Success

Should have probably had the TD on that play. Cincy looking good so far though. If we win tomorrow, I want that home field in the AFCCG.

I don't want to get too far ahead or do a hot take or anything - but if we beat KC, we're going to the SB.

I think Yankees, er, I mean Pats fans are pulling for Buffalo. The comments I've seen are along the lines of "let them have one & think they actually accomplished something. They can talk to us when they have 6. We have 6, remember? New England has 6 Super Bowls. 6x. That's what we have - 6."

In the '90's, I dreamed of this day. Now, if the Pats could just have a similar 25+ years of disappointing play and heartbreaking playoff near-misses or 1st round exits.

It's probably obvious - but the difference in the defenses will be the difference in this game. On offense, we look at KC, and it's a HOF QB, with weapons like Kelce & Hill, and it's scary. But that's how they look at us. Our defense is just better than theirs, all the way around. Better secondary, better linebackers, better line. I don't disrespect their D, but the advantage is clear. Our D is much more likely to make game-changing plays, and get stops. The Bills need to protect the ball and dictate the pace. Obviously KC can win, but our path to victory is less complicated.

Saw it again this week - this time from salty and newly insecure Patriots fans. "So what if their team is good - they still have to live in Buffalo, the armpit of the world." Huh? Buffalo, Rochester & Western NY in general are AWESOME. Beautiful countryside, the Great Lakes w/ their boating, fishing & beaches, the Finger Lakes, amazing foliage in the fall, good skiing in the winter, Niagara Falls. The cities are clean, have a good economic base, great culture, good music scenes & concert venues, and of course, fantastic food. And we're not just talking the beef on weck & wings. Some of the best fine dining restaurants I've ever been to, some of the best dives, and everything in between. Good wine country. A few of the best colleges in NY State. And the people are genuinely good people - very down to earth compared to many places in the country, and always ready to help their neighbor or a stranger. Obviously, we have the best fans in the world. I think people just say that because it snows a lot. But just about everyone I know up there loves the snow, and does something that takes advantage of it (skiing, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, et al.) I live in a different region now because of work, but have plans to move back when I retire. I love it up there.

A lot of them looked old. Judon blew me away the 1st half of the season. I don't even remember seeing him this past Saturday, except when Allen made him look like he was standing still. McCourtey, Hightower, Van Noy. Patriots fans always say they're rebuilding, but I don't see the future of that current line-up. Barmore is a find, and will be great for them. But it reminds me of drought-era Bills. We always had a few really good players on D.

I know I'm supposed to be focused on the Chiefs, but I've been poking my head in on the Pats media and message boards. It's uncanny: they're US! From 10 years ago. Talking about the importance of the upcoming draft, wondering who they should pick, trying to figure out how they can build a team to beat the Bills. And they're already as obsessed w/ Allen as we were with Brady. How do we stop him? Hey, Mac had a better rookie year than Allen did...maybe he can be just as good! Allen will eat up a ton of cap space - their window is already closing. Blah, blah, blah. And man, do they love to be Yankees fans now. Whenever the discussion turns to the Bills possibly winning it all & how "cocky" our fans would be, the standard reply is "tell them to get back to us when they've won 6."

I swear - if I read one more "they just won their Super Bowl" from Patriots fans online...

She checks every box for me. Though, to be transparent, the only box I have is "loves the Bills."

I can be very biased at times, but I try to be objective on this one. I just don't see anything that Mahomes really has over Allen. And I love Mahomes as a player. There is a lot of built-in bias against Allen based on what people thought of him at the time of the draft, and in his 1st 2 seasons. Mahomes can make a mistake and it's just normal QB error; Josh can make a mistake & it's a "regression." We actually saw that firsthand in the regular season game. Mahomes overthrew someone, and the announcers talked about the wind & conditions being the factor. Allen did the same, and it was like, "this is the knock on Allen - he still makes those errors and has the inconsistency." I would never trade Allen for Mahomes. To me, Allen is just better. He has every aspect of the game. Mahomes was the same guy his 1st full season as he is now. Allen's trajectory is a diagonal line going up, and we don't know where it lands yet.

There have been a few "who would you rather have - Mahomes or Allen?" discussions among the pundits this week. Each time, the answer is Mahomes. Which I have no issue with, but the reasoning is generally that they have the same skillsets and ability, but Mahomes improvises when a play breaks down and creates something, while Allen generally doesn't. To repeat: the reasoning is generally that they have the same skillsets and ability, but Mahomes improvises when a play breaks down and creates something, while Allen generally doesn't. I don't think people actually watch games.

Thanks, HBF - I was searching for the current protocol, and couldn't find much. That's actually really good news. I had thought they were still testing regularly regardless, and practically everyone I know has gotten this new variant.

Who else wanted 56?

Kind of hurts us, since we're the best cold weather team in the history of mankind.

I was thinking about this after the Chargers/Raiders game. The Chargers coach went for it on 4th DEEP in their own territory. That play had a huge impact on the game - in a negative way for the Chargers. I thought about the other side of it. If it was under 5 yards, and you ALWAYS went for it in that situation - what would the ultimate outcomes be? Obviously, they would depend on the offensive skill of the team doing it. You would also have to count on the defense to step up if it didn't work. But aren't we that team? Part of that is putting myself in the place of the opposing fan. If I was facing a team like the Bills or Chiefs, I would be terrified if they felt so casual about 4th down. In a game like the Chiefs, anytime we punt, we're giving the opponent a chance to score. I think it's too risky going for it as deep into the territory as the Chargers were. But closer to midfield? I don't know. I thought it would be an interesting discussion. So, I started a thread. Thoughts?

I'm probably going to watch that 1,000 times before I move on to whatever's next. What a play. Is everyone like me? Everyone I was watching with was sure it was a TD, even AFTER Hyde picked it. It was such a misdirection for the ball itself - it felt like it naturally should have gone to the receiver's hands. It really took me a few seconds to process. I'd argue - without even knowing the others - that it was a top 5 INT in playoff history, both in terms of skill & impact on a game.

Yes! We did have that debate. Kelly Holcomb! For the record, I was Team Holcomb. It's amazing to think about that now. I can't remember where EJ ended up. I talked myself into him being "the guy", too. I even had a week where I was all in on Tuel (until that pick 6 against KC - they're getting payback for that on Sunday).

Are we all taking enough time out to truly appreciate this? I could go through the quest we've had since Kelly, but everyone knows it. I mean, we had a friggin' debate about Edwards vs. Losman. It was a long wait. But man, it really paid off. It's actually realistic that Allen could be in the GOAT conversation in 10 years (and no, I'm not predicting that - but it's not crazy).

I watched the Saturday game again. I literally don't recognize that O-line. Allen spent the 1st half of the season+ running for his life in back there. Now, he could fix a snack while he's surveying the field. It's awesome.

They should just let everyone play for the playoffs if they feel well enough.

Bayless only talks about Brady, anything related to Brady (Belichick), the Cowboys, and Lebron.

This won't be popular - but I have always appreciated Belichick, and even Brady. I hated that the Bills had to face them twice a year, but they're both legends, and if you're a football fan, they're at the top of the game. It was the fans that made me dislike the team so much.

I'm waiting for the "30 for 30." What if I told you that revenge is a dish best served cold.....

I was not like you. I was a mess on Saturday. Toward the end of the Pats dynasty years, I started looking at any match-up with them like I look at a dentist appointment. Something very unpleasant that I can't avoid, and just have to get through. That conditioning stayed w/ me through Saturday. I was confident in the team, but had the worst feeling - I felt like Belichick had some crazy plan that would knock us off balance, and they'd sneak one out again like the wind game. I have watched sports for decades. That was the single greatest sports viewing experience I have ever had, bar none. There was so much weight on that game in terms of changing the narrative about both teams and truly announcing that the Bills are here to stay, and have put the Patriots' demons permanently behind them. Pure joy. It took that Bostonian cloud that's been lingering above my head & blew it into another universe. Great write-up.