BigAl2526

There was a Russian gymnast at the Olympics who had an Achilles rupture in April, I think. He competed and medaled, I believe. Astounding. Expectations are, if Lawson ruptured his Achilles, that he would easily miss the entire season and may still be less than 100% when he reports to camp next year.

There are those who think that KC just didn't take lesser opponents seriously and didn't put out a really good effort in a lot of their close wins. Clearly, Buffalo needs to play a lot better than last January if they want to beat KC when they play them again.

I don't get to many games, but apart from the first game I ever went to, my experiences have generally been good. I am a non-drinker. While some fans nearby had beers, I've not seen many get really drunk. I haven't seen any out of control behavior. The first game I went to, I saw enough of that too last me a long time.

Beane does not "overthink" the draft like some GMs. He gives a lot of weight to college production, along with football character and athleticism. Rousseau didn't play in 2020, but was outstanding in 2019. A lot of people tried to second guess that production. He got sacks while playing inside. He cleaned up after other players did the dirty work. Yeah, but one way or another he figured out how to get to the QB.

Stupid is as stupid does.

I'm assuming Kumerow was on the field early in the game, but Buffalo's plan was to go heavily run early in the game. Trubisky only had a couple of pass attempts. There were other WRs who were invisible as well. I don't think the Bills believe there is any problem there.

If Dawkins didn't have COVID and allowed himself to come in in such terrible shape, that's more worrisome than if he had been deathly siick. As it is, it sounds as if he's at least somewhat in McDermott's doghouse and will have to endure some hard coaching to get out. The Bills, and Josh Allen need him to be solid this season.

You know if he's willing, Sean McDermott will welcome him to hang around during a practice session and interact with his linebacker group giving tips. That's a McDermott trademark.

I agree that Brieda's strengths are probably never going to include running inside with lots of traffic, but if he only runs outside the tackles, every DC the Bills face will know it and strategize accordingly. He has to be at least somewhat effective inside to have effectiveness outside. Buffalo cut 3 offensive linemen. I assume that's because they were worse than Bobby Hart. I watched Hart too, and I know he's lousy. I very much doubt he makes the 53 man roster, but there's plenty of time to cut him. I'm guessing Doyle is destined for the PS. He's athletic enough to play tackle in the NFL, but needs far more work to get there than he can get in one training camp. No need to be in a hurry. Yeah Stevenson had a nice play. I think he had a decent return as well. I think the coaches are ready to commit to Isaiah McKenzie. Stevenson is likely another PS candidate.

Singletary did a nice job. Brieda is not built to be a bell cow back in a heavy run system. He wears down too quickly if he's running on every other play. I think Williams did OK apart from getting that stinger.

I have a feeling Bates is being regarded primarily as a backup center now, who could slide into another interior line spot if needed. I think he'd be a tackle of last resort. Hart obviously is not an answer at tackle. Brown and Doyle are on steep learning curves. Bean will be looking at the waiver wire, but might not see anything until closer to the regular season.

Robert Kraft might be able to recommend some massage therapists for the team if Campbell doesn't mind Asian women in the locker room. Certification might be a bit of an issue. I don't know how much of a stickler Campbell would be about that.

Spencer Brown wasn't great, but has massive upside. He's on a steep learning curve this season. Bobby Hart is bottom of the barrel trash. I expect an early cut for him, and the Bills will be looking at cuts from other teams to find a veteran candidate, but that might not come until later in the cut down process. CBs didn't have a great outing, but I'm not sure how acute the need is there. If it looks like a gem has become available, then yeah, Beane should try to snap him up.

The Bills are a lot stronger at linebacker than given credit for. Jake Fromm was handicapped by poor line play. Thank you Bobby Hart. There's no reason to keep Fromm over Webb however. Webb is clearly better. A few bad/stupid penalties. Also the officiating is in midseason form (terrible). Reports of Stevenson's demise seem to be premature, but there's not much room at the back of the roster at WR.

Fortunately, it appears the game is on Rochester's CBS affiliate.

Sounds like he's gonna head to the WWE.

Looking ahead to the preseason game versus Detroit, it's a different feeling this year. In the past, I think there was always some concern about starters getting a little work to get ready for the season, balanced against the concern over the possibility of injury. This year there seems to be far less pressure to get starters ready for the season. They already look ready. There is also far less of a sense that we should expect poor sloppy football with reserves on the field. Instead, Buffalo has a backup QB who has ample starting experience, and actually looked like a starter when he was doing it. We have a receiver group in which the 4th through 7th receivers all look they could compete to start on some other teams. There will be five defensive ends in the game (not necessarily at the same time) who seem to have a lot of promise even without the grizzled vets. The linebackers look far deeper than most expected a few months ago. In short, this is a team where we're not afraid of how the team will look with lots of depth players in the game. A few years ago, I think there was a far greater expectation of groan worthy play in the preseason. That's what I think. We'll see if I'm right, but I think Buffalo handles Detroit.

I don't think most NFL coaches and talent evaluators are gamblers. By nature, they like to play it safe whenever they can. Josh Allen's occasional hero ball tendencies and high risk plays scare them. I think Josh himself will become a bit more careful as he gains experience. That will gain him the consistency to get into the top tier of that particular survey. I think he's top three in the league in terms of actual talent, skill set and athleticism.

I think Vernon Butler is a trade possibility. Reportedly, he's been outplayed by cheaper players like Harrison Phillips and Justin Zimmer. On the offensive line, I'm less certain, Forrest Lamp maybe, or Bobby Hart. There are a bunch who have no trade value and will get cut.

Most of the guards seemed to struggle today. Maybe it was just a bad day. I did read a comment that his run blocking has been good. Pass blocking has never been a strength.

I can buy that Levi will win the starting position, but I think Dane Jackson will still get quite a few reps. I think both are likely to improve. They both came out of college lacking strength. Jackson had just adequate speed and Wallace was downright slow. Players can get stronger, and if they hadn't trained for speed in college, I think they can improve their speed too. That seems to apply to Levi Wallace. I don't think either one will ever be much more than adequate, but as others have mentioned, with the D-line getting more pressure, they will start to look quite a bit better.

Accepting the reality of the NFL and the valuations that premium QBs command across the league, I'm happy with the deal. It would be wonderful if he were to commit to 10 years and 20 million per year, that would be wonderful. That would allow the Bills to keep a bunch of really good players on the team around Allen. Unfortunately, that line of thinking is a pipe dream. This is about as good as we can hope for. Inn a couple years when contracts for top QBs have compensation of 45 - 50 million per year, this is going to look really good.

I don't think he fits the profile of the kind of player Buffalo wants. He's a pricey head case. Buffalo, especially after Josh has signed his big deal, is looking for value and players that have a great attitude

New England enjoyed a situation for years where quality free agents would sign below market rate contracts for the chance to gain a Super Bowl ring. If Buffalo can maintain their superiority over New England this season, that bonus will continue to dry up of the Patriots, and they will start having to pay market rate. Conversely, Buffalo may start enjoying more of a "winners' discount" with free agents. Whine on Stephon!

I agree. That will almost certainly be the case.