Midwest1981

5-9. Even if you include the Jaguars’ Playoff game we haven’t played the 23 total games you’re saying we have; we’ve played 21. You might be right soon enough.

Titans 20, Bills 13 The defense keeps us in the game but Buffalo can’t do enough offensively to take advantage of it.

My heart truly breaks to hear this news. I also have a young daughter and I honestly cannot fathom the pain of losing such a young precious little child. I will ask for strength for the family and do believe that Heaven surely has its angel...

Well, he does at least get paid for a living for his film analysis and was a semi-frequent guest on WGR during the build-up to the draft. He isn't infallible but I don't think his criticism of Allen's week 1 performance is personal, even if we all learn as we grow up that unfortunately the three words that mean the most to most people are not "I love you" but "you were right."

I realize the Bills didn't have infinite resources this past offseason, not with our record dead cap and then trading up for Allen & Edmunds (which cost us five of our top-65 picks). Nevertheless, considering we DID spend some $$$ on defense in FA more resources could have spent in the direction of the offense (in FA & the Draft), aside from adding McCarron a couple of days into FA (when musical chairs left him and the Bills still standing)- and then trading McCarron before the season- and then bringing in a proven poor starter in Russell Bodine, plus a few 5th (Wyatt Teller) & 7th-round picks (McCloud & Proehl). It was a pretty nominal approach and I believe that if McBeane could have foreseen the start of the season playing out like this they would have certainly have done things differently, if they're willing to be honest about that.

I don't think Allen has no hope but I do know the Bills have already made the climb uphill even greater. He's a player that needed the most conducive environment to pan out and the Bills have made things almost as difficult as they could be at every single turn. Like I wrote earlier, the Bills thought they could wait to play Allen and wait to give him any surrounding talent. So it didn't matter if he wasn't ready. They were egregiously wrong and we just have to hope Allen's mental toughness is strong enough that it ultimately won't matter.

According to PFF, Allen graded out at 73.7 for his performance against Baltimore, which I thought was pretty encouraging, even mostly against second-stringers. But his overall grade dropped to just above 50 factoring in his Chargers' start, which did not grade out well.

I am not completely down on Allen, like I wrote. And in most respects it's largely the Bills' fault for the rawest rookie outside of Lamar Jackson to have to be thrust into action before he's quite ready, which has caused a mechanical regression, things he's worked so hard to improve. Buffalo thought they could wait a year and then surround Allen with the requisite surrounding talent. Buffalo thought that Peterman's preseason wouldn't portend a second NFL start arguably worst than the first. The Bills should certainly have put more of a priority on mentorship for Allen. Allen can salvage and vindicate them, just because of the importance of the position and player. But this past offseason was a borderline unmitigated disaster. Like I wrote, they thought Allen would be afforded the time. So it didn't matter if he wasn't ready quite yet and it didn't matter if they gave him any talent. What a gross miscalculation, especially given what we saw from Peterman's first (and only) other NFL start.

"Utterly dreadful" and "brutally bad in a myriad of ways" isn't quite how I'd characterize it. But I have to admit- I was more discouraged than encouraged. "It's his first start," "he had a few good plays," etc. I know those things- IMO it was still discouraging to see him miss on some blatantly open throws (Murphy & DiMarco, famoulsy) and to force those picks in the second-half (especially the first one- I was imploring him to throw it away as he released it)... Ledyard correctly mentions "there's a long way to go"- and I still think Allen's relentlessly competitive nature gives him a chance, even with his pre-draft concerns rearing their ugly head again in start #1 (mechanical unsoundness, inconsistent accuracy, decision-making, etc.). Still, I was hoping week #1 offered a few more positives (there WERE some), even considering all factors like the Bills' under-talented roster, the opponent, his first NFL start, etc. https://twitter.com/LedyardNFLDraft/status/1041772507903262720

To those insisting that McCarron was the only choice that fell within Buffalo’s parameters in terms of affordability and only desiring a bridge option please note that Bridgewater actually went for LESS than McCarron: 1 year, $5 million with just a half-million guaranteed. Considering Bridgewater- just 5 months after signing- had a trade market clearly it wasn’t just the Bills that missed that boat. But Bridgewater was in fact a viable affordable option who’s started an entire SEASON (not 2 games or 5 games) in which Minnesota went to the Playoffs.

Unless Josh Allen produces 15 games as abominable as Nathan Peterman produced in his Chargers and Ravens starts- and maybe not even then- is this anything other than anti-Allen sentiment coached as some sort of good idea that "smart" teams do. And let's abandon the silly notion, "Well, you can always just trade Allen to another team for a haul!" Because teams aren't at all wary of players whose teams give up on them after one season despite investing a 1st & two 2nd's, plus a good LT, to trade up for and are absolutely willing to part with a king's ransom. Allen may well bust but the Bills haven't provided him the context or the environment to fairly or accurately judge him. A) 4/5th's of our offensive line shouldn't be starting and in time will not be, B) we also happen to own the league's worst collection of pass-receiving options (reminiscent of the Bears last year, which prompted substantial activity, like ours will too), and C) even the most ardent Allen supporters admitted that while he had awe-inspiring talent he still has a lot to learn and develop... and then we keep two QB's and the only other one literally produces the worst QB rating in any NFL player's first two career starts.

I also called yesterday and threatened to cancel. When asked to explain why, I mentioned that when I began DirecTV a year ago (after moving into a home; my wife & I couldn't get it in our apartment) that no free offer was ever extended about Sunday Ticket, even though I know of people who are starting service and getting it for free. Just like that- well, 10 minutes later, some of which they verified that no free offer was offered last year- and I've got it for free, too. I guess you can say I had a "legitimate" case but as you can from all the above posts they're absolutely willing to work with you, even if/when you don't...

I certainly won't retract my sentiments in this post, at least entirely, because I see the upside of having perhaps the first pick in the draft, an early 2nd & 3rd, multiple 4th's & 5th's, etc., and the fiscal capacity to help change this team (granted, with a more astute talent evaluation than this past spring demonstrated). But 44-point losses will produce pressure, no matter whatever goodwill engendered with last year's Playoff berth. The Bills will be bad, like I expected, but they can't be on any sort of historic level. I still maintain this year is about development of players critical to our future, even if a player like Allen's development likely can't be insanely accelerated with his surrounding cast, and about building draft capital to supplement our cap space. But no, if the plan produced 44-point season-opening loss in which the Ravens pulled their starters midway through the 3rd... A) that was a bad plan and B) there will be pressure. Oh, and C) very little of this season can be enjoyed for us fans.

There are some offensive linemen who were not mentioned but who deserve more attention than most of the players on that list: Buccaneers' guard Ali Marpet and Vikings' center/guard Brett Jones. Marpet is already an established top 10-15 guard (with vast experience at center, too) and if he escapes the franchise tag will probably hit the market after some of the contracts Tampa Bay has doled out recently. Sure, he's a prime candidate to get $14-15 million a year when he should probably get $11-12. But he's high-quality, getting better, and the contract would look better in time with a continually rising cap. And then Jones actually played pretty well at center for the Giants last year, especially surrounded by very poor linemen (it's the consensus that he was their last best lineman last year). In fact, many Giants fans were flabbergasted by both the new coaching staff's decision to not give him (what the fans perceived to be) a "fair shake" at starting again and then trading him to the Vikings, where he started yesterday. https://www.dailynorseman.com/2018/8/26/17784300/big-blue-view-more-brett-jones-minnesota-vikings-new-york-giants For the record, Marpet will be 26 at the start of next season and Jones will have just turned 28, both of which are pluses, clearly.

Somebody alluded to it earlier but Kalil of course will be retiring. Iupati may have a resurgent 2018 but he has been plagued by injuries most of the last 3 years and will be entering year #10 next year (Levitre year #11). Veldheer has also seen his career- and play- severely affected by injuries over multiple seasons. Massie is certainly an upgrade over Mills but he doesn't move the needle much; he's largely ineffective. Carpenter, like Massie, would upgrade us. But again like Massie it says immeasurably more about what we have than it does about Carpenter. Saffold holds some intrigue. His effort was questioned earlier in his career but he's mostly been good and last year he was great, an All Pro even. He'll be 31 but interior linemen generally age better and he could be very solid for a few years, similar to Incognito.

I’m not bullish on 2018 whatsoever and having gone game by game through all 256 games (handy little website posted below helps you quickly do that) I have us finishing 3-13 and receiving the top pick in the 2019 Draft. But it’s reasonable to assume we’ll make strides, be they sizable or incremental, next year because A) we won’t be allocating 30% of the cap to players no longer here, B) we will be concertedly addressing the offense (which other than Allen) was ignored this spring with copious cap space (FTR, a couple of targets I expect Buffalo to look at are Buccaneers’ guard Ali Marpet and Falcons’ RB Tevin Coleman), C) having a top-3... and top-35 pick... and ten picks overall... could severely enhance our talent base, and D) we’d be playing a 4th-place schedule (Raiders and Colts?) while the AFC East gets the NFC East next year, which is no cakewalk because NO division in the NFC is but it’s a little less rough than the NFC North. I don’t see us making STEEP progress next year but I definitely expect/project progress. https://playoffpredictors.com/Football/NFL?L=Aw18ZXTt-DFOS1b0ckA

Sigmund Bloom‏ @SigmundBloom 8h8 hours ago More Sigmund Bloom Retweeted Eliot Shorr-Parks Jordan Matthews and a 3rd for Darby is looking pret-tay pret-tay good Sigmund Bloom added, Eliot Shorr-ParksVerified account @EliotShorrParks Just rewatched #Eagles vs. #Falcons. My main takeaways: Fletcher Cox and Ronald Darby were both insanely good 2 replies4 retweets28 likes Reply 2 Retweet 4 Like 28

Good post and I am hopeful that Josh can block out that noise and sink or swim on his own merits, not because of some self-fulfilling prophecy because Jalen Ramsey, the doubting media, most of the rest of the NFL, and "draft twitter" shook his self-confidence. Now we have to put the team around him, let's start with blockers, to make sure that doesn't rattle his confidence either.

As far as what "we have to do," I think you would agree that sometimes owners have their fanbases' ear and serve to placate them when the frustration reaches a fevered pitch, often in the form of dumping a coach in favor of another. While I don't think that is going to happen here, if things are ugly not only this year but also in 2019- because the progress is more incremental than substantial- I can't guarantee it won't. While I don't think it will and believe the Pegula's know this will take time, nobody really can. That might place them in the minority with the rinse/repeat "2-3 years or you're done!" mentality that's infiltrated many front-offices as GM's & head coaches sometimes seem to act as revolving doors...

First of all, this isn't an anti-Allen angle at all. He's shown enough for me, even if it hasn't been with and against the 1st's (at least beyond training camp), that he has some unique talent and is making strides. I just hope that the Pegula's, and other Bills fans, are willing to truly live with the growing pains. Rex wasn't given two full years. That was the right move and- yes- breaking the Playoff drought built up a lot of cache and goodwill- but McBeane and Allen may require three full years (excluding last year). Allen may not start this year and if he does the results may not be pretty, even if he's mostly absolved of blame because we haven't set him up well to immediately succeed. Then next year the results should improve but it might be incremental- we could see modest improvement as it takes some time for a newly-configured offensive line to gell and for Allen to build rapport with new skill position players. Even if things go well, it may not be until year #3 that we see what we all hope to. That might mean a 3/4 win 2018 followed by a 5-7 win 2019. I said the other day in another thread I started that I'm not terribly worried about this season because it's fundamentally about Allen learning his craft and - if/when he gets on the field- gradually getting better, plus us developing other guys who represent our future (like Edmunds). But we must all be prepared to live with the likely growing pains, from ownership on down.

... and not in the way you think. In fact, it may have very little to do with him. But it's his situation- THIS situation- that makes it inherently difficult for him, as well as the Bills. Let me explain. First of all, what I was afraid would happen if Peterman won the job HAS happened. Not just "Joe" (largely informed) "Fan" but also the media- Colin Cowherd each of the last two days has corroborated this, to cite but one example- are snickering at Peterman starting because of the "five picks in one half" performance he may never live down. And Peterman beating out Allen naturally leads to more snickers, "Wow, if Josh Allen can't even beat out Nathan Peterman"... Josh Allen can't win from the perspective that it was widely acknowledged leading up to the draft, even among Allen supporters, that he required patience. But then when he's granted that patience it's not because he's not ready as much as it's perceived he'll never be ready, if he can't beat up the "abominable" likes of Nathan Peterman. That's just one problem. The other problem is... this is the NFL in 2018. How patient are Bills fans- and the Bills themselves- willing to be? I'm absolutely willing to be patient; Allen has demonstrated enough to make me believe that he isn't the fundamentally lost cause many summarily dismissed him as pre-draft... but the Bills' surrounding cast, skill position "weaponry" and especially our offensive line, has also demonstrated enough that they could really threaten to undo any of the progress Allen has made and have him running for his life, locking onto targets, suffering mechanically, and even suffering serious injury (we were all lucky he remained unscathed from preseason's week #3) if he's out there playing any time soon. I understand that trading up for Allen/Edmunds cost of 5 of our top-65 picks. But it was still inexcusable to do so little with our remaining draft capital- not until deep in day #3- to provide some offensive help for the highest QB we've ever taken. Yes, I know that will be addressed in time, specifically next offseason. But QB's don't get the same time now that they used to. Yes, I'm willing to be patient. But in the new CBA (signed 7 years ago)... QB's are MUCH easier to move on from than before- the financial commitment/entanglement is just no longer there. We didn't sign Allen to a 6-year, $78 million dollar deal with $50 million guaranteed like Sam Bradford did in 2010 (or Stafford the year before... or Alex Smith four years before, who lasted 8 years in San Francisco despite atrocious early career play). Remember the outcry by many when Doug Marrone benched E.J. Manuel after week #4 of just his sophomore season? "You don't- you CAN'T- bench a QB after just 15-20 starts!? He needs at least 30." Well, we did, and other than a week 17 game in 2016 to spite Tyrod and the recently fired Rex Manuel never started another game. Just two years ago the Broncos traded up in the 1st-round to draft Paxton Lynch. Well, a mere four starts later- those four starts were evidently enough- and he's not only not starting; he isn't even on Denver's roster. There's also some consensus that 2016 #1 overall pick Jared Goff was another really bad year in 2017- if it resembled 2016- from quite possibly the Rams looking for the next guy. I'm not saying that any of this is right- I'm just saying that it 'is,' at least how other teams have operated recently, given that the CBA allows teams to extricate out of lesser high 1st-round contracts and given irrationally impatient owners & fanbases. I'm willing to give Allen the time he needs but Buffalo must be, too. And unfortunately we don't have an Alex Smith having his best statistical season and leading the Chiefs to a divisional title to obscure that our rookie is sitting. Instead we have Nathan Peterman and the jokes that follow.

Ravens 23, Bills 10

It’s interesting that Dareus was referenced as a top-3 pick that didn’t turn the Bills around (even though you can argue that in some ways he helped to when you consider his All Pro campaign in 2014 coincided with a 9-7 record and Buffalo from 2014-2017 went 33-31 while the Bills were 4-12 the season before Marcel got there). Still, it’s more interesting because the pick before him in that 2011 Draft- Von Miller- has become a Defensive Player of the Year, Super Bowl MVP, and eventual first ballot Hall of Famer. Even the picks directly after Dareus- A.J. Green and Patrick Peterson- feature a WR that helped transform Cincinnati into a team picking in the top-4 to a team who made five-straight Playoff berths and another Hall of Fame defensive talent in Peterson. There are many other more recent examples of top of the draft non-QB picks that are instrumental in a team’s turnaround/transformation. Blue chip talent DOES make a difference then you also factor how drafting highly means drafting top-35 (2nd-rounder), top-68 (3rd-rounder), having four top-100 picks and seven picks in the first 5 round, etc. (all of our picks in the first 5 rounds plus the Chiefs’ 4th and Raiders’ 5th).

Clearly the $80-90 million dollars of cap space won’t be spent in one offseason, nor should it be since there won’t be the crop to justify it. But the Jaguars were able to be significant players in FA for four-straight offseasons (2015-2018), bringing in Malik Jackson, A.J. Bouye, Barry Church, Andrew Norwell, Julius Thomas, etc., because of the ability to roll over cap in the CBA (which will remain in place at least until 2021 and likely beyond). And Jacksonville debunked the notion, popularized by Washington early this millennium, that you can’t effectively assemble a Playoff team (mostly) through FA. I’m not saying that Buffalo’s Playoff hopes largely lie in what they do with their cap space- it’ll just have to supplement what becomes of Allen, Edmunds, White, and future high picks. But there’s no reason this spring we can’t or won’t add, say, an Ali Marpet to play LG next to Dawkins, plus add 2-3 other capable starters, spending about half of what we’re allotted, and then rolling $40-50 million into 2020 to allow us to do the same then. We still can’t waste the $$$ so we have to spend wisely and responsibly. But unquestionably the cap space should help.

It seems that most Bills fans- or at least those that post on the board- are starting to realize that a bullish 2018 outlook is more in the 7-9 range than realistically having a chance to repeat as a Playoff participant. And clearly the Bills are a popular choice among the media, NFL pundits, and other teams' fanbases to be staring at the Bosa/Oliver sweepstakes with the #1 overall pick after a 3-13/4-12 campaign. Of course, that's viscerally upsetting since no Bills fan wants to be subjected to bad Bills football all season long. But is it really the worst fate we can suffer? Buffalo, through mostly deft trades (getting a 2nd for a WR the Rams didn't/couldn't even re-sign, getting the equivalent of a 2nd-round pick for a recently oft-injured OT on a big $$$ deal, getting the 65th overall pick for a QB they'd otherwise have released), skillfully accumulated six 1st-3rd-round picks this past Draft... and then condensed those into just three players after trading five of those picks for Allen/Edmunds. I'm not critical (right now; time will tell) of their decision, but clearly they believed in those guys enough to kick the can on the road on filling out this roster with competent O-lineman, bonafide receiving threats, and more. McBeane knows this team manifestly isn't good enough or deep enough- that's also why they're willing to absorb a whopping $52 million in dead cap this season. They also probably accurately recognize that last year's Playoff berth, while real and deserved, was always going to be difficult to duplicate with inexperience at QB, the unexpected exodus of our best O-linemen, and an absolutely unforgiving schedule that features 5 of our first 7 on the road (quality teams too) with the third home game being against the Patriots... in primetime... where they typically embarrass us. IMO, this year is strictly about the development of Allen, Edmunds, and others in which our future is held. It's great to have the "No Playoffs Since the Clinton Administration" monkey off our backs... and to just watch this team (hopefully) progress as the year goes on. This team will definitely look different a year from now after adding a blue-chip talent in the top-3 (maybe even trading for a haul and out of #1 to a QB-needy team who emerges), a top-35 pick, ten total picks, and after we spend some of the $80+ million in cap space we'll have (which can grow to $95 million if McCoy & Hughes- then 31- are cut loose). There's no pressure. That will come, particularly on McBeane, but anything positively surprising this year is a bonus. Because nothing- not McBeane's roster decisions or schedule- was about this year anyway.