Ennjay

Thanks. But ... Oakland Raiders?

I just hope you're right that those are both home games. Two of the toughest places to play in the league. On the other hand , road games in LA and Vegas don't bother me at all and I haven't heard that either SF or Arizona has any big home crowd advantage.

Hodges was a starting QB in an NFL regular season game. He can be talked about. And NBC had no problem showing duck calls and Duckmania in its intro.

I was just about to post this: He harped on JA's perceived inaccuracy all night but said nothing about Hodges'. Hodges doesn't throw long (that was a pretty good graphic about, what, 61 of his 80 throws were less than ten yards) because he's inaccurate and he throws looping softballs. Washington does well with his throws because Washington gets open, not because Hodges zips lasers to him. Where was the analysis on that?

I saw that too and loved it. I did have to explain to my wife what that was all about.

Thanks for sharing, but maybe read the story too.

Conor McDermott finally gets his chance! Oh wait . . .

Technically, is that delay of game? (Even though each team provides its own football and Miami was about to get the ball.) Jut asking. A real question.

I'm really encouraged by JA's 4Q performances for reasons beginning with Yogi's timeless and perfect observation that 90% of this game (any game FWIW) is half mental. Listen to JA and watch him at pressers. He's not a savvy, poised long-timer like a Brady or an Eli or even a Fitz. He's still a big excited kid who's happy to be here. It wasn't that long ago he was at the U of Wyoming, where he was not playing in front of packed houses at the Big House or the Horseshoe or Jerry's World or whatever they've got in the SEC for crowd nutziness (and I say this with respect for the SEC). I've worried in games like NE this year that the moments are too big for him and he's not emotionally ready at the start -- he's too keyed up. He's got great talent and he really can play this game well. By the 4Q he seems to be settled and therefore he plays his best. The Bills are ahead of schedule. (We got fooled by making the playoffs in Year 1 of the current regime; what was supposed to be a teardown year to clear out deadwood was the accidental playoff year thanks to Cinci, so so much of the teardown got delayed or deferred.) There was also the dead money salary cap issue.) In the progression from (1) just plain bad (Miami, Washington?) to (2) tough out (what people thought Tennessee would be? or what Atlanta would be?) to (3) playoff contender (Seattle? Dallas?) to (4) high expectations (Pittsburgh, realistic or not this year?) to (5) top tier/elite (NE? KC?), I thought this year's team would be somewhere between (2) and (3) with the jump to (4)/(5) in '20, but with the development of the D things came faster.

Yeah, I just read the FAQ link you included with your first post. Interesting situation that the NFL cares about the issue and the NCAA doesn't. Not that this is news. I'm also starting to wonder what it means to "break in" a helmet over a "lengthy" period. Get the inside padding to fit "just right"? B y banging your head into it in practice?

Thanks for doing the research. So I guess it is a safety issue. And on your easy fix: I'd be surprised if players don't already have a couple of helmets ready for game use just in case. But what do I know?

Anybody here know why they have this rule? It can't be for safety because the helmets still have to be regulation (hello again AB!) and besides, there's no rule that you have to wear the exact same helmet all year -- a player can always replace what he wore last week (like if it broke or got lost or stolen or something) with a new helmet. It can't be for trademark or marketing reasons because the teams own and market all the throwback and color rush stuff anyway. Helmets aren't cheap but if a team wants to buy an alternate set (like a lot of colleges do; look at Oregon, although maybe Nike donates what they wear) why should the league care? Are they afraid opponents won't recognize who they're playing? Seriously, does anyone know what motivates the rule?

On the offensive line for the Dallas Renegades: 6. Josh Allen, G, UL-Monroe (44) With our QB and the Jacksonville DE that makes three. How many more Josh Allen's are out there?

I hear you. Remember the home game vs. the Jets back in the Super Bowl years, the week after Dennis Byrd was paralyzed? Those Jets weren't as bad as these Dolphins, but still the Bills had a superior roster and a home game. So of course they lost 24-17 to a Jets team that finished 4-12. FWIW I just looked it up -- it was 1992. Had the Bills won and the rest of the season's results stayed the same they would have won the division at 12-4. Instead Miami won on a tiebreaker at 11-5 and the Bills played Houston in the Comeback wild card game. Considering how they ran out of gas at halftime vs. Dallas in the Super Bowl, maybe that one loss made all the difference because it forced them to play the extra game. Sorry for going off topic.

The only way for the Bills to lose this game is mentally -- screw up pre-game prep, don't focus, don't take it seriously, dog your assignments, don't game plan at all, get too cute with play calls, rest the starters too much and too early, all that sort of thing. The Bills have a superior roster, it's a home game with our rabid fans, and I can't think of a matchup in this game that doesn't favor the Bills (except maybe punter?). That being said, sometimes better teams do a collective brain cramp (any Georgia fans reading this post?) and games DO get lost mentally. So it's not a sure thing. But I believe McD and the team leadership (Gore, Alexander, etc.) WILL keep everyone's heads on straight, so I expect a comfortable win. Still . . .

Once again, I find it interesting that they're not adding an O lineman after what happened to the O line depth in Nashville. It must mean they feel good about everyone coming back.

You're making me curious. I know Tenn is the big state school but the local SEC team in Nashville is Vanderbilt, which is private and usually a weak sister in football. Are you saying Nashville doesn't care about Vandy?

Agreed. What I haven't liked about college OT in recent years is that -- like hockey and soccer shootouts -- they're not playing the original game anymore under the OT rules. Not only are punts and kickoffs gone, but -- especially in the NFL -- starting at the 25 means you're already in FG range. There have been games that were 21-21 at the end of regulation that ended 69-68. I assume that's why they changed the rules for this year (which I hadn't known until I read this chain, but it must be true because I'm reading it on TBD, right?). At least hockey and soccer have OT periods before they go to shootouts.

I really think this says it all.

I was about to say that maybe what's more interesting than the moves themselves is that neither involves the O line, so they must be feeling good about guys getting back for Miami (that is, the second bye). You beat me to it.

If you were at the game, was there a whistle blowing the play dead? I didn't notice one on TV. (I could've just missed it.)

Um . . . yeah. Agreed. Well put. What bothers me is the negativity and anger some people put into their reactions. Example: a few weeks ago just for fun I posted a joke question about what to do with a cursed Bills jersey (they always lose when I wear it). One response told me to burn the shirt (ok . . .) with myself in it (?!). Huh? Where did that come from? Did I pee in your corn flakes that morning? If you can't enjoy your visit here or join in a joke, then don't come. If you don't want to read a post or a line of discussion, then don't read it. It's not complicated.

Well . . . maybe. I've been reading that in the local papers here. Their bye is next week (#4). Bottom line is he's got mono and nobody really knows.

6? Really? No joke, those Jets-Dolphins games could be epic. Desperation on both sides. Bad as they both are, the games could be really entertaining. (I'm assuming Darnold misses 7-8 games.)

In this situation I'd rather be in a McDermott/Dabol/Frazier locker room than a Gase/Williams locker room. The Jets chemistry could be really ugly in December.