A Few Thoughts About the Game, in no particular order.....

[billsfan714]

The run D concerns me still. We can get gashed straigt up the gut or around the corner. As run stuffers, Dareus and Williams sure arent Sam Adams and Saragusa. Brad Smith brings nothing to this team anymore, he's not needed as a returner and his couple of hundred yards a year receiving just takes away development from somebody like Easley, Rogers or Hogan. Cut Smith and use the savings to lock up Byrd. We better be searching the waiver wire for backup guards. Tuel, wow what can you say for an undrafted FA, might have our new Frank Reich on the roster.

[CSBill]

GO BILLSSS!!!!

 

19 and 0 baby!!!!!

 

[vincec]

How about on offense?

Maybe Easley moves up to second team but honestly I didn't really see much with the offense that warranted changes in the depth chart.

[DefenseWins]

I hate to break anyone's bubble. BUT... It's only a "Preseason Game"....

[SPILLERmadeUmiss]

I hate to break anyone's bubble. BUT... It's only a "Preseason Game"....

I'll take runnin' smooth over the alternative any day of the week. Now they have to keep the momentum going and add to it.

[ReturnoftheBuffaloBeast23]

I'm with you. I don't care If Goodwin catches a single ball (which I think he might have the most TDs of all the rookies). If he has success on STs he can be the next Devin Hester of the NFL. He has Olympic speed and from what I saw today, really good vision. Hopefully he can catch too.

 

I said the same thing I think Goodwin could be the next Devin Hester or at the minimum the next Daunte Hall... X-Factor anyone????

[Nirvjam]

Great post as usual, Bill! Here are a few comments:

 

1) Tuel to Easley reminds me of Fitz to SJ. This is a GOOD thing. They played together as scrubs and developed a chemistry. This is a great thing to see.

After the overall pleasing first half with EJ Manuel, the 2nd half with Tuel was an extremely pleasant surprise as well!

 

 

4) I sent a letter to am man I know,

It said, "One for the money, two for the show."

I waited all summer for his reply,

He said, "3 to get ready and 4 TO FLY."

Brilliant Robert Hunter lyrics of course, but did you know that Keith Godchaux wrote the music!

 

 

5) Manuel? He was every bit as I could have hoped for and more.

Every bit. He showed poise, remained calm under pressure, made some nice throws, looked comfortable running the 2-minute drill, *and* has legs that can move! Yes it's only pre-season, but this made for a good start.

 

 

8) Goodwin? OMG!!!!!!!!!!!! He looked like McKelvin with a brain and football instincts!!!!! If his returns can stay anywhere close to what he did today, I don't really care if he ever catches a pass. The 106 yard TD was just that sick!

This guy can turn on the afterburners! Only recently learned he was an Olympic long jumper!

 

 

13) GO BILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Maybe 1 or 2 more exclamation marks are called for.

 

Ok so this was only a pre-season game. Still, they came into Indy and basically destroyed them.

It was interesting to listen to the hometown Indy broadcasters. First the pre-game never mentioned the name of a single Bills player (and the team itself was barely mentioned.) I think the first time any individual Bills were mentioned by name was when the game was underway.

It's possible that my favorite moments from the game were when the announcers said: "Coach Pagano can't like that!" Did they say it about 10 times? (Often the camera would cut to Pagano at that point, his expression making their point.)

Edited August 12, 2013 by Nirvjam

[offyourocker]

14) Being proactive instead of reactive is a new way of playing football in Buffalo.

 

Agree 100%

 

I am very pleased also. The only thing where I could see an easy improvement is a third string running back. I would be fine never seeing choice run for 3 yards ever again. I know there are a couple big name free agents that would come in for cheap now.

[Clippers of Nfl]

I hate to break anyone's bubble. BUT... It's only a "Preseason Game"....

Preseason carries over to the regular season. Please don't cite the chiefs.... Steelers beat us bad last year. 7-38. Rg3 beat us, Christian ponder beat us. They all did way better than us. I hate to burst your bubble. You don't know jack! Edited August 12, 2013 by Clippers of Nfl

[bowery4]

Thanks Bill,was as entertaining as preseason gets, wasn't it?

[Billsguy]

I was pleasantly surprised. (Too bad it means absolutely nothing.) Very impressive performance against the Indy's camp fodder. The real test begins in September. Until then, any conclusions made after one practice game are conversational, but irrelevant,

 

Let the overreactions begin! (I mean let the overreactions continue!)

[reddogblitz]

But that difference is mostly offset by field position when the opponent takes over on their 5 after a 4th down fail (as opposed to their 20-25 after a FG).

I'm not sure I agree with this one. Nothing fires up a team like a goal line stand followed only closely by a safety. Stopping the other team on 4th down after they've disrespected you is a huge morale booster for any team. It's gutsy and great if it works, but it depends on the situation.

[Clippers of Nfl]

I was pleasantly surprised. (Too bad it means absolutely nothing.) Very impressive performance against the Indy's camp fodder. The real test begins in September. Until then, any conclusions made after one practice game are conversational, but irrelevant,

 

Let the overreactions begin! (I mean let the overreactions continue!)

We play well FOR A FREAKING CHANGE, and I read this kind of crap. Wow..... Did you even watch the game? Do you know how much of a morale booster was this win. In an away game. Did you see the kick return for a td? Was that irrelevant too? I can understand negative threads and bitchy comments. But even after a good performance??? Very disappointing. Your comment means absolutely nothing.

[Buffalo Barbarian]

14) Being proactive instead of reactive is a new way of playing football in Buffalo.

 

this is the first time in a long time that we weren't making excuses about our teams poor play because it's just preseason, Nice to actually look good for once.

[peterlaw]

Last year the Bills were poor in the pre season. And carried that form into the first regular season game.

 

It's really good news to see a better performance in the pre season.

 

But lets not forget Luck & Hasslebeck only played Q1. Their 3rd string QB was hopeless. Unfortunately we play Tom Brady in week 1.

[DCBongo]

Thanks Dave, I always look forward to your Bills musings

[Whites Bay]

 

Ok so this was only a pre-season game. Still, they came into Indy and basically destroyed them.

It was interesting to listen to the hometown Indy broadcasters. First the pre-game never mentioned the name of a single Bills player (and the team itself was barely mentioned.) I think the first time any individual Bills were mentioned by name was when the game was underway.

It's possible that my favorite moments from the game were when the announcers said: "Coach Pagano can't like that!" Did they say it about 10 times? (Often the camera would cut to Pagano at that point, his expression making their point.)

 

I was getting a kick out of the homer announcers as well. I could have sworn that they started talking about the weather, and the corn forecast, by the fourth quarter.

 

For all those who say "It's the pre-season, it means nothing" - okay, while true to an extent, would you rather be waking up this morning as a Colts fan?

[eball]

And did you hear Warren Sapp gushing about Mario? And he was right. Mario is far and away the best player on this team!!!

 

Most telling play of the game was on the Colts' first series -- Mario showed how well he knows this defense; he was furious with his teammates for not recognizing the TE shift and shifting their line. Those complaining about Mario will need to find something else to do this season.

 

Great post, Bill. Some of my quick thoughts:

 

-- LG is admittedly a concern (yes, I said it).

 

-- Alonso breaking up the pass to Fleener in the back of the end zone was something to be genuinely excited about. Luck was certain it was a TD.

 

-- Hughes/Sheppard trade: Bills 1, Colts 0

 

-- Easley! Man, I wish I had some confidence he could sustain that. He looked fantastic.

 

-- Da'Rick Rogers is no lock to make this roster.

 

-- Aaron Williams is going to be just fine at SS. Great lick down near the goal line to break up a 3rd down pass.

 

-- I liked Nickell Robey returning punts; looked like he could break one. It's hard to imagine taking McKelvin off those duties, but the guy needs to get healthy.

 

-- I saw TJ Graham doing a nice job blocking on the outside.

 

-- We're going to see a bunch of those 20-yard-ish scrambles from EJ this year; glad he knew how to duck down before taking a hit.

 

-- Is it just me, or do the Bills have the feel of a professionally-coached team for the first time in a while?

 

Overall, it's hard not to be just a little giddy over the performance, but there are certainly a lot more positives than negatives to take away from the game. Even the Colts announcers were talking about how the Bills' offense dictated the pace of play for the entire game.

 

Should be an enthusiastic crowd Thursday night at the Ralph!

[FLFan]

Thanks for posting Bill. It is definitely a different experience watching a team that is seemingly very well coached. I love the aggressiveness of of the secondary. They were coming up and laying some really good hits, forced a fumble (Ron Brooks) and caused some balls to be dropped. Very aggressive coverage as well. The Bills have a plethora of receivers that can play. The cuts are going to be hard there. I thought the left side of the starting line was awful. Glen does not look anywhere near as good as he did last year. This is beginning to be a big concern to me as depth is poor on the left as well.

 

All in all, a fun game to watch and a great start. I loved that whether the starters or the back ups were in there, they looked confident, aggressive, excited to be playing. Different team.

Edited August 12, 2013 by MDFan

[Matt in KC]

Did anyone else feel like the camera work was way off? (And I don't just mean the in-game

interviews that drive me nuts.) I kept wanting them to zoom out so I could see more of the

field and players.

 

Ron Brooks - He strikes me as a high risk/high reward player that will make a big play or

two a game, but also get burned periodically. BUT, he is essentially a rookie, and I

expect him to keep getting better and better for awhile, which is exciting.

 

The game was closer than the score - Both teams were missing starters, and they played

each other pretty evenly. Second half scores in PS have little bearing on the likely

success of the team. (That said, they still looked well-coached.)

 

The game was more lopsided than the score - WTF was up with the officiating?

* Fred Jackson had Sheppard all over him during the incompletion that would have been a TD

(or a 1st). How was that not PI or defensive holding?

* The Tuel "fumble"/TD was a joke. You could see him arm moving forward and the defender

actually hit the front of his arm.

*The Colts first down at the 50 wasn't even close and defintely would have been overturned

by a real review during the season (though I think they decided not to overturn anything

in preseason). This lead to a Colt FG 5 plays later.

These 3 plays made a 14 point difference for the Colts

 

Counter-balance: The Rolle INT/TD was a similar odd call the other direction. He looked

to be clearly down by contact.

But, after more thought... The refs have been really watching the receivers fall and

maintain control through the whole catch. If he dropped the ball after sliding on the ground

they would have called it incomplete instead of an INT, so I guess it's fair that he can't

be touched until then if he doesn't officially have possession yet.

 

EJ Manuel - I'm thrilled with the results, obviously. Most of my criticisms were of

things that I expect will come together as he gets comfortable and settles in.

 

Running Backs

CJ - Looks ready to go!

Fred Jackson - looked sluggish to me. I hope he "wakes up" as we hit the season. I like

his versatility and leadership, but his play didn't have any spark.

Tashard Choice - meh...

Gaskins - I know he had a great scrimmage, but he did not impress me at all. That said, I

like him as much as Choice, and would rather keep him.

 

I have rookie fever. I'd be okay with trading Kolb for draft pick, even a low one. That said, I do think it's crazy going into the season without a veteran on call. This is kind of like burning the lifeboats to tell the crew you're confident you can plug the leaks. That said, if Tuel ever starts, I will slam the front office if there is no one else behind him. The FO is supposed to have gotten their rookie fever shots before the season!