FLFan

Pointing out that players have something to do with it does not make one a homer any more than a knee jerk reaction makes you rational. I am sure the Bills will fully evaluate all aspects of the team, including special teams. What we see on the surface may not be the entire picture. Special Teams needs to get better without question. I would point out that multiple Bills had opportunities to tackle Blount on those big returns yesterday and failed to do so. This speaks to poor play not scheme. The reason for the poor play is the issue. Better players or better coaching?

The Bills have an option to exercise for a fifth year which they need to decide on this spring. I would think it is highly unlikely they would not take the option. He did. Typical Parker BS. Carrington will likely regret that decision. I doubt the Bills will offer much, if anything, now that they have locked up that spot with Branch. Perhaps they make him an offer as depth but I suspect they will move on.

Thank you for the excellent rational analyis. Often lacking around here. In all of that, the biggest difference is the QB. Despite having a seasoned veteran in Vick to start the season, the offense did not really start to click until Foles came in and began to light it up. People need to remember that as you point out Foles is a veteran, with some starting experience. His starts prior to this year have been mediocre to promising, but his experience is the big difference to Buffalo's situation. We have not seen near what this offense is capable of. Had Manuel been able to stay on the field I firmly believe the Bills offense would be much better than what we are seeing so far, and it has been very decent at times. Patience is what is required here, not a new OC or QB.

"People are dumb, panicky animals and you know it." K to J, Men in Black

The Bills need a LG, but also need a quality right tackle. I would not be hurt by taking a RT number 1. Would love to have a big WR threat as well, but if Evans is gone, trade down may be best bet. Chandler will likely be gone after this year so the Bills will need to find a top quality tight end. Probably not number 1 though.

Probably not, but he was doing a fairly accurate representation of your lament. About the same level of reasoning anyway.

I hope you are kidding. I would hate to think the alternative. It was a no win situation with people of your mindset obviously.

I believe this happened earlier t his week. They rested him yesterday but Marrone said he expects him to play.

Too bad Peyton Manning is not in the draft next year, nor anyone else even remotely his caliber. Who is the mythical "franchise QB" in next year's draft? All look like big questions to me.

Lovie Smith would cost too much? Really - is that why no team hired him? The old faithful "ralph is cheap" argument. Way to go.

I saw that play. I am not sure if it was the same CB, but it was the same kind of hit that put EJ out. He dove right at his knee. I am not feeling sorry for the Pats, but while the NFL is supposedly worrying over player safety, they should address these kinds of cheap shots.

Agree. He is still a jerk.

No. There must be a conspiracy. It must be Ralph twirrling his mustach again.

Exactly. If the Bills bring in any CBs it will be to upgrade depth, which can always be better. Perhaps they draft a CB in RDs 3 - 5 as well. I would not expect a big FA signing at CB. OL/TE/LB are the primary needs.

I do not know about LA, but I live in Maryland and he is dead right about Baltimore. The day the Colts left is the day people in Baltimore stopped being fans of the team going forward. It was actually worse that they kept the name and pretended they could carry the Colts legacy to Indianapolis. It would be the same in Buffalo I believe.

If (hopefully not when) the Bills leave Buffalo, for Toronto or any other city, whether they keep the name or not I am done. The Buffalo Bills are part and parcel of the culture of the area, and those who grew up there and grew up with the Bills being part of that fabric will probably feel as I do. Moving the team would rip the heart out of Buffalo. I am not an NFL fan - I am a Buffalo Bills fan, so I doubt I would spend much time, if any, watching the NFL. I simply would not care, and more than that, would be too pissed to do so.

Perhaps not fair, but look at it this way. If you lived in Chicago, you would likely not be able to afford to see many or perhaps any games live, as there is high demand for very expensive seats. At least in Buffalo you can buy a ticket and go to the game. In Chicago (as in Washington, Baltimore, NE, Dallas, etc) the average fan is priced out of the stadium. Even with the smaller capacity, I would venture to guess that Chicago's average revenue per home game is significantly more than Buffalo's, even double or triple. Buffalo needs the ticket revenue associated with the larger capacity to survive.

We should cut Stevie. He ate a taco.

You are correct. See also The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, William Shirer. I am still not sure what this has to do with a debate about EJ Manuel.

This is all true. It astounds that what we have seen from Manuel thus far would cause anyone to conclude that he is a failed pick, or said another way, will not be an outstanding QB in this league. There is simply no evidence to suggest either after 8 NFL starts. In fact, I have seen nothing so far that would suggest he is anything other than promised - a prospect with great physical tools who will need time to develop his skills at the NFL level. I think his leadership skills and his intelligence for the game are far better than the so called pundits predicted, though exactly what the Bills stated they liked about him. As for drafting another QB, this is beyond silly. Without a total tank by Manuel the balance of the year, there is nothing to suggest they should not continue his development. Selecting yet another rookie, and pitting him against Manuel in training camp, will do nothing but hamper his development, and little to suggest the next guy will be better. Am I missing something or did Andrew Luck just become draft eligible again next year? I see no "generational talents" there. On the contrary, Manuel has given ample reason thus far to suggest his chances are considerable better than "30%". You cannot develop two QB's simultaneously. So, unless they decide he cannot get better, the thing to do is stay the course. This is exactly what is going to happen, so people should get used to the idea. By the way, if I were the Jets, I would be drafting again. There is a case where a QB is living up to exactly his billing, and there is little reason to suspect he is getting or will get better. Big difference. The next coaching staff and GM in NY will make that call, and that would be the time.

Gilmore has been largely mediocre since coming back this season. People seem to forget how well he played last year. I am not sure what his problem is but it is a bit early to write him off. The fumbles are inexcusable. Nothing else to say about that. I cannot even begin to understand how that can happen - twice. Glen was good - Pears was awful. Serious upgrade at RT is needed. Upgrade at LG is obviously needed as well. The penalties on Atlanta's last drive were simply extensions of a very poorly called game. How does the official standing right there looking at it miss the call on EJ's touchdown? Too many other examples to enumerate. Those last two calls though were killers. The criticism of Manuel here this morning is curious. He had them in position to win. I think coaching is holding him back at this point. The play calling was ridiculous at times. He seems overly cautious, but when the game was on the line he made plays. Is that him or play calling/coaching? In any case, I guess I am not sure what people expected out of a raw rookie this year. He is doing fine and was not the problem yesterday - not even close. TJ Graham is useless. Kiko had a bad game - gonna happen sometimes. The inability stop the run was the downfall of the defense today. He has a big part in that, but was not alone obviously. I am concerned that Pettine cannot fix this with the group of players he has to work with.

I agree. Totally unacceptable behavior by Tomlin. I do not think there is any way it can be argued as unintentional. What a classless tool. They should make an example of him, but my guess nothing much, if anything, will be done.

I am sure there are many reasons why more Bills fans do not make the trek - distance, cost, environment, whatever. Clearly it cannot be argued at this point that the Toronto game feels like a home game to anyone. That will all change with success. What I find really interesting this year is that, unlike past years, there are no Bills players publicly complaining about having to play in Toronto. People may recall that last year several players, including so called team leaders, came out publicly and complained bitterly about having to play a home game in Toronto. The Bills got blown out. Seattle was no doubt a better team, but the Bills did not even show up to play. The lack of any such whining and complaining is further evidence that this coaching staff has the players attention and respect. I do not expect to hear a peep out of anyone. All business - a very good sign for Sunday.

It is a player option, so 2014 is his last year in Buffalo without an extension, in all likelihood. Obviously anything can happen. Coming off a bad year, if I were Spiller, I would sit tight in 2014 and look to hit it big in 2015.

The total collapse of the Patriots leaves the Bills as Division Champs so they do not have to play the wild card game.