Bob in STL

yes, Polian was part of the build up. that is what I said.

IF we did add two elite players (Allen and Edmunds) then that is great and when these guys actually become elite they will make a big, big difference. that said, the supporting cast has to improve. We need immediate help at RG, C, LG, WR, OLB, and CB. Assuming Allen has a good season.

No way. None of the Nix/Whaley and Donahoe teams every played a playoff games The successful build ups were orchestrated by Lou Saban (twice), Chuck Knox, and Bill Polian. John Butler was part of the Polian build up and he was able to keep it going for awhile. After that, nothing.

never heard his name today except for the penalty. On defense I saw 95, 99, 55, 49, 58, 27, 21, and 23 make some plays and put in some effort. The rest of them not so much

I am hoping the defense is actually better than what we saw and they wore down due to the putrid performance of the offense - ZERO first downs in the first half. The time of possession was so skewed the entire first half. We gave up some big plays on 3rd down, that can be corrected. We did not get enough pressure on the QB so they kept passing and the WR's always have the edge on the CB's in slick rainy weather.

Yes they clearly were intended to upgrade the DL. The guys they brought in to help at CB have not impressed. I do not like all the zone coverage schemes .. because of it Darby was traded away.

Probably right. Look back at the moves in free agency. We brought in bodies to compete but no players that actually upgraded the roster - maybe Star and Trent were supposed to do that? They better draft well because their plan absolutely requires it.

I think Allen is the wild card. Edmunds, and Phillips are fixtures for the future. Teller may be decent, but your right we had tons of picks and traded up for possible big wins with Allen and Edmunds.

Right on. We have lots of cap room but spending lots on free agents is proven to be a bad plan. We need to draft well and use that cap space to keep our good players. We are several drafts away from a serious contender and thats assuming our 2 number 1's this year (Allen and Edmunds) actually do pan out.

Agree .. he was very poor today, even before the dropped TD. He did not compete for the ball when he went up to get one in the first quarter. He did not compete on the 2nd Peterman INT. I would not pay him a lot of money either.

I am not going to say fire anyone so relax. In fact, the problems the Bills have experienced in the past 18 years has come from a complete lack of stability in coaching and front office. For that reason we need to not fire Beane or McDermott although people will be calling for it as this season progresses. Beane seems like a bright guy and all. No doubt he has made some good moves, collected some draft picks, and will clean up our cap issue starting next season. This being his first GM job, coupled with his total overall inexperience, will lead to some questions about the moves he made in the past offseason. Clearly he needs to learn from this and do better. The 3 moves, or non moves, that will plague us this season are: 1. McCarron - Drafting Allen as QB of the future is fine. Signing McCarron to compete for a starting spot was not. McCarron and Peterman are not NFL caliber players. He should have brought in someone with experience as a starter. We have no one to groom Josh Allen and with McCarron gone, and Peterman now toasted, we have to play Allen sooner than anyone wanted. Not a good situation. 2. OL - Lose Wood due to injury/retirement - bad luck. Trade Cordy Glenn due to injuries and salary - I get it. Lose Ritchie due to whatever craziness was happening -now its time to make a big move to bring in a legitimate player. Instead he brings in hte mediocre at best Bodine and Newhouse and both were low cost moves for marginal NFL players. 3. WR - everyone complains about the OL but I think this WR group is the worst in the league, the worst in Bills history, and a bigger problem than the OL. As bad as the OL was today, the WR's did not get open and did not catch the ball when they were. The best of the bunch is Benjamin and he played an uninspired game against the Ravens, dropping a TD and giving up on several balls, including one of Peterman's poor INTs. My biggest concern right now is having to play Allen on a team with such poor talent on offense. I still have faith in McDermott to pick up the pieces as he did last year. Hopefully week 1 was a "preseason hangover" and they can right the ship next week at home.

No … this is what happens when you have 3 QBs compete for a starting job and none of them have any business starting in the NFL. Allen gets a pass for being a developmental rookie with a high ceiling.

Foster gets a 32 page thread. That is how bad we are at the WR position.

Me either and I can remember back to 63-64. Peterman aside … Lets also talk about the level of preparation of the entire team, there was none.

The Browns game was on at the Sports Bar, on the screen right next to the Bills debacle. Tyrod was typical Tyrod. He failed to get the a win at the end of regulation, throwing the pick when they were close to a FG. He played good enough to not blow the game. His mediocrity coupled with 5 turnovers gave the Brownies a tie. He is s far better QB than Peterman, but who isn't.

Nobody is picking the Bills but I see this as a possible upset. Peterman is the key.

Tyrod talking about 2016, really? You would think he was he would be focused on the season opener. He is on a team that won 1 out of the last 32, How many can he loose before they go with Mayfield?

Are we going to have a thread on every ex Bill still in the league ??? Levitre, Peters, lets start a Darby thread next. When end a team changes coaches every 2 to 3 years, and changes front office every 4 to 5 years this is what happens. Good players leave. Either they force the leave (Peters), wait unti free agency and leave (Levitre, Hogan) or get traded (Darby, Darius, etc).

Taking out the "leave in Buffalo" and grading only the performance of their sports product. Bills - C. Started with all the Polian confusion, Marrone leaving and Whaley staying, this was an F right out of the shoot. The Rex and Rob show, listening to that Marketing Guy, that was bad. Coach McD and GM Beane have pulled this from a F to a C and it's trending up. Still in a rebuild but I think they have the right people running things and they stay out of the way of Football Operations. They can go to B this season if the young players develop further by end of year, this seasons record is secondary to Allen and Edmunds looking good. Sabres - D. Horrendous signings and organizational errors by the Pegulas in the early years. No playoffs in 7 years and 3 last place finishes in 5 years should be an F but we have Eichel, Mittlestat, and Dahlin to build on and plenty of other young talent so this grade reflects an upward trend. I like Botterill, not so sure about Housley as an NHL HC. Now add in the total impact, commitment to staying in Buffalo, building Harbor Place, Canal Side, helping to revitalize downtown, One Buffalo ===> A to the Pegula's

The entire offense needs work now that all the experimentation of the preseason is over. Given this, not starting Allen is good move. I wish Petersen all the best but fully expect we will see Allen take over sometime this season.

Eddie is a name that rhymes with Steady. He thinks Peternan is steady. stead·y ˈstedē/ adjective 1. firmly fixed, supported, or balanced; not shaking or moving. synonyms: stable, firm, fixed, secure, fast, safe, immovable, unshakable, dependable; More 2. regular, even, and continuous in development, frequency, or intensity. synonyms: constant, unchanging, regular, consistent, invariable; More verb 1. make or become steady. synonyms: stabilize, hold steady; brace, support; balance, poise; secure, fix, make fast "he steadied the rifle" calm, soothe, quiet, compose, settle; subdue, quell, control, get a grip on "she needed to steady her nerves"

True, but then we are down to 2 WRs and a TE in the pass pattern with Shady for the check down safety valve. either way we are very short on weapons after Shady and Benjamin.

Yes he is wrong. He is very wrong. Ritchie retired, then asked to be released. Wood had a medical condition which forced his retirements Glenn has nit been healthy for 6ge past two season and made a ton of money to not play.

For the real season we will use a totally different blocking scheme than what you saw in preseason, using angles and zones to seal off lanes. That should help the run game. Pass blocking may be a challenge though. I think we we might see no fullback and two TEs quite a bit. We may have better talent and better blocking with two TEs than with three WRs. Either way, with the lack of experience at QB, and the lack of talent on OL and WR it will require great coaching from Daboll to be competitive.

Yes, good point. Hopefully they have someone ready.