Logic

Aren't DaQuan Jones and Austin Johnson both 1Ts?

Not the worst rotational 3Ts to add in the middle of November. A little surprised that they signed BOTH of them, but I suppose they had the open roster spots to do so.

Thanks for posting this. Cover 1 always does a good job. Staying in nickel all game and still being able to at least somewhat limit the opposing run game has pretty much been the Bills' defensive identity since McDermott took over. Every once in a while, they come up against a team who is able to effectively call their bluff and run it down their throats. Baltimore did it earlier this year, Miami did it yesterday. Most teams can't do it. They either don't have the OL, don't have the scheming, or don't have the personnel to make it work. Credit to Miami. At the end of the day, neither defense really did much to stop the opposing offense. It took the Bills getting one extra possession via forced fumble to win the game, and even then it was a 61 yard miracle of a kick away from going to overtime. Live by the sword, die by the sword. They lived on Sunday, but just barely.

It was the right decision. For months (years?) people excoriated McDermott for being too conservative and playing not to lose rather than playing to win. Punting would've been a cowardly, "play not to lose" move. Attempting the field goal was the aggressive, "I believe in my players", play-to-win move. The question that should REALLY be asked is "should the Dolphins have gone for two instead of an extra point", and in my mind, yes, they should have. Granted, assuming everything from there onwards goes the same, it wouldn't have mattered, but still. I thought Mike McDaniel's decision was cowardly, and I thought Sean McDermott's decision was courageous and correct, and I fully supported it. (but also, yes, I was terrified, I assumed Bass would badly shank it, and that the Phins would have a shot at a Hail Mary or quick of their own to win the game. Luckily for me and for Bills fans, Bass absolutely drilled it, creating the greatest moment of his career to date.)

What's wrong with our defense? Nothing. Yesterday, as others have said, a good offensive play-caller and a highly motivated team featuring two excellent WRs, an excellent RB, and a QB playing at a high level played their best game of the year against the Bills....and the Bills defense STILL made a big play to turn the ball over, and that one extra possession wound up being what won them the game. Further, I think they're always going to be a bend-but-don't-break defense, and to that end, they are excellent in the red zone this year. I think they'll always be vulnerable to the run because their priority is not getting beaten over the top. But zooming out and looking at the larger picture: The Buffalo Bills are ranked 8th in scoring defense despite missing various key defensive players at various points in the season, including arguably their best player Matt Milano, who hasn't taken a single regular season snap this year. To be ranked 8th in scoring defense in such a transitional year -- new DC, new position coaches at various spots, two new safeties, etc -- is pretty impressive if you ask me. There are improvements to be made for this defense -- particularly in terms of stopping the run and getting more effective and impactful safety play -- but I think they're doing quite well as it is, particularly considering all the coaching and personnel changes and injuries.

Count me among those who -- if we're not going to use Samuel in a meaningful way -- would rather see them try out KJ Hamler or Jalen Virgil for a few weeks. If it's injury thats causing Samuel to be a zero, then IR him. If it's performance, then lets see what Hamer or Virgil has to offer.

Your lips to God's ears. How do we have Curtis Samuel, Dalton Kincaid, and Dawson Knox on this roster and consistently see them COMBINE for less than 50 yards receiving? Madness.

Assuming Coleman misses a bunch of time and Cooper comes back next week or the week after... Here's a novel and crazy idea: What if Curtis Samuel -- who had 62 receptions for 613 yards last year and is still only 28 years old and signed a decent sized contract this offseason -- ACTUALLY ***** STARTED PRODUCING FOR THE BILLS?!?! Is that too much to ask? Cooper - Samuel - Shakir should be a fine starting three group in the NFL. Why can't Samuel seem to collect even 10 yards receiving in a game? WHAT IN THE EVER LIVING HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!

Most fired up I've been after a Bills win this season. Big time stuff! - Awful game from the refs. Feels like I could say this every week. - Bills offense shot themselves in the foot throughout the game. - Dolphins controlled both lines of scrimmage for much of the game. - Excellent games from Tua and Achane/Mostert - Another slow start from Buffalo ...AND YET... Despite all of that, the Bills just found a way to win. That's what good teams do -- they find a way to win. Not your best day on offense? Not your best day on defense? Doesn't matter. Find a way to win a big divisional matchup at home. Now you're 7-2 and your division rivals are 2-6. Have to think this huge win -- particularly with the way they won it -- will provide a big boost of confidence going forward. Likewise, have to think it will deflate and demoralize the Dolphins. Lastly, how could I not mention Tyler Bass? THAT is how you bust a slump! THAT is how you get your confidence back and instill confidence in your teammates and Bills fans. Credit to the coaching staff for sticking with T Bass, credit to them for trusting him to attempt the kick, and credit to him for absolutely DRILLING it. It might have been good from 70! Time to crack a beer and toast a resilient win and a resilient kicker. GO BASS! GO BILLS!!!

Not meant as a dig against McDermott at all. I simply meant that the fact that there doesn't seem to be a meaningful correlation between penalties committed and W-L record probably doesn't mean much to McDermott or to fans, who both (rightly) loathe penalties. Currently, within the top 10 of most penalties committed in the league this year, you'll find (along with some bad teams) Baltimore, Minnesota, and Buffalo. Committing a lot of penalties doesn't seem to move the win-loss needle as much as you'd think, but it doesn't mean that McDermott won't (rightly) be preaching "clean football" all week long anyway.

To that last point, I can't ever remember seeing a team overcome offensive penalties as easily and as repeatedly as the Bills did against Seattle last Sunday. It was drive killing penalty after drive killing penalty, only...they DIDN'T kill the drives. The offense just easily overcame them. Granted, that's not always the case. I don't know how to verify this statistically, but I believe some of the league's best teams are often some of the most penalized. Or at the very least, that high penalty rates do not meaningfully correlate to teams being bad. Of course, that means diddly squat to Sean McDermott, who loathes penalties and sloppy play. Still...1st and 15 somehow seems less daunting when you have #17 under center.

It really does suck for them. It feels like the Bills are almost always the ones going into these big games with half their roster missing, so it's hard for me too feel too much sympathy. The injury bug comes for everyone. Next man up. Same as it ever was.

I didn't see this video posted yet, and I thought it maybe deserved its own thread because it's pretty impressive. Bills home offense is scoring 38.3 PPG (1st in the league), which would be a Bills record. Josh also has the #1 ranked QBR and #1 ranked TD/TO ratio in the league at home this year. Aside from their elite offensive production at home, Orlovsky talks about one of the things that has helped them find success this year: playing with a sixth o-lineman. The Bills have the most rushes with six offensive linemen in the league this year, and have produced the highest yards per rush and yards per play in the league out of this formation. As Orlovsky mentions, it's frankly kind of amazing that more teams don't do this more often, but credit to Brady for effectively utilizing it.

All of the pressure in this game is on Miami -- from keeping playoff hopes alive, to getting the "Bills" monkey off their back, to breaking a losing streak. None of the pressure in this game is on the Bills, who will be comfortably in first place in the AFC East regardless of the outcome of the game. Furthermore, Josh Allen just seems to play confidently and play well against the Dolphins. A relaxed, confident Josh Allen having fun is usually a dangerous Josh Allen. I in no way think this game is a gimme, and the Dolphins are a talented and motivated enough team that an upset wouldn't shock me. BUT....I think the Bills will take care of business this week.

Only ever been to one TBD tailgate, but I remember Mead being as nice a human as you could possibly imagine meeting. Happy Birthday feller!

No one is trading for Mike Edwards. Maybe -- MAYBE -- you could get someone to swap their 6th for our 7th, but I doubt even that. It's more likely that the Bills will just release him because they don't want a malcontent in the locker room.

It's not that decent sushi can't be had in WNY, I'm sure. It's just that the sushi one can get in the pacific Northwest is, as a rule, pretty much always going to be superior. It's like asking "can't I get a good garbage plate or beef on weck outside of western New York?". And the answer is that yes, maybe you can. But it's almost certainly not going to be as good as one you get in WNY. It's just not. Each region has its regional culinary delicacies. In Seattle, fresh seafood and fresh sushi and great Asian cuisine in general are top of the list.

Yes absolutely! I saw this video on the big screen at a Grateful Dead "meetup at the movies" a few years back, and it was awesome. Blew me away. I always love Bruce Hornsby era Dead. The sound of his grand piano fit in beautifully and really brought something unique to the music in those years. His presence (particularly early on in his tenure with the band) also really seemed to inspire Jerry to play well and be creative and to have fun, which in turn meant the band would usually follow suit, and a great night of music would ensue. We are so, so, so lucky to have so much recorded material from this band. To think that one can listen to high quality recordings of almost every live show they ever played for 30 years is absolutely mind blowing. What a gift.

Thanks for that. I can (and do) get lost in that version of Eyes over and over and over again. A stellar example (even 25 years into their career) of what the Dead could be at their best.

I would just like to say that no one has ever played the bass like Phil Lesh before, and no one probably ever will again. Most bassists more or less sound the same. Lesh was the exception. He played all over the fretboard. Played his instrument like a lead guitar. At times he anchored the music as bassists usually do, but at times he also left that to the drummers and keyboardist and said "see ya later" and took off on a flight of fancy, challenging the rest of the band to keep up. Lesh was an incredibly original player. So was Bob Weir. So was Jerry. The fact that there were THREE very original players leading the band -- and that they all took turns leading, pushing, pulling, and sonically cajoling each other -- is what made the Dead's music so interesting and it's why they've sometimes been referred to as "electric Dixieland". Lesh's quote "never play a song the same way once!" was apt. He was such a singular musician, and the Dead were such a singular band. I haven't been too sad about Phil in the few days since his passing. He lived a long, great life and died peacefully with family. Instead, I've just been soaking up the sounds he left behind. What a gift his music was to the world, and what an unspeakable amount of joy it has brought to my life. Always one of my favorite illustration's of Phil's unmatchable groove and bounce :

I've been happily posting that Keon is making me look like a fool so far in various threads, and if he keeps it up, my pre-draft anti-Keon position will go in the "All-time giant idiot takes from an armchair GM" Hall of Fame next to my anti-Josh opinion from 2018. Kid is killing it, and I'm thrilled to (apparently) have been super wrong about him. That said... Have you posted your apology thread for saying that our receiving corps was gonna be just fine this year? Because us WR worriers were shouting from the rooftops that something more needed to be done at WR, and you were one of the leaders of the "we'll be just fine" chorus, extolling Curtis Samuel's virtues and saying we shouldn't worry about Mack Hollins being a starting outside receiver for us. And last I checked, Samuel has been a zero, Hollins DID start at outside receiver and our worries about him WERE justified, and the Bills just traded a 3rd for Amari Cooper, thus admitting their WR corps was lacking. So if we're doing "WR apology threads"....you first!

- Elite 50/50 and jump ball ability - Legit YAC juice - Breaks arm tackles consistently - Developing scramble drill chemistry with Josh - Willing and effective run blocker Keon is starting to play like the Bills' WR1. Then again, so is Shakir. Then again, they just acquired Amari Cooper. Keon coming on, Shakir getting healthy, Cooper coming to town........amazing the difference a few weeks can make. The present and future, all of the sudden, don't look too shabby at WR.

Very impressive win. Offense, defense, coaching, quarterback. Impressive in every way a win CAN be impressive. Special shoutouts: - Josh Allen. Overcame offensive penalties, bad weather, and a loud Seattle crowd to have a great day. Other than the interception, he was in full command from start to finish. Looked like a field general out there. I love seeing him be able to just play in rhythm and NOT have to be a super hero most of the day, while still being willing and able to put on the cape when needed for a big play. - James Cook. I think he felt the heat of Ray Davis playing well recently. Impressive day from him running the football. - Offensive line. Absolutely MOVED people today in the run game. Wow. - Keon Coleman. To be able to win those 50/50 and jump balls and ALSO exhibit some juice after the catch? I love it. This kid is getting better every single week, and appears poised to make me and all of his other doubters look like fools. - Tight end involvement. I like how Brady involved both tight ends today. I liked seeing them used on downfield routes instead of just short stuff. Both guys played well, too. - The entire Bills defense. No single defensive lineman, linebacker, corner, or safety had an elite day. But they played incredibly well AS A UNIT, limiting a very good Seattle offense to 10 points on the road. - Coaching on both sides. I loved the defensive gameplan to send pressure at Geno and play tighter coverage. I loved the mix of run and pass on offense and the willingness to lean into putting Josh under center in the first half rather than always in shotgun. With the exception of the gross penalties (which may be more an indictment on the refs), the entire coaching staff had these guys ready to play. Fast start, kept up the intensity throughout the game, and finished strong. All on the road against a pretty good opponent in a hostile environment on a rainy day. What more can you ask for? Add to it the fact that the Dolphins, Jets, Ravens, and Bengals all lost today, and you're talking about a pretty flawless day of football for Bills fans. GO BILLS!!!

Per his Instagram account, founding Grateful Dead member and bassist for the entire existence Phil Lesh passed away today. The man was 84 years old and, according to the message, died peacefully with his family. Bob Weir once said "death is the best reward for a life well lived", and Lesh's was incredibly well lived. An incredibly original bassist, musician, and mind. No one played like him, no one thought like him. I will miss knowing that he's still playing music in the world, but I'm so grateful to have endless treasure troves of all the brilliant music he left behind. Rest in peace, Phil Lesh.

Carter and Bernard out means we can expect the Seahawks to attack the spine of our defense over and over again with a heavy dose of Ken Walker III. Frankly, that's likely what we could've expected if those guys were healthy and active, too. The Seahawks will get their yards. It'll be critical to limit them to field goals and to get off to a fast start on offense, rather than spotting them 10-14 points before we "wake up", as we have done multiple times this year.