folz

Thank you Kyle!!!!!!

Josh has been making progress and getting better each week. Maybe that would have been a natural progression on its own, maybe its the coaching, maybe its the QB room and mentorship of DA and Barkley. Most likely it is all of the above. But the key is, it is working. So why break that Up. I think DA gets another 1 year contract for next year and you keep the QB room in tact for one more season. Then when Josh is going into year three, you can bring in the prospect QB (maybe just on the practice squad) and let DA retire, keeping Matt as primary backup and sounding board. Matt played a hell of a game vs. the Jets. Yes, it was only one game, but what makes it more important than his other 6 starts in the league (2 years ago for CHI) is that it was with our coaches and players, plus two years have passed since those 6 starts. Just as Josh made a leap from having some starts and then sitting for a while before coming back, maybe Matt has gotten better in those two years as well. People usually at least get marginally better with more experience. Plus it's not like they will ask him to go out and play like Josh if he has to go in. They won't ask him to do things he can't do. Just like every other team who is starting a backup, you simplify the game plan, you rely on your defense and RBs, and don't ask them to do too much. I feel pretty good about Matt being able to manage a game and hold the fort down for a couple of games when called upon. Very happy with the signing. Congrats Matt!

On Rosenthal's QB index list, he has Josh 13th of QBs drafted in the last 4 years with at least 100 throws. The list is a future projection of who will be best going forward. I'm fine with his top 5 (Mahomes, Mayfield, Wentz, Watson, and Goff...of course 4 of those 5 are in their 2nd year as opposed to first and have better weapons, which makes a difference). But, we need to see more from Josh before we can put him in that category. But then Rosenthal has 8 more QBs ahead of Allen: Darnold, Prescott, Winston, Mariota, Rosen, Jackson, and Trubisky. Of course I'm biased as a Bills fan, but I think Josh has shown at least as much as his fellow draft mates and at worst should be on par with Darnold, Jackson, and Rosen. And I would already put him ahead of Prescott, Mariota, Winston, and Trubisky (as far as future projection). If there was a redraft of these 8 players, Darnold would be the only one that I would even debate taking over Allen. And I think I would still go with Josh, because he is a perfect fit for Buffalo and wanted to be here. As for the Power Rankings list from NFL.com, Josh is 17th. This is a list of who is playing best right now. It would be hard to move Josh up more than a couple of spots on this list. Maybe you put him in front of Prescott and Foles for 15th, but probably not much higher than that right now.

Exactly, even teams that draft well and make the playoffs every year could put a long list together of players they should have drafted but didn't. There are just too many unknowns to be perfect. Seems pointless to continually rehash who we could have had. We all know the Bills did not draft well for quite a spell. But that is obviously changing. The Mahomes one I can understand a bit just because it was actually our pick that we traded away...but there's still no guarantee that he has the same success if he came here, because the Chiefs were ready to go as a roster with an established coach who is good with QBs. Too many "ifs" and then team circumstances with any draft pick to determine what could have been if they were drafted somewhere else.

We have seen Josh throw a nice deep ball, he can throw a nice out or sideline pass, we have even seen him put some touch on the ball, like the nice lob pass to DiMarco in the Phins game. He has missed a couple of screen or swing passes, and some deep balls, but it seems like many of the drops come on those short and medium curl and dig routes. Sometimes Josh just throws those passes too hot and the WRs haven't always been able to handle them. If Josh takes a little off of those passes and/or he gets WRs with stronger hands or who have just caught enough of Josh's passes to get a feel for those fastballs and they start coming down with them, then you are probably talking about an extra 2-3 completions per game, which would significantly boost his completion percentage. It seems right now that a lot of media guys want to write positive stories about Josh because he has flashed some elite skills, but because so many of them were down on him before the draft, they still feel the need to couch their articles with the completion/accuracy issue. Other posters have pointed out how that could definitely improve and I think it will. I really think with more experience and better talent around him (OL and WRs), the narrative about Josh being inaccurate will slowly fade away. You can look at his stats and completion percentage, or you can trust your eyes. As Bills fans, we have watched every throw he's made and he is not wildly inaccurate with his passes, as has sometimes been portrayed. Honestly, I can only think of like 4-6 passes that were really ill advised or poor throws. And we've had guys that were worried about their stats or of throwing a pick before (Rob Johnson, Tyrod Taylor) and that gets you no where. On the last play in a half or a game, at mid field, do you want to see your QB throw it 15 yards and watch the guy get tackled 30 yards short of the goal line, or do you want him to heave it into the end zone, not caring if it gets intercepted, for a chance at points on the board? Or on 3rd and 10, do you want the guy that takes the safe 7 yard pass, or a guy that will throw beyond the sticks? The first guys completion percentage will look better in the long run, but will he win more games? Josh doesn't care about his stats, he cares about winning. And if he's winning, we won't care about his stats.

By my count, that was the 4th game this year where the special teams gave the game away. Crossman is not cutting it....I don't care what his reputation in the league is, he needs to go.

Well, considering that his floor seems to be the best QB we have had since at least Bledsoe's first year with us (2002) and his ceiling could be quite high with the right circumstances, I'm pretty optimistic. One thing I can definitely say (regardless of whether he becomes an elite QB or not) is that the Bills will be a hell of a lot more fun to watch with Josh at the helm than they have been in a long, long time. So, I'm good with that for now and hoping for the best. But the arrow definitely seems to be pointing up after those last two games.

The jury is still out on Daboll. Hopefully the next 5 games will give us a better picture, now that things have settled down a bit. The talent-level is a major factor, of course, but what really makes it hard to assess Daboll is the lack of continuity at the QB spot. Game 1: Peterman/Allen Games 2-5: Allen Game 6: Allen/Peterman Games 7-8: Anderson Game 9: Anderson/Peterman Game 10: Peterman Game 11: Barkley Game 12: Allen Offense is about consistency and reps, knowing what the guy next to you is going to do. That is so important on the Offensive line (the Wood and Incognito retirements really affected that, along with the ever-changing QB) and its also important in the timing between a QB and WR. It's hard to build an offense and keep improving when you have to cater to a different QBs strengths and weaknesses every other week. And those QBs have had very little time working with the WRs and O-line and in some cases, have only had the playbook for a week or two. It's hard to build a comfort level in that situation, which is what you need to have to run a good offense. Plus, Daboll runs a NE-style, match-up offense. That means a big playbook, so you can pull different things out each week to attack each opponent in their area of weakness. If they were repping the same plays over and over each week, the learning curve wouldn't be as steep. In the deeper playbook, as the season wears on (or if you have run the system for multiple years), you will have started running plays and schemes over at that point and getting better at it because it isn't stuff you haven't repped much before. You've now run these plays in games. I think it is just a system that takes longer to master or at least get competent at and the instability at the QB spot has just delayed progress that much further. So, I'm not sure yet if Daboll is the right guy for the job or not (I was pretty down on him just a few weeks ago), but it looks like things may be trending up, so... Why I would like Daboll back next year: 1. Continuity for Josh 2. He's a hometown guy and Bills fan (he wants to be here and succeed here) 3. The last couple of games he has come out of the booth and been on the sidelines and on Sunday against the Jaguars, there was one point where the camera caught him encouraging/firing up the defense. The defense, not his offense. Loved that. 4. Next year through the draft and FA money, there will be a big influx of offensive talent. He deserves a chance to show what he can do with that. 5. He'll know his players better, have an offseason to tweak things, and his players will have a better comprehension of his playbook. Then we can make a true assessment. Is Josh progressing, have the new players integrated into the team/system, are we scoring more, etc. And if I were McDermott, I would do one thing, I would give Daboll full authority to release and then hire any offensive coaches he chooses to in the offseason. Daboll inherited a lot of his offensive staff. I would let him bring in any of his own guys over the offseason. Guys that he feels would teach his system better and/or teach fundamentals the way he wants them taught (I'm looking at you Juan Castillo). Let him stand or fall on his own decisions.

I rewatched the game and looked at each Bills penalty closely. For the most part the calls were legit on both sides. But, there were a few I had a problem with or either should or should not have been called: 1. 1st quarter: Edmunds called for defensive holding. Not only was there no penalty committed by Tremaine, but on that same play, one of the Jags has Jerry Hughes in practically a sleeper hold. Should have been holding against the Jags not the Bills. 2. 3rd quarter: Should have been a personal foul on Jags during punt return. One of the Jags tackles Mckenzie, grabbing under the helmet. 3. 4th quarter: Hands to the face called against Star. This was the worst call of the game for me. He got called because the offensive lineman's head jerks backwards. But it jerks backwards because the running back got tackled into his back/legs and he got rolled up. It was not Star shoving his head back. Ref saw the motion and just assumed the penalty. 4. 4th quarter: This would have been a bit ticky tacky, but they could have called a late hit on Telvin Smith for knocking Josh down. He tries to make it look like it was an accident, like he just backed in to him, but he purposefully gave him a shove. But I was ok with them not calling this...it was pretty minor. The Taron Johnson holding call was a bit ticky tacky too and could have just as easily gone uncalled, but he did impede the receiver's progress, even if just slightly. So, call was ok. The refs did also make a bad fumble call on that return, when the player was clearly down. Though it got overturned. And could have called Ramsey for unsportsmanlike conduct for taking off his helmet and taunting the Bills sideline. But whatever. So, overall I'd say the Bills had two bad calls against them and two on the Jags that should have been called but weren't. On the other side, all I really saw wrong was the Benjamin knee down play, but I didn't watch all of the Jags calls quite as closely.

When he made the pick on Sunday, I said, that kid is just always around the ball. And that is all football instincts (knowledge and preparation). Not saying he has Kuechly-level instincts, but they're pretty damn good...and he's still pretty young. It looks like he is Italian. His twitter page lists "Boston College | Buffalo Bills | " and then there is a post and photo by Joe Tessitore where he calls Milano "My (not so little) brother." https://twitter.com/matthewmilanoo?lang=en

Here are my top 5: 1. Don Coryell - This man should already be in. The Hall often talks about, even more than stats, did the person change the game. Air Coryell did. His offensive and passing game innovations ushered in the modern passing game. Put him in the hall now! 2. Tony Gonzales - Probably the best Tight End the game has ever seen. 6th all time in receiving yards (that includes all WRs) 3. Tony Boselli - The only thing hurting his status is getting overlooked for playing for a mostly bad Jaguars team. The guy was a beast, a generational talent on the O-line. 4. Isaac Bruce - 5th all time in receiving yards. Part of the triad of the greatest show on turf (Warner/Faulk/Bruce) 5. Steve Tasker - Yes, I know he isn't on the list of semifinalists, but he should be. Best all-around (not just returner) special teams player to play the game. It's 1/3 of the game.

Despite my last post, I tried to look at your premise with an unbiased view, and you are probably right...those three offenses are scoring at historic levels and would probably have their way with the Buffalo D, at least eventually, especially because there is no way our offense could keep up with those teams, so the defense even if good to start, would eventually wear out. Not to mention that those teams are having their way with every defense in the league this year. I definitely don't think anyone here is calling the Bills defense elite (due to their current ranking), an 85 Bears or 2000 Ravens type defense that could completely shut down even the best offenses in the league. But, since we haven't actually played those three teams, thinking they would get blown up by them, doesn't help to actually figure out who our defense is or where they really stand. So, I thought I'd take a look at our actual opponents and how we fared against them to try and get a more accurate picture. Bills Opponents NFL rank points NFL rank yards Indianapolis 5th 9th Chicago 6th 16th New England 7th 10th LA Chargers 10th 7th Green Bay 13th 8th Minnesota 15th 14th Houston 16th 13th Baltimore 17th 12th NY Jets 23rd 29th Tennessee 28th 30th So, 8 of our 10 games were against top half of the league offenses with only two really bad offenses on the docket. We kept 8 of the 10 teams we've played below their average yardage total per game (as of week 11) and kept 6 of the 10 teams below their average point total per game. 3 of the 4 times we didn't keep a team below its point average, however, were against 3 of the 4 best offenses we faced this year. But, I don't think you can fault the defense for the Chicago game. Our offense committed 4 turnovers and their defense scored 14 points. Our defense only gave up 190 yards and 27 points (despite the 2 other turnovers that didn't go for TDs), which would be below Chicago's average points and yardage per game this season. And I definitely do not give the defense a pass for the Indy game, they didn't play well, but the offense did give up 5 turnovers in that one too. We did hold Green Bay and New England (2 of the 5 best offenses we faced with elite QBs) below their average point total and frustrated both QBs, despite the losses. And there were really only 8 of 40 quarters played, the second halves of the IND, LAC, CHI, and BAL games, where you could claim that offenses could or did take their foot off the gas, but Baltimore didn't (they kept scoring in the 3rd and 4th quarters), nor did Indy, who scored 13 points in the 4th quarter, or Chicago, who scored 10 in the 4th, and I really don't think the Chargers took their foot off the gas (if you go back and watch that game), our defense just finally clicked on. So, I don't think that point is valid. I do agree with you that as of now, we would probably get run up on by New Orleans, KC, or the Rams...but I also think there is enough evidence to show that this is indeed a very good defense that is still learning and growing and getting better. And you can not divorce the offensive woes from how it affects the D and how much more they have had to overcome than other defenses because of it. I mean, our offense averaged 10 points and 2 turnovers a game over the first 9 weeks and is last in points scored and 2nd last in yards gained. That's a lot of factors against a defense. They're on the field longer, in worse field position, and never playing with a lead. The Bills may not be the best defense in the league right now, but you have to give them some credit. They're playing really well.

Just as one can claim that being tops in yards/game is due to offensive turnovers and field position (opposing offenses haven't had as far to go to score, therefore fewer yards)---a pessimistic view of the defense imo, which isn't, however, untrue--- One can also say the defense is bad in points allowed for the same reason, because opposing offenses have had great starting field position due to those same turnovers and bad offense (on our part). If one is true, than so is the other. Their yardage statistic may be a bit overrated due to that, but then their point totals are also inflated by that same factor. If the offense was good enough to give the defense some leads, the defense's stats would be better (more sacks and turnovers and probably fewer points). Or even if the offense was good enough to change field position on their possessions and opposing offenses had to drive on average say 75 yards to score instead of 35-40 yards to score, those point totals would look a lot better. I don't think one can look at either just yards or just points scored to rank a defense. Sometimes those stats are just too dependent on the rest of the team (offense and special teams), schedule, and game situations. You have to kind of look at everything together. So, are the Bills the best (or 2nd best) defense in the league right now? The defense other teams would fear most? Probably not. But are they still a very good, top-notch defense? (and still getting better) Yes. And the #1 defensive ranking (even though it is based on just yards) at least gives the guys something to still shoot for the rest of the season, to keep them improving, motivated, now that playoffs hopes are, if not dead, very slim.

I don't think there is even a slim chance that McD could lose the locker room if he starts Josh over Barkley or lose morale or whatever. First, McD has held this team together through the benching of Tyrod last year and some stretches of blow-out loses. And this team is close and really has a team first mentality, with great leadership. Second, the players know that their team is flawed this year and although they will prepare to win each and every one of the next 6 games, they know, at this point in the season, that the playoffs are pretty much out for them. They also see practice. They see the difference between Josh's arm and Barkley's/Peterman's arm. They know that their hopes moving forward are in Josh progressing and becoming a franchise QB. Why do you think Shady bonded so quickly with him? He sees Josh's potential, and therefore the potential for the team going forward. So, unless you're planning to retire this year (and you're not a guy that cares about the franchise after you're gone like Kyle), I would think the players want him to get that experience too, so next year they can be a much better team. The players are aware of the same things we are, even though they look at the season one week/game at a time. They know the team was cap-strapped this year and has lots of money next year, and another draft. Most of these guys will either be here next season, or hope that they will be here next season. And all of those young players feel like they have a lot of career ahead of themselves, so they can easily take a view of getting better for next year. And Barkley has been here not quite 3 weeks yet, so there is no personal element for teammates wanting him to start, like there was for Tyrod last year or during the Flutie/Johnson debacle, where it divided the team. And yes, Matt played well, but that was just one game. The players know all too well that guys can have great days without being great players, sometimes the ball just bounces that way. Plus Barkley isn't either a promising young guy that hasn't gotten a shot yet or a QB who has already proven it in the league before. So that one game, might be just that one game. Where as Josh is a #7 overall pick with a cannon arm. If I were a player at this point in the season, I don't think I would have any issues with the coaches starting Josh over Matt. So, unless the guy's on the team think Josh is a bust already (and I bet that number is zero who think so), I would surmise that they are just fine with the decision.

In the four games before the Jets game (Bears, Pats, Colts, Texans) Kelvin Benjamin was on the field for 75% of the offensive plays In the Jets game, Benjamin played just 51% of the offensive snaps I expect that number to keep dropping after the break, with being inactive a definite possibility down the road. Such a disappointment! Welcome back Deonte! Apparently you always have a home in either Buff, Baltimore, or Chicago. [two stints with BAL (3 yrs total), two stints with CHI (3 yrs total), 3rd stint with Bills (2 yrs total)---8 games with DAL]

The NFL (and life) is a crazy thing. He goes to some other team with an established QB and plays good in practice and he ends up being a career backup, collecting NFL checks for the next ten to fifteen years (ala McCown, Derek Anderson). Or he sits behind a good QB for four years and maybe learns enough, gets fully acclimated to the NFL, and at least gets a shot to compete for a starting job in FA at that point. Maybe by then he's ready to at least be a competent starter in the league and sticks around for a few years. But instead he goes to a team that is almost forced to press him into service too young, too green and now he may never get another chance at his dream of an NFL career. If you can't feel bad for someone maybe losing their dream, I don't know what to say. And to appear to be angry at him, when all the kid did was come in here and be a good teammate and try his best, seems ludicrous. You can maybe blame the coaches for starting him, but you can't blame the kid himself who was just trying to do his best under the circumstances. And sure, maybe he just wasn't good enough and wouldn't ever be good enough, guys wash out of the league all the time, but not under a cloud of national ridicule. That does deserve sympathy not more ridicule. He has to deal with being the 5 INTs in a half guy, etc. Let's face it, he did not make the most of his opportunities (which is why he is gone), but he was also put in a difficult position to succeed. So, yeah, I feel bad for the guy. Good luck Nathan with football and life! Hope you get at least one more chance to prove yourself in the league.

Well, we are in desperate need of both a kick and punt returner. His college highlights look like he can be electric there. And in Buffalo he will see the field and get some work on tape. I'm sure he is just fine coming to the Bills to get on a 53.

Wow...a lot of hyperbole and short memories in this thread. (sorry in advance for the super long post) The 2015 Bills had one of the most talented rosters in the league? Really? They had some great talent, no doubt, but they were also starting Tyrod at QB, Clay at TE, John Miller at RG, Henderson at RT, Corbin Bryant at DT, Preston Brown, Nigel Bradham, and Manny Lawson at LBs, and Bacari Rambo and Corey Graham at S. Those guys don't stink, but none of them are superior talents and that is almost half of your starters. And the team was 8-8. Worst GM ever? You must be young to say that. Some of us sat through a three season stretch of 2-14, 2-14, 4-12. And I'm sure the even older-timers could talk about other bad stretches. And Tom Donahoe has to be in that conversation too. How about Russ Brandin as GM, I mean c'mon. (And I won't mar the memory of a great coach by including him on this list...love you Marv!) People bemoaning not still having Whaley. Look, I liked Doug and he did find some good players (pro personnel was probably his strength). But his mistake was thinking this team was closer than it was or he was just in a win now mentality to keep his job, so he gave out gaudy contracts that put us in cap trouble and had three terrible drafts in a row (after he took over the reins from Nix). He had 20 picks in those drafts and the best players he came away with were Watkins, Darby, Preston Brown, and O'Leary. Honestly go back and look at those drafts. They were bad. And just a little perspective on the players they traded or didn't retain: Chris Hogan has averaged 2 receptions for 32 yards and 0.24 TDs per game since he left the Bills Sammy Watkins has averaged 3 receptions for 45 yards and .47 TDs per game since leaving the Bills (and had a self-admitted ego problem when in Buff) Marquise Goodwin has averaged 3 receptions for 55.5 yards and 0.27 TDs per game post Bills (and has still had some injuries in SF) Robert Woods has averaged 5 receptions for 72.65 yards and .4 TDs per game, plus he can block like a monster in the run game Could any of them help this year, sure. But Woods is the only one I wish we still had going forward. And how were the Bills supposed to keep him when his hometown team that was further along towards becoming a good team offered him $8 million a year. We couldn't pay him $9 or $10 million a year with our cap situation. And even then he might not have stayed considering his other option. Marcel Dareus: great player when motivated, but after signing the big contract, he just stopped trying. Why would you keep him for that insane number. Reggie Ragland: on his way out in KC. Old school player too slow for today's NFL Mike Gilislee: not currently on a team Cordy Glenn: I wouldn't mind still having Glenn, but that was a big number for an oft injured player Ronald Darby: good player, I was against this one when it happened, but if the coaches felt he didn't fit their system, then why keep him And too many fans just discount the Wood and Incognito retirements. That was a huge blow to this team. If the defense was playing like it is and our run game was much more successful (if Wood and Incognito were still around), we could have had a year like last year. We expected to have both of those players this year. It was a bad draft for O-linemen and obviously our focus had to remain on getting our QB and we just couldn't afford to pay top dollar to the best free agent O-linemen with our cap troubles. Heck, even Wood retiring put an unexpected extra drain on the cap. The woes in the run game are because the interior of our line just is not strong and athletic enough and that was an unforeseen circumstance that was really hard to correct in our position. When rebuilding, you have to have some patience. The best rebuild is to rebuild through the draft, which is what McBeane is trying to do. You can't do that in one draft. That is why true rebuilds are usually three years. Three good drafts could really push a team forward (and the players are cheap). In the meantime, they were trying to still win by signing a bunch of decent players to one year contracts. Last year it worked and we were very competitive. This year we had just one too many things go wrong to continue winning. But the rebuild is still going forward. We have a top 10 defense, the future QB of our defense, a replacement for Kyle when he retires, hopefully our franchise QB. Next year they have to fix the O-line, receivers, and TE. I think you can maybe fault them for AJ McCarron, Vontaze Davis, and the WR position. But there really wasn't much out there at QB that we could afford that was a better option (as they said they tried to get Anderson earlier but he didn't want to come). It's hard to bring in a QB that knows he might only get half a season before their #1 draft pick gets on the field and when you don't want to or can't pay him big money. And they should have had a better plan B for Vontaze, since he was older and coming off an injury. As for the WRs, again, we didn't have the money to go out and get a bigger name, but there were probably a few guys at least that could have helped. But you know what, every FO makes some mistakes. No one hits on every player in the draft or FA. And we were severely strapped by the cap this year. And stop saying the cap issue was their own fault. It wasn't. Yes, they may have added a bit to it trying to find players to help this year (Coleman I'm looking at you), but the majority of it comes from the Whaley contracts. Whether we kept some of those players (that we traded or let go) or not, we would still be cap-strapped this year due to big and back-loaded contracts. So, even if we kept three of them, say, there were still going to be holes that weren't going to get filled adequately this year. The best this season was ever going to be given the circumstances was a repeat of last year....overachieving team and a little magic. But the ball bounced the wrong way at too many spots. But, I don't see how you can't give them their third year in a three year plan. I think next year will be a significant step forward and we will be a good team. This year we have to take our lumps and it sucks. But I find it interesting that people feel like there is no plan or its a terrible plan when the plan seems all so obvious to me. Obviously, a lot is riding on if Joash Allen can actually become the guy. But, we can't keep firing coaches and GMs every two years. You can't get anywhere that way. Let the plan fully roll out and then we can make a more informed decision on Beane and McDermott. To fire them now would be foolish. I hope you can all at least enjoy watching Allen progress when he returns. And who knows, maybe Peterman will become a redemption story. Hang in there and Go Bills!

I completely agree with your first point (about KB) and mostly agree with your second point. I would just note that Zay the last couple of games has made some nice plays over the middle in traffic. Still too few, but hopefully his arrow is finally pointing up. KB needs to be sat at this point or only used on a handful of specific plays. And I don't care how good Holmes is on special teams, how he made the roster again this year is beyond me. I like the signing of Pryor and hope he works out...if nothing else at least he adds a little more fire and swag to an offense and WR corps that is sorely lacking it. Maybe he and the return of Cam Phillips can boost that group.

Everyone loves a redemption story...let's go Nate!

Was going to put this in the Benjamin thread, but decided to put it here since its more than just about Benjamin and hits on some of the OPs points: I'm not a fan who normally throws guys under the bus and I was a big Benjamin supporter at the trade last year and going into this season, but I can't support him anymore. At least twice tonight he had to be told where to line up. Zay's mom's tweet was right, he still doesn't know the offense. He made one great catch tonight. But, also cost us 15 yards on a great play by Shady and on the same drive got an offensive pass interference call, which didn't matter because he dropped the well thrown ball from Anderson on the 3rd and 15 play anyways. He doesn't fight for or back to the ball. Had his usual 2 of 7 for 45 yards. Way too many drops. No fire in the belly. Another guy I'm done with is Charles Clay. Not only is he not helping, the guy is 6'5", he should be a match-up problem, but lately he has actually been hurting the team. The fumble last week and the false start and missed blocking assignments tonight. This is one of the worst signings in recent history, not only because of the money, but because he has fooled the Bills into not looking to improve their TE spot for four years now. Another guy who has no killer instinct. Too soft. And I don't think anyone can blame it on the lack of QB talent anymore. As bad as it has been, these guys have not capitalized on the opportunities that they have had. I think they actually drag the unit down. Either trade them or let them sit and see if some of the young guys can do any better. Look at the way that defense played tonight. The fire, the passion. That is the DNA that McDermott talks about...but it is sorely lacking on the offense. On the offense I would say Shady, Ivory, Zay, and Dawkins have it. Not sure if anyone else does. And Daboll has been a huge disappointment. Many saw it coming, but I hoped for the best. I liked coming out with the wildcat, etc. But he stuck with it too long. You might catch a Patriots team a couple times in a game with something, but not if you run it over and over right in a row. And you don't beat the Patriots by tricking them or out scheming them. The only way to beat the Patriots is to hit them in the mouth. Out tough them. They should have been pounding the rock with Ivory early, setting up screens for Shady, and hitting Zay over the middle. Then put Ray Ray or someone in there to run a few fly routes to keep the defense honest. His offense seems to be way too complicated to learn (at least for this team due to lack of experience or smarts) and yet the creativity is sorely lacking outside of a couple of moments here and there. Or trying 10 trick plays in a row. Early in the season he tried to pass too much with young QBs, a shaky O-line, and receivers who didn't get separation. I just don't think he is putting his players in the best position to be successful. Yes, there is a severe lack of talent, but a good coordinator will maximize the talent he has. As bad as our offensive talent is, they are actually underperforming, as a unit and as individuals. Another swing and a miss for McDermott with offensive coordinators. I think McD is an excellent coach and deserves more time to turn this thing around, I still believe in the plan, but he has to hit on his next offensive coordinator. That said, I'm happy for the most part with how the team played tonight. They did not come out flat, they knocked Brady around, kept the game close until late. It actually felt like we had a chance to win before that fumble. They did not embarrass themselves by any means. With just a little more offense, this would have been a game. And not to let the refs off the hook...the block in the back call on Murphy's big return was bs, Logan hit his own man in the back who was engaged with a Patriot player. Starting at the 11 instead of the 36 on the critical opening drive of the 2nd half in a 9-3 game, was big. And our D-line got held all game, but the Pats only got called once or twice for holding. They were inconsistent with the offensive pass interference calls (for both teams). The one Brady play was definitely intentional grounding. That ball never made it back to the line of scrimmage. We almost got a delay of game penalty because the ref stood over the ball too long as the play clock was winding down. As usual, not the reason we lost, but not good either.

1983/84 seasons (Sept '83 - June '84) Orioles won the World Series Celtics won the NBA Championship Bills were 8-8 (just before the bottom fell out, but we did draft Jim Kelly, although we wouldn't see him play for a few years) Syracuse Orange basketball team went 23-9, 2nd in Big East, and made it to the regional semi-finals in the tourney I too remember the 1980 US Hockey team beating the Russians. My entire extended family were crammed into our family room watching it together. Best single sporting event ever for me, due to my age, how much of an underdog the US team was, and the patriotism of the moment. Nadia scoring perfect 10s in gymnastics in '76 Montreal games was pretty big too (my sister was a very good gymnast, so our family watched a lot of gymnastics).

I'm just going off of what Lorenzo Alexander said on OneBillsLive today, but when talking about the special teams issues the last couple of weeks he said something to the effect of, "We get Julian Stanford back this week, he's one of our big special teams players, so that will help a lot." I hadn't really noticed him on special teams or realized that he was injured, but Zo thinks he's an important player. Overpaid for current production: Clay DiMarco Benjamin

I'm in two leagues...my backs are/were Leveon Bell - hasn't seen the field or even his teammates Jay Ajayi - IR Devonte Freeman - IR Joe Mixon - missed 2-1/2 games to injury Carlos Hyde - just traded from being a starting RB to a backup Alex Collins - meh Todd Gurley - keeping me alive I thought I was totally stacked at RB in both leagues...I was 3 or 4 backs deep. Now I basically only have Gurley in one league and Mixon in the other. Ugh!

This post made me think...is Dabol trying too hard to do the New England thing and have a different game plan for each team each week rather than realizing that this is a young team that hasn't worked together much, so just run what they're good at and don't confuse them too much with major differences from week to week, until they're more experienced. Nuance can come later when they're ready for it. Sometimes you have to worry more about what you are doing rather than trying to guess what the other guy is going to do. I guess I'd have to go back and look to see how different the play calls and personnel packages have been from week to week...but either way, as PolishPrince and Koko said, continue running what's been effective.