eball

So much for the “McD and Beane won’t admit a draft pick didn’t work out” crowd...

There are examples again and again of coaching moves that result in significant changes. Pretty well I’d say

That guy is such a kiss ass...

Yup. Coaching means more in the NHL than in any other professional sport. The Sabres have talent.

Damn you for beating me to this. We need Cleveland to win this in the worst way.

According to an article in The Athletic it was Josh reading the D and ad-libbing the naked bootleg based upon what he saw. So the former.

There's nothing quite like ruining a positive thread by pissing in the punchbowl. Geez Louise. Was it impressive to run out the last 4+ minutes of the game on the ground against a good defense on the road or not?

As you point out, the closeness of their games thus far is inadvertent rather than by design...but we knew it would take time for this offense to gel. They have showed very good signs in how well they have moved the ball, but a number of mistakes have prevented them from putting more points on the board. I think it's reasonable to expect that to improve, particularly as they now come up against some teams who haven't done a great job of stopping people (Miami twice, Washington). I also think they'll use the bye week to analyze trends and add to the unpredictability of the offense. The Bills are 4-1 despite having a negative turnover ratio. Does that mean they've been lucky and that luck is bound to turn? Or does it mean they've actually been unlucky and have gutted out Ws despite the adversity? I tend to favor the latter. Compare and contrast the Bills' 4-1 start in 2011. I remember threads about their record being "unsustainable" because they were winning with turnovers and big plays. Those Bills lacked talent and depth across the board (particularly on defense), teams began to figure out Fitz, and things went south quickly. This team feels nothing like that. This year's team is more talented, deeper, and better coached. I think we also need to remember that this isn't a squad that was knocking on the door last year and just needed that extra push -- they have gone from an afterthought to suddenly being recognized as a competitive force. They are learning to win with a raw QB who can only now say he has started a full season's worth of games. I'm guessing that when they return from the bye we'll see the Bills start to routinely put up around 24 pts/game, which should be more than enough with that defense.

Great time for a bye. Make some good use of that SOTA facility in OP!

It makes sense they did this now...give your interim coach the "easy" win against Miami next week. They still stink.

All they've gotta do is score one more than the opposition, and they've managed to do that 4 out of 5 times so far. Josh is getting better, and Singletary returns after the bye. In order to have a chance to catch the Pats*** the Bills can probably only lose one more game before W16. Of course, the Pats*** have to lose at least one as well. Their toughest stretch by far is weeks 9-14: @BAL, bye, @PHI, DAL, @HOU, KC. Is it possible? Sure. Definitely improbable, but I won't count the Bills out of any game at this point.

Welcome to Retread Central!

The intarwebs are your friend.

I’m. Shocked. No, really.

Yup. They just have to dot the i’s and cross the t’s with the neuro e v a l. If Josh doesn’t start I’ll be surprised.

There’s nothing for sale there.

Coaching may matter more in the NHL than in any other professional sport. Give 'em a chance.

This post aged well. Oh wait -- maybe you were talking about the Pens!

Yeah, man, I'm trying to sound worldly. "Kit" is what the English kickball teams call their uniforms.

Any word yet on what kit our Bills will be sporting Sunday?

I'm sure glad Krueger gave up that industrial smoothing gig to come back to coaching.

The only time the empty backfield annoys me is inside the 5 yard line. Chan Gailey would do it all the time and it infuriated me. I don't understand how OCs believe they have any advantage in that situation.

Baltimore's losses on D have been exposed over the past two weeks. They excited everyone getting to 2-0 by beating up on Miami and squeaking by Arizona at home, but they are likely an 8-8 type of team. Very big game for them this week at home vs. the Rudolph-led Steelers.

My biggest takeaway from last night's very encouraging victory was that ALL of the Sabres' lines created pressure and opportunities. When was the last time you could say that? It's early, but what a great start to the Krueger era. I was also shocked to read that this was the Sabres' first regulation win vs. Pittsburgh in more than SIX years.

Hate to say it but Jeanneret needs to hang em up.