BADOLBILZ

As @NoSaint said.........you you gotta' have some kind of baseline to make comparisons. Those players you mentioned were all OLB's. Taylor and Harrison weren't even playing in 4-3 defenses. You might as well have used a safety or DE as a developmental comp. Here is an example of a reasonable comparison..............the predecessor to Edmunds at the MLB position in McDermott's defense was far less talented but a more efficient tackler. See how that works? What's especially concerning with Edmunds isn't his SLOW development.............it's the lack of development...........he isn't improving. Not from year 1 to year 2. Certainly not from year 2 to year 3. He went from a rookie who made mistakes but also made plays...........to a second year guy who was still taking too many false steps but made less plays.......to now a third year player who has made zero plays thru 4 games. No turnovers, no QB hits..........he's just running in circles out there and the season didn't begin with him injured. Thru a third of this season he has just been lost out there.

Unfortunately you still read my stuff and then try to hurt my feelings. So I have to make fun of you for being fired at OBD for interrupting that contract negotiation meeting between the Bills and the Jim Kelly camp to tell them they had a phone call.

You are wrong about that........teams don't just lead with their own weakness just because an opponent has shown a weakness in that area. This isn't like the Roman Bills who averaged 5.8 net yards per pass attempt versus 5.3 yards per rush. This Bills team entered the game with an 8.4 net yards per pass attempt against just 3.8 yards per rush. That is an enormous disparity. Lead with your strength. In many regards the 1990's Bills weren't among the better coached teams in the NFL.........but one thing they were good at was imposing their will with what they were good at. Running counter against teams even when they were selling out to stop it. Or running screen passes non-stop all day against the Dolphins in the 1992 AFC Championship game. Daboll outsmarted himself. Hopefully this nipped in the bud any notion he might have that he is so smart that he can significantly change the offensive focus from week to week. The Bills personnel isn't assembled like the Patriots have been.........they can't bounce from scatbacks to power backs or run 2 TE effectively. They are an 11 personnel team with some 5 wide versatility and they should just focus on getting better at what they can already do effectively and let Josh Allen take care of the rest. If you are willing to sacrifice drives trying to force the run just to get better at it then do it against teams the Jets and Broncos not teams you know will be tightly contested games.

Lack of depth prevents that. Milano is on injury #2 already and Klein has been a huge disappointment as a free agent addition........he's been terrible. If they had been honest about Edmunds performance at MLB and been open to giving him a little healthy competition they might now have the freedom to let him get his shoulder fixed or rested.....but they weren't.......they used the reserve MLB spot for Matakevich who can only play ST's. I do think that Edmunds could play better late in the season or the playoffs..........his half-hearted effort in tackling is in part due to trying to nurse the injury thru the early season IMO.....and that's been the difference between being "meh" his first two seasons and just bad this year. He also does have a history of flashing for a couple games per season..........raising his effort/intensity in a high profile game. This Monday nighter will probably be their highest profile game nationally this regular season. He should also be especially motivated by the criticism finally coming home to roost due to his poor play. I am hoping he is jacked for Monday and makes a few big plays if nothing else.

Yeah the 5th year option is going to be approximately $11M. I think there is zero chance that Beane doesn't pick that up because of the optics alone..........but he hasn't been worth that kind of dough. The shoulder injury is a particularly bad turn of events because even if they had a guy emerge as a better, more instinctive MLB.........which could always happen at that position..........Edmunds would still be tough to evaluate as a pass rusher with a bad shoulder. And while I have my fingers crossed that Johnson emerges as a potential elite pass rusher in the next 12 months.........the chances are that they will go into the offseason compelled to spend big $ on a pass rusher when IMO Edmunds should have been that guy by now.

Early in the preseason of 2018 he made a front pylon throw that probably had <1% chance of completion..........realistically only Aaron Rodgers was the only starting QB in the NFL who I'd ever seen who could have made that throw. At that point I felt like this guy doesn't even need to come that close to his ceiling to be good. He's put the work in to be so much better but there were flashes of the extraordinary from the outset.

He's a 3rd year veteran........6th season as a college/pro LB. This has to be the first time in NFL history that a 3rd year QB has matured into a top dollar asset and the 3rd year MLB drafted the same year is still not considered seasoned enough to evaluate based on his production/performance. The time for excuses is over with Edmunds. And frankly with the defensive coaching staff for using him in the middle.

If you've been going to Bills games and tailgating religiously during the playoff drought you would have likely noticed that the fanbase had more and more become it's own entity. I think every group developed their own "the Bills organization doesn't show up every week but we do" mentality to deal with the ineptitude and seeming lack of commitment to winning. The whole Schefter "Bills Mafia" thing..........though lame on the surface.........was a very good moniker for an angry and defensive fanbase to create their own identity around the league while showing support for their franchise. I don't think it's really right for fans to cash in using the Bills name and likeness..........but the Bills organization had it coming and I think the fact that they let the copyright infringements go for this long reflects an understanding of that. Now that the organization is both committed to winning and has some competent people in charge I think it's great for the two entities to be as one and for the benefit of the football organization. This is probably as good as this procedure could have ended. I don't throw around an abundance of props to the Pegula's but they've been really good stewards on this issue.

That was actually the original premise that I presented. I don't think there was any surprise from Daboll about how the Titans defensed the Bills..........I think Daboll knew what they were likely to do but apparently had some notion that in that case he would maybe just try to out-Titans the Titans. But the fact that Adoree Jackson and their best DL were out should have just made it even more inviting to do what they do best........throw the ball.......more specifically on early downs with play action.........even if they rarely intended to run the ball. That should have been enough...........but people gotta' pick nits. Unfortunately for their arguments it just so happens that statistics support the fact that poor early starts tend to lead to losses considerably more often than not. The NFL isn't actually basketball on turf where you just have to tune in for the last 3 minutes of the game. Every series counts in big games..........hopefully now that the Bills are playing in some of those types of game that fact becomes less a point of contention and more of a point we all can agree on.

I am a path of least resistance kinda' person myself. So while I agree that they should be better running the ball..........they aren't.........and they weren't in the prior 4 games.........so expecting them to be was a fundamentally bad decision. Regardless of the opponent. Josh Allen literally came into that game averaging 9.0 yards per pass attempt. The Bills are averaging 3.8 yards per rush attempt. You can't pass the ball every single down but the math is OVERWHELMINGLY simple..........in a game you expect to be tightly contested it never makes sense to lead with your weakness. Trust me...........I can go on because their early approach to this game was ***** on many levels and practically every statistical outcome for the game backs that up.

Who said leading the NFL in tackles means nothing? That player achieved that for a reason. In Brown's case it was because the system funneled the work to him and he completed the tackles. But as we know he was not an exceptional MLB, he was a journeyman type. Edmunds was expected to be extraordinary in that role. He's not. Also btw, you are not yet up to internet dude level but keep tryin'.👌 (Seriously people........read the OP's before you respond blindly)

1) Lorax is an internet dude now. He also gets paid to make guest appearances on radio and has a close, mentor-teacher relationship with the player he is being asked to critique. If you are expecting his unobjective opinion then you are naive. Now if Edmunds was some dude on some other team I am sure Lorax would tell you about the importance of instincts for a linebacker. But since Edmunds lacks them.........its not a point of discussion. 2) I contest the notion that Edmunds absolutely has produced. Preston fricken' Brown lead the NFL in tackles in this defense in 2017. It's designed to create plays for the MLB to make. That's why they invested so much in acquiring Edmunds relative to where the league typically values that position. Edmunds has greatly underachieved statistically as a result of his lack of instincts for the position.

I think I've made my opinion very clear........they came out too focused on running the ball. Which is their offensive weakness. On the first series they ran ineffectively twice and then on a then obvious 3rd and 4 passing down Allen was called on to throw his first pass and promptly made a slightly off throw to the 4th receiver option that resulted in a pic which set up a layup touchdown for Tennessee. On the third series they ran twice and then got a penalty that effectively snuffed the drive. I am one who wants to see Josh Allen be given some easy throws and/or a designed run to get him in a rhythm physically. That wasn't done.......7-0 Titans. This isn't hindsight.........I watch every game as if I were calling the plays and there are things I want to see done early against specific opponents that I think matter. Daboll didn't think he needed to get Josh going.........he felt it was important to establish the run...........I disagreed on both counts. And starts of games obviously matter more against some opponents and in some situations than others. They started the game facing the potential of TN getting back-to-back posessions to end and start the halves and then promptly handed away two more possessions in the first 3 series. Jumping out to a lead quickly allowed TN to be patient and execute THEIR gameplan........they had ultimately won the turnover battle just 3 plays into the game and were up 7-0 just a few plays later. I guess since people assume that football is now a serve and volley sport that scoring first doesn't matter, but there is a reason that Bill Walsh started the trend of scripting offensive series. Traditionally teams that score first win about 2/3 of their games. In closer matchups that number could be higher. Last year in the playoffs 7 of the first 8 games were won by the team that scored first(the Bills being the exception!). Ultimately it's my position that Daboll did not have a good gameplan nor did he have his finger on the pulse of this game early on. If you think it was a good gameplan by BD that was for no good reason poorly executed then I strongly disagree.

And Bell was a top back in 2017 only in terms of workload. His ypa in 2017 was 4.0.........nearly a full yard drop from his previous few seasons and below league average. 2016 was the last year where he was an elite RB....dominant in terms of workload and yards per attempt.........that's now 5 seasons ago.

He's been pretty sheltered from criticism for two years. But eventually when you don't produce fans will start to wonder why. What bothers me more than his lack of production at MLB is that they have wasted his potential on the outside. This guy should be coming off the edge and using his length to create turnovers.

If that depiction bothers you then think of it more like Lorax just ran a play-action fake and a bunch of you are now left holding your ***** at the LOS. Where he wants you. Lorax is a pro. He knows that a majority of the fan base can be neutralized with a little sales job. When it comes to MLB play Lorax is telling you that he is "trying"...........but much like the RB position that it mirrors MLB is about what you "do"........and the reasons why some can't "do" are less quantifiable than just saying "the film says he's going in the right direction!". He's been a major college and pro LB for 6 years now. Brian Urlacher........a frequent Edmunds comp....... was a safety in college and played at an All Pro level at MLB as a rookie in the NFL. No experience at all required. It's a position that requires great instincts and if you need a long time to learn how to play that position(and 3 years is a long time in the NFL) then you probably don't belong there.

Good. Bell was a star 5 seasons ago. The past 4 he's alternated between a bunch of things that are less than what both the current CEH and Singletary are..........I like that he will take snaps from CEH.

Obviously

Yes, in hindsight the bad start during the scripted portion of the game decreased their chance of winning the game greatly. They lost the turnover battle for the game 3 plays in. Teams that win the turnover margin in a game win 78% of the time. You can argue against my larger point about momentum but turnovers kill you and that turnover was set up by the Titans getting the Bills into a 3rd and no-way-they-run-the-ball.

OK but real talk.........they had only gained 6 yards after 2 plays and after 3 plays the Titans were at the BILLS 16 yard line. It was a bad game plan. Admit it.

You are talking about throwing on third down.........after two unnecessary and ineffective run plays. If you think Daboll had a good game plan then just say so..........there is a whole thread dedicated to how his greatness is going to lead to him becoming a HC next season and undermining the Bills offense. In reality.........nobody liked the Daboll game plan..........you just want to argue with me.

And yet receivers were running open all over the field. And the Bills QB is an MVP candidate who has done well with short to intermediate throws for the past 2 seasons and excels at buying time that breaks down coverage discipline. The second highlighted point from your post is the key to me...........the fact that they didn't realize that they have fundamental issues with their run game when it's been as clear as day for 4 games. That is the heart of the issue. It's why Daboll had a bad script. You are basically arguing against and supporting my point at the same time. The script indicated that they really weren't terribly surprised by what the Titans chose to do defensively. They just tried to call plays that in theory "should" work rather than just do what they do best on early downs. It's a problem I have had with Daboll for some time.........he seems to live for the "gotcha" plays. On his bad days he is just hunting a pecking thru his play sheet. When you have an offense that can impose its will the way the Bills can when Allen drops back...........not doing so is like the early 90's Bills deciding they don't want to run screens because the opposing defense has it on tape. If Allen is being accurate it's really hard to take away the passing game from him because he can buy so much time and make throws so few can.

Typically the first 12-15 plays are scripted. You are talking about play #3. But yes by that point they should have tossed that sh*tty script.

I was specifically talking about the beginning of the game...........the typically "scripted" portion...........and while I know that Daboll isn't actually trying to grind out 12 play drives you need to know that that's what it's going to take if you are trying to run the ball when it's your offensive weakness. They lost this game in the first few drives by playing against their strength. As I said in an earlier post.......once they dug themselves a deficit and went empty backfield the Titans just stayed back and took away the big play opportunities.

I like these suggestions a lot. I am with you on Johnson he has a chance to be like the player Hendrickson has become now........maybe even better all around. Those guys are built to rush the passer. They need to get Edmunds out on the edge next season and see what they actually have while they have a chance to develop him.