Zerovoltz

1st....I hope to see you guys again in the AFCCG. I feel very strongly that the Bills are legit contenders and as long as Allen is the QB....are going to be for a while. I do think the Bills got better this offseason. Ok...so about the 3 rookies....this is both a legit concern and also for Chiefs fans...represent a real major change and likely improvement. So about the line....on top of almost certainly starting 3 rookies, the other 2 guys are both new to the team as well. 5 new starters. It is a tall task to ask any 5 new guys on a line to play together with cohesion, let along have 3 rookies. I'd love to sit here and say that they'll be all on the same page, week 1. That's not realistic. I suspect KC's line is going to need at least 8 games to gel....and since we are workign with rookies....it may take all year. The upside / potential of this group is the exciting part and not so much what they will look like in week 1. Too early to say so with much certainty, but the group does look good so far...(again, looking good at camp and VS SF 2nd string is all we have to go on so far) Let's say they do gel are good.... Thuney is highly paid but on the team long term, the 3 rookies are here the next 4 seasons on the cheap.....that leaves signing Orlando Brown to a long term deal, wich is expected assuming he plays well enough. Best case...that group is young and will be together 4 years. That's the exciting part. I think KC can absorb future losses of RB's, WR's, TE's etc...as long as you have Mahomes and a super line....they'll figure out the other parts as time passes. This year I'll be really looking at how the line shows..and hopefully gets some chemistry....it's the key to how far we can go.

This is correct. KC was awful VS the spread last year....got out to big leads and then took foot off gas....other times when could have put the hammer down, but couldn't convert 3rd and short etc. SEE MORE BELOW. Vulnerable isn't a bad way to put it in the sense that KC was absolutely awful on 3rd and short and goal to go with the bad O line. KC was also not a good red zone team. When KC should have and could have put the death blow on teams...they simply couldn't do it most times. Allowed teams to hang in and get late scores or prevented KC from getting that last nail into the coffin. SEE MORE BELOW It worked. I can't deny this stat as it is a fact, but I would say that the Raiders win didn't have anything to do with 50% pressures on MAhomes...KC put up 32 points in that loss. Las Vegas had 40. The Raiders have been a bad matchup for KC for a while....as they throw a TON of passes to the TE and backs out of backfield....KC's weakest aspects of defense. in 2018, KC had a starting O line of: LT Eric Fisher LG Cameron Erving C Mitch Morse (pre concussions) RG Andrew Wylie and later Laurant Duvernay-Tardiff RT Mitch Schwartz That was the best line Mahomes had been with since his time starting in KC. That team was good in the red zone, and decent and short yardage conversions. That offseason, KC lost Morse to the Bills. Also in 2019 Eric Fisher missed 8 games due to injury. KC also had to rotate in guys at LG for injury, and also, Mahomes got injured and missed a few games, as well as playing hurt. KC's offensive metrics dropped across the board...especially games where Fisher was out. KC got healthy toward the end of that season, including having Fisher healthy at the end. KC put up 51, 35, and 31 points in the playoffs. In 2020, KC lost Laurant Duvarnay Tardiff to covid opt out. A couple games in they lost the starting LG, a game or 2 later, they lost RT Mitch Schwartz for the season. KC's red zone and short yardage metrics were HORRIBLE as a result. ...and then KC lost Fisher at the end of the AFCCG... resulting in KC rolling with only C Ausin Reiter the Center and worst player on the line when healthy....as the lone starter remaining. 2nd and 3rd stringers started at the G and OT spot in the SB. ...against a team that has a great 4 man rush. We lost..I'm not whining about it....TB won. My hats off to them. They are the champions. .....KC is the Vegas favorite for a reason. Let me address what KC lost in the offseason first...because it's been brought up that KC lost 8 starters. Guys KC lost who started. C Austin Reiter. Remains unsigned as of this post. He sucks. DE Tanoh Kpasagnon. Very much a JAG...no impact player. his production (next to nothing) is easily replacable for less money WR Sammy Watkins. ....... do I need to make an explanation for him? LT Eric Fisher ..... Injured RT Mitch Schwartz. Injured and remains unsiged and has infact been hanging around KC and helping coach up the new line guys....rumored to be retired but not officially. LB Damien Wilson ....another JAG whose replacement is better and cheaper CB Bashaud Breeland .....this is the one that matters most....good CB that fit will in the system. S Juan Thornhill.....recovering from injury....not sure he'll be the same player, he hasn't been with the 1s much. If you are losing 8 starters...those are the 8 you don't mind losing (except Breeland) The important part of this is O line. Traded for LT Orlando Brown Signed LG Joe Thuney drafted C Creed Humphrey drafted RG Trey Smith drafted RT Lucas Niang This will 99.9 percent be by far the best line Mahomes has had since he joined the Chiefs. The early returns are good. If KC is a threat to run on short yardage and in goal to go situations, that means the full playbook is available and defenses can't drop 7-8 and rush 3-4 all the time. On defense, Willie Gay is looking like the speedy, coverage LB we've been missing, and rookie LB Bolton reports are good on so far too (very early on that yet though) Add to that, KC signed Jarron Reed, and Last year rookie impact UDFA Tershawn Wharton has given KC the depth to move Chris Jones to DE.....that has looked really good so far too. It is not lost on me that I am a biased KC fan. so take this all with a small grain of salt...but I'm not at all beyond being critical of my own team. Vegas has KC as front runners for a reason...they know those close games last year were not KC struggling to win...but struggling to put teams away late and letting them back in. They know the line being better will improve the metrics that kept KC from closing out teams....... I am predicting KC gets the 1 seed, is in the SB again, and will win it all. (bla bla bla bias...but Vegas sees it as I do) Buffalo is the main threat. CLEVELAND is the actual paper tiger. Bunch of close 1 score games. they rely on turnovers and game management to win..that leaves room for lucky bounces etc.

Steal of the draft

Chiefs update (for those interested) the Oline 1st unit in the preseason game was: LT Orlando Brown LG Joe Thuney C Creed Humphrey RG Trey Smith RT Lucas Niang My account of their performance....given that it was a small sample size, and the 49ers didn't play starters..... It was good. KC opened the game with a striaight ahead smash mouth run for 10. exactly what you'd want to see from the 1st unit VS the 2nd unit of another team. Again, given the small sample and 2nd stringers....they all looked good. Niang was especially effective. He may well have nailed down the RT job. Some things that seemed off. Noah Gray, the 5th round TE from Duke, didn't have a catch. I believe he was targeted 3 times. His frist try was a heater from Henne that was high and behind him....popped off his shoulder pad for an INT. Juan Thornhill, who started as a rookie and looked good 2 years ago before injury in the last game of the year in 2018...didn't look good...and has continued to run with the 2's and 3's in practices. This is a discouraging development. KC not deep at S. The KC D line, on the interior is deep. The young LB's Gay and Bolton continue to run with the 1's and are looking good. Probably doesn't mean anything in a preseason game VS scrubs, but SF targeted D'Andre Baker 6 times in coverage, and failed all 6 times to complete a pass. Baker has looked decent in camp so far (former Giants 1st rounder that got into legal troubles)

KC is full of burger, and especailly BBQ places...(I miss it) ...but there is a diverse food scene...you just need to hit up the river market area, or overland park. I digress. They have in n out and whataburger right next to each other where I live here in Texas. In in out does have a good burger...always hot and fresh....I like it. But like many others...it's not the best burger I've ever had....just good. The fries are awful...even when you ask them to be "well done". As a man who loves about any version of potatoe dish that is possible to make..I don't understand how in n out takes perfectly good potatoes and makes them into soemthing I can't stand to eat. Whataburger.....it's ok...I'll get it every now and then...but it's like McDonalds with a more diverse array of possible toppings....for those who have had Sonic...it's damn near the same burger. They do have an outstanding Grilled chicken Melt....it's not even on the menu....by far, the best thing they sell....amazing sandwich. Just as I was leaving living in Minot, ND, they put a tim Hortons in there (2016)....I thought it was good the few times I got to visit it before I moved. Sorry to hear it's gone down hill.

first...I am not a fan that has a take on that trade as you describe. I very much think it was a win win and have said so many times here. This thread is "other teams training camp" I am posting in a thread for non Bills training camp related news and notes. Where would you have me post this if not here?

This is a fair take. Having seen this dude so far (in camp...it's early...need to see games...but what we've seen has been very good) ....and having seen how many just crap jag nobodies go in round 4-7.....I don't know how teams, including KC.....weren't interested sooner than almost round 7. I get it's risky....so is taking Joe Snuffy from Northeast Wyoming Tech in round 5.

....when I say steal of the draft...I am not being a homer chearleader. The guy is going to make the pro bowl as a rookie.....he was drafted in the 6th round, 3 picks before round 7 started.

.....Trey Smith..... National media making the rounds through KC Camp.....all repeating the same thing. Steal of the draft.

This is technically correct......but essentially, at the time the Bills made the trade, it was with the aim to add ammo to get a QB in the 2018 draft. When that approached, they had X ammo available to manuever around and the intent of having that ammo, and the moves they ultimately made, were calculated with the idea that they had options available to them when the time came. Having that extra 1st rounder from KC factored into that quite a bit I would think.

I think the OP is meaning best trade ever in that both teams got huge wins from the trade....that rarely happens. From that perspective...this may well be the biggest W-W trade in history. KC got it's franchise QB, The Bills, even moving down to 27 in that draft, got an all pro CB, then the extra pick which helped to net them Josh Allen the following year...and Allen is a "Franchise QB" in every sense. Lastly.....Chiefs fan love Mahomes, and Bills fans love Allen. Neither fan base would trade one for the other....thats fine and again, just another sign of what a W / W trade this was. There isn't a need to seriously debate their talents...they are both very takented players....and very revered by the fans of the teams and accross the NFL. Mahomes and Allen are ELITE QB's. I am very happy for all the Bills fans...this is a great day for you and your franchise. I'm looking forward to many more KC/Bills games and also looking foward to rooting on Allen and the Bills when they aren't playing KC. He's great and fun to watch! Congratulations and....yes..GREAT TRADE.

I would say that it's a fun offense to play in for a QB....not so much QB friendly. Arians demands alot of long downfield passing. Even Brady was stuggling until he convinced Arians to run more of the shorter stuff Brady prefers.

https://twitter.com/MattVerderame/status/1422943336042729476?s=20

1st day of pads for KC. Niang struggled VS Frank Clark in one on one pass drills. Orlando Brown struggled VS Chris Jones in one on one pass drills. Not a great start for the OT's today.......but Jones is said to have looked good VS everyone....as he should. Creed Humphrey looking good at C....no reason at all to think he won't start. Trey Smith (steal of draft) looking good VS everyone but Chris Jones. Noah Gray having some struggles...had been looking great without pads. We'll see how things progress. Willie Gay continues to shine. Accoutns from players, coaches and media all glowing about his coverage and speed. Nick Bolton, making plays now that the pads are on....defending passes, and a couple INTS so far.

you'll understand soon enough.

I believe this is a leverage play and they chose Austin deliberatly....knew it would get alot of traction, and seems feasable to alot of people. It's one of the few cities that would probably hapily build a stadium......just leverage.... As I said before....the NFL isn't interested in any more domestic movement....it doen'st help teh TV contract.

Austin or any other UNITED STATES CITY, makes ZERO sense as a destination for a team like the Bills. the reason why is twofold for Austin...and you all have the first one covered. Jerry doesn't need another Texas team treading on his territory....and Austin isn't all that far away from Houston...I am SURE they also don't want a team in Austin. But the more important and bigger reason is that NON NFL MARKETS get just as high of television ratings and NFL markets do. Moving a team into a market does nothing to bring in more eyes and more TV money (wich is where the leauge makes the big bucks) To that end, Jerry could care less if teh Bills were in Buffalo or Des Moines Iowa....the TV money is all the same no matter where they have teams now...you don't generate a single new dollar by moving to a new town. Those days are over. What would move the needle would be an NFL team in Toronto. make whatever case you want about that...but having one team in Canada...they become alot like the Blue Jays, where that is Canadas MLB team....and THAT would bring more TV revenue to the NFL having those new and additonal eyeballs on TVs. Anyhthing short of a move to a NON US MARKET, is just he Pegulas posturing and looking for leverage to get their building done.

Just take my word for it.... It is probably going to be Brown, Thuney, Humphrey, Smith, Niang. KC is going to have some roster cuts at OL that many outsiders will be surprised by. I won't be shocked at all if LDT deosn't make the team and then retires.

Please kindly direct me to a good place in the Dallas/Ft Worth Metroplex.

More ribs....fries.....BBQ beans. Beans are a big deal here.

Lol. No one in KC cares about slaw. Most BBQ places here don’t serve it. A rare few do make a Carolina style pork and slaw sandwich.

Miami should have taken Herbert...but the one thing they still have going for them is that they have lots of draft captial and can take another big swing at QB.

Count me as a Tua detractor. I don't see it.

Cool thread. Reminds me of what happens when you poll Kansas City folks about the best BBQ in town. You get this same type of debate. Anyhow...I really enjoy "wings" but I've never been anywhere near western NY/Buffalo and just like I am a Kc BBQ snob...I am sure whatever wings I've had in KC or Dallas/Ft Worth (where I live now) are not on par with the real thing from the region and the people who know them the best. So....couple quesitons. Does anyone know where I could find some good wings here in the DFW area? and 2....reading through this and see alot of mentions about Bleu Cheese dressing....never seen any place serve that with wings..it's always been ranch. As I read through this...I thought how until a couple weeks ago I didn't like Bleu Cheese dressing......but that's becasue I think I've been duped by people serving me ranch and telling me it's Bleu Cheese. I had a wedge salad at a high end steak place down here a couple weeks ago, that came with Bleu Cheese....when I saw it, I was horrified thinking I'd wasted my money ordering it...covered with crumbles etc...but I took a bite and my god....it was incredibly deliecious! Must have been the real thing I got this time and crappy ranch so many other times. so, I can understand about some of the stories here about that.... Anyhow....good place for DFW wings...I'd love to get a taste of the good stuff if I can around these parts. THANKS.

As a Chiefs fan who see's the Bills as the no.1 competition to get back to the Super Bowl....I hope that you don't get Ertz. Maybe he's not quite what he was...but I do think he brings more to the table than Dawson Know...OR even better for the Bills....would allow some double TE sets with Knox and Ertz that would be dangerous.....and my team hasn't been very good at covering TE's in recent years.