much. And for record, I just said its pointless to get too up or down on the upcoming schedule this early. Its fine to look ahead, but I am more talking about the people who make too much out of it in the first place.

Important role? He was WR5, not sure I’d call that an important role. I mean that’s what you usually fill bottom of the bench spots with, guys who are still available or developmental draft picks which are all cheap.

I mean you are more making my point than anything. Looking ahead and penciling in those wins was pretty pointless given we lost those games. All good, agree to disagree on the looking ahead way too early thing

All good, I just remember arguing with people about the schedule last year who were freaking out about the how we had all the top SB contenders on our schedule. Point was, which has now been lost, is that it’s pointless to look so far ahead in the NFL at the schedule. Teams can change so much year to year in this league. I mean look at our 4 losses - no one had us losing 4 games to those teams, but there we are. Who had Bears as leading the division right now without key injuries in Det and GB? Not many had Rams as top team in NFL right now either. And no one could have seen KC, Balt, and Buf all battling to get back into the playoff picture this late in the season. Anyway, the entire point was it’s unnecessary to get up or down on the schedule next at this stage of the season.

He’s likely not getting released until the offseason

Yet that’s not what people were saying last year

I have said many times here now that I was a supporter in what Brady was doing coming into this season but have not been impressed or liked what I have seen from Brady this year, literally starting in week 1. In this season, I have been hyper critical of Brady, his predictability, inability to adjust, how he has used personnel, and how poor many of his decisions have been in important moments in games this year. I love the "Everybody Eats" philosophy where its not about force feeding someone like Diggs and about Josh making the better and smarter decisions with the ball and taking what is there. Where anyone on any play can get the ball. BUT - what I don't like, and what I said in the post you are responding to was that Brady this year has tried to force this to where I see lesser players getting too many snaps or him dividing limited snaps between Samuel and Moore. Running guys to clear out so we can target a 3rd, 4th, or 5th string player or check down. For example - I dont want to see Cook getting little to no targets so our bottom of the bench or deep bench WR's and TE's can get snaps and touches.

They remind me of the Dick Juaron Bears that over achieved and got DJ a COY award. They may be currently atop their division, but I still think they are the 3rd best team in their own division.

You disagree? You think we should literally try and get every offensive skill player on the active 53 man touches?

Brady. But we either win the SB or everyone should get fired - thats my stance at this point.

OMG I can see Brady now trying to get 12 guys to catch a pass every game filling the field with backups just to do so. I love the everbody eats mantra, and I think that is good smart football. But as a MANTRA - not a literal thing you try and force feed. It does not, or at least should not, mean that literally everyone on the roster is getting to participate like this is a pop warner league and every one gets playing time. What it needs to be and mean, is that you don't prioritize forcing the ball to one guy like we did with Diggs at times, it means take the easy throw regardless to who it is. Take what the defense is giving you. Brady seems hell bent on getting everyone up and down the bench involved, and you can see this narrative being forced in games. Your best players still should be the primary options, not decoys to throw to deep bench guys. Brady has lost his way, swallowed the everybody eats hype to deep, and now cant seem to coach himself out of a brown paper bag as a result.

Gotcha - Well DK wasn't really pennies, it was not only high draft pick but as over pay and insane contract he isn't worth. No argument from me that he would be the best WR on the team on the outside, but I don't think that he is worth what he cost the Steelers. They would have been better off keeping Pickens actually. And yes, Pickens now looks like a value based on how he is playing now in Dallas, but a 3rd and 5th isn't really pennies when you are talking about a guy who had multiple disciplinary issues with the Steelers that included being late to games, missing meetings, lack of effort on the field when not getting the ball, unsportsmanlike penalties that cost the Steelers wins at end of games, etc. Lets be real, they needed Pickens as bas as anyone and still got rid of him. Would I personally have taken a chance on Pickens - yes...but I also get why a lot of teams shied away as his production had not been what it is now and he had a lot of issues, which Pickens himself admitted were a problem and lack of maturity. A 3rd and a 5th is not pennies for a player who had shown flashes but not been consistent and been a bad locker room guy and teammate. Its always easier to look back and reevaluate using hindsight though. I want to see the WR room improve as much as anyone, but lost in the context of that want is that there have not really been great opportunities to do so since we traded Diggs. Options to do so have been thin and Beane tried with Cooper last year and again at the trade deadline this year to get a real WR1 outside threat. Cooper didnt have the fire anymore and lost a step, and no one we went after at the deadline this year got moved. All that being said, I think the bigger issues are the OC, our defensive scheme, some of the decisions on other roster positions, etc. So as far as I am concerned, its win the SB this year or fire everyone.