yungmack

I'm old too and, god, that was a great defense. I still think Saimes and Byrd are two of the all-time great Bills.

This year, the defense has regressed, the offense seems erratic and even special teams are a worry. All this has happened under Rex. On the plus side, I firmly believe that, if Pegula and Whaley determine Rex is the problem, they won't waste time getting rid of him. I believe the ice under his dainty feet is rapidly thinning.

It seems many around here have forgotten that Boobie missed lots of training camp/preseason with a calf injury. Give him a little time to get up to speed and all will be forgiven.

Yep. He was with the Steelers Bradshaw's rookie year I believe. Don't think he made the team though.

Of course we shouldn't treat a week 2 game as the Super Bowl. But just taking the game on its own terms, as a signpost on what has been touted far and wide as a whole new Bills team, the results were troubling. This is a team, after all, that brought in one of the "star" Head Coaches, acknowledged as a defensive genius, and further augmented the changes by adding one of the top Offensive Coordinators. This is a defense many people have proclaimed as likely to be the best in the NFL (and that includes pundits and experts around the country), and offense vastly improved with the addition of Incognito and Miller on the Oline, coached by one of the elite line coaches, all in service to an offense that added one of the best RBs in the league, a top TE, probably the best FB in currently in the game, and a troubled but very talented WR in Harvin. This in addition to Watkins and Woods. Sure, the QB is an unproven "rookie" but in the preseason and the first game appeared to be good enough to manage the game. The uneven performance of Taylor and the Oline Sunday didn't bother me much because I don't consider it anywhere close to elite at this time; it's a work in progress. But the putrid, all-time worst performance against the Pats by the defense truly alarmed me as did the ineffective defensive game plan and the apparent inability or unwillingness to make any changes to it during the game. It almost seemed like Rex felt he'd created a genius plan and was stubbornly refusing to deviate from it come hell or high water, as if to do that would somehow be seen as giving in to Belichick. So, yeah, it wasn't the Super Bowl. But considering all the changes made in 2015, considering all the hype and expectations, it would be silly to dismiss the mess at the Ralph this past Sunday as "just another game." The performance undermines much of what I, and apparently many others, believed about this years Bills. Folks, this was a historically bad performance against the Pats, by a team that was supposedly much much better than it has been in at least a decade. That the Bills looked like the "same old same old" Sunday worries me going forward. The best analysis of Sunday's game I've read is this one from Ben Volin at the Boston Globe. No smugness, no hyperbole, real insight. Be nice if one of the many hacks covering the Bills could write something this useful. Here's a link to it: http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/09/21/bills-boneheaded-decisions-helped-patriots-cause/x0O54GH4f5f1HSmXxaQldP/story.html

I haven't read thru the entire thread so maybe this has been covered by someone with eyes: TT was lucky to make it to ONE read with the miserable job the O line was doing in pass protection.

This is an unorthodox suggestion, but why not put Chris Gragg on him in obvious passing situations?

Promo, those were great. And what class were you in at Sing Sing in the old days?

I hope this is the beginning of the Pats never beating the Bills again while Brady is on the roster and Belichick is the coach, be that one year or ten.

I appreciate the time you put in on this. Thanks for that. BTW, the most impressive aspect of the Bills D to me was the miserly Yards After Catch/Contact. It seemed that if a Colt caught a ball, he was instantly hit and taken down. And as soon as a runner made contact with a Bills defender, he was stopped. That was the most "shut down" portion of the game to me, and possibly the best I've ever seen the Bills pull off. Just thought I'd mention it because it seems to be overlooked so far in the press coverage.

Naw. they're sitting around on lawn chairs...

I leave that one out because no one has raised that suspicion...yet. Besides, it was a gift win from Pete to Bill.

At the US Open?

Jeez, already at 13 pages over resigning Matt Freakin' Cassel. I ain't reading through all of them to say this: now I think EJ asks for a trade. I suppose others have suggested the same thing here, so just adding my two cents.

Because an agent gave Reggie Bush's family the USE of a house (not ownership, the use), USC's national championship was vacated and Bush lost his Heismann. What this article details is corruption dating back to the last millenium, and seems to put all of NE's SB wins under cloud, save the last one. So, if Spygate rises from the dead and becomes a big issue -- and with ESPN, a partner of the NFL, coming after you, it just might crawl out of the grave -- and if it becomes clear that the Pats cheated their way to those SB wins, should the league vacate those championships? And how many of you would support that happening?

Don't go all Phelge on us...

I never thought I'd say this but...I agree with Hitler.

Jay freakin' Glazer scoops Vic, Sal, Joe, Tyler, Mike and all the other guys on the daily Bills beat. Jay freakin' Glazer. How embarrassing.

Most of us are not truly qualified to state with authority that this or that QB is "the one" and this or that QB is "the bum." We watch with the eyes of pretty knowlegeable fans but without the level of experience and insight that a real analyst of QBs has. I am in this group of the not-really-qualified myself which is why I am still ambivalent about which of the Bills QBs should be the starter. However, a few people who comment around here have shown a much better understanding of the nuances of the position and so it is to them that I ask this question: In a straight-up comparison between the two, what are the differences that make Cassel supposedly a better choice than EJ, either as starter or first backup? To my eyes it appears that EJ is better or no worse than Cassel in every measurable category except NFL starting time. I am not saying that either one is great. In fact, they are both kind of "eh" at this time. What I am asking is what are the differences that would lead the coaches to choose Cassel over EJ if they're both relatively equal (not sure that they are, just assuming for the purpose of this question). It would seem to me if that's the case that you'd keep the younger with potentially a higher ceiling over the older guy whose plateau is well established.

The OP started this thread on Sunday, a traditional day in WNY for over indulgence in adult beverages. Enough said.

You do know that the Bills traded down to get him and got Kiko in the bargain?

Just this week read an article in which Schumer claims his name comes from "shomer," which supposedly means "guardian," and that he believes he has been chosen by God to protect Israel. It's weird, but so long as he keeps fighting for the Bills in DC, I'm okay. Here's the link: http://www.salon.com/2015/08/11/a_shomer_of_israel_in_the_senate_sen_schumer_divine_responsibility_the_iran_nuclear_deal/?source=newsletter

This. This thread makes an excellent study for a UB sociologist. Pretty easy to see who the "law and order" types are, the guys who back authority and believe we should always bow down to it, and the "American Rebels" whose default setting is suspicion of official versions and believe in standing up for yourself.

Do you have some insider knowledge about exactly how hard Whaley tried to improve the QB situation? Do you know whether or not he's been in repeated contact with 31 other teams about a trade? Unless you know these things for a fact, all you're doing is making stuff up out of whole cloth.

She's a local. From Lockport I think.