IndyMark

From 42 passing attempts.

I am proudly raising my hand and declaring my head is in the sand! Walking out of a "meeting" where you believe you are overlooked, not appreciated, or ignored is really not an issue for me. Now if he punches Dorsey, swears and threatens Josh, or challenges McD in front of the team, yes, that is unacceptable. I support Diggs 1000% yesterday and likely more people than not would have acted that way in their job. Walking out of a meeting is not a big deal and it should reveal to those above him that perhaps an issue lies in them. Also, we have all seen those post game meetings with McD, if we are being honest they are pretty "meh". What is McD going to say that warrants anyone's attention at that point? A true reflective leader would ask themselves "Why is a high performing employee disgruntled and abruptly leaving a meeting?". If their first reaction is "Boy,that is unprofessional". Well, then that leader/upper manager should likely not be in that position.

I submit (a) wide right and (b) the throwback (forward) were worse for me as a fan. No question. Agreed, yesterday was a different sort of loss.....we were overwhelmed from the opening bell and had no answers. I am convinced that if there was a white towel to be thrown in at half-time, that about 40% of the Bills players would have accepted it and packed up and went home at 1/2 time. That is how listless the effort came across. Not saying they are quitters, but they knew. Each and every single Bills player knew the outcome after the first 4-6 minutes. Diggs is just so competitive he was in denial and trying to change the narrative. But deep down the Bills were like "please make this go away". Tough for sure. I am pulling for them to regroup, but it needs to be with some different players and some different coaches. Certainly not a full overhaul, but we also cannot remain the same. Right now, the culture is tainted and we need to cleanse that. New blood. New blood. New blood.

If we even remotely consider bringing Saffold back, it suggests the Bills front office is sleeping at the wheel. The audacity of him saying "as long as it is fair"? Fair? Saffold should start by paying back about 5 games worth of paychecks, that seems fair to me. For sure, he should pay back all of yesterdays game check. That is fair. Literally, we would be better off lining up with 4 OLinemen and add some random player with a dice role each play then have him on our line. I am way more troubled by his perception of self than Diggs storming out. At least Diggs is aware. Saffold comes across sort of out of touch with reality.

Do people firmly believe Miller will return to the Bills next season in time to help or have impact? What is the timeline for an ACL tear / rehab / return again? Did we just not observe the Tre White "return"; plus Miller is older? If we bank on Miller having impact next season I must have missed something. We need immediate help, out of the gate next season...sure him returning week 13, 14, 15 or whatever could be ideal but that is pretty late in the year.

To me, when I reflect on not only yesterday but basically the year a lot of what was hard to put a finger on was clearly expressed through the game yesterday. (1) The one area our players are significantly and consistently coached up appears to come from the Bills PR team. The players never truly make any hiccups during their scheduled time in front of the camera. Maybe our position coaches could pick up a hint or two from the Bills PR team on how they coach? (2) The team is a reflection of McD. And that goes both ways, for the good and for the not so good. His PR disposition and "content" during the canned PR segments says one thing (tough, hardened, no nonsense) and then during the game it gets expressed way differently (get punched in face, think deeply about what to do next). This is like bourbon, there are some noses that do not match the taste. It is confusing and does not work well. Usually disappointing. (3) Clearly the team needs time; and now they have it. They need to soul search, recalibrate their focus, and reflect on what got them into playing football and how they want their legacy to form. Losing is part of the game and always hard, but when you do not even go down swinging that can take a toll on everyone. (4) I am highly intrigued on how our Front Office responds here. I get that the standard platitudes will be spewed to placate a fan base, but at the same time if they look hard at where they are at as a team, I have to think it will stimulate some proactive and aggressive moves to address the opportunities that yesterday revealed. Go Bills!

First, thanks for taking the time to reflect and write your response. For me it was not a case of "TL:DR", though for some it will be. This stated here is what I have: (1) Your point on Dawson being underutilized was spot on. Given how Cinn lines up, that was a miss from our OFF. In fact, I speculated on the "who steps up thread" that Dawson was going to have a Kelce-esque type day. Eeeek. Egg on my face. (2) Your point on Ed Oliver is a huge miss. Semi-disappointment? Nope. Overwhelming disappointment. Ed, again seems like a good dude, was invisible in too many games and in his singular shining came (Lions) was lined up against 2nd and 3rd tier OL. For some on this board, leading up to the game yesterday were expecting Big Ed to "eat". I never, not once, considered that. Ed played precisely as I have said he played most of the year. I got villified and insulted by some based on my observations and I hate that I was 100% correct. (3) Yes, need to keep our LB'ers. (4) Tough call on coordinators/coaches. Dorsey at least can be argued is young and inexperienced. Frazier? I am having a hard time endorsing him. At the least we need to change position coaches. At best, coordinators. I am intrigued on how the next 72 hours unfold and really this time leading up to the draft. However, I would hope everyone involved in key decision making with the Bills understands what truly happened yesterday. Do not explain it away. Do not bury your head and tightly close your eyes and hope whatever it is goes away; [spoiler alert= it doesn't]. Rather, stand up and stare it in the face. Growth mindset and all. Go Bills!

I was flummoxed when the poster replied in that manner as well. I am all about being optimistic, but at some point reality sets in. Today? Reality set in. I have to think those that have mocked my position that Ed, while seemingly a great dude, is just not up to snuff as an NFL DT have learned a lesson in reality. Yet, the probability exists they will remain with their blinkered vision. As long as Beane and McD have learned, I am ok with that.

eye-test > "analytics"......all day every day. Today removed any doubt about where our DT's and Edge players truly "rank".

This. I agree 100%. The phrase "Statistics are for losers" was coined for a reason. Some of us that would provide a critique of a player on here, based on the eye-test, would get mercilessly refuted by others that ground their counter argument in selective statistics. Case in point, I have stated multiple times that while Ed Oliver seems like a really good dude, he is a pretty average player. The eye-test, week-in and week-out, confirms this. Yet, some here would then bring up a random statistic about "pressures" or some other curious statistic that would suggest Big Ed is a beast. Unfortunately, today revealed the eye-test can be superior to analytics or statistics and when reflecting on what happened today, it came as no shock that we got mauled. I was as hopeful as anyone that today could be our day. But deep down, we just do not have the personnel to play with the big boys... particularly in the trenches. Today removed doubt or it should have.

On the bright side, maybe this offseason Josh can....starting in a few days........exhale. Literally, just be himself with no one hovering over him. He looked so uncomfortable throughout the year. The weight of the world, big contract, all off-season hype, and then factor that into the reality he is a genuinely nice kid and all the major events this team, city, region, people endured since last spring and he just looked like he was on the precipice of being overwhelmed and like it would not take much for him to shut it down and walk away. To me at least, he never looked calm and confident. Not once. Maybe he goes dark for a few months, spends time doing what he wants to do with no bizarre expectations, takes the needed time to recalibrate and come back as the QB we know and love? That is my hope. The rest should fall into place. Really, we just need large and wide bodies on the lines. Clearly, it worked for Cinn. It should work for us. We were just too small on the DL and not physical on either line.

To be fair, McDermott should be rigorously exit interviewed by the GM or the owner and what the next steps should be in improving the team. The teams performance today, sadly, was a direct reflection of the coach. Paper tiger. The playoffs are too big for him.

Starting tonight or in the morning, Beane should be announcing a plethora of OL and DL signings to reserve / futures contracts. The draft simply cannot solve all of our problems. This is a multi-layered approach and Beane has shown the draft is not truly his forte. Start bringing in big nasty maulers, the more the better. If today's game did not absolutely reveal that we need line help, then I cannot grasp what one just saw in that game. It was 100% won (Cinn) and 100% lost (Buff) in the trenches today. Nothing. Else. Matters. Zippo. Nada.

It is always fun following the Bills and we will always be fans with higher expectations than what should be allowed. But it is entertainment after all, so there is that. The offseason should be interesting to say the least. I look forward to seeing how it all unfolds and how those of us here editorialize about it.

My lord, Oliver for a 2nd? take that in a nanosecond. Oliver has played like he could get us maybe a 6th from a desperate team. I have been saying this, as did DaQuan Jones, he is just too small. He looked so small today compared to both Ankou and the Cinn OL. yet, to be fair to Ed, we have other issues on DEF. But Ed is one. Again, he seems like a good dude, but we need big nasty DL men....and ones that can tackle.

The GM? The owner? Do you believe Sean is the boss? Ha Ha Ha.

It was super "Billsy" that the hardest hit our defense put out today was on each other. I do think McD should be closely examined and exit interviewed as he has stalled in his own "growth mindset". He actually looks to have regressed as a coach. This was a mortifying loss. Big Ed got tossed around like a rag doll, Saffold spectated, Brown was overwhelmed and it did not look like our players were prepared to play tackle football with any strategy or philosophy or purpose. Cincinnati came to play football and we came to do a walk through.

This went from painful to embarrassing to absolutely horrifyingly pathetic and soul sucking in just a bit over a few hours. Fun.

I was having some difficulty putting my finger on what is off with McD and why I just cannot fully embrace him, and this is it. Spot on. 1000%. There is another thing he does during press conferences that I am not a big fan of, but I respect it. However, the facade is what it is.

I literally watched Saffold spectate on like 3 plays.....and I am not being funny or flippant. He chose to stand by and not engage.

Yes, ironically, the most "Billsy" thing would be if we win this game.....you know, look absolutely overmanned and outcoached and yet somehow win. Sorting like what the Phins did to us earlier this season.

Where is Oliver against this back up Oline? I was told he was going to "eat" today? Me thinks he is not hungry.

Adjustments need to be made. Adjustments need to be made. Adjustments need to be made. Hello? Hello? Frazier? Dorsey? McD? Adjustments need to be made.

I said this earlier, but this is a rapid thread.....the issue is now Josh firmly believes he needs to make up 14 points in one throw.

Outcoached. Outcoached. Outcoached. Outcoached.