corta765

So with the schedule expected to be released this week most likely Thursday I wanted to post my schedule that I think the Bills are playing. I research the schedule for fun every year comparing to previous years, trends, history, etc... So before you read my schedule (and probably accurately criticize it haha) here are a few things to keep in mind: -The Bills have to finish the regular season against a divisional foe. The last time the Bills played NE in week 17 was 2014 with the Bills since then playing the Jets and Dolphins. Additionally the last time the Bills played NE at home that late in the season was week 16 2010 (I was there it was freezing snowy and the Bills lost 34-3 fun times) Despite the report of Bills Phins week 17 I think the Bills are at NE at week 17. -The Bills typically play an AFC East foe in weeks 1 or 2 and with the Bills opening the season week 1 against MIA in 2010, @NYJ 2012, NE 2013, MIA 2014, NYJ 2016. Buffalo has only opened once against an NFC foe in the last decade with the famous Freddie OT run at CHI in 2014. To me Buffalo is due to open at MIA something they haven't done since 1989. -Since the divisional schedule format has come into play when the Bills face NFC foes the NFL likes to schedule them all within a 5-6 week window.. except for the NFC North (no clue why). In 2014 Buffalo open week 1 in CHI, went to Detroit week 5, hosted Minnesota week 7, and hosted Green Bay week 15. In 2010 the Bills were at Green Bay week 2, home against Chicago week 9, home against Detroit week 10, and at Minnesota week 13. By comparison last season the Bills completed their NFC schedule between weeks 2 and 10 with the Panthers, Falcons, & Bucs all within a 6 week stretch. Expect Buffalo to see the NFC over the course of the season. -The Bills typically like a home schedule that is front loaded and limits December games due to ticket sales being harder late in the season due to weather. -The NFL rarely allows teams to open at home back to back. If you host at home in 2015 you are on the road typically in 2016. The Bills hosted the Jets last year so I would expect them to open away. The positive in this is if you can get a win on the road week 1 the NFL typically gives you two straight home games after. 2016 BUF opened in BAL but then hosted NYJ and ARZ, 2014 open in CHI host MIA then SD, 2012 at NYJ, KC, at CLE, NE, but 2011 @KC home OAK home NE. With the Toronto series over the Bills generally have gotten a front loaded schedule like this. -Finally night games. Any team that has made the playoffs over the last bunch of years has been guaranteed two night games (typically three) and hosted at least one night game. With the Bills likely to get a high touted rookie QB plus breaking the drought I would expect some decent attention with at least a MNF to go with the TNF game if not two. The NFL also weirdly put a lot of teams night games back to back last year which is how you got the Dolphins multiple weeks in a row. 2018 Bills Schedule per Craig: So the Bills open the season away and finish away something they did recently in 2016 and 2014. I know people will be stunned that I have the Bills on SNF but I think the storylines are built all over. Frank Reich faces his former team as a coach, Bills have new rookie QB, Luck is back, Bills have broke the drought etc... IND is a team that gets a lot of SNF games and I think we could end up there. The Jags at home is a softball prediction because early in the season it would be an intriguing MNF game that would get ratings so they could use better games later on. The Bills typically play on Thursday night somewhere between weeks 7-12 and we have only had one home game since 2012. It has been shown that home teams have a distinct advantage playing TNF at home and I believe the Bills have pressured the NFL for one of those also. The rest of the schedule I guesstimated off previous matchups and the NFL likes to swap non-divisional teams around each time they play so if you played early in the season typically the next matchup is mid to later. Going off my prediction of a front loaded schedule I do think the Bills get 5 home games before November which they want. There is always a tough portion of the schedule and the three away games in four weeks after the bye fits the bill.

Agreed it automatically forces some matchups which isn't necessarily good.

That was a brutal game to watch. I have a Bills party at our house typically for the opening game or first away game if I end up going to the home opener. 40-45 people plus in my backyard about as excited as the grass growing haha.

I have no problem freely admitting I want nothing to do with him and I see bust 1000% of the way, BUT if he works out I was wrong. He seems like a good kid at least so I have no qualms against him I just don't buy the argument he is worth picking in 2nd after watching tape let alone the 1st. Now to counter your points "FACT CHECK: Josh Allen "wasn't good" in college: FALSE" If your going off of strictly W/Ls then he actually should be ahead of Rosen. He has tremendous talent but you want to see a QB progress numbers wise throughout college. He plateaued and the truth is only Matt Stafford in the last decade plus has succeeded despite a sub 60% passing percentage straight up. "FACT CHECK: Josh Allen had no weapons in 2017: TRUE" So what your saying is a guy who I want to have as my franchise QB who I would expect some seasons to lift up a limited roster and raise the play of his teammates couldn't do so as a Junior against the MWC. That does not instill the type of confidence I want as a GM. The college game especially is geared for QBs to have big numbers yet he had a number of games where he couldn't even break 200 yards. We just dumped a QB who had issues with that and now we want to bring in a replacement who also struggles with that? Remember this Ben Rothlisberger had just as little talent and still lit Miami U on fire. If I am drafting a QB from a non power conference I want to see numbers like Big Ben or Carson Wentz. "FACT CHECK: There is more to Josh Allen than his "strong arm" and "big hands": TRUE" Here are 3 QBs we recently drafted or acquired that had the bodies and physique to destroy and instead imploded: Rob Johnson, JP Losman, & EJ Manuel. Everyone of those QB's could bomb the ball downfield, but touch passes, medium accuracy throws, making reads under pressure, etc... they all failed. I have watched his tape and he is atrocious at looking off defenders and tries forcing throws because he is that strong. That is incredibly hard to coach out of a player. Now I do agree the Jamarcus Russell takes are stupid, he certainly has seemed to be a hardworker and good leader which matters. I also agree that he needs to go somewhere that he can sit for at least a year preferably two to truly get time to develop which is why I want the Bills to not draft him. Buffalo is more or less expecting that whoever we draft can start week 1 (disagree if you want but that is the expectation IMO) for Allen that would be a nightmare. I do think if he went somewhere like SD, NYG etc.. he could actually be decent assuming he fixes his flaws. And also in the end I like many have no clue because none of us can predict anything, but I see a massive bust if he is not handled correctly.

Most likely Thursday night unless they are on the road for TNF then Monday. My guess is two night games home TNF vs. Miami and MNF at HOU. I be stunned if the Bills open at home for 2 straight years given it the NFL really tries to make it 50/50 where one year your on the road then home etc.. Last time they were home two straight years was 07 Broncos 08 Seahawks.

Thanks couldn't find it. The Jackson pick doesn't bother me as much as Payne and Chark.

link ?

October when things aren't insanely intense yet so I can be upset if we lose whereas late in the year when we are out of the race I won't care and probably cheer for the Pack.

Haha they are not good but it wouldn't be historically bad which they were pacing at.

Agreed. Mahomes has played exactly one game and looked like a rookie. Some good some bad literally nothing more you could gather without seeing a full season. The Bills in general don't draft enough QB's forget the 1st round round. The 2011 draft I sat there stunned when the Bills who desperately needed a QB wouldn't even take a shot at Dalton or Kapernick both 2nd round guys. We are notorious for settling and committing too quickly rather then bringing more competition.

Agreed I really liked Reilly and think with time he could be a solid WR3

Agreed and makes the WR corp not as bad now. Figure something like Benjamin, Jones, Kerley, Holmes, Streater, & Reilly. If they can draft a WR in the 2nd or 3rd the QB may have something to throw to haha.

Agreed. I want to meet the person who had this team with even 7 wins heading into last season. The first game of the fans and media a like wondered for the Jets and Bills if that would be their sole win. I think both understood the goal of QB in 2018 draft at all costs but I don't think they expected the Jets to pass them truthfully or more that IND would not take two 1sts instead. Regardless of what happens I am far more encouraged with this group because at least they have identified QB as the target and to try and do what it takes to get there. One thing that aggravated me about past administrations is their lack of aggressiveness towards QB. If Buddy Nix were GM Tyrod would still be QB.

Nope drum line people are far cooler

No but it is well known Buffalo has wanted to get into the top 5 draft one of Rosen, Mayfield, Allen, or Darnold. Jackson and Rudolph are not in the top 5. Your right that long term no one knows and the best 1983 QBs were drafted 1st Elway, 12th Kelly, & 28th Marino with Todd Blackledge flaming at out 7th , Tony Eason doing OK for NE at 15th, and the Jets getting a moderate starter with Ken O'Brien at 24th. That said with everything known about the NFL draft and QBs especially, your best odds are in the Top 10 and in the case of this draft Top 5. The Bills not reaching the Top 5 would be a failure based on what we know now. Your right that we could hit on a guy late but I am looking at just the present.

The problem here is if the Bills come out and say they are thrilled they got either and that was the plan it's BS. The problem for the Bills is you can't come out and say will we failed and had to take one of these two. It's a giant lose lose either way.

This is why when the Jets traded up to 3 I got a pit in my stomach. You knew the Colts would be willing to move by the Giants are far more expensive and that is IF they would even want to move. Your scenario above which is very plausible would be ground zero for the Bills and effectively force them to either draft then BPA pushing the QB decision to 2019 or settle with a concession QB like Rudolph/Jackson (FYI not saying they can't workout its a gamble with any QB but they were not the goal). My hope is they somehow can swing into 2 or 4 and grab one of Rosen Darnold or Mayfield, I want nothing to do with Allen.

The problem with this is that there is a good portion of fans that only view a franchise QB as someone who has HOF career putting up great numbers or solid numbers but tons of playoff success. There are a lot of QB's who may not be HOF caliber but were/are good to at points great from Jim McMahon, Eli Manning, Joe Flacco, Donovan McNabb etc.. who you could still say were/are franchise guys. Another poster made a great point about Tony Romo being a good definition of a franchise QB. He may not be a HOF QB but he was really good, the team had some decent success, the team received some decent national attention, and it stabilized the spot for a decade plus. You mention Drew Brees as your guy looking like that but he is arguably one of the top 5-7 QBs ever in the league. If your expectation is that you will constantly be disappointed and be waiting a long time for that guy. The post was directed at the expectations that come with a QB being deemed franchise and how we as fans view success at the position. Based off your response your in the group that is HOF caliber or bust.

You misread what the conversation entailed. The poster said currently as in 2018 Joe Flacco may not be thee guy anymore which I agreed with which happens on the back end of all players. He is 33 his team has missed the post-season the previous 3 season and he has not been the same since he tore that knee. But no one said he wasn't a franchise guy, my entire point was using him as one of many in terms of expectations. Every Bills fan would sign up for drafting a guy like him in a heart beat if we could get his career and success both regular season and post. I think that is a really fair outlook. That is why I said if I drafted a guy to be my franchise QB my expectations for that person would be give me 10-12 years where I can build with that player and they pass for a good amount of TDs/Yards etc.. Agreed. I have always kind of thought of Drew Bledsoe as the perfect time (when in NE not BUF). Team was successful, went to a SB, 4x pro bowler, and had a good amount of success/national attention. I think any team drafting a QB would sign up for the baseline of Romo/Bledsoe if that is what they got.

Right but my point is if your drafting a QB you want at least 10 years out of the guy. Flacco has given 10+ years the Ravens were successful and won a SB partially because of him. So I would say they succeeded in drafting a franchise guy even if he ended up being more Alex Smith in the end then Aaron Rodgers if you catch my point. But I do agree they have to start thinking new QB soon that knee injury has made him never look the same.

Exactly and that's why I bring up a guy like Flacco who may be more above average then anything else BUT he has SB, playoff appearances, and has beaten Brady.

On behalf of Buffalo Bills Mafia buh bye

I have wanted to post this for weeks but I needed to think of how to correctly approach this so here we go. It is more then likely the Bills will draft a QB at some point in the 1st round with the expectation he is going to be the franchise QB long term. My question that I have been thinking of is what defines success then if he becomes a franchise guy? Are we talking wins, amazing stats, playoff success, or just general stability at the position for a decade with a mix of these? This is not a necessarily a comparison of who I think is better, rather how these QBs have done in their careers. For my criteria this pertains to 1st round QBs only, I am only going as recent as 2012 otherwise its a bit too hard to judge the newer guys, and the player had to have some level of success in one of these categories: QB's who win: These QB's may not have the most fantastic regular seasons stat wise, but they have a track record of consistently putting up solid seasons that result usually in playoff appearances and 10 win seasons at least. Aikman is the pinnacle of this group and Alex Smith is basically the floor with McNabb being your middle. These are all solid passers Troy Aikman 89' Alex Smith 2005' Donovan McNabb 99' Stat QB's: These QBs are guys who in terms of passing the ball have incredible numbers but their success in the regular season and post season is lacking. Sometimes with guys like Marino, Rivers, and Stafford they lacked a roster around them to get their fair chance at a SB, some like Palmer & Pennington saw injuries derail promising careers and the numbers hint at what could've been, and for some like Cutler & O'Brien they can throw but they lacked the leadership skills to take it to the bank. Andrew Luck 2012' Matt Stafford 2009' Jay Cutler 2006' Phillip Rivers 2004' Carson Palmer 2003' Chad Pennington 2000' Dan Marino 83' Ken O'Brien 83' Playoff darlings: During the regular season these guys at points will make you want to pull your hair out..and then the post season comes and they both have performances that make you want to say they are great. Joe Flacco 2008' Eli Manning 2004' Success in multiple avenues from regular season, playoffs, stats etc...: These are guys who have put up MVP caliber seasons, had playoff success, and had multiple years worth of regular season success for their team. For all of these players the idea of putting them in the HOF either has happened or is a pretty valid thought in some way. Cam Newton 2011' Matt Ryan 2008' Aaron Rodgers 2005' Ben Rothlisberger 2004' Michael Vick 2001' Peyton Manning 98' Steve McNair 95' Drew Bledsoe 93' John Elway 83' Jim Kelly 83' Looking at this I just find more questions. Was Troy Aikman a better QB then a guy like Philip Rivers because of his winning SB's? Steve McNair had one of the best season a QB had in total and his career frankly looks better then Eli Manning who has two Super Bowl rings so wouldn't he be more of a preferred franchise guy to have your QB model? Matt Stafford managed to take an 0-16 team that has been perennially bad and managed to make them playoff contenders most years; is that more impressive then Cam Newton's career who has been great but also had vastly more help across the board? Donovan McNabb had a better level of success team wise in the NFL and even beat Michael Vick's Falcons in the NFC title, yet Vick was a transcendent talent who changed the QB position and without the dog fighting was on pace for a historically unique career so who really would you take? Truthfully none of these questions require an answer nor am I looking for one. What it does show is how we can view success in variety of different ways and at the same point failure. The quarterback position of any in football is hardest to judge in terms of success because I think we all value things so differently and as fans we live in a world where everything now is championship or bust. If Darrelle Revis never won a SB would that be held against his HOF resume compared to other HOF caliber CBs? If the Bills drafted one of these quarterbacks and his career were to arch like Matt Stafford isn't that still a success to insulate the position and get playoffs appearances? Or would you rather a Joe Flacco type who benefited from a better team but is a lesser passer? In the end I arrived at this for my expectations for a franchise passer. I want someone who can give me at least 10-12 years where the QB position is not an issue and they have a career throwing for some real solid yardage. In the end that QB cannot control the roster that may be put around him which to a degree will shape the success possible for that QB. Of all the things I despise about Patriot fans it is how they don't appreciate they had a true franchise QB with Bledsoe and literally tripped into the greatest QB ever in my humble .02 opinion. It is so hard to get that position right and they are going nearly 30 years of having that hole filled. I am very excited to see how the draft plays out and curious how you frame your expectations for a QB.

I saw this and nearly screamed. I won't know what to do with myself if they don't draft a QB day one.

At some point they have to pay someone and assuming KB has a good season I would expect Buffalo to. He is a solid typically consistent performer and seems to be a culture guy like McD would like. Personally I think they wanted Woods and had the capspace had been like 2019 is shaping to be he would've still been here.