Utah John

There are so many plays where the Bills receivers are all covered, play after play, particularly against man defense. Beasley and Brown can find holes in zones, but against man to man, they're just some guys going for a jog with a defender right beside them. The point is, Allen doesn't get to make a dozen throws a game because the receivers aren't open. If he had a target, and he could hit it 8 or 9 times out of 12, that would be another 100 yards a game, easy. The O line is doing OK, and Allen is being smart with the ball. It's the receivers who aren't helping him. I'm happy for Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes, who are both very talented and are doing great. I don't think either one of them would do any better than Josh Allen has done, playing with this team's personnel and coaches. As for Mahomes, he's been terrific, but if he hasn't reached his ceiling, he doesn't have one. I have to figure he's as good as he's going to get. He'll get more experienced with time but his wheels will wear out. Jackson, geez who knows. Can he keep improving? As a fan, I hope both Mahomes and Jackson get better. As a Bills fan I wish they both played in the NFC. The Falcons gave up a ransom for Julio Jones. They had Matt Ryan and they ended up looking brilliant. The Bills gave up a ransom for Sammy Watkins. Was it Watkins' fault he didn't make the Bills look smart? Or was it injuries, or Tyrod Taylor?

Next year the Bills will need to win the division to get into the playoffs. Next year the AFC East plays both the NFC West and the AFC West. With the Bills and Pats holding the first two positions in the AFC East this year, both will play equivalently hard schedules with a lot of travel, which never goes well for the Bills. Teams from other divisions of the AFC will have a much easier schedule than the Bills, and both WCs will come from elsewhere. I think only the AFC East winner will make it next year. And, I think we have a shot at the East next year.

The Raiders haven't been playing like Al Davis's Raiders. Maybe their vicious spirit is re-emerging in Cleveland. There's never been any place for it in the NFL. It's fast and hard and dangerous enough.

We shouldn't ever be happy when a player is injured. He's a person, probably with a family, and this is how he earns a living. I am however very happy that Garrett was suspended. I think maybe a full season suspension next year would get the point across that this is the very definition of "unacceptable."

I'm not throwing in the towel yet on 11-5. As for Thanksgiving, the Bills game before that is a home game against a collapsing Broncos team. The Cowboys have different flaws than the Bills have but they're still flaws. That is a winnable game. Then the Bills get the mini-bye, not playing again until they play the Ravens, back home in Orchard Park. In December. Who gets the edge on a cold, windy, slippery field? I guessing, based on no evidence at all, that Josh Allen finally figures things out, and Daboll finally figures out he needs to use Singletary. Don't give up!

The Bills had another even greater player who was an even worse human being: OJ Simpson. Incognito was the best damned guard we've had here in decades. It was the right thing to do to let him go when the Bills did, because they could see the bad times ahead. It's a real shame that all that talent is linked to a screwed up personality. Maybe it is mental illness, the key word being illness, and I hope for his sake he can at least control the symptoms. If I had taken all the oxycontin that was prescribed for me after hip replacement surgery, I'd be a heroin addict today. It isn't a question of a weak mind, it's a question of getting hooked on something designed to get you hooked.

It's not clear to me which LB position Zach Brown would compete for, or even back up. Could he play MLB as well as OLB? I seem to recall he was a WILL when he was here but perhaps that's not right. If he could play two or three LB positions he'd be a good pick up. He was released from Philly after he made a derogatory comment about the Vikings QB, after which the Vikes beat the Eagles. I think ZB was still playing well.

I have specifically watched Edmunds on the replays of running plays by the opponents. He seems to be moving into a gap whether it's the right gap or not, and often just gets swallowed up while the RB slides through the space where Edmunds was at the start of the play. Is he doing what he's told to do, or does he lack the ability to read the blocking and use his instincts to attack the right spot? I can't answer that question. However I suspect he's a natural Sam, not a Mike. With his size, speed, and strength, he'd be great at covering TEs downfield. His athletic skills are amazing, but his football IQ doesn't seem as great.

Remember the old poem about Casey at the Bat? His team lost because he was too interested in style than just playing the game. Josh Allen could throw the ball a lot more, sure, you bet. If he did that would the Bills still be 6-2? I think they'd be 4-4 and looking back on some really pretty pass completions, instead of looking forward to the playoffs.

If the Bills had beat the Pats, the Bills would be 7-1 and the Pats would be 7-2.

Oh, I would be so ashamed. I don't know how I'd live with myself.

I think the first year I was aware of football was 1963 and I've been a diehard Bills fan all these years. I will tell you in all sincerity that most of the teams through the years would be at best 3-5 against this same competition, and some of them would be part of the dregs with 0 or 1 wins for the year. This year's team has guts and toughness. There's a reason it comes back in the fourth quarter. They are pros who figure things out and go get the job done. McBeane have done a great job of elevating the quality of the players across the board, especially on offense. There are no positions where the players are particularly bad or exceptionally good. Across the offense we have B or B+ players. Most teams have some A+ stars but some C- players too. The Bills formula is better. Also the offense and defense are pretty much in balance, with the defense obviously being better. Look at KC, with that great offense and bad defense. That's a way to get lots of attention in the regular season and lose in the playoffs. The challenges going forward will be the schedule -- next year they play the AFC West and NFC West so there will be many long road trips, and more good teams on the schedule; and how to elevate the overall quality of the players without breaking the spirit of the guys who are kept around. This team is very close-knit, like the 1965 Bills were. By 1968 the players had gotten old, there was a lot of unhappiness when veterans were let go and replaced, and Lou Saban quit for the first time. The message is, stop complaining, enjoy the ride, be optimistic, and look forward to an 11-5 record and the playoffs. If lightning strikes, and it might, the Bills could actually win the AFC East and get a home game, possibly even a bye. This week, play Cleveland and beat Cleveland.

When did Oliver play more, in the first half when the run D was sucking like an open chest wound, or the second half when it miraculously got better?

If the Bills are 9-3 at that point, which seems doable, then probably yes.

At the start of the season the Bills controlled their own destiny, too. When they were 3-0 they controlled their own destiny. I'm pleased with their success this year but I feel like I'm watching my daughter drive on the freeway for the first time after she got her license. You watch and hope nothing too bad happens, she gets home OK, and you wonder if the next time out maybe things don't go so well because it wasn't very pretty this time. The OP's point is correct, we should feel good, and I do, sort of. It is a whole lot better to beat a crappy team in a close game than to lose to said crappy team. Almost all teams lay an egg on occasion, so the Eagles game shouldn't be too concerning. But, they've played crappy Giants, Dolphins, and Redskins teams, and weren't very impressive doing it. The Bills barely beat the Jets, and won that game only when their MLB missed the second half. They did beat a tough Titans team, but so have several others. The biggest thing is, opponents have figured out how to run against the Bills. Unless Frazier figures out how to stop that, there are going to be some losses that could have been wins. I watched Edmunds a lot today. The Redskins were running plays right at his spot. Every time, he would run up to the line, leaving that spot, and plug a hole that wasn't there, and the running back would gash the Bills. Over and over, he would disappear into the crowd instead of making the tackle. I think, with his speed, size and strength, he should be a Sam, not a Mike. He doesn't seem to have the instincts or recognition a Mike needs.

What we really oughta do is trade two first round picks for Sammy Watkins.

The bottom line is that Trent Williams has a very valid complaint about how he was treated by the medical staff. He will get through this season and then be a FA. The Bills have a medical staff that no one ever complains about, and great training facilities. Gitter done, McBeane.

McD was right, of course. Whaley did some good things but many more bad things. The Marcel Dareus situation was a disaster almost the entire time. The contract he got screwed up the Bills' cap situation. Watkins has been hurt a lot, but I don't blame Whaley for that. I blame Whaley for paying so much for a WR when we didn't have the QB to go with him. The biggest problem is that all the early to mid-round picks who should be the starters or experienced depth players, were not good enough, or couldn't be retained because the cap was screwed up (for example Robert Woods, whom I'd love to have back now -- we wasted a second on Zay Jones who wasn't as good, instead of resigning Woods, but we couldn't afford him). This is the main reason the Bills aren't a player or two away from being ready for the SB. The Bills depth is getting better but is still not adequate. Look what happened to the D when Milano got hurt. Look what happened to the run defense when Harrison Williams got hurt. Beane did a good job bringing in better players for the O line, but they're better than some bad players, not really great. (I do like Morse and Feliciano.) Beane is trying to build a dynasty. We're at least a year away. Next year's schedule has us playing the AFC West and NFC West, so there will be many long flights, and the Bills have seldom looked good playing on the West Coast. The year after that, 2021, things get sane. Allen should be near his ceiling at that point and there will be 25 players on the team who aren't here now. Beane seems to have a good plan in mind and is working patiently to get there.

In his last year here, Gilmore's play declined. He was always a good cover guy but he was clearly avoiding contact in order to cash in on his next contract. I don't know if Wrecks had much to do with that. To keep him the Bills would have had to pay a fortune in a guaranteed contract to a guy who wasn't doing as well as possible. There's just no way the Bills would come up with that money. To the list of good CBs we've let go, don't forget Ronald Darby. A very good CB who we didn't get much for, who's doing very well in Philly, under Schwartz.

Regarding next year's schedule, it will be harder because we play the NFC West and the AFC West. All that traveling is tough, and the Bills have historically been ineffective on the west coast. According to https://fbschedules.com/nfl/buffalo-bills/ we'll be at home for the Chiefs, Chargers, Rams, Seahawks, Dolphins, Jets, Patriots, and a team from the AFC North. We'll travel to the 49ers, Cardinals, Broncos, Raiders, Dolphins, Jets, Patriots, and a team from the AFC South. Considering the Bills will almost certainly finish #2 in the AFC East this year, those two unnamed teams will be very good. Some of those teams are going to be very tough, others are good now but trending down. If it weren't for the travel, I'd say we should still be OK. But the travel is going to make a difference. I think 2019 is the year to make the playoffs and maybe win a game. 2020 will be a struggle. 2021 looks a lot better.

I'm fine with no trade that costs too much and gains too little. The Jets wanted a second round pick for Robbie Anderson, for heaven's sake.

The key to the game is Milano. The Bills D is built to be a solid unit, and missing Milano creates a weak link in the chain. Other players will try to help the backup player and when that happens the whole machine falls apart. I am very worried about their TEs dominating the game.

Honestly, do you think a 12-4 season that doesn't end up in the Super Bowl is going to get Beane fired? Beane is running this franchise not to be a one and done flash. He wants to create a long-term, winning team. He does not expect to win it all this year although obviously he would take it if it happened. He's thinking about 3 and 4 years from now, when next spring's draft picks are the core of the 2023 team. This is the process they're always talking about. Draft picks are important from a cap management standpoint. Teams use draft picks as relatively cheap labor for a few years. The players who prove themselves get retained, and those who are marginal performers are replaced with the next batch. Even the players who get cut get to come on board and make a lot more than most people make for a few years, so it's not like these are retail store managers who get burned and turned.

That's really cute. But velocity is just speed AND direction combined. In physics, if you exert a force on a moving body, and it changes direction, you've accelerated it by changing its velocity even if the speed doesn't change.

Beating crap teams >>>>>>> losing to crap teams. The spirit of Al Davis lives on. Davis was right, by the way. The Patriots are destroying other teams, except for the Bills. They are not having their intestinal fortitude checked on a regular basis. In the only close game they had, against the Bills, they were choking a bit, not familiar with how to respond to a tight situation. The Bills have had nothing but close games, so they're used to the pressure. Personally I would be delighted to have the Bills win a couple by a wide margin. The games this year have been exciting but really stressful. I might not survive the year at this rate.