hondo in seattle

I actually think scheme matters a lot. I love the X and Os of football. But sometimes the chess game played between the opposing coaches is played to a draw. So the team with the better players wins.

The 90s Bills team had a HOF coach and studs on offense, defense, and special teams: Kelly, Thomas, Hull, Talley, Biscuit, Bruce, Tasker, etc. This team has Josh. I really don't get why people think this is a SB caliber roster just missing a SB caliber coach. It's not.

Before the season began, scores of pundits predicted that the Bills would finish either 2nd or even 3rd in the AFCE. Even with Josh, they didn't feel we had enough talent to win a bunch of games. They weren't wrong. These football gurus didn't underestimate our roster talent at all. But they underestimated McD and our coaching staff. And yet some folks who want to fire the coaches that are getting this team to over-perform. Fans are a funny group.

Bills players - as well as some retired players and coaches - mention that the Bills defense is complicated and adept at disguises. For lesser QBs and coaches, it can be a hard puzzle to figure out. So we often look good. But McVay and other smart coaches and QBs understand what they're looking at. At the same time, we know what they're trying to do on offense. Neither team has a distinct scheme advantage because each side understands the other. But if their players are better than our players, as is sometimes the case, they'll move the ball. Yesterday, the Rams OL was better than our DL. Their receivers were better than our DBs. They won.

As someone said previously in another thread, the 90s Bills laid some eggs during the season and still reached the SB. That's what I'm hoping for. But that defensive performance - combined with the D's performance against the Ravens - makes me worry. Also, that 90s roster had its fair of jags but at the top of the roster was Bruce, Biscuit, etc. We don't have anyone like that now.

Agree. Our chances of winning at that time were pretty low. I think McD and Brady thought/hoped the initial sneak would work. If it did, we'd have a chance. They probably didn't think too deeply through the possibility of it not working.

Yep. And the Rams both ran and threw on us. This defense is suspect. Who are the playmakers? We don't have any stars or big names on defense kind of like Miami's '72 No-Name Defense. Minus the shutouts. And statistical excellence. And undefeated record. With Von and Milano playing at a level below their prime, this is a squad of jags.

I disagree. I think he's a good coach and I think the Bills will fail in the playoffs again because there are other teams with more talent. Other than QB, we don't have an elite position group on this team. McD (with a lot of help from Josh) is the reason we're even getting into the postseason. Beane needs to give him more to work with.

I absolutely believe McD and Babich could have and should have prepared a better defensive game plan and called a better game. But I also believe that our roster isn't extremely talented on either side of the ball. We have Josh and to quote McVay, "Josh is an alien." We have some nice players beyond Josh but every team has nice players, including the Rams despite their record. The Bills aren't 10-3 despite McD. They're 10-3 because of McD - and Josh. Take those two away and this is a sub .500 team.

I put on my blue Bills sweatpants after showering yesterday morning. But then I couldn't find my Josh Allen jersey. So I donned my Kelly jersey instead. It's a "Salute to Service" military green. I'm not a fashionista, but I know that the drab green of that jersey clashed with the bright red & blue of the sweats but I wore it anyway, creating a vortex of bad juju that extended from my location all the way to SoFi. Sorry.

I don't think it's a scheme problem as much as a talent problem. Yesterday's game was horrific to watch. But overall this D has been good this season and that's a testament to McD and Babich. There's not a ton of talent on this roster. And I do think this will haunt us in the playoffs. We can win 6 consecutive games in the regular season, but winning consecutive games against playoff caliber teams in January will require some luck.

It's a no name defense. Beane gave McD lemons and -most of the time - McD is able to make lemonade. Sometimes it just doesn't work. The Rams were smart enough to figure the Bills out. And when the mind games neutralized each other, it became player versus player - and they had better players. Josh Allen and good coaching got the Bills to 10-3. But that combo isn't good enough every week.

Considering I fathered children, once led soldiers into combat, and see those little gems hanging every time I urinate, I think I have balls. Yet I wouldn't fire McD. I don't think having balls necessarily leads to McD getting terminated. Just my humble opinion.

I love Josh but I'm not ready to go this far. If OJ didn't turn out to be a scumbag off the field, he'd be in the conversation as the greatest RB ever. And he excelled in the Golden Era of RBs when the best athletes became backs and offenses were built around them. Yet, in 1973, OJ ran for an insane 75% more yards than the next best back. No RB or QB - not Jim Brown, not Brady - ever produced 75% more yards in a season than the next best guy. No one's come close. And let's not forget that Bruce owns the all-time NFL record for sacks. He may be the best DE of all time. When Josh sets a meaningful career NFL record like Bruce or nearly doubles the season production of his peers like OJ, I'll consider him as a candidate for Bills GOAT.

Recency bias... - We lost last year at home. - We probably underperformed in the past two playoffs because of injuries to key players. I'd rather have a healthy roster. And if we get the #2 seed, we'll still play at home because KC will lose before they reach the AFC Championship Game against us.

This is a great explanation! But I think the historical note may be wrong. Spread offenses became a big thing in college about 30 or 40 years ago. The 4-2-5 became much more popular in college after the spread emerged but was created earlier. When the NFL started becoming a "passing league," in the 1970s, NFL teams started experimenting with a variety of "pass prevent defenses" - including as I recall the 4-2-5 and even the 3-1-7 in late game situations. Jerry Williams, an Assistant Coach with Philly, is credited with inventing the Nickel in 1960 NFL Championship game, to combat Mike Ditka, the star TE. But I don't know if Williams employed a 3-3-5 or 4-2-5. I would guess it was the 4-2-5 since the 5-2-4 was the common defensive deployment at the time. I wonder if we have any NFL historians here with better information on the history of the 4-2-5?

James Cook, the English explorer, "discovered" Hawaii 1779. James Cook, the Buffalo Bill, will find paydirt more than once in tomorrow's game. Offense: Cook Defense: Douglas

I'm generally pleased with Beane but for years I criticized him for not building a good OL. When you have the best QB in franchise history, it's critical to give him a bodyguard for a bunch of reasons: ...To keep him alive and healthy, ...To give him time and space to do what he's paid to do, ...To open holes for backs to give the offense balance and take some pressure off the QB. Even when our sack numbers weren't terrible, that was generally because Allen was elusive, not because the OL was protecting him. But this year's OL has been a happy relevation.

There's the old truism that you should put your best 11 men on the field. So I expected a lot of 12 personnel this season because both Knox and Kincaid are probably among our best 11 men. By dumb luck, I was right about using 12 but I didn't expect Anderson to be one of the TEs.

One of the color commentators said it was a growing trend. Or maybe it was Orlovsky in one of his Bills breakdowns. In any case, I'm not sure it's true. I wonder if someone has any stats.

McDermott era playoff losses: 3-10 versus Jacksonville 19-22 versus Houston 24-38 versus KC 36-42 versus KC 10-27 versus Cinci 24-27 versus KC In two games, our D was horrible. In two games, our O was horrible. In the other games, we were just a little more mediocre than our opponent. In those games we allowed 22 and 27 points respectively - neither great nor awful - and still couldn't win. I'm not sure what our losses teach us other than the obvious: we weren't good enough. I don't see them necessarily as proof of a problem with McD's defensive system since we can blame at least two of the losses on the offense. It might be we don't have the right players to execute the system as flawlessly as he wants - especially when we repeatedly enter the playoffs with injuries to key players on defense. Regardless of the system employed, the talent you put on the field matters. I also think that the roster overperforms during the regular season because McD's system is so complicated and good at disguises that many QBs struggle against us. That's not roster talent - that's coaching. But the regular season coaching advantage largely disappears in the playoffs when going up against the very best QBs and coaching staffs who are smart enough to recognize what McD is up to. At that point, with the battle of wits is at a draw and the better players win. And sometimes that's not us.

I voted yes because I'm a homer. But it'll be tough to get 13 more.

Bison are bigger, stronger, and faster than goats. Bills 30 Rams 20

I have mixed feelings. I've voted against the legalization of marijuana because in my inexpert opinion it does more societal harm than good. But it's legal in some places which makes it weird for the NFL to make rules about it. How can you punish a player for perfectly legal off-the-field behavior? I'd love for NFL players to be good role models for our children... No arrogance... No drugs or alcohol... No criminal behavior... No cursing in front of the camera... No violence - other than smacking the crap out of people on the field... But I think the role model ship set sail a long time ago.

I think a little differently. I imagine that I'm a young man with a young man's hormones. There's a contest to win a dance with a angelically beautiful young lady. The first part of the contest is skill based. The 14 best competitors win a ticket to the dance hall. But once at the dance hall, the contest become a combination of skill and luck, giving every competitor a chance. Earning a bye is the best alternative: home field advantage, one week of rest to get healthy, one fewer 50-50 game. But whatever seed we are, I'm grateful to Beane, McD, and Josh for getting us a ticket to the dance.