Success

After that KC playoff game, I am not quitting on Davis. It's there. He just has to tap into it again. When we least expect it, and when we need it the most - he's going to have a huge game for us.

As far as we know, Bedford Falls has a bank, a library, a drug store, and a savings & loan. Wholesome, but kind of a snoozefest. We only got a glimpse of Pottersville - but the night life was rockin'. Bars, clubs, more women. Never a dull moment. I don't know. I guess it depends on what mood I'm in, but Pottersville gets kind of a bad rap. If I was in my 20's or 30's, I'd probably go there, and later, maybe Bedford Falls. If you're familiar w/ the Jersey Shore, it's like the difference between Wildwood and Cape May.

Mac Jones is a bust. Pats fans were going bananas about that guy all offseason - "best QB of that class! First to practice, last to leave!" He's fine when opposing defenses get zero pressure on him (i.e. Vikes game). He can pass well in an immaculate pocket. As to the OP - it was the right call. Safeties are kind of hard to get - I've seen so many borderline like that & it always goes as a non-safety. You have to get a guy IN the EZ, with his feet and the ball clearly behind the plane.

Allen reminds me so much of Kelly. I remember commentators used to say that JK played the game like a linebacker. And Allen is certainly "Kelly tough."

Fair enough. I've seen disgusting fans everywhere. Maybe I'd like to think that they'd be "better" after having a 15+ year run of unprecedented success. That's probably what gnaws at me a bit more; like, after all this time, you're ticked because another team in the division has a moment to shine? But I suppose fans are fans everywhere, good & bad. I wouldn't say that's the sole reason. Belichick is starting to look like a great coach who the game has passed by - much like Shula in the nineties. But beyond coaching, that team simply doesn't have much talent. Their WR corps reminds me of Bills drought-era - some decent players, but no #1, and even their #1 would only be a #2 on about half of the league's teams. The D has 3-4 very good players, but not much after that. The O-line is middlin'. I think Jones is very close to being a bust. Playing the Pats, there are 2 players I legit "fear" - Stevenson, and Judon.

I read the game thread on one of their boards. Maybe it isn't fair to say they were openly rooting for it - some definitely did, and one I remember said he'd celebrate like crazy when it happened. But I also think the "going to get hurt" comments that you refer to are often expressed in a more hopeful context.

On their boards, they openly root for him to be injured. Not just a few bad apples - it's a pretty common sentiment. Their fans are scum.

They all did. A lot of "order has been restored to the universe" tweets, and "nice 1-year reign, Buffalo." The worst, most spoiled, insufferable and delusional fanbase in the history of sports. And that isn't hyperbole. Watching them go through an existential crisis after the WC game and then again after this past Thursday is exhilarating.

After the Brady years, I really didn't want it to be some sort of "now it's a competitive rivalry" thing, with a lot of back & forth. The only way the universe will make sense is at least another decade of lopsided victories against them. So far, so good. I don't even mind the one loss last year, because it gives me the "well, you need a hurricane to beat us" line.

Yeah - his whole thing is that we should be focused on a team like the Chiefs (punching up), rather than celebrating too much about beating the Pats (punching down). He didn't like when some Bills guy said yesterday that it was almost as fun watching the Pats lose in that fashion as it was watching the Bills win. It's silly. Yes, the Pats are irrelevant. But after the Brady years, I'm gonna thoroughly enjoy every Pats loss and every bad or mediocre season they have, for many years.

I get what you're saying - but Manning certainly wasn't a running QB. His injuries were just part of the game, and that any QB could potentially face. It's a physical game no matter how hard you try to avoid hits. Newton took a lot of punishment, and as I recall, a large part of that was refs not really giving him calls that many other QB's would get. I think a few years back, it was more assumed that a running QB didn't deserve as many calls. I think that's changed. Pennington is a good example - but it felt like he was hurt all the time.

This commentator just wrote another piece w/ the whole "Bills fans should punch up" thing. Give me a break. I'm going to rejoice, celebrate, gloat & be ecstatic about every single Patriots loss from now until the sun burns out.

I do agree on the "middle ground" part. Last night, the only play where I might have told him to be more cautious was the 10-yard run in the redzone, where he did his usual leaping UP thing instead of just going down. The hardest hit he took was in the pocket, when protection broke down quickly. He got slammed on one play where his guard was down. That's something that happens to any QB in the league when the protection isn't there. That's appropriate - but I think a lot of his issue was more just not having protection and taking a ton of sacks, as well.

It's coping. MOST opposing fans don't care what happens to JA - maybe a few, but it's not like "gosh, I wish he'd protect himself more!" What are some names of QB's at Allen's level whose careers have been shortened? Cam Newton is the main one everyone cites - but Allen's game is NOT that similar to Newton's. Even in their running style. But Newton would still be a viable QB if he had some of JA's other skills. He just can't throw the ball that accurately or well. I can't really think of other top QB's who had to retire early or anything, or who dropped off a cliff later in their career because of running more than average. Maybe Romo?

I tend to peruse other boards after our games, and it is incredibly repetitive - the whole narrative that "Allen will never last running like that - he'll wash out just like Cam Newton." Obviously, it's a cope for fans who don't have a top-tier QB. But, is it true? After spending a few years worrying about the hits JA takes, I'm a total convert: let Allen be Allen. He plays the game like a kid, and that's what makes him so unique. When big plays are needed, it's like he's in the backyard again, and I honestly think he thrives on the contact and mixing it up w/ the defense he's facing. It's a statistical fact that most QB's are injured in the pocket. I think the Cam Newton comparisons are bogus - Cam doesn't have the same skillset as JA at all. If it ever does come to a point where Allen has to change his style, he can be a pocket passer all day and still top 5 in the league. Any thoughts?

I'm not. For starters, I love his return game. He has broken some long ones, and more importantly, I trust him w/ ball security. They have used him so sparsely on offense that there is no way to gauge him there yet. The plays that he has had looked poorly designed, imo - or poorly executed. The blocks simply haven't been there to allow him to show what he can do.

It seems like every other game, Allen has at least one play that maybe 5 other QB's in history could have made. That throw to Davis yesterday, when it looked like he was just going to go out of bounds. I don't think even Mahomes makes that play.

It was kind of dismaying to see some of the fanbase talk about him like this era's Kelsay. He came into the league at a pretty young age. And he has played well every year, pretty clearly getting better w/ each season. Now, I'd say he is vital to the success of this defense. Beane will have to work some more cap magic to keep him here. He'll be a great player for a long time.

It was so hard against New England, for so long. I used to dread playing them, because losing was basically inevitable. They were so much better, and some games, there was literally nothing we could do. Watching the tables turn like this has been good for my soul. To see a coach as great as Belichick get frustrated on the sideline, knowing that he can't stop what's happening. It's joyful.

We have a run game! At long last! I love how Cook is developing. He has really good instincts out there - and what a burst when he spots a hole.

This game, the playoff game, the 2nd regular season game last year - it's exactly what the Pats used to do to the Bills. Just being a better team, marching down the field, scoring - and there is nothing the other team can do about it. That game was so much more dominant than the score indicated. We doubled the TOP. The greatest coach of all time didn't have a single answer. Feels good, man.

Thanks, PatsFanNH. We used to lose like that EVERY YEAR - where there was simply nothing we could do. It's good healing for us Bills fans to be on the other side of that for the past few years.

They have to figure out a way to extend Edmunds. We're such a different team w/ him in there.

Watching that postgame w/ JA is so cool. So many QB's give scripted answers - he's just so genuine & easy to like. Love that he's our QB.

Someone said it earlier - Dane is better in press, and he's a better tackler. They're thinking about who Jones has as targets, imo. One thing I'm pretty sure of: this coaching staff knows what it's doing. They made this decision for a reason. My own guess is that it's more scheme & match-ups than anything significant about Elam as a player.