BigAl2526

I would guess the main focus in the off season will be defense. I don't have much more I can say.

I'd guess McDermott would say that defensive lapses are due to lack of discipline in maintaining assignments: things like gap control, containment on the outside, communication in zone coverage etc. I'm sure that's part of the problem. I'm not sure how big a part though.

OK, so the 49ers held the Rams to 4 field goals (still losing). What did they do differently from Buffalo to contain the Rams offense?

So, is there any correlation between winning the award from Sports Illustrated and winning the league MVP award. How often does the winner of the Sports Illustrated Player of the year go on to win the MVP award.

It's all about the Super Bowl at this point. Yeah, 10 wins in mid-December is nice, but having come to this point what I'm thinking about is what the Bills can do to address their suspect defense.

Rasul Douglas is strictly a zone CB. He got exposed against the Rams when Buffalo tried to play some man. I get that Elam is a liability on special teams, but when he's starting, that liability becomes less of an issue. Elam is still not a great zone CB, I suppose, but he's not the liability he was as a rookie. If Buffalo is going to adjust their defense to be more effective at stopping the run and pressuring the QB more it stands to reason they are going to need far better play out of their D-linemen and/or mix in some more man coverage from their CBs.

I'm with the consensus. The defense, particularly the defensive line and especially the tackles are disappointing this season. The departure of Washington as D-line coach is the biggest single change, so maybe that is the cause. It's probably not going to change significantly this season, but it's going to need lots of attention in the off season.

I agree with the OP. When your offense scores 42 points with no turnovers, you expect to win. The Blocked punt and resulting touchdown didn't help, but the defense looked porous the whole game. Running the ball is becoming more fashionable and Buffalo's defense is not built to handle it. Matthew Stafford also played a strong game. He threw very accurately. Lastly, I thought the officiating was very inconsistent. They made a bunch of ticky tack calls and then later in the game they let some more obvious penalties go uncalled. DBs in particular didn't know if they were going to get called for having their hands on the receivers or not. On one occasion, they missed an obvious false start on a play where the Rams made a big chunk of yards.

Mitchell Trubisky is far from the best backup QB in the league, but I don't think drafting a rookie is the solution. The Bills are not going to draft one on day one or two of the draft and after that it is a total crap shoot. It's even somewhat of a crap shoot on day one and day two. If the Bills agree with us fans who don't think Trubisky is a good option for backup QB, their best option going forward is probably looking for someone different in free agency. In the off season there will likely be a number of free agents who are available and Buffalo is now a desirable destination for free agents. The only catch is that any free agent who signs with Buffalo probably understands that he's probably not going to have a chance to play in meaningful situations since Josh Allen has an iron man reputation. It's not a bad idea to draft a developmental QB on day three but it's probably a low priority given that Josh Allen most likely will be a Bill for a number of years yet.

Apparently, there's not much you can do in the field of physical therapy if you don't have a PhD. That is the minimum qualification that persons have to have if they want to get hired. I have a niece with a PhD in physical therapy

I am not the student of the game that many are, but here's what I think: Cine had some drawbacks coming out of college. His college scouting report suggested that he was not always smooth and polished in his movement. He has good length but was a bit slender. On the other hand, he has terrific speed and athleticism. I know nothing about his development as a pro. Signing him does make sense considering the connection he has with Buffalo's DB coach. Given that connection it's not surprising that he would choose the Bills over the Jets. After all, the Jets have proven that they are a long-term dumpster fire while the Bills have a stable organization and a great locker room. Team members care about each other while players and coaches ooze with mutual respect. Maybe he's not the best safety in the league, but he should be a terrific depth piece and there might still be some untapped upside that Addae and the Bills can reap, especially if the Bills end up needing him to start at some point.

Heard from Greg Cosell on One Bills Live: McVay is genius at scheming the passing game against zone defense. Not disagreeing that pass defense is Buffalo's strength, but they still have to do it well and be good at disguising coverage. Hyde and Poyer were great at that. I don't know that Rapp and Hamlin are as good, but maybe they are good enough.

The Dolphins are still dangerous, but they have been neglectful of or just unable to fix their offensive line and they are running out of time with some of their skill players (Hill and Mostert). I agree that the Jets are incurably dysfunctional. I'm not sure the Patriots won't be able to right the ship in a couple years. I don't think 2024 is the last year Buffalo wins the AFC East.

I think he's a fan of Josh Allen.

I'm wary of "destiny" talk. Super Bowl championships are determined on the field. There are lots of things going right for the Bills right now, and I am enjoying it immensely, but a cluster of critical injuries could still happen as can bad calls at critical moments in playoff games. I'm not trying to be pessimistic. I think a Super Bowl championship is entirely possible for this team, but I'd rather stay in the moment and take one game at a time. I want to see the Bills beat the LA Rams on Sunday. When they do that, I'll be looking at taking on the possible NFC champion Detroit Lions.

This is one of my favorite threads ever. I only wish the OP would come back and eat the crow he so richly deserves. It really is in the Hall of Shame for dumbest posts ever.

I agree, only because it was after the play. It's in the past though, and I'm not in the habit of holding grudges.

This is a potential Super Bowl preview. I'll be surprised if I don't hear someone in the national sports media mention that during the week leading up to the game.

The Bills released Superman?

"Unsubstantiated rumor" is almost redundant. If it happens, I could see Hyde being on the 53 man roster rather than the PS, but he's not going to start for the time being.

Let's hope Josh knows how to pick'em better than Tyrod does. Otherwise, it could become a distraction.

In 2020, Buffalo went 11-1 following two consecutive losses after starting out the season with 4 straight wins. That includes two playoff wins before they lost to KC. The OP could not have counted Buffalo's first regular season game in 2021 as a second consecutive loss after the playoff loss to KC at the start of the calendar year because Buffalo went 7-3 after that until they had consecutive losses in early December. After those consecutive losses, Buffalo ran off five straight wins until their almost annual playoff loss to the Chiefs. The precedent established that we don't carry over from the previous season, nothing gets counted in 2023 until Buffalo suffers consecutive losses in early November to the Jets and Vikings. Then begins a stretch of 8 straight wins before Buffalo lost to Cincinnati in the playoffs. One game was canceled due to weather. We start counting in mid-November of the 2024 season where Buffalo begins a run of eight straight games before losing against, you guessed it, Kansas City. By my count, Buffalo's record after consecutive losses is 32-4. That counts playoff games but not preseason games. It does not carry over from season to season. It does not count the consecutive losses.

I think there is very little to be learned from a game played in the conditions that San Francisco experienced in Buffalo, unless you're expecting to play in similar weather. When Buffalo is on offense against the Rams, the play calling will be different, but the biggest difference will be the way the skill players run routes and make cuts with the ball in hand. Likewise, the Rams will be able to do things very differently with perfect field conditions. I agree that Milano is going to be on an upwards performance curve over the next couple weeks and the presence of both Carter and Milano will be good for run defense.

They've been friends at least since college. They've shared the same off-season quarterbacking guru since then.

Nope, no change. I've never thought McDermott was perfect, but he's better than most coaches in the NFL. If Buffalo changed head coaches, the odds of the Bills being able to hire a new head coach who is superior to McDermott are less that 50%. How much less? I don't really know, but I have not wanted to take that chance and I would still rather the Bills stay the course. I don't think it is a given that McDermott can't guide the Bills to an AFC championship and even a Super Bowl win.