All_Pro_Bills

I tend to believe the Patriots will push the boundaries of ethical behavior and NFL rules to get any edge possible but in the end it doesn't seem to matter how you won but rather if you won that counts. McVay lost because his QB was ineffective and tentative while for some incomprehensible reason (and an explanation which didn't make any sense to me) he decided on a strategy to leave his best offensive weapon on the sidelines most of the game. Gurley had a total of 11 touches, 10 rushes and 1 catch. Maybe Belichick played Jedi mind tricks on McVay suggesting "do not play Todd Gurley"?

Time and place for that is the idea. After the game, yes. Before the game, no. Shake hands, say good luck, walk away.

I'd take it a step further but rather than adjust I expect someone labeled a 'genius' would have anticipated what the Patriots would game plan on defense and have been prepared to show some different looks at the beginning of the game to get Belichik guessing. But they played right into his hands and showed him exactly what he planned for during the 2-week break From my perspective, watching the Bills play NE twice a year, nothing the Pats showed was a surprise so I am baffled why McVay had no answers for any of it.

I didn't find the game to be that entertaining but it provided a reminder that defense is still an important phase to the game. The game did answer the question I was interested in and that was whether or not McVay is the offensive genius he's been hyped to be. Right now that looks like a work in progress after his team mustered a total 3 points in the biggest stage in sports. The old defensive genius took him to the woodshed in this one.

Exploiting the compensatory pick rules is worth mentioning along with drafting well and successfully navigating free agency plus getting good players in trades for what has been peanuts. Year after year the Patriots seem to get multiple compensatory picks for losing players to free agency. Teams like the Bills seem to get none. I thought of this when the Bills waived Benjamin prior to season's end. Waiving him sent a message but simply deactivating him on game day and swallowing a couple game checks would have resulted in his contract expiring and the loss of a 1st round type player against the compensation system. Now the Bills get no credit under the system.

The Super Bowl has become one big media event. An opportunity for heavyweight corporate sponsors to entertain some high-worth clients, the networks to jack up advertising rates with companies demonstrating just how clever they and their ad agencies are with commercial spots (probably full of virtue signaling this year), and the league showcasing the latest taxpayer sponsored palace This year MB stadium in Atlanta. The importance of the actual game is diminished. I've missed the big game a few times in recent years but I'm going to watch on Sunday. The main thing I'm interested in is to see if McVay is really the genius that everybody is making him out to be. Can he do something few have done? Which is outsmart and out-plan Belichik.

My point is simple. You get bad calls every week that might cost a team the game. Sometimes they lose, sometimes they find a way to win. The Saints didn't find a way to win. There were three series after the Saints FG in regulation. 2 by the Rams and 1 by the Saints. The Rams came out on top in all 3. In spite of the obvious PI that wasn't called the Saints had the opportunity to win the game but failed on all 3 series on both offense (once) and defense (twice). At the end they just got outplayed.

If they wanted to run clock they could have called running plays and forced the Rams to use their two remaining time outs and run the clock under 1 minute. Their defense could have stopped the Rams in regulation. They didn't. Their HOF QB should not have made a terrible decision to throw up that interception in OT. But he did. Cost them the game? OK, people can think it if they want. I think its an excuse we hear from losers every Monday.

They need to quit whining and get over it. That call did not cost them the game. It was absolutely PI and the ref's blew it but it didn't cost them the game. It wasn't the last play of the game. It was a factor but it did not directly cost them the game. It resulted in a FG and a 3 point lead with 1:40 left. They couldn't stop the Rams from tying the game, it went to OT, they won the coin toss, and Brees showed poor judgment and tossed a pick in OT. The Rams executed a short drive and a long FG won it in OT. Game over..

I understand the uproar and the head coach crying the blues after the game. The play was an obvious PI, even Robey said it was PI. But it didn't directly cost the Saints the game. It wasn't a 4th down throw trailing with little time left. The game was tied and the result was a 4th down FG to take a 3 point lead with 1:40 left. Their defense didn't stop the Rams from tying the game, the Saints won the coin toss, and Brees threw a pick on an ill-advised throw which led to a short Rams drive for the winning OT FG. Officials miss calls and make some bad ones. It happens every week and it happens in every sport at every level. The Saints aren't the first team to lose a game because of a bad call or non-call during the game. I haven't seen a lot of Saints football but I'll wager they've benefited during the season in one way or another from something not being called. It's the importance of the event that magnifies it here. And if we're talking worst official call on a pass play I would cite the Bills/Patriots during the Wade Phillips era when the Bills were called for the only Hail Mary PI in the history of professional football. Next play Patriots score with zero on the clock and win the game. Rule changes followed.

My wife thinks Brady is retiring after this season. She noted that his wife just started doing some fashion gigs again after taking several years off. Could be because the kids are older. Or to replace her husbands football income when he calls it quits before the 2019 season and he becomes a 'stay at home dad'. Perhaps, and we'll soon find out if that theory is on target.

These stats confirm the 'eye test'. When I watch games with teams that have a good offensive line I see linemen down field and on their feet after the play. With the Bills I saw linemen on the ground in the backfield. It would be interesting the see stats, if they are available, how many of those rushing attempts had first contact behind the LOS.

I have to say I've never been to an Oscar's party nor do I have knowledge that anyone i know has held one or attended one. Given my zero interest in Hollywood stars might be the reason.

I like the Saturday option or start the game on Sunday earlier. But there are other events that warrant a national holiday before considering the Super Bowl. 9/11 for example. And given today's social and political climate there's probably some self-proclaimed victimized group that would file a lawsuit saying that football offends them and to make it a national holiday would trigger them to sob and cry.

To this point I don't see any indication Eli Manning is contemplating retirement. There's a connection to Jacksonville with Couglin. Buyers should be wary of Foles. My suspicion is that his success with the Eagles is purely situational and whether his game can translate to another team is questionable. And we don't know for sure the Eagles will move him as we don't know what's going on with Wentz as this is his second major injury in two seasons. I don't think the Broncos are satisfied with Keenum so I'd add them to teams looking to upgrade or change. Wonder if Elway regrets passing on Josh Allen or Josh Rosen when both were there for him? Maybe Flacco to Washington? This would eliminate the need to uproot and move as its not a very far drive from Baltimore. I don't see the 49ers trading Mullens as he's a cheap, young back up. Maybe throw in the Raiders as you never know what Gruden is thinking so maybe Carr will be in play too. Other teams that need to start thinking about the future soon. Chargers, Patriots, Lions as Stafford really hasn't done anything for them the past several seasons. What's great is the Bills are not on the list. For the first time in a long time they are set at the QB spot going into the off season with Allen, Barkley, and Anderson. They have some needs to address elsewhere on offense and defense but they are at positions.

Something I wonder about college coaches. Why do they always have state police escorts on and off the field? Are there standing death-threats against them?

He hasn't been perfect by any measure but I don't have any major problems with McDermott over the 2 seasons he's been head coach. I think he's had the team prepared and playing hard and pretty well max'ed out the talent on the roster week-to-week. If anybody thinks this is a playoff or Super Bowl contending roster and they are under performing because of some lack of ability at the head coaching level then they haven't been watching much Bills football. This team simply needs more talent to consistently compete against the better teams. This year's record tells the story. 6-3 against non-playoff teams and 0-7 against teams making the post season. The critical thing will be hitting in the draft and making smart use of all the money available for free agency.

According to statistics the Bills are the #2 defense in the league based on yardage. The Ravens are #1 by about 14 yards per game. Not much difference based on the stats. But based on the 'eye test' the Bills ranking is a statistical illusion. Watching the Ravens defense their front 7 seems to be so much bigger, so much stronger, so much quicker, and overall so much more athletic than the Bills front 7. Addressing the defensive front along with the O-line should be a priority. What I found most frustrating about the game is that the Patriots look very beatable. They're not dominant in any way at this point and I suspect their run as automatic AFCE division winners is over. But from the opening drive I never felt that Bills were going to come out with a win. As usual, there's a lot of work to do in the off season but I believe there are genuine reasons for optimism that we're headed up.

I suspect very few Bills fans share the sentiment of the OP. In fact I question why any true Bills fan would have such thoughts much less post them. My view is that if they wanted to go out on top they should have retired after the miracle comeback against the Falcons. This year's version of the Patriots looks very beatable by every team I foresee being in the playoffs out of the AFC. Like an undefeated heavyweight champ that takes one too many fights I think they stuck around too long. They are done. How does that make me feel? Happy! Next Sunday I hope the Bills give them all they can handle and hurt their chances of getting to the big game in any and all ways possible.

I did notice that too. Plays like that along with his age and taking into account his accomplishments to date leads me to believe this is going to be his last season.

Was it a block in the back? Maybe. Was it a cheap shot on a "defenseless player". Absolutely. Have I seen that called before when a offensive players lays a blind side block on a defender like that? Yes (I recall Benjamin getting called for that). Is a special teams play different to the officials? Seems like it.

Absolutely right. And THE big reason, aside from his own abilities, is that he's had a consistently very good offensive line group throughout his career. Build the line.

Sad to say this is the best long-term scenario at this point. It's more likely they lose the last 3 games. If the Jets, Jags, and Falcons can win 1 more game each we'd drop into the #4 spot. Trading back, assuming they can find a partner, and swapping 1st's along with getting several additional picks. And while it's way too early to think of draft specifics I don't want to see them trading up to get one guy. We need help in too many places for that approach to be in play. In another topic somebody posted that nobody on the Bills offense would start for any other team, maybe with the exception of Dawkins, and that is probably true and really pathetic.

So it would seem this guy didn't get enough choking on the field.

If our TE was Kelce or Ertz would either or both catch that pass?