WideNine

There is that stubborn few that will not be happy till Allen fails and they can say "I was right". Don't get it myself. Allen succeeding, means this team has finally found someone they can put under center to be competitive, and my pride can take a backseat to that any day. Also, I don't feel that most of us here have moved any goal posts as some claim. My stance on Allen and having patience has not changed one iota since last year. I am pretty pleased that he is showing progress in the areas that he needs to - not perfect, but getting it done and getting better the more time he spends under center and in the film room. Hope he continues to trend in the right direction, but expect to hit some speed bumps along the way.

I thought that was Singletary too, but it was McKenzie on a fake and misdirection. Singletary did get his first NFL rushing TD so kudos, but unfortunately it was obvious that he injured his hammy when untouched his leg gave out and he hopped out of bounds clutching the back of it. Hope he gets well soon as we are a bit thin right now...expect the Bills to make some roster moves if he is going to be out a few weeks.

We can all bend the truth... a bit......can't we? 4 TOVs by Allen with no qualifying info? - I will put one of those squarely on Allen and 3 as bad bounces and execution around him (1 ball popped up by Beasley, 1 ball tipped at line directly to defender, 1 Tackle cleanly beat and ball stripped from behind). The "strip sack" you mention today was Allen clearly in the grasp (they almost ripped his jersey off), a very, very slow whistle, and a Giants defender that while down on the ground brought his foot up to kick at Allen and ended up kicking the ball out. But a "should have been strip sack" of a reckless Allen supports a better negative narrative right?

The point is that it is just a stat, without understanding or watching film it does not tell the whole story. It didn't last year, and it doesn't now. Most of the voices of reason here simply said that when Josh started reading defenses better, and taking some of the easy throws underneath with anticipation, and with a better supporting cast the % would naturally increase. There were a few stubborn individuals that acted like he had a bent barrel and would be lucky to break 60%. He is just talented kid with a big arm that many accepted would need time and patience to develop into an NFL QB. Some here rushed to early judgement and they may end up having to be ok with the Bills having a talented QB who has yet to reach his full potential, but one that is getting better each game as he sees how teams scheme against him.

Yep. That one caught my eye. Would like to see Josh master the pump fake, but the few times he has done that or patted the ball I don't think it has turned out well - usually too much mustard or he has telegraphed the play to a defender playing the deep ball. Savvy veteran QBs learn over time how to fake enough to get defenders to mistime their leaps. Allen will get there, but I like that he is learning to find ways to create throwing lanes this early in his growth. I felt that going to that QB draw again was Daboll getting a bit too cute, but the first one worked fine and the holding on Morse was bogus. That being said I thought the penalty on the Giants for "touching" our long snapper that gave us a fresh set of downs was pretty ticky-tacky too. Would have preferred less flags all around, but I think the mess sort of played out evenly.

Allen is going to see his share of tipped balls as most defensive lines are being coached to keep him hemmed in the pocket because he can take off on them, and to follow his eyes. You see this especially from the edge guys. If their first move does not create a path to Allen they drop back a bit and follow his eyes. Its those times that our o-linemen have to be a bit aggressive and get their hands into their body so they cannot time their leap or focus on Allen. That is a lot to ask from Ford who considering how far I feel he had to come with his foot speed as a rookie to be where he needed to be to beat speed rushers when playing RT, he has done a decent job ( with a few hiccups) of taking away the outside rush leverage. That being said, he has to give up more than a bit of cushion to the rusher to recover from any moves they throw at him. He is no where near his ceiling and I think we have a good one - I loved the way they flocked to Allen's aid. Sending a message about protecting their QB - we needed that more last year.

Good all around game, one where towards the end of the 1st and in the 2nd the Bills jumped to a comfy lead and yet managed to NOT give the game away in the 2nd half. There were a few throws that Allen wanted back, but if you listen to the QBs that are now commentators to a man they are saying he is a young QB with a huge arm that will learn more touch as he gains more time under center and as he recognizes more quickly and trusts where he needs to go with the ball. What I liked is that Allen did not feel that he had to carry this team to win the game. The Giants got good pressure on a lot of throws (often bringing 5), more often than not Allen would buy space and either find some yards on his own, roll out and find an open man, or throw it away when needed. The Giants took some things away from Allen in the passing game in the 2nd half - he will learn from that. Allen certainly has the personality that probably wanted to take more shots down field, BUT I am sure that the coaching staff with the lead and the way the defense was playing pulled on the reigns and it was a mature approach by Allen to hand off and take time off the clock. That is something Allen has rarely if ever had to do. It was a step away from hero-ball and a steady march towards maturity. You do what you need to do to win, not pad stats. I felt our o-line struggled, both protecting and with sloppy penalties. They have work to do, not sure if Ty Nsekhe was still in there in the second half I know he was a bit dinged early, but I did not focus to see if he was still in there. Our defense did not get a lot of pressure on Eli, but I also understand that they were committed to being disciplined in regards to their rush lanes, kept to the 4-man rush primarily, and were pretty conservative as part of respecting what Barkley can do. They came up with some key stops when needed and kept Barkley hemmed in after making adjustments from the 1st drive. I think the Giants o-line did a good job of buying Eli time. There were more than a few floaters tossed up by Eli, that I would have liked to see our secondary make a play on. I think Poyer is going to get fined for the helmet to helmet hit although I think he was just trying to stick a shoulder into the ball and the receiver happened to duck down at the same time to protect the ball. Whether it was intentional or not will probably not matter. Opening 2-0 on the road folks with almost a completely revamped offense. Not sure why folks want to be negative, sure we left some points on the field, Josh overthrew a couple and so did just about every other QB in the league, Zay continues his streak of 0 YAC - he does tend to leave his feet and go down to the turf on plays where he could keep running through the catch and I think he just does not trust his hands and prefers to cradle the ball with his body.... dunno, its a theory. Knox let one go through his hands, but the kid threw a textbook block that sealed the edge for McKenzie to rush it in for the score. The Special Teams has been solid - with one guy not being disciplined in his lane that allowed one long return, but otherwise the punting and kickoffs have been good and Siran Neal had a good all around game both for the defense and for Special Teams (would get my game ball as I felt he made the key plays at key times that kept the game out of reach for the Giants).

Yep. Would cost those players more. Just saw this fine update at the end of the other Anderson cheapshot thread... Moderators feel free to merge delete - its all good.

Looks like Jets scumbag Henry Anderson was fined $10,527 by the league. Does a fine like that for a guy making millions actually curb the behavior? Should be exponential then forfeiting games for repeat cheapshot artists. https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/fines-suspensions/

I think the turnovers were the biggest issue. Turning it over deep in our own zone, or turning it over deep in your opponents red zone. We had both and you are right, against a well-coached team that would have been it for the game. The only consolation I take is that the majority of the turnovers were flukes, ball being popped up by receiver, ball being tipped at line right to a defender, and Morse who was arguably rusty hiking the ball into his thigh anticipating the rush of Williams. Outside of those I saw Allen march the team down the field and make some good reads on the defense and Singletary in his rookie debut made yards and did not put the ball on the carpet. As a work in progress I think it was a step forward, but we will see if they have ironed out the flukes against the G-men.

Great question Promo, I think many of the better offenses in the league mask pretty poor defenses, or one dimensional defenses that only perform well with a lead where they can just focus on pinning their ears back and rushing the passer. One of the main reasons Daboll has been working with Allen on his short game is not just that it forces him to make pre-snap reads of the defense, but also that working your way down the field eats clock and rests your defense. A good mix of run and short pass with a solid defense can win just as much as an explosive offense IMO because you limit the other teams offensive snaps and keep your defense fresh.

I start mixing myself cocktails at halftime, that way I am ready for either outcome. Used to be in a bad mood after a loss for a few days, now a bit of commiserating and venting here and I am good to go. The wife never wanted to hear it, but think having an outlet when you are a displaced WNY sports fan is the best therapy.

What? No one has ever heard of a guy wearing a "Manpon" to stay dry?

Same guy who lit up our kicker away from the play last year...you don't get off the ground and take a 3 yard dive into the back of a QBs knees when the ball is gone - accidentally. I have no words, guys like this I would tell my boys to send a message - if the league does not do enough a crack back block or two may help clarify the boundaries.

The Pats ran the ball down our throats last year, don't think that will work as well this year against this "D". I am thinking those games with NE are going to get UGLY...especially all the "roughing the Brady" calls we are going to get if any of our d-linemen lay a glove on him. Allen is the "X" factor, it is his athleticism that Belichick can't predict - his ability to make people miss and extend plays or pick up a 1st with his legs. Teams will continue to scheme some zone underneath to take away the quick plays against the cushion and man at the sticks to force Allen to hold it, and expect a LB or Safety to spy Allen to prevent him from taking off. NE would be pretty vulnerable to screens if we could execute them, would like to see how they cover the jet sweep if their corners are playing off, some of those counters and plays where we pulled Morse to help seal the edge would give Singletary room to make plays. Should stop, as I am getting ahead of myself G-men are next up, and we just need to win that game.

It is just one game in, but Hock looks like the real deal, in that first game he broke the rookie TE receiving record. I think Jax Oliver had a bad hamstring pull in camp or preseason...have to look, but don't think he will be ready to go full out for a week or two. I know Beane really wanted Ed Oliver, but if Hock had fallen to us it would not have been "the End" as some felt. If he stays healthy he is going to post some pretty good numbers. I like our Oliver too...draft was a win/win scenario in my book the way it fell in the 1st. Knox is not Hockenson, but he did not get the coaching at Ol' Miss that TJ received at Iowa and although his measurables were close at the combine his ceiling is still a big ? Sweeney has made the most of his chances and seems to have built some rapport with Allen. He throws some good blocks and does not play like the game is too big for him. Both our later round TE's may not end up game changers, but I can settle for solid contributors.

Nice pickup NE...

That is my mindset too, but I have to admit this team under McBeane mgmt has me glued to each game. Just feels different than the meh I had for most if the drought years....knowing they would either get blown out, or find a way to cave in. They are a tough group, have no sh*ts to give about the past, and are going to go out there and work to make their own mark. 1 and 0 and the only thing on the to-do list is game plan and execute to beat the G-men. Taking it one game at a time.

I don't blame either guy too much. Josh had too much heat on it, but was trying to put it where only Beasley could make a play on it. Beasley knows better than to do a tip-drill in that area of the field, but it hit his knee - it happens. I think what I thunk before and that is that Josh is a competitor and needs to do something to level out the adrenaline at the beginning of games. That is why I think Daboll should just have a bunch of designed roll outs and such early to help him settle down and take some of the sauce off those early throws.

Reporters will love Gase because reporting on dumpster fires and drama is what sells the news. I am absolutely positive that they want him to speak his mind.

Just wow. Failure starts at the top Gase - talk about leaving bodies on the hwy....what a tool. This is not the way that a 1st year head coach wins over the locker room. You CAN critique players or even other coaches, but there is a right and a wrong way and Gase certainly has not been with the team long enough to earn the right to do it the wrong way. I did not see a Jets team that was lying down yesterday - go figure. Some coaches have a way of critiquing with a sense of humor - Wade could do it, ol' McKay from the Bucs was classic with his quips, and us older fans can remember: "What do you think of the team's execution coach?" - "I am in favor of it", or when asked if there was a strategy for throwing so many short passes instead of long ones, "Yeah, the strategy was that if he held the ball any longer he would have been killed", or "We didn't tackle well today, but we made up for it by not blocking" the guy was pure gold and entertaining to listen to. Gase just comes off as kind of a wet blanket whiner, small wonder Miami just crumbled under him... I was a bit worried about the Jests building some kind of a team, but thankfully we kept Gase in the AFC East and he should keep their success in check. Now with Miami tanking and the process starting to get traction... this year is getting interesting.

Yep this. How the hell does the NFL have a bad goal line camera angle - WTF. It is only the spot other than the uprights where teams score. Not enough evidence my backside.

Lamar is a good fit for Roman's offense. Not ditching his skill set just that Roman will get the most out of them. They should not get too full of themselves, there are plenty of teams better than Miami and many of them can do a better job against the read option.

This. The bounces were not kind to Allen's stat lines, but good teams find a way to win, bad teams find a way to lose. He hung in there, and Daboll figured out ways to negate the Jets inside rush and run blitz by pulling linemen and sealing the perimeter for some nice gains. Once they got the run moving and honestly having Mosley sidelined helped, our run game started to get traction and Josh was able to hit some downfield plays. Almost feel like Allen has heard that he needs to hit the underneath routes so much that we failed to really test the Jets deep when I felt we had some good mismatches with their corners. I'll take the win and my Bills being undefeated for now.

Allen is still a bit amped early in the games and we saw some communication challenges with Morse who drew a tough assignment without a lot of game action till today. Defense was solid, Allen made some good decisions with the ball and a few bad ones, but more often I saw the maturation to throw it away when needed. Mosley is a stud and it hurt the Jets losing him. The Jets have some talent...was a slug fest with a lot of batted balls and Allen had the lion's share of bad bounces. There were a few by Darnold that could have gone poorly for a pick six but he got the better bounces. Tough win and more work to do, but I will take it.