GunnerBill
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I don't know, and I don't necessarily see any of what we do know as a smoking gun. My two sources over recent years are both no longer in the organisation.
But it would not surprise me. The Bills have underachieved in 2025 to this point. That creates tension and it is against a background where both know there is an external pressure on them to get over the hump.
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30 minutes ago, Buffalo716 said:
You got to admit Andy reads obsession with his terrible shotgun inside zone is not typical Andy Reid
Like the game is moving by... Kareem hunt actually is probably the best running back this year in the NFL for 3rd and 2 or 4th and two and shorter
He's converting at an insane clip.. no I obviously don't think he's a top 25 running back.. but he is one of the better short yardage backs running rn
But everything about Andy reids offense is out of whack... People should seriously question mahomes and what his long-term legacy will look like
Because it looks like he was propped up by a bunch of Hall of famers and he's a really good quarterback without them.. he's not one of the best quarterbacks of all time like he was anointed... He's nowhere close to the Montana Brady Manning group
And reid has no more scheming that can mask it
Agree I have talked about the Chiefs O elsewhere. I don't think has been well coordinated and designed for much of this year.
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8 minutes ago, newcam2012 said:
There are plenty of examples where Beane has fallen short. A reasonable argument can be made that he's fallen short in this area as well. Look at the mid season acquisitions he has made the last few seasons. Consistently signing WRs because the roster isn't good, linebackers and defensive tackles off their couches. The theme for several years is the Bills have issues stopping the run, can't generate a consistent pass rush, and has a serious WR problem especially at the X position. Imho, the depth hasn't been good in any of these areas. Lastly, he's always made the decision to go cheap at the backup QB position. Thus far, the depth at that position hasn't been tested. With that said, if Allen goes done for an extended period of time you can kiss the season goodbye. In short, I think you are giving Beane too much credit here. He really missed his opportunities to upgrade the team when Allen was on his rookie contract!!! Now he is handicapped and has limited opportunities. He created it.
Strong disagree. You are expecting depth players to be difference makers. They are never going to be that. The Bills depth at those spots has been good. To be without the guys the Bills were without on the defensive line on Sunday and to still have serviceable NFL players there is an excellent depth job.
They don't have enough difference makers. That is the issue. Not the depth.
And I agree he didn't maximise the opportunity while Josh was on a rookie deal, although he wasn't helped by the timing of a global pandemic and cap reduction, but I agree there were missed opportunities there.
This is not a Brandon Beane is great post. But building serviceable depth is the thing he does best as a GM.
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29 minutes ago, BADOLBILZ said:
1) Bad for 6 and better for 5 is how you have a "bad" 115 passer rating against going into week 13. I think there was a premature rush by some to point out that he wasn't giving up much yardage after the bye........when the team itself was leading the NFL in least passing yardage allowed......largely because they were getting trampled so easily on the ground. He's gotten back to himself and may even be leveling up even in recent weeks.
2) Yeah certainly appeared that he was playing tentatively.
3) Contract slotting is really just a GM/agent tool. Contracts are first and foremost about timing. I think you have to judge a player on their performance relative to their peers and how that relates to the highest aav at the position. It's simpler and also very imperfect but more genuine because you don't have to exclude players with less than 4 years experience and players who are over performing their poorly timed contracts etc. etc. That's why I never use slotting to support or discredit a player but will use PFF.
On 1) the tape supports him playing better after the bye, it isn't just the fact that (you are not wrong) teams were just charging all over us. As for passer rating - PFR and PFF have slightly different numbers but per PFF he gave up over 100 passer rating 4 times in the first 6 weeks and only once since. His performance was on a steady upswing post the bye then the last two weeks he has been brilliant.
On 3) I agree, but I do think there is a legitimate question that people can ask about whether he is overpaid for the skillset he has. That is different than the "he is invisible" or "he has been a slug" type criticism which isn't fair. He is playing well. What they are expecting of him is not necessarily in line with his skillset.
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11 hours ago, HappyDays said:
Those two examples you used are ancient history in NFL years. These days there is maybe one defense per year that is able to actually slow down top offenses. This year it's Houston, and they have two top 3 picks that turned into superstars. A team like us picking at the bottom of the rounds, we're never going to have a defense that talented.
And just to be clear I'm not saying defense is totally meaningless even with the rules as skewed towards offense as they are today. I'm fine using 1st rounders on DL and CBs and occasionally giving out big FA contracts to legit defensive players. But you can't spend almost your entire set of offseason resources on that side of the ball, and then still get into games like yesterday. We're extremely lucky to have the only QB in the entire NFL that can win yesterday's game for the Bills, but I hate having to rely on that. There have been several games this year where we needed the offense to be the unit that made a play at the end. Same with our last two playoff losses. Sometimes Allen is able to pull it out all on his own but a lot of times he's not.
So I'm happy to accept that no defensive coaching could have made any kind of difference in yesterday's game, as long as we're also accepting that no amount of investment could have made a difference either. Whereas a couple legit investments on offense absolutely could have made it easier on us. Allen's ability to have a legendary performance in a shootout should be a bonus, not the only possible win condition.
Is worth saying by cap dollars THIS year the Bills are heavily slanted towards offense. Even without Josh it is more on offense than defense. Worryingly we are spending the 18th most in the NFL on receivers this year to get what I suspect is the 32nd best production.
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I'm not sure there is anything different about him. I think he is who he is - a darn good but not perfect football coach.
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6 minutes ago, stevewin said:
So if I'm understanding correctly, what you're saying is that a loss to an NFC team will help our playoff chances
It always does.
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30 minutes ago, GASabresIUFan said:
The answer is both simple and impossible. There are about 120 FBS teams. Divide them into 8 15 team geographic divisions. The top 2 teams in each division play for a division championship and the 8 champs make the playoffs. Settle it on the field. No committee, no rankings, no BS.
Yea agree, that would work.
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13 minutes ago, Instincts said:
This is probably the most accurate. I just believe Maye has less to work with than Stafford.
He definitely does, but as much as the voters would tell you MVP is only ever about how they play that season the reality is it is going to be a bit of a career award for Matt Stafford. He is a well liked, well respected, Superbowl winning vet coming towards the end. Unless the Rams collapse down the stretch he will be the MVP. I think Maye will get a few votes but Stafford is gonna get a big majority of the 50.
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16 hours ago, May Day 10 said:
I think Notre Dame should have to join a Conference or be ineligible. They make things even more apples to oranges than they already are, and their fake rivalries are an advantage. They game the schedule every year and it finally came back to bite them.
Seeding does annoy me though and I cant help but always suspect that they push certain match-ups or make easier roads for teams.
I believe that there should be hard slots for the teams. Base it on a ranking, I would even go back to a quantified computer calculation. Top 4 Conference winners get the first 4 spots, the next Conference winner gets an auto-bid, and the rest filled by the committee, but slotted based on the computer ranking. This would put importance back into Conference championships. It would also take a lot of the mystery out of it.
And everything would be pretty fine right now, but Notre Dame's awful schedule has ruined everything.
In principle like your model, the problem is in reality there are not four top conferences. There are two. The SEC and the BigTen. Eventually they will swallow the others up. The BigTen will essentially become the North & Western Conference and the SEC will swallow up everything in the south east (most of the ACC in particular). But that is going to take some time and in the meantime I don't know what the answer is.
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4 hours ago, HappyDays said:
I'll be honest, the schedule argument really doesn't do it for me. Ripping off 10 wins in a row is incredibly impressive no matter who you play during the run. It's not like the Pats have a ton of talent across their roster either. They are winning these games with elite coaching and fundamentals, and damn good QB play to boot. The Bills have never been the #1 seed because they've failed to ever have a run like that and they find a way to lose to a couple clearly inferior opponents every year. So it's a bit rich to act like it is some hollow feat when we haven't done it once in six seasons with an all-time QB in his prime.
By the way I think we are a clearly better team than New England and I expect us to win this week, I just can't bring myself to downplay what Vrabel has them doing this year. It's an amazing stretch of games for a young team, full stop.
The schedule argument is definitely real. Other than us the only other winning teams they have beaten in that run are the two 7-6 NFC South teams. But you are right that you still have to win them and Bills fans shouldn't be too sniffy about them. They really grew in confidence from beating the Bills in a game we gave away. That's on us. They are well coached, they do play with pretty sound fundamentals, and their young Quarterback has played great and is in the MVP conversation as a 2nd year player. Vrabel built it the right way. The first thing that needed sorting was the trenches. The OL is so much better than it has been basically in any year since they last made the Superbowl. Losing Will Campbell hurts and we will see how that impacts them moving forward.
I'm slightly surprised that they are the #1 seed as we stand but I was pretty confident pre-season that they'd be a playoff team.
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He broke into his ex girlfriend's house, choked her and punched her. Less than a year ago. While he was a pro in the NFL. Now if he had Antonio Brown like numbers some NFL team might think he is worth a shot. A career 4 catches for 107 yards? No way.
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I'm not worried yet. The two fumbles on Sunday - the one on the goalline run is frustrating more than anything but it wasn't like Cook did anything wrong there really. He had the ball well pinned, in the correct arm, a defender just got in there and made a good play. The one on the pass play he was trying to score, a bit careless but he has scored big touchdowns for us in the past when a lot of guys would be down at the 1 or the 2. You take the rough with the smooth.... and actually but for a hold it would have put as down at the 1, because he fumbled oob.
There is a bit reversion to the mean on the Bills fumbles as well, most of us said pre-season they are not going to have historic low turnover numbers again.
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12 hours ago, Marv Levy said:
THIS! I was wondering out loud why the hell he would do this? If it accomplished anything, I really don't know what it was?! Seemed like a gigantic waste of a TO.
Did we get an explanation? I can only presume there was some sort of clock issue that the refs wouldn't acknowledge (happens sometimes where it doesn't reset) and so he had to take it to prevent a DOG, but I don't know.
7 hours ago, billsfan714 said:You mean the Bills defense that let Cincy convert 10 of 12 3rd downs? Thats a 83 percent conversion rate. The same point of emphasis they were talking about on hard knocks in August that needed to improve. Sorry, but my lying eyes tell me its the same old Bills defense and its not good enough to go to a bowl.
3rd down has been better since McDermott took over playcalling. It was rough Sunday, agreed. Not sure all of that was scheme though. The Bills have to tackle better. It has been the single strongest theme through our entire season - defensively our tackling has sucked.
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Unless the Rams collapse Matt Stafford will be MVP.
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13 hours ago, HappyDays said:
Chiefs fans are being ridiculous talking about how Andy Reid needs to retire. I've watched every Chiefs game this year and the coaching in all three phases is still by far the best thing they have going for them. Their biggest problem is talent.
Rice is a very good WR, I'd say he's a borderline #1/#2. Kelce is still good but not in his prime obviously. After that is a bunch of JAGs. The IOL is still very good but with Trey Smith's injury they lose that advantage. The OTs have been a MASH unit.
The situation on defense is arguably even worse. Chris Jones can turn it on when he really needs to but he is not consistently as dominant as he was in his prime. Nobody else on the DL scares you at all. McDuffie is being forced into a full time outside CB role and he just can't handle big physical WRs. The rest of the secondary is middling. The LBs are good but that's not enough. Spagnuolo is holding that thing together almost entirely on his own.
Oh and the one thing nobody wants to talk about... Mahomes has played below his previously elite standard for the past three years. I thought he would bounce back this year but he really hasn't. He misses a ton of wide open deep throws which takes TDs off the board. His on schedule passes are too frequently off target or poorly timed. The last INT last night where everyone is clowning on Kelce, this is the picture at the catch point:
That is not really a clean drop, that is poor ball placement. It happens to every QB but it's been a bigger problem with Mahomes than anybody talks about. He can still make magic happen with his legs but that isn't sustainable over the course of an entire game, and he no longer has a defense that can keep the opponent down long enough for Mahomes to get into a groove.
I don't know what Chiefs fans are watching but the coaching is elevating a mediocre roster and inconsistent QB play, not the other way around.
I have also watched every Chiefs game and while I agree with you on talent being by far the biggest factor I do think there have been games this year where there offensive gameplan has been really poor and disjointed. Their shotgun run game is dreadful and there are time where they really try and force feed it and get themselves behind the sticks; then they throw way too many deep balls which is exactly what teams want them to do week after week. Is that Mahomes going rogue? Maybe. But they need to cut the deep shots at least in half and they need better concepts to work the middle of the field. I think what you are seeing is that "Kelce find space and turn around" route that was their staple for many years was more about two elite players than it was design because now Kelce is not the same guy it has all but gone from the playbook. Mahomes already has a career high in rushing and rushing TDs and is only one shy of his career record in 1st downs rushing with four games remaining. And that is almost all scrambling. Without it the offense would be stuck in neutral way too often. They still have some of the best trick plays in the game and there is still nobody I'd trust more to call me an offensive play on a critical 3rd down with 4 minutes to go in a ball game than Andy Reid... but some of the fundamentals of their offensive scheme have been broken this year.
Matt Nagy is 100% gone after the season. He will be the sacrificial lamb for the offense. I don't know for sure what the responsibility split is between he and Reid but I suspect he does most of the gameplanning even if Andy calls a lot of it on gameday and they just haven't been clever enough.
I will also say on Andy... two weeks in a row big game management errors. Going for it this week, punting in Dallas, both were the wrong call in the situation. He has always had a bit of that in him going back to his Philly days.
On the flipside I give Spags huge credit. I think he is turning water into if not wine then at least a refreshing light ale with that defense. He has coached his ass off this year.
I think talk of firing Andy is insane. He has earned the right to go at the time of his choosing. But in the offseason I think they need to go back to the drawing board a bit with that offense. And it starts with finding a way to control the middle of the field again. Because when you don't this offense does not function at the same level.
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14 hours ago, BADOLBILZ said:
There isn't any reason for anyone to "apologize". Benford was bad thru 11 games. The eyeball test showed his coverage wasn't good, the physicality wasn't there and statistically he had an abysmal 110-115 passer rating when targeted. The argument that he wasn't bad was just that he hadn't given up a lot of yards in recent weeks.......but the Bills haven't given up yards in the air all season. They were #1 in the NFL in that regard but we all know they are not the most dominant coverage unit by any stretch.
I suspected Benford rung his bell again very early in the season and was playing tentatively. The Benford criticism is different that the Rousseau criticism because the tape shows Rousseau doing his job well. The tape wasn't kind to Benford (or Bernard). Hopefully Shaq Thompson manages to stay healthy for at least a couple more weeks so Bernard can be healthy when he returns to the lineup. And then maybe he starts making plays again too.
I will say though.......one of the more frustrating defensive plays of the game involved Benford and took place after the Bills called that defensive timeout with the Bengals at 3rd and 4. The Bengals split the back out wide and Benford came off of Jamar Chase and took a couple strides out wider to cover the back and Cam Lewis dropped down on Chase. That lead to an easy pitch and catch conversion to Chase. And it wasn't a bang-bang switch.......it was a failure in slo-mo. Benford has to identify what they are doing there and not leave the All Pro for Lewis to cover.
It isn't true he was bad for 11 games. He has played 12 games this year was very bad for the first 6 but since the bye Benford has been playing well. It is only the last two weeks I think you can say he has got back to the sort of level he was playing at last year where he was one of the best half dozen outside corners in football. But he has played well his last 6 games.
I don't know what the reason was for the slow start, and those summising it is linked the head injuries are not being unfair.
I agree with you on Rousseau btw. I think he has had a good year. The issue with Rousseau is the expectations a lot of people have of the type of player he will be have never really stacked up with the reality. And then there is a fair question about where his contract slots him in when you look at defensive ends across the league... he is probably paid like a player that he isn't quite in reality too. But in terms of him playing his position, being assignment sound and actually causing more disruption than probably shows up on the stat sheet I think it is his most consistent season as a pro. He has played better this year than when he got 8 sacks last year. Sometimes that is just how it goes.
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6 hours ago, PatsFanNH said:
You lose Sunday (if) and lose to the Eagles that’s 6 losses so they would need someone else lose 2 games (most likely Indy) Also the Bills lost to the Dolphins there are no Ginny games for anyone in the AFC this year
The Bills are almost certain to be in with 10 wins now. Before the weekend the Bills were at risk of missing out with 10 wins.
For the Bills not to make it to 10 now they'd have to lose out meaning losing to the Browns AND the Jets. They are in a position where they could lose to the Pats, Eagles and one of those other 2 and still be in like 95% of the time.
The ONLY scenario that I can find that keeps the Bills out with 10 wins is where their one remaining win is vs the NFC Eagles AND they end in a 4 way tie at 10-7 between the Chiefs, Bills, Texans and Colts. That is literally the ONLY 10 win scenario I can find in which the Bills miss out. And that ain't happening. The Colts will be lucky to win another game.
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1 hour ago, pennstate10 said:
Close call, but I think I’d put Bosa 4 and Oliver 5. Backups at TE are better than DL backups.
Our last few playoff losses have been due to defense being unable to hold a lead.
Need a winning pass rusher.
I just hate Bosa's inconsitent effort. And I agree backups at tight end are better but the offense just seems to have more space when Kincaid is out there.
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Cry me a River(s)!
The Colts are toast. Their hot start will save the regime because they can say "we lost our Quarterback down the stretch" but their hot start was about unbalanced schedule as much as anything with their cupcakes frontloaded.
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4 hours ago, NewEra said:
And equally impressive that we still have a very good OL. 2 2nd rd picks, a 3rd rd, a higher mid tier FA to go with one of the best value OGs in Edwards. Beane did a good job constructing it
On offensive line he inherited, from McDermott's draft, a franchise left tackle and that is the most important peice. The second most important peice (especially for a young Quarterback) is a center and after blowing it when Josh was a rookie with Russ Bodine and Ryan Groy (Beane's own words a "horrible job") he went out and paid what at the time was the biggest center deal in NFL history for Mitch Morse.
He has spent a 2nd round pick (bust) and a 3rd round pick (hit) at right tackle and a 2nd round pick at guard.
While McGovern and Edwards were great value FAs and they have built some good depth with clever scouting - I do think his level of investment on oline has been about right for a team with an established top 10/12 Left Tackle. If they every had to replace Dion then I think they would have to consider using a 1st round pick... but my guess is that will be for the next regime to worry about in some shape or form.
Compare that to WR where he all he inherited from McDermott's draft was Zay Jones. He traded a 1st and a 4th for Diggs and spent a 2nd on Keon Coleman and that is it in terms of early draft investments. After that he got great value in Gabe Davis (4th) and Shakir (5th) but hasn't allocated big assets. And it is not like he has spent big cap dollars either. Diggs is also the only receiver they have ever paid close to a top of the market deal to (the extension didn't work out as well as the trade, obviously). It is just mind boggling to me. If he is still in a job by March (I think he will be) it MUST be with an ultimatum from Pegula that by hook or by crook Josh Allen needs a #1 receiver on this team in 2026.
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I'd put Ed Oliver over Bosa personally if there is a chance of that.
But otherwise agree it is:
1. Allen
2. Benford
3. Cook
4. Oliver
5. Kincaid
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DJ James is interesting to me. I think he went in round 6 of the draft and I liked him a bit better than that as an inside/outside flex corner with speed. Not really sure what his story has been since, but clearly his career hasn't gone to plan. There is some talent there though, especially as a sticky man coverage slot type.
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58 minutes ago, Ed_Formerly_of_Roch said:
Or maybe it was due to him playing hurt. Eventually he gave up and went on IR and did whatever he should have done back in September. But from the sound of it either way, he'd be out the rest of the year.
Regardless, as I say, his play looked more like hia NFL career prior to 2024. 2024 is his best year.
Is there Beane/McDermott Tension???
in The Stadium Wall
Posted
McDermott does not have approval over roster moves. Beane has control of the 53. Now previously I was always told they were very aligned so going back at least to two years ago I am certain they at least talk before this decision. But if there is a wider tension from this year as is speculated can I imagine a situation where they disagreed who the guy to expose to waivers was? Certainly.
And here is my completely unfounded conspiratorial theory..... McDermott may well have wanted it to be Keon. The way that pick has worked out it is BOUND to have created tension. I can imagine McDermott being like "Brandon you can miss on talent that happens, but how the eff do you miss on a person so badly?" I think McDermott is done with Coleman. He won't be on the roster in 2026 IMO.