FilthyBeast

It just goes to show how quickly a teams fortunes can turn around in just one season by making the right coaching change and roster tweaks. And I also mentioned that I believe Miami will take a page out of KC's playbook and boatrace the 49ers early because they are not a good team when they fall behind by 10+ points and have to rely on Jimmy G to play aggressively. Coaching matters and this is why I maintain it would be foolish for Terry Pegula to stand pat and believe he can't upgrade from Beane/McDermott if this team flounders or has a quick exit in the playoffs this year. The foundation is there as long as JA17 is on the roster and you get a coaching staff that will run a real defense instead of this silly nickel/bend but don't break stuff and this team truly ascend to the next level.

Interesting thoughts here on the Ross Tucker podcast from NFL insider Greg Cossell. Basically stating the obvious with JA17 being surrounded by a bad oline not much else outside of Diggs:

Like the old saying goes 'Good teams create their own luck', and things like this are just another excuse for this team shortcomings that start at the top with coaching and poor roster decisions. With that said, this team is still 8-3 and at least at present still in a position to win the division and get a top seed, so bad luck or not it means something.

Really hope this is the case because it's hard to see a path for the Bills to be a serious playoff team (or possibly even make the playoffs altogether) without him on the field. Generally I'm not an injury excuse guy but it goes without saying he's probably the one guy outside of Allen, Diggs, etc that this team can't lose for the season.

Makes sense because outside of Jackson, Johnson has been a major liability on the field. The only play of note he's made all year was the game clinching INT in KC. If you truly fancy yourself a team built to defend the pass you need much better play from your slot corner/extra DB.

I still think worse case for the Dolphins on this trip is 2-1, but for some reason I see them running the table and not losing again this year which means a sweep of the Bills and obvious AFCE title. They just have the look of one of those special teams this year and McDaniel truly is some sort of savant and not a goofy bastard after all!

They are a decent team with some serious talent, but one that is built to play with a lead or grind it out late which has been their MO under Shanahan especially during their playoff runs the last few years. The problem they are going to continue to have is when other good teams jump on them they simply aren't built to play from behind and I think that's what the Dolphins will try to replicate in terms of what the Chiefs did earlier this year and see no reason why they won't be successful given how well that offense is playing of late.

And when this does happen fans here will just say it's because of that reason or because McDaniel had an advantage because he knows their players, schemes, etc coming to Miami from SF. I honestly think the Dolphins are going to win this game quite easily just like the Chiefs did there earlier this year when they poured on the offense and couldn't be stopped. And anytime you force the 49ers to play from behind they simply aren't built for that.

Sadly at this point agree 100% and it's still pretty absurd that this is the reality in the AFC for 5th straight year now despite how many teams have emerged this year, but when your starting QB and team is 26-0 in the months of Nov and Dec the last 5 years that's to be expected.

You don't post the type of numbers he is by accident, and still think a lot of people were foolish to write him off the last few years because he still posted decent numbers despite playing a coaching staff that wanted nothing to do with him and not near the level of talent he has now. Add to the fact that Tua is on pace to surpass JA17's breakout 3rd season and he's as real as it gets unfortunately. The main difference is he is never going to be a guy that can do what JA17 and few others can do with his legs.

It all sounds great in theory but I have a hard time seeing this team win out, which would be an 8 game winning streak overall and match the best of McD/JA17 tenure which they did the same thing to end the 2020 season (6 games + 2 playoff games) before losing in KC in the AFCCG. Problem is the final 6 games are much more difficult this year vs. 2020. Speaking of controlling own destiny, should the Bengals beat the Chiefs this week then all of a sudden they are the team in control of their own destiny for the #1 seed (would need another Chiefs loss in addition), or #2 seed at worse since they already own head to head wins over the Titans and Dolphins, and still get the Ravens and Bills at home. And based on the way they are playing right now after an 0-2 start they are quietly making their case and are still the defending conference champions.

You are acting like we've missed Oliver/Hyde/Poyer/Edmunds/Milano/Groot/etc all together for multiple games. My point is that's not the reality of the situation and it's really been one or two of these key guys at a time which still sucks but should change the entire defense and integrity of the scheme.

If they were barely squeaking by like the Bills have in recent weeks it would be easy to dismiss these wins and consider them a possibly fraud. But they are dominating teams on both sides of the ball including the same Browns we barely hung on to beat a few weeks ago. Also Tua is ranked #1 in just about every major QB category right now and their defense is quietly improving as the season goes on despite their own rash of key injuries early on. I don't see them losing the next 3 in a row but agree it's a far tougher stretch than what they've faced in recent weeks and will either validate them as an elite team/SB contender which I believe they are, or another WC type of team.

I'm not going to deny that the injuries this team have suffered have suffered have been very specific in terms of the timing and importance of the position. But I still think it's misleading (and concerning) if we are to expect an entire defense and scheme to completely fall apart because of one or two guys out on a given week. And if this is the case what does it say about both coaching and roster construction? At the end of the day though I don't believe it matters if this defense heads into the playoffs at full strength or very close to it because it's not going to stop the inevitable in terms of going to a place like KC again and having Mahomes and that offense drop 400+ yards and 30+ points on us.

I would throw the Bengals in the mix as they are a team to watch closely down the stretch with everything in front of them for both the AFCN and #1 seed with key games left against the Bills, Chiefs and Ravens all at home. They've been fairly consistent after an 0-2 start and also have battled some key injuries yet have managed to go 7-2 in their last 9. It's almost weird how little attention they are getting from the national media as the defending AFC champions that came within a few minutes of winning the SB last year.

At this point it makes too much sense to bench Jackson and give Elam his snaps because he's a clear liability on the field and saw stat online where he's among the worst DB's in the league in terms of opposing QB passer rating when thrown his way. Either way if this pass defense doesn't make a dramatic improvement in the coming weeks it's going to be a quick exit in the playoffs considering the type of QB's we'll be facing, and quite frankly most of the games the rest of the way are not favorable matchups including the Pats this week with Mac Jones coming off a day in which he put up nearly 400 yards against the vikings.

The Ravens last year and 49ers in 2020 were teams that were decimated with season ending injuries to key players so that's a bit different IMO. But looking at the Bills, sure we've have some key injuries to important players but so far the only one of note lost for an extensive period of time was Hyde in week 2. If Miller is gone for the year that would certainly be another major blow. Also the Cowboys have missed some of those players in question this year and have been just fine also sitting at 8-3. The Bengals are another team that has been hit hard with injuries since the beginning of the year and are 7-2 after and 0-2 start. At the end of the day every team is effected differently but I stand with the original premise of this thread that if the Bills fail to live up to expectations (which is anything short of of a SB appearance) injuries won't be a valid excuse unless a bunch of other key guys land on season ending IR the coming weeks.

I think this is a fair assessment, but I also think sometimes when a guy gets a big extension that's questionable it's more about he hype and highlight reel type of plays (including the 'Hail Murray' against everyone's favorite team) that people still gush over even though it was more about pure luck and the WR making a spectacular play). For me the biggest issue with Murray is still his diminutive statute on the field, and after watching a guy like Russell Wilson career come crashing down in his early 30's it makes you wonder about the long term viability of a similar player.

Even if he is able to play again this year the bigger question is how effective is he going to be? Just can't believe that one year to the day after losing White to a season ending injury, lightening seemingly strikes twice with a key player we can't afford to lose for an extended period of time.

Again, I don't disagree with this but there are 2 problems: 1) This team should have never been in position to squeak by 2 inferior teams the last few weeks 2) Coaching is also what has lost pretty much all 3 games this year, especially the Jets and Vikings.

12-5 may win the division if Miami loses in Buffalo and at least one more division game. But still think the #1 seed is a pipe dream unless both Mahomes and Kelce suffer season ending injuries. Cincy is really the only game left I think they may lose but it's a road game where KC and Mahomes always seem to play better.

I know it's wishful thinking but there is the outside chance that this team is saving a lot of stuff for the playoffs, particularly on offense. But play design can only go so far when you lack the horses to effectively run it and if Dawkins is out an extended time an already bad oline is going to have even more problems which by default limits the playbook options.

For what's it's worth Miami lost 3 straight games when Tua was out including the Bengals game when he left early. But even with him fully healthy and in the lineup they've also had various injuries to key players that they've had to deal with including oline/DB/etc. At the end of the day though the idea that an NFL team is going to make it through the entire season with all their key players healthy isn't reality. And even the year the Chiefs won the SB Mahomes was out for 2 games and not close to the same for at least a few more once he was back. They also had other big injuries that year as well. I just get the sense that if the Bills fail to make the playoffs or don't go very far when they are there everyone is going to make excuses or outlandish claims about injuries being the reason just like not having White last year against KC in the playoffs.

Very concerned about this game but I think we'll find out a definitive answer who this team is and whether or not they are going to be in the mix for the division title or fighting for a wild card spot in the final few weeks of the season.

Patriots were the better team last night and should have won if not for rare miscue of running into the kicker and some other questionable calls and non calls. And now they are going to be angry and refocused heading into a big matchup against the Bills next week so this team better be ready because a slow start in this one could spell disaster.