Buftex

He played well against Atlanta, Buffalo (1st game) and especially Cleveland. I am not knocking EJ, mind you... I am still very hopeful that this kid is going to be very good. And when I made my original comment I was kind of forgetting EJ's second game against the Jets, where he played his best game. SInce everyone seems hell-bent on comparing the two, the slight edge I would give Geno over EJ (and this might be my mis-perception), Smith looks a little more sure of himself. Of course, I realize, Smith had some really ****ty games...really ****ty. But, I can't put my finger on it..the thing that surprised me the most about EJ this year was his tentativeness. I didn't see him play a lot in college (only his "best" college games, re-aired after the draft) but what I did see, I wasn't concerned about this. Smith, on the other hand, just seems to move more fluidly, and moving around in the pocket seems to be a little more natural to him. His decision making certainly needs some work, but he throws a nice long ball, and just doesn't seem as likely to overthrow a guy who is wide open...throws well on the run. I am thinking (hoping) with some more starts under his belt, EJ will get more comfortable...but he just looked a little stiff out there, at times, to me. When Smith was "feeling it" and having success (again, I am mindful that had some truly horrible games as well), he seemed to feed off of it. One thing I really like about EJ, as has likely been noted by others, even when he didn't play great in a number of games, he seemed to play well at the end, in close games. That is a real good sign to me.

Funny...this comes on the heals of the new Hot Pockets ad campaign, touting the "gourmet" meats that they use in their product!

I have not had that problem with WGR any time recently (listening right now), but when I have had that issue in the past, the "audio vault" still seems to work...they are pretty fast at putting things in the vault. Funny though....I normally listen to the previous evenings "John Murphy Show" archived on BuffaloBills.com. The last few days though, have been unable to access it, endlessly buffering. I always assume it is something with my computer...

I can't help but notice that you really, really hate Doug Marrone. I am not 100% sold on him either, I am still reserving judgement....but what has he done to make you think A) he is just like Gregg Williams, and B) he has an extra thin skin? I have seen no evidence of any of this.

Terry Pegula!

Its all a flat circle...

Love the line: "if you love me dear, you'll understand, I gotta have beer in my right hand"

Jim's theme song.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vD7HDlW3_Mo

Yes, I agree on the "destruction of Fiona" angle...but sometimes it just feels like people can only have so many "rock bottoms". Scenes like here humiliating check in at the prison are what I am talking about...Emmy Rossum is a babe, so I have no problem with getting to see her nekid at any time...but the scene doesn't really have a lot of resonance, cuz it doesn't fit the tone of the show... it just doesn't mean much, because you know the characters will be, essentially, unchanged by it. Overall, I do like the show... one of my favorite things about this season has been the mutual respect that Frank and Carl seem to have for eachother...the kid cracks me up. And, I think this has been really outstanding acting from William H Macy.

I don't think working on tv has the same stigma it did to A-list actors and writers as it did one time. Some of the greatest modern films are actually being made for tv.

Perhaps you are right. One of the things, IMO, that made "Breaking Bad" such a great piece of work was the meticulous writing...they knew, after 3 seasons that it would only go for 5. I really appreciate patient writing, and I find, normally, when a show goes off the rails, for me, it when the writing gets sloppy. I have noticed, however, people seem to get really impatient if the story has too many nuances, or takes too long to tell. I like that.. some of the best modern television shows are almost like great novels. This format will play out more like a series of short stories. I like Flannery O'Connor too!

Yes. As I understand it, it will be a new detective story each season. I know, "American Horror Story" (I don't watch it) follows the same sort of format, but uses the same core of actors each season, just playing different roles. From what I have heard from those who watch it, some seasons have been much better than others...there is that fear it could happen with this too, but I am willing to give Pizzolato/HBO the benefit of the doubt.

Yeah, that is my reservation. But, it has been so excellent. The creator, and screen play writer Nick Pizzolato (sp?) will serve in the same capacity (rare that one guy writes all the screen plays for a show), and HBO, IMO, has such a strong track record, I will be more than willing to give it a chance on a second season. Pizzolato is a different kind of tv guy... as I undersrtand it, this show is his first and only screenplay writing. He is known as a novelist. He brings a different sensibilty to story telling. Also, MM serves as the "executive producer" on the show...not sure what that really means, or if he would stay on in that capacity. Like I said though, this has been good enough for me to give it a second shot. What else do I have to do on Sunday nights between February and August? Funny, in the AV Club article that plenzmid linked, they draw a comparision between "True Detective" and "The Killing". I was trying to describe the show to my sister, and told her, "it is everything that "The Killing" and "Dexter" wanted so badly to be, but the writers were just too lazy to create." Favortie line of ep 5 "good to see you finally commit to something"- Rust to Marty. Also, loved when Marty tells the two detectives that they haven't been interrogating Rust, so much as he has been interrogating them!

I don't think they look for throwback tight ends...there just are not that many guys like Gronkowski and Graham. Perhaps they will have the luxury of looking for the kind of tight ends that "work in today's game" when they find a QB that "works in today's game".

Yeah...don't get it either. Some people seem to just be stuck on the "I'm the smartest guy in the room" notion that Spiller was a bad pick for the Bills, and that will always cloud their judgement of him. To me, is far and away, the most dynamic offensive player the Bills have had in years, with the possible exception of Lynch...the league has changed a lot over the last 15 years or so...few running backs are carrying the ball 25-30 a game any more. If you can get production like Spillers' on 12-15 carries, and if healthy add some receiving yardage, you have hit a home run. Max, I think a lot of it was absolutely due to injury. He played much better the last 3 or 4 games of the season. He was getting "tunred around" so often becasue he was trying to avoid using that wrist as much as he needed to, to be effective...it slowed his footwork down. I would say, honestly, he should have sat a little longer, if nothing else. But, as you recall, there were so many injuries to the secondary the first 5-6 weeks of the season, he, no doubt, felt some (self imposed) pressure to return to the field.

It is an anthology style show (Big Cat likes that!), meaing that each season will have different actors and different story line.

And the thing that is great...episode 5 might be the best one yet...

It's kind of a vicious circle, isn't it? If you start getting into that sort of thinking, a team might never turn the corner. We have seen flawed teams win Super Bowls in recent years...teams that seem to have a perceived weakness, but are able to overcome them becasue they are overall strong. Does EJ get better over the next two years or so, because he has guys like Fred or CJ in the backfield with him? Or, do you trade them (or whatever you want to do with them) becasue CJ will want more than some think he is worth in another year, and Fred is sure to be over the hill in another year or two? Get rid of them (or one of them) and then you are saying "EJ could have been better if he had a running game...." I personally think that young guys benefit from having talent around them, so they can learn, and feel comfortable. Trying to build a championship caliber team by having guys who are all 2nd or 3rd year players, expecting them all to improve and excell at the same rate is a pretty far-fetched idea, IMO. The example was mentioned of the Bengals, a very talented young-ish team that seems to be hamstrung by an inadequate QB. So, what do the Bengals do now? Look for another vetran QB? Draft another QB and start over? Start shipping out 3rd and 4th year guys, with talent, simply because the QB isn't good enough. I say you try to find an adequate QB before your window closes.

Your gonna dig it...great dialogue.

In what way?

I have gone back and watched a lot of Geno Smith from this past season...I will say, while EJ never looked as bad as Geno at his worst, he never looked as good as Geno at his best. I think it is still very possible that both these guys turn out to be very good, reliable, starters...but both need work.

Okie doke!

Finallly got to see this weeks episode... excellent. I don't know...I hope they don't go that rout, everything going back to Marty. I will say, on a few occasions Marty says something about having your life in order, but needing an outlet to keep things smooth. Gotta think something will happen with his daughter.... her graphic staging of her dolls, and then years later being promiscuous with multiple partners...something is going on there....intimating that the daughter, at a very young age was exposed to some weird stuff... daddy's porn stash perhaps? How it ties back to Coal though...a very tangled web they weave....this is when I hate having to wait each week to see what happens next. Couple of moments I really liked, after Marty clips LeDeux, Coals line about "I am glad to see you committed to something, finally" Also, Marty telling the detectives, the whole time they have been "interrogating" Coale, he has casing them... pretty sophisticated game of cat and mouse... and Rust insists on drinking beer through the whole interview with the detectives..."you can't be held responsible for what you do (say) when you are under the influence"

I have been watching too... not sure what to make of it... but I have always felt that way about this show...sometimes I really like it, and then others, I wonder why I like it. One thing I do like about it, pretty consistantly, is that they pack so much into one hour....the fast pace, I think helps me to forget some of the things I don't like as much. I think the Liam/Fiona story is a little over the top...kind of teetering on that Showtime "over the line" thing, where they kind of try to be a little too outrageous, just for the hell of it. But what always keeps me coming back, is the fact that I think the acting on the show is pretty outstanding...

Dan..I agree with you...but keep in mind, these threads pop up as much during the season, as they do the off-season! Also, in the case of Chandler, it is a litte more relevant, because the Bills will have to decide, in the next few weeks, if they plan on re-signing him. He will be a free-agent. So, it really isn't a question of cutting him, but asking "should the Bils" re-sign him, or see if they can find antoher option. This is one of the rare cases where the thread has some merit.