This team is still a year away

[CountDorkula]

Being a year away means to me that the current team is not very good. 

 

 

Your entire post post can be summed up by this. “There is always next year” 

[Do The Reich Thing]

It's always a year away. They've been force feeding that to us for almost 20 years

[Ethan in Cleveland]

3 hours ago, Thurman#1 said:

 

 

Of course there's such a thing as a year away. You've got utter nonsense there.

 

And you seem to think we have a franchise QB, which we clearly do not. We have a guy who may become a franchise QB down the road. But he isn't one now. A guy whose passer rating is 29th in the league among guys with 100 or more throws, whose YPA is 26th and whose 10:7 TD/INT ratio puts him in much the same area is in absolutely no non-nutty way a franchise QB.

 

Yeah, the AFC is a mess. But they've made it clear what their goal is and they are working towards it. They've said it again and again, they want to be consistently competitive. They don't need to be competitive this year if it comes at the expense of the future, which the deals available to them almost certainly would have been.

 

The fact that you have different goals from them doesn't mean they're wrong. In fact, what it means is that if that's your goal, you've chosen a team that isn't congruent with your goals. Perhaps you ought to switch to a team that's always choosing this year over the future. The Redskins, maybe. They'd at least pursue the same goals as you want your team to do. The Bills, though, aren't going to be competing for a title this year, and paying too much for some old guy who'd be gone in a year or two wouldn't have changed that.

Ok so let's assume you are correct and they are a year away and such a thing exists and Allen is not the franchise QB as you contend. 

Then you want to let McD and Beane pick another QB? They used 4 draft picks and a LT to get Allen. You would trust this regime to pick another? Or do you want to get rid of Allen in year 3 and sign a veteran? Or are you just hoping Allen gets better? Hire a new OC? 

How many years do we wait for Edmunds and Oliver to develop?

What would be your plan to make them more competitive next year?  

 

[jrober38]

2 minutes ago, Happy Gilmore said:

 

in that time, we really haven't had a good OC or QB.  Daboll either needs to go, or be reigned in by McD.  The problem is McD isn't a micromanager, so I think the problem festers until Daboll coordinates himself out of his job.  This is the long, painful way of going about the needed change.

 

With Allen, this is what, his 20th NFL start?  Mayfield and Darnold, the other two QB comparisons from the 2018 draft, aren't doing much better.  Should they be relegated to backup or out of the league, as well?  Josh is somewhat of a project, that was known.  Daboll isn't helping with his uber complicated offense that shouldn't be run at this point in Josh's career.  It took Brady multiple years before he could run the E-P offense; he couldn't, and did not, do so in 2003 when they won the SB.

 

It's not the offensive coordinators fault his QB can't execute the plays.

 

This is the NFL. If we're dumbing down the playbook in 2019 when rookie and sophomore QBs are routinely near the top of the NFL in scoring and passing, then maybe we should look at the guy playing QB when he's near the bottom of the league in every passing category. 

 

We should be talking about putting more on our QB's plate if they're actually any good, not taking stuff off because they can't execute what they've been given. 

[Happy]

5 minutes ago, jrober38 said:

 

It's not the offensive coordinators fault his QB can't execute the plays.

 

This is the NFL. If we're dumbing down the playbook in 2019 when rookie and sophomore QBs are routinely near the top of the NFL in scoring and passing, then maybe we should look at the guy playing QB when he's near the bottom of the league in every passing category. 

 

We should be talking about putting more on our QB's plate if they're actually any good, not taking stuff off because they can't execute what they've been given. 

 

The play designs have a lot to do with how Mahomes has performed.  Of course having Hill and Kelce help, as well.  The point is, Reid isn't making Mahomes do something he can't do, he's letting Mahomes be Mahomes.  Patrick is also a more refined and accurate passer than Josh is; Reid is playing to Mahomes' strengths.  Daboll is trying to make Josh into the current Tom Brady, and the receivers into a corps that has been here for years.  Notice how these plays take a long time to develop?  That is a result of the WRs (and Josh) still trying to grasp the offense.  Like I said, Josh has his problems, but they are exasperated by Daboll.

[wagon127]

Ok but next year we play the AFC and NFC West. So if you are a year away, you might as well be 10 years away. 

[reddogblitz]

7 hours ago, Irish Dave said:

I can't help but think if we'd have kept Fitz all these years we'd basically be in the exact same spot.   think a huge problem with Allen is that they're over-coaching him.  Last year he was raw, but he had a fire and fearlessness that seems gone now.  Yes there's a risk of getting hurt on the runs he used to do, but he also ran with much more bravado last year.  This year his runs feel timid; he's worried all the time.  Over-coached.   They let Lamar Jackson just be himself and when you have that confidence good things happen.  Allen's confidence is all gone.  Hence the overthrowing EVERY long bomb.  Worried about INT.  Let the kid run wild.  Screw it.   Because the over-coaching isn't working.

 

Except the one in the Eagles game where he UNDER THREW the WR by 5 yards with the wind.

 

Do you want a running QB? We had one of those and we ran him out of town.

 

I think his problem with the long pass is not that he's nervous. He's just not good at it. He wasn't last year and wasn't particularly good at it in college either.

 

It's a passing league. We need a QB that can pass.

Edited November 11, 2019 by reddogblitz

[dickleyjones]

3 hours ago, Trogdor said:

They don't though. Most colleges don't run a pro-style anymore, and in fact the NFL is moving more towards the NCAA styles. Allen was no worse off in college than any other QB. Wyoming isn't some DIII nobody and have/do produce NFL talent. It's like a hard luck story we've created here to give him an out, but there are 3-4 guys on offense from his teams that have played professionally. 

But they do. Most play vs the elite competition. So they have seen the speed, the techniques, etc. I don't think there is much question Allen is learning more than most on the job.  It is not an excuse, it is the baggage he arrived with. 

 

And yeah sorry, but Wyoming is far from the best places to grow and learn football acumen. Brain training requires experience and Allen has had less than most. I'm willing to wait and see. 

[MDH]

The Bills are always a year away.

[Boatdrinks]

A look at the offensive roster says yes, they are a year away. Major work ahead for Beane and Co to add talent. 

[billsfan714]

2 hours ago, Do The Reich Thing said:

It's always a year away. They've been force feeding that to us for almost 20 years

Oh dont worry next year the excuses will be 1. What did you expect our schedule is much tougher this year.  2.   You cant expect much from a first year receiver because he's just a rookie, it will take time.    3. Josh is technically only in year 2 because he missed some games, he hasnt had 32 full games of experience.   4.   If Daboll goes, what do you expect everyone is learning a new offense.   4.   If we sign some FAs on offense, its just their first year together it will take some years for them to develop together.      I could go and on.

[Buffalo Barbarian]

6 hours ago, Xwnyer said:

I don’t question the kick I question why they huddled up after singletary run versus trying to get them caught off guard to get the first down.  I also question the timeout after the 2 minute warning and the bombs on third and short yardage.  

 

the time out was to see what the offense was running, we had time to score we just didn't perform.

 

 

5 hours ago, Cripple Creek said:

Is Daboll still a good play caller?

 

Yes , players need to excute, Josh needs to throw quicker and WRs need to stop dropping the ball.

 

 

5 hours ago, Meatloaf63 said:

Play calling was the issue on the 3rd and four. only one receiver recognized they were blitzing 7 and the primary didn't recognize it and didn't run a hot route. Very poor play design at that pint of the game...

 

Players not recognizing the blitz has nothing to do with play calling

 

 

[Buffalo Barbarian]

5 hours ago, SoTier said:

 

This is classic Jauron ball.

 

 

See above.    You don't "get the Jauron comparison" because you either don't remember his tenure with the Bills or you refuse to see what's been in front of your face for 2 and a half seasons.

 

 

Excuse me, but who picked those players????   When you value "culture" over talent, what you get are "team guys" who aren't good enough to make clutch plays when the chips are down.

 

 

They picked talented players they just arent doing good enough. Is Josh not talented how about Edmunds, Singletary, knox, white,  Oliver , Milano, Dawkins, Ford???

 

Now these are not all the guys i wanted but to say they picked culture over talent is not true. Especially Oliver with the way he acted last year towards his head coach.

 

They pick guys WITH character and talent, not one over the other.

 

 

5 hours ago, MAJBobby said:

how long did it take the Rams to turn around post Last regime?  How long Colts?  Only the Bills a rebuild takes 4 years. And three offseasons of picking their Players. 
 

 

 

how are the rams and Colts doing this year ??? Oh yeah worse than us.

 

 

[Fan in San Diego]

12 hours ago, Buffalo Barbarian said:

The first year was the breakdown of the old regime, last year was the first in the rebuild, this is only year two with a very young core. Next year will be the year we get more talent at key positions and will be where we need to be on better, more consistent playing level.

 

There is a process here and we want it all to go faster but it cant . We have to work with what we have and its going to take time for these players and the next set of players to push this team to the next level

 

Another thing i want to address here about today's game is McDermott made the right decision to kick the FG at the end of the game. Many of you are proclaiming Jauron Ball when in fact McD went for it twice on 4th down earlier in the game and the team FAILED !!

 

What makes you think he should try for it a third time when on this day against this team they couldn't convert on 4th down and the offense overall was inconsistent?? McDermott needs to be confident they will make it and with the way they were playing he could not make that decision and made the right call by kicking the FG and if it was made we then have a chance in overtime. Hauschka was not good today but normally he is, this game maybe showing he is declining but he was our best choice at the time.

 

 

Pat Kirwan says we are really a year away from really contending. I'm starting to agreed with him.

 

[Formerly Allan in MD]

12 hours ago, Estro said:

This team being a year away is an optimistic viewpoint IMO.  With every passing week, I'm becoming more certain we have a QB who is not good.  You are never a year away unless you have a good QB, at this point Allen is not good. He's not really showing me anything to think he will be good either, which sucks as a Bills fan.

The knock on Allen is his maddening inconsistency.  He came out of college with a reputation as an erratic passer.  That hasn't changed much, despite the fact he's improved his footwork the last few games.  Many of the passes his receivers catch require contortions.  And in other areas he appears to have regressed, despite the fact he has a better offensive line this season.  For instance, last year he threw some nice, catchable long balls.  This year, nada.  Then there are the fumbles.  Deadly!  I keep giving him the benefit of a doubt, but it's getting harder.  I know the response to this by many will be "but look at the record and the stats."  Paper doesn't win games and get you far in the postseason. 

[SCBills]

3 hours ago, jrober38 said:

 

It's not the offensive coordinators fault his QB can't execute the plays.

 

This is the NFL. If we're dumbing down the playbook in 2019 when rookie and sophomore QBs are routinely near the top of the NFL in scoring and passing, then maybe we should look at the guy playing QB when he's near the bottom of the league in every passing category. 

 

We should be talking about putting more on our QB's plate if they're actually any good, not taking stuff off because they can't execute what they've been given. 

Texans dumbed down the playbook to give Watson easier reads, many only requiring reading one half of the field.  
 

Is that a problem for you?

[Buffalo Barbarian]

1 minute ago, SCBills said:

Texans dumbed down the playbook to give Watson easier reads, many only requiring reading one half of the field.  
 

Is that a problem for you?

 

maybe we should scale it back a bit so Josh doesn't have to think too much. It takes years for a QB to be able to see EVERYTHING.

 

 

 

 

[Augie]

10 hours ago, Chandler#81 said:

WTH? FA, the Draft and the Trade Deadline are all behind us. Only street FAs are left for the pickin’s. We already ARE Going for it this year -with everything we’ve got! It’s just not enough yet. Much like here, we’re always looking for that next superstar poster. But, as evidenced by your 1st Ever post, there’s not much left out there..?

 

Welcome Aboard!?

 

It’s not like they aren’t giving it all they’ve got, it’s just that this is all they’ve got! If there is any help out there, there is a reason. They either aren’t very good or they have some heavy baggage. I like that WR appears to be deep in the next draft, because we sure need some help there! I look at what they added to offense last offseason, and that’s a lot of new bodies. Now we need some better bodies, and play makers! 

[Buffalo Barbarian]

7 hours ago, Irish Dave said:

I can't help but think if we'd have kept Fitz all these years we'd basically be in the exact same spot.   think a huge problem with Allen is that they're over-coaching him.  Last year he was raw, but he had a fire and fearlessness that seems gone now.  Yes there's a risk of getting hurt on the runs he used to do, but he also ran with much more bravado last year.  This year his runs feel timid; he's worried all the time.  Over-coached.   They let Lamar Jackson just be himself and when you have that confidence good things happen.  Allen's confidence is all gone.  Hence the overthrowing EVERY long bomb.  Worried about INT.  Let the kid run wild.  Screw it.   Because the over-coaching isn't working.

 

you could be right.

 

i wouldn't call it over coaching because Josh does need to know theses things but it may be too much for him right now. He doesn't have that same body language as last year and i think he might be losing some confidence. Also teams are know Josh better and are defensing him accordingly so now Josh and coaches need to help him get to the next level.

 

 

 

 

[Buffalo Barbarian]

6 hours ago, Chicken Boo said:

Talent could have been acquired this past offseason, but the fanbase bought into the narrative that John Brown and Cole Beasley would be enough.

 

The same fanbase that told me D.K. Metcalf was going to be a bust or 2 years ago, that Deshaun Watson was going to fail because he only threw 49 mph at the combine.  Remember that one?  Go visit the 'trade for Stephon Diggs' thread for a good laugh.

 

I'm starting to think that Bills fans love mediocrity.

 

I wanted Metcalf too and Vander Esch and Dexter Lawrence. But we also have good talent on this team just need a little more and hopefully Beane does a little better on the earlier picks.

 

 

[MAJBobby]

2 hours ago, Buffalo Barbarian said:

 

They picked talented players they just arent doing good enough. Is Josh not talented how about Edmunds, Singletary, knox, white,  Oliver , Milano, Dawkins, Ford???

 

Now these are not all the guys i wanted but to say they picked culture over talent is not true. Especially Oliver with the way he acted last year towards his head coach.

 

They pick guys WITH character and talent, not one over the other.

 

 

 

how are the rams and Colts doing this year ??? Oh yeah worse than us.

 

 

and they are on their Third String QB. Context. And even with being on their third String QB they are East ONE win behind us??  

Edited November 11, 2019 by MAJBobby

[nedboy7]

we moved up for Allen and look who is lighting it up from that draft.  There was no need to move up for Edmunds either. Just pick where you are and stop over thinking talent. 

[KGun12TD]

This is one if not the best post in a flip in year! Kudos!

Edited November 11, 2019 by KGun12TD

[corta765]

This is a very optimistic take. Thing is I'm tired of people saying patience and "its year blank of the rebuild". It's been 20 years with this franchise spinning its tires I don't blame people for being restless when the offense has stalled since the bye and the QB looks like the advanced version of Tyrod Taylor.

 

Sure I'm willing to say Allen is a 3 year project at QB, but by the same token when you see other QBs who need far less time to develop and offenses far more cohesive in less time then Buffalo it offers so hard questions.

[Tesla03]

we aren't any years away. it's a constant cycle of hiring mediocre GM's, who hire mediocre HC's who produce mediocre results 

 

rinse and repeat. Beane is overrated but he will prob outlast McD. I'm willing to give Allen another go with an offensive minded HC. If that doesn't work we gotta draft his replacement 

[billsfan714]

2 hours ago, nedboy7 said:

we moved up for Allen and look who is lighting it up from that draft.  There was no need to move up for Edmunds either. Just pick where you are and stop over thinking talent. 

This times a hundred.   It's what makes me liken this regime to the last.    Always force the draft, only seem to have a few guys targeted especially in the early rounds, they panic and give away valuable assets especially for a team that was rebuilding and could have used all those assets(draft picks), notice Ozzie didnt panic, in fact he moved down and gained picks.

[jrober38]

4 hours ago, SCBills said:

Texans dumbed down the playbook to give Watson easier reads, many only requiring reading one half of the field.  
 

Is that a problem for you?

 

I can't imagine this is true at all.

 

Some proof or quotes from the OC or HC would be helpful. 

[Iron Maiden]

I'm still on the bandwagon for the " McD & Beane "  regime.....we are getting better....OP is correct......I actually always thought that next year was where we see the results of a close to finish product....

[Mr. WEO]

A year away from the 5 year plan?

[Trogdor]

6 hours ago, dickleyjones said:

But they do. Most play vs the elite competition. So they have seen the speed, the techniques, etc. I don't think there is much question Allen is learning more than most on the job.  It is not an excuse, it is the baggage he arrived with. 

 

And yeah sorry, but Wyoming is far from the best places to grow and learn football acumen. Brain training requires experience and Allen has had less than most. I'm willing to wait and see. 

Lamar Jackson ran for his life most of the time, but manages to deliver from the pocket. Baker was in multiple offenses, Big Ben came out of the MAC, Gardner Minshew was in an air raid offense, Etc. He hasn't had less, he is just doing worse with adapting. Allen played with and against NFL talent in college, this isn't the Fred Jackson story. 

[USABuffaloFan]

18 hours ago, Buffalo Barbarian said:

The first year was the breakdown of the old regime, last year was the first in the rebuild, this is only year two with a very young core. Next year will be the year we get more talent at key positions and will be where we need to be on better, more consistent playing level.

 

There is a process here and we want it all to go faster but it cant . We have to work with what we have and its going to take time for these players and the next set of players to push this team to the next level

 

Another thing i want to address here about today's game is McDermott made the right decision to kick the FG at the end of the game. Many of you are proclaiming Jauron Ball when in fact McD went for it twice on 4th down earlier in the game and the team FAILED !!

 

What makes you think he should try for it a third time when on this day against this team they couldn't convert on 4th down and the offense overall was inconsistent?? McDermott needs to be confident they will make it and with the way they were playing he could not make that decision and made the right call by kicking the FG and if it was made we then have a chance in overtime. Hauschka was not good today but normally he is, this game maybe showing he is declining but he was our best choice at the time.

 

 

I am OK with the FG, not Ok with the waste TO's heading to 1:44 left with 1 TO and then wasting time. Not OK with Allen throwing to Brown on 3 and 4 downfield with that much time. If you dared that leaving a 53 yard field goal then why not go for 4th and 4. Bet the odds are better you get a 1st down!

Edited November 12, 2019 by USABuffaloFan

[dickleyjones]

2 hours ago, Trogdor said:

Lamar Jackson ran for his life most of the time, but manages to deliver from the pocket. Baker was in multiple offenses, Big Ben came out of the MAC, Gardner Minshew was in an air raid offense, Etc. He hasn't had less, he is just doing worse with adapting. Allen played with and against NFL talent in college, this isn't the Fred Jackson story. 

Disagree.

[OZBILLS]

My McBeane concern is they only want to recruit Choir boys. 

 

This limits the talent field severely.

 

We need to take some risks eventually

[purple haze]

20 hours ago, John from Riverside said:

I dont think they are a year away from playoffs....but they are a year away from being serious contenders.

 

The thing is...I knew that at the beginning of the season......we dont score enough points....we commit too many penalties......we dont have enough PLAYMAKERS....we need more Devin Singletaries....

We have Singletary and Daboll refuses to utilize him fully.  I wonder if it would be any different with added playmakers.  John Brown and Singletary should eat every offensive possession.  Period.  And Beasely should eat when the D starts keying on those other two.  Daboll is making this harder than it needs to be.  

[Meatloaf63]

On 11/11/2019 at 1:43 PM, Buffalo Barbarian said:

 

the time out was to see what the offense was running, we had time to score we just didn't perform.

 

 

 

Yes , players need to excute, Josh needs to throw quicker and WRs need to stop dropping the ball.

 

 

 

Players not recognizing the blitz has nothing to do with play calling

 

 

Right, but even the dumbest of fans had to know that Cleveland would bring the house, Brown should never had been running that route to begin with. Poor play call for that down and distance....