Shaw66

That is great! Thanks very much. And I think, yes, all signs pont to the latter and making Josh take that syep in yerms of decision making. Think about Tom Brady. At yhe snap he always seemed to know where to go with ball. He didn't care who it was; he simply went where the open man would be which was dictated by formatuin and defense. If your QB can do it, it's take what they give you, and they're always giving you something.

Thanks. Interesting stuff. I agree about Coleman's skill set. Having him roaming all over the field from the slot could make him a nightmare for defenses to deal with. Frankly, last season I had hoped we'd see more of that from Kincaid, but his role seemed more limited. If the Bills can get more from him this season, then I like your vision of those two guys running out of the slot. Fact is, those two lined up together almost anywhere along the line is a problem for defenses.

You're technical expertise is way beyond me, but I think you're assuming that Brady has a style, and that style is what he learned in NO. My understanding is that at LSU, with those receivers, the style was different. I'd bet if you asked him, he'd say what McDermott has told him: Play EVERY style. Run, pass, balanced, inside, outside, explosive, west coast, everything. It's true that most people revert to things they're comfortable with, and that may be what Brady will do, but I don't think that's what McDermott wants. Interesting. And as you think about, Allen's maturation and the fact that the QB has to be the leader also meant that Diggs had to reduce his leadership role. I doubt he liked doing that, and that may be why saw him increasingly unhappy.

I agree. I wrote something a month ago about him. When they got him, Bills loved his energy and commitment. They didn't understand that what happened in Minnesota is chronic with Diggs. He is a true dog. Teammates love him for his fight. Problem is that sooner or later, he turns that fight to his own team. Houston should plan on two good years from him, but then they'd be wise to move on.

You said this: I challenged it. Rather than tell us how you know this, you ask me for my data. I don't think you're correct about Josh going deep all the time, so show us it is true.

Thanks. Good points. And I agree - there is no great evidence that Brady has the magic. So, you clarified what you said earlier. It isn't the concept that you find troubling; it is the people executing the concept. I get that.

I don't understand why you're skeptical. The Rams have been doing it for years. Last season, their top five receivers were Puka Nacua WR, Cooper Kupp WR, Tyler Higbee TE, Tutu Atwell WR, Demarcus Robinson WR, which is a hardly a list of stud talent. Yes, Nacua put up big numbers, but he was fifth round rookie. Does anyone really think that he dominated because he has superior talent? Of course not. He dominated because he was operating in a good system that employed the same concepts that we're talking about here. Kupp, too. Those guys aren't studs - they're the right guys for the system they run out there. I'm not saying it's going to work; we'll only know that once we see it in action. But I'm not skeptical - it's the way the league is heading.

Talk about adopting a narrative. I don't think the data support the idea that Josh hasn't succeeded in the short to medium range. Last season he was in the top 10 in ALL categories of throws - 10 yards, 20, 30, 40, 50. Tua was the deep bomber in the league last season, not Josh. But more importantly, this issue about Diggs is not something new. I worried about Diggs all through 22 and 23. It was easy to see through body language, sideline behavior and other things that he was not consistently a team guy. He was a great team guy some of the time, but it was clear that he was always about Diggs. It was obvious, for example, that the Bills went out of their way to get Diggs a completion early - if he didn't catch a ball in the first quarter, his attitude changed. It's a problem when your QB has to worry about keeping his best player happy. The QB's job is to run the offense, and the receiver's job is to run his routes and catch the ball. When the receiver's focus get selfish, and when the QB is worried about keeping the guy happy, that hurts the offense. We saw it last season, but it had been coming before that. In 2023, I didn't think of him as the go-to guy that he was earlier in his career in Buffalo. So, at least for me, the "Diggs is a problem" narrative wasn't new.

I agree, and that's what I've been saying about McDermott's approach in general. I mean, is Bernard really a middle linebacker or just a glorified safety? I think McDermott almost would be willing to play with seven safeties instead of corners, linebackers and safeties. Same thing with the offensive line, except the size of the players is different. He wants mobile guys who can pass block and power block. McDermott might play with five Spencer Browns, if he could find them. Clearly, it's being tried with the wideouts (and running backs) (and tight ends). It's not literally true, but it's feeling like everyone is playing everywhere. In McDermott's perfect world, I think he has 11 well-trained athletes on the field playing almost interchangeably. And I still worry that the problem with this approach is that it works great until they play a Chris Jones or a Tyreek Hill or another stud who is just really, really good, and none of McDermott's jackknives can handle the guy.

I don't think Bishop is underperforming if he isn't starting early this season, or even the end of the season. I agree that he needs to be starting in season two. And, yes, the fact that McDermott makes solid veterans work well in the defensive backfield does make the Bishop pick interesting. It means that McDermott and Beane expect something special from him. It's interesting to compare Bishop to Bernard - that piece in the Athletic was interesting. It essentially said the Bills took Bernard much higher than he was projected to go, but they took him because they had very high expectations for him. We didn't see enough last season to declare him a great player, but what we saw was pretty special play. I'd guess that McBeane would say they have those kind of expectations for Bishop. Bernard sat for season, but then he was expected to be ready, and I'd think the same is true for Bishop. The sooner the better, but definitely by year two. In the case of both Bishop and Bernard, the guy coming out of college was touted as being a true standout in terms of the mental game. They understand and can execute everything. It may take a year to get up to speed, but then we should see impact. And look at O'Cyrus Torrence. Same expectations - be a player by year two, and sooner if possible. Be a clear positive for the team sometime between now (last year at this time, Torrence already was beginning to show how soon he'd be ready) and a year from now (Bernard took a year to get up to where he needed to be).

I agree with this and your earlier post. What McDermott does is take quality safeties and defensive backs and teaches them to operate in a system that creates an effective defense. It isn't necessary for McDermott to get the top talent in the league to play those positions; what's necessary is for his players to work hard and execute the system that he has taught them. He can do that with any solid starting safety in the league, and that's what he has to work with now.

It's not too complicated, but I've said often, and I think others agree, that there is a problem with his system in the playoffs. His approach to developing a football team is to have guys who can do everything. In the case of offensive linemen, it's pass protect, power run block, and block the edges and downfield. Receivers, too, and running backs. And defenders - DBs who play the run tough, Dlinemen who can stop the run AND rush the passer. So it takes a while for players to be able to play that way. The problem with that approach, I think, is that you don't have players who are really, really good at one thing. You don't have a Chris Jones, for example. You don't have a Tyreek Hill. Instead, you have guys who are pretty good at everything, and when then have to play against the studs in the playoffs, they don't match up well. Belichick made it work that way - a bunch of no names who did their jobs. We're waiting for McDermott to show he can win that way.

I agree with all you said (of course, I did, because you were agreeing with me!), but this part that I quoted is important and people forget it. Pressure on Mahomes is important, and the Bills have known it. That's why they got Von Miller. Unfortunately, he went down and wasn't available when the Bills needed him in the playoffs - for essentially two seasons.

Well, it's the same narrative as a year ago. Last year, it was "Dorsey was learning the ropes as a rookie coordinator, blah, blah, blah." Turned out, Dorsey didn't seem to have learned much at all. So, this year it's Brady. I actually buy a lot of what you say about how things went for him 2023. 2024 is when we find out what he has. I'm confident, but we won't know until November or beyond.

Yeah, I agree. And perhaps the most amazing thing is that anyone with a brain can see that Allen still has upside. How crazy is that? Allen almost certainly won't win six Super Bowls (although anything is possible), but if he takes another step or two and stays healthy, he will legitimately be in the G.O.A.T. discussion.