Flip Johnson

The rule changes are a major factor here as well. It is hard to bring down a big, fast QB in the open field without getting flagged. Defenders are definitely thinking about the possibility of a flag before they hit the QB full speed. Trubisky (who has a similar body type) and Allen are running for 7.1 and 6.8 YPA respectively which leads all QBs in YPA who have a meaningful number of attempts. It isn't just that they're fast and have good escapability. It's just really hard to stop a big QB in the open field in today's NFL.

I love the "give him one more year" folks. Terry & Kim love McDermott. He is as safe as any coach in the NFL and is guaranteed to get the life of Josh Allen's rookie deal - at minimum.

In this analogy, are the Allen doubters are the same people who aren't sure that Eichel is good?

The fan base, the uniqueness of the stadium experience, and the possibility that the Bills have a franchise QB keep the Bills off this list. Miami is near the top for me. All they have is their history, nothing has happened down there for decades.

Unnecessary. The Bills don't lack playmakers in the secondary and if they invested money into the defense in the offseason it will probably be in the pass rush. If they played from the lead more consistently they could be top 3 in the league in takeaways with the guys they already have. Plus they aren't going to take Tre's money to pay Jalen Ramsey.

Throw in the nationally ranked and undefeated basketball team.

Don't think it's a coincidence that both guys looked good coming off of a bye.

Everyone keeps saying "it's too early to tell..." Josh Allen is good and is worth what we paid to get him. It's not too early to tell that Josh Allen: - has elite athletic ability that goes beyond his arm strength - his overall athleticism was underplayed because all anyone saw was the cannon arm - it is much better than many pundits realized. - loves football the way you would want your franchise QB to love it. - connects with his teammates and the fans - does not have the fundamental accuracy issues that many claimed he did. He needs to grow in experience, touch, timing, but that is different than basic inaccuracy. He is probably 20% as good as he is going to be. It's too early to tell what his exact upside is, although personally I think it is in the stratosphere. But he is giving the team a chance to win with a mediocre supporting cast as a rookie. They are 3-2 in his starts, 1-4 without him, and the result of the Texans game is probably 50/50 had he stayed healthy.

Very early. Rosen, Darnold, and Allen all have fairly weak supporting casts. But Allen is demonstrating much more ability with his feet and much better ball security than the other two.

This is actually not remotely true. The cutting-edge Rams are paying most of their big salaries on defense. Suh, Joyner, Donald, Brockers, Talib. The Chiefs are paying huge dollars to Justin Houston, Dee Ford, Eric Berry. Defense is changing, but if you think that means the best teams are investing dollars more heavily on the offensive side you need to be able to demonstrate that.

The thing about Clay and his alleged disappointing play is that Whaley gave huge dollars to a player already in decline. The blame should go completely on Whaley. Clay had a big year in his 3rd year in the league in 2013 where he had over 100 targets. I believe he would occasionally line up as a FB and he got named to the NFL Network's Top 100 that year. In his 4th year his targets and catches declined - not a good sign for a 25 year old who should have been entering his prime. Whaley paid him huge dollars like he was an elite TE which he never was. His first three years with the Bills were almost exactly the same from a production standpoint and he toughed his way through a number of nagging injuries, but the Bills paid huge $$$ to a guy who has one season out of eight that was above league average production. Croom will stick - he is under contract and has big upside. Thomas takes a baby step each year but never looks like more than a depth guy. The true #1 TE is not on the team.

I love that type of TV analysis ... "he looks like he lost a step." The first game of the year where we throw the ball semi-effectively he runs for 110. Come on.

10,472 yards to be precise. McCoy would need to average about 69.5 yards per game for the remainder of his contract with the Bills to get to 12K with Buffalo.

Shady's focus on 12,000 career yards is probably a good indicator of how much he thinks he has left.

Your point about the Kelly era does not really hold - those guys were drafted over a 20 year period and did not all play together. Devlin (76), Ritcher (80), Wolford (86), Fina (92), Brown (95). The O-line in the prime Kelly years thrived on low picks like Hull and Ballard who developed into great players. Regardless, I would like to see the Bills add at least one starter through the draft this year by investing a pick in the first couple rounds. If the Bills continue to draft at least one core offensive lineman each year, they will also stagger when they have to pay those guys which could be smart from a roster building standpoint.

I thought this was a fascinating note in Albert Breer's MMQB article. The Pittsburgh Steelers have managed to keep their offensive line together over the years and have developed massive continuity. This has to be part of what allows them to plug in James Connor, and allows Big Ben to keep thriving while losing top tier players like Bell. Look how long their current o-lineman have been with the team. - Ramon Foster - 10 years - Maurkice Pouncey - 9 years - Marcus Gilbert - 8 years - David DeCastro - 7 years - Alejandro Villaneueva - 4 years It's an interesting note as the Bills decide how to allocate their money and draft picks in 2019. Most of us are clamoring for WR/TE to take top priority. They have invested picks in Dawkins and Teller and those guys have the potential to anchor the left side for years to come. More offensive lineman might not be as exciting, but could turn out to be shrewd roster building. Whole article is here: https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/11/12/nfl-news-notes-rumors-ronald-darby-sidney-jones-cooper-kupp-josh-reynolds-teryl-austin

It's not good yet. I'd say we have 2 WRs we can bring back next year - Zay and Foster We have 1-2 TEs - Croom and Thomas (who is UFA at the end of the year). It seems like time to cut bait with Clay if we can get out of his deal. Finding a versatile TE will not be easy - you can end up overpaying like we did for Clay. We only have the left side of the O-line in Dawkins and Teller. Maybe they talk themselves into one of the other 3 lineman, but we need at least 2 starters. I am good with a Josh Allen/Barkley situation, although as Thad Lewis proved a backup QB can fall of the map in the offseason. I don't see much changing in the backfield and think Murphy could break out next year.

It was the first thing I thought of. The actual odds are probably less than 1%. But if you look at the basic ingredients: 1) One of the best defenses in the league 2) A relatively healthy team 3) Soft schedule 4) 4 of 6 at home Then IF you get the fifth ingredient - competent quarterback play - we are going to see a run ... not saying it will be 6 straight, but let's take it one at a time.

The kid is powerful and I'm looking forward to seeing him get involved in the run game this week.

We can all agree that McDermott comes from a defensive background. However, people who laugh at McDermott when he talks about 'controlling the line of scrimmage' or 'winning physical battles' don't understand what they are talking about. The Rams, Saints, Patriots, and Chiefs dominate the line of scrimmage (at least on the offensive side). They may do it with 3 or 4 wide or spread personnel, but that doesn't change the reality. It is not like McDermott's vision is to line up in the I-formation with two TEs and just slug the ball down the field. I think that really is what Rex or Marrone wanted to do. The issues on offense are many but scheme or philosophy is not the problem. It's everything else that made an offense we knew would be weak turn out historically bad - dead money, lack of talent, unexpected injuries on the O-line, poor planning at the backup QB, brutal schedule, etc.

Could KB be a factor in the comp picks? Based on my understanding of comp picks he is a longshot to make a difference.

They weren't getting multiple good picks, he had six catches for 82 yards on MNF, and if the Bills got rid of every player on the team who had a concussion they wouldn't have a roster.

Shady has not taken a lot of hard hits and still displays top level agility. He is also still a great pass catcher. He is still under contract and would not have garnered more than a mid-round pick. We have enough holes to fill in 2019 already. He is a captain and a leader and his legal situation seems to have largely blown over. I'm willing to say that he is on the back nine, but that is as far as I'll go. Why would you trade a blue-chip player for a pick that will turn into an extra linebacker or a backup safety?

He is still an excellent player and highly capable of being a lead RB with 200+ carries and 50+ catches. I'm not sure our backfield needs to change much in 2019.

I would expect good things in 2019. He's going to stick around and contribute - he could become a 60-70 catch WR. Not sure it will ever justify moving up for him, but he's making big steps this year.