folz

On the year, Worthy is averaging 36.25 receiving yards per game. If you include his rushing stats, he is averaging 49.5 scrimmage yards per game and 0.25 TDs/game. He has 1 TD on the year and missed two games due to injury. Keon is averaging 45.20 receiving yards per game and 0.40 TDs/game this season. He has 2 TDs on the year. Keon may not be setting the world on fire, but are people really still lamenting over a player who is averaging 36 receiving yards per game? Career update---Regular Season (prior to Bills week 6 Monday night game): Games Targets Receptions Rec yards Rec TDs Catch% 20+-yard recs Yds/Reception Yds/Target Total scrimmage yards Total TDs Keon: 18 86 50 782 6 58.1 15 15.6 9.1 791 6 Xavier: 20 116 70 763 6 60.3 6 10.9 6.6 914 9 If Keon hits just his current career average of 44 yards on Monday night versus Atlanta, he will have 826 total scrimmage yards---just 88 yards fewer than Worthy, but also in one fewer games (and with approx. 26 fewer targets than Worthy). Again, I think both players can be good as they mature. But, I'm having a hard time understanding those that think Worthy is sooooo superior to Keon at this point when looking at their stats head-to-head.

Just an update in regards to our defense vs. our previous opponents (wasn't sure where else to post this): Last 4 games (Bills defense vs. offensive opponents). For the most part, the Bills have held their last 4 opponents to at or below their season averages. I know we need to see more on defense to take us all the way (and we have not seen a dominant performance yet, by any means), but I'm not sure that it's as bad as some of you think. Some folks act as if we performed worse against these teams than other defenses have/would. We are currently an average-ish defense with a lot of room to grow and get better----with the returning players and the young guys getting experience. [Stats below include today's (week 6) games.] Just FYI. JETS Points/game Yards/game Sacks/TOs allowed/game season averages: 20.5 311 4/1.33 Jets vs. Bills: 10 154 4/1.0 DOLPHINS season averages: 22.33 300.16 2/1.33 Phins vs. Bills: 21 276 0/2.0 SAINTS season averages: 18.5 315.5 1.83/0.66 Saints vs. Bills: 19 298 3.0/1.0 PATRIOTS season averages: 25 345.16 3.0/1.16 Pats vs. Bills: 23 338 4.0/1.0

I'm not sure, we'd have to go back and look at all of those catches to see how many air yards there were for each. Obviously, we know that Shakir and Cook get a ton of YAC, but I would venture to guess that most of Keon's 20+-yard catches were more air yards than YAC (same for Palmer and probably Kincaid too, and Hawes' couple of grabs, and Knox---I don't remember a ton of YAC for those players--i.e., taking say a 5-yard pass and turning it into a 25-yard play). But, in the long run, how much does it matter if you get say 25 yards that is all in the air, or 25 yards with a short pass and YAC. 25 yards is 25 yards, right?

If the only thing that matters is a Super Bowl and you're all convinced that McDermott can never get us there, then why are you even still watching the games? Why not turn off the TV/computer until we get a new coach because obviously there is no point in watching now. I've been told multiple times that regular season games/stats are meaningless (only the SB matters at this point), so why are you even upset at a regular season loss then? It shouldn't even matter to you because you already know that McD can't get us to or win a Super Bowl right? So, who cares if we go 13-4 or 1-16. What does it matter according to your standards? You guys should actually be rooting for the Bills to tank, so you can get your new coach and #1 WR.

I'm not saying there aren't any problems, but some of you guys may be surprised to know that currently the Bills are 3rd in the league in 20+-yard passing plays/receptions. Not sure how you qualify that. And New England dinked and dunked their way to a few Super Bowls, so...

A quick comparison of the two coaches: Sean McDermott: 8-1/3 years as HC; 90-46 (.662 win %); playoffs 7-7 (.500 win %). Mike Vrabel: 6-1/3 years as HC; 57-47 (.548 win %); playoffs 2-3 (.400 win %). Head-to-Head record between the two coaches is 3 to 3; combined point differential of those 6 games is Buffalo +34 points. Now, before you respond with, yeah well you can't really compare records because Sean McDermott has had Josh Allen, let me remind you that he did not have Josh in 2017---and in 2018 and 2019, Josh was still very raw (not the All-Pro MVP QB he is now by a long shot), and the talent on the roster in all 3 of those years was not great (as we were rebuilding). But, yes, Sean has had 5 years of prime Josh Allen. Now, obviously, Vrabel has not had the quarterback play that McDermott has with Josh (I'm not trying to say that he has), but the QBs he did have were selected 2nd, 3rd, 8th, and 33rd overall in the NFL draft, so not total trash---even if they never reached their potential (Mariota, Maye, Tannehill, Levis). [And coaching/development can play into a QB succeeding or not as well.] But, if you think you can't really compare their records because of QB play, well then since they are both defensive coaches, how about looking at their team's defensive rankings: Sean McDermott Mike Vrabel Yds allowed/Pts allowed Yds allowed/Points allowed 2017 26 18 --- --- 2018 2 18 8 3 2019 3 2 21 12 2020 14 16 28 24 2021 1 1 12 6 2022 6 2 23 14 2023 9 4 18 16 2024 17 11 --- --- 2025 9 18 18 9 Average 10 11 20 13 Vrabel's best defensive rankings were in his first year. He took over a team that had gone 9-7 the previous year and who had made the playoffs, beating the Chiefs in the Wild Card round, before losing to the Patriots. So, he inherited a decent roster (it wasn't a rebuild). In that first year, he repeated the 9-7 record of the previous year (under Mike Mularkey), but Tennessee missed the playoffs. And last note I'll make to billsherd...is Vrabel the problem or is Derrick Henry the problem? In two of the three games that McDermott lost to Vrabel, Derrick Henry had 223 scrimmage yards, 5 TDs, 0 fumbles. We obviously have had issues with Henry no matter what team he is on. Also, two of the three wins that Vrable has over Sean were by 3 points each (the third was a blowout where Henry went crazy). Now, I'm not saying that Vrabel isn't a good coach, I'm just saying that he is not a coach that Bills fans should fear in any way (or believe to be superior to McDermott).

I think you have things a bit backwards or are thinking back too much to last year. The Bills are currently 10th in receiving yards and tied for 6th in receiving TDs. They are 3rd in 20+-yard passing plays. It's not as bad as some of you guys think. Our offense has been very good except for the 2nd quarter of the Saints game and the first half vs. the Pats. The Bills defense is currently 2nd in the league against the pass (yes, some of that has to do with our poor rush defense, but I don't think you can totally discount a 2nd-place ranking). The Bills are 9th in the league in yards allowed/14th in points allowed. The problem thus far has been the run defense, not the pass defense. And as far as the pass rush, the Bills are tied for 5th in sacks (though there are ties in front of us as well, basically, 8 teams have more sacks than the Bills). The Bills are currently 2nd in QB hurries, 3rd in QB pressures, and 2nd in QB pressure percentage. So, I'm not sure what games you are watching if you think our pass rush has been "missing". And yes, the secondary is still a bit rough. But Cole is improving each week and Hairston will be back (and hopefully ready to take over). Benford and Johnson are both very good players, and Rapp is at least solid. As far as fixing the run defense, we have Oliver, Hoect, and Ogunjobi coming back and the young guys should get at least marginally better as the year progresses (Walker, Sanders, Jackson). And let Kraft, Diggs, and the Pats fans gloat. They won the battle, but they will lose the war. The season is a marathon, not a sprint. We have loftier goals than beating a division rival in week 5.

Welcome to the WWE-era of NFL football. Enjoy the stories, athleticism, and entertainment, but do not expect fair, competitive sport (at least not consistently)...you'll be much happier that way.

Yeah, sorry, I was kind of responding to two posts at once. I didn't mean to intimate that you had given up on all of those players. And I agree with your last sentence. Obviously the coaches do not find Jackson ready yet (for whatever reasons). But, that is a far cry from some (not you) labeling him as a miss or bust or disappointment, or whatever already (just 4 games into his career).

Just to note. I tallied up all of the 2025 3rd round draftees snap counts on their side of the ball (offense or defense). 2025 third round picks are currently averaging 21.89% snap counts overall. If you subtract the 4 players on IR, then the 3rd rounders are averaging 24.46% snaps on offense or defense. There are 11 of 38 players (29%) garnering more than 23% snap counts. There are only five 2025 third round players getting more than 50% of their team's snaps on their side of the ball. There are 12 players of 38 (31.6%---including the 4 IR guys) that do not have a snap yet. Approximately only 17% of third round draft picks become starters. If we are speaking of Jackson, the players ahead of him are Joey Bosa, Groot, Aj Epenesa, and Javon Solomon. To expect any rookie 3rd-rounder to be ahead of the first three is just silly. So, the question becomes, why isn't he getting snaps ahead of Solomon, right? Is it really that odd that a 3rd-round rookie (in the first 4 games of his career) might not play over a 5th-round 2nd-year guy, who has been in the system for a year-and-a-half already? And with the injuries to Oliver and Milano, he may also have been caught in a numbers game on defense (as far as being inactive). Solomon has played 64% of the special teams snaps this season. Maybe with the injuries, you can only suit one of the two...and even if Jackson were ahead of Solomon as a DE, as a rookie, it probably wasn't significant enough to lose what Solomon brings on STs---especially against teams like the Saints, Dolphins, and Jets. It's a team sport, sometimes you have to look at the whole picture, not just the individual parts. And I see we have already written off Solomon then too, along with guys like Carter, Bishop, Williams, and now Jackson and Sanders, etc. When I was a kid, outside of the very top picks in the draft, we understood that it took most players 1-3 years to put it together and be successful in the league. Yet, now we are writing off all of our rookie and 2nd year players already? Just like we did with Bernard and others. Why do you think there is an adage that you can't evaluate draft classes until 3-years out? Because some guys take time to develop. They won't all become starters, and some may end up not be very good in the long run, but you have to give them some time to show what they got and to get enough opportunity to do so before writing them off, imo.

And just to note: The Bills are currently 2nd in points scored The Bills are currently 15th in points against The Bills are currently 3rd best in point differential at +43 points (1 point behind 2nd place Seattle, and 6 points behind 1st place Detroit). So, only two teams have outscored their opponents by more points than the Bills have thus far this year. So, even though our games have been closer than some would like, we are still winning by more than most teams. Granted it's only 4 games, but I don't see the Bills not remaining near the top in point differential because they were 3rd in 2024, 4th in 2023, 2nd in 2022, 1st in 2021 and 5th in 2020. So the idea of us not winning by enough or having enough style points doesn't really seem to be an issue when you compare the Bills to the rest of the NFL (over more than 5+ years now). They are generally winning their games by more points than 85-100% of the other teams (depending on the year---currently, this year, they are winning their games by more points than 93.75% of the other teams).

True, the Saints, Jets, and Dolphins are all in the bottom half/bottom third of the league in offense. But, we still held them to their season averge points/yards per game or worse. And it's not like those teams don't have some very good offensive weapons (Hill, Waddle, Kamara, Olave, Wilson, Hall, Fields---running the ball-wise, etc.), they're going to make some plays. Some posters are acting like we got lit up by these offenses (or played them worse than other teams have) and that we have one of the worst defenses in the league. We are currently an average defense with a lot of opportunity to get much better (with the returning guys and the rookies and 2nd year guys getting more reps and experience). Opponent Total Pts. Pts. rank Yds Rank Avg. Pts/gm Avg. Yds/gm Pts vs. Buf Yds vs. Buf Miami 83 21st 26th 21 286 21 276 Jets 90 19th 21st 23 305 10 154 Saints 66 28th 22nd 17 301 19 298 So, we held Miami and the Saints to just about their current season averages. We held the Jets well below their season average. [Miami has also played: Colts, Pats, Jets; Saints have also played: Cards, SF, Seattle; Jets have also played: Steelers, Bucs, and Dolphins.] And just to repeat from my previous post (what billsfan89 was responding to), if anyone missed it: The Bills held their last three opponents to an average of 16.6 points and 243 yards per game, when league average for offenses is 22 points and 340 yards per game Season combined average for the three teams in question is 20.33 points and 297.33 yards per game. So, 16.6 and 243 is still better--Jets game skews that a bit though. But, just because we let those teams hang around a little longer than we should have in those games, does not mean that they lit up our defense. Though as I said, we obviously still have a long ways to go in the run stuffing department. Also, it's not always just the defense. When, in the 2nd quarter (vs. the Saints), your offense goes INT, 5 and out/punt, 3 and out/punt, 3 and out/punt, it kind of gives teams a chance to get back in or hang around the game. I don't expect our offense to score on every drive, but getting no points on 4 consecutive drives and giving the other team good field position will definitely help to keep a team in a game (plus eleven penalties---seven of which were on the offense or STs). Lots to improve everywhere on the team, but not really anything to be worried too much about overall, imo

No question the team needs to work on the run defense, but I think the Baltimore game kind of skews the team stats at the moment (with both points and Henry's run total). They will balance out as we go. But how bad has the Bills defense been of late? We held our last 3 opponents to an average of 16.6 points. League scoring average is 22. We held our last 3 opponents to 298, 276, and 154 yards of total offense. The league average for yards per game is 339.8. We created 4 turnovers in the last 3 games (we also created 4 more fumbles, but which the fumbling team recovered). We had 7 sacks over the last 3 games. In the last 3 games, we held our opponents to an average of 7.66 points in the 2nd half of those games. Lots of new players, two new coaches, Oliver and Milano coming back, Hoect, Ogunjobi, and Hairston still in the wings. This defense has not been bad the last few weeks and will only get better as we move forward. But again, still need to work on that run defense (hopefully Oliver, Hoect, and Ogunjobi can help in the category, eventually).

First of all, the Bills do have some speed on their team: Worthy 4.21 [40-time] Samuel 4.31 Moore 4.35 Shakir 4.43 And obviously Worthy is waaaay faster than Keon, and no one is going to describe Keon as a receiver who can "take the top off a defense"...and yet, it might interest you to know: In 22 games (including playoffs), Xavier Worthy has 12 receptions of 20 yards or more (54, 50, 50, 37, 35, 31, 28, 26, 24, 23, 21, 21). In 20 games (including playoffs), Keon Coleman has 15 receptions of 20 yards or more (64, 57, 49, 44, 28, 25, 25, 24, 24, 21, 21, 21, 21, 20, 20). Does it really matter if you get them with speed/route running, or you get them with route running/size/jump balls or whatever?

First of all, Beane had nothing to do with passing on Mahomes (that was McD/Whaley). But, yes, let's talk about hindsight with Mahomes. Easy to say now the Bills should have drafted Mahomes or not traded K.C. that pick. But, in 2017, we had a first year head coach who didn't even have a good assessment of his own roster yet. We had a lame duck GM, who was about to be fired. At the time, 2017 was not considered a great draft for QBs. Some people felt that K.C. reached for Mahomes at 10 (he was not expected to be as good as he's been, or at least get there as fast as he did by many at the time). And 2018 was already shaping up (again, at the time) to be a generational QB class, as good as 1983. It made all of the sense in the world at the time for McD to wait on his QB. Wait until he knew his roster and organization, wait until he had a GM he trusts and had time to scout all of the QBs, wait for the better QB class, etc. I think you are looking back with hindsight if you think the Bills should have drafted Mahomes. I tried to follow all of the trade deals and subsequent trades of those picks and this was basically what I found as the outcome of the two trades (draft picks in parentheses): Chiefs got: Mahomes (10), Worthy (28), CB Jaden Hicks (133), OC C.J. Hanson (248). Bills got: Tremaine Edmunds (16), Tredavious White (27), Keon Coleman (32), Zay Jones (37), Dion Dawkins (63), DeWayne Carter (95), and OT Travis Clayton (221). The Bills also had to give up two 5th rounders in the process: picks 154 and 156. So, picks 10, 28, 154, and 156 netted us the above 7 players. Sure Zay was a bad pick and Tremaine never quite reached the level of his draft status (though a solid player), but I'd say we did ok. No picks will ever match the value of Mahomes, obviously, but considering we were still able to get Josh the next year, I'd say things worked out for the best. I personally would take Josh 100 times out of 100 times over Mahomes, not because I think Josh is better than Mahomes, but because he just fits Buffalo so perfectly (and I like him/his personality better---though Pat seems like a good guy too). Time to let the whole Mahomes trade go...everything happened they way it was meant to and our day in the Sun will come. Couldn't agree more with everything you've said Generic (even though I didn't quote all of it). But the bold statement is the key that some people just can't get. Both players are good and each team got the guy they wanted. We didn't want Worthy for our offense (otherwise we would have just picked him where we were rather than trading back, and obviously K.C. wanted Worthy over Keon, as they picked Worthy with Keon still on the board). This was a win-win for both teams. And it's not like Worthy is going to be the one player that prevents us from beating K.C. Well, yes, let's talk about the playoffs for a moment. Before garbage time in the Super Bowl (11 quarters of playoff games), Worthy was averaging 53.45 yards and 0.36 TDs per playoff game (and that includes the 29-yard reception in the Bills game that definitely should have been called an INT or an incompletion---but the refs gave it to Worthy). He wasn't killing it all playoffs. Then, with 2:33 minutes left in the third quarter of the Super Bowl, with the Eagles winning 34-0, Worthy hits some big plays. Let me repeat that, the game was 34-0 in favor of the Eagles (34-6 going into the 4th quarter) when Worthy went off. Do you think maybe the Eagles had let up a bit at that point? Do you think Worthy still has that outburst if it's a one-score game at that point? I'm not knocking him for his SB production (it was still impressive and I'd be excited about it as a Chiefs fan as hopefully, things to come), I'm just saying I don't think you can use last year's playoffs as any kind of arbiter for these two players because Keon was in a weird place in our offense after coming back from injury and with Mack playing well in his absence (and Curtis Samuel getting healthy), and because the majority of Worthy's stats came in garbage time of a blowout. To be clear with their career stats thus far: Regular Season: Worthy (19 games): 64 recs on 107 targets for 721 yards and 6 TDs, 11.3 yards/rec, 6.74 yards/target. 142 rushing yards with 3 TDs. Coleman (17 gms): 46 recs on 79 targets for 759 yards and 5 TDs, 16.5 yards/rec, 9.6 yards/target. 8 rushing yards with 0 TDs. Total yards and TDs (reg season): Worthy 863 and 9 TDs; Keon 767 and 5 TDs (Worthy has played two more games than Keon and has 50 more touches). Total yards and TDs (reg season and playoffs): Worthy 1,150 yards and 12 TDs; Keon 789 yards and 5 TDs. (Worthy had 66 more touches than Keon.) Total yards and TDs (reg season and playoffs, minus SB garbage time): Worthy 1,002 yards and 10 TDs; Keon 789 yards and 5 TDs (Worthy with 60 more touches than Keon.) Like I said, it seems like a win/win scenario for both teams, imo. But either way, it will probably take a couple more seasons to make any true assessment, in relation to comparing the two players.

You're right, players (rookies and 2nd year guys) never improve with more experience and more reps. Defenses never improve as the year goes on. Adding decent players to the rotations won't add anything. Yeah, let's write off our first round pick already...I mean he hasn't even seen the field yet this year (Bust). And yeah, it's only two players out, shouldn't make a difference. Oliver and Milano don't bring anything special to the game. This defense sucks and it always will, there is no hope for improvement ever. Coaches and players don't learn and get better. Other top coaches never, ever make mistakes---but McD would throw away every single game with piles of mistakes if Josh didn't bail him out every single time. All these Homer fans with their excuses. I can't ever forgive McD for 13 seconds. I don't care that he's 16th in win % of all coaches who have ever coached in the league, or that it's the best win % ever by a Bills Head Coach. I don't care that we held our last three opponents to an average of 16.6 points (when the league average for points per game surrendered is 22 points) and that we won each of those games by double digits (despite almost 60% of NFL games being one-score games). I mean, if I was coaching, we'd win by like 40 points each week and we'd have like 10 Super Bowls already. I mean that's how good Josh Allen is (even though he's only played 7 years). I mean, how can a coach not win with an MVP-caliber QB, maybe McD should try to learn a little from John Harbaugh. I mean if you're not willing to fire your coach after a 4-0 start, after going 13-4 with an AFC Championship game appearance (that the refs screwed us in), and winning your division and making the playoffs each of the last 5 years, then you're just some pie-in-the-sky homer that can't see reality, that can't see the facts of the situation.

Well, currently, the Bills are: 14th in yards allowed 17th in points allowed 16th in sacks 12th in takeaways I'd say that qualifies for already being almost exactly average. Yes, we played teams that currently have a shared record of 1-13, but let's not pretend that that record tells the whole story. Baltimore is still tied for 2nd most points scored this year (even after their loss today) and have a great offense with two HOFers, Miami has a lot of serious offensive weapons (Hill, Waddle, Achane, Gordon, Waller, Washington)---even if it hasn't come together for them yet. Sure, they got crushed by Indy in week one, but then played two close games vs. NE and Buf. New Orleans also has some pretty decent offensive weapons (Olave, Shaheed, Kamara, Juwan Johnson, Miller, Cooks). Yes, they got crushed by Seattle, but they were also in tight, one-score games with 2-2 Arizona and 3-1 San Fran. Even the Jets---they lost by 2 points to 3-1 Pitt, lost by 2 points to 3-1 Tampa, and lost to us. I'm not saying these teams are all good teams, I'm just saying that they (and their offenses) are better than a 1-13 record would indicate. No question the Bills defense needs to improve, especially against the run. But, let's not pretend like they are currently one of the worst defenses in the league.

Currrently there are only 4 teams scoring an average of 30 or more points/game (in 2025): Detroit: 34.25 Buffalo: 33.25 Baltimore: 33.25 Indianapolis: 30.75 In 2024, only 3 teams averaged 30 or more points/game: Detroit, Buffalo, Baltimore. In 2023, only one team averaged 30 or above: Dallas. In 2022, No teams averaged 30 or more points per game. In 2021, only one team averaged 30 or above: Dallas. In 2020, only two teams averaged 30 or more: Green Bay and Tampa Bay. So, over the last 6 years, only 11 teams averaged 30 or more points per game. With 32 teams over 6 years, that means only 11 teams of a possible 192 teams accomplished that feat (or it only happened 5.73% of the time over the last 6 years---and that is if all four 2025 teams can maintain that rate for the rest of the year). It may not be remarkable to score 30 points in an individual game, but to do it on a consistent basis is actually quite a feat. Since 2020 (5-1/4 years), the Bills have averaged 29.64 points per game. Since Brady took over OC, we have averaged 29.97 points/game.

Cook is currently on pace for 1,704 rushing yards and 21 TDs---2,082.5 yards from scrimmage. 😱🤪 Not saying he'll reach that, but wow. It wasn't the greatest defensive effort, but a few things: 1. No Oliver or Milano today. Hoect, Ogunjobi, and Hairston are still in the wings. 2. Desperate teams (0-3) are dangerous. 3. The Saints may not be a great team, but they do have some talented players (Olave, Kamara, Juwan Johnson, Rasheed Shaheed, C Erik McCoy, etc.). 4. Bills are still adjusting/growing on defense (lots of new players---7 new guys on the defensive line alone, lots of rookies and 2nd year guys, and they're trying to tweak some things scheme-wise). This defense will get better as the year rolls on. 5. How bad were they actually? (see below) NFL teams are currently averaging 339.3 yards per game and 22 points. Bills allowed the Saints 298 yards and 19 points (so below league average). The Saints offense (weeks 1-4) is averaging 301 yards and 16.5 points per game. The defense stopped them on 6 of 10 drives, with two of their successful drives being field goals. We had 3 sacks and caused two turnovers (well, technically only one, but Boas also forced a fumble that the Saints recovered). Held them to 3 points in the 4th quarter on three possessions. Held them to 109 passing yards with 1 TD and 1 INT. It wasn't a dominant performance by any means, but it wasn't awful. We basically kept them right around their average (which for an 0-3 team is not great). They didn't really perform much better than they did vs. their first three opponents. Run defense still needs work (gave up 189 today) and there is still a lot for them to learn from this game, but with guys returning and all of the rookies gaining valuable experience and reps...we'll get better.

Desperate teams (0-3) are dangerous. And the Saints may not be a good team, but they do have some very talented players (Olave, Kamara, Demario Davis, Cam Jordan, Juwan Johnson, C Erik McCoy, Rasheed Shaheed, the rookie corner Sanker looked pretty good, etc.). They are going to make some plays. Props to the defense for shutting them down in the 4th quarter (and with no Oliver or Milano). The Saints last 3 possessions were field goal, downs, downs. I got: Josh Cook Shakir Bosa Bernard Bishop Shout outs: Not just from today, but man, I really like Dorian Strong's toughness and tackling (4 solo tackles today). Tre seemed to have a bit of an up and down game, but he did have 7 tackles, 1 TFL, and the big stop on 4th down. As to the rookies, along with Strong, Hawes and Walker are looking like players....and even Sanders had a nice tackle today. This rookie class could be very strong if they keep up this progress (and we haven't even seen Hairston yet). Taking the positives from a not-so-pretty win. 4-0 baby! Go Bills!

Cook kind of reminds me more of Leveon Bell in his prime. Bell was a bit bigger and Cook is a bit faster, but, the way Cook is patient finding the holes, follows and works with his blockers, and then the explosiveness when hitting the hole all kind of remind me of Bell. Last two years: Kamara: 2,653 yards from scrimmage and 14 TDs; 4.05 yds/C, 7.1 yds/rec (27 games total) Cook: 2,834 yards from scrimmage and 24 TDs; 4.80 yds/C, 9.1 yds/rec (33 games total) Should be a good match-up (of the RBs), though obviously Cook has the way better overall team. Kamara has averaged 1,442 yards from scrimmage per season over the last 8 years, with 10.4 TDs per year. Just FYI. (He missed 17 games during that span---8 years). I know it probably won't happen because we have run the ball a ton these first 3 games and I'm sure there will be games where we end up passing much more or the backup RBs get more touches than they have, and I know it is only 3 games, but currently Cook is on pace for 2,000 yards from scrimmage and 22 TDs this year (on pace for 1,609 rushing yards and 402 receiving yards). Like I said, he probably won't reach that, but I was a bit surprised that he was on pace for 1,600 rushing yards and 22 total TDs currently. Last year, that would have put him third in rushing (behind only Barkley and Henry) and first in TDs. Glad we paid the man his money.

I was thinking about the bolded statements. I mean we all know about the playoff losses for Lamar and I wondered how has he done in prime time games (as Josh is well known for playing well in prime time---and prime time games being another type of pressure situation with the whole country watching, depending on who you are playing of course). Turns out, Lamar has the best percentage of any QB in prime time games (with Josh in second)---impressive. Win percentage in Prime Time Games: Lamar 76.9% Josh 74.1% Peyton 73.4% Goff 71.0% Mahomes 70.3% https://www.profootballnetwork.com/josh-allens-primetime-dominance-takes-center-stage-against-dolphins/ I didn't expect that, but then...they are still regular season games. (Those stats are from before Josh's win against the Dolphins on Thursday night and Lamar losing on Monday night---though that probably wouldn't affect the stats too much---with the volume of PT games each has played). As to playoffs: Record total Yd/game total TDs/game TOs/game Jackson 3-5 299.2 1.63 1.38 Allen 7-6 309.8 2.46 0.46 (TDs and turnovers seem to make the difference) One other interesting career stat (not just playoffs): 4th Quarter Comebacks Game Winning Drives Lamar 10 12 Josh 14 23 I like Lamar too (great player, nice guy, he's fun to watch)---wouldn't be unhappy if he were my team's QB (if we didn't have Josh, of course). And I definitely wouldn't call him a choker (sometimes it's his teammates, I'm looking at you Andrews and Henry), or a guy who can't win the big games. But I do think Josh definitely has an edge in that category (even if Josh too has yet to reach the promised land). Lamar and Josh are kind of head-to-head in so many stats/areas. But, I think two stats kind of show that Josh has just been consistently better in crunch time, when the game is on the line---4thQC/GWD (37 to 22 in favor of Josh), and then playoffs TD/TO ratio. So, agreed, I'm putting my chips on Allen too when the game is on the line.

Mitch Morse resume for Legend of the Game: -5 years as the starting center of the Buffalo Bills -Made the Pro Bowl as Bills' center -Was Josh's center from year 2 to year 6 of Josh's career, helping to develop and protect our young franchise QB. Stability at the center position for a young QB is huge. A guy who can help with the protections, keep the huddle calm, keep the offense steady. As Artful Dodger posted, he was like the dad of the offense back then. -We made the playoffs all 5 years Mitch was here -Starting center for 10 playoff games, including an AFC Championship game -Put his body on the line for the team (the concussions) -Was with the team through some serious adversity (the AFC Champoionship game loss, the pandemic, 13 seconds, the Damar situation---heck, all of 2022). His stint with Buffalo wasn't that long, but he did a lot of Bills living in those 5 years. Definitely worthy of being a Legend of the game...and having long-term respect from Bills fans.

True, Beasley was very much like a Welker or Edelman. Though I think Beasley could be considered a big help to Josh at the time...having both Diggs and Beasley made things go back then. Not a HOFer or anything, but he was one of the best slot receivers at the time (the same with Edelman), so that does count to an extent (just not if you are counting like how many All-Pros/HOFers on a particular SB team or whatever). And I do agree that Welker and Edelman were both a bit of a product of Brady and the New England short passing offense (Edelman was raised in that offense and didn't become a main factor until his 5th year). Curious, I know you are kind of putting Josh in the same boat as Brady as far as lack of other All-Pro/HOF-level players around him (which is true), but what do you think of Josh's weapons overall this year (in relation to Tom Brady, and obviously acknowledging that we don't have a stud #1 outside receiver). Outside of maybe 2008-2012 (the Moss and Gronk/Hernandez years), do you think Josh's weapons are better this year than what Brady usually had? It definitely seems like we are at least deeper at the skill positions than the Pats were for many years. I did see a stat that from 1966-2000, the average number of HOFers on a winning Super Bowl squad was 5.68. I would assume that number has lowered a bit over the last 25 years due to free agency and both New England and Kansas City winning so many Super Bowls (without a big number of HOF players). My bet is that it is closer to 3-4 players now (besides NE and KC, the Giants won twice without a stacked roster...I don't feel like Seattle, Pitt, Denver, or Tampa Bay were stacked with HOFers---meaning like 5-6 or more). And one last thought, a player could not end up being a HOFer, but could have a HOF-type season. For instance, if Cook and Kincaid have huge years this year (that if maintained might make them a HOFer, but say they don't maintain it---then they wouldn't be a HOFer on that team, but for that season, maybe they played as if they were). Not sure that I have any point here...just some food for thought.

No question New England saw a string of mediocre receivers wash through during the Brady years. And I don't think many people will argue against the fact that Brady probably did more with less than any other SB winning QB. But, for a 12-year stretch, he did have pretty good top targets at least: 2007: Moss, Welker, TE Ben Watson 2008: Moss, Welker, Watson 2009: Moss, Welker, Edelman, Watson 2010: Moss (for 4 games), Gronkoski, Hernandez, Welker, Edelman 2011: Gronkowski, Hernandez, Welker , Edelman 2012: Gronkowski, Hernandez, Welker, Edelman 2013: Gronk and Edelman 2014: Gronk and Edelman 2015: Gronk and Edelman 2016: Gronk and Edelman 2017: Gronk and Edelman 2018: Gronk and Edelman *Bold years indicate a Super Bowl appearance. [Note, having Gronk and Edelman was not unlike KC having Kelce and Hill. No question Hill is better than Edelman, but you know what I mean.] Similar to the Bills...no #1 X-receiver (outside of the Moss years), but Brady did still have at least a couple of very good players to throw the ball to (besides the Brandin Cooks, Josh Gordons, Deion Branches, Chris Hogans, Brandon Llyods, Danny Amendolas, and Brandon LaFells that cycled through). The Pats appeared in 5 of their 9 Brady-era SBs during those years, 2007-2018---2 wins, 3 losses in the Bowl. Edelman isn't a HOFer or anything, but he was a damn good player in that system and with Brady (over a 6-year stretch, discounting games he was out for injury/pro-rating them, he was averaging 1,117 yards and 6 TDs per season). And earlier in Brady's career, the Pats had a better defense and Brady was more of a game manager, and though not a murderer's row, he did have Troy Brown, Ben Watson, and Corey Dillon in that era, plus a good D. Still, no question, Brady did more with less. In relation to Josh, I would say that Josh currently (this year) has more/better weapons overall than Brady had for the majority of his career (outside of a few years maybe), but Josh has never had a Moss- or a Gronk-level player either...Diggs was close, but not nearly as dominant (or as big and strong) as the other two in their prime. Diggs was a pro-bowler, Moss and Gronk were generational talents. As far as the Bills of this era, yes, Diggs will obviously be remembered. Shakir may be remembered as an Edelman/Welker type. I think Kincaid and Coleman (if they continue their progression) will probably be remembered. Cook obviously will be remembered (though a RB, not a full-time pass catcher). Hawes is looking like more than just a blocker (who knows where his career goes). But yes, over the previous 5 years, not a lot of guys will stand out from those teams (2020-2024) when looking back from the future. As to the Bills scoring (interesting stat callout OP), If they continue at their current 2025 scoring average of 34 points a game (improbable), they would end the 6-year stretch at 29.93 points/game. If they scored the same amount this year as last year, they would end the 6-year stretch at 29.40 points/game. If they continued at their 5-year (2020-2024) scoring average, they would end the 6-year stretch at 28.98 points/game If I'm not mistaken, any of those scenarios would put them ahead of the New Orleans run. But, we would need to average 38.79 points per game the rest of the season to match New England's run (2008-2013). Really shows you just how good that New England offense was over that stretch---although that team did like to run up the score a lot, which McD never really does---but then, New England will have also played 4 fewer games in their span too (than the current Bills)...due to the increase from 16 to 17 games in 2021, but then the Bills losing the Cincinnati game).