folz

Just adding a little to your case... A usual response is, "Yeah, well all teams have injuries, it's the NFL." So, I looked to see if the Bills indeed have been hit harder than many other teams. The following article (from three days ago, so current) tries to figure out which NFL team has been hit hardest this season by injury. They do not just look at number of players on IR and total games missed, etc. They try to weigh in the actual value of the player to the team by a metric they call "Total Points Value." I can't say I looked too deeply into their metric, but they are at least trying to determine the value of a player (so, a second or third string guy that didn't see the field much would have 0 value in their metric), rather than just total number of team injuries. According to their metric, they have the Bills as the 6th hardest hit team in value player injuries. But the Bills actually have the 3rd most missed games by valued players. The reason for the disparity is they weigh losing say a QB like Burrow as more significant than say a WR or another position. Also interesting to note is how they close the article, "The Patriots and Rams are the most fortunate teams so far in terms of health, which sheds a little light on their strong showings this year. The five teams with the fewest Total Points missed due to injury are currently a combined 41-20, compared to 24-37 from the top 5 teams (most Total Points missed due to injury)." https://www.sportsinfosolutions.com/2025/12/03/which-nfl-teams-have-been-most-and-least-affected-by-injuries-in-2025/

Was just thinking about this and didn't think it deserved a new topic, so I decided to put it here. Many Bills fans have lamented our WR room for at least 2-3 years now (not totally without cause). And we drool over teams with two stud receivers. So, I thought that I would look at how the teams with the best WR duos are doing. At the start of this season, the following teams were considered the best WR duos (generally-obviously opinions differ) . I have included their current records and chances of making the playoffs this season: Odds of making Team/Record playoffs (2025) 1. Bengals (4-8) 2% 2. Eagles (8-4) 95% 3. Cowboys (6-6) 16% 4. Lions (8-4) 43% 5. Rams (9-3) 96% 6. Vikings (4-8) <1% 7. Dolphins (5-7) <1% 8. Seahawks (9-3) 93% 9. Tampa Bay (7-5) 81% 10. Washington (3-9) <1% 11. Chargers (8-4) 61% 12. Chiefs (6-6) 35% The Bills are 8-4 with a 90% chance of making the playoffs. Only two of the top WR teams have a better record than the Bills (by 1 game) and only three of them have better playoff odds than the Bills. Only 5 of the 12 teams have better than 50% odds of making the playoffs. Yes, I know there were injuries (Burrow, Chase, Lamb, Tyreek, Evans, Godwin, etc.---kudos to TB for weathering their storm), but that's part of the equation too. You may be weaker elsewhere on your team in order to have those two studs and if one of them gets injured, it's a bigger loss to the team (harder to get wins without those players, obviously). And obviously who your quarterback is matters big time too (but I think you could say that at least 9 of those 12 teams have pretty good QBs). I'm not saying this is some be all end all stat to discourage getting better at wide receiver. And I would not say no to one or even two stud receivers if the opportunity were there for Buffalo and it made sense (obviously you don't want to pay two stud receivers if you are a run-first team). But, I think it does at least go to show that just having stud receivers does not guarantee anything.

1. Beane was trying to improve the roster. That is not a bad thing, that is what I hope he is always trying to do. 2. Beane can't control whether Slay wants to play for Buffalo or not. 3. While I hate to see a homegrown guy in Ingram leave, he only had 8.97% of defensive snaps and 23.9% of special teams snaps this year. He has 6 total tackles on the year. His overall team snap count is 13.6%. He was active for 7 of 12 games this year, but only played a defensive snap in 5 games. Even if there are injuries, he wasn't going to be the piece to propel us or prevent us from anything in the post-season. 4. Most likely, after the Chiefs game, or when Houston's guys get healthy again, or in the off-season, or at cutdown next camp Houston will release Ingram (because he is a fringe player) and he'll find his way back to Buffalo anyhow. Anyone blaming Beane or saying this is a bad look for him is obviously just looking for something negative to pin on him because they already have a certain opinion about him and want to back it up. It's much ado about nothing, imo.

Well, if there was a time for the team to get hot, this would be it...heading down the stretch into the playoffs. Just to note: remember in 2023 things didn't look too great after going back-and-forth with wins for 9 weeks (win-loss-win-loss-win-loss-loss-win-loss) and then the Bills went on a 5-game win streak to close out the season against: KC (11-6), Dallas (12-5), LAC (5-12), Pats (4-13), and Miami (11-6). That scenario was even more improbable than them doing it this year. Can the Bills win out? Absolutely. Are the odds in favor of them winning out? No. But at this point, even if we can't steal the division back, just get yourselves in playoff mode. Balls to the wall, lay it all on the line time.

I would say 1. Allen; 2. Baker. But I guess I haven't watched enough Seahawks games this year, seems like you guys are pretty high on them. What about Mason Rudolph and Mike White? They are the only other two QBs from that draft class that are actually still kicking around the league (Rudolph is Pittsburgh's backup and White is currently on the Panthers practice squad). Strange things have happened before (Nick Foles, Jeff Hostetler, Brad Johnson, Trent Dilfer). 😊

I do know that Brees and Rodgers each appeared in and won one Super Bowl. My point was that they each only made one SB appearance in 20 and 21 years playing, respectively (and they are both top-5ish QBs of all-time). This board would be going nuts if that were Josh. Also, in 15 years, Payton and Brees missed the playoffs 6 times (40% of their time together). Missing the playoffs that much with a top 5 all-time quarterback? This is the 8th year with Sean and Josh. Let's just say they made it to and won a Super Bowl this year. To match Payton's record with Brees, they would have to miss the playoffs 5 of the next 7 years (and not make another SB appearance). Yet Payton is lauded as a great coach for that one Super Bowl. If that is how the McD era played out, Super Bowl and then missing the playoffs that much, what would be his legacy? Sure, we would be grateful for the Super Bowl, but I'm sure there would be plenty of posters saying if we had a different coach, Josh would have had 5 Super Bowls. Rodgers has missed the playoffs 9 times in 21 years (43% of his career). And I know it was many different coaches and regimes, but the Packers had Favre and then Rodgers for 34 years in a row. Three Super Bowl appearances (two wins). That is one Super Bowl appearance every 12 years (or one Super Bowl win every 17 years) with two phenomenal quarterbacks. Sometimes you guys make it sound like just having a top 5-10 quarterback should automatically equal consistent Super Bowl appearances and wins. It doesn't. Fair enough on the Shula/Marino point. I could see giving a coach who has won that much previously the benefit of the doubt. But what was that team's issue? Oh yeah, they couldn't get past the Bills. Similar to the Bills and Chiefs recently, or the Colts and Pats (in the Brady/Manning era), etc. And point taken on Reeves. He and Elway did make some Super Bowls but couldn't win one, and then after Reeves was fired, they did win with Shanahan. So, that is a point in the fire McD, someone else might be able to do it side. But at the same time, (much like Manning's last SB win) it wasn't really the quarterback that got them to and won those bowls. TD and Shanahan's run schemes carried that team those two years. Elway was a shell of his former self. And I'm sure at the time there was talk of firing Reeves because he can't win the Big One, but not sure if anyone was saying he squandered Elway's career, they had their shots. Yes, I may have been stretching a bit with McNabb, just trying to make the point, but he was a first round draft pick and an MVP (even if not to the caliber of the other players discussed). Yes, thanks, made a brain fart in my post. Because I was listing Shula in the not having won with Marino category, I accidentally included him in the not won at all category, when as you said he obviously had the two SB wins in the early 70s (with the undefeated team and no name defense).

Fun stuff...let's go guys. Has it ever been a thing for a quarterback before either? Or is it just a current Bills fans thing? I don't remember anyone ever saying that Mike McCarthy and/or Matt LeFleur squandered Aaron Rodgers' career. I don't remember anyone saying that Sean Payton squandered Drew Brees' career. How about Shula squandering Marino's career? Dan Reeves squandering Elway's career, Reid squandering McNabb's career, etc. Nope, never heard it. So, when did it become a thing for NFL fans to say that about any coach, squandering a QB's career? I think you guys blow out of proportion how bad the blunder was in relation to other coaches playoff mistakes simply because it happened to our team. And there is still no guarantee that we win that game even if he did everything differently (how you think he should have done them). Plus, coaches learn and grow from their mistakes as well. I'm not going to do it right now, too much work, but I guarantee if you look back through the playoff losses of even HOF coaches, you will find plenty of games that the fans and/or media blamed them for something. Almost every playoff losing coach gets blamed for some reason that the team did not win. Almost every single one. First of all, you can criticize the team and the coaching without wanting to fire the coach and GM. You guys look at things so one-sidedly. And this trope of "just being happy to make the playoffs" is inaccurate and has been repeated so many times now, it's like you guys don't have a real argument. You just say 13 seconds and then mock us. And I absolutely guarantee that if that happened to the Bills in the exact same way (The Minneapolis Miracle), you would all still blame McDermott for it, whether it was player error or not. Honestly, if that is how we exited the playoffs this year, would you use it as an argument to fire McDermott? You know you would. And again, I think you guys are selective in your memory. One of these days, when I have time, I will look back through the playoff losses and point out some examples. So, 31 teams and coaches fail every year? And coaches who never won a Super Bowl are all failures? Let me ask this, are Brian Billick, Barry Switzer, George Seifert, Bruce Arians, Doug Peterson, Gary Kubiak, and Nick Sirianni all NFL success stories, while Don Shula, Marv Levy, Bud Grant, George Allen, Don Coryell, Chuck Knox, Dan Reeves, etc. are all failures? The HOF doesn't think so anyway. And I don't understand why the anti-McDermott guys can not understand that no one (McDermott supporters) are ok with not making or winning a Super Bowl, especially with Josh as our QB, we all want it as much as you guys do...and some of us probably for many more years than some of you. We just still believe that this regime can do it. Believe me, I fully understand that you guys do not believe that (and I know the reasons why you think that). And that's ok. From our perspective, wanting to keep McD is not a concession that we do not want or care about winning a Super Bowl, i.e., "we know McD can never do it and we are ok with that". That is not where we are. There are just a few, last of us holdouts that believe they can still do it. Plain and simple. And we have some perspective on why it hasn't happened yet. Agree to disagree, but stop putting words in our mouths. I may end up being wrong, but I'm not delusional. I mean what the hell does "cult of personality trial" mean in this sense anyway. Do you really think that McDermott supporters are just brainwashed by propaganda from the organization? That we put McDermott above the Buffalo Bills (who we have rooted for for decades before Sean's arrival)? And we would never criticize him or see his faults, or the teams' faults? That is not our reality, that is just what you guys are projecting on to us. First of all, Tannehill had 4,085 yards and 40 TDs and only 7 INTs on 66% completions that season. That is some pretty good QB play. And secondly, you say "with Tannehill" as if Derrick Henry wasn't also on the team with 2,141 yards and 17 TDs that year. I mean, that isn't just a career year, that is an "of all-time" type of year. And again, you guys just put words in our mouths and exaggerate everything. Honestly who thought Thad Lewis was the answer. Absolutely no one. Did people root for Tyrod when he played, yes, but who was saying he was the long-term answer? For two years I screamed at my TV, throw the damn ball Tyrod. I was excited for EJ when we drafted him, hoping and wishing he could be the guy. But I didn't hold on to him when it became obvious he wasn't the guy. Trent had a few good games, if anyone was on his train it was for like half a season. I don't know where you guys come up with this stuff. It's like you have to pretend that we are crazy in order to prove your point. All this was about, initially for me, was contradicting Dr.D's statement that Vrabel is obviously a better coach than McDermott. Who knows, in 10 or 15 years we may look back on things and say, yeah, Vrabel was better (if he wins a couple of rings and McD does not, or whatever). But, currently, there is absolutely no stat that points to Vrabel being a better coach at the moment other than the Pats looking better than the Bills currently, this year---but the end of this season has not even been written yet, and it's just one season, so maybe we should hold his gold jacket for now.

Did Vrabel squander Derrick Henry's best years? A top-5 RB of all time should have a ring by now. And, yeah, that's your prerogative. You can go with whoever you think. I was just saying that there is no current metric to point to Vrabel being a better head coach than McDermott (as claimed by Dr.D). You could choose Vrabel over McD because you just want a change or because Sean made a blunder in a playoff game, whatever, but it still doesn't mean that Vrabel is the better coach. There is nothing to back that up at the moment. Sean has the better regular season record, the better playoff record, more playoff appearances, the better offensive rankings, the better defensive rankings---it's more than just that neither has won a championship yet. And you guys need to get over 13 seconds already. Let it go. Things like that have happened to every good/great coach. Look at Sean Peyton's departures from the playoffs with Drew Brees and New Orleans (the Minnesota Miracle comes to mind, among many others). How about Andy Reid's exits in Philly (he was torn apart for bad game and clock management, etc., i.e. losing the game for the team). If you look at every coaches history, you will find moments like 13 seconds, and yes, even HOF coaches, and even in the playoffs. This belief that Sean is the only good coach to ever make a mistake, or at least the only coach that you will hold their mistake against them, is so tiring. Plus, it depends on how you define squandering a career. Do Josh and Buffalo have a ring yet? No. But I have had a blast these last eight years watching the Bills. Doesn't mean I don't still want them to win it all, but not winning a Super Bowl is also not total failure. Breaking the drought, yes, the 13 second game---maybe the best playoff game ever played, the perfect playoff game vs. the Pats, Josh doing Josh things and breaking records, rallying together over the Damar incident, the battles with the Chiefs, our overall record and specifically our home record (that's a lot of fun games/wins we got to see)---I have enjoyed it all. If nothing matters except a Super Bowl, I think you may be missing out on some of the joy of life. It is the journey, not the destination. Do I look back on the 90s Bills with loathing because they never won a Super Bowl? Nah, as heart-breaking as it was at the time, I look back on those years with so much fondness. It was a lot of fun and brought me a lot of enjoyment and good times with friends and family, despite never winning the big one. Again, I'm not saying that I don't care if we win one. I want that as much as any Bills fan, I just don't think everyone sucks (except Josh) and it was all pointless if we don't. And Yes, I do still think this regime can get us there (while I understand that probably the majority at this point no longer believe that).

You could say that Maye currently (in the 2025 season) has better stats than Josh, but that is a much different thing than saying that Maye is currently a better quarterback overall (if that is what you meant). I mean, honestly, if you had to choose a quarterback for your team for the playoffs right now, are you really picking Maye over Josh? (We haven't even seen Maye in a playoff game yet to have any reference.) In a redraft, at this precise moment, are you drafting Maye ahead of Allen? Don't get me wrong, the kid is very good, but to say a second-year player is already better than an elite, 9-year vet, MVP quarterback seems not only premature, but a bit crazy. But let's look at their current overall stats anyhow. Current stats (2025 season): Maye: 3,731 scrimmage yards, 25 TDs, 6 INTs, 71.5% completions, 0 4th-quarter comebacks, 1 game-winning drive. QB rate: 111.9 Allen: 3,241 scrimmage yards, 30 TDs, 10 INTs, 69.1% completion, 2 4th-quarter comebacks, 3 game-winning drives. QB rate: 99.8. Also, Maye has played one more game than Josh at the moment. Josh's current game averages for 2025 are 270 scrimmage yards and 2.5 TDs. So, if we add one more game for Josh at his average, we get: 3,511 scrimmage yards, 33 TDs. Still 220 yards less than Maye (about 17 yards less per game), but with 8 more TDs (about .62 more TDs per game than Maye). And if you are taking team record into account, well, if we win while the Pats are on BYE (at home vs. Cincy) and then beat the Pats in the rematch, we are only one game behind them (with three games to go). I do think Maye is a very good Qb and we will be contending with him and the Pats for the next few years at least, but in no way is he currently a better QB than Allen. He may have better stats at the moment (for this year), but a second-year guy still has a lot to learn, a lot of things he hasn't seen yet, etc., etc.

Just curious, what metric are you using to evaluate coaches? Sure, the Pats look good this year...but how is Vrabel (in your opinion) an obviously better coach than McDermott? Mike Vrabel 8 years as head coach. 65-47 reg season (.580%). Three (will soon be four) playoff appearances in 8 years. 2-3 in the playoffs (.400%). Two first round playoff losses (in three tries). 1 AFC Champ game appearance. Sean McDermott 9 years as head coach. 94-49 reg season (.657%). Seven (will soon be eight) playoff appearances in 9 years. 7-7 in the playoffs (.500%). Two first round playoff losses (in seven tries). 2 AFC Champ game appearances. Now of course the response will be...yeah, but Sean has had Josh. Fair enough. But let me counter with. (1.) Sean did not have Josh in year one, and Josh was not Josh in year two or year three of McD's tenure. So, he has had prime Josh for 6 years, not 9 years. (2.) While no one is going to compare Ryan Tannehill to Josh (other than that they were chosen 7th and 8th overall in the draft their respective years), he was not a horrible QB (average). BUT, Vrabel did also have a generational talent on his team in a prime Derrick Henry. Despite missing 9 games in 2021, Henry still averaged (AVERAGED) 1,576 yards from scrimmage and 14 TDs/year while Vrabel was his coach. Now, of course, QB is still the more important position, but having Henry sure does balance things out a bit. Taking QBs out of it for the moment, well, they are both defensive coaches right? So, let's look at how their defenses have fared. Here are their team's defensive rankings for both yards against and points against. Vrabel McDermott Yds against Pts against Yds against Pts against 20 32 26 18 8 3 2 18 21 12 3 2 28 24 14 16 12 6 1 1 23 14 6 2 18 16 9 4 7 5 17 11 8 13 Average Rankings: Vrablel: Yards Against: 17.1; Points Against: 14.0 McDerm: Yards Against: 9.5; Points Against: 9.4 And if you are curious on the offensive rankings in their tenures, well: Vrabel: Yards for: 18th; Points for: 16th. McDerm: Yards for: 12th; Points for 10th. And again, the Pats look very good this year, no doubt. But can they maintain that? Many coaches can come in and make a difference right away (just because a culture change was needed), but can they continue to play at the level they are now as the message gets stale, as they have to pay Maye big money, as Free Agency and age starts gnawing at their roster. I do think Vrabel is a very good coach and he might be able to weather those storms (it does help when you have your QB), but again, I ask you, by what metric are you saying that he is a better coach than Mcdermott? There isn't a stat in his favor at the moment, other than their record this year---3 more wins than the Bills, but also having played one extra game---and they have the head-to-head this year...but we'll face them again, at least once more. And if we win while the Pats are on BYE and then we win the rematch, the Pats will only be one game ahead of us. I just think that there is a lot of "the grass is greener" mentality amongst Bills fans right now. Yet as we know, that is usually not the case.

Josh already has the record of total TDs before the age of thirty by 29 TDs...and he still has the rest of the season (5 more games) to add to that total (as he does not turn 30 until May). He has averaged 2.37 TDs/game in his career, so, 11 or 12 more TDs likely, to make his lead over Mahomes (2nd place) about 40 TDs. Mahomes, Goff, and Stafford are already over 30 years old, so their counts are done. Lamar is the only other active guy on the list still under 30. He will still be under 30 years old all of next season. Yet, he is 77 TDs behind Josh, and his average TD total per season is ~27 TDs. Last year was his best year ever, with 45 TDs. But, even if he repeated his best year next year, he would still be about 32 TDs behind Josh. He might catch Mahomes, but not Josh. Now to be fair, Josh had 8 more starts than Mahomes over that span---before 30 yo---(and by the end of the season, Josh will have had 13 more starts than Pat over that span). But, Pat has averaged ~2.3 TDs per game across his career. So, even with eight more games, his total would be 281 total TDs over the same 122 starts as Josh. Even then, he would still be 11 TDs behind Josh. I looked up the older guys too (shorter seasons and all), but Marino only had 3 fewer starts than Josh before 30 years old, Manning had 6 more starts than Josh prior to turning 30, and Favre had 13 fewer starts than Josh. None of which would affect things much (Favre is 69 TDs below Josh, 13 more starts would only get him about 21 more TDs at his career average). (Just FYI, to round out the list, Goff had 1 fewer starts than Josh before 30, Stafford had more starts than Josh before 30.) Josh has 122 starts in his career. So even if you said who has the most TDs in their first 122 starts (rather than younger than 30 years old---to make things fair with number of starts), Josh would still easily be in first (Mahomes would just be a little bit closer in 2nd). It really is kind of crazy that he's our QB... Josh is currently 43rd all-time in the NFL in passing TDs. With just 3 more seasons at his current average, he would move up to 17th place all-time, just ahead of John Elway. It would take him 7 more seasons at his current average to break into the top 10 (taking into account that Mahomes and possibly Goff/Prescott could stay ahead of him as they are now---kind of crazy to think that Goff is probably going to finish in the top 10 all-time in passing TDs). Josh is already currently 25th place in rushing TDs amongst all players in NFL history. At his average, he will likely have 3 more rushing TDs this season. That would move him up to 23rd place, passing Tony Dorsett and Ricky Watters. If Josh maintains his average of 9.875 rushing TDs per season for just 3 more years, he would move into 7th place all-time in rushing TDs between Walter Payton and Jim Brown. I mean, what? We very well may have the first player in NFL history who will retire in the top 10 all-time in both passing TDs and rushing TDs.

I rewatched it a bunch of times in the moment to try and see what happened. Josh is on the ground on his back with his knees bent up and Heyward on top of him. It was tough to see with all of the bodies, but it did not appear to be a kick or anything, just Josh extending his legs to kind of push Heyward off of him...something that happens in tons of pile ups. Maybe Hayward felt Josh pushed a little too hard (Heyward was also being pulled off of Josh by Bills linemen at the time too), but it wasn't a dirty move, it was a "get off of me" moment that happens all the time. He just took offense to it as if Allen was trying to purposefully do something. I could not see anything egregious in any way, imo.

It is really hard to stay at the top of your conference for 6+ years (10 for K.C.). There are going to be ups and downs, and dips, even within that stretch, or between two such stretches maybe. It is inevitable due to salary cap, contracts, players aging out, drafting late, other teams getting better, other teams being younger, healthier, hungrier, etc. Yes, there are teams on the rise, but it is foolish to think that the Mahomes, Allen, and Jackson era is over when they are only 28-, 29-, and 30-years old. Most good QBs are productive into their late 30s. There have been 18 NFL QBs to play into their early 40s. These guys all have 10-12 more productive years ahead of them. The talent of the team around them may fluctuate, but they will all still be deep in the hunt most years. And then the next question is can Denver, New England, and Chicago maintain that success for multiple years (as they have to pay their QBs, start drafting later, get FAs poached, have tougher schedules, etc.). As to the QBs themselves, obviously, the young guys will need to prove it in the post-season too (which we have yet to see), but I thought that I would look at the overall stats in comparison, just out of curiosity. Here are the QB stats for each QB's first 25 starts in the league (Williams only has 25 starts thus far, so I used that as the base number for all--even though Nix and Maye have 29 and 28 starts, respectively, to this point). FIRST 25 STARTS IN THE NFL Player Total Yards Total TDs INTs Mahomes 8,260 71 14 Jackson 6,761 57 9 Nix 6,179 51 17 Maye 6,134 40 11 Williams 6,127 34 10 Allen 6,068 45 21 Caveat for Josh...he was the most raw of those QBs coming into the league and by far came to the worst team (least amount of talent around him). K.C, Baltimore, and Denver were all pretty solid teams when they drafted their QBs. And I venture to say that Chicago and New England both had more talent last year than the 2018 salary-capped purged Bills. But, yeah, statistically the three young QBs have started well. But, let's see if they can continue to grow and produce as circumstances change around them (over a few seasons), before we put them at the same level or ahead of the big three (or four, if you include Burrow).

And obviously it is only because our coach and GM suck, right, and nothing else? Over the last 9 years, there has been only one team other than New England and Kansas City to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. Call it what you want, but having been in the same conference with two dynasty teams that the NFL completely fauns all over, does make a difference. I'm just not sure how you guys dismiss that like it's nothing. And for God's sake, the last three times we played KC in the playoffs, we basically lost to them by a combined 6 points (OT, missed FG, 3-point loss with a ton of bad calls by the refs---the NFL definitely has it's favorites, and you can't convince me otherwise at this point). Heck, K.C. probably shouldn't have even been in the position they were (or even in the playoffs) if the refs didn't help them all of last season. How many one-score games did they win where people complained about the officiating/a bad call that gave them the game. Had the refs called a fair game in the AFC Championship last year, we would have been in the Super Bowl last season. How would that affect everyone's opinions this year. You do realize that we should have been in the Super Bowl last year (save for the refs, and the NFL wanting to make sure all of the Swifties were watching the SB). Would we still be wanting to fire everyone if we had made it to the dance last year (win or lose, but not blown out)? Would we still be saying McD and/or Beane can never and will never get to a Super Bowl or win a championship, guaranteed, no questions asked? Year AFC Super Bowl representative 2016 New England 2017 New England 2018 New England 2019 Kansas City 2020 Kansas City 2021 Cincinnati 2022 Kansas City 2023 Kansas City 2024 Kansas City

Just seeing this thread now. Wow, I guess I really am a Homer in that 82% of the fans in this poll seem to want Beane and McD gone and are willing to sacrifice/miss the playoffs in order to do so. Believe me, I understand the frustration with the team right now, but I can't ever imagine not wishing to make the playoffs, especially with Josh Allen at QB. A few of my still optimistic thoughts: 1. It's never as bad as it seems, and it's never as good as it seems (and that goes not just for the Bills, but for all of the teams in the league). 2. We have had slumps in the middle of seasons before and come out of them. And despite the slump and the WR room, we are still 6th in points scored and the #1 rushing team. 3. I'm not basing any opinions on the Houston game: Thursday night games are always bad/struggles, always weird and more injuries. We were on a short week and on the road against the #1 defense in the NFL (playing for their season/playoff lives basically), and with a number of injuries. I'll wait a week or two before assuming that is how our team will look for the rest of the year vs. every other opponent. 4. I honestly believe that if it weren't for some very bad refereeing, we would have made the Super Bowl last year (flame me all you want for that, I just believe it to be so---there were a number of videos at the time pointing it out. It wasn't just the 4th down they didn't give Josh, it was all game). Maybe we don't win vs. Philly, but I think we would have been more competitive than K.C. was at least. 5. Since Mahomes has been starting (2018---7 years), Kansas City has prevented 17 teams from reaching or winning a Super Bowl. Just sucks that we were 4 of those teams. But, let's not pretend that having an all-time team in your conference that is also the darling of the NFL isn't a factor. 6. It is really hard to maintain consistent success in the NFL. There will be ups and downs---turnover, players aging out, injuries, contracts, free agency, having to pay a franchise QB, etc., etc. Yet, the Chiefs and Bills are the only teams to make the playoffs in each of the last 6 seasons (K.C. is on a 10-year run). Since the start of free agency and salary caps in the early '90s, only 4 other teams have made the post-season more than 6 times in a row. Yes, I understand it is because of the QBs, but they still have to have a good team around them. Sean Payton missed the playoffs 6 of 15 seasons (40%) with Drew Brees as his QB (for example). 7. We are still going to make the playoffs this year. And as we all know, the playoffs are a new season. Anything can happen...and the AFC is still pretty wide open (meaning I think the Bills could beat or lose to any of the prospective playoff teams, but none of them scare me...makes me think we wouldn't have a chance). One game season going forward. Just beat Pitt on Sunday. If so, we are 2 games up on both Pitt and Balt, with a head-to-head victory over each. Chiefs don't have an easy road (Cowboys, Texans, Chargers up next). Houston still has to play the Colts twice, the Chiefs, and the Chargers. Jax still has Colts twice and the Broncos. Plus, some of those teams will be giving each other losses. We're still in good position...it will just be from a wild card spot this year. [Do division titles still seem irrelevant now, as I have heard argued so often?] Just trying to keep some hope alive. I get it, some of you are done with the current regime and have been done for a while and save a Super Bowl win this year, your position is pretty firm. I'm just at a point of, it doesn't look good right now, but let's see how it plays out first. I know, that's what we homers say every year...but it still makes sense to me. If we go on a run, great for all of us. If we crash and burn somehow (miss the playoffs, lose bad in the playoffs or to an inferior opponent), maybe the last of us Homers will be sliding over to your side.