finn

Sorry about that. I thought it was Nacua who blocked him in the back and realized only when I looked closely that it was the other WR. By then, I forgot what I was responding to.

Maybe. But check out the play at the 30 second mark of the highlights. Taron goes into the hole beautifully to stuff the run, but Number 88 on the Rams (Whittington) follows behind him and shoves him in the back, a blatant penalty, knocking him out of the play. Not saying this happened all the time, but add it to the list of times the Rams got away with a blatant transgression to make a big play. In a close game like this, they mattered.

Agree. The Rams game was pretty disheartening. It had more the feeling of a defense exposed as opposed to one having a bad day. If that's the case, inspired play won't help much. The only path forward is to outscore everyone from here on. I think Allen was sincere in his presser when he said he had to do better. With the book written on this defense, he will need to score on every drive, at least against good teams.

Exactly. Oliver is like a different player this year. Jones is just average, and Epenesa this season is one of the worst players I've ever seen play the position. Watch him closely and you'll see what I mean. At least Oliver and Jones are double-teamed; Epenesa seems to play with his head down and looks up only to see the play going past him. Miller and Rousseau are playing well, as far as I can tell. Jefferson is just a body. I hope Carter and Solomon can add some juice. I don't see how they could do worse than Oliver and Epenesa.

I like the addition of Cooper a lot. He's big but so smooth. Radiates calm, makes the clutch catches. A real professional. If Coleman starts drawing attention, the two of them could complement each other very well.

But if that is really your only job--just swinging your leg a few times a game--wouldn't you be prone to overthinking it, especially with the stakes so high and everyone depending on you to do that one job? Me, I couldn't sleep at night.

Just looking at the highlights of the first series by Rams. First play was beautifully blocked by LA. Stafford tossed it over the head of a charging Miller to Nacua, with their WRs taking out Taron and Benford and a lineman on Bernard. Next play, double team on Rousseau and Oliver, Miller is turned inside and Stafford steps outside, has Oliver bearing down but throws to an open Nacua behind Bernard and in front of Rapp and Hamlin, who are both way back. At the 30 second mark of the highlights, Taron was in the hole to stuff the run by Williams, but Nacua followed him and blocked him illegally in the back to take him out. Third and one, Epenesa perfectly placed to stuff the run but goes off the wrong direction, chasing phantoms. Looks even more foolish on the touchdown run, where he once again was perfectly placed to stuff the run and this time whiffed on the tackle. Taron would have stopped that drive but for the illegal block in the back. Otherwise, it looks like the Epenesa was the only glaring screw up. He looked awful on those last two plays. Edit: Wow, I urge anyone interested in the DE play in this game to watch Epenesa. He is a real liability, whiffing, charging in the wrong direction, being blocked easily, and just generally looking gormless. I can't see how a defensive end could play worse.

Agreed. But the Bills' situation might be unique: A HC who is elite in two key respects (culture and teaching) but deficient in game management. Do you fire him and risk all that he's built? Or do you find a way to deal with the logistics you describe? It would mean McDermott swallowing his pride, that's for sure. He'd be the first HC in league history standing on the sidelines with nothing much to do except clap.

It's possible that Bishop is close, and a three-game tune-up is all he needs to be more effective than Hamlin. Frankly, I don't see the Bills winning the Super Bowl with Hamlin. The elite coaches in the playoffs will figure out how to exploit him the same way McVay did. He's not only slow, but he plays way back and hesitates to boot. Yes, he's a reliable tackler and he gets to the right spot eventually, but if you have a "C" grade free safety, you're putting a lot of pressure on the rest of the team. It's no wonder the pass rush isn't getting home. As for Hyde, I'm inclined to take McDermott and Hyde at their word that their expectations are very low. As mediocre as Hamlin is, Hyde isn't much better at this point in his career. He's a welcome locker-room presence and a very useful player-coach for Bishop and Hamlin, but he may never see the field. I hope they give Bishop a try. Does anyone remember the 1992 Super Bowl? Marv Levy went with the slow veteran safety Leonard Smith instead of the fast, athletic rookie Henry Jones, who went to the Pro Bowl the very next season. Result: Smith was torched all game. Levy also kept rookie run stuffers James Patton and Frank Kmet on the bench the next Super Bowl, preferring to let Emmitt Smith run over the lightweight veteran Jeff Wright all game long than play rookies. McDermott has played rookies (Cook, Rousseau, Oliver), but I can see him sticking with Hamlin all through the playoffs even as he continues to be the weakest link on the defense.

Yeah, but look at this way: McDermott is doing an excellent job (I think) developing the players and a creating a successful team culture. In fact, he might be elite in these respects. However, he sucks at time management. If a specialist can convert just one loss into a win, isn't it worth their salary? The Bills have already brought in an an expert on challenges; bring in an expert on clock management and let McDermott continue what he does well. In fact, I wonder if in a few years hiring specialists for play challenges and clock management will be a league-wide practice. It's only "a major part of the job description" if the Bills want it that way. Besides, the final decision is still McDermott's. But this way, he doesn't have to rely on his piss-poor judgment in crunch time.

Someone else called him a "centaur." I liked that one.

He was brilliant. I don't think any defense in the league would have held up against Stafford and Nakua yesterday. You could count their offense's mistakes on one hand. The Bills defense is built to capitalize on their opponents' mistakes: penalties, bad routes, dropped balls, etc. Without them, they were (and are) easy pickings. The good news is that it will be hard for other teams to replicate that level of execution. And you may be referring to past versions of Mahomes, not this year's. I would pick Stafford any day at this point. Didn't see him over- and underthrowing receivers every other play. Stafford may be a statue, but, at least yesterday, he played as Mahomes ever has. One last thought: As brilliant as Stafford was Sunday, Allen was even better. What a display of fine quarterbacking we saw yesterday! I don't recall better offhand. Even the famous Kelly-Young dual wasn't as high level. In the downer of the loss, it's easy to not take in how lucky we were to witness that game as it unfolded. Reminds me of the 13-second game in both respects: rare brilliance tarnished by inept coaching.

A play action throw to Alec Anderson would have brilliant there.

One interpretation is that an anomalous game like this happens from time to time. When it does, it's up to the units not affected--in this case, the offense, special teams, and coaching--to step up. The offense did, but special teams and coaching didn't. In fact, they didn't even carry their weight. And that was the difference.

Well, as we saw tonight, more than they have. That is, if your special teams and head coach aren't pulling their weight.

It could be that the Rams exposed what good coaching has covered up all year: that the the Bills defensive personnel just isn't very good. Rapp, Rousseau, Bernard, and Benford are excellent, but the others are average or mediocre (Milano could improve dramatically). In other words, Babich might not be the culprit; in fact, he might be the only thing holding the defense together. I'm not defending McDermott, though. When the team needs him most, he lets them down. If they win it all, it will be despite his game management, not because of it.

You can time him with a hourglass. So painful to watch him plod toward his destination, then running into a block not intended for him.

Do you mean on the field or in the presser?

The whole world wanted him to get the ball back with even seconds on the clock. Maybe even the Rams, in their heart of hearts.

If Brady knew the situation, McDermott certainly should have. The bottom line is that he just doesn't seem to think quickly, at least not in crunch situations. He needs to recognize that and hand off crunch-time decisions to someone else. I give him an A+ for developing players and team culture, but he's shown again and again that he freezes in the clutch.

Babich and McDermott got some 'splaining to do. Reminds me of the 13-second game. "Sorry, Josh! Our bad!"

The blitzes aren't getting home.

Have the Rams been flagged at all on offense?

All he has to do is stick to Nacua.

Need a turnover for some juice.