mjt328

Wide Receivers never get serious consideration. I don't think Jerry Rice ever received the NFL MVP either.

Maybe I'll end up being wrong... but I feel like the Mitch Morse stuff is a bunch of drama without substance. Odds are high that our coaching staff just wanted to give him an extra week off, especially with the bye week upcoming. My guess is that Morse will be back at Center this week, with Feliciano back at guard. Hopefully we get Cody Ford back too.

This is a fair point, and one of the reasons I'm still on a "wait and see" approach with Beane's drafts. My concern is that eventually, the salary cap will force us to rely more heavily on these draft picks to contribute. - Cody Ford will likely need to replace either Jon Feliciano or Darryl Williams. - AJ Epenesa will likely need to replace either Jerry Hughes or Mario Addison - We may not be able to afford Matt Milano, and will need to draft his replacement

My belief is that a draft should yield at least 3 starting-caliber players. It's a little hard to judge Brandon Beane's drafts at this point, because many of the top guys he's picked have been inconsistent. - Tremaine Edmunds was a Pro-Bowler last year, but has been hurt and struggled badly this season. - Harrison Phillips looked promising as a rookie, then tore his ACL and doesn't appear to have fully recovered. - Ed Oliver has shown brief flashes, but has been mostly underwhelming at this point. - Cody Ford started looking better when we pushed him inside, but then he got hurt too. - AJ Epenesa has been at the back-end of the DE rotation his entire rookie season. - Zack Moss has had moments, but our running game has struggled all season. Until a good chunk of these guys become impact players for us, it's hard to say Beane is doing anything better than average.

Let's see how the Bills come out of the bye. This team was totally ravaged with injuries over the first 10 games, has faced possibly the toughest schedule in the NFL, and was still a Hail Mary prayer away from boasting an 8-2 record. I've often said the Bills don't look like they belong among the NFL's elite, so I do understand where you are coming from. But many of the AFC's top teams also look pretty mortal if you watch them every week. The Ravens were supposedly a Super Bowl contender a month ago. Now they are on the outside looking in for the playoffs.

Historically, the NFL has been a copycat league, where coordinators try to duplicate what is working for other teams. It is also a sport that evolves and changes over time. Right now, you are seeing the trend of athletic/mobile QBs taking hold over the NFL. Just like you said. To counter this, defenses are finding they need to change. They are no longer building defenses to stop Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. They are creating defenses to stop guys like Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Kyler Murray, etc. They will need to draft certain kinds of players to fit into this mold. But what happens a few years down the road, when the majority of defenses across the league have equipped themselves with the schemes/personnel capable to do this? That is when the guys who can't truly read a defense will falter, and the traditional pocket passers will likely start to re-emerge. That's why I think Lamar Jackson's luster is going to gradually fade (you already are seeing it). Although he occasionally puts up big passing stats, it's more because of how his running ability forces defenses to leave receivers open. He doesn't seem to have developed much in his ability to sit in the pocket, read a defense and go through progressions. Meanwhile, guys capable of doing it ALL like Josh Allen should be in great shape moving forward.

The verdict is, the AFC East is still most definitely up for grabs. At the end of the day, I still think the Bills have a slight advantage. We already beat Miami once. We have a 4-0 record in the division, while the Dolphins are 1-2 in the division. So at the moment, we have the edge in tiebreakers. I'll also say our remaining schedule is a little bit easier (Steelers/Broncos vs. Chiefs/Raiders). I guess we'll see what happens.

So you knew the Bills were going to allow a Hail Mary that works maybe 1-100 times, simply because we called a timeout? I have absolutely zero problem with us calling a timeout to get our defense prepared. The clock was already stopped at that point. The Cardinals had plenty of time to come up with a plan, regardless of the timeout. In fact, if you listen to the Arizona players and coaching staff, that play was not even designed to be a Hail Mary. They wanted to get the ball closer before taking an endzone shot. The primary read was a 20 yard sideline pass, with DeAndre Hopkins as a secondary option if that wasn't open. When Kyler Murray got flushed from the pocket, he decided to take the deep throw and it worked.

I've been breaking down our remaining schedules, and the AFC East definitely has the potential to come down to our Week 17 matchup. If the Dolphins beat the Broncos (who are likely to start Brett Rypien) this Sunday, they will be tied with the Bills with a 7-3 record. They finish up the third quarter of the season against the Jets and Bengals. It's hard to imagine them losing either of those. Meanwhile, we get the Chargers and banged-up 49ers, which should both be wins for us. That leaves both Miami and Buffalo likely sitting at 9-3 heading into the home-stretch. Week 14 is rough for both teams. We get the Steelers. They get the Chiefs. They get the Patriots in Week 15. We get the Patriots in Week 16. We both have one more AFC West game. They still need to play the Raiders. We still need to play the Broncos. Of course, there is always the possibility that Miami hits a slump (they are starting a rookie QB after all) and drops a game they shouldn't. If that happens, I think we clinch the AFC East before Week 17. But based on the way the season has played out so far, I certainly wouldn't count on that happening. The good news is that we currently hold the edge in tiebreakers. We already beat Miami once head-to-head, and we are 4-0 in the division. But we also cannot afford a slip-up.

It's definitely possible. I feel better about most of these games than I did even a month ago. My honest guess is that we go 4-2 down the stretch and finish 11-5. - The Chargers are 2-7 with a rookie quarterback. And we are coming off a bye. Can't see us losing this. - I always felt the 49ers were a bad matchup against us. But they have injuries all over the place. No Jimmy G. No George Kittle. Their running game is struggling. This has gone from one of the most difficult games on our schedule, to a game we absolutely should win. - The Steelers are easily the toughest team left on our schedule, and currently sit at 9-0. They are well-balanced with a lot of weapons and a strong defense. It's going to be a tough matchup. - The Broncos are 3-6. They will probably have Drew Lock back by this point, but I still think we outmatch them. - My hope is that we have cleared the "mental hurdle" regarding the Patriots, and the next game won't be so close. It will be interesting to see how the next few weeks play out. Will the Pats get back into playoff talks? Or will they be out of the picture by the time Week 16 rolls around? They play the Texans, Cardinals, Chargers, Rams and Dolphins. Not exactly an easy schedule. - The Dolphins upcoming slate is against the Broncos, Jets and Bengals. So it's easy to see them getting to 9 wins before the final quarter, and them having the same record as the Bills after Week 14.. Their last four games are against the Chiefs, Patriots, Raiders and then the Bills. Which is a little bit tougher than our last four. The good news is that we have the edge in tie-breakers (won head-to-head, 4-0 in division). So Miami needs a better record than us to win the AFC East.

1. Brandon Beane has already pretty much spent us to the salary cap. 2. Thanks to the virus cutting back fan attendance, the cap is expected to drop over the next few years (it has historically risen each year). 3. The Bills will likely be giving Josh Allen an extension, before 2021 is finished. Not to mention, our list of free agents is pretty extensive. https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/free-agents/buffalo-bills/ The list includes guys like Jon Feliciano, Daryl Williams, Andre Roberts, Isaiah McKenzie, Matt Milano, Josh Norman and Levi Wallace. Not to mention depth pieces like Trent Murphy, Tyler Kroft, Ty Nsekhe, Brian Winters, Matt Barkley, Dean Marlow, Justin Zimmer and Ike Boettger. Unfortunately, we are to the point where money is going to start dictating whether we can keep players or not. This is where Beane's drafting skills will need to start showing, so that we don't see a drop-off when the veterans leave for more $$. Personally, I would love to keep Jerry Hughes in a Bills uniform until he retires or shows regression. But one of the main reasons we drafted AJ Epenesa was to slide into that rotation to replace Hughes or Mario Addison. He may need to be ready for significant snaps next season.

This is the type of move bound to backfire. If Jackson feels the Patriots did this on purpose so they could offer less money, he may decide not to negotiate with them at all.

I highly doubt the Cardinals plan was for Murray to be "scrambling for his life" on that play... I'm sure Kingsbury figured the Bills would only rush 3-4 guys and play prevent, the blocking would hold-up, and then Murray could step up in the pocket and then hit someone near the sideline. They had plenty of time to make the endzone shot more manageable, instead of just throwing up a 45+ yard prayer. Strangely enough, if Mario Addison doesn't get immediate pressure... that's probably what happens, and Murray throws for the sideline instead of the endzone.

For everyone complaining that McDermott didn't put in some kind of Hail Mary defense... The Cardinals were actually planning to hit Andy Isabella for a 20-yard gain along the sideline, and wait until the next play for the endzone shot. https://clutchpoints.com/the-real-story-behind-cardinals-qb-kyler-murrays-miracle-hail-mary-to-deandre-hopkins/ As many have pointed out, if the Bills put in a bunch of tall guys and flooded the endzone in deep prevent, the Cardinals would have EASILY made a throw to get inside the 30 yard line... and then still had time for at least one endzone throw. Maybe two. Without the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, the Bills coaching staff surely figured the best plan was to keep their regular defense on the field and also guard against the sideline passes. The blitz from the slot was also smart, because it caused Kyler Murray to leave the pocket, use up an extra 3-4 seconds and throw up a prayer without setting his feet. Everything worked perfectly, and they had their THREE BEST defensive backs in position to make the play. The only problem was that DeAndre Hopkins made a miraculous catch.

The Cardinals had 11 seconds left, and the ball past midfield. That is enough time for at least 2 plays. Possibly 3. This was not a moment for the Bills to bring in a bunch of offensive guys, who have no idea how to cover or tackle. If the Bills brought in guys like Gabriel Davis and Dawson Knox, it would have been much easier for the Cardinals to complete a couple sideline passes. Then instead of a Hail Mary, the Bills would have been trying to stop a completed pass from around the 25-30 yard line. I actually think the Bills played this one very smart. They brought an extra rusher from the slot, which ultimately helped flush Kyler Murray from the pocket and forced him to waste extra time running around. Mario Addison was actually close to reaching the QB. And on the back-end, we had three defenders in position to knock the ball away from DeAndre Hopkins. If that ball gets knocked away, the Cardinals have 1-2 seconds left at most. This play was not a coaching failure. It was a spectacular catch by one of the NFL's best players. What the Bills need to focus on over the next 2 weeks is all the OTHER plays in the second half, which led to them even being in a position to lose this game.

Didn't say that I've seen hundreds completed. I have been watching football for over 30 years you know. And for everyone that thinks we are cursed, this is not the first time someone has lost due to a Hail Mary.

Didn't notice many other passes completed against Tre White throughout the rest of the game. The Hail Mary was a freak play, by one of the best WRs in the entire NFL. Honestly, I thought that our defenders played the ball pretty good. Just because Tre jumped with two hands in the air, does not mean he was trying to intercept the ball. I've seen hundreds of Hail Mary plays in my time, and defenders often bat the ball down with both hands. DeAndre Hopkins is known for having extremely strong hands. It's very likely that White believed he needed the power from both his hands to keep the WR from snatching the ball out of the air.

Very surprised at the number of people saying we cut bait. Having athletic linebackers like Matt Milano is an absolutely essential piece to the McDermott/Frazier defense. I believe Milano's extended absence is another reason we are struggling on that side of the ball this year. Our gameplan against Seattle was brilliant, and we did a great job of using AJ Klein as a blitzer. But eventually teams will catch-on to that tactic, and we will need someone at LB who is more versatile. If our biggest concern is health, I say the Bills offer an incentive-laden deal that gives bonuses for staying injury free.

I've always believed that if Scott Norwood made the kick, we definitely would have repeated as AFC Champs in 1991. The Bills were still the best team in that conference by a wide margin. But the Redskins were always a very tough matchup and we very likely would have still lost that game. After that, it's anyone's guess. The Bills always seemed to be driven by an "unfinished business" attitude that I'm not sure would have existed if they had already won the Super Bowl once. Would they have put together the "Greatest Comeback" if not for that drive? Hard to say. They certainly had the talent to make 4 straight Super Bowls. But it was that edge that seemed to put them over the top. My biggest question has always been, "What if the 90s Bills had played the 49ers in one of those Super Bowls?" Buffalo no doubt had an excellent team from top to bottom, loaded with Hall of Famers. But their one weakness was occasionally stopping teams with big/physical offensive lines, and strong running games. Most of the time we could jump out to early leads against run-heavy teams, and force them to abandon the ground game. But every so often, our offense wouldn't get into a rhythm, allowing these units to dominate the time of possession and gradually wear down the defense. It just so happens that during the 90s, the NFC East teams were known for this kind of style. And in every single Super Bowl matchup, our offense came out flat. I've always thought the Bills matched up way better against the 49ers, who ran the West Coast Offense at the time. The 49ers made the Super Bowl in 1988, 1989 and 1995. Our Super Bowl run was 1990-1994. What are the odds?

On one hand, most owners are not involved in the direct day-to-day operations of the franchise. On the other hand, the owner hires the General Manager, and everything trickles down from that point. The greatest period in Bills history was when Ralph Wilson hired Bill Polian, and just let him run the show. Now consider that Polian was an internal hire for a Bills team that was among the worst in the entire NFL. So honestly, the fact that Polian turned out to be a Hall of Fame GM was purely dumb luck on Wilson's part. And Wilson ended up firing Polian in the middle of the 4-straight Super Bowl run, which was one of the most ignorant decisions in the history of our franchise. After that point, Wilson became the nightmare meddling owner. He fired John Butler (who was fairly successful replacing Polian) over money. He demanded Wade Phillips fire the Special Teams coach, and then fired him when he wouldn't. When the Tom Donahoe experiment failed, Wilson reassumed the role of president and named Marv Levy the GM. There are many credible stories about Wilson dictating moves in the draft room. So the short answer is... probably not. Unless Wilson was willing to step aside completely, and got lucky hiring the right guy, nothing would have turned around for the Bills.

Not sure what people are smoking with the "favorable schedule" nonsense. The Patriots upcoming slate is extremely difficult. Five of their remaining 8 games are against teams with winning records. That doesn't count the Texans or Chargers, who are both way better than their current records.

The number one concern for our defense will be keeping Kyler Murray in the pocket. He's arguably the best running QB in the NFL. Murray doesn't have Lamar Jackson's juke moves, or Josh Allen's ability to run over tacklers. But he's still very fast, and very elusive.

I would imagine that most fans have never stood on the sideline during a football game. It would be impossible for Sean McDermott to see whether Gabe Davis was inbounds from his vantage point. Ultimately, information on challenges need to come from someone else on the Bills staff. There needs to be someone with access to video replays who is immediately checking on these plays in slow-motion, and then communicating that information down to McDermott. I'm not sure how other teams handle this procedure, but it definitely seems like the Bills are behind the 8-ball compared to others around the league. It seems to me that we often miss good opportunities to challenge, but then throw the red flag when the chances of overturning are slim. And McDermott's record at challenging calls is the proof. It's something I wish he would research and find out what successful teams are doing differently.

I was 14-years-old, living in Philadelphia. At that point of my life watching the NFL, I had never witnessed the Bills finish worse than 9-7.

During the offseason, Cover 1 did a full breakdown of Josh Allen's mechanical issues. https://www.cover1.net/taming-josh-allens-arm-how-mechanical-tweaks-have-buffalos-qb-primed-for-a-year-3-leap/ It's a fantastic article, for anyone who hasn't gotten a chance to read it. While a lot of Allen's early struggles involved footwork and head control, they also have an entire section about how his left arm (keeping it tight) is key in affecting balance. I'm certainly not an expert in QB mechanics, but I thought Allen's throwing motion was noticeably different starting with the Titans game. So it's interesting that Seattle was his first game since Week 4 without the brace, and definitely lends support to the theory that the injury was affecting his play.