CodeMonkey

I didn't get laid at halftime.

Yup. Particularly in this case as the backup beat the fish ... twice. It was inevitable.

14 straight years and still not close to the playoffs means they are already going out like the AFC East B word. But that being said, you can't lay down like the OP is suggesting. You can play to win and still give the starters more rest than usual.

Well they are supposed to know much more than us and do have access to much more material on Manuel than we have, so ... But I know what you mean, 14 years and counting of suck can do that to you

It is in Rochester on CBS.

Big screen projection TV at hammers lot! Bowling ball shots optional

Yup. We as fans have to hope and trust that the FO has a good read on Manuel and will either: a) Correct their previous mistake (or hedge their bet) by getting another QB this draft or b) Know they have a good QB and fill the other holes in the team We only get to see so much, the Bills coaches and FO have much more data to work from.

Unfortunately I have buried several family members in the last few years, one of them extremely unexpectedly, and in my experience 12 days is an exceptionally long time. However given the fact that the game is meaningless, SJ13's chronic injury issues, and the fact that it was his Mom I have no issue whatsoever with him missing this game as well.

I think it is pretty clear that he was a reach based on this seasons performance. You typically would not draft a project with your first pick in the first round. But that isn't to say he still can't develop into a good starting QB. As to the OP's question ... my opinion of Manuel is not tainted. However my opinion of the "new" Bills FO is a little.

Not that this is a surprise, but ESPN has all 13 taking the pats*. CBS with spread (Bills +9.5) has it 5-3 pats*. No spread has all 8 pats*.

In addition, some teams play fairly frequent non-league tournament matches with teams from other countries as well. Tackle football playing only Sundays and for a short season would not be difficult for a team in London to schedule games and a venue around soccer.

The magic answer is that there is no magic answer. The Bills have sucked for a very VERY long time and sadly it is going to take some time to get back to respectability. Unless Manuel somehow transforms into the second coming of Jim Kelly this offseason and Spiller becomes an every down back, that's just the way it is.

Anyone but NE, the fish, or the Stillers.

Boy I don't know. I have difficulty watching minor league sports now because the quality of play is low. The talent pool is so shallow already in the NFL that if they dilute it further so that they can make more money it may cross the quality threshold where I won't want to watch anymore. Then again, I haven't stopped watching the Bills these last 14 years so who knows

There is no reason to believe he is telling a "bold faced lie" here. His opinion may differ greatly from yours and many hard core Bills fans who really Billieve Manuel is a "franchise", or at least a viable NFL starting QB. Personally I have not seen much so far that leads me to believe Manuel is a slam dunk franchise QB. Or for that matter even a good starting QB. But the person earlier who graded Manuel as "incomplete" rings true with me. With the injuries (which are themselves reason for concern) and him being a rookie it really is too early to know what the Bills have in him. Which really does put the Bills FO in a bit of a bind when it comes to the upcoming draft. And we can do is wait, hope and trust that the Bills FO ends up doing the smart thing, whatever that is.

Those were my initial thoughts as well. There is not enough good talent to support the teams now, how can you add more unless quantity is more important than quality.

Boy that is for sure. But it nice to see it happen to the fish and not the Bills once in a while.

Well it certainly has "Bills fans whining about a ref-screw-job" written all over it. Nice to see it is already a work in progress. This is probably why there is so much ref whining here. If you go into every game looking for it, then you are going to see it. Whether it is there or not. For me this game rests squarely on the shoulders of the Bills D. If they can shut down Tom Terrific the Bills have a good chance. Otherwise the Bills are looking at a double digit loss for this season.

I'm not sure how you see the offense as significantly worse. They exchanged Fitz for Manuel, which this season was a regression. But with far more potential upside. They have what may well end being a viable backup QB in Lewis. The OL is slightly worse. The WR depth is better. RB is the same. OC is a sizeable downgrade from Gailey. As someone pointed out earlier, statistically they are the same as last year on the offensive side of the ball and that makes sense when you look at all of the players and coaches.

My oldest son was unhappy about that as well. But I told him to sit down and think about it for a minute. After a few seconds I could see the 3 possession game light bulb turn on over his head. I suspect for the boo'ing fans it was a knee jerk emotional response like it was for him at first.

Thread closed in 3 ... 2 ... 1 ...

Absolutely yesterday meant something to the fish. And it is always good to sweep a division opponent. But in my opinion the fish are not a good team (yet they somehow they managed a 8-7 record this season so far). And even though NE is not what they once were, they are definitely better than the fish, particularly in winter weather.

I would agree with this, particularly since the game does mean something to NE.

If the Bills can't/won't utilize a "speed back" as you call him, then what is the point of keeping him? Keeping him in that scenario would be the silly thing IMO.

You can't fool us ... you will be drinking it again win or lose next week