smokinandjokin

I would place HOLD status on JP's stock right now, not BUY or SELL. There are plenty of things to be excited about in his development thus far without demanding that he leads the team on an 80-yard game winning drive. His production last Sunday was limited, but he did enough to prevent the Bills from needing a game-winning drive. I'm sure that situation will present itself at some point this season, and we are all interested/excited/nervous about how JP will respond. But I would rather see JP manage a game like he did in Miami, rather than making costly mistakes for the first 58 minutes only to finish with a big drive. One drive will not make him a success. I do hear what you're saying though. I'm VERY pleased with Lindell over the last 18 games, but I need to see him bury that 45-yarder for the win when the Bills are down 23-21. Like many players on the roster, he hasn't been in that situation yet, and it will be exciting to see how they all respond in crunch time.

Find at least one friend. Fill a cooler with beer. Drive to the stadium and park. Crack beers and crank some tunes. Fun ensues.

Indeed. Rehab is for quitters. I only drink to stop the voices in my head.

That sounds similar to the rule of saving up your 'good' teams so you don't burn through them and can use them at the end of the year. Not smart. Elimination pools have one purpose- survive. Pick the best game you can every week. Personal rules about division games sounds strange. You'd risk taking a road team who you didn't feel great about rather than taking a sure thing like Indy at home over Tennessee?

Bills over Jets.

Oklahoma needs to get over themselves and drop the woe-is-us attitude. They are not the first team who has lost a game due to officiating mistakes. They had a right to be upset, the call was blown. However, their defense did have a say in...Oh, I dunno....Maybe NOT letting Oregon score two TD's in 30 seconds? Like I said, I understand being upset, but the loss is in the books. Take it like a man and move on to this week. Now they are threatening to NOT make the return trip to Washington in the scheduled home-and-home series unless the PAC-10 allows another conference's officials to work the game. Impressive. I didn't hear OU complaining about the system when they got smashed 35-7 by Kansas State in the '03 Big-12 championship game and still backed their way into the BCS final. But now, the refs in the Oregon game have collaborated on the greatest injustice in the history of the world. In the meantime, the NCAA should take over ALL officiating and end the conference affiliations for refs. That would be a good first step.

Speaking of the good stuff, Nate Newton could drive his van to pick everybody up...

My biggest concern is that I won't know my own name by the end of the 1st quarter.

After the '04 season Lindell supposedly trained all offseason with a strength/kicking guru. Honestly, I don't know the guy's name but Lindell has repeatedly credited this guy with his improvement. I guess the guy focused on core strength in the midsection and hips, and made a small adjustment to Lindell's approach to the ball. Obviously the results last year speak for themselves, and Lindell trained with the guy again this past offseason. So far so good. I don't know who this guy is but if I was a special teams coach, and I had a struggling kicker, I would sure as hell find out. And like LA mentioned above, a solid snap can make all the difference, timing-wise.

I was hoping this was a Sweaty Teddy thread when I opened it. Play Stranglehold!!!

The Jets near miss was do to the fact that they somehow forgot to show up for the 1st half against their arch-rival in their HOME OPENER. I call that more of laying an egg rather than a near miss. I commend their gusto for not rolling over, but when you spot the Pats 24, you're making your own bed. And stopping the run? Kevin Barlow and Derrick Blaylock? A 2.9 avg as a team? I know the Bills have a way of making RBs look good, but even they should be able to contain this half-assed rushing attack.

They're definitely on the right track. When your team is running the ball with a lead in the 4th quarter, even though the entire other team knows it's coming, goddam that's a beautiful thing.

No hate, no hate. I agree, learning how to do that is the hardest part. Willis picking up 4 or 5 yards in the 4th quarter when all 11 guys on the other side of the ball know he is going to get it...That is the hardest part. The good teams do it, and right now the Bills don't. But they're young and figuring it out. They've been losing games for so long, it takes a full-blown mentality shift to figure out how to win. I like the progress so far and I do see them getting to the point where they consistently salt away wins...And sooner rather than later. I was just playing a little devil's advocate for the folks who get mad when the media says the Bills are bad. Obviously we all think otherwise, but looking at the Bills as a fan of any other team, I'd say they were bad too.

You're leaving out a VERY important aspect. The Jets closed to within 7 points with 9:26 left in the 4th quarter. The Patriots, seemingly crumbling, proceeded to go on an 8 minute drive, taking the ball from their own 30 to the Jets 12, converting three 3rd & 5's and one 3rd & 7 along the way. Only when they got to the 12-yard line with 1:12 left in the game did they get the FG blocked. That's what a good team does to win a game. Do you see the Bills converting four 3rd downs to go on a 8-minute, 58-yard drive to salt away a win? After giving up 17 straight points? Didn't think so. NE vs. NYJ drive charts

I fully respect that opinion and can see where you are coming from. It sounds like some greasy pizza joint that just whips up a bunch of different wings, all equally crappy. However, I can fully attest, these are without a doubt the best wings I have ever had, and I've been around the block a few times. It is not a wing place, it is a small bar. Probably 7-8 tables and about 15-20 barstools. One of the best, beef on weck's in Buffalo also. Sliced fresh onto the roll in front of your eyes. I have brought many people to the BarBill and just about every single person has agreed that they are the largest, tastiest wing they have ever had.

13 points per game on offense does not mean we are good. Our defense still has a huge question mark stopping the run. It was a nice road win in a division game, but that's it. Our starting QB has won 2 games in his career. Why do people get so mad when media-types say the Bills are bad? They have been one of the worst teams in the NFL over the last five years, lumped in with the Saints, Texans, Lions, and Cardinals. What is so hard to understand? A good team probably would've scored a TD after the blocked punt on Sunday and put the game away by going up 20-0. Instead, the Bills were defending a 2-point conversion with two minutes left that would've made it a one possession game. Just sayin.

It is more cost-effective to demolish the Aud and build new. That's the current plan at the moment. I fully expect that one to continue it's orbit in the holding pattern.

I love the squad and the uni's aren't the end of the world. Personally it's not the design I woulda come up with, but it's pretty obvious that's what they're going to wear. I'm over it already. I was stuck at work late last night and caught most of the 2nd and half of the 3rd on the radio while driving home. At least their first 3 goals were on the PP (not sure about the 4th.) After a tentative 1st period, Jim Lorentz said the Sabres came out confident and dominated the rest of the game. He said the Leafs looked like the same slow, lumbering team from last year, and Buffalo was buzzing around in the Toronto end. Obviously, both squads were giving a look to many young players and had quite a few regulars sitting out. But Sundin did play for the Leafs, and Raycroft (who will be their starter) was in net. The Toronto fans even got a few boos in, according to the article. Sabres youngster Mark Mancari knows how to become a fan favorite: he dropped the gloves with Darcy Tucker. The paper said Tucker was bloodied, but I saw the fight on the sports last night and it looked like Tucker got the only good shot in. Briere left the game with an injured hip flexor. Not expected to be serious, they will know more today. Probably just a strain, but I wouldn't expect to see him again in the preseason. I think he'll make the team. Today's Buffalo News article

Lotta love for the LB's on the board today. In another thread, somebody is pulling for TKO...And now we want to extend Fletcher...Wow keep up the good work linebackers, I guess

I like it. My new favorite tshirt is one my friend made. It's got this pic on it, and it just says "SWAYZE DOES IT"

TKO is a master at baiting the offense into poorly designed plays.

I love the fact that CBS just shows the scores, and a little football identifying who has the ball. The fantasy nerds took over for a couple of years there. Does anybody really care that Shaun Alexander has 3 rushes for 8 yards and Bobby Engram caught one pass for 7 yards in the 1st quarter of a game you're NOT watching? I really could care less about any of the announcers for any of the games. They don't excite me or offend me. I'll watch pretty much any game on TV, because I'll usually have a little action on it. I wish they could find some time to squeeze in some beer and truck commercials. Not nearly enough of those.

If you're in the Southtowns around the stadium in Orchard Park, take the 7-minute drive on 20A to East Aurora. Small place, the Bar Bill, has the plumpest finest tasting wing I have ever had. They have about 10 varieties, and the medium wing is unequaled in my book. If you are downtown, I have never tried them but like someone mentioned, Gabriel's Gate always receives glowing reports.

Aaaarrrgghhh ya free on Saturday night?

The on-field officials and the replay booth officials were all suspended for one game by the PAC-10.