billsfan89

Since the Sunday night game went to NBC the Monday Night schedule has failed to get the big time matchups. When Monday Night football was on ABC the slate of games were A level while the Sunday night game on ESPN was not always that great of a game. But now that NBC picked up the Sunday game it's the A game of the week.

Just to be fair and add context the Jets secondary is mid-level at best (solid at safety but poor at CB) and the Giants might be the worst or second worst secondary in the league. Neither team has a pass rush that is top 10 in the league either. So it's not like Josh has had a lot of great defenses to go up against and it is only 2 games to begin with. BUT you play who you play and the path to 9-10 wins is usually take care of the teams you are supposed to be esp on the road and snake a couple of games at home against tougher opponents. The Bills have for now put themselves in position to be successful by winning 25% of their road games including a divisional opponent and putting themselves in a position to go 3-0 against a very beatable Cincy team. Cincy has a decent D-line (probably as good as the Jets if not a little better) but I am not so sure how well their secondary is and their defense overall is. But it will be a decent test to see if Josh can continue to take care of business against these teams that they should be able to beat.

As much as I like the O-line I can't say if it will be a dominant unit just yet. Mainly because I am not too impressed with the Jets edge rush and the Giants D-line in general. I would like to see how the O-line handles better more dominant fronts. Cincy is a solid D-line but I think the Pats and Titans will be a good test as both units could finish in the top 10 in terms of pass and run defense effectiveness.

As much as I love Ralph for all that he did to help this team stay in Buffalo and exist to begin with his ownership had crippled the team by the 2000's. I know OJ isn't the most accurate source but his comments about Ralph not wanting to build a winner in the 70's has been backed up by a few other sources. The Bills got lucky to get some good coaching and management to put together the early 90's teams and remained competitive in the late 90's but Ralph's investment in the team ranged from adequate to poor throughout the years. Ralph was an old school owner who ran the team like a business so I get his apprehension to treat the team like a vanity project as most modern owners do. But I think the biggest factor in the Bills improvement has been Pegula's investment into the team on and off the field. The Bill's have first class facilities and haven't been afraid to stray away from the cash to cap formula. I think Pegula learned his lesson from the 2015 to 2016 Rex experiment that while talent is important you need a culture and plan for building a team beyond talent acquisition. The 2015 off-season was an insane leap of talent for a team that had already prudently (with the exception of the Sammy trade) been building quality levels of defensive talent and had a solid skill position core. They acquired Shady (and paid him well) a top 3 RB in the league at time of acquisition, they acquired Clay a top 10 talent at his position, and took a chance on InCog to help bolster their O-line. Then via the draft they landed two impactful starters (at least the first couple of years) in Darby and Miller. Even the team's biggest issue (QB) they had found Tyrod who was a capable game manager who could make plays with his legs. But as talented as the 2015 and 2016 rosters were (And they spent big money to keep Hughes and Glenn) the culture and leadership wasn't there. Rex is at best an act that wears thin but that act wears super thin if the defense's scheme is changed to not fit the talent thus resulting in a steep defensive decline that counteracted a significant leap for the offense. Then after a failed attempt to bolster the defense in the 2016 draft the team fell apart and the previous 2 years showed you how important coaching and culture are to complementing a talented roster. Now McBeane has spent two years building a culture, trading away ill-fitting talent to stack up draft capital, and clearing out the cap situation. then this past year they spent their money smartly (no real long term commitments besides Mitch) and now the team has a young QB with promise, a good defense with a good young talent base and pieces on offense in place. I hope that they can put this together because the team has honestly gone about it the right way from top to bottom. I can't say every move they did was perfect but the philosophy to which they have built the team (selling out productive parts of the team for draft capital to acquire a QB, clearing out bad cap issues, gutting vets who didn't fit the culture and not overspending for quick fixes) has been mostly correct.

The Giants are who we thought they were. They are a lower tiered team in a transition year. They are kind of similar to the Bills last year where they are eating a lot of dead cap and setting themselves up to build around a young QB. They have some talent on offense but outside of Barkley they are not dynamic there. Their defense is terrible esp their secondary which will be bottom 3 in the league by seasons end. The Giants aren't completely talentless but they will win 5 or less games this year. The Bills need to get off to a hot start and they had to win these games in order to get fat before they have that harder stretch of games coming up later in the season (also Pats/Titans is not an easy pair of games coming up.)

I think McBeane will spend modestly on supplementing some needs via free agency in the summer of 2020 but they won’t go on a huge spending spree signing 3 top free agents and other significant contracts. I think they are eying possible extensions for Shaq (If he has a strong year) Dawkins, Milano, and Tre White. They also have some other free agents like J.Phillips, Spain, Foster, Wallace and a few others that they will have to take care of depending on how they perform in 2019. Although I can’t imagine any of those second tier players commanding huge money 2-4 of those players could command 4-9 million aav type deals. That being said the team can still afford to add a big pass rusher and another pass catcher on a significant contract or another set of needs while still being prudent with having enough space to take care of their own. The team has 90 million in space next year and in 2021 the team has a lot of their bigger contracts that they can get out of easily. Trent Murphy’s deal will be expired after 2020, Brown, Hughes and Kroft are easy contracts to get out of with minimal cap hits, Star carries some dead money but 6+ million in overall savings, and Mitch is similar to Star in that while he carries some dead money (5 million) he also carries significant savings (5.5 million.) So once they need to make space for the 2017 players bigger contracts they can move on from the veteran free agents that they have signed the past few years. Overall the team despite its spending spree this off-season still remains in a good position with the cap as year to year they carry a lot of removable contracts and space. Unless the team pushes off some extensions in favor of high end win now acquisitions. If McBeane can maintain their good drafting and be a bit more consistent in their bigger pro-acquisitions I think they can turn this team into a consistent winner. They have been smart and responsible with their cap while still helping their chances to win now, retain talent, and acquire future needs

Zeke is 24 he will probably be productive for the rest of the contract which takes him through age 29. 15 million aaa seems fair for a top 5 RB.

I think RB’s are reestablishing their value to a modern NFL offense given how backs are now positioning themselves to be a bigger part of the passing game. Even though Zeke isn’t an elite pass catcher he is solid in that department, he has good breakaway speed, is a good blocker, and is a complete beast in between and outside the tackles. He isn’t weak in any single aspect of the game (at worst you can say he is OK at something.) I think given the weapon a RB can be in the traditional running game and catching passes along with pass protection you don’t have to justify a 15-17 million dollar a year contract for an elite player that can do it all. Now granted those backs are few and far between but a top RB’s salary isn’t crazy to me. Gordon on the other hand isn’t in the same range as Zeke, Gurley, Barkley, and Bell. He is a notch below, a really good high end back but not an elite player. He should be in the 10-11.5 million range. Certainly brings a lot to an offense but isn’t as dynamic as those elite backs. I think the age of RB’s being replaceable cogs is gone at least for the upper upper end of the market.

Not sure what team is thirsty for a RB and willing to pay both a premium contract wise and at least fork over a 3rdround pick (given that you have to match a compensatory pick level of draft compensation?) The Texans acquired Hyde and Duke Johnson so take their desperate asses out of the equation. I don’t see why the Bills would trade for him given the fact that they released Shady because they like what they have on their roster. Tampa Bay might have the need but they are very cap strapped and might not want to trade an asset and an extension for a RB when they don’t know if they are in it long term with Winston. The Niners could be in play but they just paid Tevin Coleman, not sure if they think Gordon could be their last piece to help Jimmy G. I think Gordon’s best bet is going to be to hope a win now team like Atlanta has an injury at RB and gets desperate to pick up the slack at the position. But that’s a lot of if’s and’s and maybe’s. So overall I think that they can seek a trade but there simply might not be a partner out there.

It's on the road which isn't tragic but if you are looking at the Bills first three games (Jets away, Giants away, and Bengals home) 3-0 is a legit possibility and honestly if they go anything less than 2-1 going into the week 4 Pats game I think it is curtains on any playoff expectations. I think honestly a 3-0 start is what this team needs. Overall I think that the Jets game is very very important and close to a need game if you look at the schedule going forward.

It's not like the Bills defense isn't at least a respectable unit. Also outside of Bell the offense is a bit of a mess around Bell and Darnold. Their O-line is a mess, their WR core is banged up and while not bad certainly isn't elite and Darnold didn't exactly light it up last year. The Bills meanwhile have a much improved offense and a defense that should remain respectable. The Bills also improved their return game and special teams. I think it is fine and dandy to predict a home win for your team but to pick a blowout is just silly. Hell I think the Bills win by 7 and I am not exactly super confident as I think both teams have similar talent levels.

The Bills don't have a dynamic pass catcher. Their O-line is better, Beasley and Brown are solid to good complementary WR's, and Gore/Singletary is a decent RB tandem (and Yeldon provides decent depth) but there isn't a dynamic playmaking WR and the Tightend position seems bare. So while the offense is much better than last season there still needs to be an addition of a reliable tight end and a dynamic WR who captures the attention of the players on the defense. I suspect that the offense will be improved but it will have periods of frustration and the inability to move the chains against better more consistent defenses.

I don't expect a big spending spree. But I do think they target one big ticket item and another starting caliber player along with their usual depth signings. I don't foresee 2-3 big ticket players along with 2 or more starters. I do think that the team starts to take care of their own players like Dawkins and Tre if they both turn in strong seasons and resigning Shaq if he has a good year. Given the WR draft is projected to be strong I think they roll with Brown and Beasley and draft a WR round 1 (possibly even trading up to do so) I think they also spend big on the edge rush as even if Shaq has a great year you still need to move Hughes into a situational role (and I don't foresee Shaq having a breakout.) I could also see the team signing another starting caliber O-line or tight end depending on how those positions shake out. Overall I think the agenda next off-season will be to add a big time pass rusher, take care of their own players in need of extensions , add a starting caliber supporting piece to the offense, and draft a big time WR. I think they want to keep cap flexibility to retain their own players longer term.

There are 10 PS squad openings on each time (minus maybe an exception or two like the Bills have for Wade) that's only 320 spots for those 1200 men. Let's say another 150 enter into the league during the season due to injuries (some veteran call ups or fill ins for the PS.) That's still 750 people whose NFL dreams are ending. It's a part of the business and they know what they are getting into but it is still a harsh reality that a lot of people will have to face today.

Serious question, why? From everything I read and see he isn't a good blocker (not bad but not great) and he isn't a dynamic reviving option or high end short yardage runner either. He makes good money for his position and I don't see anything he does that can't be replaced for much cheaper. You can't justify his hit on the cap by how he plays on offense. He must be a dominant special teams cog in order to justify his salary. 85% of the time he isn't on the field for offense and in that 15% of the time he is, he hardly executes any role particularly well. So if he is a dynamic special teams player who does a lot of the dirty work I understand him being on the roster. But the value he brings to the offense is uber limited.

I think Carpenter from 2013 to 2014 was slightly better. Carpenter hit 91.7 and then 89.8% of his field goals in those two seasons only missing from 50+ in 2013. Haush had an excellent 2017 but fell off in 2018. Not sure why they gave Haush a lucrative extension coming off of a somewhat down year.

A good deal for both teams. I don't think Bodine is a very good player but he is a semi-competent center. The O-line last year did improve considerably when he was at center. Granted Groy fell off huge and isn't in the league anymore. But Bodine still did provide an upgrade. He has a lot of experience at a position where experience matters. The Pats were desperate for a center and from their perspective which center out on the free agent market was going to be better than Bodine? The Bills got a 6th round pick for a player they were going to cut. Win win for both teams.

Just add a second bye week for each team if you want to add an extra week to the season. I think that a second bye week would also be better for players health as they get some time to not play through lingering injuries and get two mental breaks during a season. But 18 games would make the season an increased act of attrition even if you added some 16 game cap to it (which is stupid.) The NFL should focus on ways to improve their product as opposed to over exposing it some more.

Not to mention that football stadiums are not particularly good investments for smaller and mid-sized markets. Metlife Stadium in the largest market in the USA which also houses 2 football teams (thus guaranteeing 20 dates plus playoff games possibly) and the stadium only sees about 30-35 dates a year. An arena can at least house 70 dates a year or more even if you only have one NHL/NBA team in there. An arena housing an NHL team gets 45-60 dates from hockey, 15-20 concerts a year (much easier to sell out a 17k arena) and probably 10-15 other types of dates (WWE. Monster Jam, Disney on Ice, MMA etc.) Meanwhile a big football stadium sits empty for 345 days a year even if you get a college team in there to fill up 5 extra dates a year that’s still not great. I think that spending tax payer money on either is foolish but it seems extra foolish to spend more on an NFL stadium. I think that the only thing tax payers should spend money on is issuing a loan for infrastructure to the roads and bridges in the surrounding area (the loan being paid back with the parking money the stadium generates) that’s about it. I don’t think tax payers should be on the hook for billionaires. As sad as it would be to see the Bills leave Buffalo the city of Buffalo doesn’t need to do anything more than that for a stadium.

Let Jackson start, see if you think he is worth putting on the PS.

One bad decision isn't enough for me to say a guy hasn't learned a thing (although it is an alarming play) and I think Allen will show a much more contained playing style because the team will be built to play a more conservative style.

Personally I don't see the need for a market like Buffalo to have a stadium like that. NYC is the largest market in America and MetLife stadium (which has 2 teams occupying it) is only used about 30 to 35 times a year. Between concerts, 20 to 22 football games and a few big events sprinkled in that still only gets you to 35 days a year. A stadium in Buffalo would house 10 football games a year via the Bill's and be lucky to see a handful of other events a year there. So for a stadium to be only used 20ish times a year all you need is a decent place to see a game. A nice place with a lot of bathrooms, enough concession stands, and good infrastructure to get in and out of is all that matters honestly. You don't need a 1.4 billion dollar super stadium to sit empty for 345 days a year. Most markets should have bare bones stadiums, that's not putting Buffalo down either just stating my opinion that it's a waste of money given what it could be used for.

The Jets and Giants only have affordable tickets when they are terrible. So it's not like the other option you have is cheaper. I lived a 10 minute drive away from Giants Stadium for the first 28 years of my life and I have only been to less than 10 football games half of them being preseason games.

But still possible in order to retain him in a hypothetical scenario.

Couldn't a team just franchise Clowney again? If the Bills or another team were to trade for Clowney and play him out on a franchise tender and he didn't want to sign a verbal offer that was in place once the trade was completed (Let's say he plays insanely well) then couldn't a team just franchise him again and at least turn around and trade him again if he doesn't want to resign? Is there something I am missing about the situation?