Success

I was wondering about Neal also. I'm all fuzzy today, but I thought he was our backup safety previously (though he's on the CB depth chart this year).

Thanks - completely forgot about Lewis....

Apologies if this isn't worth a 2nd thread, but w/ the Hyde news, I was curious what everyone's thoughts were on this. When Tre gets back, we'll be very deep at corner. I don't know enough about the game to guess on this, but is there a chance they try to convert one of the CB's to safety for the remainder of the season? Or do you think they'll look at either picking up a vet (not sure whose out there), either pulling someone out of retirement or making a trade?

Truly.

Get well soon. Not great news, obviously - but that's the NFL. This is what depth is all about.

I kind of forgot how football season is. I just want it to be Sunday, all the time.

I'm bullish on Groot. I agree w/ Von - I see Groot as this team's Bruce Smith in the long run. Fight me.

We're the best team in the league. Miami is where we were at about 3 years ago, with a QB whose ceiling is a lot lower than Allen's. On the road, sure they can win. But I think this year's Bills team is a very different animal. I think they're going to embrace the challenge of having half the D out, and the backups will play at a very high level.

Lots of speculation on this thread, which is kind of what boards are for. I'll add to it. Losing Hyde would be pretty parallel to losing Tre last year - and we should have really won the SB, even without him. This team is all kinds of deep, and well coached. Hopefully it isn't even close to the worst of the speculation. Hopefully, he's back next week. But this isn't the old days, where losing one great player would end the season. The Bills are well constructed.

I went Groot last week, and I think I'm going to stick w/ that this week. He knows he has to pick up some slack out there & I think he'll deliver.

Big early season test - not just against a strong division foe, but to see how deep we are & if we can overcome this kind of adversity, on the road. This is the kind of thing that can build a team's championship mettle. I have a ton of faith in the depth we have, and in our coaching.

If anyone watched the Ravens/Dolphins game, Tua's success was largely due to Hill and Waddle being WIDE open. Like, blown coverage open. I didn't see one long pass where he hit the WR in stride - they always had to slow up or adjust. Tua is still a lot of hype to me, and he's going to face much more pressure this week than last. I'm going to bet we get a few turnovers & win this going away.

I think we should all pretend this thread didn't happen, and move on w/ our regular lives.

Me too. Though, I only played 2 weeks of freshman football in high school before quitting and joining the cross country team.

This is something fans should not do. Quite a few people who go to games are either older, or have various issues where standing for 3+ hours will be uncomfortable, if not painful. Go easy, kids. Sit once in awhile so everyone can see what's happening.

2 teams that I'd love to see in the AFCCG.

Every Pats fan in the world keeps saying "we dominated for 20 years." This is a myth that needs to be cleared up. They had 2 separate dynasties and a decade in the middle where they couldn't close. Pretty amazing - but not a "20 year run." And it was 17 years in terms of being one of the top teams. Hope that I was able to clear this up for everyone. Spread the word.

The depth on this team is astounding. Injury situations like this would have ruined me in past seasons ahead of a big game. Now, I'm a little concerned, but also excited to see some of the less heralded guys get a shot & see what they can bring to the table...

Well, nothing strengthens depth like getting big game experience in the regular season. Next man up, as we always say.

I'm without speech.

It sure would be interesting to face up against Waddle & Hill with 2 rookie CB's and both starting safeties out. Hopefully, that won't happen. Poyer was a surprise there - gotta hope both he & Hyde are good by Sunday.

Great write-up. I haven't read through the responses, but just a quick note on Edmunds - he also had the tip later in the game that led to the Poyer INT, which I thought was pretty crucial at that juncture. That was a great play. I thought he had a TFL after the 1st quarter also, but could be wrong on that. And just my own hunch - but I think we have a potential superstar in Groot. He looks more stout than last year, and even faster, and I feel like he's going to be a nightmare for opposing DC's for a long time.

I'm a Simmons fan & listen to a lot of his pods (he was a GREAT writer, but almost never does that anymore). He's a pretty classic Boston homer. His opinions were more fun when Boston teams were scrappy underdogs and not winning much. Now, they can be a bit condescending. But he's giving the Bills some props lately.

Good point - no disrespect intended. While I think we're close, it's Bills-centric to call ours the best. Miami's will cause opposing DC's more nightmares this season (our offense as a whole might be more nightmarish, especially w/ Allen - but that duo is something else w/ their speed).

I'm already keeping a wary eye on the Bucs. Maybe I'm soft, but it's hard for me to look forward to a SB against that team, with that QB. Too many years - he's still the monster in the closet for me. Sure, it would be the ultimate to finally beat him in a game like that (and feel a lot like our win over the Pats last year in the WC). But is it worth 2 weeks of talking heads talk about how one-sided Brady's record is against the Bills, and all of that baggage? Just give me a normal SB, psychologically. That will be stressful enough.