CincyBillsFan

Bingo! I bet when you look back at those 4 - 0 pre-season teams that went 0 - 16 they played to win their pre-season games and kept their starters & back-ups in longer. Those teams knew they sucked and used pre-season wins to drive ticket sales. What I've observed through 2 pre-season games so far is a team that is working on stuff, evaluating players and still managing to win the game. This indicates talent & depth. Something I've not seen for the last 20 years.

I don't think meth has the pharmacological strength to warp reality in the way this thread has.

When I read this I was even more encouraged about what I saw Thursday night. I respect Kubiak's opinion and thought he was very fair AND honest last year in his appraisals of Allen. On the other hand I'm not sure why someone would start such an odd thread. It was as if the thread starter hadn't watched the first 2 possessions that Allen was in on. It has to be pure trolling but why waste the time? I guess I'm guilty of feeding the trolls by responding. Maybe 2BD should set up a special thread for all the Allen haters to congregate in and post their wisdom. That way we could have the opportunity to troll them.

Are you saying that when the Bills (and others) passed on Mahomes in 2017 they had already decided to draft Allen in 2018? Because unless that's true there's no rational reason to connect Mahomes to Allen other then as two top QB's in competition.

When did he lead Beasley into traffic? I saw two completions to Beasley both of which hit him dead center. On one Beasley was able to turn up field for an extra 5 yards. I don't think he targeted him any other times?

It was right on his hands and not an inch behind Jones. If it was thrown in front of him it's either intercepted or Jones is rocked as he makes the catch. That was a tremendous pass threading a narrow window down by the goal line.

Out of curiosity what bad throw by Allen left pints on the field? What I saw was: * On the first series a holding penalty took away a 7 yard pass completion and knocked the Bills off schedule deep in their own territory. * On the 2nd series Allen was on fire as the Bills drove down into the Red Zone. Jones drops a great Allen pass at the goal line and Bills miss the FG. Still Allen looked sharp and the O-line looked okay. The coaches must have liked what they saw with the 1st team offense since they took Allen and most of the starters out after the 2nd series.

I agree especially his 2nd series. The holding penalty knocked them off schedule in the first series but as Matt Perino noted had Jones held onto the ball Allen would have been 5/6 for 70 yards and a TD on that 2nd drive. Very solid outing.

Wait I think we're talking past each other here. I thought it was a GREAT pass. In fact it was a perfect pass. I think I misunderstood your response, my bad.

I watched the play. It was pretty clear to me. What did you see?

It was as close to being a perfect pass as you're going to get at the goal line. The ball was placed right on the hands and not behind Jones. Had Allen led Jones even a bit then he would have been lit up with the ball bouncing up into the air at the goal line which doesn't usually end well. How anyone can say that wasn't a great pass is beyond me.

If Jones holds onto that perfectly placed ball, Allen's 2nd drive was just as good.

It would have been nice if Zay had held onto the ball and the Bills punch it in for a TD. Then you take out Allen on a high note. Now do you play Allen another series?

Judas priest we can't have guys dropping balls that would have put the Bills inside the 2 yard line.

I didn't like the holding penalty that wiped out a nice 1st down gain so instead of 2nd & 3 we were in 1st & 20. That has to stop.

I see what you're saying watching that pass play. It looks like Allen just flips the ball using half an arm motion and the ball goes over 30 yards for a perfect placement.

Great points and I would add that with all the injuries to our TE's wasn't Allen effectively working with the 4th & 5th string TE's in that Red Zone drill? IMO when you're down that close to the goal line your TE is probably the most important receiver on the offense. Frankly, I like the body chemistry & words coming out of the Bill's training camp.

The way I try to get a take on whether a player is doing well or not in training camp is by listening to what he and those around him ON THE TEAM are saying. It's not an exact science and you have to read between the lines and look at body language but my takeaway on Allen is: * First, listen & watch how Allen is behaving. Last year it became clear that this guy is very hard on himself. He doesn't blame others when he sucks or makes a bad decision. So what Allen is saying and more importantly his body language are critical to assessing his performance in PRACTICE. So far he's come across as in command, upbeat and confident. I get the clear sense that he's feeling his oats and is loving the new talent the Bill's have brought in on offense. If he was struggling I would fully expect to see frustration out of Allen in practice and in the post practice interviews. Instead, he's interviewing more like a guy who just won a game and played well. * Second, look and listen to Bean, McDermitt & Dabold. Given that their professional reputations and income depend on Allen doing well you should be able to get a clue by their demeanor whether Allen is doing good or bad. So you have to ask the question - do they look like they're walking past the graveyard? My answer would be a great big HELL NO! In fact It's the exact opposite as these guys seem upbeat, relaxed and liking what they see in their franchise QB. * Third, look and listen to what the players around Allen are saying and how they're acting. Again, it seems pretty clear that Allen is the leader of the offense and I haven't detected in their words or body language a whiff of frustration from the new, VETERAN players that have joined the Bills. My guess is that Beasley & Brown are figuring out how best to get Allen's attention so they can have all pro stats this year. They see visions of 1,000 yard seasons with Allen throwing them the ball. So sure my way doesn't involve a detailed breakdown of every freaking PRACTICE play. But I think at this point the eye test is the best way to gauge progress as long as you watch more then just Allen.

It's head scratching how this guy actually puts in YARDAGE numbers. How the hell does he come up with his numbers? I mean some of the drills start at the 10 yard line so does it even make sense to reference "yardage"? Or what happens when Allen hits Beasley on a 15 yard pass and the guy jukes his way past the tackler then cuts up field for what looks like a huge gain and the whistle blows? Does Brown give Allen 15 yards or does he give him about 20 (when the whistle blows) or 65 yards which is what the play may have gained? Statistics are dangerous in the hands of football writers.

Judas Priest sharing QB stats from practice just seems so dumb AND misleading. Thad Brown has Allen at 8/19 for 72 yards, 5 TD's(!) & 1 INT. Brown calls out the dropped INT but not the dropped passes - biased much? All I want to hear from the so called professional "experts" is an overall assessment of Allen's performance. Given the nature of practice keep the descriptors general and subjective. Don't insult our intelligence by providing numbers as if they mean anything from a practice. The coaches must laugh there asses off at this stuff.

Buffalo Bills versus Carolina Panthers Why the Bills: What's the point of being a fan during training camp if you don't think your team can get to the Super Bowl? There is time enough for the reality of the regular season to kick in and adjust your expectations accordingly. Why the Panthers: A healthy Cam Newton combined with the NFL's best RB - yes, in the modern NFL McCaffrey is the best RB and he'll blow past 2,000 yards rushing & receiving - will mean Carolina will have a scary good offense. On defense they still have the best LB in the NFL and Rivera is a defensive minded coach who will fix the D's lapses from last season.

So far so good in training camp with no major injuries! Knock on wood. Our two 1st rounders from last year seem to be on the verge of breakout seasons as both are having great camps. Rumors that the O-line & Receiving Unit would be much improved after the Bills off season signings have been confirmed. Allen really seems to have a handle on the offense and Dabold has settled into the Offensive Coordinator role. The new O-line coach is a hoot and seems to know what he's doing. Overall the Bills look to be way ahead of last year at this point in training camp. One final note: Is it me or does posting Allen's STATS for practice make Thad Brown look dumb?

I would add that McCaffrey's play is almost solely responsible for Cam raising his completion % so much. He is an elite pass catching RB who not only makes great grabs but has a killer 1st move. For probably the 1st time in his career Newton recognized that he had a play-maker catching the ball out of the backfield that could turn 5 yard gains into 15 yard gains. We really need McCoy or the rookie to step up and be that RB who is dangerous catching the ball AND picking up the blitz.

I remember watching a KC game in which Mahomes had a couple of throws that went for big yards to the TE Kelcy. Both throws were a bit off with one being behind and the other down below the knees of Kelcy. Yet the TE caught them both and rumbled for decent yards. My first thought after each of the catches was: Clay doesn't make either one. The job of an NFL QB is to get the ball close to their receivers. Being a little off is not nearly as important as receivers who can't make tough catches. In every Bills game I can remember receivers for the opposition making tough and at times spectacular catches against us. I can't remember more then 1 or 2 such catches the ENTIRE season from our guys. Fix this problem and the accuracy issue largely goes away.

Great question and the ONLY logical answer would be along the lines of "gee, Mahomes didn't get to play much did he? Is he still in line to be "the guy" in 2018 or are your guys going to be looking for a QB in this years loaded draft ". Hell, even a lot of Chiefs fans must have wondered about this. Only those who CLOSELY followed KC would have known that Mahomes had impressed in practice and had a decent game at the end of the season when he got his only start.