Brand J

I’m not for dumping the kickoff return because it has shown its value to the game. Fully with you on the onside kick. A 4th and 15 from the 35 yard line would be great, but I can see the opposing view.

Almost every kickoff is a touchback now, 4/5 of them to be exact. That is death compared to earlier numbers, where just a few years ago 3/5 got returned. I’m not even comparing it to the 90s where 9/10 were returned. Remember the two TD returns Hines had last year that ignited the team? Yeah, those sort of exciting plays are being legislated out of the game, which is exactly what the NFL wants.

80.9% of kickoffs this year have resulted in a touchback. I do hope they go the XFL route to allow returners a chance to shine. Devin Hester, Dante Hall, Brian Mitchell, Josh Cribbs, and so many others would be obsolete today. The Endangered NFL kickoff

Loved seeing it. And I don’t remember too many* of those moments between Allen and our last MLB. *When I say “too many” I actually mean “one.”

From what I remember, Dallas was rumored to love Bernard. We didn’t have a 4th round pick after trading up for Elam, so it was either the 3rd round or taking a chance he’d be there late in the 5th. Of course you could always try to trade back or trade up, but no guarantees there either. Taking Bernard in the 3rd meant that the Bills really loved his tape and thought he’d bring more to the table than a backup LB or special teamer. They think the same of Dorian Williams too. Glad he’s panning out so far, but it’s a long season. Mistakes will be made. Still, lots to be excited about.

All I know is McD called McDaniel’s scheme “revolutionary” in the presser today. He’s scheming all sorts of creative ways to get guys the ball, a lot of misdirection, sleight of hand, magical stuff. No one is calling the Bills offense revolutionary or innovative. I think they could be so much more and I’m not a Dorsey hater. BUT it is extremely tough finding that guy who is a schematic genius. Panthers thought Joe Brady was one, now he’s in Buffalo as a QB’s coach after his failure.

Where’s option C, get somebody else?

The TD he allowed to Kelce in the back of the endzone was inexcusable I thought. You’re 6’5” with a crazy wingspan, NO WAY should that ball have made it to Kelce. Nevermind the fact his awareness was lacking and he didn’t know Kelce was in his zone, if he simply jumped more than 6” off the ground he could’ve, would’ve, and should’ve knocked down that pass.

Tua has only been sacked once in 3 games. McD will have to come up with his best defensive game plan with a relatively slow secondary against the fastest collection of weapons in the NFL. The answer is in the Dolphins OL. Gotta whip them with 3 or 4 and get Tua to hold the ball.

Edmunds has never played with an all out hustle and fierceness. I remember against the Chiefs in, I believe the first playoff game, he was jogging as Tyreek caught a pass and almost went for a TD before our DT ran him down (name escapes me). I believe that was the play, someone correct me if I’m wrong. I pointed out how Edmunds looked like he was going half speed on the replay before his weak tackle attempt and got eye roll emojis. It was there my criticism of him really picked up.

I’ve also noticed Allen is starting to have a lot more trust in the front 5 and isn’t bailing from clean pockets like he was in game 1. When he does get pressure, he isn’t immediately looking to run left or right, he’s manipulating the pocket now, side step here, side step there, it’s what made Brady so frustrating to sack. Hopefully the OL continues to give Allen that trust!

I laughed when the excuses for Edmunds not making any plays was that “he had too much on his plate/it’s not his job/he doesn’t play the same position as Milano, doesn’t have the same freedom to roam.” No, he just wasn’t a playmaker. Bernard undoubtedly has a nose for the football and is making the plays our last LB could not.

The line has gone from -6.5 to -5.5. Apparently lots of money coming in on the Commies.

Jalen Hurts also squats north of 600 pounds. I’m sure that helps too.

Deion choosing to punt from Oregon’s 38 on 4th and 8 trailing 0-13 was surprising.

I didn’t write him off, the coaching staff did (at least for now). They’re the ones making him a healthy scratch every Sunday.

I think the majority of their fans had never seen Edmunds play, they just knew what he was known for. They didn’t know he wouldn’t have a noticeable impact on the field, in a way you’d think “he plays like his hair is on fire.” They probably also never checked into his forced turnovers with the Bills, so they probably were expecting production there too. I agree about Edmunds being asked to take a pay cut no later than the end of next year. While he was here I said I wouldn’t pay him a dollar more than Milano, so it would’ve been that $10-$12 range. The fact at least one team thought he was worth $18 was funny to me. He’s a good, solid linebacker. Nothing more, nothing less.

I haven’t watched him with the Bears so I don’t know what he’s doing over there. All I know is many of their fans aren’t happy with his impact on the dollar.

Someone had linked Edmunds posts a few days back. It’s going about how you probably think it is. Fans questioning the amount of money he signed for, asking where’s the impact, saying he’s a clear downgrade from Roquan, etc. One of the comments I laughed at went something like “I know he’s supposed to be a coverage linebacker, but what or who is he covering exactly?” 😂 We need some Bills fans to go over there and troll them with “he’s making a difference, you all just can’t see it and don’t know what you’re watching.” I’m sure that would ignite the fires even more.

It’s not the unrealized potential that pits Bills fans against Edmunds, it’s the divisive discussion about what he brings to the defense. If everyone here unanimously (or even mostly) believed Edmunds was a solid yet unspectacular linebacker, there wouldn’t be threads started about him, nor would there be arguments about what a poster’s own eyes are telling them. Edmunds was described in many ways like Star Lotuleile, another divisive player, and the common thread/argument between the two was that both made plays all game long, it just didn’t register on the stat sheet. When you have some telling others what they’re seeing is wrong, then you get a divisive player. In that situation it feels like people are salty toward the player but in actuality they’re salty toward the heated arguments and want nothing more than to be proven right.

Edmunds has the better physical attributes, but Bernard has been showing a mental fortitude that Edmunds never played with, so I disagree that Edmunds is massively more talented. Bernard has been playing without hesitation; he's trusting his instincts and flying around like a DB. If his play continues on an upward trajectory, it won’t be long before we consider him a massive upgrade to Tremaine.

Lip service. Same with Joe Burrow, all these guys want to be paid as much as they can get, regardless of how it hampers the team. It’s not shocking.

Knew he wasn’t going to play the entire 10 years under that $45M/yr amount, but I didn’t think the pay raise would happen so quickly. AND include another option to renegotiate for even more after the raise expires. Josh’s agent is licking his lips somewhere.

That would be surprising. I’ve heard the opposite, that he puts in a ton and will beat himself up if he’s not producing. Last year early on I remember McD saying Kaiir needs to be easier on himself. Don’t think work ethic is the issue.

They say luck is when preparation meets opportunity. I wouldn’t call his INT luck though, he had great awareness of the play. If you go back and watch, he was crashing the line of scrimmage, recognized the RB, put the brakes on to cover him and kept his head up, catching and securing the ball. I’m 78% sure Edmunds doesn’t make that play because he would’ve kept crashing in with zero awareness of the RB, or he wouldn’t have caught it. Bernard showed some nimbleness to put the brakes on and move to the ball there.