BillsVet

This team doesn't have a need at WR. And even if they did, there are more important positions to upgrade, like say pass rushing OLB, perhaps a ILB, RT, and a better all-around TE that. A good QB makes his receivers better and you don't always need names at WR. Granted, the position is one where guys coming from college need time to acclimate, but I think Buffalo's OK at WR.

My avatar is a WWII poster. I think you can figure out what the connotation is there, but if not I'll read between the lines for you: victory was the only option back then. And while I'll readily admit this isn't life or death like war, the goal remains to win as frequently as possible. Trying hard in the NFL isn't enough nor even a replacement for losing.

Being an unabashed homer who swoons every time someone delivers a feel-good sound bite must get old, doesn't it? Unfortunately for you and the other homers, this team comes up short when it counts most and some people actually prefer real wins to the moral ones you homers crave. The nerve of results oriented people. They suck.

The Bills have been a few players short for about 6 years now. Most teams have a few stars, surrounded by blue collar types and fill the bottom 20% of the roster with low round picks and UDFA's. Buffalo doesn't have a star and is playing a lot of low round picks and street free agents. If they can win with that, fine. But to get elite talent you either A) overpay for it in UFA or B) draft really well, particularly at the top. The Bills aren't players in UFA and haven't proven they're experts on draft day either.

A smart Super Bowl winning HC once said: "You are what your record says you are." They are a 2-9 team with wins against two other 2-9 clubs. Admittedly they've played a tough schedule, but they haven't had a signature win in more than 2 seasons, particularly late in the season. They may not be a boring DJ team anymore, but they're not winning any more games than when Jauron was standing still on the sidelines.

And as bad as it is losing every year in every conceivable way, we Bills fans have to contend with selling a home game each year and the possibility this team won't exist after RW passes. There is no more dedicated fan base that is forced to deal with more on and off field failures.

It's God's fault now? Boy oh boy.

We need to resurrect the thread that lists each miserable loss this team and its fan base has endured going back to the late nineties. This one surely goes down among some of the all time kick in the groin losses.

Should have interjected I was being sarcastic. Tired of losing close games at this point, but it's becoming a rallying cry year in and year out.

How old are you? If you can't have an intelligent discussion on a message board, don't bother. People disagree sometimes, that's life.

Moral victories are what count anyway.

Defensive Line seems OK against a mediocre Steelers OL. Rest of the team just plain can't get it done.

Hard to help the team when you're injured. 25 games missed in about 2.5 seasons tells me this isn't the case of a guy having bad luck. This is chronic thing, perhaps exacerbated by dependence on PED's. Unfortunately, it takes a player actually being left unsigned or cut before some fans read between the lines and see he's done.

Buddy Nix is becoming to TBD what Bill Brasky was to a bunch of drunk guys on SNL in the mid to late nineties.

This is not a bash the front office at all costs thread, because they've embarrassed themselves quite well already this season. Two out of their 3 UFA's signed in March are already on IR, one of whom, Cornell Green, was cut. And now, a waiver pickup that they went so far as to introduce at a press conference, is out for the season. When someone looks at this in the context of the team being out money, they're missing the point or conveniently ignoring what matters here: that the front office, despite new people at GM and AGM, continue to poorly evaluate personnel. If you're a fan and are wondering why this team rarely wins against quality opponents, it's because talent evaluation has consistently stunk and appears not to be better than when Marv/DJ/Smithers were at the top. It's amazing any Bills fan gives the front office the benefit of the doubt anymore after 11 playoff-less seasons. And if by some miracle RW opens up the pocketbook in March, what gives any fan evidence that the team will sign quality free agents that will help this team rebuild in the 3 years the owner thinks it's going to take?

Merrimam was picked up on waivers, not signed in free agency. Players want to get paid and have a chance to win. Buffalo offers neither right now.

It's hard to sell tickets in the NFL. And we needed a drawing card. Hope RW doesn't mind wasting money.

It used to be that to win in the NFL you had to run and stop the run. That's changed to pass, protect your passer, and stop the other team from passing. I think Bell will be left on his own and go 1 on 1 with Harrison quite a bit tomorrow too Bill. That Steelers defense gets accolades for rushing the passer, but I believe their yielding the fewest rushing yards per game as well. If Buffalo can't run the ball to keep them honest, it makes life even more difficult for guys like Bell, because the team will be in pass mode more often. Undoubtedly Fitzpatrick makes a poor group of OT's look better by getting rid of the ball faster. But he hasn't endured the pressure from elite pass rushers since the Chicago game, when the Bears hit him 12 times. I expect more 3 step drops, but yes I agree, a team with better OT's allows the QB to do more while dropping back. Fewer 3 step drops and time to see his options would make this offense even better. Wrotto will get help from the TE, but Bell's matchup with Harrison should be a good barometer to tell if the much hyped 3rd year OT is really capable of handling top rushers.

I recommend reading Pat Kirwan's Take Your Eye Off The Ball. Lot of good intel in there about things fans don't normally think about when watching a NFL game.

You're illustrating a QB's success or failure by virtue of the QB rating statistic? This debate over Fitzpatrick is a nuanced argument that is deeper than stats alone. Some fans see 18 TDs and 1961 yards passing in 8 games as proof positive that the guy's a long term starter. That's fine, but it's not how many of one stat that matters, it what the guys does when the game is on the line. And if we're talking stats, one that tells the tale is turnovers: Fitzpatrick has 7 INTs in his last 5 games. A team like Buffalo isn't going to outscore their opponent all the time, so turning the ball over less would go a long way to winning more games.

Bumpuses dogs got your Thanksgiving turkey again, didn't they?

Accuracy and arm strength will always be Fitzpatrick's achilles heel. He has to be in a system that doesn't ask him to throw the deep out or passes more than 20 yards. The Dolphins did a great job in 2008 of game-planning to maximize Pennington's strengths without showing his weaker arm. A good offensive staff can work around a QB with less than ideal arm strength. But if a staff has a QB like Fitzpatrick needing to make throws downfield and not backing him up with a solid run game, the results generally aren't good. It's true 8 games is a relatively small sample size, but the true indication of a QB's worth is after teams have had an off-season of film on him. If the guy can come back and play solid football, wonderful. The name of the game is whether a guy has potential and if he can live up to it. When I see a 6th year QB stare down a WR and throw into double coverage like he did on Sunday, I have my doubts. He's gritty, smart, and a good teammate from what I've seen. But in the NFL, you need talent to win regularly and yes, the jury is still out. Just once I'd like to see Buffalo beat a division winner or playoff team convincingly. If the Bills do that Sunday and Fitzpatrick throws for 250 and 2 scores, well, I might begin to contemplate his long term potential as a NFL starting QB.

I'll stop complaining about the team when they win 10 or more games and reach the playoffs. And don't make this a class argument thing, because it's not. Some fans are more into football than others, and that's OK. but you've been a lead cheerleader on this board for a long time, and nearly every time your predictions fail. When people pointed out before the season the QB, pass protection, and pass rush were terrible, you attacked. Well, will you humble yourself and admit this is a rebuilding team that doesn't win against quality teams? Nah, you'd rather make this a class warfare thing and continue complaining that some people aren't impressed beating the dregs of the NFL. 6 teams make the playoffs in the conference meaning 10 don't. If you're impressed winning 4-8 games per season and perhaps challenging for the wildcard, fine. Just don't bash people who demand excellence once in a decade. I mean, even the Raiders, Bucs, and Rams have more wins that Buffalo this season.

And Fiedler had 2 more playoff appearances than Fitzpatrick does. What's your point? That throwing TD passes is more important than actually winning.