finn

Fire the defensive coordinator! Accountability!

It's a mess, it really is. Difficult to pinpoint when the malaise set in, but the 13 second game may have been this team's Wide Right, messing with their psychology. Like that 1990 team, they bounced back, but their resiliency took a bit hit, so when adversity hit--and they hit like the Plagues of Egypt last year--they did not have the resources to recover. Same with this year. Like a player with a concussion, it has taken less and less trauma to knock them out. The Jets game was a blow, but they came back, off balance but on their feet. But the second blow, the Jags game, was too much. I agree with Greg Cosell and Chris Sims that the Bills offense is just average, after Allen and Diggs. But worse teams have won the Super Bowl--in fact, I think they WOULD have won the SB after the 2021 season. It's not talent. It's spirit. What to do? Fire McDermott and rebuild. By the time the new stadium is ready, the next iteration of the Bills, with Allen its leader, will be ready.

Time to bring back Frazier?

That pick looks 100% on Allen. But the truth is, the Bills offense is mediocre across the board, except for Allen and Diggs. A 7-10 club with an average QB. Kincaid and Torrence are the only glimmers of hope.

Where is the pass rush?!

Josh Allen is the only offensive player who has come to play. Too bad he can't catch and punt.

I think it's more likely that, without a superstar QB throwing to him, he'll be exposed as the bust he is.

A throw to Murray, who drops it. A QB run with no blocking. A Spencer Brown whiff leading to a rushed throw by Allen that misses. Glad they had that players-only meeting.

I still think they'll win, even with Gabe Davis on the team. They seem fired up on both sides of the ball. Bench Davis, bench Cook, go out and win.

Name a PLAYER in the league worse.

Ok, so what's with benching Cook but not the deeply incompetent Gabe Davis? He's another McKenzie, someone who's net contributions are negative.

Can we just cut Davis, for god's sake? How much evidence do they need to see?

I believe Fournette said the Bills playbook was the most complex one he's every seen. So, yeah, he needs time to catch up.

Fire on both sides of the ball. Fournette bowling people over, Oliver sacking Wilson twice in a row, Poyer and Douglas intercepting passes, Bernard punching the ball out, Allen jumping over a linebacker in a big F-U to the coaches, Dalton lighting up the secondary, Cook breaking a few 20-yard runs, some electric change-up plays, like a flea-flicker or jet sweep (remember those?). The team needs a catharsis. And so do we. Let out the inner Hulk!

The answer is staring us in the face: They're in "WTF?!" mode, in disbelief that after last year's series of traumas (Knox's brother, the Tops shooting, White's injury, the Hamlin incident, Allen's injury) they get hit AGAIN, even worse this time. It's like, "C'mon, man!" White getting injured again was just a cruel blow. Unbelievable that then Milano and Jones, their two best defensive players, go down in quick succession. Then Allen hurts his shoulder again, and still more players go down. How do you regain your swagger in the face of these body blows? You feel vulnerable, unfairly targeted, anxious, weak. They're really at a crossroads now. If they blow Denver out of the fricking water, they might regain their mojo, maybe. If it's another close game, even if they win, they will be roadkill for the rest of the season. They HAVE to win big.

Right. My hope on offense rests on these three. Shakir in the slot, Knox, freed from serving as Spencer Brown's babysitter, getting down the field, and Kincaid blowing past linebackers. Also, Fournette and Cook as the new Thunder and Lightning.

The time to trade Davis was after his four-touchdown performance in the 13 seconds game. This board and everyone else would have howled, and it would have been impossibly prescient, but it would have been a terrific move. Pick up a first-rounder in exchange for an injury-prone WR with below-average hands, speed, quickness, YAC, and route-running.

Not just the board. All the major media outlets were crowing how amazing the Bengals were and how they dominated the hapless Bills. Little mention they scored 3 points in the second half against a decimated defense, or that it was a game right until the end. Why the prejudice against the Bills? The Bengals, Chief, 49ers are all darlings, but the glass is always half empty when it comes to the Bills.

Von did look slow. If he can't chase, hold the edge, or rush the passer, why is he on the field? I realize he needs reps to get back into form, but you don't want him in there when the game is still in doubt, right? Have other teams suffered as many injuries as the Bills the past two seasons? Miller, Hyde, White, Milano, Jones... To say nothing of Hamlin, Harris, and Hynes, and degrading injuries to Allen, Poyer, Davis, and Groot. Sure, Aaron Rogers' Achilles probably trumps them all combined, but still, what a motherlode of injuries.

And Browns. More rules changes coming maybe?

I wonder if that's what was behind McDermott's "complementary football" comment. I.e., "I told Dorsey to stop to slow down the [effective] tempo because you'll be scoring too fast and my defense will get tired." As a new coordinator, Dorsey might not be able to tell him to f- off. Daboll could, to a degree at least.

Agreed. He's not a normal QB. He's more like Elway and Young than Brady and Manning, and I'm concerned that Dorsey and McDermott are trying to make him something he's not. Young once said that when he was playing in the old USFL, he would tell his center to snap the ball over his head once in a while just because he thrived off of broken plays. Allen is the same way. No one is better, in fact. Amazing improvisor, howitzer arm, great vision and anticipation, fantastic runner, big frame, surprising speed...He has the whole package. But it seems McDermott especially wants a pocket passer. Allen is trying to comply, but he's frustrated by the limitations. The fire isn't there anymore, at least not consistently. I say release the Kraken. Make this offense literally unpredictable. Go on fourth down from everywhere, fake punts and kicks, mix in gimmick plays, reverses, direct RB snaps... Tap into Allen's creativity and let him have fun. In fact, let him call some plays on occasion, not just audibles, either. I'm here to say that Allen has the potential to be the best QB in NFL history, the real GOAT. But he's got to be freed from the Lilliputians that have him tied to the ground.

Gabe Davis became WR2.

Agree. Dorsey is like most people in new situations. He doing ok for a first-time coordinator, but you don't "ok" for a team that is otherwise ready to go to the Super Bowl. McDermott really rolled the dice choosing him. At the time, it seemed logical and harmonious to hire from within. But it was a mistake. He's just another Joe Coordinator. This is a real test for McDermott. It's hard to admit a mistake of this magnitude, hard to be perceived as disloyal, hard to change course in midstream. Much easier to justify staying the course--right into long-term mediocrity. Then it's HIS job on the line.

I've said more or less the same all season. Gabe Davis is a liability the same way Von Miller is at this point: They take time from more impactful players. The stats he has have more to do with the quality of the QB throwing to him than any ability he has. I keep thinking they would have gotten a heck of a return if they had traded him after the 13 second game.