hondo in seattle

I'm rooting for KC-Ravens tie, which gives each of them half a loss.

I thought I heard/saw a stat last year saying Allen was super-effective in play action. If so, yeah, it's a mystery why we don't do it more though maybe Miyagi is right.

Proud daddy moment... My step-daughter grew up in the Philippines and knows next to nothing about American football. But she knows that in this family, you have to be a Bills fan. So she wears her gear on game days, and again the day after wins. Josh Allen is probably the only player on the team she can name, but she represents. Her and some med school friends drove into the parking lot of a ramen restaurant the other day and saw a woman doing CPR on a homeless person. My daughter checked for a pulse - there was none - and took over the chest compressions. Meanwhile, one friend called 9-11 while another got a Narcan kit from her car. By the time the EMTs arrived, my sister and her friends had already revived the guy. My daughter called it a "community effort," though I'm happy to say the Bills mafia played a role.

Saints ain't good but ain't as bad as some say. Bills 34 Saints 24

Not for me. I'd give Beane an "A" even though I often complain that he needs to get better. The Bills had 1 All-Pro last year. The Ravens and Eagles both had 6. The Lions had 4 and the Chiefs had 3. It's hard to win a Lombardi with just one All-Pro. But when that All-Pro is Allen, you have to Beane a high grade. Still, you have to consider that the goal is to win a Lombardi and only the top team gets one, not the top four. So why congratulate Beane for being 4th on this list? Of course, I'd rather be in the top 20% on this list than the bottom 20%, but Brandon has work to do. Our FO is ranked #4 (and according to the point totals, not even close to Philly or Baltimore). Yet we're #2 in wins since 2020. In other words, our coaches are outperforming the work done by the FO.

I've been complaining about the OL for so many years now that I don't know what else to talk about now that they're good. I might as well become a Trappist monk and take a vow of silence.

I agree with you. But imagine your Brandon Beane. You have your dream job. You're winning a lot of games. People are interviewing you because your opinions are newsworthy. You're making more money than you ever have before and materially taking better care of your family. Given all that, how much would you allow a coach, or anyone else, to draft a guy you didn't believe in when your job is on the line? Beane is going to consider McD's opinion just like he considers those of his scouts. Beane knows that a team of people typically makes better decisions than any one individual. But Beane's making the final call, and I doubt if he's making any trades or picks that he doesn't have faith in. Whoever else had input is, from my point of view, immaterial. Beane has the ultimate accountability. If the coaches and scouts are giving him bad draft/trade advice, he should ignore the coaches and replace the scouts.

This changes the narrative in Daboll's favor. Instead of losing games with a veteran, he's now patiently developing a rookie much like he did with MVP Josh Allen.

That was a great watch. Thanks for posting. I rooted for him anyway but I'm going to root harder now.

It's always hard to be critical of the reigning Super Bowl champ. I did the best I could. But someday the Sirianni honeymoon will end. The list of coaches who got fired AFTER winning Super Bowls includes Tom Landry, Jon Gruden, Doug Peterson, Mike Shanahan, and Pete Carroll. It wouldn't surprise me if Sirianni joined this list someday. They don't call it the Not For Long league for nothin'. In any case, I'm not in fact advocating that any of these coaches be fired. That's kind of how satire works. Without being too specific, I generally believe that if you have a winning coach, you keep him. Yet virtually all the coaches on this list have hometown fans who want their heads.

Love the optimism in the land of lasagna, romance, and leaning towers!

Trolling? I'd say I'm using satire to make the point that even successful head coaches are flawed. If you look critically, there are reasons to fire all of them. When a pickpocket walks down the street, all he sees is pockets. When a McD hater watches football, all he sees are additional reasons to fire McD. Confirmation bias is a b*tch. Which is not to say McD doesn't deserve criticism or doesn't have room to grow. He does. But I'll take a coach with a solid winning percentage over lots of bad other options.

Maybe I'm naive but I thought Josh was talking about turf and Pat was talking about something else. Though I do think Josh was entirely aware of the double entendre from the beginning. I got confused on some other interview show when the nutz jokes popped up. Had no idea what was going on until someone explained. You may be right but over the years, I've encountered people whose vices (or lack of them) were very different than you'd expect. I wouldn't say anything "for sure" unless I knew the individual personally.

My simple point is that even the most successful NFL coaches have failures, mistakes, and blemishes on their resumes. But as a guy who's lived through Kay Stephenson (.278), John Rauch (.268), Hank Bullough (.190), Jim Ringo (.130), and the late great Harvey Johnson (.096), I'm happy to continue with McD (.646). McD and Beane have gotten us close to the promised land. I hope they've learned from their shortfalls and find a way to get us over the hump. Improving an organization and leadership team that's been almost good enough seems like a more achievable task than starting over with a different team of flawed leaders.

I'm not sure if I should laugh or feel offended.

Winning a few games isn’t enough anymore. A good HC coach need to elevate the play of his roster as well as Lombardis. All of the league’s top ten winningest coaches ought to be replaced. 1. Nick Sirianni – Philadelphia Eagles Regular Season Win Percentage: .709 Why He Should Be Fired: Inherited a Howie Roseman-built juggernaut and rode the “tush push” and good coordinators to NFC glory in 2022 and NFL glory in 2024. Sirianni is just along for the ride. 2. Jim Harbaugh – San Diego Chargers Regular Season Win Percentage: .679 Why He Should Be Fired: A coaching throwback. Pushes a 1960s run-first philosophy when his most talented offensive player is his QB. Militaristic, combative, rigid, not a player’s coach. Doesn’t adapt to the strengths and shortcomings of his roster; makes them adapt to him. Was a good college coach but his techniques don’t transfer to the pros; he could beat Ohio State but can’t beat Mahomes. 3. Matt Lefluer – Green Bay Packers Regular Season Win Percentage: .655 Why He Should Be Fired: Can’t win games that matter. Last season the Packers went 0–6 against top NFC teams, including two losses each to the Lions, Vikings, and Eagles. Likewise, has a losing record in the playoffs. 4. Andy Reid – Kansas City Chiefs Regular Season Win Percentage: .646 Why He Should Be Fired: Took 21 years to win his first Lombardi. If he were any good, it would have happened sooner. Only started winning trophies when Mahomes and Spags showed up. His clock management is a national joke and his walrus-like visage and sideline demeanor inspire more memes than confidence. 5. Sean McDermott – Buffalo Bills Regular Season Win Percentage: .646 Why He Should Be Fired: Never mind that he rebuilt a laughingstock franchise, developed Josh Allen, and made the playoffs six of seven years. The combination of 13 seconds and zero Lombardis, despite having a generational talent under center, ought to send him packing. 6. Kevin O’Connell – Minnesota Vikings Regular Season Win Percentage: .636 Why He Should Be Fired: No passion, can’t build a defensive coaching staff, poor clock management, poor 4th down calls, early playoff exits, a tendency to lose primetime games and games against division rivals… the list goes on and on. A nice guy coaching to be fired. 7. Mike Tomlin – Pittsburgh Steelers Regular Season Win Percentage: .617 Why He Should Be Fired: Hasn’t won a playoff game since 2016. His loyalty to Matt Canada was borderline criminal. Steelers fans are rightly tired of wild-card exits and offensive impotence. 8. John Harbaugh – Baltimore Ravens Regular Season Win Percentage: .616 Why He Should Be Fired: Improbable fourth-quarter collapses are his trademark. Most recently, blew a 15-point lead to the Bills late in the 4th despite having the better roster. One ring in 17 seasons speaks of luck, not skill. Lamar Jackson’s prime is being wasted on Harbaugh’s stubborn loyalty to underperforming coordinators. 9. Sean McVay – Los Angeles Rams Regular Season Win Percentage: .612 Why He Should Be Fired: Won a Super Bowl with a rented roster and Aaron Donald then went 5-12 the following season. Only as good as his roster. Adds nothing. He’s supposed to be an offensive genius but only managed to put up 3 points in his first SB appearance and didn’t exactly light it up in his second. 10. Sean Payton – Denver Broncos Regular Season Win Percentage: .610 Why He Should Be Fired: He only managed to drive a Ferrari named Brees to the SB once and produced a playoff win record only a smidge above .500 thanks in large part to bottom-10 defenses. His playoff woes continue with the Broncos with only one appearance in two years, a 31-7 loss to the Bills. The Broncos didn’t need a legacy hire—they need a coach who can win in the AFC West. Payton’s not that guy.

There's that and there's how teams play D against us. I love Jimbo but defenses don't crowd the box to stop him. Defenses often take away the long pass and challenge us to dink-and-dunk and run the length of the field, hoping at some point they'll get a stop. Even the best offenses have miscues, penalties, dropped passes, and so on. Eventually, by taking away the deep ball, the defense gets a stop or gets us to settle for a FG. Not on every series, but enough to keep the game close.

I like our backs. But if we could get a Cookie Gilchrist clone - i.e. a power back with speed - I'm in. Defenses couldn't play 2-deep shells with itty-bitty coverage linebackers if we had a powerful bruiser like Cookie. Give me an Eric Moulds clone at wideout and Josh would go off, assuming Brady knows how to scheme a downfield passing attack, which I do wonder about. On defense, we have many needs. Bruce Smith is too much to ask for but an Aaron Schobel clone to pair with Bosa would be great. We need to generate more pressure. And we need another good CB - I'd be thrilled if Tre simply regained his old form. Maybe Bishop will evolve into something eventually but right now, I miss Poyer and Hyde. It's all science. Cloning can solve every one of our problems.

Good observation. I'd been wondering about that. We have played teams with talented backs who have given us trouble in the past, so I've wondered if that was the reason - though there are other possible explanations. It's something to watch.

My earliest Bills memory is Mini Max Anderson 'swallowing' his tongue - a concept that freaked out my fragile 9-year-old brain. So I'm not a bandwagon jumper, though I welcome everyone who is. Enjoy the ride!

As someone who is generally on your side in regard to Brady opening things up (assuming Brady has the acumen to design and call a good intermediate and deep passing game), I will mention this counterargument: When the Bills needed to throw downfield at the end of the Ravens game, they did so effectively.

#7!

SB or GTFO is an unrealistic standard. Good coaching can slant the odds in your favor. A GM who builds a good roster can do the same. But even if you have the best HC and GM in football, there's no guarantee that you'll get a trophy. Football is partially a game of chance. Injuries, weird bounces, bad ref calls, and so on can all impact a game at critical moments. If that game is a playoff game, bad luck can and will end your season. If you have a good team, you work to improve it to better your odds. You don't blow it up.

I'm one of those people decrying Brady's seeming inability to scheme a productive downfield passing attack. And yet I know you're right. The Bills offense produces points without producing TOs. What else do we really want?

I admit I get frustrated at the Bills sometimes, particularly at Brady. I believe he could scheme up and call a better downfield passing attack. Or maybe he can't and needs to hire a passing game coordinator. But then I remind myself of the 6-3 games we've played in the past and the 2-win seasons and feel much better.