4thAndInches

I've been a season ticket holder since I was 15 years old in 1974, and bought 5 games in the inaugural Rich Stadium season, 1973, including the stadium opener vs the Redskins. I never missed a game, preseason or regular, until I moved to California in 1993. I returned to Buffalo in 1995, and have gone to 90% of the home games since. Given it's the last year in the current Highmark, I plan on going to every one this year. I don't go because "I GOTTA SUPPORT MY TEAM!!!!" or anything to that effect. I go simply because I love going to the games. The atmosphere, the excitement, the thrill of being at an NFL sporting event. Each week between September and January, only 16 cities in the country get to host an NFL game, and I'm there at one of them. I get chills just thinking about it. I've seen every kind of abhorrent fan behavior possible, the foul language, the end zone fights that were so prevalant during the 80s and 90s, the drunk guy laying in the urinal trough after his friends tossed him in there, sex in the stalls ..... And I can't get enough. It's part of the ambience of Bills Mafia. And I won't give it up till they put me in my grave.

I was at the first in '73, but never got there until halftime as traffic was total gridlock. We drove in from the Tonawandas and back then Orchard Park was like the other side of the world. I've been a season ticket holder ever since, so I'll be at the last one as well. And having bought 4 PSL's for the New Highmark, I'll be there for the 1st one as well.

And what's the difference between Groot and Smoot?

I think you can reduce the reliance on a franchise-type QB quite easily, and without even having to tweak or change a single rule. And that is by developing a 4 down mindset. Stop using 4th down as the "Voluntary Turnover" down and instead use all 4 in an attempt to gain a first down. Instead of needing to average 3.33 yards per down using your typical 3-downs-and-punt strategy, with a 4 down mindset you only need to average 2.5. And that makes the running game relevant again. 2nd and 4 all of a sudden no longer is an automatic passing down. And the more capabile the running game, the less important the QB becomes. Its my opinion that D1 colleges no longer produce NFL-caliber QBs. We're now into our 2nd decade of looking for that elusive franchise QB - how long does it take before you finally stop beating your head against the wall and say to yourself "Heck, maybe its time to try something different." And its not just the Bills. Its the Browns. Its the Raiders. Its the Redskins. Its the Jaguars. The Jets. The Titans. The Texans. The Rams. The Vikings. The Bucaneers. And you could even make the case its also the Dolphins, the Chiefs and the Bears. And there's probably more I'm not thinking of. Sure, a franchise quality QB comes along every so often, but you better time your losing season right in order to get a crack at him. Or you can get lucky. Look at Seattle. They went out and paid big free agent dollars to Matt Flynn to be their franchise QB. And for the heck of it, they drafted a kid named Russell Wilson. They didn't draft Wilson to be their franchise QB -- that guy was going to be Matt Flynn. And then training camp came along and the rest is history. My point is that's its easier to put together a quality offensive line, a good defense and a good running back than it is to find that elusive franchise QB. Focus your energy on those elements and forget mortgaging the future on the crapshoot QB. The QB won't matter much when he's handing off 3 out of 4 downs in a series. But the strategy all hinges on one thing: The 4 down mindset.