Einstein's Dog

I think along your lines. The Bills may come out with a statement that they will forfeit. Say the league offered them a chance to replay and they declined. It just helps the league out of a tricky situation with the Bills taking the hit. The Bills were behind and it was a Bills player that went down. Plus there were rumors that McD wasn't bringing the team back out no matter what the league said. While the Superbowl odds may decrease, the overall Bills brand will shine. And there will be an undercurrent of support Nationwide.

This is one of the reasons it was a bad idea to put the KC game on Saturday. Now if the Bills forfeit (or if they lost) and KC wins Saturday, then the Bills have little to gain against the Pats - would need Cincy to lose for any change in seeding.

So if/when the Bills win tonight they might have the 1 seed locked up before they play week 18 if KC loses. Several thoughts from there. First wouldn't Miami and Pitt be pretty upset? Second would the Bills put in Case Keenum? It would be a long layoff- they would have the bye plus nothing on the line week 18. I thought the league was trying to avoid these scenarios. Seems like the league made this schedule thinking Cincy is going to win.

You continually devalue the worth of an excellent Defensive Line. The FO has done a stellar job, and just like this OP, you try to find a negative aspect. You fail to see the forest from the trees. This particular DL when healthy was in the discussion of all time Bills best. On Monday one of the biggest advantages in this game is the Bills defensive line winning the battle in the trenches. It seems reasonable that Cincy will have to adjust their game plan to account for the mismatch with Groot. And that forced adjustment alone is worth a lot. And while it seems understandable people can bemoan the Boogie over Creed pick. I don't think very many would be willing to trade Groot for Creed.

Well you did say that it was a troubling stance that Beane is on record saying that he is always looking to add to the defensive line. To me, that statement is not troubling at all, it's what I like to hear. I disagree with your finding issue with that statement. This is on top of the OP concentrating on one small aspect of what would have been arguably the best defensive line the Bills have ever had if Von had stayed healthy.

Quality, what about Von?. Now Groot is borderline elite. They bought one and drafted one. This method is sustainable as long as you can keep drafting one every couple of years. And the quantity you talk about is above average. Settle, Jones, Lawson, are all Beane tinkering and adjusting. Epenesa and Boogie are draft attempts that at least occupy previously expensive roster spots. As for sustainability, you need to keep the process going. First try and keep these guys together. And second you need to keep taking DL if they are BPA every couple of years.

Troubling stance? You're insane. Having a dominant defensive line should be a top priority. Above, dare I say, even the offensive line. With Von we had a dominant defensive line, the best since Bruce was here. We still have a very good defensive line and that is due to Beane realizing how important it is, adding and adjusting to it. Boogie was an attempt at the additions/adjustments. People here don't talk about this improved defensive line much because it doesn't fit the vocal minority's anti-Beane view. Instead you see threads isolating one particular aspect to fit their mindset.

They picked Boogie because they wanted a stellar defensive line at a cost they could afford. Neither Groot nor Boogie was a lock (nor is anyone at the 20+ range in the draft). But they were going to be groomed and hope to have a chance. These picks replaced the Murphy/Addison/Butlers of $8M-$12M range. These figures are more than it costs for a starting Olinemen.

I would love the 11 game win streak. I almost prefer it over KC losing to Denver and then the Bills (who of course will beat Cincy) would then be in the position of debating whether to keep the star players out. Right now everything is possible- SB winners, 11 game win streak, undisputed best team of 22-23, Josh MVP. That happens and the Bills will be the front runners for a 2023 repeat.

I agree, even if they are resting their starters in a somewhat meaningless game - seems like Willis would need the work. It will be interesting to see if D Henry plays - or how much.

Continuing on this pipe dream, if the Bills won and the Chiefs lost, the one seed would be locked. Would the Bills and then play backups? Would they care on the scenario on who they sent into the playoffs? Like it might be a win and in scenario for NE and if they lost Miami might get in. IMO (and probably most) Miami would be a stronger threat to KC than NE. Would be interesting to see.

Me too. I expected a little more from both Beas and Smoke. Maybe they are being treated like the rookies, have to come in and prove themselves (all over again). IMO, McKenzie did not secure the job against Chicago so the opportunity for change still exists. As House mentioned above, getting another weapon for the playoffs would be nice. But this Cincy game has a mini-playoff feel to it.

I'm hoping they have plays devised for both that 3 man front they put on KC is accounted for. Also need to be ready to counter this spy on Josh stuff. Thats where I hope the kinks of when Josh goes to one side and pulls the spy with him, a swing pass to Cook on the other side could really pay off.

They Tried!!! It hasn't worked - the swing passes to Singletary and Cook along with the crossers to McKenzie all are off. From Josh putting too much air under it, to changing and putting it right on them - only to have them drop it. They came in with the plan to incorporate this into the offense (from trying for McKissic to drafting Cook) and it hasn't materialized the way we hoped. Now in the stretch run I think they are considering converting back. When the 5 yards is needed there will be more lasers to Beas than there will be 3 yd crossers to McKenzie.

Miami looks terrible in this. But to me it looks like Tua is doing some self promoting at the expense of Miami. With the first concussion against the Bills Tua came in and won the game - no self reporting. And both Tua and Miami paid a hefty price when the followup blast against Cincy put him out for a while. This time when they lose the game and the timing of the potential concussion can explain away a terrible performance- Tua self reports. Does make for questions of if Tua would have self reported if the results had been different. Terrible optics for Miami. Tua looks pretty self-serving too though, and the franchise can't be happy with him. I can't complain though.

Daboll has done well overall with the talent he has. But my earlier thoughts have not changed - this early success may shorten Dabolls stay in NY. By overperforming early the Giants were unable to move Barkley for draft capital - which IMO is what Daboll would have wanted to do. It may be backing the Giants into the unfortunate situation of one of the teams that give big expensive contracts to RBs. The Giants will also be in poor position to do any radical moves for a QB. One of the boldest moves of the McBeane era was to retool the Bills after making the playoffs. I don't know if Daboll will be given the luxury of the time needed for attempting something that radical now.

Obviously not the best tandem - Chubb/Hunt, Elliot/Pollard, etc. J Cook is going to take on a larger role in the future- that's what good team management does for its higher draft picks. Develop and use the cheap talent you drafted. There is a need next year for a Thunder RB to complement Cook. That RB should be 95% good on 3rd and 1s and good in pass protection. IMO AJ Dillon would be a better fit if the price is right.

I think the plan will be to have J Cook increase at the work load to around 10-15 touches a game. Buying an expensive RB1 for full time duty would limit the opportunity for your second round pick to flourish - bad use of resources. So no Barkley/Hunt/Pollard. AJ Dillon would be a great fit for the role of Thunder - a veteran who could get the short yardage and would know about pass protection. It's about cost though. When the market dries up after the above RBs then Dillon or Singletary might be able to be had at a reasonable rate.

Adding a dynamic RB for the offense for four years is a good thing IMO too. After a rocky start they are developing him into a valuable asset for years to come. It will be fun to watch. The Bills will still need another RB IMO, but that doesn't mean Cook isn't worth it.

I agree with you. J Cook is taking over the Lightning role. And we can now see he has it in him. We keep Hines (maybe restructure) as backup lightning role to Cook and for special teams. The Bills will need a Thunder type - reliable 2-3 tough yards and excellent pass protecter. Seems suitable to be a veteran FA acquisition at a good price point. Maybe even Singletary although he isn't really the tough 2-3 yard guy.

On a related note, what was the reasoning for the placement at the 11 yd line for the punt that had wind aided carry down to the 4? Looked like Chicago was pinned back and then after a slight break saw the ball was placed at the 11. They ran a replay and my friend and I couldn't figure it out (we were at a bar and didn't have the audio). What did they say about that?

The Bills will be one of the Super Bowl contenders next year. They have the QB, management, coaching staff and enough players already. The hope is to keep as many of these elements here as long as possible and the good times will keep rolling! For next year, for the players, I hope Beane can add some offense, OL and WR through the draft. Some difficult D decisions are going to be made from the Edmunds/Oliver/Poyer/Hyde group. I hope they can keep this DL together, it is stellar and doesn't seem too expensive.

The problem with establishing the run early is it takes us away from passing early - the Bills strength. And if the Bills hit on the early mid-level passing the game has the potential of being a blowout win for the Bills. The Bills have the advantage vs almost all other teams on the 20 yard passing game. To the OP, every week for every OC can be frustrating if you are doing a post-game hindsight analysis versus perfection. You point out the Saffold penalty but how quickly you forget when Knox went over center against the Jets and how that turned out. You see the possibilities for improvement for Dorsey but what about McDaniel and his passing on third and one. Or Hoodie and his last play call against the Raiders. People here have revisionist history in their praise for Daboll, he had posts like this after every game too.

These are unprecedented times. Indictments against Beane for the 10-3 number one seed. Talks of firing Dorsey with the number 2 offense. And now the flaming of bringing back two WRs who just recently had 1000 yard seasons.

And can the indictment and hanging of Beane wait until after the playoffs? Or is the two for one sale for those who want to fire Dorsey too much to pass up.