Richard Noggin

While on one level I agree with you and the majority of posters on this thread...that Allen is looking more composed and decisive and accurate...we shouldn't completely lose sight of the context: neither Carolina nor Indy sent pressure packages or disguised their coverages much. A first-team offense/starting QB SHOULD enjoy success under those circumstances. And again, don't misunderstand me: it's very encouraging to see the Bills finally execute a modern passing attack. It bodes well. Our own D is winning its battles using vanilla schemes. But defenses will play Allen much differently in the regular season. I'm curious how well Allen will diagnose and react to different pressures and coverages.

Who else thinks Feliciano is a beast who can be a starter at this level? For some reason I'm not as worried as I should be about Morse. First of all, he'll be back on the field any day now. Second of all, the Bills have contingency plans in case their starting center can't play. Feliciano is big and mean. Long can back up in the pivot. But the way Feliciano rallied to support whichever WR got hit out of bounds in the first quarter, getting right up in the defender's face...it showed a lot. He's part of the team's plans moving forward. Of course let's hope Morse is able to play this season without complications from yet another concussion. But other NFL players have persevered through such histories; Luke Keuchly, for example, is a guy who has garnered mucho attention for head injuries in the past, but is not currently viewed as a high risk guy (by Bills fans, at least).

So...what you're saying is it does NOT take time?

I think you're clearly talking about his tangibles here, yes?

He's not all-anything because he just played his first organized football game tonight. I don't know how well he catches, or picks up blitzers, or performs any of the other nuanced tasks NFL RBs need to master. But he runs well and secures the ball.

It's true what you say. Isn't it ironic? Don't you think?

Same. Felt like a grind to get through it (which I did not do). Nothing authentic on display. Bunch of awkward ego-cases and not enough football.

The way he was holding the ball is called TEXTBOOK form. Five points of contact. High and tight. I'll bet he he's NOT been fumbling in camp. Rugby players don't fumble without a fight. That big ass ball is slippery, too. You gotta hug it hard and high.

Carry on, then. (That hesitation actually froze the guy with the best angle and opened up the run for the sticks, though.)

Yes, we'd hate for our franchise's future to protect himself more and make smarter decisions moving forward.

I'm DEEPLY comforted that Bodine is NOT the plan at backup C.

I try not to drink that much for the first preseason game. Ease into form...

Groy was MUCH worse in the pivot last season. Much worse. The line was an effing mess while he was starting. But yeah, Bodine is not an NFL starter. Well-chosen screen name.

Well-written. Astro's wit connects in this one.

I resemble every part of this post. How dare you.

That's what I expect to hear. Popular, but ultra-high-end Napa stuff. Far Niente is no joke. Refreshing (and rare) when they delve into the old-world, given their disposable (by most reasonable standards) incomes and potential access to solid information (much better values and vintages and interesting wine-making available from Europe compared to the U.S., dollar-for-dollar). Took me some years to understand this. No doubt. I was simply citing the source I'd heard, as inquired by a fellow poster. Personally, I don't think we can learn much about NFL line play from pad-less practices.

Specifics? As someone who pours mucho vino for the PSE organization and teams, I'm always interested in what they (top to bottom) get turned onto for wine. LaFontaine, for example, was a big Bordeaux guy (which made for an interesting dynamic with Terry Pegula, who knows his Left Bank chateaus).

It was definitely mentioned on OBL by Tasker, I think. Maybe they had 'Zo on at the time? I didn't catch Tasker's citation for the observation, if it came from him personally or from talking to others. Paraphrase from memory: The Bills have some big, wide NFL bodies on the interior O-line, and Oliver has had some difficulty getting around them at times. That's where I heard "this talk" earlier today...

You've heard of zone blitzes, yes? Rex Ryan was not really a pioneer of the tactic (I think LeBeau's Pittsburgh defenses utilized it early and often), nor was he really known for it in particular. (Mario carping about it to the media put an undeserved spotlight on it; IIRC our d-linemen weren't asked to drop nearly as often as Mario's complaints suggested. I remember many debates on the BBMB about this issue.)

I have enjoyed Mirbeau's amenities a few times myself. Feels more like Europe than the U.S., no?

You know, so did I, at first. But then I waited on him a bunch, including the night he was doing the hard-sell on his big FA class of 2014. In an overheated 3rd floor dining room with Spikes, Dixon, Graham, and Rivers (who literally signed his contract mid-meal in a storage room) plus their families and the appropriate coaches, Marrone got himself fairly tuned up and went on and on about what a fu$%!ng awesome o-line coach he is because of his success in New Orleans. You know, the whole Saint Doug shtick. It was a real thing. He was somewhat likable from a jock-y perspective, with his downstate accent and bravado and his former o-lineman physical stature. But so damned aloof as coach of the Bills. (I had had a random, previous interaction with him in a Tipp Hill bar in Syracuse (while he was head coach there) that revealed a MUCH more humble and tolerant public persona, for the record. Made an instant fan out of me. But his private demeanor with the Bills was really ego-city).

While Poyer seems to play closer to the ball, and therefore gathers more flash plays/stats, I agree that Hyde is the more valued property (at least from a coaching perspective). He was McD's first big FA acquisition.

This is where it gets interesting, especially in the secondary (as several have already noted). NO WAY do both Hyde AND Poyer get extended (IMO). While their versatility and interchangeability as a safety tandem is special (as highlighted by Belichick, among others), the Bills can't pay two safeties top dollar without making significant compromises elsewhere. Plus, they're both 28 already (2 seasons left for Poyer's deal--at half Hyde's price--and 3 for Hyde). If Poyer isn't extended before next season, then I'll bet he leaves in FA after 2020, gets replaced by a younger, cheaper option, and the Bills look to extend Hyde similar to what they just did with Hughes.

Totally agree. The most effective defenses stop the run (and of course get after the QB, but you can't necessarily get after the QB when the offense is getting after YOU).

Looking at the bolded in particular: over the last decade, Vegas has actually been MOST accurate (in the entire NFL) when predicting the Bills W/L record, according to https://nationalfootballpost.com/win-totals/. Now I know past results do not necessarily predict future outcomes, but we should not so casually dismiss the Vegas predictions. Unlike sports writers and fans, the casinos have quantifiable skin in the game. There are myriad scenarios (injuries, historically inconsistent defensive results from year-to-year, lack of progression from young players, etc.) wherein the Bills fall short of ten wins. Ten wins would mean that nearly every ? on the team becomes a + in 2019. It CAN happen. But it's not statistically likely. That being said, go Bills. Win the bleeping division.