Dan

For those of us not able to listen... can someone please give the highlights when its over?

I genuinely hope you're right. I want you to be right. But, my feeling is this is more of the same mediocrity, failure, and mis-placed blame that we've seen in ever regime since Marv's.

The fact that there's even discussion about who's better.. the first round, "franchise" pick or the the undrafted, practice squad QB.. says all you need to know about this Bills' team. And it's why the season ended, for me, with no optimism for the future. Coming into the season, I didn't expect much. With an all roookie coaching staff, rookie QB, and young players everywhere a winning record was a pipe dream. But what I did hope for was improvement throughout the course of the season. What I saw... a team that ended the year with no improvement at all from the team that was fielded in September. In fact, you could argue we saw regression in several areas; hence, we're debating the abilities of Thad. In the end, this team, the players, the coaches, everthing looks like the same old Bills. Now, we get the off season. We'll bring in a few new, shiny players. There will be all sorts of feel good stories about EJ learning and getting better. But, come next September, will this Coaching staff be any better prepared to compete with the Patriots and the other playoff teams of the conference? Unfortunately, everything I've seen from Marrone and crew gives me reason to believe they'll just give us more mediocrity.

Week 17: Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots Sunday, December 29, 2013 at 4:25pm TV Network: CBS (TV Map) Announcers: Ian Eagle and Dan Fouts DirecTV: 718 Bills Radio: On the call: John Murphy (play by play), Mark Kelso (analyst), Joe Buscaglia (sideline) Flagship: Buffalo - WGR550 (550AM) (Pre-Game only), Game Coverage - WBEN 930AM; Toronto - Sportsnet 590 The Fan; Rochester - WCMF (96.5) and WROC (950AM); Syracuse - WTKW (99.5/WTKV 105.5) Sirius: 132 ================================================================= Game Preview: The Patriots can ensure themselves of at least the AFC's No. 2 seed Sunday with their 20th win in 21 tries against the visiting Buffalo Bills. New England (11-4) clinched its fifth straight AFC East title and 10th in 11 years early last Sunday when Miami suffered a 19-0 loss to Buffalo. Then for good measure, the Patriots went out later that afternoon and crushed Baltimore 41-7. Even as dominant as the Patriots have been in this series, winning 12 straight home matchups dating to Nov. 11, 2001, the team's veteran members appear to be guarding their teammates from taking the Bills for granted. Buffalo's lone win in the last 10 years came Sept. 25, 2011. Buffalo may need another dominant performance from its defense. The Bills surrendered 103 yards to the Dolphins, the fewest allowed by any team over the last three seasons. Read more at ESPN game preview... --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Scouting Report: Week 17 (from Buffalo Bills.com Chris Brown) NFL.com Video Preview Perillo's 3 Points for Sunday NFL.com Game Center Team Stats: Bills Patriots Total Yds/Game.... 334.5 384.7 Total Rush............. 142.5 119.9 Total Pass............. 191.9 264.8 Points/Game.......... 21.3 27.3 Time of Poss.......... 28.8 30.2 ---------------------------------------------- Yds/Gm Allowed... 330.1 371.7 Rush Yards........... 119.7 131.7 Pass Yards........... 210.4 240.0 Points Allowed........ 23.6 21.2 Source: NFL.com Injury Report: Buffalo Bills NAME POSITION INJURY WED. THU. FRI. GAME STATUS Easley, Marcus WR Knee - - LP Probable Goodwin, Marquise WR Knee LP FP FP Probable Jackson, Fred RB Ribs DNP LP FP Probable Johnson, Stevie WR Not injury related DNP DNP DNP Out Lewis, Thad QB Left Shoulder FP FP FP Probable Manuel, EJ QB Knee LP LP LP Doubtful Williams, Aaron S Ribs DNP DNP DNP Out Williams, Kyle DL Achilles DNP FP FP Probable Source: BuffaloBills.com New England Patriots NAME POSITION INJURY WED. THU. FRI. GAME STATUS Amendola, Danny WR Groin FP FP FP Probable Arrington, Kyle CB Groin LP LP LP Questionable Boyce, Josh WR Ankle DNP DNP DNP Out Brady, Tom QB Vagina FP FP FP Probable Cannon, Marcus OL Ankle LP LP LP Probable Dennard, Alfonzo CB Knee/Shoulder LP LP LP Questionable Dobson, Aaron WR Foot LP LP LP Questionable Fletcher, Dane LB Groin LP LP LP Questionable Gregory, Steve S Finger/Knee LP LP LP Questionable Hoomanawanui, Michael TE Knee FP FP FP Probable McCourty, Devin DB Concussion DNP DNP DNP Doubtful Ninkovich, Rob DL Ankle - LP LP Questionable Solder, Nate T Concussion LP LP LP Questionable Spikes, Brandon LB Knee LP LP LP Questionable Svitek, Will T Ankle LP LP LP Questionable Talib, Aqib CB Hip FP FP FP Probable Thompkins, Kenbrell WR Hip LP LP LP Questionable Vereen, Shane RB Groin LP LP LP Questionable Source: Patriots.com Practice Status Game Status DNP = Did Not Participate in Practice Out = Player will not play LP = Limited Participation - Less than 100% of normal reps Doubtful = 25% chance a player will play FP = Full Participation - 100% of a player's normal repetitions Questionable = 50% chance a player will play Out = Player will not play Probable = 75% chance a player will play (-) = Not Listed = No practice status available (-) = Not Listed - No game status available The Odds: Line: Patriots -9 Over/Under: 47.0 Source: The Linemakers Up to date lines... if you're in Vegas. My Take on the Matchup: Here we are, at the end of another exciting, frustrating, disappointing, good season of Bills' football. This should be an interesting game as it could be the best way to see exactly how far this team as come this season. Starting in week 1 against the Patriots, we played them close and nearly came away with the win. Can we still hang with the class of the division? Can we improve upon the outcome of that game? Regardless of who starts at QB, I think there are a lot of questions that can be answered. If the Bills play a tough team fighting for the #2, potentially the #1, seed in the conference close and even improve over their week 1 numbers, it could give the players and the fan base all we need to believe in this coaching staff. The key, with all Patriots games, will be the defense. We absolutely can not let Brady get comfortable. We can't let their run game get going. Pressure up the middle and tight man coverage is critical in beating Brady. Can the Bills bring it 2 weeks in a row? The offense has to bring its A game as well, and we've been remarkably consistent this season. For the most part, regardless of opponent and regardless of starting QB, the Bills have moved the ball between the 20s. It would be nice to see them score more TDs than FGs, you have to do that against a team like NE. Do that... and Thad will be making a strong case that he should be a starting QB. With all that said, I'll be watching: 1. The defensive line. Can they pressure Brady up the middle while containing the run game? With Branch's new contract, will he come out on fire or be complacent to ride out the last game? 2. Kiko. He's got one final game to make his case for DROY. And there is no better stage than against a playoff-bound Brady. Will he respond? How will he show up in his final game as a rookie? 3. Marrone and Hacket. They need to show the players and the league that they can compete with the class of the division. Billy boy has owned the Bills in the second game of the season for a decade. It would be nice to see the team come out pumped up, prepared, and with a winning game plan. 4. Thad the Impaler. If he thinks he can be a starter in the league, this is his game to prove it. Come out, lead the team, play solid and consistent football and he could easily secure a starting job either in Buffalo or on another team. 5. The Refs. How bad will they be? I'm sure the league wants a Brady/Manning Championship game more than anything. But, how blatant will the calls/non calls be? If the Bills light it up, there's no limit to the number of flags to be thrown against our team. Go Bills! and a Happy New Year to all Bills Fans!!

I truly hope you're right. But, I'm just not sure. EJ has a lot to prove, not only in regards to his ability to perform, but perhaps more importantly in his ability to lead this team.

I understamd this sentiment, and in many ways can agree with it. It's really not a good move to risk further injury to your potential franchise player in a "meaningless" game. However... It seems all season long, the coaches have been protecting EJ. They've dumbed down the offense; they're calling easy plays to execute; they're pulling him to avoid further injury. Have we ever had such a fragile franchise QB? Someone that has to be continually protected and babied throughout his rookie year? Is EJ weak or are the coaches being over protective? Fred plays with broken ribs, CJ plays with a high ankle sprain, yet the franchise QB can't play with a mild knee spain? Honestly, if Thad plays well in Foxboro, it could very well be time to consider EJ as the backup.

Its certainly an interesting debate... who goes up? what's deserving? Its certainly better off season discussion than most of what this board devolves into.

I agree, completely. However, Kyle has quite a few years left to play. So, I'd like to see how his career ends, ie does he stay in Buffalo or chase money elsewhere. With Fred, I firmly believe he wants to be a Bill till he retires, which is unfortunately only a couple years away. It is an interesting delimma though. Outside of a few players like Beebe, we're either about to go through 4 or 5 years with no one being put up on the wall... or several really marginal players going up, just to have a half time ceremony. I wonder which way Russ will go?

I think when you look at the last 15 years of Bills' football, there's very few players worthy of the recognition. Maybe some of the current, young players, but we'll have to let their careers play out. Freddie, however, is the only player in my mind that has consistently been the heart and soul of the team and the fanbase. He's been productive on the field; he's one of the few players that I think could have played on any of the great teams in Bills' history. We, as fans of a losing team, have had little to be proud of for 15 years. Freddie's play has been one of them. He plays every play like it could be his last and has earned more than he has received.

The team finished 6 and 10 (hopefully, this can be edited to 7and 9), what can you say to convince a battered fan base that this sub 500 team is any better than the last 9 sub 500 teams? The offseasons are typically based on hype and hope around here, so other than that, what do you see as your first step to not having a10th consecutive losing season?

True, but sitting at 11-4 and guaranteed a playoff birth, I'd say they're considerably better than what they were. And yes, teams can have bad years like the Giants this year. But, that's the Giants with 2 Super Bowl wins having a bad year. Or the Super Bowl winning Saints having a bad year after being rocked with scandals. But, is there any doubt that those teams, with their QBs, are a much better, playoff contending team than all the hapless teams like the Bills without a QB? PS. I'm not saying a QB is the only thing you need. But, a QB is required to be a consistently good team that contends for the playoffs each year. Furthermore, I contend the Bills currently have a good enough team for the playoffs... if they could get a good QB.

ok..that was a damn good read! It all makes so much sense now!

And what was the first thing Andy Reid did...he got a QB. Alex Smith may not be a top 5 QB in the league, but he's world's better than Cassel and the other guys the Chiefs had tried.

I went old school... they're not in demand as much. Probably just took a little fondling. But, I got an authenticated, signed Bruce Smith home jersey.

Get a QB. That's it. A great QB gives you a solid and consistently good team with a winning record. Every player and coach will look better. New players will adjust more quickly. The winning atttitude will magically appear. All when you have a QB that can go toe to toe with Brady, Manning, Brees, Rogers, etc. We have to have patience, as fans. As much as it sucks to say that after all these years of sucking, but good QBs don't develop in one off season. Rookie QBs especially need to be given time to develop 3-4yrs minimum. Now, I'm not saying give EJ time. I'm not saying draft another QB. I'm saying the FO needs to find a QB. And yes... draft a dozen guys, I don't care. Do what it takes (obviously I would hope it wouldn't take all that), bu find a guy. If the FO thinks its EJ, stick with him. If they're like alot of fans, not sure, then draft more guys. Because the bottomline in this leage is... get QB. But, we as fans have to realize that Whaley and Marrone 's careers will come down to who they settle on and how he develops in 3+ years. It sucks, but that's what it is. And until then... all the linemen, WRs, TEs, safties, waterboys, are just fluff.

Exactly! Yes, Thad can be a decent backup. I imagine, Tuel can as well. So can a dozen other guys. Who cares. This team needs a real NFL starting QB. Period. Every position on this team is good enough to compete right now; sure we can upgrade several spots and players. But, until you get a top tier QB, none of it matters. The FO should have one priority... get a QB. I don't care if they draft one with every pick and sign a dozen FAs. Find a QB. There's one thing that's apparent if you watch any football - without a good, consistent QB, you're an average to below average team. Is EJ the guy? After a year of ups and downs, ins and outs, I find it hard to know. So, bring 'em all in and find one.

Fred is an absolute beast of a player... easily my favorite Bill since the Super Bowl teams. I won't buy his jersey till he retires, because if I did get one he'd be cut tomorrow. :-) But I'd be proud to wear his number. The guy literally epitomizes Bills football.

Exactly. Just run the ball... run time off. And kick the FG go up by 3scores. That's the smart play there.

True. But why not try to score, number 1. And why call stretch plays to the sideline, if all you want to do is run out the clock, number 2. Its bad situational awareness in the game. Plain and simple.

This bull **** playcalling to ebd the half and give Miami another scoring chance is exactly why Marrone sucks ass. holy crap

limping off the field a little. hurt his ankle/knee maybe?

Week 16: Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills Sunday, December 22, 2013 at 1:00pm TV Network: CBS (TV Map) Announcers: Dedes and Steve Beuerlein (Local Blackout) DirecTV: 704 Bills Radio: On the call: John Murphy (play by play), Mark Kelso (analyst), Joe Buscaglia (sideline) Flagship: Buffalo – WGR550 (550AM); Toronto - Sportsnet 590 The Fan; Rochester - WCMF (96.5) and WROC (950AM); Syracuse - WTKW (99.5/WTKV 105.5) Sirius: 93 ================================================================= Game Preview: Looking for a season-high fourth consecutive victory, the visiting Dolphins can possibly clinch that playoff berth Sunday while trying to avenge an earlier loss to the Buffalo Bills, who will be without their starting quarterback and top receiver. A sprained right knee kept Bills rookie quarterback EJ Manuel out of the October game against the Dolphins, and a left knee injury will keep him from playing Sunday. Thad Lewis, who went 21 of 32 for 202 yards with an INT and no TDs while getting sacked four times at Miami, will make his fourth start of the season and first since Oct. 27. In danger of a fifth straight season of double-digit losses, Buffalo looks to win consecutive games for the first time since Sept. 16-23, 2012, after defeating Jacksonville 27-20 last week. Read more at ESPN game preview... --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Scouting Report: Week 16 (from Buffalo Bills.com Chris Brown) NFL.com Video Preview 'Playbook': Miami Dolphins vs. Buffalo Bills NFL.com Game Center Team Stats: Bills Dolphins Total Yds/Game.... 330.5 329.1 Total Rush............. 138.2 95.3 Total Pass............. 192.3 233.9 Points/Game.......... 21.4 22.1 Time of Poss.......... 28.3 29.2 ---------------------------------------------- Yds/Gm Allowed... 346.3 356.1 Rush Yards........... 127.3 117.2 Pass Yards........... 219.1 238.9 Points Allowed........ 25.3 21.1 Source: NFL.com Injury Report: Buffalo Bills NAME POSITION INJURY WED. THU. FRI. GAME STATUS Carpenter, Dan K Illness - - - Probable Dareus, Marcell DL Ankle LP FP FP Probable Jackson, Fred RB Ribs DNP LP FP Probable Johnson, Stevie WR Not injury related DNP DNP DNP Out Manuel, EJ QB Knee LP DNP DNP Out Moats, Arthur LB Not injury related - DNP - - Smith, Brandon DB Ankle LP FP FP Probable Williams, Aaron S Ribs DNP DNP DNP Out Williams, Kyle DL Achilles DNP FP FP Probable Source: BuffaloBills.com Miami Dolphins NAME POSITION INJURY GAME STATUS Chris Clemons S Knee Limited Participation Probable Brent Grimes CB Groin Limited Participation Probable Paul Soliai DT Ankle Limited Participation Probable Nolan Carroll CB Knee Full Participation Probable Jamar Taylor CB Hamstring Full Participation Probable Olivier Vernon DE Ankle Full Participation Probable Reshad Jones S Groin Full Participation Probable Daniel Thomas RB Ankle Limited Participation Questionable John Denney LS Illness Did Not Participate Probable Source: NFL.com Practice Status Game Status DNP = Did Not Participate in Practice Out = Player will not play LP = Limited Participation - Less than 100% of normal reps Doubtful = 25% chance a player will play FP = Full Participation - 100% of a player's normal repetitions Questionable = 50% chance a player will play Out = Player will not play Probable = 75% chance a player will play (-) = Not Listed = No practice status available (-) = Not Listed - No game status available The Odds: Line: Miami -3 even Over/Under: 43.0 Source: The Linemakers Up to date lines... if you're in Vegas. My Take on the Matchup: We're really riding out the season in style this year. At this point, about all I had to look forward to watching was EJ play to see if he had the makings of a franchise QB. Well, that lasted a week! We're back to Thad again and the lost season just lost what little luster there was left. I'll still be watching the game. Although, its really getting difficult trying to figure out why. Maybe Thad plays well enough to be the back up next season. Great. We can all say we witnessed the growth of our back up. So, what's left? Seeing the growth of Marrone as a head coach? Yeah, that's it. Should be a super great game. Go Bills!!

It starts and ends right there. Too much inexerience and it shows. Defensively, the team has improved and just needs more time playing together to fix a lot of their bad play. Offensively, the team has regressed tremendously. The game plans are predictable, simplistic, and not taking advantage of our player's strengths.

We've been consistent in many areas, actually. Just... consistently bad. We consistently have predictable play calls. We consistently allow TJ Graham to run around wide open even though he can't catch. We consistently give up 3rd and long. We consistently go 3 and out on offense, putting our tired defense back on the field late in the game. We consistently allow no name RBs to look like Pro Bowlers. We consistently make too many penalties. We consistently look unprepared for what the other guys are doing. So, if you think about it, the Bills are pretty much doing what they've always done. They're the very definition of consistency.

There is absolutely no way the league doesn't do everything possible to ensure a Brady vs Manning Championship game. Anyone thinking the Fins have a chance at the division title, is just ignoring today's NFL.