Logic

Agreed on Andreesen. I feel like if Baylon Spector struggles in the next couple outings, I wouldn't mind seeing what Andreesen has to offer. Maybe I'm a season early on him, though. As for me, I forgot that we signed Lewis Cine to the practice squad. Cool to hear that he's making plays in practice. I'm probably in the extreme minority who actually feels pretty good about the Bills' safety position. Hamlin has looked a lot better this season, Bishop and Cine are talented and athletic youngsters, and Edwards and Jackson are heady vets that probably deserve more looks.

Cool article from the Athletic. They ask a bunch of Bills players to list their "best kept secret" for 2024. The players give reasoning behind each pick, but it's too much to copy and paste it all here. I've posted a few select explanations that stood out to me, but there's much more to read. As with many Athletic articles, it's worth the $1.99 a month. ***The Bolded names are the ones listed as "best kept secret" by one or more players. The non-bolded names below them are the player(s) that chose them*** https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5780324/2024/09/20/buffalo-bills-best-kept-secret-2024-jamarcus-ingram/ "...Everyone loves a secret standout who doesn’t have that same recognition, especially for something as well-documented as an NFL roster. In sports, players — through all their time on the practice field and in meeting rooms — can always tell who has some real game even if they don’t get the general praise or big enough role to show for it just yet. Who do the Bills view in this light in 2024? The Athletic polled the locker room to find out who the players believed was the team’s best-kept secret." Ja'Marcus Ingram Khalil Shakir Dion Dawkins: "He listens, he learns, he doesn’t speak. He just takes the coaching the right way. And he lets his older guys guide him to success. You know, JaMarcus has been with me damn near every day since OTAs. Every single day. And I was telling him you’ve got to change the people that you’re around. Not to say he was around anybody bad. But usually when you hang around successful people, the success kind of brushes off to you. And I’m happy to see that he’s getting his successful little nuggets." Von Miller O'Cyrus Torrence Christian Benford Reggie Gilliam Mike Edwards "He works harder than probably anybody in here, one of the top hardest workers on the team. And I feel like, it’s just my first year I’ve been here, but just watching him on tape, I feel like he’s getting better every year and I feel like this is likely going to be his breakout year." Marquez Valdes-Scantling Alec Anderson Daquan Jones "I think he’s a dog in the run game. I think he’s a competitor. And I know for me, at practice, we like to work with each other. He’s always trying to learn and always trying to get better at his craft. He’s very versatile all across the board, guard, center actually both guards… I think he’s just as good as some of the league’s best and guys who’ve been starting for years…I think he’ll be a hell of a player." Connor McGovern Austin Johnson David Edwards Mitchel Trubisky Baylon Spector Cam Lewis "He just hasn’t had a lot of opportunities to showcase his stuff. And then Monday night, I feel like he’s going to put everybody on notice that he can play ball. It’s not gonna be no type of a drop off like that. He got the communication. He got the confidence. So he’s just about to go out there and play his ball." Ray Davis Spencer Brown Cam Lewis Rasul Douglas Dawson Knox David Edwards "I think what Dawson’s asked to do, play to play, be kind of like the Y tight end, be at the point of, like, our duo play, the back side of our mid-zone. Like, he’s got to be one-on-one with like a big D-end a lot of times. And I think that a lot of times because he’s done such a good job for an extended period, like that, gets taken for granted by guys like us. And then for him to be able to be out on route concepts and separate versus DBs, like his versatility. I’ve got a lot of love for him and what he brings to our offense, our team, and then the tight end room. It’s really cool seeing him as a leader, as a player and then like teammate to teammate. I just think he’s the man." Dorian Williams AJ Epenesa Joe Andreesen Quintin Morris "You could just see it in how he practices. I think when he finally does get that opportunity, I think he’s going to take it and run." Curtis Samuel Casey Toohill Quintin Morris Dawson Knox The Offensive Line Greg Rousseau Lewis Cine (practice squad) Nicholas Morrow "He’s made like 3 or 4 plays today alone in man coverage. I thought it was pretty impressive. So I think that’s probably who I think stood out the last couple of days."

And for the record..... Would.

Kinda feels like a misleading thread title.

Everyone has already roasted the OP enough, but... No teams trade away dependable kickers. None. It never happens. Can you remember the last time you saw a GOOD, DEPENDABLE kicker traded to a different team? A fringe roster guy at the end of camp or preseason, sure. But do you EVER remember seeing a team trade a good kicker to another team in the middle of the season? Why would a team do that? Good, dependable kickers are like gold. Teams don't trade them away, even for 4ths.

Totally agree. I almost added "this is the week for some deep shots to MVS". ESPECIALLY with the respect that opposing defenses should theoretically start paying to our run game.

I will always believe that the Bills wanted McDuffie (I know that some on the board with connections say they didn't, but I don't buy it). I also believe they were going corner come hell or high water, and that contrary to what he says, Beane drafts for need over BPA the vast majority of the time in the first couple rounds. Anyway...when it comes to Elam specifically, he seemed like an odd fit for the Bills from the jump. A wiry man coverage specialist who doesn't have a natural feel for zone coverage and isn't a sound and physical tackler. Essentially the exact OPPOSITE of what the Bills tend to like in corners. I think they figured they could coach him up and teach him to excel in their system, and it hasn't gone as planned. It sounds like he looked good in camp, and he has even looked good at times in live game action here the past few seasons. His main issue now is that Benford and Douglas are studs, so unless one of them get injured, he's not likely to see the field much. Classic case of "it matters where you're drafted". I think if Elam played for, say, Jacksonville (who play a lot of man coverage), his career might look a lot different right now.

I actually get a jolt of confidence when I see Josh rolling right. It's when he's at his most lethal. I'm actually MORE confident in him making a big play when I see him roll out than I am when he's standing there in a clean pocket. I'd be willing to bet that if you put together a 10 minute highlight video of Josh Allen's best career plays, the majority of them would come with him bailing from the pocket, clean or not. If I was a defense, my number one objective going into each Bills game would be "keep Josh Allen from rolling right". Easier said than done, since Josh is what would happen if an elite purebread golden retriever made a baby with a tank. Grown ass man. Must have a hose like a can of tennis balls hangin there. Like an 80s policeman's flashlight hangin there. Like a baby's arm holdin an apple hangin there. The dude absolutely fux.

Absolutely. It's something I wish he would get more attention for nationally. He's the DB whisperer. I just take it for granted that the Bills will keep churning out late round and UDFA corners that end up producing at a high level. But of all of them, Benford is on track to be the most impressive. He's not just "good for a late rounder" or serviceable, the way Levi Wallace and Dane Jackson were. Benford is GOOD good. Like...lockdown corner good, or at least on the path to be so. Also, don't look now, but as good a secondary coach as John Butler was, early returns suggest Jameel Addae may be just as good or better.

Sometimes -- not always, but sometimes -- I think he does it because there's nothing open, and his being on the move manipulates defenses in a way that allows someone to get open. The play against the Dolphins where he hit Ty Johnson for 30+ yards was one such play. I don't recall whether or not Allen was actually under pressure on that play, but the threat of his breaking the pocket and rolling right commanded just enough attention and respect from the defensive players on that side of the field that it allowed Johnson to get open against the Dolphins' zone defense for a big gain. So I think that in part, Josh will always sometimes bail from clean pockets. It's something that's been on his tape going back to Wyoming. But I think sometimes he also intentionally does it as a way to create offense where there is none to be had.

They went exclusively with the all-white throwbacks when the rule was that you could only have one throwback jersey. Things stayed that way for a few years. They actually haven't worn ANY throwbacks in several years, and I'm not really sure why. The standing buffalo (home or away) was a clean look and a nice changeup. The team's ongoing refusal to feature any throwback (be it the standing buffalo or the 90s kits) is wildly confounding. It opens up additional merchandising opportunities and brings in more revenue. Fans also like it. The Bills are essentially thumbing their nose at fan preference and turning down money. I don't get it.

This is a "throw out the records" game to me. An 0-2 team who feels like their backs are against the wall and are desperate for a win. A team who has historically given the Bills fits anyway. When was the last time the Bills comfortably beat the Jaguars and without all of us having heart palpitations? I genuinely can't remember. Two keys to the game: 1.) Travis Etienne vs the middle of our defense. I have faith in our ability to contain the edges in the run game, but we have a propensity to get gashed up the middle. Etienne can also be a weapon in the passing game against our inexperienced linebackers. This will be a huge test for Spector, Williams, Lewis, and our safeties. 2.) The Jaguars play man-to-man defense 68% of the time so far this season. The Bills will need to have their man-beater plays ready. It could be a big week for Curtis Samuel and Dalton Kincaid. It could also be the biggest week yet for Josh Allen running the football. If the Bills can limit Travis Etienne and find ways to get open against the Jags' man coverage, they win. If Etienne runs wild or the Bills pass catchers have trouble getting open, it could be closer than anyone would like, and may spell loss number one on the season.

Putting the reds above the white throwbacks, and at third on the list overall, is a crime against humanity. An atrocity on par with the very worst that have ever been committed anywhere, by anyone. You, sir, should be ashamed.

You just know this makes McDermott add an extra scoop of creatine to his protein shake in the morning in celebration.

I simply disagree. Beane and McDermott went from totally backing up Bass and making zero moves to bring in kicker competition -- even when the roster was at 90 and having another leg in camp would've made all the sense in the world -- to working out two kickers a week after Bass had one of the worst shanks you'll ever see in live game action. I don't agree that Bass has any physical issue, or that this was a field slippage issue. I think that Bass is currently suffering from something that many other kickers in NFL history have suffered through: Psychological issues. The yips. Kickers are good until they aren't. Once a kicker gets this kind of mental blockage or confidence hit or whatever you wanna call it, it can mean the end of their time as a consistent and reliable kicker in the league. I'm not saying Bass is definitely done. He's 11/12 on kicks this year, and the front office and coaches are clearly sticking by him for now. To say that he's not cause for concern or that the Bills working out kickers (when they had not previously done so) is a nothingburger is, in my estimation, off base. Time will tell.

Bass had a pretty up-and-down summer, with everything over 50 yards being a wild adventure. All throughout OTAs and training camp, beat writers were sounding the alarm on him. I get that he's made most of his kicks in live game action this year, but anyone who thinks he isn't in a bit of a psychological funk right now must not have been read what I read all summer long. If you don't believe me, then what's the justification for the Bills suddenly working out two kickers?

They want a kicker for the practice squad, so that if Bass keeps wildly shanking kicks like the one he shanked in Miami, they'll have someone who's had a bit of time in their operation waiting in the wings. GOSH I hope Bass gets over his Yips. Kicker psychology is such a weird and inexplicable thing.

I see a lot of very heralded, fully on the radar players being mentioned in this thread. Anyway... For some reason, I really liked (and occasionally still think about) the 2003 Minnesota Vikings running back trio of Michael Bennett, Mo Williams, and Onterrio Smith. Beat that!

I'll be honest, I've smoked a lot of weed in my day. I simply forgot him. Right now, he'd probably be in my tier 3. He hasn't had a good season since 2021. He could easily move up to tier 2. It would take a miracle for him to become a tier 1 guy again, in my opinion. See above. Weed. He'd be at the top of my tier 5 right now if I had remembered to include him.

I thought about adding him. I do not feel that he is better than any of the quarterbacks I listed. If I had to add him, I'd put him at the bottom of tier 5. Just my opinion, and I know many are higher on him than I am.

Generally speaking, I love Red Zone channel. Perfect for a day like yesterday when there is no one game that commands my attention, but there are aspects of each that are interesting to me. Also great for fantasy football purposes. When a bunch of games are close at the end and Scott Hansen is jumping around to game-winning field goal attempts and dramatic endings all at once, it can make for pretty hectic and exciting TV, and it can make that early window of games into a much more exhilarating viewing experience than just watching one of them or, worse yet, reading the box scores. I will agree that, at times, I wish for a little less quad box. Sometimes a really big, dramatic ending -- say, a game winning field goal attempt six minutes into overtime -- gets quad-boxed along with a less important or less compelling play, like a red zone passing attempt in a two score game. BUT, I have to bear in mind that not everyone's priorities and viewing interests are the same as my own. Due to things like different rooting interests and fantasy football and gambling, Red Zone has to try not to play favorites so much and to show everything equally. How I prioritize interest and importance may not be how others prioritize it. Long story long, despite some imperfections and small annoyances at times, Red Zone remains an elite viewing experience. I wish it existed for college football.

My List. Note: There is a large tier break between Tier 1 and Tier 2. No one is close to those two. Tier 1: Patrick Mahomes Josh Allen Tier 2: Joe Burrow(s) CJ Stroud Tier 3: Lamar Jackson Justin Herbert Tier 4: Kyler Murray Jalen Hurts Jared Goff Matthew Stafford Dak Prescott Jordan Love Tier 5: Kirk Cousins Baker Mayfield Derek Carr Trevor Lawrence

Benford is the best cornerback in the AFC East. Benford-Douglas-Johnson (when healthy) is the best cornerback trio in the NFL. There, I said it.

I have to ask this. I'm not trying to be mean or rude or anything, I just genuinely want to know. How are people still putting an "s" on the end of Joe Burrow? He's been in the league for five years now. I'm so confused.

The NFL is a league where a trend dominates, then teams figure out how to counter it, then teams figure out how to counter THAT, and it goes back and forth, on and on. Most recently, rule changes and the migration of the spread and Air Raid offenses to the NFL (as well as the proliferation of 7-on-7 camps and private QB tutors) had passing production way up, so teams got lighter and faster on defense and started employing two-deep shell coverages to take away the passing game. Offenses, in turn, beefed up and focused on their run game and short passing game and finding tight ends that are difference makers. As defenses get bigger to combat THIS evolution and have to begin squatting on the short stuff and stopping the run again, more new offensive innovations and evolutions will push the needle back in the other direction. And on and on, ad infinitum.