MDH

I was all excited to sit down and watch some sports/NFL TV for a good 3-4 hours before the game and what I get is 50% of it fantasy football predictions. WTF??!! I love FF and have played it for 20 years but can I not just watch a show about football without them having a million FF segments within it? /end rant

If the Bills keep it up nobody is going to bring up those 60s/70s Raiders teams when they mention penalties because this team will have dethroned them. EDIT: Hah, Just looked it up and I didn't even realize that the Chiefs broke the record in 98'.

At least he has the excuse of being a CB where they can (and seemingly do) call a penalty on pretty much every passing down. Jerry manufactures penalties like nobody else. Hughes has to be on pace to break the NFL record for personal foul/unsportsmanlike conduct.

I think the disappointment is the size of a giant chasm. The actual difference is between that of a very good D and a mediocre one. People were hoping they'd get better, not slide back to the middle of the pack. There's still time to get this thing turned around. Last year the D picked it up big time in the 2nd half of the season, allowing something like 16ppg. Hopefully we get similar results this year.

You're taking a sample size of 8 games. Any really bad or really good game is going to scew all of those stats.

Many of those numbers are significant differences. The PPG and TOPG in particular. You might not think 3 PPG is significant, but in a league where most games are decided by a FG or less that is often times the difference. And there is no more significant stat than turnovers, and they avaeraged twice as many last year which had a lot to do with the pass rush and the disruption it caused. I find it funny that you think those numbers support your point. You just made the case for everybody who was saying there were fairly significant differences.

Teams this year have a 5-18 record when the backup starts, so you're right, not many teams can recover from losing their starter. The Bills have no excuses tonight. If they want to be considered one of the better teams in the AFC and get the inside track to the playoffs they have to win tonight. This is as close to a "must win" as you can get in the 9th game of the season.

On the secondary market. Giants and Jets games are always sold out.

Bills have an opportunity to show everybody what type of team they are with back to back prime time games. Their play will speak louder than any talking heads.

Not sure those are much worse than the Bills.

I don't wish injury on anybody but it would not upset me if Mangold tries to give his neck a go tonight and quickly finds out it's just not ready this week. Ivory has struggled mightily without Mangold in the lineup. They were supposed to get him back last week but he pulled himself out of the game early because his neck wasn't ready. Mangold is the guy who makes the Jets' line go.

That's some serious cherry picking. It would be one thing if you left it with the completion percentage and ypa, but to add "yards per game" for rushing and conveniently forget the "24th in yards per game vs. the pass" is disingenuous. And since you brought up the topic of "yards per game" for rushing, how is it overall? How's their 3rd down percentage? How about 1st downs allowed? 1st downs via penalty? You're giving a very incomplete picture to try and justify your claims that the D isn't struggling. Anybody with eyes can see they aren't producing relative to the talent level. This D isn't bad, they are mediocre, but the talent we've seen on display the past few years tells us they should be one of the best - if not the best - D in the league. That's where the disappointment comes from.

It makes perfect sense. You just don't want it to so you're dismissive. If someone said that the people of France weren't that intelligent because their academic standards were low due to the country being impoverished nobody would infer that it had anything to do with race. It would be an insult to the country's academic institutions and it's people. People in Germany wouldn't be insulted by it. Why then, when someone says something about the Dominican Republic does it suddenly become about race? Because you're making it become about it. Now, if Cowherd has said other things about Latino countries then one might be able to surmise that, in total, his comments are slanted that way. Since I don't listen to him, I don't know. But with this one quote, you're really reaching. You are filling in what you want to hear, not what was actually said. You know, upon reflection, I think we're/I'm being trolled. Your post is so ridiculous, it has to be from an alter-ego, alla Spags. I should have just put and moved on.

The guy speaks perfectly fine. He hedges here and there but it's an interview, not a prepared speech. People are just looking to complain.

I hope so, and I hope they continue to do it moving forward and not just on the short week.

If I had any faith in the D I'd say this game would be a cakewalk, even on the road. I don't have any faith in the D, however. Jets 30 Bills 26 I hope this isn't the case as it would effectively end any legitimate playoff chances unless the Bills pulled off a shocker at NE.

Jets D allows 3.8 ypr. Bills 3.9. Jets O rushes at a 3.8 ypr. Bills 4.8. I'd say the Bills likely have the advantage here. The problem the Bills D will have is stopping the pass, specifically the short, timing routes. If the Bills lose that will be the culprit, at least early. The Jets might be able to salt away the win late vs. a tired D with some crucial runs but I dont think it will be how they put up points.

Ive noticed it with then entire D, they just dont sub. Consequently we have a tired DL and tired LBs getting locked up with blockers and missing tackles late in games. With the lack of LB depth I get it, but the DL (when healthy) can be rotated successfully. Im unsure why they dont do it. Last year nobody on the DL more than 72% of the time, this year there are multiple guys in the 90s and Kyle and Dareus' percentages would be much higher had they not missed games.

Part of Woods problem is inexperience at QB. As successful as TT has been he rarely gets to his third read, so if on a given play its Watkins, Clay, Woods, TT either goes to one of the other guys, dumps it off or takes off running. Hard to out up numbers when the team does its best to minimize drop backs and thats happening. To his credit Woods hasnt given up and stopped trying, as many have pointed out he gives it his all, every play, even on running plays. My only concern with Woods in the #2 role is his penchant to play out of control. Then again, a lot of Bills have that problem.

Two things. One, when did Dominican Republic become a race? It's a country. Yes, he slammed the country but didnt mention race as a reason for the poor academic standards. Two, he did mention a reason for those poor standards: income. I notice you conviently left out the second part of his quote which reflects this. So while I agree that if I was Dominican I probably would be upset about this as hes insulting my country, I wonder where race factors into the discussion? Based on that one quote I dont see it. I feel dirty having just defended Cowherd.

Totally agree. I was also unaware that he was using a Philadelphia man to represent a New Yorker. That's just wrong. It's just one step up from using a Bostonian to represent someone from NYC.

No way he's been playing with a lacerated kidney for weeks. Don't think he'd risk kidney failure just to play a few games. It would also mean he was literally pissing blood and still playing football. If he did that, he's a man's man. I've heard Luck speak, he ain't no man's man.

Spags is moving up my list of TBD alter-ego posters. He's not at Crayonz and Hogboy level just yet, but he's pretty good.