Offside Number 76

I prefer GR55 because it is less of a cheerleader for the team, but the flip side of that is that the hosts can get a little TOO negative. But 97Rock's coverage isn't bad. Post-game, it's 55 all the way for me, because Schopp is hilarious when he gets a caller who is completely wasted.

Mallett sure looked like a pro yesterday, and he doesn't play directly against Georgia's freshman QB or substitute WR, either. I think AJ might be seeing things through garnet-and-black-tinted glasses. I did not see Luck yesterday; I have no interest in Locker. Mallett or the OL from Washington, as far as I'm concerned.

You may have had a point, but you lost a reader.

here's some kerosene for the fire: http://boards.giants.com/forums/thread/1848481.aspx

McKelvin is nothing short of awesome in season openers, right?

You are right on the onside kick; it's such an obscure situation that I had forgotten the rule. By "worked," I mean exactly that. It was SOMETHING to hope for, rather than nothing. The O got the ball back, there actually were only 29 seconds left, and it was better than being down by six--or ten!--also with no timeouts left.

The whole thing is a fascinating study of dysfunction. Thanks for posting it; it will make for some fun dissection at work during the week.

Onside kick? On a free kick after a safety? Or am I not getting it? Either way, the safety worked; the offense didn't on the last possession. It proved to be a smart call. Not sure what the argument is.

The Bills didn't complete long passes the entire freaking day. Fourth and ten from the one? No, it was the right call, and it did work. Gailey put trust in his D, which, if a certain coach had done in 1999 (by kicking out of bounds in a game where Buffalo's D ruled), the Bills may have won a playoff game. Did it work out? No, because the next O possession sucked. Was it the right call? Well, the Bills' D proved that it was. No safety only meant that the Fish would go up by six (at a MINIMUM), rather than five.

It did work, and that's why they call it a "safety." The next offensive series is what didn't work.

Agreed. Consider, too, that the Bills had the third-fewest plays from scrimmage yesterday. http://www.nfl.com/stats/categorystats?offensiveStatisticCategory=GAME_STATS&season=2010&seasonType=REG&d-447263-o=2&conference=ALL&tabSeq=2&role=TM&d-447263-p=1&d-447263-s=SCRIMMAGE_PLAYS&d-447263-n=1 Sometimes, you can say that's because the defense didn't get the opposing offense off of the field, but not yesterday. The problem was a failure to advance the ball and gain first downs.

Totally agree. Re: Smerlas, you can only wear it if you're on the wrong side of the line of scrimmage.

Why is he being defiant?

Miami.

Exactly. Depends on the QB. The top five or six probably have significant input. The bottom five or six, probably none. In between, well, it's probably a sliding scale. Kelly probably had a lot of say; Ferragamo or Mathison, probably not as much. Johnson/Flutie? Probably some say, but not a lot.

Miami.

They really need to complete the trifecta with Akili. EDIT: Even better, with Paul Smith, who is probably better than the whole lot.

Gus is awesome. Steve Tasker, not so much. Albany folks: the map website has an update in the comments section that acknowledges that the Bills game will be shown in Albany. http://the506.com/sports/?p=564#respond

I hope he has a better record in the playoffs than Sayers.

King is really going all out to earn his salary, huh?

Cox, Marino, Sanders, Wilfork.

Don't tell people that in the game day chat; you'll spend the rest of the afternoon arguing. Trust me. (But I agree w/ you and G.E. on the fourth down decisions.)

Good depth signing; were the Bills really going to go into the Cincy game with one healthy tight end?

I've got these two really good friends, each of whom are half Cherokee. One hates the Redskins, and she spends a significant portion of her time--professional time and free time--trying to eradicate such nicknames from sports. The other moved to DC about a year ago, and adopted the Redskins as her favorite team (she never lived in an NFL market before). I never know which one is right. Personally, I do not like the name "Redskins," but I do not have a problem, with, say "Chiefs." Or "Fighting Irish." I guess the middle ground (between my two friends) is probably the right idea.

Well, your friend hasn't the talent to rip Buffalo well, apparently. We've all seen it done; we've all seen it done much better than that. And it remains a great place to live (I moved back after ten years, and I love it). Your buddy needs a little more creativity, and less use of his thesaurus, though, to make it funny. Plus, he's from Philly? Well, whatever, I guess. Good luck to him. Good luck to you, in North Carolina, too.