BobChalmers Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Am I the only one who is pleased about no Thanksgiving game? I really don't need my Thanksgiving ruined by the stress/disgust of having to watch the Bills. Perfectly happy to relax and watch other teams. LOL - you know, I'm such an optimist I literally never thought of this. All I was thinking of was having something fun to watch while stuck at an otherwise annually unpleasant family travel event. Realistically, I have to agree, the Bills could just make it worse! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tintonfallsbillsfan Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 If and it is a big if they can beat the Bears , with 7 of the next 11 at home. It should set up an interesting Dec. The raiders game will be a must. Green bay coming to Buffalo is not an impoosible game. Great qb, not so great defense all in all 8-8 with a few breaks 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canadian Bills Fan Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Hey at least we will be "in the hunt" until the final month. Usually by December we are already out of playoff contention. Late games this year will be more exciting as they may have playoff implications CBF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXBILLSFAN Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 (edited) I think the schedule release is a tough dose of reality for us Bills fans. The team is still not relevant on the national stage. The only way to change that is to WIN. The fact we don't have a SNF, MNF and lost Thanksgiving to the Bears, forcing NFL to "bend their rules" demonstrates our lack of national relevance and the lack of interest the networks feel we have with a prime time audience. I'm not sure there is any underlying judgment on our off-season, but, had we made a bigger splash in FA in might have changed things. In the end, we need to win if we want to be in those games. Edited April 24, 2014 by TXBILLSFAN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papazoid Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I like the schedule the bye is smack in the middle of the season. the first half schedule looks a little easier than the second half. better chance to still be relevant later in season. only one December home game and it's against a very popular team. the two late November games are within easy travel distance for the away CLE & NYJ teams. combined with variable pricing we should sellout all games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCDAWG Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 10-6 mark it down.....................WOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Bills Roundup: Schedule Breakdown <3:01> The voice of the Bills John Murphy takes a look at Buffalo's 2014 football schedule. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBuff423 Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I think this schedule is well balanced for the BILLS overall...and for those complaining about no Sunday night or Monday night games, keep in mind, IF the BILLS can win and become a team worth watching for the rest of the viewing nation, those Sunday games can get flexed, as early as week 5, to Sunday night...essentially, a primetime game on Sunday night is in the hands of the team...also, I like that the BILLS have an entire training camp and pre-season to prepare for an AWAY game against the Bears...one of my fears was that it would be a game on short rest in the middle of the season. Bears are for real, especially that Offense, so giving the Defense time to truly prepare only helps them...also, we find out quickly what QB the BILLS have on their roster, one who develops or one who regresses. Finally, I like ending the season against the Pats on so many levels and too many to add to this long post...but I also like the one home game in December, I think that's actually a positive thing...I also like Miami on a Thursday night and thank-freaking-God there is no Toronto game this year! Hope it stays that way...all in all, I like the schedule...hey, if we want the BILLS to prove they can be considered a contender, they got to put up or shut up...no more excuses Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoloinOhio Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 It is nearly impossibly to try to predict W-L in April but remember some games that look like an L now could be a W and some that look easy now could be a L (like last year - beat Ravens, lose to Browns). Last year's schedule had ATL, Pitt which looked like very difficult matchups and were indeed Ls but when we played them they each had 2 wins and among the worst teams in the league. BTW the Bills can earn themselves prime time games if they win out of the gates. Not only can any game after week 5 be flexed from 1:00 to 4:25, they can be flexed to SNF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBaumer Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 6-10 seems very realistic to me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I like the schedule the bye is smack in the middle of the season. the first half schedule looks a little easier than the second half. better chance to still be relevant later in season. Yup. Starting out with the easier part of the schedule is a positive for a young team. I would think people have had enough of the Bills being 3-7 by November and having to read "hear me out, they could still run the table!!" As for national games, what are people smoking? They're a perennial 6-10 team in one of the smallest markets. No one wants to see them on MNF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoloinOhio Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Yup. Starting out with the easier part of the schedule is a positive for a young team. I would think people have had enough of the Bills being 3-7 by November and having to read "hear me out, they could still run the table!!" As for national games, what are people smoking? They're a perennial 6-10 team in one of the smallest markets. No one wants to see them on MNF. The Bills have a large fan base that is national because so many people grow up there and move away. No, it is not big market on its own but it doesn't matter if they are playing one that is... Jets/Houston/Chicago/Pats. That said, I am actually glad they aren't scheduled for a SNF or MNF (or Thanksgiving game). They typically lose when on nationally and I am old school with loving Sunday at 1:00 games. And as I and other have stated, if they do end up with one of those prime time games it will be because they earned it through the flexing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Romes Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Great schedule. Everyone is complaining about the tough December. For a team missing the playoffs 14 straight years that's exactly what you want. To be mathematically alive as long as possible so you keep playing for something. League did as much as they could to help the bills this year IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBillsForever Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Brutal schedule. We will be lucky to match our win record for last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CodeMonkey Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I think the schedule makes perfect sense if the goal was to avoid blackouts (which it is). December games are tough for the Bills to sell out even when the team hasn't sucked for a decade. So 3 away games in December along with the only home game being GB which is guaranteed to sell out because of packer fans is brilliant. Even the late November home games are against the Jets and Browns whose fans are well within driving distance and travel well. It's a great schedule in terms of maximizing ticket sales and minimizing blackouts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Chicago has some great pieces on offense w/ Marshall, Jeffery, and Forte, and Cutler can sling it, but this team was 8-8 last year and their defense was horrid (30 pts/gm). Are they world beaters? Knowing what we know right now I give the Bills a decent shot (40%) at winning the opener. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoloinOhio Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 (edited) Chicago has some great pieces on offense w/ Marshall, Jeffery, and Forte, and Cutler can sling it, but this team was 8-8 last year and their defense was horrid (30 pts/gm). Are they world beaters? Knowing what we know right now I give the Bills a decent shot (40%) at winning the opener. I think they were better with McCown than Cutler. But I think 40% is about right. They have a very good TE too - Martellus Bennett. They improved their DL in FA with Ratliff and Allen. I think they will load up on D in the draft. Edited April 24, 2014 by YoloinOhio Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 The Bills have a large fan base that is national because so many people grow up there and move away. No, it is not big market on its own but it doesn't matter if they are playing one that is... Jets/Houston/Chicago/Pats. That said, I am actually glad they aren't scheduled for a SNF or MNF (or Thanksgiving game). They typically lose when on nationally and I am old school with loving Sunday at 1:00 games. And as I and other have stated, if they do end up with one of those prime time games it will be because they earned it through the flexing. First, every NFL team has a national fan base. A lot more people have moved away from Chicago than Buffalo. Second, the idea is to have national games that interest all football fans, not just fans of the two teams. If you ranked every team in the league in terms of ability to generate interest from other fans, the Bills would be in the bottom 10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I think they were better with McCown than Cutler. But I think 40% is about right. They have a very good TE too - Martellus Bennett. They improved their DL in FA with Ratliff and Allen. I think they will load up on D in the draft. They lost Peppers so that neutralizes one of the D-line additions. Even if they load up on D during the draft, what are the chances any of those guys are settled into productive roles by W1? Somewhere between slim and no-shot-in-hell. And I forgot about McCown -- I think you're right. A W in Chicago could be the springboard to an excellent start, which is what these guys really need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALF Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 The schedule looks good , now they need a good draft. Perfect spot for bye week, mid season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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