dave mcbride

I don't buy this. It's a 15 month recovery time for pitchers, but it's 9-10 months for position players. Didi Gregorius, who we just learned is getting Tommy John surgery, is expected back in 9-10 months, putting him on the field in roughly August. Gregorius throws it harder (he regularly hits low 90s on his throws to first) and more often than Allen. Exactly. He looked absolutely dejected. I think this could be right. He was actually pretty darn accurate vs. Minnesota and late vs. SD, but he lost his accuracy in the GB game. The first thing that goes with UCL injuries is accuracy, and he was not accurate vs GB or against TN on deeper throws (and yes, I know he had accuracy issues already). Bear in mind also that he was a pitcher in HS and was throwing low 90s then. Plus he was lighting up the radar gun all offseason to boost his draft stock. Wear and tear is how these injuries happen.

My understanding, which may be off, is that mariota had a nerve issue in the area and not a tear or sprain of the ligament Totally different sports, but if there’s any qb who throws with the violence of an mlb baseball pitcher, it is allen. It is what he brings to table.

Yes, and given what I know about ucl tears in baseball, surgery is a strong likelihood. Tanaka is the real outlier for partial tears; most get the surgery. And even he sat for 3 months while getting platelet therapy. As I understand it, sprains are usually actually partial tears and they don't "heal." I bet he gets the surgery. My son (pitcher) had a sprain and couldn't throw a baseball at all for 5 months last winter. when I was watching him on Sunday, i saw him focusing on his forearm and he seemed to be shaking it to find feeling. Plus his first throw after the hit was wild. Numbness in the forearm and wildness are the clear signs of ucl issues.

The Bills D was not responsible for 10 points scored yesterday - the pick 6 and the Moore fumble, which was basically an automatic 3 points (the Texans scored 7). That stuff matters w/regard to points allowed, which can be a deceiving state.

With a hat tip to GG, who inspired me to look it up: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petermann_Island. It looks like a very lonely place. (I actually mostly like McDermott, but this is such a crazy hill to die on.)

Two things can be true: defense can be actively discouraged AND athletes can be better now than they were 30 years ago (and they are definitely better now).

You literally can say that about any team in the league. There are holds and illegal blocks on almost every return play in the NFL. Whether they get called or not is a matter of dumb luck. Also, with regard to "every single week," are you referring to this season only or the past 4.5 years?

He has also overseen units that are above league average the last four seasons. How are fumbles by players the fault of a coach?

I think this is basically right, but what I focus on is judging Peterman on preseason games. McCarron is actually a serviceable backup and has proven it in real-live NFL games. Preseason performances can only tell you so much, especially at the QB position when defenses are very vanilla. They should have realized that, but they learned the hard way that Peterman is the same guy they put out on the field in real games last year (outside of garbage time v. New Orleans, which was basically a preseason level game by that point).

https://www.twobillsdrive.com/community/topic/209965-a-few-thoughts-about-the-texans-game-in-no-particular-order/?page=4&tab=comments#comment-5395053

Crossman's STs have performed above the league average over the four-year stretch prior to this season. Their average rank has been 12th. ( https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/teamst2017 ). He's not the problem.

I can't remember a game in which the Bills had tons of penalties on ST (above the norm, I mean) before yesterday. And when was the last time a Bills punt was blocked? They were 10th in ST DVOA last season, btw. https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/teamst2017. They were 4th in 2014, 12th in 2015, and 22nd in 2016. Over a four-year stretch through 2017, they've averaged 12th overall, and the median is 11.

Ferragamo was bad for the Bills, but he also qb'd in a Super Bowl, and in 1980 his team went 11-4 when he started and he threw 30 TDs, 19 INTs, and averaged 7.9 YPA.

It simply shows how important it is to have a decent backup. Osweiler has won some games before and has a bright (and long) future ahead of him as guy who can get you to 2-2 when your QB goes down for a stretch. The Bills desperately need a guy like that. They really screwed the pooch in FA last year because they were unwilling to pay the going rate for one. There were options out there beyond McCarron (who they should have never traded anyway). http://walterfootball.com/freeagents2018QB.php

No way is a smart organization trading a competent backup. The Bills are example A of a team with no backup. Ideally, you want a guy with some experience who can get you to 2-2 over a 4-game stretch. Not sure you watched Osweiler yesterday, but he's becoming that guy. Next year, who is going to be available? It'll be one of the most important signings the Bills make (or don't make), yet it won't get enough attention. Frank Reich wasn't great, but he was massively important to the Bills' success in that era. Dare I say it: bring Tyrod back next season? I have to think he knows his days as a starter are over, and that perhaps it's time for the next phase of his career: 5-6 more years as an experienced backup. (The pay is good too.) Anyway, as a backup he'd be ideal. He "respects the ball" like no other and can get you to 2-2 over a four-game stretch.

I think it's less than a 50-50 chance because there are always some fumbles that roll out of bounds (and hence "no one" actually recovers). If I had to guess, I'd say that happens about 15 percent of the time.

Exactly. Crossman isn't coaching players to fumble and fail to block. Leave him out of this. He's fine as a ST coach.

If you're working on a record, you have to stay on top of your craft at all times.

It'd be a Cal Ripken-level record. Never to be broken!

In that amount of time, 10 interceptions. That works out to approximately 77 inteceptions over the course of a 16-game season. This is not a professional-level performance.

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/any-given-sunday/2018/any-given-sunday-bills-over-titans Apologies if this has already been posted.

No worries. Thanks.

I care a lot. I like the NFL, not just the Bills. No offense, but we have discussed the league more broadly on this site for a decade and a half at least. Evidence? He's not projecting them forward, he's evaluating them in the games they've played so far. Yet he was absolutely terrible in the first two games. If he continues at the pace he's currently on, he's likely to move up the Jeremiah's chart. He does this periodically, and I think it's pretty cool.

Thanks - good, informative link. I thought the Eagles' backs last night looked quite solid.

Jerry Rice! Marvin Harrison too. The Rams won in 1999 with Isaac Bruce and Tory Holt, both elite high picks. Plaxico was definitely elite (#5 overall too), and he was an integral part of the Giants SB victory. Michael Irvin was a key part of three SB teams. Andre Rison was a key player for GB in their SB victory in the 1996 season. And Moss scored what should have been the winning TD against the Giants (plus Brady missed him on the Pats last possession after he beat his man deep - it would have been an 80 yard td.) TO had 9 catches for 122 yards against NE in the SB too, and Philly could have won that game. I mention all of these guys because they were head cases.