thurst44

Was actually just talking about this with a student who is a Broncos fan -- he wants Thomas gone as soon as possible, but also said he wanted a 1st round pick ... told him the appropriate-for-educational-situation version of "what are you smokin'" ... but I also said if I were the Bills, I'd be curious about him. Trading at this point of the season and hoping to re-sign is probably the best way to get an experienced WR at this point. Then again, the compensation market (1st for Amari Cooper seemed a bit rich for promising but erratic receiver) might be just as off-kilter as the off-season market ($16m for Watkins and even with the Mahomes/Chiefs juggernaut, he's still under 1000 yards pace this year). If they could get him for a 3rd, I'd listen, for a 4th, I'd likely pull the trigger.

The D hasn't been playing well just one game, they've played well enough in the last 4 1/2 to rise from a deep bottom to 3rd in yards and sacks. This does not seem like a fluke. The one reason I can see that the D balloon deflates today is I finally reluctantly started Bills D in fantasy (over Broncos) and the Broncos suddenly turn it around. Every time I've started the Bills D, they have fallen apart.

I grew up in NYC in the 70s & 80s. My whole family was from Buffalo, and I loved sports from an early age, so I grew to love the Bills. I followed them without knowing what was really going on. I remember Joes Cribbs & Ferguson but not much else. My fandom was cemented in the 2-14 seasons. I was at camp, in the Jersey wilderness (it exists!) on a long hike, listening to sports radio on my Walkman when a news flash cut into an interview with the Jets' Nuu Faaola to announce that Kelly was signed, and I was pretty well hooked from there. I went to UB for the four Super Bowl years, the first game I saw live was 51-3, so there was no going back then. The sense of camaraderie among the fans, the resilience, the fact that you can find Bills bars in most cities (I know of at least 5 alone in the NYC metro area). I also love the fact the stars are so connected to the city, and often choose to stay (even if they publicly mocked it before). I'm also a sucker for an underdog story, so the Bills clearly fit that bill. - Well, 51-3 comes to mind...riding back with my family, hearing Matt Bahr kick the field goal to set up a Super Bowl I was so sure we'd win. - Watching the Comeback at my aunt's in NYC after a last-minute decision to not head back to Buffalo before the game, savoring the victory on ESPN for hours of Chris Berman overexuberance. - Exiting the NYC Bills Bar to the approach of riot police after the 2011 victory over the Pats -- few other teams, if any, could summon a near riot in another NFL city after a regular season win. -

If Anderson starts, Bills 17, Colts 7 If Peterman starts, Colts 31, Bills 3 Not trying to take a shot at Peterman, but something just seems broken wrt him right now in a Knoblaugh/Sax kind of way, and this defense looks truly in the zone to the point that a game manager, even a mediocre one, could keep them in a game.

Yes, or in other words, as Success said, 8-8

And ask a Denver fan how Keenum's working out.

Ha, my memory is that game was illogically one of the rare games on in the NYC market (family from Buffalo, I grew up in NYC) and I remember watching it in my parents basement on an old Trinitron. Don't recall much about it except that it was ugly. (edit: realized of course it was on -- giants -- i'm an idiot sometimes)

His point is that so are Rosen, Darnold, and Mayfield. It may be a dubious claim, but what are these objective measures? Do you have stats or All-22s that show the other three first round QBs adjusting at a faster rate. My unscientific eye/stats test has it at Mayfield, Darnold, Allen, Rosen, but that is certainly subject to dispute. Ok, fair enough, I edited this, b/c I do see you have a posting of someone's All--22 analysis, so that's at least something.

I thought it was also a part of the classic Steve Goodman song "A Dying Cubs Fan's Last Request," who sadly died at age 36, 14 days before he was scheduled to sing the National Anthem at the Cubs first playoff game (or luckily since they were dispatched of pretty quickly in the playoffs). However, my memory was off, but it still has much of the similar sentiment and style of humor....

I'd hate that b/c it implies you didn't enjoy the Vikings game b/c they did not score. Shaky defense gets on my last nerve, and my nerves are precious and dwindling.

And all our games have been against teams coming off a winning record last year, three were on the road, and the two wins were against 2017-18 playoff teams.

If they lost in first round after lucking into the playoff, they'd likely not be that close to the bottom of the round (21st or 22nd, like us this year)...

You keep writing exactly what I'm about to write! It's a time-saver.

I did just post a soon-to-be HoFer who had a pretty lousy qbr through 4 games...

It's funny you mention Leaf...the guy who was picked just ahead of him -- his first four games' qbr: 58.6, 51.1, 39.3, 63.2...he had 3 tds & 11 ints and was 0-4. He got better!

The ceiling is the dream. Also, great song, great video.

If he's not trying to win, how's he really developing? As with last year, it's a rebuilding year where we still try to win. It looks likely we have a very strong defense, and one that plays better in the second half (in no game have they given up more than 7 in second half). It would be silly to not try to win.

We deserve it!

You're joking, right?

The way announcers are talking you'd think Titans are up 14-0

It's sort of hinted in the piece, but a big part of it is his leadership at such an early stage of his career, and the fact that as he has looked more confident as the captain of the D, the whole unit has played better (and not just better, but have played like a top defense).

There also might be the factor that in the past, these rankings HAVE actually moved the Bills up for the 5-2 start only to watch them fall hard, so there might be a "won't be fooled again" factor to all of this that persists even after last year when they did collapse, but pulled out of it to become one of the top 12 by playoff status.

True, but to act as if they did not just win a game against the expected NFC champion on the road and write as if they have been playing consistently badly all year is just, well, lazy, and not a little ridiculous.

I agree, but two consecutive bad games by Tom Brady is something new.

Ok, who jinxed the O-line.