Richard Noggin

Juicy.

Against the Pats and the 49ers they ran some 5-man line with Edmunds at one edge and Hughes at the other, and Klein in the middle. An alignment like that could be smart against the Ravens.

Except we already did, earlier this season. Henry didn't get his, minus a beastly stiff-arm. Tanny DID get his, however.

Allen carried the Bills today. Minus the unsuccessful run-check on 3rd-and-1 (after two consecutive runs) that looks to have maybe been his call at the line, and the 2019 wild card-esque killer sack in the 4th quarter (taking them out of field goal range, right?)...minus those two plays, Allen was better than the Colts.

I saw Edmunds making solid run stops in the middle gaps and playing the pass more assertively than we've seen prior. I thought he had a much more impactful game than Milano, who seemed to have some unusual difficulty blitzing and covering.

Next week is another crack at it. You can do better.

They traded a 1st for Buckner, actually. Kinda like our Diggs trade, only less impactful.

To be fair (cue the Letterkenny gifs), I seem to recall something last year along the lines Giuseppe mentioned. Josh getting too hyped in front of the home fans was a thing/talking point/soundbite/something for a bit. At least in my imperfect memory.

Unpopular opinion: I actually don't like the protection design on the play above ^^^. Relying so heavily on a very small WR and a rookie RB to hold blocks against blitzers...that ain't gonna work most times, and it kind of reminds of a play earlier in the season where a WR in motion, I want to say Gabriel Davis, was supposed to block...maybe Joey Bosa?...on a play. It did not exactly work out. The defenders on such plays ARE accounted for, technically, but...

Will be next year; just finalized 2 seats in lower 300s (oxymoron: lower upper deck) around the 30. I've typically made it to about 2-3 games/year since I returned to WNY in 2012. Silly story time (stop reading now if you hate football and/or fun): Was at the last playoff win with a friend in '95 as high school seniors (hell of a day...minimalist underage tailgate in the snow, crazy offensive output (especially the Canadian Missile), friend had just had wisdom teeth removed so we had Vicodin, et cetera...). Often had privileged access to the team as a server at Tempo during the Chan/Rex/Marrone/McD tenures. Watched the 2013 season opener against the Patriots FROM the Patriots box (had waited on them the night before). It was super corporate tame and lame so the two of us COMPLETELY drained their suite fridge of all booze by halftime and then met up with friends in the Rockpile for the 2nd half (the Bills had made the game close and then even went ahead before losing late). EJ looked like he might be something based on that game and then the next against Carolina. How times have changed...

*said in almost Vontae Davis voice*

https://images.app.goo.gl/gicr2pEmYc7gMcE97 (I suck at the internet. *Fails to insert Billy Madison gif of Farley saying "but you can imagine what it would be like if they did"*)

Trojan is the brand.

Not a brand. A size. Revealing confusion, eh?

And really, more than anything, just keep running to the damned ball when it's thrown to you. He does this maddening slow down and jump when he tracks passes lofted over his shoulder. Just effing run under it, my dude! Keep running!

Cool.

Thanks for linking this piece. It's not super detailed on the weight/physique front, as I'd like, but it's more than I previously had. I'll bet Epenesa got by in college on size and power (apparently at the request of his coaches), and because it worked, probably never sought to refine or otherwise maximize his athletic traits. The weight (and diet and training) component of this reminds me a little of Bruce Smith's transformation. He was like 305 (or even 310) as a rookie, with unrefined diet and training habits. Couple dedicated offseasons, with the help of Rusty Jones (the Bills S&C coach) and, allegedly, recreational appetite suppressants, and Smith played the majority of his career down in the 260s. I remember a summer, maybe training camp, TV report on Bruce that featured his purchase of a stairmaster for his home, which might have been somewhat unorthodox or progressive at the time. We've since learned more about his reliance on low-impact stair climbers for keeping the weight down and the cardio up. NOT suggesting the two players are similar in any other ways. Truly. Just curious what Epenesa's career will look like as he transforms and maximizes his body?

Where can I hear/read this stuff? What they're looking to do with Epenesa is fascinating to me: take a productive college DT/DE tweener with elite length and strength but below average (or worse) athleticism (natural fit for 3-4 DE/5-technique), and completely tear him down and rebuild him in the mold of a long 4-3 DE. Hope it works.

At some point today on WGR (OBL, I'm pretty sure), the Colts radio guy mentioned the Colts using Moore (CB) as their shutdown/shadow cover guy in crunch time recently. Like as an adjustment they had Moore follow some primary receiver on every play for an important 4th quarter drive, and it worked. Wish I could call up more specific details about this point. Anyone else hear it? Did you see it, OP, in your game reviews?

I'm replying to a post from page 3 without reading ahead, so if this has been addressed already, je m'excuse. It makes plenty of sense that defenses were behind offenses early on because, while in the offseason offensive players (anywhere from just the QB and one receiver, to an entire 11-man unit) can get together on their own and practice plays against air, defenses can't meaningfully do the same. Practicing defense requires an offense to defend. Alignments, checks, gap fits, pursuit, tackling, route recognition, combination coverages, passing off routes in zone, etc., can only be refined against NFL-caliber players and plays. The defense is dependent upon an opponent to get real work in. Much more so than the offense. Makes sense, right? I think the numbers, and I KNOW the player interviews (look at some Bills guys on D coming out of the bye) back this up.

Allen would have been 2 years old during Young's last full season in the NFL (1998). Young started three more games the next year, and that was it.

Young was mostly before JA was BORN.

I haven't heard that. Weird that he'd have a QB role model who he was too young to watch play.

Much more arm talent than Young. Not quite as pinpoint accurate (although he's getting there). Much larger and faster, but probably not quite as shifty. Not the best comparison, really.