BigAl2526

I'm in two. In the first, I have Dallas over the Giants. In the second, I have San Francisco over New Orleans. The Dallas pick is probably a bit risky, but I think Russell Wilson is probably toast and the Giants aren't ready to trust Jaxon Dart just yet.

That's also why the Bills only had Prater on the PS and activated him from the PS for the Ravens game. They have since signed him to the 53 man roster.

There's always driving across the state if you enjoy flat, featureless landscapes.

Any other choice would have been a travesty.

Like many others, I was concerned that when Buffalo added defensive tackle help in the off-season, the additions all seemed to fit 3 tech DT better than 1 tech, even 330 lb Deone Walker and even Jordan Phillips, in spite of the shortcomings of Daquan Jones last season. If the Bills are deciding to address nose tackle just now, there is no way they are going to find much more than table scraps. The best the Bills can hope for is that their coaching can tap some upside in Mathis that has thus far not shown.

Let me get this straight, Spags, Buffalo beats the team that many thought might be the best team in the league, while the Jests lost to to a middling team led by a fossil at QB, and you think the Bills are the losers in this matchup? You know, the New York metro area probably has a robust mental health system in place. You should check into it

I think those who left the stadium early have already been punished enough for having missed one of the greatest comebacks in history.

Josh Allen deserves the most credit, obviously. Not sure who to blame, but the run defense was abysmal.

To me, DaQuan Jones, Deone Wallker and TJ Sanders were relatively invisible. I think Rousseau and Bosa had a pretty solid game to compliment Oliver's great game.

I hope we all understand that if Keon Coleman were to have a race with Tayler Rapp, Coleman would win. I have joined in a bit on the joking about Coleman's speed, but I've never been a hater, and never believed that trading with the Chiefs so they could draft Worthy was a mistake. It's not that unusual for a receiver who underwhelms in his rookie season to turn into a great receiver. Coleman's ability to win on the boundary looks like it might be special and that could prove invaluable to the Bills. Rest assured, defensive coordinators of future opponents will have to spent effort to try and figure out how to counter it.

The fact that he took on Henry shows how Strong he is. He realized he signed with the right team.

With Rapp, I think what we see is what we'll continue to get. He is smart enough. He's tough and physical, but is not that athletic and has seriously below average speed. That makes him an automatic liability in coverage. The faster and more athletic the receiver, the more Rapp's liability shows up. Still, as a veteran, there are things Bishop can learn from him. As far as run support is concerned, I think the Bills probably asked their safeties to do more of it against the Ravens than they usually ask of their safeties thanks to Derrick Henry. That might make him a bit rusty.

We may have waited 16 months since he was drafted, but Cole Bishop hasn't had all that much time to receive on the field instruction. He was injured at the end of July at training camp last season. I don't remember for sure, but I think he missed a good part of it. Once the 2024 season started, the coaches didn't have the luxury of devoting a lot of time to teaching young players the fundamentals with the same intensity that they do in training camp. A rookie who's been hurt has to pick up what he can while the team focuses on game preparation. Then he missed a good chunk of training camp this season. It is certainly valid to wonder if Bishop is going to have to deal with the suspicion that he could be injury prone, but he still hasn't had the instruction time that a typical rookie gets in his first training camp. If he doesn't show improvement through the season, I will start to wonder if he can be an answer to the Bills need at safety, but I'm not worried yet.

Yeah, it was a forced fumble any day of the week. Henry is usually stronger than the guy trying to punch the ball out. Not this time.

Even if the defensive player is not penalized for shoving the receiver out of bounds, that receiver is eligible to catch the ball. Coleman was shoved out, so the catch should have counted.

Josh Allen had 250 yards passing in the fourth quarter, much of that in the last 4 minutes. That was against one of the most highly regarded defenses in the NFL. When the Bills offense is operating the way it is capable of doing, they may be unstoppable. I think the Bills defense is going to get better. As I said elsewhere, Cole Bishop is a lot like a rookie, his development being interrupted by injury, both las season and in training camp this year. He is going to improve. Dorian Strong played about as well as can be expected and the Bills will be getting both Tre White and Max Hairston back in October. Cornerback might be a strength of this team before they playoffs. I think the Bills are stuck with Taylor Rapp at one safety spot, but I think the pass defense will be OK as the pieces around him get better. On the defensive line, Buffalo got production from Oliver, Rousseau and Bosa. I even saw Javon Solomon pressuring Lamar Jackson once. To my untrained eye Daquan Jones, AJ Epenesa, TJ Sanders and Deone Walker were mostly invisible. That's concerning. Sanders and Walker get something of a pass because it was their first real game and Baltimore is a bid time foe with some elite players on their offensive line. I'm not expecting much from Epenesa. He's just an average defensive end at best, but Buffalo needs more out of Jones, especially in run defense. Our linebackers will probably always be something of a liability against teams with strong athletic offensive lines and big physical running backs. I think it's a price the Bills are willing to pay for their ability to use linebackers in multiple ways in pass defense.

I agree. It would be nice if they gave a little more credit to the Bills though.

It has been interesting to see how many reactions to the game are focusing on how the Ravens managed to lose the game. Not a lot of effort is given to crediting the Bills for their comeback. Does it seem so to you?

He struggled to make that catch, but stayed with it. Good for him. He doesn't have the speed to play a role as a primary pas catching TE, but if he can catch the ball when called upon, he'll make teams pay when they over play the more likely receiver.

"Prater is greater" sounds nice, but if Bass can get healthy, I'm fine with him returning.

I don't think there is really a better option than Bishop at the free safety spot. He will grow through the season. I've given my opinion of Rapp elsewhere. He's smart and tough but his lack of speed and athleticism is always going to be a liability. The Bills are probably stuck with him this season, but an upgrade is needed at some point. How about Dillon Thieneman in the 2026 draft?

On offense, Joe Brady seemed to want the offense to play close to the vest until he couldn't any more. On defense, I think the Bills struggle on the interior of the defensive line against very physical and athletic offenses, of which Baltimore is probably the prime example. The Bills linebackers are also at a disadvantage. There were a few breakdowns on the back end of the defense. I was encouraged by the play of Dorian Strong. He wasn't perfect, but his shortcomings weren't glaring and Baltimore did not appear to pick on him. Bishop made a few mistakes, but I think he'll grow and learn. I think with the interruptions his development has had due to injury, he's more like a rookie than a highly drafted second year player. With Taylor Rapp, what you see is what you get, a smart physical player who is fine when he can keep the play in front of him, but lacks the speed to recover from any misread. The image of 250 lb Derrick Henry running away from him just won't go away. The Bills can probably manage with him as their SS, but that will be a position they are going to want to upgrade at some point.

I have only been to a small number of Bills games, all at Highmark. I never gave a thought to buying food or drink while at the game. I don't even eat or snack while I'm watching the game at home.

Agreed, defensive players are not allowed to shove the receiver out of bounds unless they are in the process of catching the ball. They can shove the receiver and have some physical contact within five yards of the LOS, but the back of the end zone was well past that.

I agree. The difference is Lamar has a hall of fame running back chewing up huge chunks of yardage to go along with his own running and passing. James Cook is good, but he's not in the same league as Derrick Henry. Josh Allen just means more to Buffalo's offense. The same voters who voted Alen the MVP trophy also voted that Lamar Jackson was a better QB las year than Josh. I agree with them. It's way early, but I think statistically, you'd have to put Josh Allen ahead of Jackson so far this season even though Jackson had a higher QB rating.