Success

I always hear that Chiefs fans are really great people - kind of like us, in person. It's really inexplicable to me that their board is so toxic.

That's pretty cool. Honestly, I had hoped the efforts of Buffalo fans would inspire this around the whole league, frequently (and still do hope that).

I can't recall feeling worse for an athlete who ended up on the losing side. Just everything a human being can give. No moral victories, certainly - but Allen has a lot of new fans today (who aren't Bills fans).

I was definitely more bummed for my son than for myself. I guess I'm hardended at this point - it hurt like nothing else, but I'm still able to keep my emotions relatively in check these days. And recovery time isn't as long (though I'm still dealing). But man, to see the next generation go through it. That 13 seconds robbed us of a good moment. Though, last weekend was one of the best. That's sports. Hopefully we get that elusive title while Allen is our QB.

Our needs are few. We can shore some units up, for sure. We need another good TE, probably another CB. I had thought we'd need to go all in on the O-line, but they've been great the past month+. We DO need a playmaker on D/pass rush specialist. I think Oliver has progressed well, and Rousseau shows promise. But we need a true disruptor - we need this team's version of Bruce Smith.

I love being a Buffalo Bills fan. And I've been through it all. Wide right, the MCM, the Dallas MNF game, 13 seconds (just to name a few) - these are the scars I have as a fan. And I wear them proudly. Some fanbases are pretty soft; I'd never trade my experiences w/ those of a 30-something Pats fan whose definition of "adversity" is missing the playoffs for the 1st time last year. I love Western NY, I love the Bills, I love the people there & the fans. We're a very unique family with a collective experience that I think very few fanbases can begin to relate to. If we finally get to the pinnacle, it will just mean that much more.

I don't even think this is the best version of the Bills we'll see. I talked myself into the D - but that #1 rank was kind of a mirage. We still struggled to pressure Mahomes yesterday. Not worried.

Josh Allen is so far beyond anything I expected. Sorry to make this comparison - but he is a bit like Brady in his determination & competitiveness. He was just willing us to victory yesterday - just finding ways. There just isn't anything he can do about it when he's not on the field, but I think if he had gotten the ball back w/ 13 seconds left, he would have done the same thing as Mahomes. Guys like that win Super Bowls. We're going to get there.

I've enjoyed the Allen era immensely so far. I never thought the Bills would be part of a game like the one last night - or have a perfect game like last week. During the drought, all I ever wanted was to be back in the mix. We are. And it seems unlikely that the QB we have doesn't end up with a Lombardi at some point. And I'm with you. I don't hate KC just because they beat us. That will never be like the Pats for me. Their fans today are still saying "The Bills won their SB last week." Which actually cheered me up, because it's such a sad thing to say for a fan of a team that got eliminated in the 1st round, and won't come near the division title again for years.

It's a tough one for some fans when the emotions are still fresh, but I definitely appreciate the thread & the sentiments. It was a hard fought game between 2 great teams and 2 amazing QB's. I wish sports fandom didn't get so weird that a thread like this wouldn't be welcome by some. It's a cool gesture.

I always watch the rest of the playoffs - today, I'm not sure if I can. I really might bail on it this year. I actually feel like hiring a hypnotist, and having them remove the idea of football from my mind.

Part of me feels that way - that we would have rolled after this. But I don't think we're giving the Bengals or Rams enough credit. The Rams in particular are more balanced than us. If the Rams didn't give away 4 turnovers yesterday, their D would have basically shut down the Bucs, who I thought were the best team remaining. That Rams D-line is fierce and would have given us big problems.

We were so terrified of giving up a really big play. It's almost like we were playing for OT w/ 13 seconds left. I get that you have that mindset against a team like KC, but you have to put that game away there.

I thought McD did so well in the 1st half+ of the game. I loved the aggressiveness, and he seemed to have a great gameplan. But they really dropped the ball at the end. I thought every part of it was inexplicable. It was ALMOST like our coaches started celebrating early w/ everyone else, which you can't do. You have to coach & play the full 60 against a team like KC. I don't know what to think today. I think McCarthy really squandered some of Aaron Rogers' best years, and I'd hate to see that here.

I mean, both the Bengals and Rams are excellent teams. The Rams in particular are either just as good as we are in all of the units, or - as w/ the D-line they have - better. We have an advantage at QB over them, but Stafford can be excellent. That would have been a very tough game.

Sums it up for me. We were so close to this being called the "4th & 14" game, instead of the "13 seconds" game. A Lombardi will erase all of it: Harmon, Wide Right, MCM, last night. But right now, they're all still there - and all feel more pronounced today because of the most recent. But man, do we have a resume of heartbreak.

Maybe I'm rationalizing - but the defense is not SB caliber yet. We simply don't have the kind of pass rush that we saw all weekend from teams like the Rams, Titans, Bengals & Bucs. It was just weird last night how they couldn't get stops. I know we were ranked #1, but that seems like a mirage. We could not get to Mahomes at all. Obviously, we had a chance to win at the end, but that's only because Allen did just about everything, as he has done all season.

I wasn't doing that. There is not much comparison between the actual teams. I could have brought up quite a few - Magic against the Celtics, Manning against the Pats. Sometimes you have to pay some dues and take some hard losses before you break through. You learn, you grow.

I'm all in on the Chiefs. As long as we're out, another SB win for them makes it harder for them to keep players. Everyone on a team like that demands more money & teams want to sign champs just hoping it rubs off.

That didn't make that loss ANY better. I don't blame Norwood. But we were the better team by a mile in that SB. No way that this loss comes close to that. Great post. One SB win and ALL of this washes away. We'll get there. Allen will not be denied.

Wide right was a LOT worse. Trust me.

It wasn't a cakewalk - though I was glad Brady got sent home. Cincy is good. That game was no gimme. And the Rams are as balanced and good as anyone in the NFL - their D is better than ours. But, yeah - it hurts to lose an opportunity like this. TN, TB & GB are all thinking the same. That's football.

Kelly didn't get to the SB until he was almost 31. Peyton Manning lost 6 times in the playoffs before he broke through. We're taking some lumps. Some BIG lumps. But unless they ruin you, they only make you stronger. I have faith in Beane - I think he'll approach this offseason w/ a desperation that we haven't seen yet.

Bills fans have had to endure a lot of heartbreak - especially the older ones. Hang in there. Everyone. I think it's hokey to say "we'll be back again," because sometimes, you never are. But we do have a future w/ JA. Let's just keep getting shots at it.

Plenty. McD had a bad call at the end - but otherwise was aggressive & called a very good game.