RunTheBall

It’s always going to be a pass first league but KC realized first that with defenses playing much more 2 high shell to take away the long ball, the need for #1 WR (i.e. Hill) is much less. We’ve started our own evolution by getting bigger on the O-line which started 2 years ago with McGovern, then drafting Torrance, then moving on from Mitch and putting Edwards at guard, and a much higher use of 6 O-lineman and 2 TE sets. We finally have an O-line that can maul opposing defenses in the run game and provide solid pass protection. Combine that with a good RB, WRs who don’t drop the ball, and nearly mistake free (low penalty) football and you have the recipe for a highly effective and efficient offense. It’s going to be interesting to see how we play against more man coverage, assuming Jax sticks with what they’ve been doing. It will be a test of the evolution of our offense. I think you’ll see much more from Samuel and Kincaid, some longer shots to Coleman when available, hopefully more play action, and Josh is going to run (the hand won’t stop him, he’ll just slide more instead of lowering the shoulder which is a good thing).

Love the fact that we are at the bottom of that TV market list and still have our NFL team. As cheap as Ralph was, he kept the team in Buffalo and the fans showing up through thick and thin had a LOT to do with that. Bill fans are the best fans in sports without a doubt

The reason being that almost every team is playing a 2 high shell to limit explosive plays. Passing stats are down across the league through the first 2 games. McBradyBeane are ahead of the curve as much as most of Bills Mafia bitched about us running the ball more. Mahomes made the transition last year to more of a short passing game, take what they give you, and make 3-4 off script plays a game. We are making that transition this year. How do you take advantage of the 2 high? Run the ball, short passes with YAC, take what they give you. That’s exactly what Josh is buying into right now and it’s working. Here’s the thing - I don’t think Josh is a good deep ball passer. Certainly not as good as Mahomes. He’s great on the 20-30 yard routes, probably best in the league, but he consistently misses the long balls. We saw it all last year, and we’ve seen it this year. He had MVS with 2 steps on his guy for a TD and flat out missed him. Also, everyone has been rightly complaining that Josh has had to do too much, carry the team too often. In this type of offense he doesn’t HAVE to. If he needs to, like AZ, he can take the game over. But the difference is he doesn’t have to do it every game. That’s a good thing. It’s more sustainable.

This was the point of my original post. The decision to put Tua in on the Thursday night game in 2022 which lead to a 2nd concussion (much worse) in 4 days is what then set him up for another severe concussion in 2024 on a routine hit. If Miami sat Tua that Thursday night I think there’s a good chance this hit in 2024 doesn’t cause a fencing response. If he decides to play again I think it’s going to significantly impact Miami’s offense because Tua isn’t going to run much at all, isn’t going to stand in the pocket, etc. I know he doesn’t do that much now but it will be in his head (and the head of the HC, OC, etc)

I can totally understand why you’d be reluctant to sign that consent. I’ve done a ton of neck surgeries (as a gas passer) and I can tell you in my experience the overwhelming majority of patients had great results. I’m not aware of anyone who ever ended up paralyzed, but I do know some who didn’t get relief. If you are talking about an ACDF, in competent hands it has a much higher success rate than lower back fusions and almost everyone I know personally who had it done (lots) got good relief from their symptoms. Most of the patients I’ve taken care of noticed improvement in the recovery room. There are no guarantees in any surgery. The consents you sign will not prevent you from suing a surgeon if malpractice is involved. Malpractice is defined as “a deviation from the standard of care” which is meant to protect physicians from bad outcomes that aren’t the result of negligence. Just like Tua balancing the risks and benefits of continuing to play, you have to weigh the risks and benefits of the surgery. Not an easy decision by any means. Best of luck.

Agreed but no doc is going to tell him there isn’t risk of permanent brain damage down the line if he keeps playing. He should get several opinions from neurologic experts in concussions and like many here have said, make his own decision. I personally feel he should play the game of saying he wants to come back until get can suck as much of that guaranteed money out of Miami that he can. He earned that contract (whether I think he’s worth it or not). If he flat out retires I think he has to give a chunk of that back. I don’t think he should play another down again but that’s easy for me to say. I hope he takes Miami for all cash he can and then enjoys the rest of his life with his family.

I think the important point to not lose track of is had Miami done the right thing and let him heal for a month after the first concussion in 2022 against Buffalo, he would not have had the severe concussion on that Thursday night in 2022 and he likely would not have suffered a severe concussion this past Thursday. Now I don’t know that for a fact, but 31 years of training/practicing leads me to that opinion. It was mind boggling that they blamed his stumbling on “back spasms” when 95% of viewers (the other 5% being Miami fans) could clearly tell his egg was scrambled. I don’t think the league should force Tua to retire. He’s a grown adult and can make his own decisions like Hyde did (although neck < brain). From a competitive standpoint, if Tua comes back, Miami’s offense is going to be even more limited. He’s not going to run, he’s going to go down at the first hint of pressure. That’s a significant advantage to defenses.

My biggest issue is that they let him play on Thursday night in 2022 which led to his 2nd concussion in less than a week. Players can continue their careers with concussions i.e. Mitch Morse. It’s similar to when you sprain your ankle in that the first sprain can usually be fully recovered from but if you get a second sprain soon after the first, that one could blow out your whole ankle joint and lead to big long term issues. That’s what Miami did except it wasn’t Tua’s ankle, it was his brain. I can see WEO’s point and understand why it’s easy to be cynical about the sentiments expressed. From a competitive standpoint, I’d love Tua to stay and play because I don’t think he’s a very good QB. I like the guy, but I’m not worried about him from an opposing fan’s standpoint. As for Hyde, I hoped he’d retire after the neck injury because I didn’t think the risk of nerve damage was worth one more run at the end of a stellar career with Buffalo. Dillinger4 - I’m sorry about the bad grammar and I’ll work on it. Go suck a bag of dick’s. Is that apostrophe appropriate?

IDK if this needs its own thread, I didn’t see one that seemed to fit, but feel free to merge it if appropriate. I’m a doc, not a brain doc, but I’ve got enough experience with traumatic brain injury that I think I can opine with some credibility. I’ve always disliked Miami as a franchise but ever since 2022 I’ve had a searing hatred for them because I think they put Tua’s life in danger. The decision to allow Tua to play that Thursday night game after he got his first concussion against the Bills on a Sunday was criminal. When Tua fell/stumbled off the field and they said it was back spasms the NFL should have stepped in and said “WTF are you even thinking?!” That second concussion he suffered where he was fencing on the ground was the one that significantly scrambled his brain and has the potential to be life altering. Despite what that clown David Chao says, a fencing response is an indicator of a SEVERE concussion. You don’t get a fencing response on a minor concussion. What’s happening is near seizure like activity leading to spasticity and uncontrolled limb movements. We saw a fencing response from Tua again on Thursday night on what should have been a very minor head bonk. The reason Tua suffered another severe concussion on a minor hit was because his brain was significantly damaged back in 2022 and he’s highly vulnerable to future concussions and brain damage. There’s no question in my mind Tua should walk away from the game with his guaranteed millions and enjoy the rest of his life as healthy as he can. Miami is a disgusting franchise. The reason McDaniels looked so shell shocked on Thursday is because he knows he’s partially responsible for Tua’s marshmallow cranium. Every person who said it was ok for Tua to play that Thursday night in 2022, including the docs who signed off on it, should have been fired, and at the very least feel immense shame for what they did to Tua.

I’m remarkably relaxed. I think the pressure is on the Fins to prove they can beat us. One guy in Poyer isn’t going to change the fact that Miami is a soft/finesse/weak team that chokes in big moments. Speaking of Poyer, as much as I love him I think McD knows exactly how to exploit his weaknesses which led to him not being retained. I’m sure he and Brady have schemed plenty of plays to put Jordan in a tough spot and see if he can make the plays. As for offense, I think we can maul Miami’s defensive line and this may be a ground and pound, keep Tua/Tyreek off the field type of game. There’s going to be a lot of 12 personel and hopefully a sht-load more play action on first down after we get the running game going. If they put Tyreek back on kickoffs I’d kick every ball out of the end zone or out of bounds. No way I want any of that smoke. On defense, their O-line sucks but Tua gets the ball out so quick. Their weaknesses are their guards which plays into our strategy to get pressure up the middle, get Tua off his spot and first read. Oliver should feast and I bet we blitz the A/B gap plenty. I don’t expect Groot/Von/Aj to have a big game unless Tua holds the ball or tries to scramble out of the pocket.

Oh SNAP! Guess that theory was bunk. 14th best defense in the first quarter feels about right. McD and the DC usually adjust quickly though, although AZ took longer than we’d like.

JFC Are there really people on here saying Diggs was better than Andre Reed?? ANDRE??? Scott - this is blasphemy, theses clowns need to be banned. In no universe is Diggs better than Andre Reed as a Bills WR. NONE. I get that Diggs had the best 4 seasons as a receiver in Bills history but Andre was putting up 1000 yards seasons when he wasn’t the #1 weapon, Thurman was. Andre doesn’t drop that ball against KC either. Andre played in an era where the safety could DESTROY the receiver. Ronnie Lot is probably responsible for more CTE in WRs than any NFL player and Andre made his living over the middle. CBs could absolutely MAUL WRs down the field. It was 10x harder to play WR back then. Teams were running the ball 50-60% of the time. I’m sorry, I loved Diggs when he was here. I’m pissed he became a head case because he COULD have reached Andre Reed levels of reverence in Buffalo had he stayed but he didn’t give a sht about that. He could have been a Buffalo legend on the Wall with Bruce, Jim, Andre, etc. He didn’t care. To even suggest that he’s in the same league as Andre Reed is just flat out ludicrous and I can’t believe there’s anyone here that actually watched Andre through his career who would share that opinion.

Miami games don’t stress me anymore. The law of averages has to catch up with us at some point. Even the drought teams squeaked out a win here and there against the Pats* every 5 years or so. It wouldn’t shock me at all if we lose, it has to happen sooner or later. But, I really want to win because I f’n HATE Miami now again like I used to hate the Pats* (I’ll always hate them but they suck so it’s not as intense right now). Fin Fans are some of the most obnoxious clowns on the planet. Pats* fans don’t exist anymore, I live in NE and only the diehards talk football - biggest bandwagon fans on the planet are Pats* fans. But I digress. One of my favorite past times after the Bills beat Miami besides trolling Fin Fans on Twitter is to give it a good 24-36 hours, mix up a nice Old Fashioned and then go read Fin Heaven for an hour or 2. I’m sure other TBDers do the same but for those of you who don’t, it’s just pure bliss. Try it.

The whole defensive line game plan was to do a contained rush to keep Murray in the pocket. It didn’t really work, which is why Babich dialed up the heat in the second half, but it may explain why Oliver was MIA as he’s a penetrator. At least I hope so, because Ed tends to disappear when we need him most in the playoffs. He’s a streaky player who can be dominant at times but is no where close to a Chris Jones type player. Kincaid was MIA because AZ decided their defensive game plan was to take him out of the game. Watch the All 22, they were triple covering him at times and they always had 2 guys close to him. AZ obviously thought our game plan was to feed Kincaid to get the offense moving. The one thing I like about this “Everybody Eats” philosophy is that it seemed to work. They took away Kincaid, so Josh hit 9 other guys at different times to move the chains. IDK why everyone is down on Von. Guy had his best game since 2 seasons ago and a huge sack on 3rd down. I’m optimistic he can round into form. AJ Epenesa didn’t do jack that I could see but idk his snap count. He gets to play Miami Thursday where he usually puts on a performance so maybe he can lay out Tua a couple times.

I hope they do. Lewis played phenomenal stopping the run against AZ

I like educated opinions of which we have many good posters on here both positive and negative. You are not one of them.

Your opinion sucks. Go whine somewhere else

I see we have a bunch of new clowns to join our regular TBD clowns. Welcome! We look forward to your educated takes on how bad the Bills are after we win a game! One of my favorite post game rituals after a few cocktails is to come on TBD and laugh at the miserable fks who are complaining after a W. Comedy gold. Oh no! If we play like this against KC 18 weeks from now NO WAY we can win! Yeah we won, but we didn’t win the way I WANTED to win. We suck! Week one is always a crap shoot. We overcame adversity both self inflicted, ref inflicted, and opponent inflicted, and came away with the W! Is there a lot to clean up? Absolutely. Is Joshua F’n Allen the best QB in the league next to Mahomes? No question. Enjoy your misery. I’ll enjoy the W with all it’s warts. We are on to Miami!

TBD in mid season form!! I love this place. The first game of the year is always a complete sht show and is basically a preseason game that counts where starters get any reps. So let me get this straight. Down 17-3, giving up a fumble that resulted in 7, got screwed by the refs for 4 extra points, gave up a kick return for a TD and…wait for it…. We won! It was a perfect, absolute Billsy game and we came out on top. W. We are on to Miami

Lamar is like Josh in that way too often he has to do everything himself. When your QB has to be near perfect the entire game in order to give your team a chance to win, then the mistakes/misses get magnified. No one remembers the 20 plays you made to keep your team in the game, it’s the obvious miss at the end to tie the game that matters, not the fact that the only reason the team was in that position to tie/win was because of your previous positive plays. I like Lamar, I just think he’s overhyped by the media. No way he deserved that MVP last year. He’s a great player to watch but has obvious limitations as a passer which is why he sucks in the playoffs.

I think it’s hilarious that people put so much stock in a depth chart. The only thing the depth chart is is a tool for McD to send a message or make rookies think they are earning their spot. He’s been doing this from day 1. Coleman will get more targets than Mack, and very quickly Davis and Bishop will be moved up.

I meant Cordington has much better tape this pre season returning punts/kicks than Hardy does. Who knows why they picked Hardy? Maybe they liked his speed and thought he’d make a good returner but his decision making is suspect. Cordington doesn’t have the measureables but he has a good college pedigree with returns and he looked a helluva lot better than Hardy in the 3 preseason games.

Josh is the best QB in the playoffs even better than Mahomes. The problem is NO ONE other than Josh and Tauron Johnson show up in the playoffs, especially our D. That’s why we haven’t made the SB yet. Ed Oliver is MIA, Milano is either hurt or toasted, White didn’t show the past few years. Edmunds - hahaha. Von was never Von in the post season. Groot always fighting some injury. Diggs dropping perfect passes. Last year we had LBs who were retired in FLA trying to cover Kelce while Douglas was on one leg. KC’s defense makes plays in the playoffs and Mahomes does enough to win. That’s it. Our playoff defense is a joke.

This is 100% a Bill Belichik maneuver to get intel on Miami for week 2. White is an awful QB, his only claim to fame is getting cut in half by Milano and not only surviving but continued to play. I have no problem with him as a PS QB but he’s no Trubisky and Trubisky sucks.

Ahh the end of summer. Cooler nights, days a little shorter, pre-season games done, and TBD fans losing their SHT over the release of CB6 or RB5. Love it! Hardy was drafted as a returner, that came from McDs mouth. He was meh at best. McD doesn’t like bad decisions and Hardy made a bunch the first 2 games. Also, McD is a DB whisperer. You can question a lot about McD, you can’t question his judgement or coaching of DBs. Yeah, Hardy looked like he had some potential on the outside when he was projected as a slot. He wasn’t close to unseating Lewis or Ingram on the depth chart. Cordington has much better tape as a returner, that’s why he’s here. I suspect Hardy will make the practice squad as we tend to over value our bottom of the roster players and many teams do the same with theirs. Toohill is the 53rd man on the roster and wouldn’t be surprised if he’s gone in the next couple days as we make moves. Evans was the better RB for our offense than Gore Jr which is why they put him on IR to stash him. Gore Jr will not get picked up on waivers and probably end up on our PS. Andreesen is a great story and I think he’s got real potential. He showed more natural instincts than Edmunds did in 5 years. He will be a special teams demon to give him time to develop as a LB. Hope he makes a true Buffalo story for us. Where are all the people who said MVS was getting cut?? He was a roster lock the day he was signed. They will keep him inactive or quiet until mid season. Beane wants to unleash him to make or get through the playoffs since so many of our players disappear come crunch time. Milano being designated to return is a good indicator he may be back for the final push / playoffs.