WickedGame

I think the correct answer is “Who the h&ll cares?” I just don’t understand people who’s sense of satisfaction is derived from seeing the evil awful media proven wrong and knocked down a peg. #sad #toolittletobegratefulfor

Hey, that’s FOUR L’s. Know what else has four L’s? Oh, wait... Too soon? ?

Being proud of where I'm from and pointing out the short-sidedness in how others label us aren't mutually exclusive. In fact, you might say they kinda go together.

Allow me to preface this post with a tip of the hat to all hard-working Western New Yorkers (and Upstate New Yorkers, in general) from all walks of life. I'm proud to have grown up in Upstate NY (born in N.T., grew up in Syracuse), and I'm equally proud (yes, equally) of my blue collar father, stay-at-home mother, and my own "white collar"(ish) career. However, I've grown weary of the lazy stereotyping of Buffalo as a "blue collar town." Yes, WNY and CNY have a history built on hard-working, industrial labor. Manufacturing and farming were once the powerful engines that fueled the growth of our communities. But while those industries and jobs still exist, and still play important roles in our economies and our culture, they're no longer the defining industries of our region. Consider these facts: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the largest employer by industry is healthcare and social services (18.6% of jobs); manufacturing accounts for just 7.4% of jobs. In fact, even if you add the jobs from construction (3.6% of jobs) and transportation/warehousing (4.2% of jobs), the combined jobs from those industries still don't equal the jobs impact of healthcare (Side note: I'm not implying healthcare employees aren't hardworking...simply that the prototype of a lunch-pail-carrying, boots-wearing, calloused-hands worker isn't an accurate representation of most Buffalonians). Looking again at industries, some of the largest employers are educational services (9.5% of jobs) and professional/scientific/technology services (7% of jobs). By occupation, the highest number of people in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls region are in office/administrative support roles (16.3 of each 100 jobs); sales jobs are next (10.5% of jobs), followed by food service roles (9.8%) and education/training/library roles (7.5%). Manufacturing production jobs are the 6th most common occupation (6.4%); Farming/agriculture jobs are 21st on the list. I share this just to point out the absurdity of the "Josh Allen is a blue collar guy...a farm boy...he's a perfect fit for Buffalo" arguments. They have little basis in fact...just clinging to outdated preconceptions of what Buffalo once was. If a city's narrowly defined "culture" and its "fit" for a player had any significance, we'd have to let go of half the roster.

Logically, if he weighs the same as a duck...

Doesn't qualify. He's still a Bill, not a former Bill. Alas.

If you could add any former Bills player in his prime to our roster for the wild card game in Jacksonville, who would you add?

Andy Dalton.

Is this the guy that wears his wedding ring when he plays? Or the guy that went to a Division III co-ed college? I can't keep 'em straight.

Wasn't trying to say that's how you measure the success of a trade. Simply pointing out an interesting correlation. But thanks for waking up every day ready to piss in someone else's Cheerios.

Had an interesting thought this morning: Buffalo and it's player trade partners made a strong showing this year: KC - Reggie Ragland - IN LA Rams - Sammy Watkins, EJ Gaines - IN Philly - Ronald Darby, Jordan Matthews - IN Carolina - Kelvin Benjamin - IN Jacksonville - Marvell Dareus - IN LA Chargers - Cardale Jones - MISSED Buffalo - IN That's a pretty good success rate.

If I'm Beane, I offer the Browns our two firsts plus Tyrod for the #1 spot. The Browns will still have a top 5 pick, so they can grab a potential franchise quarterback. They'll also have two additional first rounders from our trade, so they can stock the cupboard. And they'll have a steady if unspectacular veteran QB to be a one-year bridge. And they can quit worrying about which college QB will opt out to avoid going to Cleveland, since they'll all declare knowing they could end up in far better destinations. Buffalo gets its choice of QBs to be the franchise guy. And we still have two 2nd rounders and a 3rd rounder to fill some of the gaps not filled by free agency (my prediction is Star Lotulelei joins the team to upgrade the middle of our DL).

Allegations aren't the reason for this. That's a classic "After this, therefore because of this" logical fallacy. Owning an NFL franchise isn't a great investment at this point in time. Attendance and viewership are down -- for many reasons -- and that's costing owners money. Throw in the CTE issues hanging over the league and the game won't be what we remember it to be for long. Rules changes will diminish the game. Players will start retiring early or quit entering the league. The product on the field will suffer. Richardson is smart to sell the time while he can maximize his profits.

I actually agree. If Dorothy hadn't gone down that yellow brick road, our country wouldn't have been a disaster. Obviously.

It means nothing. Six weeks ago we had one of the best point differentials in the league. It means we played one one of the most high-powered offenses in the league in the Saints (and didn't come close to matching their output). It means we didn't get to play the Browns twice like some teams. It means we played the anemic Colts in the snow and the game was closer than it should have been. It means our defense whiffed sometimes, our offense whiffed others, both whiffed simultaneously a few times, and we've never had them both on fire simultaneously. Yeah, it'd be great if we had a stellar O and a stellar D. What team wouldn't? Most teams don't get that wish, which means you have to make strategic choices (limited draft resources + salary cap = you can't have it all). In the end, crushing opponents with a juggernaut isn't what's necessary to win. All that matters is the W. The choices you make about where to invest in your team -- O or D -- need to add up to just enough to outscore your opponents more often than not. Strength of victory almost never matters.

That's my point: I think the OP's assumption that we'd be bundling picks 20 and 22 is flawed. We may get to bundle 16 and 17. Small difference, but it adds up to points. Or bundle 16 and a player at a highly valued position...

Assuming our pics are #20 and #22 means the Chiefs will have made the playoffs. I'm not sure their pick will be as low as it appeared it would be a few weeks ago. I could easily see the Chiefs having the #17 or #18 pick. We might even have back-to-back picks, or pretty close to it.

Thinking of changing my name to "Save Your Peter, Man." That way I, too, could serve as a warning against impending doom.

Meh. Sounds like someone listened to too much "Fun With Football Audio" and thinks cliche jokes about balls and penetration are still funny.

Mods, at what point do we block the IP addresses of some of these folks? I like coming here to read about the Bills. The back-and-forth pissing matches make this place intolerable.

Do what the Bills never do: Have a reliable backup.

The wife's in Atlanta for work right now, headed back to Charlotte tomorrow. I'd take you up on it, but she'd probably pull over in front of me halfway between here and there and make me sign divorce papers.

Most of the veterans I know are decent people, and most of the athletes I know are decent people. If a member of the armed services were to introduce himself or herself to an athlete who knelt, the vast majority of athletes would likely say "Thank you for your service. I appreciate the sacrifices you, your families, and your brothers and sisters in service make for our freedom." And I betcha if an athlete who knelt were to walk over and introduce himself to a service member, the majority of service members would say "I will defend to my death your right to expression. Your choice to exercise the freedoms the Constitution affords you is a reminder of why I serve." The only people who act like utter a$&holes to each other are...the rest of us.

I see this being a competitive game. It's their stellar offense vs. our stellar defense, and on the flip side their defense isn't great. The have some pass rush, but there's hay to be made over the middle. Look for Shady and Clay to have opportunities, and I'm calling it: This is Zay's best game so far in 2017.

December 23, 2012...when Kevin Everett walked into the stadium.