BringBackFlutie

Am I missing something here? Why do so many people say that it has to happen now? Can't we wait until right before he becomes a free agent? Or at least midway through the year? I don't want Dick and Trent 2.0 happening. That being said, if the guy gets an extension and DOESN'T play his heart out I guess it wasn't worth extending him at any point and we'd know that sooner than later...

Uniforms were changed the year before, when Bledsoe showed up. The team didn't go 8-8 in '03, they went 6-10. Those things aside, this Bills team is growing, and showed flashes of how talented they are/will be. That Bills team was just riding old talent and trying to sustain a lost legacy. If anything, the only similarity is that we thought we had offense set in '02 and only needed a defense, so coming into '03 after upgrading the defense seemed like we were going to be competitive. We had a competent offense last year and took care of the defense in the off-season, but I don't think any part of the team is declining like the offense did in '03.

...and the Bengals at 21...

Fitz's arm strength I know isn't stellar (has arc and takes big wind-ups)- though I have trouble placing it in any categories of arm strength because he still manages all of the throws. Edwards actually had a pretty strong arm but refused to throw down field. Flutie easily had the weakest arm. Edwards-Fitz-Flutie

I'm equally haunted by that game. But don't forget that was an aging Bledsoe that needed all the time he could get in the pocket. And that offense really only had Moulds as a weapon. Additionally, this is a fiery new breed of young players mixed with old vets who know how to win. The chemistry and attitude of a team goes a long way.

Agreed. Fitz played up to and even beyond what people said he needed to do this year to be a "starter" (since apparently last year was no proof) and he immediately came out and played like top-10 in only the first week. "Teams have caught on to Gailey and Fitz, expect more games like the NE game in week 16 last year..." Well, Haley was Gailey's former boss, and had played his offense just last year en route to a playoff birth. Looks like he really caught on. I'm not trying to "count my chickens," but on the basis that Fitz is a career back-up and last year was uncharacteristic this game is proof otherwise.

In my eyes, there were VERY few designed blitzes. I don't think they blitzed more than twice at the most. This is because they were trying to be prepared for the run (we over-pursued a LOT on the run in preseason when we blitzed) and depending on the front 3 to 4 players to give a little push on passing plays. Because our front 4 are so big now, it seemed like the 4-man rush was doing plenty to make plays for the secondary.

It's probably not a good idea to say it until we are more than 1-0 anyway. I mean, there were some strange games yesterday.

Or Bills V. Bengals, 2010, for that matter

...but you probably had a different receiver than we did. They said they were having issues with the HD feed.

I think that the consistency remains to be seen, but we all questioned how Fitz and the offense would look, and Fitz was fully in control like any other top-tier starting quarterback. Extremely impressive to see this from the get-go.

Actually, I don't think Peyton Manning held that record- and the person who did, would greatly surprise you... http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/players/7426/gamelog;_ylt=ArBuLcDLl0DF3buFSAV59T3.uLYF?year=2005 Actually, double-checking it looks like Otto Graham and Ed Rubbert are the first two on the list. From Wiki: "...The others were Otto Graham, 346 yards (1950); Ed Rubbert, 334 (a replacement player for the Washington Redskins during the 1987 strike); Mark Rypien, 303 (1988), and Peyton Manning, 302 (1998)."

This. Too many years we have seen the Bills play up to the good teams and lose by a small margin, then play down to the bottom dwellers and lose just as badly. 3rd-string Steelers ring a bell? The Chiefs are clearly having some issues right now, but the Bills completely exploited those issues like a good team should do.

Tough game for tough people...

They're clearly better. It's simple reasoning- slightly upgraded offense with the same system/coaches and a vastly improved defense with one of the best "inside linebackers coaches" in the league. Add a sound beating of a playoff team who beat us last year... It's not rocket science, it's 1st grade arithmetic.

I can't believe it. My Bills Backer bar here in Nothern VA couldn't get the game on their HD receivers and actually went to their employees' houses and snatched some older boxes and brought 'em in so we could all watch the game. Direct TV way over-charges for NFL Sunday ticket, and it is absolutely absurd that they could be down for every single opening day game until the 3rd quarter this year. I think 100% that people who paid for NFL Sunday Ticket deserve a refund for this week without question. Today was unacceptable- period.

The sprinkler... Looks like it.

I think you just summed up the content of this and other BB boards for the past 7 years.

Had Vick come to the Bills, it would have been for a one year deal in the same year we had T.O. Things would have gone the same and we would have lost him at the end of the season before the chance to give Chan a crack at him.

Ah, I see the now. I thought you were being sarcastic saying that we clearly should have gone after FAs because it would've been better than our constant "development" of players like Maybin. Since that seemed completely unreasonable (given our current situation at LB), your post above makes far more sense to me.

Can't disagree.

I don't think White, Moats, Batten, Coleman, Sheppard, or even Carrington are as bad as Maybin. How can you even equate my statement to such a situation? "Evaluating" is much different than waiting for two years for a 228lb 4-3 DE to make a miraculous transformation because the prior regime decided to invest half the team (exaggeration) in him. To constantly ask why the Bills haven't signed every FA released by a respectable team regardless of track record and position is bizarre to me.

Park at Pittsford Mendon HS- rarely crowded and usually on a quick cycle. I always stood on the fence after practice for autographs. Players don't all sign autographs, usually it's just a couple here and there that will do it on their way back in from practice. I bet you could draw Marcell over if you hold up your jersey Players have their own markers.

Man, he probably has 0 time for fun outside of football. He has two little kids.

Can we evaluate all of our linebackers and get them all healthy before we start going after MORE? I think the O-Linemen are a little bit more in need.