newcam2012

I happen to agree with this grim take. They are restricted by the cap. All the moves have been nothing special on paper. A hope and wait and see. Of course, most here remain optimistic the moves with be successful. Based on the past its hard to do cartwheels of exuberance.

It's yet to be seen if Cook is able to be effective with a consistent large work load. He's a pretty small RB and he's never had an opportunity to be a high volume RB. An increased workload doesn't always equate to better production. Harris for sure has huge injury concerns. Think Crowder for a reference.

Cook has never been a high volume RB. Look back at his college days in Ga.. I don't see him getting a large amount of touches in this offense. He shows promise. His quickness and speed must be maximized. Good luck there with Dorsey. The RB situation seems a little crowed right now. I think he can have a nice year but I do think some expectations here are a little too rosey. Cook still has a lot to prove.

I'm not concerned with Allen stats. The priority is keeping Allen healthy. Don't increase his chances of getting injuried. More hits equates to more injuries.

You have to protect Allen from Allen. He's too reckless and that leads to too many critical turnovers. He has too much on his plate. Make it more simple for him. Have a solid running game. Run the ball consistently 20 plus times a game. The oline is vastly improved. Have Allen make a lot of quick throws and one and two reads only. Limit his running and scrambling because of injury concerns. Gotta play smart don't take risk. No Allen equals no playoffs. Allen has to take the underneath throws, screen passes, and slants. The WR upgrades this year should produce dividends. The defense should be in beast mode all year. McD knows defenses. I expect a top defense in the league. McD knows his guys and knows how to get the best out of them. Allen doesn't have to be superman anymore. Less turnovers, more power running, commit to the run, safer passes, and a great D. That's a good recipe for hoisting the Lombardi.

More running backs contribution in the run and pass game, quick slant passes, seem passes to the tights ends, quick passes to the Wrs, a few RPOs, power running with Harris, up tempo no huddle offense very frequently, and take a few timely shots downfield. On defense, McD is the best in the game. His defense should be top 3 in the league. I suspect a top 5 defense in the red zone. McD D will be more aggressive and cause lots of turnovers. This will break out year for several Bills pass rushers. Oliver and Rousseau may be pro bowl bound. This is the year AJ and Boogie thrive. Bills will be top ten in sacks this year. I think this could be the year. Great defense and well rounded offense. Almost a throwback version of football. Keep your QB safe, limit turnovers, pound the rock, play great D quick passing first or 2nd read let it rip, and conservatively take your shots deep.

Less passing because he can't afford to take the hits and get injuried. Like you said he's getting older. Those hits in the pocket are dangerous. Injuries are a huge concern. Look at his elbow injury which occurred on a pass. Stats bare out QBs get hurt more while attempting passes. Bills can use Harris to pound the ball, Cook and Hines as big play guys in the run game and short quick passes. Quick short passing game would be optimal. Similar to Cinci and Burrow. Quick releases to prevent an Allen injury is prudent. Slants, outlet passes, RB and WR screens. Quick quick quick... Protect the franchise QB is top priority here. It's the ultimate concern and you have to do everything to maximize the chances of a healthy Allen. Once in a while you can take a deeper throw to keep the D honest. I'm sure, we will all be holding our breath and hoping Allen doesn't get hit and hurt. Also, Allen can't hold on to the ball too long. He can't roll out and scramble as much because it makes him more vulnerable to injuries. Don't we all cringe when we see this? Josh has to throw the ball away and live for another play. There's nothing wrong with a punt sometimes. Besides, the Bills will now have a McD run D. That's pretty much gonna guarantee you a top 10 D. Lastly, like everyone says limit Allen's runs. Look at how Lamar gets injuried running. We don't want a Cam Newton replay. The Bills should use Allen's legs as mostly a decoy. No way should he be running the ball 7 or 8 times. He's getting older and it's just a matter of time before he gets hurt. The Bills have to think long term here. So we have a bit of a quandary here. The vital concern is to keep Allen healthy. Without Allen the Bills are basically toast. So how do you optimize this? Less longer developing passing plays and less QB runs in that order. More specifically, less passes where Allen has to remain in the pocket or scramble. It's a bit of a change in offensive philosophy. I get that but you can't lose site of the main priority. A healthy Allen!!! Some might think it's playing scared but I'd say it's playing smart. Let McD and his D do what they do. I have confidence his D will make the big plays when needed. No more 3rd and 15 first downs under his watch. Allen has to protect the ball, establish a solid run game, lots and lots of short quick passes. Sort of a variation of a west coast offense. Throw a few deep ones when safe. Don't ever lose site of protecting your franchise QB. Without him the Bills don't make the playoffs. Under the above mentioned scenario the Bills make the playoffs. Most everyone is happy. Go Bills.

Following that train of thought do the Bills have to prove it to you? Prove they can win a game to go to the SB? Prove they can win a SB? They Bills still have a lot to prove under Beane and McD. Thus far, they have proven they can be an excellent regular season team and a meicore playoff team. A team that can't get to the SB.

I just can't see how the Bills go 5-12 with a healthy Allen. No way!

I think that's the likely way it happens if it happens.

Injuries hurt far more on the defensive side of the ball. Definetly had a negative impact. However, the offensive side of the ball was quite the contrary. The Bills offense was very healthy going into the post season. Davis was long healed as best he could be considering its football. The offense really had NO excuses not to preform at an elite level in the playoffs. I'm not buying the out of gas do to the traumatic season's events. Plenty do because it fits their narrative. Not mine if you will... Offensively, the Bills oline was a problem as well as their WRs. The OC's game plan and schemes were obvious, less creative, and easier to defend. The coaching staff and these defiencies added up to a poultry 10 points vs Cinci. Defensively the Bills had little to no chance of stopping a good offense. Without Von the Bills pass rush blows. Let's just be honest. Tre looked like dog poop coming off ACL and Elam was a horrible fit for the Bills D. The Bills have addressed many of the offensive defiencies this off season. It remains to be seen if it pans out. Hopefully it does and on paper the Bills offense looks to be strong. On defense, all I'm really looking for is a defense that can make a few crucial stops when it counts. Von are you listening? The Bills are contenders and that's exciting. It great going into the season knowing your team has a legit chance of hoisting a Lombardi. I'm skeptical it will happen but it's quite possible. Many organizations can't say that. Go Bills!

Great insight here and post. Not much to quibble about. A few thoughts: We can only hope McD learns how to lead his team to a SB party. Reid has certainly turned it around. Mahomes clearly has a lot to do with that. Nevertheless, Reid deservedly get credit too. Unfortunately, there is no correlation beteeen Reid and McD. People use this as an example to support McD. Time will tell what transpires. As for Allen. I think Cam is a poor example. The game was much different back then. Defenses could crush QBs out of the pocket. Refs seemingly allowed Cam to take more punishment than others. I see no issues with smartly running Allen. It's a risk worth taking because Allen is that good and it causes so much disruption for a defense. I will also add that QBs are much more likely to get hurt passing the ball. You hardly hear anyone calling for less Allen passing. Or at the very least you never hear someone say Allen should pass less due to injury concerns. Lastly, we can debate the level of goodness with regards to KC and Buffalo. KCs ability to represent the AFC and win SBs is impressive. It's not a one off and they didn't miss a beat when they traded away arguably the best WR in the game. Truly a feat that is very impressive. Buffalo has fallen short at a somewhat alarming rate come playoff time. That has to change...KC and Cinci seem to be standing in the way. I'm not convinced Buffalo will be victorious.

Absolutely correct. Thanks for clarifying.

KC is an elite team with elite coaching. Their Oline is very good. Dare I say they are a dynasty team. They are at a whole different level than the Bills. Don't get fooled by regular season wins. If you take a closer look at their offensive roster it's not impressive. Mahomes, Kelce and a bunch of fill ins and role players. As for the Bills and Allen's role moving forward. I'm not really against Allen running seven or eight times a game. Of course, I'm not advocating reckless running and taking unnecessary hits. I feel Allen can mostly handle the hits very well. There's a five year sample saying so. RPOs can absolutely be effective and keep other defenses off balance. I don't want to see a limited, restricted, or chained up version of Allen. Part of his greatness is his legs and his running. (Not saying you are implying this.) I trust Allen to make the right decisions. I can totally see where 5 to 7 Allen runs can work well within the confines of a well oiled Bills offense. To boot, he's an absolute beast in the redzone. Go Bills. No doubt Brown is a concern going into this season. Hopefully, he is able to be effective and not a liability. Beane had to make some tough choices.

No worries at all. The Bills have one of the best rosters and coaching staff in the league. Trust the process fans. The only thing that can stop us is injuries. Go Bills!!! Should be two hard fought wins for the Bills. These teams are going to see a new and improved Bills team. I'd be surprised if they lose these games.

OMG. This is hilarious. Thanks for the good laugh. 😄😄😄

Elite teams go to Super Bowls. Elite teams win Super Bowls. Until then, the Bills aren't an elite team. They are a very good team which many fans are very satisfied with. Clearly, it's infinitely better than the past and far more enjoyable. That is worth something.

Sure feels like groundhog day...

Let's paint the correct picture here. Here's what I've said: Both teams can't win when it counts. ✔ Both teams can't beat KC in the big game. ✔ Both teams have a reputation that they choke in the big game. ✔ Both teams have top tier QBs who have fallen short repeatedly. ✔ Both teams have coaches that have choked away a playoff game. ✔ Both fan bases have been disappointed in recent years. ✔ Nowhere in hell did I imply the Bills have not achieved more or are not a better franchise. Yet, you are seemingly "hell bent" in trying to imply I did. I didn't!!! Like I said previously, the comparasion is more about how the two organizations can't get it done. Sure there are vast levels of achievement. There's a given. I'd be foolish to counter the obvious. In concluding, I feel like you have taken what I said out of context. You have taken it to another level. You have looked at it from a macro point of view vs a micro. It is what it is. Perhaps we are splitting hairs and or perhaps I'm wrong. If you reread my post my similarities don't seem to be inaccurate. In fact, you responded to only one point of contention. Then you took off to another level.

I think the ultimate comparasion would be Brady and Breeze. Physical gifts and strengths are important QB qualities but it's not the only measure used to evaluate QB talent. Look at Cam Newton as well. Modern day football I'd look to Joe Burrow. Nothing special about his physical traits. However, his it factor is very special thus far.

I've stated many of the sumiliarties between the two teams. I'll proudly stand by them. Reread them if you need your memory refreshed. There hasn't been a lot of negative feedback on the specifics. What getting lost here is the assumption that I have implied that the Bills haven't accomplished more that LA. People have taken what I said out of context. There is a real perception that both franchises can't get it done. That's the major point of contention here. Frankly, I don't see what I said as ridiculous. What's ridiculous is the implication some have made. Is that you? Hope that clarifies things for you.

There are similarities. I never implied that the Bills aren't a better franchise or haven't accomplished more. I'd be a fool to take that stance.

You should be reported for plagiarism. You copied the Carolina playbook.

Very reasonable post. Appreciate such a well thought out post. Hard to quibble with anything you said.

Exactly correct. Thank you for this astute distinction. It's the very reason why I'm advocating for a coaching change.