MarlinTheMagician

I have a sneaky feeling Zay Jones is going to get past the yips today - predicting a breakout game. Falcons focus on Clay and Matthews after tape shows TT's in-sync with them. Zay gets his chances and comes through. Julio's back is hurt. Against all odds, Zay has a better day than Julio and is the superior Jones wideout in Bills stunning upset of home favorite Falcons. Qualtificaiton: The kind of breakout I mean is 3-5 catches and 50 to 80 yards. Not saying he is going for 150 or anything, just that he becomes a contributor. Wishful thinking perhaps, seems like a really fine young man.

Thanks. If Lee is another Yarbrough perhaps we have a decent DE rotation behind Hughes and Shaq. I thought DE was a real weak spot going into camp. If Lee could be decent and join Davis and Yarbrough it would be another example of McBeane doing a nice job patching up a bare spot with little money and no picks used. Let's hope! Go Bills!

Did as deep a dive as I could on DE Eric Lee who we just promoted from practice squad. May not be just a guy. He was a 225 lb freshman at USF. Now a 6'3" 260lb defensive end. By comparison, Hughes is 6'2" 256 (also similar to our emerging Eddie Yarbrough - who btw had at least 3 great plays vs Denver -- who is 6'3" 259). Lee is a "quick twitch" athlete with very long limbs. He is unbelievably fast for a DE - ran a 4.56 at his USF pro day. He looks the part. Had a bunch of sacks in preseason for Texans, but was caught in a numbers game there. Texans fans not happy he was cut. He is also a classic McDermott "high character" guy - team captain, academic honors. Maybe we have something. Limited highlights on him look good. Scouting report out of college said his game is upfield, but he lacks power. That was 20 lbs ago. Two years of being around NFL clubs may have allowed him to address the power point. He looks very powerful now. Was extensively tutored by Mike Vrabel at Texans, who were trying to make him an OLB.

The stats clearly prove Tyrod is elite.

Elite. Have come to hate that word.

Pitt game was a low point. Embarrassing. Will be surprised if this group is so uninspired.

I am a relentless optimist and called the Denver win on this board. Can't call the Falcons win this week. But I can sure hope! I think we have a chance, but a minority chance. Like 35-40%?

Agree with all. Young man is struggling. Yips, confidence, adjustment - call it wall you will. He needs some positive mojo. But once he gets squared away I think his floor is to be a solid NFL receiver and his ceiling is to be a very, very good one. Let's give the rook a break and let him work through it. One of the reasons I have some optimism for the offense is that Matthews and TT likely are just finding their timing and getting to know each other. Zay is contributing Zip. Both those receivers should improve steadily over the course of the season as they play together in the offense with TT and the others.

Thanks above for Antoine Winfield's name in posts above. Couldn't make the necessary withdrawal from my memory bank. But yeah, him, and White and Gaines - three best hitting and tackling corners I can recall in a Bills uniform going back to and including Robert James. They have a ways to go to match Winfield's lifetime achievement, but Gaines and White hit like he hit.

We have a team folks. That can compete with most. Tyrod is the undisputed leader of the offense for that team. We should stop carping about what might be in the future and give him our unconditional support in the present. For the foreseeable future he is our QB. And his work ethic and commitment have earned our support so long as he has the job.

Hightower will make a difference. And I don't trust Beli not to fix it. But they look a bit vulnerable. I think our D scheme is good for Brady. Keep it in front of you and smack the crap out of the receivers.

What the Panthers are from here on out is irrelevant. That day, in their home opener, their D played lights out. I will take number 2 seed.

I agree. If we are competitive, and I expect us to be, team deserves some respect. One thing I fear is we are dangerously thin. A few injuries could kill us pretty easily I fear.

If we can split Altanta and Raiders we are in fine shape, IMHO. Pats are shaky right now, but hooded one will probably right the ship somehow. That D looked bad against Texans though. And bad against Chefs. Did not see any of their Ain'ts game. And Miami - I have no respect for them. We should have beat them twice last year, and we were a joke in many ways. Lose to the Jets by 20? I know it wasn't actually 20, but they scored in garbage time. We COULD (not saying will) win the division.

Well right now he is 2-1 for a team half the posters on the forum predicted would have 4 wins or less. Unleashed.

I don't expect a W here, but Atlanta's D is going to seem pretty nice to be up against after Carolina on the road and Denver. We need to be able to run the ball, and I believe we will do so.

Tre is a straight baller. As are the other three new DBs. And as others have observed, I don't think we have ever had a pair of corners that hit harder. What was the good corner who couldn't catch, signed as a free agent with Minnesota and had a great career? He could really hit. I think these two are there with him, and I don't think we have had better hitters than the three of them.

We are a playoff capable team right now. Whether we make it or not depends on injuries and how well the team continues to come together. Many of these young men have barely played together. Give them a chance, they have earned it.

And what a catch too.

I never thought this was a 4-5 win team, but I don't think there are any preset limits based on what I have seen. Do I expect playoffs? No I don't. Would it totally shock me? No, it wouldn't. I will tell you this - while I expect an "L" in Atlanta, every player on that team is going in with the mindset that they are winning that game. Good or ugly, I can't wait to watch it.

Can't believe how many "this is a tank" posts there were. That is now debunked. If they were tanking, Lorax and Kyle on roster make no sense. And maybe Shady doesn't either for that matter. 't is one of the most impressive jobs I have seen - rebuilding while not totally sucking. I am amazed.

And tell the Fish the Jets win was meaningless! Love this team. It is fun to watch, regardless of final record.

Agreed. Tyrod is still developing. Brees was not much his first two years of starting. Something about Tyrod - I was really bothered he never seemed to bring us back in the 4th. Though it ultimately didn't quite happen, I felt the drive at the end vs. Carolina could be a turning point of sorts for TT. He had them there against a great D. Game of inches.

That is a pretty elite defense to do that against. Media Darling Dak Prescott had a QBR of 35.1 against them with Dez Bryant and Witten. And vet Phillip Rivers had a QBR of 60.8.

I know you were being positive, but IMHO Tre White looks nothing like Darby because he will flat out smack you. I was not a fan of Darby's. Darby could not tackle, and Tre likes to hit. I think it was Thomas -- Tre hit him so hard on a 7 yard out in the first quarter that I could hear the distinct "crack" of the pads pretty loudly through the TV. Gaines and White both - catch the ball in front of them and they will absolutely make you pay. I think that was a factor today.