jahnyc

Agree that Allen is more athletic then I had expected, but he really needs to improve on his accuracy (as other posters have noted). We also need to see Allen play with a better o-line and wide receivers to get a better sense as to what we have with him. Can he get through his progressions and make good throwing decisions if he has the time? Can he understand the defenses and audible when necessary? With such a poor o-line in front of him, we are not able to get a sense of these things, and these are the things that will determine whether he will be a quality QB for the Bills in the long- term (along with improvements in his accuracy).

The o-line is really bad and we probably need upgrades at four positions on the o-line. Allen had no time to throw today and the running backs had no room to run.

Allen is a gamer and very athletic. It is a world of difference with him in the lineup. He made some great plays with his legs, made some very good throws and made some very poor throws. I understand that it may not be on Allen for this particular play and the Bills need to surround him with more talent, but he absolutely will need to become more accurate and consistent in the passing game to have long-term success as a starting QB in the NFL. I hope the Bills use all necessary resources to help develop Allen's skills, because he really does have a rare combination of talents and tremendous potential.

Allen has been running (both planned and unplanned) a lot more than he probably should. Worried that he is going to get injured if this continues.

One thing that is a significant change are the weather conditions that teams play in. With more domed stadiums, it seems that weather, at times the great equalizer, is becoming less of a factor. Poor weather conditions, particularly cold and snow, typically had more of a negative impact on offenses than defenses, and we are seeing fewer games being played in these conditions. The Bills defense has played well this year, but thank goodness we did not have to play the Saints, the Chiefs, the Steelers or the Rams.

We also have games coming up against the Jets, the Dolphins (2), the Lions and the Jaguars. This may help our defensive rankings since none of these teams are powerhouses on offense and some of these games may be played in cold weather conditions, which typically helps the defense.

Another guy on my fantasy team. I am having a very rough season not having Bell and with the injuries to Dalvin Cook and now Kupp.

Wouldn't the NFL owners challenge this interpretation of the CBA? Why would they cave on this point without at least attempting a challenge?

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.