corta765

It has been almost a month since I did the AFC rankings so time for October. These are based off current status of clubs both record and roster for how it looks they will go, obviously things change. As always comment, disagree, get wild: The Four Horseman ... These teams are the AFCs clubhouse leaders and the true favorites at this point although they all have a degree of question when facing each other Kansas City- Undefeated and seemingly immovable they have staved off losses despite a roster which needs help. The defense is stout, but the offense is noticeably down and the injuries have been major. Mahomes is Mahomes but even by his lofty standards he has not been great. They need WR help badly but with Adams and Cooper gone the amount of major needs is low for a team that needs a real emergence. Baltimore- Derrick Henry was the best addition to a team in terms of fit this year. This offense is scary and can enforce their will on you by seemingly command. The defense though is not as stout as prior years and I am curious how the offense handles the war of attrition the regular season gives by seasons end. 1 seed would do wonders to let everyone heal up for a run. Houston - The new kids on the block look stellar and truthfully they may be the must fun team to watch in the NFL. Even with Collins out for a bit their lethal and the defense is pretty solid. Postseason will be fun to see if Stroud and crew take that next step. Buffalo - Pre Cooper trade they were not in this category but with him in the fold the offenses ceiling is back to the level needed to compete with the other 3. 17 is having his most mature season yet as he has evolved into far more a field general then the cowboy of the past. As the defense heals this team will hit its stride across the board the final 4-5 weeks (give Cooper some time) and setup the potential run to finally break thru. Playoffs!.. Actually Yeah Playoffs Pittsburgh - The decision to go to Wilson ranges from curious to awful. Fields is by far not a perfect QB but the offense at least had a bit of flash with him and his mobility created a threat that no longer exists. The defense is stellar as always, Tomlin finds a way for this team to hang around for 17 games, and despite a tougher schedule they have banked enough wins early that a playoff miss would be a bit surprising... but could happen. LA Chargers - Good coaching always does wonders and they are playing like a team very honest about their talent which is always a scary issue for an opponent. Their schedule features KC/BAL/CIN down the road, but it still has a lot of easier games where they can stack some wins. Curious if they trade for a WR to help out the kids and make a greater playoff push The Path & Opportunity Is There... But Someone Is Missing & Stealing The Headlines Cincinnati - Burrow is playing some of his best ball and the offense is for the most part back in form. But they have already dropped some winnable games, play in a buzz saw of a division, and the defense has faded thanks to injuries/talent that has left. The schedule has opportunities for the Bengals to get back into it, but cheap ownership not keep good players makes it feel like a last dance of sorts with this group and the pressure keeps adding to Burrow to keep it together. Palmer was right years ago that ownership would cost them and it already feels true. NY Jets - Adams will help the offense find a more stable dynamic footing, but Rodgers still is 40 and it shows mobility wise. His arm is there so with some protection they can hang around and the defense is solid. BUT they have lost to Denver already so even games that feel like gimmes on what is a weak schedule maybe shouldn't at this point. Not sure what is more Jets missing the playoffs the last day when it is win and get in at like 9-8 or make it in at 10-7 only to get steamrolled the next week. Aquatic Mammals Exist Miami- Tua will come back but it does feel like Miami is really letting him take his time, but even before he went out the offense already started feeling shaky and as though McDaniel was low on answers. But this roster just lacks depth even if Tua comes back 100% and with the offense already shaky it feels like they will need a solid regroup in the offseason just to get back to where they had been. Horsey Teams! ... They kick a bit but don't have the "horses" to go the distance Denver - Bo Nix has had some moments and Payton has gotten them to be relatively competitive, but the road ahead is really tough and this offense has no juice to really make it through the season. Still they will play four quarters and pull upsets because of it. Indianapolis - Nice story with Flacco right now and offense can do things. They will probably be in the hunt still in early December and maybe they get lucky like CLE last year, but they just feel like they plateau and get passed by better teams especially with a near league worst defense. On To 2025 ... four of these teams have a long painful road for fans to watch while the other has a rookie QB that hopefully inspires hope Cleveland - The impact of the Watson trade just keeps getting worse. Playoff caliber roster that is sunk by a QB they refuse to remove and ownership too stubborn to admit their mistake. Roster windows open and close fast and it feels like by the time Watson is out of the picture they will have to reshape the talent base again. Poor brown fans Jacksonville - It is truly amazing they were 8-3 and top of the AFC less then a year ago. Whatever has went wrong here starts with QB Trevor Lawrence who has failed to improve, but it runs far deeper given how out of sorts the team itself is. Very tough questions will need to be answered this off season and so much rides on ownership getting it right. For the record GM Trent Baalke is on his second operation where a talent base existed and as his reign continued seemingly eroded. Las Vegas - It really feels like they literally have wasted a year; no rookie QB to break in, roster isn't win now, and no real plan. They have the best stadium to visit to as an opposing fan and are really a sad franchise especially the potential that exists given the market they play in. New England - Standard rebuilding year with a rookie QB. The kids has some nice attributes physicality and the biggest hope is he along with some of the kids on offense grow. Tennessee - Levis isn't the guy which means again going after a new QB in 2025. They rolled the dice to see what could happen at least and better to burn out the way they are trying out a youngster then go middling at 7-10.

I think your being slightly to harsh on Beane in terms of underperforming. He doesn't coach the team and was not responsible for 13 seconds nor the lack of defense vs CIN. I would argue Beane is close to a top 5-10 gm league wide and without a doubt the better of the GM Coach combo that currently exists. Additionally COVID effectively screwed some of the cap work he done to maximize Josh's rookie contract and it gave him one chance to go big which was Von and unfortunately has not gone as hoped. I have my criticisms of Beane and the WR corp especially you could see from the moment Diggs and Davis left they were hoping for a lot of growth which didn't feel realistic. To his credit he addressed it even if later then we all wanted. WR is probably his biggest buggaboo draft wise as his best selection so far was Gabe Davis. His best WR moves to date are all trade or FA related, he certainly has not hit yet on anyone (Coleman too early to judge). My trust with Beane is vastly different vs McD who I think knows he has until 2025 season to make it or he is out. Looking at the team and its failures to break through since 2019 my finger is pointed far quicker and stronger at McD then the GM as I would argue all of the losses have had coaching mistakes that created failure. Last year is probably the only playoff loss under McD where I have little to gripe with given the needed gameplan because of the injuries and the one I would look more at the GM at.

The general issue when trying to predict performance and hinging on growth/improvement/whathadbeendoneprior is it all based on only the positive not that things could regress or be worse for players. If you were optimistic about this group like this poster was preseason it was based on the idea of Shakir/Kincaid both evolving into stronger larger roles, Samuel reverting to good years prior, Coleman having a really solid rookie year, and MVS/Mack improving back to one off seasons they were better. It ignores the idea of plateauing or regression which unfortunately with Kincaid the regression is quite real, Samuel I think everyone thought would be better but that does happen with FA signings, & MVS/Mack honestly are what they are and it is not surprisingly they have had a small impact especially MVS who is cut now. I call it Perfect World Syndrome where you base all predictions on everything going best case scenario while ignoring reality that some things can and will go sideways or fail.

Going off of what the team has said about 2024 being a transition year I would be flabbergasted if they moved on from McD if they win the division and lose in the playoffs. Everything has indicated while they are being competitive this year (yay Cooper!) the true goal was 2025 between reopening the cap space and draft picks. 2023-2025 drafts have all been about building the future and resetting the base talent wise. I think if by end of 2025 season the Bills have not at least made the SB they finally move on. It would be 9 years and at that point I do not know how much is left to say and I personally think Josh would finally say something.

It is interesting because with coaches you do feel like the leash has its limit but with McD it does not feel like it exists. At the same time I do wonder if buy end of 2025 season there is no SB appearance they finally pull the plug so Josh gets a new voice while still in prime. I think the sun is setting on my belief in him, but I will credit that the KC playoff loss last year was some of his best coaching despite the end result. In a game where they had to have a very specific gameplan due to injury and lack of horses on offense, they pretty much pulled it off and lost on crappy circumstances. Still a loss, but I do give him credit that they pushed KC that hard and got more points on them then anyone else.

I want to make a quick point about NFL coaches. MOST of them even the good ones make some truly stupid blunders for their teams from time to time. Until Andy Reid got a ring he was criticized regularly for his clock mgmt and game mgmt itself. Kyle Shanahan gets a ton of praise... but also was the OC in the SB up 28-3, HC of a team up by 10 in the SB AND again last year blew it in the big game. Mike Tomlin who is widely respected as coach (and possible crisis mgmt expert thanks to dealing with AB that long) is known for some errors by Steeler fans and his seat is warm despite being a guy who would be picked up in a second by another team. My general point is the list of coaches that at this time are perfect in terms of decisions and game plan is probably Reid & McVay at this time (whose team currently is 1-4). Does that mean I am against McD being replaced? Nope I would have done so after the loss to CIN when the old core still had another year left. BUT any coach brought in will have warts and probably make a mistake from time to time even when you expect better. Having BB in division for two decades was probably the worst thing for all opposing fans because he was perfect. I think I can count on my hand the number of truly poor game mgmt // time mgmt moves the dude made. Love him or more likely hate him the standard in terms of coaching he set truly was impressive and how good he was in those situations. It is why the Pats seemingly weaseled their way of a lot of games, the guy had his team ready which mixed with Brady was so hard to stop. The other thing coaching wise is if you dump McD who you replacing him with? Ben Johnson? Cool I like it but also expect growing pains as he finds his way, the defense regresses, and a new scheme is brought in. Like any relationship what starts off hot and fun, later on you see the warts and mistakes or annoyances faster as the years go by. I am not trying to sway anyone with this as its pretty well documented where people are at with McD, as much as just show its far closer to a universal feeling league wide.

It takes a lot to get me to feel any sympathy for an opponent let alone a rival. I left the game feeling bad for Jet fans because if we lost I would've been beyond furious at how much the game was altered and destroyed by the refs. It was that bad So interesting thing is Keon is pacing right now 34 rec 570 yds 6 TDs. For a rookie that isn't too bad at all. He needs time to develop it took Shakir a year and half to find his way and use his best attributes properly. Keon as WR3 is fine although he should prob be WR4 (#makethetradeBrandon). The much bigger issue is Samuel/MVS/Hollis. The rookie is ahead of all of them which is both good but also very bad given what he is pacing for and what you had hoped they wouldve done.

I believe Beane knows they need another true starter at WR. I believe he tried for Adams and would try for Higgins. I am not confident at all given his devotion to the cap and picks we will actually pull the trigger to bring someone in that really moves the needle and I am prepared for a 5th or 6th to go for Wan'Dale Robinson.

I was pissed off at the team for the last two weeks so I had no beer, went to my part time job and watched the game on my phone. This could become lucrative lol

I am just going to open with this. W T F DID WE WATCH? I WATCHED THE BROWNS BILLS 6-3 GAME WHICH WAS ATROCIOUS... ANDDD THAT STILL HAD A BETTER FLOW AND WAS MORE WATCHABLE THEN WHATEVER WE CALL THAT PRODUCT LAST NIGHT. Back to normal talking here are my takeaways from last night: 1. Right The Ship- Smackdown vs BAL, Blown opportunity vs HOU meant it was put up or shut up time and credit to the team for winning while still missing or playing with hurt starters. It wasn't the prettiest for sure or the easiest (HAIL MARY SERIOUSLY) but your 4-2 after a brutally tough open. More importantly Buffalo in division is 2-0 and in conference 3-2. They have massive opportunity to stack a bunch of wins here with TEN/at SEA/MIA/at IND before the last gauntlet of the year. To early to worry about seeding and they need help at WR if they really plan on being an issue come January, BUT they have set themselves up where a 3-1 stretch is very possible to get to 7-3 and really can help before the stretch run. All I truly cared about after starting 3-0 was just please be 4-2 by TEN and they did that while ugly. 2. Offense Back In Drive- I would call last night efficient which if they can do in the majority of their remaining games will lead to a really good record. Josh was superb and rebounded nicely after a concerning bad game in HOU, the running attack was stellar, and the pass catcher did enough. I thought Brady had a good gameplan and even when things got rocky 3/4th quarter they stuck with what worked. Note that Shakir only played 38% of snaps and to me he was healthy enough to be a decoy that forced the Jets to gameplan for him. That speaks volumes to his importance, but they really need another guy to step up. 3. Cook Contract Will Be Interesting- He has one year left on his rookie deal and he has been very good since arriving in Buffalo with a well earned Pro Bowl nod last year and potentially another this year as he has been quite good. BUT Ray Davis looked stellar last night, the offensive line is pretty strong, and Ty Johnson is a good spell back. I have to believe Beane is looking at this very interestingly as they could just let him walk like Singletary if he wants too much. The RB market and overall feel is quite curious because rushing attacks are certainly back in vogue, but teams are hesitant still it feels for big deals. I wonder if Cook just wants a sizable payday if Beane even considers it or with the horses already here it is a non starter. 4. Defense Refresh Feels Really Good Long Term- They had their moments last night, but overall the defense long term feels really good and is to me a highlight in Beane's work to reset the talent base. Right now you have a very nice core developed that includes Oliver, Rousseau, Epenesa, Bernard, D Williams, Benford, & T Johnson. I love Douglas but Ja'Marcus Ingram was really good when put into the lineup and I wonder if Beane considers letting Douglas walk to save the money for elsewhere and let some of the talent sitting there emerge. Most importantly Bernard & Benford have emerged into true blue chip starters aka guys who make game altering plays regularly and without them the defense is not the same. With Tre White's sad departure and Milano seemingly aging (that blows) you needed some new young faces to show up. Entering this season Taron Johnson (nice to see him back) was the one guy I looked at who was in his prime as a blue chip guy, adding two more guys to this mix makes me feel a heck of a lot better for the future. Safety is the one area ironically where they are going to need a guy to emerge that is young and hopefully Bishop can. Rapp has been solid this year and Hamlin is at least being a serviceable starter, but to me if the defense is going to go back to being a top 5 unit they need safety to solidify for real (another pass rusher would be good as you can never have enough). Dorian Williams also has taken a nice step and while he is not the best in coverage yet, his tackling and thumper hits have been a nice addition. You hope Milano can return to form when/if he returns in December, but realistically Williams has made me no longer worry about that spot anymore. 5. What About That Bass- Yea.. yikes. For the record a lot of people point to the KC game as when he should've been cut, but he had the yips far earlier in 2023 as he missed two against the Giants and pretty much from then on you could see the shakiness emerge with the PHI game especially being a disaster. I feel for Beane because up until 2023 he was a very dependable kicker and at his age you can't really plan on a guy getting the yips that early, but he does seem to have lost his fast ball. Cut him? Would love to but the free agent pool is pretty barren and the contract hit is atrocious also. I firmly understand wanting to move on and if a good solution was present they need to. With all of that said if the option is cut Bass but it costs the ability to add a WR I can tell you which way I am heading and it means keeping my bass in the pond for the remainder of the year. 6. Coaching.. the Good the Bad the Ugly: Good- Offense founds it flow and Brady seemed to be ahead of the Jets all night with play calls. Babich got the defense going and the pressure increased by the 2nd quarter after allowing NY 10 pts early. McD has the team prepared and the physicality was nice after the last two weeks. Bad- Does the defense realize they are allowed to tackle on screen passes? This team could be given massive blinking sign that says incoming screen pass and they still would let it go for 10 yards plus. Babich has been solid for the most part in year one, but the screens have been eating us all year. Dion Dawkins what in gods name are you doing killing drives with Unsportsmanlike Conduct? I get he loves the rivalry and getting the opposition off, but that penalty start of the 4th quarter was a complete drive killer and by that point the coaching staff needs to have the guys in line better. Ugly- Hail Mary. I mean it is comical at this point between the coaching timeout and then the actual defense put out there. I need the stats on Hail Marys allowed because the Bills have to be near the top historically with this coach specifically. 7. The Very Visible Elephant In The Room- The division feels pretty certain and I have no issue saying this is a good team with some nice pieces, especially on defense. But this is not a great team at this moment that will go toe to toe with the best in the league without a perfect gameplan and 17 being at his max. Khalil Shakir is the 2nd most important person on the offense after 17 because the WR corp just isn't enough. Mack is a fun player and has had a few decent moments, but him and MVS overall have been pretty bad. Samuel finally had a few decent plays last night but overall he just isn't making a mark. Coleman has honestly had probably the best moments of the pass catching group after Shakir, but he is a rookie and that means major ups and downs. Probably the greatest disappointment for me has been Kincaid who has clearly regressed. Adding a true outside boundary threat like Amari Cooper (example does not have to be him) would do a world of help to shift the WR Corp to their better spots and make the offense far more diverse to defend. 6 games in your 3rd WR (Samuel) is pacing for 34 rec and 261 yards on the year, that isn't nearly enough if your goal it the SB. The bad teams are out there with some talent that will be available from big names to just solid names, but failure to add anything feels like the teams is cursed to the same close loss outcome they had against KC last season.

Running Animals 20 Flying Winged Objetcts 16 Honestly I see this as a controlled ugly game where the Bills just by virtue of having less distractions and issues internally manage to grind the Jets throughout but they hang around because neither team is making major strikes. Josh and the offense get a TD early as Knox decides to show life on 3rd and goal from 4 yards out. Jets respond with a FG and both teams trade additional FGs as each offense stalls around the 30 as they enter the 2nd 10-6. The Bills pick off Rodgers late 2nd and get a FG to go up 13-6 at half time. The Jets go on a methodical drive out of half capped by a Bryce Hall screen TD as the Jets tie the game at 13-13 with 6 mins to go. Buffalo answers as they themselves have a 7 min drive capped by Josh running it in from 7 yards out to put the Bills up 20-13. The Jets move into the Bills redzone but the drive stalls and Rousseau sacks Rodgers. They kick a FG with 5 mins left to make it 20-16, the Bills offense does it best to kill the clock but the Jets get the ball with 25 seconds and put the fanbase through the motions of a Rodgers hail mary which thankfully is batted down. Allen 18-24 201 yds 1 TD 51 yds rush Ty Johnson 78 yds 12 att Coleman 72 yds 4 rec Rousseau 2 sacks

I would watch 13 seconds 5x over before I watch sundays game again, at least 13 seconds was exciting and the offense was doing stuff.

Congrats for winning the dumbest take of the year award.

Honestly no. I thought in the offseason they would have addressed the WR position further as you could see it needed some help. They are betting youth in Coleman Kincaid Shakir works out long term and Beane seems hell bent to not mess with the cap so long term they are far more free. I do not agree with this and you can clearly see that a more veteran presence OR double dipping for a different type of WR in the draft would've helped but I don't run the team.

Last year Chiefs four losses, three were one score games and 1 was a double digit loss to DEN (weird). 2022 for KC: all three losses were one score 2021 for KC: three losses one score, two blow out losses Bills & Titans....? (WTF). After the Titans loss they were actually 3-4 which is wild as that was the last time they were under .500 that far into the season.

Exactly. They just ended an NFL run of not being blown out when they lost to the Ravens. It actually is a credit to the consistency of the team and how good they are that this stat exists.

Ravens loss I think everyone kinda knew and expected that in some capacity. Yesterday the way they lost and how bad the offense/17 was has got us to peak post loss posting (I am guilty of this also)

Mahomes gets a TD when it was 20-17 not a FG. That is the difference he closes Kelly made a SB by now Josh hasn't. He doesn't get the benefit of the doubt until otherwise and he is not a young kid anymore, highest paid guy on roster he can get criticism.

Divisional games are always different as both teams know each other pretty well. Josh has done well vs NY when they run at them and he stays patient. Their d line is good but lacks the depth of prior years and their safeties are shaky. Much relies on finding a rythem and not falling down 14 early

Oh this game is far far from an easy win. I am just looking that they are not a great team compared to BAL/HOU, IF BUF can do some good things they will have their chance to close. We are 2-2 vs NY the last two years so nothing is for granted here nor do they have the luxury to think so. I will say this, I think the offense is a good WR away from being far better and the WR corp being more set then it is now. They just need more talent and I am nervous Beane fails to address it this year and we waste a season because of it.

Last two weeks they were on the road and got down big early. Unfortunately I think it altered the game plan quickly AND Josh this week then got super hero cape on and did not settled down. Mix in the issues the pass catchers had and o line and it was a full on disaster that only turnovers and a bit better play in the 2nd saved from being worse.

the additional wild card spot makes it truthfully a lot harder for a top QB on a down year/team to also miss now. If there were only 2 wildcards I think the Bills would have more to be nervous about but that additional spot allows for more error.

The big thing with the Bills is they almost need this more then NY which is weird to say, but Buffalo expects a higher standard and knows they are opening the door wider if they lose. They have been in this spot before and closed and McD has got the team together and going. NY hasn't & Rodgers frankly just looks old and very average, if the Bills can do the good things they do they will win.

Trust me it has been in my head since the CIN loss. Mahomes forever is 1 in the league, Josh at his best is probably the only QB that actually can go toe to toe to that degree which we saw in 13 seconds. BUT his bad variance games which have happened every year minus 2020 (which surprise he was 2nd in MVP) eliminate him from being an MVP front runner and also lower the team itself from hitting that 13-14 win place. I do not doubt he has the talent to win a SB, but the flaws especially on a roster that now has less talent with part of that being his salary as a reason are real as heck. Hate saying it, but that just seems to be his place. I do not thing he could win a SB like Mahomes did last year in terms of offensive talent around him, I think he will always need a little bit more like Burrow Lamar etc.

It is why most analysis said this year will be different for the Bills with a lot of games like this or Cards because the talent especially on offense is not there or developed. The Bills will probably get to 10-7/11-6 by seasons end, but the journey will be far harsher and closer then years prior and they will waste opportunities that they use to convert that may have allowed a far greater season W/L wise.