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I also feel having an experienced backup to help Allen out would be beneficial. Maybe they felt like McCarron really didn't fit that role? I mean, the guy went to arbitration to become a free agent because he felt like he could start somewhere. He had a shot here, it didn't go his way and they moved on. Who knows if he would've been the right kinda guy to fill the Josh McCown-type role? I don't doubt that Beane is keeping his eyes open in case someone becomes available. I'm surprised they haven't given Derek Anderson a call given his history with Carolina.

I agree with Joe B. This board and the old Bills message board, there was constant clamoring for them to clean house and start over. So they finally do and half the fan-base is ready to turn on them again. Nine and a half months ago thousands of fans stood out in freezing weather to welcome the team home after they made the playoffs. Now nothing is good enough? They've acquired draft capital. They've traded around. They've taken chances on different players. They've had to deal with poor contracts from other regimes. They can't fix everything in one full off-season. (And I say one full off-season because 2018 was Beane and his crews first full off-season running the show). They got rid of business office people. They got rid of people who couldn't stop flapping their lips to the media. They have an articulate and educated HC and GM able to explain themselves fairly eloquently... a welcome change after loud-mouth Rex and "I'm not really good so much at the talking and explaining of the things or who my boss is" Doug Whaley. Adios to the snoozin' on FA day GMs like Nix. Adios to the guys that never had any business being GMs in Marv Levy (god love him, superb coach, never should've been a GM) and Russ Brandon. Adios to Doug "He's a good scout but bad team-builder" Whaley. And now people are turning on Beane in the opposite manner? "He has a decent vision for team-building but he a bad scout!" For the love of crap, what do you want?! Perfection right from the jump? Doesn't happen. More spinning their tires in the mud? More 7-9, 8-8 records? More seasons just good enough to keep them out of reach of an elite draft pick? Complaining about all the free agents they got because they don't look like Hall of Famers after two games? Saying they've neglected the OL and WR positions when they've drafted a second round left tackle, a developmental guard, signed some stop-gap guys, retained a center who showed potential to take over as the starter, signed another center just in case, made a huge push for a solid right tackle like Ricky Wagner. Traded for a WR, drafted a second-round WR, made a push to sign Jeremy Maclin, signed Anquan Boldin who decided to go be an activist. I mean, to say they haven't addressed these things is just flat out wrong. Has it gone well? Not yet. But no team hits it out of the park on every free agent. Oh, and, as I've mentioned in other threads, free agents also have to want to sign here. What're they supposed to do, tie guys up and throw loonies at them until they sign? And now they gotta be fortune tellers to? They were supposed to know that Mahomes would start out on fire? Let's just forget he has one of the greatest QB coaches of all time in his ear and a group of stacked skill players around him. Think he has that kind of success if he comes here? C'mon now. This season is about the young, core players on this team (Josh Allen, Tremaine Edmunds, Tre'Davious White, Dion Dawkins, Zay Jones, etc.) growing and becoming cornerstones for the foundation upon which they'll build this team. And they'll get to the OL. Beane was on the staff in Carolina that drafted Ryan Kalil (5x Pro Bowl, 2x All-Pro and, what's this, he's a free agent in 2019), Trai Turner (3x Pro Bowl) and Daryl Williams, a serviceable guard (that, unfortunately wound up on IR last week). Pretty decent interior OL. Everyone wants the success but nobody wants to exercise patience and let these guys do their thing.

Everyone wants dessert but nobody wants to wait for the chef to make it. "Now! Give it to me, NOW NOW NOW, it should be on my plate right NOW! Anything less is COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE, I know, because I have less Cheeto dust on my ratty-ass t-shirt than the other Bills fan!" I'll tell you what the Pegulas didn't sign up for, having to find new coaches every other year within the first few years of their tenure as NFL team owners. They intended on keeping Marrone, he's a moody, weird jackass who quit. They goofed with Rex Ryan but McDermott and Beane? They think extremely highly of these guys and they know the only way to obtain long-term success is by going through the difficult times, letting the young, core players of this team gain experience and continue to fill out the team as they go. They're cleaning up a cap mess from a previous regime. I've seen fans piss and moan that the team doesn't do enough in the draft. Beane has been extremely active in trades and was very active in his first full draft as a GM. "They did NOTHING to address the OL!" They didn't? No one recalls that they made a big push for right tackle Ricky Wagner? Then traded up in the second round to get Dion Dawkins, who, at this time last year, was "way better than Glenn, they should trade Glenn!" so they did, and now it's, "Oh, those idiots never shoulda traded a past-his-prime OT with mounting injuries!" "They did NOTHING to address the WR group!" They didn't? They made a push for Jeremy Maclin, he decided to sign elsewhere. They signed Anquan Boldin, he decided to retire. They traded up for Zay Jones. They traded for Kelvin Benjamin. Has it been pretty? No, and it's not always going to be that way. But to say they aren't trying to address these things is flat out wrong. Keep in mind, they've chosen to be a team that throws the ball the fewest times in the league over the last three seasons. And now Vontae Davis goes and does something completely unprecedented and people are trying to twist that into, "oh it's a poor look on the decision makers!" Really? So, in addition to needing an absolute, infallible laser-eye for talent, Beane and his team need to be fortune tellers now as well? "Oh, well, a signing like that just shows that they're scraping the bottom of the FA barrel!" Maybe they are, but look at the money they had to spend this year. They couldn't go out there and just wave around bags of cash and scream at players to come sign here. It's as if people forget that players must also AGREE to sign here. But oh, that's right, when a player leaves the building after an FA visit, that's all on Beane and his crew. Those frickin' failures! They're supposed to chain up any visiting player and slap him in the face with a contract until he signs it, I forgot. They tuned up the secondary, it looks like they've found their linebackers. I think we'd all like to see more pressure from that front four but it looked like they were dialing up some more successful calls in the second half yesterday. And if they're gonna pick top five next year, well, they'll have their choice of some premiere DL because the DL class is loaded. And it's clear that they've intended on constructing defense first with a plan to still lean heavily on D and the run game while their young QB learns on the fly. I'm sure they'll put more emphasis on the offense in 2019. Has everything been perfect? No. It's not supposed to be. The road to success isn't an easy, flat path. There's curves, bumps, hell, the road to success looks like a lot of the roads in Buffalo right after winter and the snowplows have beat the crap out of them. I know it sucks to watch your favorite team lose. But we've gotta let these guys work and stop questioning every single little thing they do. Every team makes mistakes. Every team signs a guy that doesn't work out. Every team goes through a period of growing pains as young players gain experience. And if you hired an entirely new staff from top to bottom every other year then you're making absolutely sure that your team never becomes a contender. "Clean house" and "start over" are terms I've seen all over this board and the old Bills message board for ages. The people clamoring for that finally get what they want and two games into it they're ready to throw in the towel? For years I've seen people flip out about Tom Donahoe, Marv Levy & Russ Brandon, Buddy Nix, Doug Whaley, etc. Nix didn't deal around in the draft. Whaley gave out terrible deals (keep in mind, Whaley re-signed guys like Glenn, Dareus and Hughes after seasons in which they played at a high level, had he not re-signed them and they went elsewhere, he woulda been vilified for "letting their top talent walk out the door for nothing!") Enter McBeane... they're one of the most active FO's in terms of trades and dealing around draft picks, doing things that many fans have been wanting to see for years. And now that's not good enough either. "Show us the baby, show us the baby!" Cripes, does the baby come out dressed to the nines and ready to take on the town right from the jump? No. It has to be nurtured, complimented with other assets, built up with certain skills, placed in a position to succeed. Has McBeane done everything perfectly? No, and again, no team does. But they're taking chances. They're inquiring on available players. They're inquiring about players on the trade block. They're cleaning up a cap mess, they've drafted who they believe is their franchise QB, they've found who they believe is their long-term starter at left tackle, they've found their long-term #1 cornerback, they've got their QB of the defense who just happens to be one of the freakiest athletes in the league. But, oh, they couldn't see into their crystal ball and see that Patrick Mahomes was gonna light the league on fire in his first two starts. Dang them! Those friggin' losers! As if Mahomes would have the same results here. If Mahomes was here, he'd be having games like Allen had yesterday and people would be ready to be done with him as well. Andy Reid is one of the greatest QB coaches in history and happens to have a team that is absolutely stacked in skill positions. Mahomes is in an ideal situation. Allen isn't, but he has the fortitude and mental toughness to deal with that, take his lumps and grow with this team as opposed to coming into a situation where the team was already set to go. It ain't perfect. They're out there doing what they can with what they got. Do I agree with everything they've done? Nah. I really would like to see them find a long-time veteran QB to bring in here for Allen. Someone that's been around, someone who's seen all the looks and fronts, someone Allen can come to on the sideline and ask, "What'd you see?" and get answers. But I understand that this stuff takes time. Question the process? Yeah, sure. Waver on your trust? That's fine too. But if you think the answer is getting rid of these guys and starting all over again, that's not the way to go about it. The Pegulas most certainly signed off on this. They have a great deal of faith and respect for Beane and McDermott and they are going to let these guys handle their business and not get in their way. If things are still the same two, three years from now, then we can really say that the process isn't working. Until then, I'mma let these dudes do their thing. And, this is just myself here, but for this season, I'm obviously still a fan, but I'm not going to let the losses or the bad plays get to me. For me, I'm observing and looking for improvements. Makes watching the games a little easier. Heck, you can even appreciate a good play for the opposing team. Case in point, Rivers to Mike Williams for their first TD yesterday. Bills were in the right look, the coverage was good, it's just not many QB's aside from a 15-year vet like Philip Rivers are even gonna attempt that throw and Mike Williams is just a big dude who made the play. It happens. Let 'em work. Watch, observe, look for improvements in certain areas. It's gonna get better.

The calls to fire McBeane continue as if they're frickin' fortune tellers and could see into the future that Vontae Davis wouldn't quit on them. He was signed on a one-year deal to see if he could get back to his earlier form and more likely, to provide a veteran presence in the DB room. Last week he was a healthy scratch and was upset about it. My guess, he missed some major assignments or just flat out played poorly and was told someone else would be taking his place in the second half. He disagreed, got PO'ed and quit. Yeah it's weird but it's clear that the guy didn't have it anymore and I wouldn't have been surprised if he had been cut sometime during the season anyway. Keep crying for constant house cleanings and you'll ensure that this team never becomes a contender. It takes time. It's a complete rebuild. 2018 is about building a young foundation for this team, giving them a season's worth of experience. They're eating dead cap because of deals made by former regimes. For years they've done these "soft rebuilds" or a "reset/recharge" and it kept them stuck in mediocrity. At a certain point, you gotta tear it all down and start over. And you can't fix it all in one season. If you wanna make an omelette, you gotta break a few eggs.

If any injuries to Miller/Ducasse happen, Groy will slide over and they'll put in Bodine. As for Teller, I kept hearing that while he was good from a physical standpoint, he struggled picking up the schemes and understanding defensive fronts. He may need some more classroom time before he's ready. I also think Juan Castillo just isn't that good of an OL coach.

Good stuff, my man. Those were special times. I was a young'in but still grateful to have experienced it. This photo looks like it might be from the 51-3 AFC Championship game. Can't remember who said it but they said that during their first drive, Howie Long was screaming at Kelly, "Slow it down! Let us get set!" That Raiders DL was completely gassed after that first drive and it demoralized them for the entire game.

The Ringer has a very small handful of writers that produce quality content. This dude is not one of them. They started out strong but for a while now a lot of their stuff has clickbaity headlines and smug, arrogant writing.

Don't you know he's hot blooded? Got a fever of 103. ...should probably seek medical attention.

Definitely and underrated and underappreciated (outside of Buffalo) player. Any time I've read/listened to interviews about him the most consistent thing that comes up is his intelligence. I've heard numerous players say he was one of the smartest X's and O's guys they'd ever been around. Without him, the K-Gun probably never works as well as it did. Hull was able to process and call out the protection quick enough to keep that offense going at the pace it did. That's not easy to do. Hopeful for him to get in but not overly optimistic.

The Rams aren't built for long-term success, they're in "win now" mode. Yeah, they went out and grabbed a bunch of solid free agents but they're not gonna be able to pay everyone. And you're completely entitled to your opinion but the fact remains that McDermott and Beane are both experienced and well-respected individuals in the NFL. And two of their biggest fans are Terry and Kim. They tried to keep things in place in an attempt to "win now" but what was happening through the Marrone/Rex/Whaley era wasn't sustainable. It ended the drought but they knew sooner or later that they were going to have to undergo a full rebuild. Not a "soft reset" or a "recharge" or whatever they wanted to call it over the last few years because they felt like that had a roster that was "close" but a complete tear-down and restart. And there most definitely was a process in hiring McDermott. Sure, they had their eye on him from the start but they ran through several other interviews and I'm sure had countless discussions on which direction they wanted to go. I'm sure some people will always feel like they didn't interview enough candidates but when the end of the season coach craziness begins, teams can't afford to take too much time as there are usually 6-8 other teams interested in some of the same coaches they were interested in. McDermott came in and from all reports, really nailed the interview. They then went out and did their due diligence in asking references about him, talking with people who know him or have worked with him, etc. And they do have a vision for this team, which they're still executing. As opposed to the last 4, 5, 6 years where we kept being told "they're close, if they can just fix this spot and that spot, it's playoff time!" But that didn't work. Now they're tearing things down, they've drafted players that they expect to be their core/foundation for years to come and all of it just takes time. I mean, like 'em or not, they're doing what they've said they're gonna do since day one. Haha, appreciate the response. I wouldn't say they're getting to me, I'd say it's just really kinda mind-boggling that after years of those types of fans crying for a full-on house cleaning and starting over finally get what they've been asking for but they can't exercise any patience or understanding that the whole process is gonna take longer than one off-season.

Seeing this makes sense of KB's body language as the game went on. I mean, it's not a good look on his part but it's easy to see why he was frustrated. I'm sure some of the other receivers were as well, just didn't show it as openly. When Allen went into the game, the CBS sideline reporter stated that the Bills sideline seemed more animated and energetic than they had for most of the game. I get the feeling that most of the team sees what Allen can do and would've rather had him named the starter from the jump. I think Peterman missed a lot of these open targets because he likely dropped his eyes on every pass play to see where the rush was coming from. So far, it appears as though Allen is able to keep his eyes downfield and not get caught looking at the rush. It's gonna happen sometimes, he's a rookie, he's learning, but from what I've seen, it seems like Allen is looking to push it down the field as often as possible. Hopefully the gameplan will be tailored to things Allen does well. I'd be preparing the receivers for a lot of routes that require the ol' back shoulder throw because Allen excels at that and they're hard to defend. RPO's would be nice, roll outs, get him moving around to see the field better, plus it keeps the defense guessing. The main thing that would help him the most is if they got the run game going. Not sure what in the crap the plan was vs. Baltimore but 7 carries for McCoy? And I felt like he wasn't on the field as much as he should be.

The people that consistently try to run every single coach out of town within one or two seasons... what's your alternative? Firing and hiring new regimes every season is 100% a surefire way to ensure your team will never be a contender. And I'd bet that if your dream coach was hired and he went out and lost a game you'd be screaming for his dismissal as well. It's constant no-win situations with some of you.

Bills coaches weren't a fan of Coleman's attitude from the minute he got there. He has a reputation of being a player who thinks he can coast on athletic ability alone. That mindset really isn't going to mesh with the ol' "Patriot Way." But, when Tom Brady is your QB, you're probably gonna catch at least a few balls.

Agreed. Also, I misunderstood the post I was responding to and the poster pointed that out for me. I do think they should bring in a vet. One, to be a good presence for Allen and two... I dunno if they can go back to Peterman if they had to. Wouldn't be surprised if this is Nate's final season as a Bill.

Oh. My bad, then. Carry on!

Yeah, I agree. Allen was on that Sports Science show before the draft and he said, and I'm paraphrasing, "After a while it wasn't about proving everyone else wrong, it became about me proving myself right." So, he's not concerned with trying to show his doubters that he has it. He's got a lot of self-confidence and belief that he can cut it in the NFL and that's a solid mindset to have.

Yeah, I know they've said they like their QB room but an experienced vet in there can help Allen a lot. I wonder if they look at Derek Anderson, cause, you know, #CarolinaConnection and all.

And how else is he supposed to prove he's capable unless he plays? He needs to have the actual opportunity to prove it before he's written off as "didn't prove it."

It had to happen. I don't know what happens with Peterman once the real games start but he just implodes. Unless the play that's called goes exactly as designed and he's able to do his drop, setup and throw all on cue, he crumbles. He doesn't seem to have a whole lot of ability to scramble or improvise... and Allen does. And Allen just has that mentality that he's gonna make a play on every down, which means he's gonna make some mistakes and throw some picks but you gotta let him take his lumps and get experience. Trial and error is a good way to learn. He'll figure out a lot of what NOT to do while gaining valuable experience in seeing different defensive fronts and becoming more familiar with them. One way they can help the kid out is to get the run game going. Seriously, go back to what they've done over the past few seasons. Extra OL and hand the rock to McCoy a buncha times. Gotta find a way to soften up the opposing DL so when they do throw, he'll actually have time. Not sure what Daboll was trying to do last Sunday but if I'm him, I'm coming up with a straightforward/simplified plan that includes some wrinkles from his college game to keep it easy for him in his first start. I don't expect them to send him out there and tell him to throw it 50 times. And Peterman really left them no choice. I'm starting to wonder if Peterman starting is the reason the team came out so flat and uninspired last week. They've gone through pre-season and camp and all that and maybe most of them just feel like Allen is the guy that's actually gonna take shots and try to make some big plays happen whereas Nate seems perfectly keen on just taking whatever the defense gives him (which wasn't much) or trying to push the ball down the field but without the ability to zip it in there. Instead he floats it right to the other team. Starting him again ran the risk of alienating a large part of the locker room and further maddening the fan-base. Not sure if this is all part of the plan or maybe the plan is being rushed but, at this point it's clear that Allen does give them a better chance to move the ball and win some games. And I swear to Christmas if Allen hits Benjamin right square in the numbers and the dude drops it again I'm gonna tie KB's shoelaces together so he falls on his face the next time he stands up.

What doesn't make sense about it? They're using this year to allow their young core to gain experience. That young core is Tre'Davious White, Dion Dawkins, Josh Allen and Tremaine Edmunds. Andy Reid, McDermott's mentor, has said, "Give me a quarterback, a left tackle, a solid corner and a pass rusher and I'll figure out the rest." So far they have their QB, their left tackle and their CB. Edmunds is a linebacker but can rush the passer. With as loaded as the 2019 DL class is, I'd expect them to find a premiere pass rusher there. Anyone feeling overly concerned about the rebuild should read this: https://www.cover1.net/2018-nfl-season-buffalo-bills-josh-allen-process/ Very well written article about how this organization is in the early stages of building their core/foundation. Not everything can be fixed in one season. I'm not sure what some people were expecting this year. Did they think Beane was going to go out there and get an All-Pro at every position? Just doesn't happen. And for the crowd that says, "They shoulda got this guy or that guy" well, it's a two-way street, right? Players have to wanna sign here too. And when you have an unsettled or young QB situation, that's gonna make things a little trickier in terms of signing the high profile free agents. And I see a lot of posts about how, "They didn't even check into Player A, they didn't make any trade offers for Player B, etc etc." From my perspective, for the first time in a long time, I'm hearing the Bills pop up in a lot of discussions when it comes to free agent players or players on the trade market. They inquired about Dez, they inquired about Mack, they've done their due diligence on quite a few players over the 20 some-odd months McBeane has been in town. That's in stark contrast to former regimes who seemed to not even bother picking up the phone because they probably thought, "There's no way they'd wanna sign here so why bother?" That's not Beane. He's making calls and inquiring about players probably on a daily basis. He's very involved in continuously looking for ways to improve this roster. And it's a two-way street, right? The players they're interested in also have to want to sign here. Can't force them. They were gonna have to have a rough year in order to turn over this roster to their liking. This stuff takes time. Sustainable contending teams aren't built overnight or in one off-season. They've cleared up a mess of a cap while positioning themselves to draft players that will be the core that carries this team into the future. They go into 2019 with plenty of cap space and, last I checked, 10 draft picks in what's shaping up to be another stellar class. The old analogy goes, if you wanna make an omelette, you gotta break a few eggs. This season, they're getting the pan ready, bringing out the ingredients and breaking some eggs. Next season, they gonna make the tastiest GD omelette you rotten ungrateful schmucks have ever seen!! (You're not all ungrateful schmucks, most of you are logical, patient, understanding fans who trust the process and are fun to interact with on this board.)

OP outlined some good points, here's my response in no particular order. Offense - Yikes. No identity, no rhythm. I don't know what Juan Castillo and Terry Robiskie are teaching their respective position groups but it's not working. Constant breakdowns in protection and receivers getting zero separation. And if they did get separation they were dropping the ball. McCoy was nearly invisible, Clay was completely invisible, forget no catches, didn't even have a target! I know Daboll wants to run this "multiple" style offense but maybe they need to re-evaluate that and focus on what they do well, make that the core of their identity and add different wrinkles as they go. QBs - Peterman just doesn't have it. I thought he looked good in pre-season but that was before defenses gave him real, NFL looks and once that happened, he imploded. Unless the play goes exactly as designed and is perfectly on time, Peterman struggles mightily. And there is just no zip on his throws at all. That one interception he just floated it right to the guy. I know his pocket was crap most of the time but there were plays where he did have time and either no one was open or he didn't trust himself to sling one into a tight window. Allen was better, not by much, but at least he was really trying to push the ball downfield. Having defenders in your face 1.5 seconds after the snap is gonna make any QB look amateur but at this point, I don't think you can hand the keys back to Peterman. I know Allen has work to do but if this game is any indication of what to expect for the rest of the season, then what's the point of keeping Allen on the bench? May as well let him take his lumps and gain experience. And if I'm McDermott, I'd be real careful about giving Peterman another chance. After his regular season performances, how can he face his locker room and honestly tell them that Nate gives the team the best chance to win? If he does that he runs the risk of having some players start checking out on him. And that's bad for the locker room because that sh*t can creep up quick and take over the whole attitude of the team. I do recall when Allen went in, a sideline reporter stated that it seemed like the Bills sideline came to life a little bit. Perhaps they feel Allen is just the better option regardless of the work he needs. Defense - They also looked lost and confused for most of the game. Left huge chunks over the middle wide open, missed tackles, etc. I believe they have more talent than what they showed. I also believe it's time for Fraiser and McDermott to get a little creative in dialing up pressure because rushing four rarely gets it done. Thought Tremaine Edmunds had a nice game and also looked like one of few players to show some emotion. He was visibly irritated toward the end of the game, you could tell he wanted to win and was PO'ed at how poorly they played. Matt Milano also looked decent, seemed to be around the ball most plays and had the fumble recovery caused by Edmunds. Poyer and Hyde, man, I don't even recall hearing their names. Tre seemed like he picked up where he left off. Phillip Gaines can take a seat. Special Teams - I know Schmidt wasn't getting it done but to cut a veteran, experienced punter and sign a DII kid who never kicked in an NFL game a week before the regular season was a head-scratching decision. Wouldn't be surprised if they called up Schmidt this week and brought him on during Tuesday tryouts. The new kid looked disheveled and uneasy. That botched punt was hideous. I feel the reason the punter position has been a mess is because I believe they wanted to give the job to Cory Carter, but once he got hurt they scrambled, tried Jon Ryan and then decided to pick up Bojorojoqoroquez or however the hell you spell it. Coaching - Well, there's not a whole lot to work with but the team just seemed flat. I dunno what McDermott's message was during the week and before the game but whatever it was, it didn't seem to land. There was no spark, no energy, no rallying around players like they did last season. Most of them seemed pretty indifferent about being there. All we can hope for is that a game like this lights a fire under their rumps and they put in the work to bounce back next week.

This is good stuff. This is why I feel like they're gonna win more games than people are predicting. Eric Wood said it when they made the playoffs last season, when the team was being cast off and predicted to be one of the worst in the league, Wood said he heard that and was like, "There's no way. There are too many talented guys here with too much to prove." And he was right. Hopefully that will carry over to this season. I don't anticipate a return trip to the playoffs (wouldn't mind being surprised, though) but I don't think they're gonna be some 3-13 horror show. What I'd like to see and what everyone can consider progress is a middle of the road record (I know, not again) where they're in every game. No blowouts, no awful three-game stretches like last season vs. NYJ, NO, LAC. Just compete, keep it close, pull out a few surprises like last year (wins over OAK, ATL, etc) and keep getting better. And to the crowd that would rather see this team nosedive into a top five pick on purpose, good luck trying to convince a team of grown professionals to sabotage a season so their front office can acquire better positioning in the draft where they'll be selecting players driven to replace the guys that just tanked a season. Tanking... dumbest sh*t ever.

Darby excels as a man-to-man corner. The McDermott/Fraiser defense employs zone coverage, something Darby didn't do a lot of in school. Hence the trade. It happens. Get over it.

Sounds to me like TBN is trying to appeal to a younger audience, but they aren't going about it the best way because it's alienating their older/longtime readers. And I can kind of empathize with Sully on young writers getting top gigs fresh outta school. Seems to be the case with a lot of companies these days that longevity and the ol' "foot in the door and then climb the ladder" approach really doesn't mean much. He's old school, I get it, he worked his way up, there's bound to be some animosity in seeing inexperienced writers get the featured articles and front pages. However, that's not to say these younger writers haven't earned it by simply being a talented writer. But yeah, with the way seniority and longevity seem to be fading from the workplace, it's easy to see why he felt like it was a "slap in the face." But, again, the flip-side of this is, where does he take accountability? Did he ever sit down and do a self-evaluation as to why so many people disliked his work? Did he ever try to approach his writing from a different perspective other than "grumpy fan guy?" Doesn't seem like it. So, he can only harbor so much disdain for his former employer because at the end of the day, time has kinda passed him by and sports journalism is a very different environment than it used to be. He's very much a traditionalist and feels like his experience should earn him unquestioned respect. That kinda attitude never goes over well. As for his actual writing, I personally always felt like the dude was negative for the sake of being negative. Either that, or he'd seek out the unpopular opinions on things and run with that. I think that type of stuff is meant simply to generate clicks and after a while that crap is just an attention-grabbing headline attached to an article void of substance. And that sh*t is everywhere these days. The amount of coverage going on in each American sport and on each team is staggering. I saw a tweet a while back that said something to the effect of, "The famous 1983 NFL Draft had about 70 credentialed writers covering it. Today (I think it was the 2017 draft) there are more than 2800 credentialed writers covering this event." It's just insane how much coverage there is out there. For a long time, I looked into writing for a blog or starting my own or just writing for the sake of it, throwing it out there to see if I could catch on with anything but when it came down to it, even though I might be able to present a clearer picture with my writing than some other writers, I always came back to the point of, "I don't think I'm saying anything that hasn't already been said." And that's another tricky thing in the current journalism world. Grabbing people's attention. This age of instant info and gratification seems to have shortened most people's attention spans. My main issue with Sully and guys like Bucky and them, is not that they're overly critical or negative or lame, it was the excitement in their tones when they started criticizing. Each season channel 2 or 7 puts together a Bills show featuring the local yokel reporters around here. I've caught plenty of them where Sully was a guest and as they break down the game he might say, "If Buffalo gets McCoy going, that takes pressure off Taylor and the defense, which is ideal." But then, he'd get real hyped up and be like, "BUT! If Kansas City gets THEIR running game going, OH MAN, WATCH OUT, because this Bills team will be DOOMED! If they don't contain the run game, it's gonna get ugly and they're gonna get annihilated." There would be comments like that and then, the other thing that irked me was how contradictory to his own opinions Sully was. He'd write an entire article on why the Bills absolutely positively MUST re-sign Player A or else they're a buncha turds. So, then, after the season, the team would go ahead and re-sign Player A and the next day, sure as sh*t, there's Sully bemoaning the whole thing. "It's too much money! He isn't worth it! He's a bum!" It's like harping on someone to fix something and then when they do the other person is yelling, "Aww, no no no, not that way!" And in reality there's really no method that would appease an opinionated guy like Sully. Bucky did that crap as well. Again, I understand the dynamics of journalism and reporting and opinions and etc. etc. etc. but when you're acting like that in a region overflowing with Bills fans, it tells me that you're not very self-aware of your surroundings. And then they wanna sit back and wonder why so much shade gets thrown their way? Maybe keep your tone unbiased and paint a clearer picture without the fervor of praising the opponent so much or writing yourself into a corner with avoidable contradictions. It reminded me of watching a game with the opposing teams play-by-play and commentary duo. Steve Tasker was the epitome of this when he first got a broadcasting gig. The Bills would get lit up for a 75 yard touchdown and he'd be like, "Well, that's Brady for you. But let me show you what Jeff Posey was doing on this play and let me tell you why he did exceptional work here." No, Steve, no, you're not going to convince me that Jeff frickin' Posey did a good job because if he had, they wouldn't have scored. As others have (I'm sure) pointed out, that type of non-stop commentary and opinion just wears thin after a while. But a guy like Sully, he took pride in that and made it part of his "schtick" and well, his stuff is just outdated. Everything in this world is going to continue to evolve. As the saying goes, the only constant is change. To me, in this podcast, dude comes off like a self-entitled jerk who wants to point fingers at everyone else to explain why his precious column was taken away. And honestly, I prefer reading stuff from some of these new kids. Matt Fairburn especially. You can tell that he gives a crap and works diligently to produce solid content every time he posts. Joe B as well, although his writing will drive me nuts sometimes because it's clear that the dude never proof-reads his sh*t. Tim Graham, for as much heat as he gets, he's an A+ writer. His Twitter antics get old but I do typically enjoy his work. Sully just needed to get on with where things are headed or get out the way.