msw2112

I played 4 years of HS football. 1 year freshman, 1 year JV, 2 years varsity. I played offensive tackle, defensive tackle/nose tackle (depending on which defense we were running) and a lineman spot on special teams. The only time I touched to the ball was when I forced a fumble....I went to a college with a top-10 football program, so I wasn't good enough to earn a scholarship and wasn't interested in being walk-on/tackling dummy. I had the (limited) speed of a lineman, but was smaller than many of the LBs on the team. They played in the Rose Bowl and many went on to the NFL, while it was academics (+ beer and girls) for me. I played some intramural sports for fun. It's been a few years since then. Having played gives me a bit of a connection and perhaps a heightened sense of the action when watching NFL football, compared to someone who didn't play at all, but to be honest, I don't remember much from my playbook from all those years ago and the NFL playbooks are way more advanced. Plus, I was only in the trenches, so I have no idea about WR route trees, etc. That stuff I just know from watching years of football like everyone else. I tend to see holding plays along the lines and great and/or missed blocks much sooner than the folks I watch games with, and often sooner than some of the network guys.

I agree - Clements was good, but I always thought Winfield was the better player.

I love Buffalo, but it isn't a major metropolitan area like SF is. And while SF has legendary cold summers, it doesn't have ice cold, snowy winters. If a guy's girlfriend didn't want to live in Buffalo, no big deal. If she had come to town/lived in Buffalo, her attitude might have changed. No need to feel offended or slighted. And, as mentioned above, while Buffalo has great early 1900's architecture, that may not mean a whole lot to most people (I happen to like it, but it wouldn't be a major factor in where I chose to live). People might forget that one Jim Kelly didn't want to come to Buffalo either....

As much as opening against the Jests isn't a very sexy matchup, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. Starting with a lesser opponent gives the team a chance to gel, get a fairly sure win, and get some momentum for the season. This is particularly true if the pre-season is scaled back or scrapped again.

I think we retain him and go with the 2nd round tender. We don't want to get into a bidding war over a punter. I doubt most teams would be willing to give up a 2nd rounder for a punter though. This kid has developed into one of the best punters in the game and field position is huge. Credit the organization for recognizing his talent and sticking with him as he developed, despite the many calls (on this board - can you believe it?) to move on from him. Their patience is paying dividends. This is a good example of trusting the process. Same goes for Bass, who was shaky at the beginning of the year, but they stuck with him. I can live with his missed PAT in the AFCCG given that he nailed 2 51 yard FGs in the same game.

He was a good player and has been a successful coach so far. I expect Leonhard to continue to succeed and would not be surprised for him to climb the ladder and someday be a good head coach. He's a very smart guy, seems to have a great work ethic, plus has the playing experience (college and NFL) that will command respect with the players.

Olsen is a great talent, but he's always had a history of injuries. I don't think signing him would have been a good investment.

I think I need to get some smelling salts. Might help me focus on my work instead of diverting to TBD several times a day.

A couple of these guys have a chance of making the back end of the roster and contributing - Dane Jackson stands out the most, plus Kumerow and Williams played well in the limited action they saw. No big surprises here.

For a team with a great defense and good skill players that has everything except a QB, Rodgers, even at his age, is worth multiple draft picks, including a first. The Saints and Colts come to mind. Maybe the Broncos and Dolphins too. Rodgers puts you over the top and makes you an instant SB contender. Looking at Brady, Brees and Rivers, you can see that these guys can still play very well in their late 30s (and early 40s for some). I'm not sure GB makes that trade. Love has skill, but is nowhere near ready to take over as a starter. The Packers are a contender and will be one next year too, with Rodgers. Because of the situation they created, they need to keep Rodgers and pacify him by going out and getting him the weapons he needs/wants in the draft and/or free agency. Otherwise, he's holding out for a trade and creating chaos in the organization.

I hope he didn't do any permanent damage. You have to wonder whether a healthy Stills would have been more valuable than an injured Beasley. That aside, the guy is tough as nails. He clearly wasn't his usual self, but he did make a few key grabs during the playoffs. Love the guy.

I think the Bills have a great coaching staff. They did a fantastic job this season. We were beaten by a better team yesterday. All this said, I don't think that our offensive play calling yesterday was very good. We needed more slants and screens to counter the Chiefs' blitz. We threw into double coverage too often (that may have been the QB). And other than the first TD after the muffed punt, our red zone play calling was not good. I have less of a problem with our defensive play calling - I don't believe we would have stopped the Chiefs, no matter what we called.

I hate Ohio State, but I really wanted to grab Dobbins. He's a beast. I was at the Clemson-Ohio State Fiesta Bowl - Dobbins' last game at Ohio State. When he was in the game, Ohio State dominated Clemson's defensive line and controlled the game. Dobbins ran around, through and over them. That D-line was one of the best in the game. When he was out for a few series, they couldn't move the ball at all. It took a while for the Ravens to get there, but Dobbins became their lead back over a couple of pretty good veteran backs. I was OK with the AJ pick too, as we need DE's and AJ was a very good one in college too, but I think Dobbins would have had a greater impact on this year's Bills than AJ did. Moss isn't a bad player, but Dobbins is better. Let's just hope AJ develops. I think he can. Overall, I think it was a solid draft. Davis and Bass have equaled or surpassed their draft position, Jackson has the potential to (and I think will). He's a 7th rounder and contributed to one of the top teams in the NFL. AJ and Moss are NFL contributors and it remains to be seen if they will develop into something more. Certainly neither is a bust. Hodgkins and Fromm haven't seen the field, so they are still unknowns. If Fromm can become a competent backup QB and Hodgkins a WR5 or WR6, they both will have achieved their draft status or better.

It seemed to me that the Chiefs blitzed a lot and the Bills were not ready to counter it. Yeldon did pretty well getting 5+ yards on a couple of screens and Devin dropped the one that would have gone for a big gain. I remember one hot read to Brown that beat the blitz. They needed more of these screens and quick slants to counter the blitz. Instead, Allen was dropping back and running around to try and keep the play alive. He had to throw a couple away and lost big yardage on the ones he didn't throw away. I give credit to the Chiefs for covering our WRs pretty well, and maybe injuries played a role in our WRs not getting open. Over all, the Offensive play calling wasn't very good. Like others, I am not too upset with the Bills defense. The Chiefs are going to score and put up points on everyone. The problem is that the Bills also should be able to (and in this game had to) score and put up points to match the Chiefs and they didn't.

Do we even know if the injury is to his throwing hand?

I didn't play the video clips, but generally agree that the Pegulas have been great owners for the Bills. There was a learning curve (see Brandon and Rex), but I believe their intentions were good all the way and they finally got the right people in place. I also think they are TRYING to do the same with the Sabres, but having a more difficult time getting the right people in place. Botterill and Housley were widely thought to be talented guys on the rise in the industry, but it didn't work out. I think they were better hires than the likes of Rex. They are taking another swing with Krueger and Adams. Kreuger has a great reputation coming in, Adams didn't really have one at all, but Adams seems to have done a decent job in talent acquisition and Kreuger seems to have improved the culture. Time will tell on those two, but they will eventually get it right. Back to the topic - Go Bills!

Given how the teams have played in recent weeks, I'd go with the Packers. Their defense is playing well and their offense is playing lights-out. They have great balance between the running game and the passing game. Rodgers is playing some of the best ball of his career and is better at age 37 (or whatever he is) than Brady is at 43. That said, any of the remaining teams, including the Bills, are more than capable of winning it all. Mahomes and the Chiefs are great and are the defending champs, but have not played their best down the stretch and Mahomes is banged up (concussion and toe). The Bucs are playing great, but Brady has some physical limitations that are showing up in games due to his age and his lack of running ability. All 4 QBs are great passers, although Brady at 43 isn't as strong as he once was, and Brady is not a threat to run, whereas the other 3 are. The edge on running threat goes to Allen because 1) he's young and 2) he's not banged up.

Some trades work out for both teams. The Vikings got a great rookie WR in Jefferson and a bunch of additional picks for a disgruntled Diggs who wasn't going to reach his ceiling in Minnesota. The Bills got the superstar WR they desperately needed, who has helped their QB become a MVP candidate and the team become an offensive juggernaut. The Chiefs clearly did great in the Mahomes trade. They have MVP-caliber franchise QB who has led their team to a Super Bowl win and has them in contention for the 3rd season in a row. The Bills also made out well - they ended up with a MVP-caliber franchise QB who has the the team in contention who is a perfect cultural fit for the team and the city, an All-Pro caliber CB who is also cultural fit, and ancillary pieces (Neal, and whatever other draft capital we may or may not have related to Zay Jones and/or Dawkins). Had Allen not developed, we'd be looking at this differently, but he has and the Bills are in fine shape. And Mahomes might not have been an MVP candidate as early as he was had he been playing with the likes of Zay Jones and Andre Holmes as his WR corps. I suspect he'd be better with the likes of Diggs, Beasley and Brown, as has Allen. Imagine how much better Allen would be if he had Travis Kelce to throw to.... Sunday should be fun!

I largely agree with you and I don't watch those shows either. My opinion is based on what I have read in this thread, and I did watch the clip embedded in this thread. I agree that there's nothing wrong with anyone picking the Ravens prior to the game, but to discredit the Bills victory based on making excuses for the Ravens is lazy and weak analysis. The Bills defense played a fantastic game and the Bills offense did enough to win against a very tough defense. All that said, as long as WE enjoy the victory and go on to KC, the rest really doesn't matter.

I have no problem with folks picking the Chiefs this weekend (assuming Mahomes plays). They are the defending champs, had the best record in the league, have homefield advantage, a QB who has done it all, etc. (Although I believe the Bills have a good chance, even if Mahomes plays, and I think the Bills play better when they are the underdog or being overlooked). But I really don't want to hear about how the Ravens LOST the game. The Bills WON the game. Because the Bills are better. They had a better record, earned home field advantage and played better than the Ravens in all 3 phases of the game. The Bills' QB also played better, probably because he IS better, and Jackson is a really good player. The wind disrupted the Bills kicker just as it did the Ravens kicker, hampered the Bills downfield passing game just as it did the Ravens downfield passing game. The Bills were up 14 points with only 1 quarter to play when Jackson went down. No excuses for the Ravens. The Bills flat out beat them.

Dome or no dome, Beane has been effective at shoring up weak spots on the roster from season to season. The goal for next year has to be finding pieces to improve the running game. I'm not sure if it's a RB or better run blockers on the OL, but something is missing. Earlier in the season, it looked like they needed LB help and players to stop the run, and they still do, but they appear to have improved significantly in that area as the season has gone on. At this point, their run D looks better than their run O. And as to the OP, yes, they should practice in the stadium, at least from time to time. Perhaps they already do (I don't know). The next game will either be outdoors at KC in wintry conditions or in the Bills own stadium, so they need to be comfortable in those surroundings. I trust the coaching staff to do what they need to be prepared.

The Texans are in a tough spot, perhaps one of their own making. Years of mismanagement is catching up to them. Watson is a great player - one of the true franchise QBs and stars in the league, but I don't think that he should be "consulted" in the hiring of a GM or coach. And if they wanted to do that, it should be done discreetly and not in the public eye. What a mess. Thankfully, the Bills are not the franchise facing this kind of mess.

Nobody was talking about Jackson's lack of weapons BEFORE the game....How good would Allen be with the Ravens' running game putting extra guys in the box and helping out the passing game? Given the windy conditions, neither QB played an outstanding game, but Allen got it done when he needed it and Jackson didn't. Allen threw a TD to Diggs and Jackson threw a pick 6 to Taron Johnson. Any excuses for Jackson are nonsense.

I agree that Diggs is a super competitive guy and I don't think he needs any extra motivation to play well. He's motivated to win a playoff game, regardless of the opponent. I also don't think that extra motivation is as effective (on game day) for skill position players as it is for guys who block, tackle and hit. A skill position player who is over hyped might be more inclined to make a mistake - drop a pass, overthrow a receiver, etc., whereas a guy in the trenches may play better (hit harder, etc.) when playing angry. Aside from game day - practice, weight room, studying the playbook, etc., I think that extra motivation benefits all players the same.

Nick Mullens, CJ Beathard, whoever they draft, whoever they add in FA, or Josh Rosen (who I believe is on their roster now). They seem to be a defense and running game dominant team, so they can be successful with average QB play. It got them to the Super Bowl last year. Jimmy G wasn't slinging it around too much. When they get healthy, they can win with one of the QB options listed. Of course, even if they get healthy, their defense could drop off with Saleh's departure. Either way, Jimmy G was not a difference maker for them.