Who would you rather be a fan of today?

[Ga boy]

1 hour ago, JaCrispy said:

Fair enough...I respect your opinion...I just happen to disagree...

 

You see, to me Josh Allen doesn’t make bone headed plays due to lack of experience...he’s been playing football his whole life...he makes bone headed plays because it’s in his DNA- this insatiable appetite to play back yard sandlot football or, as fans like to call it, “hero ball”.  He appears to loath the “boring” or routine plays that keep the chains moving- those plays don’t show up on highlight reels, they aren’t remembered as key plays to victory...he seeks the low percentage/ high reward dramatic plays that will, in his mind, “save the day” if successful.  He is not a cerebral or calculating QB playing chess, but a reckless gambler who thinks he can out macho everyone on the field...

 

Now, who knows...maybe I’m wrong about all this.  But to me, in order for the Bills to be successful- in order for Josh Allen to become a true franchise QB he is going to have to suppress the reckless gambler in him and start to become more of a calculating, cerebral QB.

My take is that his gambling is due to having 2 cards short of a full house.  Need a bulldozer o-lineman who can provide JA another half-second when there’s a stack of chips in the middle of the table and WR who can get separation. All the teams who will win in playoffs have a full house with aces and kings.  Go Bills!!

[Chaos]

5 hours ago, Joe in Winslow said:

Who'd you rather be a fan of today? The Bills or:

 

The Patriots?

The Jets?

The Fish?

 

And that's just in our division. I'd rather be in OUR position than any of theirs.

 

OK, too small of a sample size for you? Well, how about we widen our search to the broader AFC as a whole:

 

Ravens?

Bengals?

Browns?

Steelers?

Texans?

Titans?

Colts?

Jaguars?

Chargers?

Raiders?

Broncos?

Chiefs?

 

Even on THAT list, I'd probably only want to swap places with the Chiefs, MAYBE the Ravens (based on coaching alone),  and possibly the Titans. That's it.  By my reckoning, the Bills' situation is better than TWELVE other AFC teams, which puts them in a really sweet spot at the moment. I know that spewing bile and raw emotion is all the rage these days and that logic and reason take a back seat more often than not. But if you look at the REALLY big picture, the Bills are in a pretty good place today with Beane and McDermott. Blowing all of it up would be a blunder of EPIC proportions.

 

The LAMP posting is strong with this one.  

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

1 minute ago, Chaos said:

The LAMP posting is strong with this one.  

 

Cool. Another easy pick for ignore.

 

 

[LABILLBACKER]

4 hours ago, Buffalo Boy said:

    Imagine how the Texans felt last year. I’m not a Bill OBrien fan and would certainly understand if they canned him last year.

    This is what watching Kelly Throw a pick in the Championship game against the Bengals felt like. This is what Ronnie Harmon dropping a pass in the EZ felt like. How about watching the better team lose in our first SB because we were COMPLETELY out coached.

     Facts:

         McD is a young coach learning his HC Craft. It’s tough to watch but a crap coach doesn’t get us as far as we got. He still has a sizable learning curve ahead of him. Does anyone think he isn’t introspective and doesn’t self scout? Does anyone think he only has yes men and no one to point out his gaffs to him? I don’t.

         JA was/Is a project QB with still untapped Upside. Here comes the most important part: Exactly like McD , admits his faults, works on his weaknesses, square miles of room to grow. Some on here seem to believe this is as good as he can be. Some people on here are fools.

        This team is a middling team in terms of talent. We have tremendous amounts of cap space, the best talent evaluators we have had since??? , and a GM most of us trust.

       You can’t second guess the Football Gods. When two of your best players sandwich their QB for a sack that every QB goes down under but Watson doesn’t???? It hurts like hell but props to the kid. Let JA watch that play, learn from it and meditate on next year.

       I LOVE where we are positioned in terms of the next few years in the League ?

Good assessment. But I need to be convinced that Josh will eventually eliminate these "dumb" decisions. I need to be convinced with time that Sean will fix his coaching flaws. Time management errors and "conservative strategies" will never launch this team beyond the WC round.  I guess my biggest FEAR is are we becoming the early Andy Dalton Bengals?

[Gugny]

5 hours ago, Joe in Winslow said:

Who'd you rather be a fan of today? The Bills or:

 

The Patriots?

The Jets?

The Fish?

 

And that's just in our division. I'd rather be in OUR position than any of theirs.

 

OK, too small of a sample size for you? Well, how about we widen our search to the broader AFC as a whole:

 

Ravens?

Bengals?

Browns?

Steelers?

Texans?

Titans?

Colts?

Jaguars?

Chargers?

Raiders?

Broncos?

Chiefs?

 

Even on THAT list, I'd probably only want to swap places with the Chiefs, MAYBE the Ravens (based on coaching alone),  and possibly the Titans. That's it.  By my reckoning, the Bills' situation is better than TWELVE other AFC teams, which puts them in a really sweet spot at the moment. I know that spewing bile and raw emotion is all the rage these days and that logic and reason take a back seat more often than not. But if you look at the REALLY big picture, the Bills are in a pretty good place today with Beane and McDermott. Blowing all of it up would be a blunder of EPIC proportions.

 

 

If any of those other teams would promise to take Brian Daboll, I'd make them my 2nd favorite team in a heartbeat.

[Mike in Horseheads]

Good post Joe! Ya can clearly see the divides some fans have here on McD and Josh.

[Sundancer]

3 hours ago, JaCrispy said:

Fair enough...I respect your opinion...I just happen to disagree...

 

You see, to me Josh Allen doesn’t make bone headed plays due to lack of experience...he’s been playing football his whole life...he makes bone headed plays because it’s in his DNA- this insatiable appetite to play back yard sandlot football or, as fans like to call it, “hero ball”.  He appears to loath the “boring” or routine plays that keep the chains moving- those plays don’t show up on highlight reels, they aren’t remembered as key plays to victory...he seeks the low percentage/ high reward dramatic plays that will, in his mind, “save the day” if successful.  He is not a cerebral or calculating QB playing chess, but a reckless gambler who thinks he can out macho everyone on the field...

 

Now, who knows...maybe I’m wrong about all this.  But to me, in order for the Bills to be successful- in order for Josh Allen to become a true franchise QB he is going to have to suppress the reckless gambler in him and start to become more of a calculating, cerebral QB.

 

And he was, for most of the season after the Pats game. Even for most of the game yesterday. He's learned, but he will still have to bite it back. Don't shortchange Daboll though giving up on the run yesterday and forcing Josh to play hero.. Instead of facing 2nd and 5 in the 4th quarter and OT, Daboll put the game on his shoulders (and he nearly delivered). 

Edited January 5, 2020 by Sundancer

[GunnerBill]

16 minutes ago, Seoulofstone said:

 

So It's ok to give Watson credit for rushing for a TD on a scramble where the play broke down but many hold Josh's rushing as a sign that he can't QB? I admire Watson but I'm frustrated by how he is given credit where Josh isn't allowed it by so many people. Josh made several plays to put the Bills in FG position where the end result was negated by a mixture of penalties and ineptitude which pushed him out of FG range after a long drive. Where I give him criticism is the two meltdown plays which gave the Texans a way back.

 

 If you break down Watson's drives you can easily say he was clutch but he was constantly sacked for holding the ball too long and bailed himself out repeatedly with hero ball on plays like the 3rd and 18. This is the very thing which Josh gets huge criticism for. Let's not pretend Watson threw multiple pinpoint passes and TDs, or that many of the huge plays weren't due to YAC and missed tackles. Watson gets credit rightly for winning the game but neither he nor Hopkins had a world beating game.

 

 He had less passing yards than Allen (a stat that so often riles people), both had a turnover. Bills had more total yards, more rushing yards, better third down conversion. But because Texans won all of this is forgotten. Watson is capable of great plays but he did NOT have a great game.

 

I get fed up with people talking down other QBs as a defence of Josh Allen. Josh had a decent game last night. Very good first half, so-so after that but was not the reason we lost. Why people want to defend him by having a go at Watson who had a poor first half and an outstanding second half I have no idea. And Watson didn't have a turnover actually. Hopkins had a turnover. 

 

The people trying to prop up Allen by talking down other QBs are doing themselves and the fan base a disservice. Let's talk about Allen on Allen's merits. The mitigations for Allen last night are about our team. They are not "oh well Deshaun Watson took some bad sacks first half too." 

 

It is the most irritating part of Bills fans. And it isn't just an Allen thing either. It happened when Tyrod was here too. The crazy talking down of other Quarterbacks. 

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

18 minutes ago, Gugny said:

 

If any of those other teams would promise to take Brian Daboll, I'd make them my 2nd favorite team in a heartbeat.

 

I think you and I are on the same page on this one.

 

[london_bills]

44 minutes ago, Joe in Winslow said:

 

To be clear, I'm not HAPPY they lost yesterday. That sucked.

 

But I AM happy with the progress this team's made. This thread was a direct response to "heads should roll" posts from yesterday and earlier today. I can think of only one head that I'd remotely like to see roll: Daboll.

 

It's been a successful season but it's a bit messy aswell - it's hard to see where the full blame lies and perhaps it doesn't fully lie with one person. That makes it more complex when decisions have to be made in the future. 

 

1. A head coach with a winning record and playoffs who is a great motivator, who is defensive and seems to be a bit fearful on game-day, at least cautious, and is content to hold a lead due to his defensive pedigree. A head coach who has done great with the defence but we let a lead slip that we had built and some 'taking the points' decisions can be looked at in retrospect. Fake a bloody FG! .

 

A coach who looks overwhelmed at times on game-day.

 

2.A QB who I wouldnt swap for anyone right now in terms of entertainment but looks like mahomes one minute and mark sanchez the next. And looks overwhelmed at times. It certainly is a bit harsh piling on him but something is wrong at times and no way it's always Dabolls fault. 

 

3. An OC who does not seem to integrate what works early on back into the gameplan. Trickery early and then no trickery later. Later, a successful screen pass and then they don't go back to it. He goes away from the run. Tends to not call the game in a way the game is flowing and. Ultimately, we need more TDs of course and this falls on all 3 of them and the personell. An OC who looks overwhelmed at times. 

 

 

End of the half and McDermott and Allen did not seem on the same page with spiking the ball, letting time run off the clock. There's a lack of something at times, composure, fearlessness, execution..  There is what teams do and there is how teams look doing it. The team looks coached and solid one minute, then underprepared and shaky the next. This basic incompetence is what bothers me about the 'growing pains' arguement. 

 

Let's say Daboll's in trouble.. adding to this is how many more OC's mcdermott can hire and fire before he's on the block. Unless the pegulas have ultimate faith in him. 

 

Maybe the answer is what we are seeing now, adding new players and continuing development. In the future, maybe the answer is mcdermott with a different QB. Maybe the answer is Allen with an offensive minded head coach, or another OC. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 5, 2020 by london_bills

[Gugny]

16 minutes ago, Joe in Winslow said:

 

I think you and I are on the same page on this one.

 

 

I was gonna text you yesterday, but I was already fired up.  Didn't want to fire you up, too, LOL.

[Buffalo Boy]

37 minutes ago, LABILLBACKER said:

Good assessment. But I need to be convinced that Josh will eventually eliminate these "dumb" decisions. I need to be convinced with time that Sean will fix his coaching flaws. Time management errors and "conservative strategies" will never launch this team beyond the WC round.  I guess my biggest FEAR is are we becoming the early Andy Dalton Bengals?

Deep Breath my Brother..... Deep Breath

[TheFunPolice]

This is just the beginning!

 

We were not going to the Superbowl this year. Offense isn't good enough yet.

 

We need a bruiser type RB to go with Singletary. We need a top tier WR. We need another TE to go with Knox. Maybe even a WR3/4 option to mix in.

 

We could also really use a dangerous pass rusher.

 

I'm confident that the team will address these needs.

[MAJBobby]

5 hours ago, Joe in Winslow said:

 

Ok I'll ask you the same thing: what's your succession plan?

My succession plan?  
 

how about you as a coaching staff that is currently HIRED grow like you ask the players too

[london_bills]

46 minutes ago, LABILLBACKER said:

Good assessment. But I need to be convinced that Josh will eventually eliminate these "dumb" decisions. I need to be convinced with time that Sean will fix his coaching flaws. Time management errors and "conservative strategies" will never launch this team beyond the WC round.  I guess my biggest FEAR is are we becoming the early Andy Dalton Bengals?

Exactly what crossed my mind yesterday. The bengals, Lewis and Dalton 

[MAJBobby]

1 hour ago, zow2 said:

i Agree w most of that. But very late the Bills got overly aggressive and Allen was doing stupid stuff. Slinging passes that were not catchable out of the back of the end zone? Running backwards 15 yards on critical 3rd and 4th downs. Just ridiculous. Singletary was put on the shelf. Just thought they didn’t play within their strengths. Having Josh stand back there Like Bledsoe and sling it unfortunately is not a strength yet.

guess what NONE of that happens if McD and Daboll keep their foot on the gas. Happens every game. 
 

get in scoring zone get conservative we have the three. Leave half with a 2 score lead shorten the game and rely on defense. 
 

the reality is the Coaching staff needs to improve just like Allen and players. So can they? 

6 minutes ago, TheFunPolice said:

This is just the beginning!

 

We were not going to the Superbowl this year. Offense isn't good enough yet.

 

We need a bruiser type RB to go with Singletary. We need a top tier WR. We need another TE to go with Knox. Maybe even a WR3/4 option to mix in.

 

We could also really use a dangerous pass rusher.

 

I'm confident that the team will address these needs.

And none of that matters if we trot out there and coach scared 

[london_bills]

1 hour ago, zow2 said:

i Agree w most of that. But very late the Bills got overly aggressive and Allen was doing stupid stuff. Slinging passes that were not catchable out of the back of the end zone? Running backwards 15 yards on critical 3rd and 4th downs. Just ridiculous. Singletary was put on the shelf. Just thought they didn’t play within their strengths. Having Josh stand back there Like Bledsoe and sling it unfortunately is not a strength yet.

Was it not the case of allen mostly being aggressive later and constantly looking for the big play. Did this play into his reads 

[TheFunPolice]

Just now, london_bills said:

Exactly what crossed my mind yesterday. The bengals, Lewis and Dalton 

 

Once we get to the playoffs 3-4 years in a row and don't win then I'll see this comparison.

 

Don't forget that Dalton was having an MVP season and broke his thumb making a tackle on an INT in week 13 or 14. He missed the playoff game, which they lost.

 

Also there was another game where the Bengals had it won until Burfict knocked Antonio Brown into insanity and then went berserk to make it 30 yards in penalties to set the Steelers right up to win.

[london_bills]

2 minutes ago, TheFunPolice said:

 

Once we get to the playoffs 3-4 years in a row and don't win then I'll see this comparison.

 

Don't forget that Dalton was having an MVP season and broke his thumb making a tackle on an INT in week 13 or 14. He missed the playoff game, which they lost.

 

Also there was another game where the Bengals had it won until Burfict knocked Antonio Brown into insanity and then went berserk to make it 30 yards in penalties to set the Steelers right up to win.

Of course 

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

5 minutes ago, Gugny said:

 

I was gonna text you yesterday, but I was already fired up.  Didn't want to fire you up, too, LOL.

 

Appreciate that

 

11 minutes ago, MAJBobby said:

My succession plan?  
 

how about you as a coaching staff that is currently HIRED grow like you ask the players too

 

that's not exactly a succession plan.