Utah John

It's just two road games in a row. No big deal, no reason not to follow the usual pattern.

Every time I think the Pats might be on the verge of going downhill, I look at the other three teams in the division. This year in particular the Pats will probably go 5-1 in the AFCE. That's a huge benefit for any team trying to make the playoffs with a high seed. They only need to go 6-4 against the rest of the league to land at 11-5 and a first round bye. Let's see how things go for the Bills on Sep 29, at home against the Pats. I honestly have no idea what their record will be going into that game.

Same old Nate. Does great in preseason, not so much in real action. He probably pulled a muscle thinking about first-string defensive ends.

So why not trade Shady instead of cutting him. We got something for friggin Bodine, after all. My theory is, since if he was traded the new team picks up his full salary, there weren't many takers for even a mid-round pick, and the Bills didn't want to embarrass him by trading him for a 6th or 7th. So they cut him instead, which except for a paycut which shouldn't matter that much at this point in his career, puts him onto the best team in football. I'm sure getting cut hurts for him, but he'll feel a lot happier right quick. I will miss him. He is not what he used to be, but what he used to be was really special. The fourth best Bills RB of all time, which doesn't sound impressive, but that's after Simpson, Thomas, and Gilchrist.

Another possibility is that the Bills trade one of their on the bubble O linemen, then bring back Coleman or Duke Williams.

I look at it this way. How long has it been since the Bills could simply release a player of Shady's abilities? I'll grant you he's not what he was, and he was expensive, but he's still a great back. I think it's a sign of progress that this could happen. No room on your roster for LeSean McCoy? Wow.

Looking good in preseason was never Peterman's problem. Maybe he finally has enough experience, and maybe he's lifted enough weights to gain enough strength, to handle live action in real games. I hope so, for his sake. He always seemed like a good guy. Another former Bills QB draft pick, Cardale Jones, looked good in preseason with the Chargers but got cut. He might be a better choice for our practice squad than Jackson.

If some team did want to trade for Kiko, they'd have to be offering draft picks. The fish are rebuilding, and not stocking their roster for this year. Kiko was an outstanding rookie who got hurt, missed a season, and has never been the same since. He's not worth even a 7th for the Bills situation.

The Bills FO happy talk was that they're fine with the DL personnel they had. I guess they're always looking to see if they can upgrade, which I'm fine with, but why bring in someone new, now? Someone who doesn't know the system, who can't be evaluated properly. \ Also, he's listed as a DE but he was wearing number 46 for the Broncos. Sounds more like an EDGE or LB.

So how tight to the cap are the Texans? If they sign Clowney to the one year tender, does that force them to release players they want to keep? Could be the other GMs around the league are letting the Texans sweat a little.

Due to his contract situation, I think the most likely outcomes are that he signs the tender and plays for the Texans, or sits out the year. One way around the impasse is to trade him for conditional picks. If he re-ups with the team that trades for him, the compensation is x, but if he leaves, the compensation is y. Protects both teams.

I think what's giving Beane pause is Allen. If Allen is The Guy, the Bills are a couple of great players from real success, and then it makes sense to get Clowney. If Allen just never gets it, Beane will need his capital to move on in the 2021 draft.

I'm glad he's still around. What a great soul. I can't ever remember him with a bad word to say about anyone. He was doing the color announcement on the Bills-Titans game when they let a forward lateral stand for the Music City Mugging. Maguire said immediately that the play would come back. To this day I think it was not a legal play but at the same time if the Bills had covered the kick like every high school player knows how to do, staying in their damned lanes, the play wouldn't have worked at all.

I'm eager to see how he does. That photo, though -- sure doesn't look like a TE to me. Gronk has more muscles in one arm than he does in both.

Mahomes wouldn't be the same player if the Bills had drafted him and surrounded him with the below average offense we had. Mahomes is thriving in KC because, first of all he's really really good, and second because he's in a great situation, and third because he got to sit his entire rookie year and learn the game. If the Bills had drafted him, we wouldn't have White, and we wouldn't have Allen. And we'd have a frustrated Mahomes nearing the end of his rookie contract, thinking about free agency and dollar signs and joining a contender. I think overall this is shaping up to be a win-win. Give it time.

I think Jets fans aren't really aware of how the Bills have improved. And honestly I have no idea how the Jets might have improved. Adding Bell and Kalil sounds very good. I'm not doing any smack talking, just looking forward to a real game with actual game planning against the other guys' best players.

I think soccer players just want to play soccer. Of course the money is better if a kicker makes it to the NFL, unless the soccer player is a star.

I don't think the D line will be a weak link, but among the team's units I think they'll be the least strong. Even the O line will be better, if preseason is any indication. The Bills have a very good team in the making. They don't have a great WR, they don't have a great pass rusher. That's about it.

I look at the list of names who are providing standout play on offense, and not a lot of them are players from last year, and very few from two years ago. Beasely, Sweeney, Wade, Singletary, most of the O line (what a great job upgrading) -- McBeane have overcome the disastrous 2016 draft -- players who should be rounding in the top-notch pros at this point. The only one left, I think, is Shaq Lawson. So we went out and got players to fill the 2016 gaps. I'll feel better if the offense can do even half as well as they have so far against non-game planned defenses full of grocery baggers. Well maybe that's harsh. I am extremely encouraged by the changes this year.

More and more it looks like humans are really not designed to play American football.

It would be like a certain public figure shooting someone on Fifth Avenue in broad daylight. The same people who support him now would support him then. Everyone else would feel different.

Well, Allen played college ball in Laramie, a couple of hours north of Denver. The Denver papers probably had stories about him in college, and probably some Denver fans drove up to see a game or two. So, they might have been familiar with him in college but quite possibly not as a pro. And a lot of us weren't that sure he could play, either, when he was drafted. There was a lot of chatter that we picked the wrong Josh, that Rosen was the guy and not Allen. That was then. We've all seen what we've seen, and most of us have a very different opinion now. There's no reason the Denver fans would know what we know.

McCoy runs through holes. He doesn't create them. When the O line lost Incognito and Wood, Shady's 2018 was doomed. If this new O line is a lot better than last year's, we'll see whether Shady really has gas left in the tank.

There's an old Russian saying (appropriated by a US president): Trust but verify. The O line was the biggest problem last year. They brought in a bunch of guys and a good rookie. If this fixed the problem, we're in good shape. If the new guys are no better than last year's stiffs, it will be another long year. Is that pumping the brakes? Maybe.

Taking care of things that pop up, I'm sure. Take care, and come again.