jahnyc

I agree that Conner has played really well this season, but he has a concussion now and even though he likely will be cleared to play this week, having two quality RBs (with Bell being relatively fresh) heading into the playoffs could be a major plus given the grind and intensity of playoff games after a long regular season.

Any team looking at Bell would have to consider his history, which includes a prior league suspension and injuries, and now his sitting out an entire season. Bell and his agent have been operating in a manner consistent with the terms of the CBA to this point, but it appears that a potential loophole will may allow him to become a free agent next season because the Steelers will not be able to afford the cost of franchising him for a third year at the QB level. If I were in a front office considering Bell as a free agent acquisition, I would question whether Bell was a "team" kind of guy and find incomprehensible his lack of communication (and his agent's lack of communication) with the Steelers before the season start and during the season. Having said all of this, I would not be surprised if the Jets or Colts sign Bell this offseason to a massive deal. Overall, unfortunate for the Steelers and my fantasy team. The Steelers seem pretty close to this year to being a top team, and having Bell might make a difference in the playoffs.

He killed my fantasy team this year. Drafted him in the first round (fourth overall) before it became clear that he would not report for the first game of the season. I will never forgive him (not that he cares).

The past offseason and this season to this point are not inspiring any confidence that McBeane will be able to fix this situation. I don't think I trust their ability to assess players on our roster let alone other teams' rosters/college players in preparation for free agency and the draft.

This year is lost, but I am concerned that the offense will not get fixed quickly or easily, particularly since the Bills likely will be patient with Allen's development, recognizing that he is raw, will need time to develop and represents a significant investment by this front office.

Most (if not all) of the NFL analysts and commentators told us the team would do poorly this year, but McBeane's decisions and management certainly made things worse than anticipated. There is no process where this kind of a season would be acceptable. There is tremendous pressure in the NFL, competitive and financial, to have success. I don't think the Pegulas signed-up for this level of ineptitude, particularly since they understand that the stadium issue will need to be addressed in the near-term. The Bills will need some real expertise and experience in the front office to try to turn this around relative quickly. I hope they make some additions to the front office in preparation for this offseason.

I am pessimistic that the offense can be fixed quickly. It is historically bad, and the rebuild will start from a bottom that few teams have experienced. An argument can be made that every starting position on offense needs an upgrade. This situation cannot be fixed this season or in one offseason. I don't think there are parallels to the Chicago Bears and LA Rams because both of those teams had a better base of offensive talent than we have at this point and both teams brought in coaches with strong backgrounds on offense. Another problem that we have is that we have no idea whether Allen will develop into a quality starting QB. He is very raw, and it may take a couple of more years before we know. Coaching on the offensive side is another unknown, since our personnel is so poor that it is difficult to make judgments about Daboll. We can review his prior experiences as OC in the NFL and not be particularly confident that he will have success in Buffalo, even with better players. Realistically, fixing the offense looks like a pretty massive undertaking at this point. I don't have confidence that it can happen with the speed we will want after suffering through this season.

I would feel better about the future of this rebuild if we had more draft picks in next year's draft. I understand that we have more than our usual allotment, but the additional picks we have next year are after the third round. We may hit on one or more of those picks, but chances of finding quality players are higher in the early rounds. I suppose we can trade down if there are opportunities to do so, but this team also needs pro bowl caliber players, and if we have a top five pick, we may have a shot at that kind of a player. That would be hard to pass up.

The Bills shed a lot of relatively young players (Darby, Watkins, Woods, Goodwin, Gilmore, Ragland, Darreus and even Glenn). I understand that many of these players left by choice via free agency, but this is not a group of golden oldies.

I strongly disagree with posters who state that this was all planned or this is part of the rebuild process. No one, including the Pegulas, signed up for this level of ineptitude on offense or the manner in which the roster on the offensive side was stripped and then not addressed in free agency or through the draft. It is not fair to the fans or the players on defense, and I don't see how you can have a cohesive team under these circumstances. The offense is not fixable in one offseason, and it could take years with so many upgrades that are needed. In many ways, that is the most frustrating part of all of this (the long road ahead). As to the original post in this tread, I do not disagree that Beane deserves to be fired for this mess and the way it was created and the prospects for a long repair process. He was inexperienced, and it has showed in a number of ways, including the complete mismanagement of the QB position, poor player personnel assessment and the poor trades (e.g., Darby, Glenn and Benjamin). I don't think Beane will be fired, but he has made a strong case for that happening.

I am wondering as well, but let's not forget that this year is seeing scoring at a record pace and things were different for offenses back in 1976 as compared to now in terms of rules and sophistication.

I think we have the worst offensive roster in the NFL, maybe by far.

Our players on offense are all generally below or well below average other than Shady and maybe Clay, but does Daboll make things worse? Hard for me to figure out at this point.

Dawkins has not played well this season.

If they don't play Allen for the rest of the season, then the questions are what is the severity of the injury, will it heal on its own, and whether surgery may be needed now or at a later point in time. Even if the answers to these questions are positive or somewhat positive, the Bills should acquire a quality QB (as a back-up or possible starter) in a trade or via free agency.

A few quick points: 1. I don't agree with the "would not develop here" comments. It is up to the front office and coaching staff to make sure that there is an environment in which a drafted QB can develop and thrive (including having a back-up veteran QB mentor, a better o-line and WRs, and an experienced QB coach). I continue to be dismayed at the lack of attention paid by the front office and coaching staff to do this when the plan all along was to trade up and take QB with a very early pick in the first round. They have shown a complete lack of competency, and signing Anderson, after Allen was injured, is not enough to fix it. 2. It cost us a lot to move up and draft Allen. Taking Mahomes would have started the process of developing a QB one year earlier and would have allowed us to keep valuable draft capital that this team desperately needed. I get it that hindsight is 20-20, but I am tired of the excuses, and our front office has to be judged on their successes and misses. We have missed too many times over the past number of years. 3. As other posters have suggested, we do need a head/president of football operations. I am not sure McBeane has shown the necessary competency and abilities to handle what has become a huge job to rebuild the roster. I continue to be stumped as to why the Pegulas gave so much power to McDermott upon his hiring. He had never been a HC or acted in a player personnel capacity. They should have hired a GM with experience as a GM and then let the GM pick a coach. As is typical with us, this process was done the opposite way it is usually done and we are left paying the price.

Is there really any chance that we could get a second round pick for McCoy? I would not think so given his age. I think the Bills will need to draft or sign a free agent running back next year whether or not McCoy is traded. This is another position on offense that will need attention in the offseason.

The current reality in the NFL seems to be that a lot of teams are in need of a #1 WR and upgrades on the o-line. Look at the steep price paid for Cooper by the Cowboys, and I am not sure whether Cooper is a true #1. Other teams were after him as well, including the Eagles. I doubt there will be a #1 WR available in free agency next year. This likely will need to be filled in the draft, and WRs can take time to develop, assuming that they do develop into quality players.

Considering the current talent level, I think a quick turn around for next year is unlikely. We also will have new holes next season if KW, KB and McCoy do not return. We do not have enough picks in the early rounds to expect a bunch of instant starters from next year's draft, and a number of teams have significant cap space for free agent acquisitions, so it will be competitive getting quality free agents to sign with the Bills. I think this rebuild is going to take time, both in terms of upgrading the roster and the development of Allen. As noted above, there is a lot of work that is needed to improve this team.

I want to have confidence in McBeane's ability to rebuild the roster, but I don't because of their head scratching personnel moves and lack of a plan at QB (both in terms of developing and mentoring Allen as well as the failure to sign an adequate back-up QB). At this point, they have opened themselves up to second guessing and criticism, which I think is more than fair. I assume that they will get at least through 2019 to straighten out this mess, but I understand the collective frustration and those that think they already should be on the hot seat.

Hippodrome was crowded and overall pretty good to watch the Bills play the Colts. They showed all of the NFL games upstairs (except for maybe the Browns) and they set up a separate viewing area for the Bills-Colts, which was comprised of a small sitting area with maybe six or seven rows with three chairs in a row plus a long sofa along the side of the seating area. Only one Indy fan in the group, but I am not sure how many were fans of the Bills because there were people wearing different team jerseys. I think some people were waiting for the later games. Surprisingly, I think the biggest crowds were there to watch the Panthers and the Texans. There also seemed to be a fair number of Eagles fans. Food was fine. They had Buffalo wings, but, unfortunately, I am trying to eat healthy.

Unfortunately, I believe that our options have been more limited than most teams when it comes to hiring new GMs and coaches, as well as free agent acquisition, due to the combination of recent franchise reputation, ownership and the realities of being a small market team. This also has impacted our ability to retain players. It probably does not help that the Pegulas do not have a team structure with a strong president, which may have helped mitigate these issues. Overall, there has been a level of front office ineptness over the last 20 plus years that is difficult to fathom. I am tired of each new regime trying to convince us that they are smarter than everyone else and then failing miserably with head scratching decisions.

Thanks, GB. She is living in Kensington, near Queen's Gate. Great area. She is doing a semester abroad program, and having a great time in London.

Thanks! Have been enjoying our time in London and visiting with our daughter.

Thanks for all of the replies. Likely will check out the Hippodrome Casino on Leicester Square. I did do a Google search before posting and asking the question. Results included some of the casinos in Leicester Square (including the Hiippodrome), Riley's, Belushi's and Naughty.