BigDingus

Hopefully he's used to running out of shotgun for every short yardage scenario.

Let's be fair though, Josh doesn't just get flack for INT's, it's the fumbles too. And when you've LEAD THE LEAGUE in turnovers for 3 straight years, it's not a fluke. Allen is earning that reputation, whether we want to admit it or not.

On the flipside, this board was in complete denial going into the Cincy playoff game last year, so we're just at a low point on team opinion right now. We've seen the Bengals suddenly come alive in recent weeks, won 3 straight, Burrow has 8 TDs/2 INT's in that stretch, and Jamar Chase is averaging 10 receptions/124 yards/1 TD a game over that span. As for the Bills, we've gone 2-1 in that stretch but haven't impressed at all. So I can understand why fans aren't super confident going into Cincy & beating the Bengals on the road. Do I think it's an indictment on McDermott's entire tenure? No. But I do think if this team comes out flat again, commits a lot of penalties and loses due to unforced errors/turnovers (especially after 10 days to prepare), he will be getting the most heat he's got at any point in his career.

Even if we somehow got Patrick Mahomes sitting behind him, he's not going to suddenly play better because of it. If there's one thing I believe about Josh Allen, it's that sometimes he gets stuck in his own head. Having a potential starter as his backup & competing for a starting spot would likely only make things worse. Maybe in practice it'd help, but do you really want him mid-game having it in the back of his head "if I make too many mistakes, they'll bench me for the other guy!?" Hell no. So yeah, we all think the callers idea was stupid, but even if we played that out with some fantasy trade, it wouldn't get the desired results anyway.

Even with a Chiefs loss, it's doubtful we make a run at the #1 seed. However, there's still a decent shot at Josh being an MVP candidate, so Mahomes adding 3 turnovers & 0 TD's to his stat line helps the cause 😅

I've been busy all day, finally got around to checking box scores. The funniest thing I've seen all day is the Giants passing stats. 6/14 for -9 yards?! 🤣 I know Tyrod Taylor got injured, but that's definitely remincisent of a Tyrod-lead offense... At least people are now seeing the Jets & Giants, as bad as they can be, are tough defensively.

I'd be for it, especially if they can find a way to make it relatively quick. But I was also in favor of being able to challenge PI penalties, and the league botched that. In general, I'm all for eliminating as much of the "human element" from officiating games. Using sensors/computer monitoring for ball placement instead of eyeballing it & using chains, go for it! But it seems the NFL likes the "entertainment" value & supposed drama of the visuals it provides, so I doubt we'll ever get to that point.

We're struggling against some of the worst teams in the league, so not optimistic. We have a tough schedule, and this was supposed to be the soft part. The Dolphins cruised through their easy stretch, but we are 1-2 in the division & needed luck to get by the Giants. At least my expectations are significantly lowered now, so anything above that will be a welcome surprise.

I think honest Bills fans know that most of Allen's issues are mental. For his first 2 seasons, I was convinced he read every word about him online, watched the media conversations, and got stuck n his own head. Every week leading to a big game seemed to conclude with a colossal disappointment of a performance. Then the 2020 season happened, and I felt redeemed. No fans in the stands, so much less pressure, and suddenly he plays fantastic? He also admitted to being so hyped before games that he throws up before each one. I heard Kelly did something similar, but that lends to the psychological aspect even more. Final point, those games where one thing goes wrong, then suddenly the wheels come off all together (see week 1). It probably didn't help things this off-season when the media & fans are all saying your #1 WR is upset with YOUR performance. That has to be in the back of your mind each game & impact your choices. So I empathize with Josh. The expectations are sky high, and you're going to get all the credit & blame for the team's performance. When things aren't going well early, it's impossible to not start thinking about all the ways in which you need to fix it. I hope he can find the right balance & get in a comfortable head space soon. He has all the tools & the work ethic, he just needs to get out of his own head sometimes.

That's kind of what happens when you don't extend drives though. You can expect less passing attempts, less yards, less TDs, etc. if you're doing nothing until the 4th quarter and constantly punting the ball. And INTs aren't the only issue. Fumbles are a big problem as well. So the turnover numbers look even worse than the 7 INTs indicate.

Yeah, I could complain about the defense, but the offense is still my biggest issue. The offense isn't the unit suffering major injuries at all levels. There's no excuse to be pitiful through 3 quarters, for 3 straight games! Someone mentioned a stat that Allen hasn't had 2 consecutive games without a turnover? If that's true, that's insane. Won't win many games if you only come alive in the 4th quarter & turn the ball over a ton. So sure, defense blew it, especially on that last drive. But the offense blew it 3 weeks in a row by floundering all game until the 4th quarter.

This is reminding me of last year again... Multiple key defensive players out every game 😓 Just can't catch a break.

Well for a long time salary cap/free agency era wasnt a thing, so players mainly stuck with the teams that drafted them. But after the players & owners negotiated a cap and true free agency, great players began bouncing around new teams like crazy. As for examples, Matt Stafford is the first that comes to mind. He was #1 overall in Detroit (I think), never won anything, then ends up winning the SB his first year in LA. And even though Manning wasn't very good the year he won a SB with the Broncos, he still had some amazing years there and won an MVP. Kurt Warner is another who, although not a high draft pick, had great success late in his career with the Cardinals after most people thought he was destined for backup/journeyman roles. I think McD deserves a lot of credit early, but the past several years the credit has shifted more towards Allen.

What does "not a number 2" even mean anymore? Do you really mean he's not a number 1 playing the number 2 role like Jalen Waddle, Tee Higgins, Tyler Lockett or Devonta Smith? What kind of production do you want out of your WR2? The vast majority of NFL teams would be thrilled to have a WR2 that puts up 800+ yards, 7 TD's & extends the field like Gabe does. Even right now, he's ranked #27 in receiving yards (automatically putting him ahead of multiple #1's), tied for 4th place in TD's with 5 others (ahead of others like Jamar Chase, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Travis Kelce, Mike Evans, and many other WR1's, TE's, and RB's), and is only 61st in receptions. I'd say he's more than adequate as a WR2, with the only issue being he's not as big a threat in the short-intermediate game as we'd like.

BUY: Stefon Diggs. Always the primary focus of the passing game, but this year he's averaging 11 targets a game & has had 5 x 100 yard receiving games through 6 weeks. Last year he averaged 7 receptions, 98 yards & 1 TD against the Pats, and I expect that to continue. SELL: My mental health & sanity. I was hoping for a Giants beatdown to cleanse the pallete & be confident going into this divisional game, but now I'm oddly worried about a terrible 1-5 team, as a loss could see us drop to 3rd place in the division! Just the possibility that the freaking Zach Wilson Jets could be 4-3 after this week (they're playing the Giants) with a tie breaker over the Bills makes me way too uncomfortable! HOLD: Ken Dorsey. Yeah, the offense hasn't looked amazing the last 2 weeks, but he's better than those performances indicate. On-field execution matters too, and we've seen many dropped passes that otherwise would've moved the chains & extended drives. We've also seen stupid penalties negate other plays or simply put us in more difficult positions overall. Let's hope this week we're firing on all cylinders.

Yes, and I think downplaying it as if we've learned nothing the past 3 years kind of bothers me. Every year, almost always around this time, people talk about how "you are what your record says you are," how we should ignore all the issues we see/only focus on X,Y,Z, how losing to whatever team isn't a bad sign, and how all it will take is Allen cleaning something up/less injuries/adjustments to playcalling/blah blah blah. But by year's end, literally every issue comes home to roost in the playoffs. I'm not saying the sky is falling or that the Bills are doomed, all I'm saying is we pretend we're on the right track, pretend things will only get better, and brush aside the glaring flaws as something that'll just magically go away. Even if we pulled off the OT win in week 1 or rallied back & beat the Jags, I would still feel the same way despite the record. People will point to teams like the Chiefs & say how they don't look unbeatable & had rough games too, but the Bills aren't the Chiefs. We haven't earned the benefit of the doubt & multiple Super Bowls. Aside from 2021, our playoff struggles tend to look awfully similar to our regular season struggles. We all remember week 17 against the Bengals, but outside of the obvious Damar stuff, the football talk was mostly us Bills fans being in denial vs what Bengals fans (and other fans) saw as the Bills being "saved" from a Bengals butt kicking. All the non-Damar chatter was people saying the Bills were getting torched, cruising to a beatdown, and even complaints the NFL was "scripted" & trying to protect the Bills. That was when all the talk about the Bengals/Burrow being better than the Bills/Allen really started, and we denied every bit of it. Even though it was still the first quarter, it was very representative of what was in store come playoff time. I remember me & other Bills fans pointing to recent Bengals games where they looked good one half, fell apart the next, talked up Allen just having slow starts, and also said we play better at home. Surely, the Bills would be motivated & ready come playoff time. NOPE! Despite my rant, I still think things can get better. In fact, I expect another good stretch that will get us all hyped again. But I'm also painfully aware that the recent struggles can't be ignored & could very well be a persistent issue all season.

Thank you! People keep saying we need a "real" WR2, when in reality they actually want a 1A + 1B situation. Most WR2s aren't even as productive as Gabe, but we look at those rare spoiled teams like the Dolphins & want similar production. And that's fine, I want that too, but I don't expect it from your average WR2.

I haven't had much confidence in Elam since early last year, but the fact I barely noticed him last game is a good sign. Even though he was up against captain checkdown, he still did well enough. If anything, the tackle numbers prove it. He had only 3 tackles this week vs having 11 tackles against the Jags (who definitely went after him). So credit to him, just hope to see steady improvement going forward.

C'mon... Diggs only had 16 targets! That's not enough as it is!

After last week's performance, I'm definitely concerned. Quarters 1-3 of both games: 10 combined points. 1 TD and 1 FG... through 6 quarters. 4th Quarter of both games: 27 combined points. 4 TDs through 2 quarters. Craziest part is that our defense is the unit suffering from all the terrible injuries to key players. The offense doesn't have the same excuse.

We got lucky. REAL lucky. That last playcall should've just been a handoff or sneak, but even still it looked like the play was there. Then another miracle - Johnson doesn't get called for a pretty blatant hold, and time thankfully expires. And that says nothing about our own ineptitude on the last drive, capping it off with a missed FG. Literally every other team in the league put up more points against the Giants than we did. Blah...

0 points in the first half... against a defense that gives up 30 points a game. Horrendous.

Yeah, today we got bad Josh & bad Dorsey. Cool that it happens against both NJ teams.

Imagine putting up 0 points in a half against the Giants... the league's 3rd worst defense in terms of points allowed, worse than even the Bears. In the first half, the following teams did this to the Giants: Cowboys put up 26 Cardinals put up 20 49ers put up 17 Seahawks put up 14 Dolphins put up 17 Bills put up 0 so far....

Uh oh. What thread?! After the last 2 games, I've suddenly become superstitious & need to vent my irrational anger!