ROCKPILE REVIEW - Rolling

[Shaw66]

The Bills are rolling now.  They rolled over the Broncos in Denver on Saturday, 48-19.  In the process, they sent a simple message to the NFL:  We’re ready.  Every game.

 

The Bills now are looking like a premier NFL team.  Except for the last-second loss to Arizona, the Bills haven’t lost in two months.  In a statement game last week, they manhandled the Steelers.  This week, against a beatable team, they needed a win to clinch the AFC East division title.  They dominated. 

 

The Bills’ mistakes were one measure of how good the Bills were.  There was Andre Roberts’ muffed punt, Allen’s sack fumble, the failed fourth and one play deep in the red zone, and stretches when the Bills looked like they were in an NFL officials’ training film, demonstrating rule violations: offensive pass interference, holding, illegal procedure.  The penalties came in bunches, and multiple touchdowns were called back.  Still, even though the halftime score was close, the game wasn’t.  The Bills were in control, and they proved it in the third quarter. 

 

Josh Allen didn’t have his best game, but it didn’t matter.  He missed Knox high, missed Diggs high, too.  He threw rockets when sometimes more touch was needed.  Still, “not his best game” was more than good enough and sometimes breathtaking.  Some of those rockets were spectacular. The touchdown to Knox was one - it was all Knox could do to keep the ball from ripping through his hands before he secured it. The touchdown to Kumerow was another.  For most NFL quarterbacks, that throw was an interception waiting to happen, as two defenders were quickly closing the window.  Allen saw it and knew he could get the ball through to Kumerow before the defenders arrived.  It was a terrific throw.  The deep ball to Diggs was too beautiful for words.

 

Allen managed the pocket well, knowing when he could wait and when he needed to move.  His scramble to the right and throw as he was going down was the kind of play that only elite players make.  Allen ran effectively, too.  He navigated the middle of the field for his first touchdown, and he recognized and took the edge for his second.

 

He’s just so good.

 

And so is Diggs.  Unstoppable in man coverage, with hands that are among the best the league has seen.  It’s only a matter of time before he uncorks a massive run after catch.  Awesome.

 

The defense couldn’t hold after the Roberts’ muff, and they gave up a drive to end the half.  Not perfect.  But other than those two scores, there wasn’t much to complain about.  Leslie Frazier masterfully mixed the calls and kept Drew Lock uncomfortable all afternoon. 

 

One of those calls erased any doubt about who was in control.  The Bills opened the second half with a big return from Roberts and a quick seven-play, 45-yard TD drive.  After the kickoff, Lock dropped back to pass, and Tre’Davious White looped all the way around behind Lock to make the hit and force the fumble.  Jerry Hughes outhustled Taron Johnson for the ball, and then the fun began.  We’ve seen Hughes carrying the ball before.  He sees the field well, and he can change direction.  Weaving through would-be tacklers like a cross between Barry Sanders and a couch potato, Hughes found the end zone. Game over.

 

The rest of the game was fun plays (Singletary’s touchdown run was almost as masterful as Hughes’s).  For the game, the offense piled up more than 500 total yards, more than doubling what the defense allowed.  By the end, the look on Lock’s face said “Get me out of here.” 

 

The fourth quarter saw a series of troubling, apparently small injuries, to White and Diggs and Wallace and Epenesa.  Williams had left the game earlier, and Hyde was returning punts late, in place of Roberts.  The Bills are hoping nothing is too serious, and they’re fortunate to have a couple of games remaining that, although important, aren’t true must-win.  It will be time to get healthy.  Oh, yeah, note to league:  If you think Kumerow looks like a new threat in the passing game, better watch some film of John Brown; he’ll be back. 

 

What’s important about the remaining games?  Well, there’s symbolic importance at Foxboro next week.  McDermott and the Bills don’t care about symbolic importance, but the fans do.  It’s been a great season so far; a win over the Patriots, punctuating the end of Patriot dominance, would indeed be sweet.  What McDermott and the Bills DO care about is home field in the playoffs.  With the division win, they are assured one game in Orchard Park.  If they can win the final two games, and if Pittsburgh loses one, the Bills would be assured two in Orchard Park, and possibly three, if they can keep winning. 

 

It's been a long time coming.  The Bills have arrived.

 

 

GO BILLS!!!

 

The Rockpile Review is written to share the passion we have for the Buffalo Bills. That passion was born in the Rockpile; its parents were everyday people of western New York who translated their dedication to a full day’s hard work and simple pleasures into love for a pro football team.

 

 

[scuba guy]

Wow shaw great post as always

I was to tired to read virgal post but I,guess,it,was really late

[MiltonWaddams]

2 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

 Weaving through would-be tacklers like a cross between Barry Sanders and a couch potato, Hughes found the end zone.

 

 

 

Beautiful. And definitely appropriate.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

31 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

Weaving through would-be tacklers like a cross between Barry Sanders and a couch potato, Hughes found the end zone.

 

Great post.  One minor nit:

Sir, I've seen couch potatoes.  I know couch potatoes.  And Jerry Hughes, Sir, bears no resemblance whatsoever to the genus "Sofa Spud"

[Freddie's Dead]

38 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

The Bills’ mistakes were one measure of how good the Bills were.  There was Andre Roberts’ muffed punt, Allen’s sack fumble, the fourth and one play deep in the red zone that the Bills converted and the refs took away,...

 

Nice writeup as usual, Rockpile.  One minor editorial correction was necessary.

[Shaw66]

4 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

Great post.  One minor nit:

Sir, I've seen couch potatoes.  I know couch potatoes.  And Jerry Hughes, Sir, bears no resemblance whatsoever to the genus "Sofa Spud"

Yeah, I know, but I don't think Jerry will read it, so I wasn't worried about offending him.   Truth is, he's a spectacular athlete, and he's grown into a super teammate and leader.  No longer the guy who makes a great play here, jumps offside there, and gets trapped out of position.  The guy is a stud.

1 minute ago, Freddie's Dead said:

 

Nice writeup as usual, Rockpile.  One minor editorial correction was necessary.

Well, spotting the ball on running plays like that is really tough.  If you don't gain enough to make it obvious, you're going to be stuck with the occasional officiating mistake.  No question he made, but if you can't see the ball on review, you're not going to get the call. 

 

Personally, I thought the Bills should have taken the field goal and made it a four-score game.   That was the right move.  No harm done, they got the field goal on the next possession.

[SageAgainstTheMachine]

Awesome post, sir.  This is a Denver team that I've seen play with pride this season.  We took their will away.

[CincyBillsFan]

I read a Denver media summary of the game and they mentioned 34 mph wind gusts during the game!  It might explain why Lock never threw anything downfield.  If it was that windy it made Allen's game even more impressive.

 

 

[JoPoy88]

That’s the good stuff Shaw thanks. I do hope they go hard and stomp the Pats; not caring as much about the Dolphins game unless there’s crucial seeding at stake.

[Shaw66]

21 minutes ago, CincyBillsFan said:

I read a Denver media summary of the game and they mentioned 34 mph wind gusts during the game!  It might explain why Lock never threw anything downfield.  If it was that windy it made Allen's game even more impressive.

 

 

Wow.  Think about the deep ball to Diggs with wind like that.  That ball was absolutely perfect.  

[Big Turk]

If Diggs would have managed to get his other foot in bounds on the free Offside play where Allen hit him for 40+ yards perfectly in stride it would have been another 400 yard game for him...

 

Allen "not at his best" is still possibly a top 10 QB in the league. Rodgers wasn't at his best yesterday and it was not pretty for a lot of the game.

Edited December 20, 2020 by matter2003

[Magox]

I have a slightly different take on Allen.  Early on he was throwing a little high and missed Knox when he was rolling out of the pocket, but he quickly cleaned that up.  Aside that and the attempted pass in the front corner of the end zone that was almost picked off he was damn near flawless and his decision making and command of the game is next level.   I though he played an A game.

[Shaw66]

5 minutes ago, matter2003 said:

If Diggs would have managed to get his other foot in bounds on the free Offside play where Allen hit him for 40+ yards perfectly in stride it would have been another 400 yard game for him...

 

Allen "not at his best" is still possibly a top 10 QB in the league. Rodgers wasn't at his best yesterday and it was not pretty for a lot of the game.

Exactly right.   We've been living with it for three years now, living with the feeling that he can go off at any time.  First and goal from 30, I thought the Bills were going to get the touchdown.  Two plays later, Kumerow scored.   Not since Jim Kelly did any of us expect the Bills to get seven on first and goal from thirty.   In fact, we were just hoping the Bills didn't lose any more yards and miss the field goal opportunity.  

 

Allen is amazing.

 

I have to say, though, that I'm tired of all the announcers talking about this enormous leap he's made this year.   The only enormous leap has been in the stats.   He was amazing as a rookie, and he was amazing in 2019.  He's been learning every week and at least for me, there is nothing surprising this season.   He's doing what I expected.   At the beginning of the season I said it would be this season or next season that he'd be a serious top-10 QB.   The acquisition of Diggs made it happen sooner rather than later.  

[Punching Bag]

1 hour ago, Shaw66 said:

 

The rest of the game was fun plays (Singletary’s touchdown run was almost as masterful as Hughes’s).  For the game, the offense piled up more than 500 total yards, more than doubling what the defense allowed.  By the end, the look on Lock’s face said “Get me out of here.” 

 

 

The DC also had that expression on his face - no matter what we do, we have no chance.

 

Great review as always.

[Shaw66]

6 minutes ago, Magox said:

I have a slightly different take on Allen.  Early on he was throwing a little high and missed Knox when he was rolling out of the pocket, but he quickly cleaned that up.  Aside that and the attempted pass in the front corner of the end zone that was almost picked off he was damn near flawless and his decision making and command of the game is next level.   I though he played an A game.

Fair enough.   For whatever reason, he missed a few times.   When he's lights out for the game, he completes over 80%.

 

Does anyone know what happened on the near interception.  It was Davis, I think.   My guess is that that Allen was going back shoulder and Davis didn't read it that way.   Allen doesn't miss by that much.  

[Success]

Great write-up.  Watching Allen to Diggs is an almost transcendent experience as a football fan. They're just locked in.

 

But watching Allen just in general is jaw-dropping at times.  He just keeps getting better - in his accuracy, decision-making, release - all of it.  His ceiling is still out there somewhere.  I think this is a guy who could be in the GOAT conversation before all is said & done.  I know that sounds homer, but he has those intangibles, and the work ethic to make it happen.

 

As for the Bills, it's nice to see them not falling in the same old patterns.  I listened to Bill Simmons' podcast last week, and both he & his guest agreed that every time in the past when the country started talking about the Bills and expectations were high, the team would come out flat and lose.  They predicted that for the Broncos game - and we end up with what can only be called a massive statement game, on national TV, to win the division for the 1st time in a quarter century.

 

Life is good.

 

[SoCal Deek]

Shaw? No love for the behind the back Allen handoff for yet another erased touchdown? From your posts I know both you and I have  watched a lot of football in our many years and I don’t recall ever seeing that play. A QB hands the ball off with a no look behind the back using his off hand? I’ve got to wonder how often they’ve practiced that. BRILLIANT! A bit crazy, but still BRILLIANT! 

[Big Turk]

12 minutes ago, Limeaid said:

 

The DC also had that expression on his face - no matter what we do, we have no chance.

 

Great review as always.

 

Loved seeing Fangio on the sidelines just throwing his hands up in disgust after watching Allen's 2nd TD run where they did everything perfectly on defense and blanketed the screen and downfield options and because Allen simply just made the defender rushing him look silly after rolling out and then running around him to the corner of the endzone they were helpless to do anything...

 

Allen is so frustrating because like Mahomes and Rodgers you can do everything right on defense and make the perfect call and still give up a TD because of their individual greatness.

Edited December 20, 2020 by matter2003

[Magox]

10 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

Fair enough.   For whatever reason, he missed a few times.   When he's lights out for the game, he completes over 80%.

 

Does anyone know what happened on the near interception.  It was Davis, I think.   My guess is that that Allen was going back shoulder and Davis didn't read it that way.   Allen doesn't miss by that much.  

 Personally, I believe he had Uber confidence in gunning the ball in there before the window closed and he slightly misjudged the closing window .

[HappyDays]

12 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

I'm tired of all the announcers talking about this enormous leap he's made this year.

 

He did make a big leap this year, it just wasn't as unlikely as many analysts made it out to be. He's hitting 0-10 yard passes with lethal accuracy right now. That is something he wasn't doing at all his rookie year and too infrequently last year. The pass to Beasley over the middle where he first pump faked the MLB to hold him for half an second, and the pass was accurate enough to give Beasley yards after catch, that is a sign of progress.

[Big Turk]

9 minutes ago, Success said:

Great write-up.  Watching Allen to Diggs is an almost transcendent experience as a football fan. They're just locked in.

 

But watching Allen just in general is jaw-dropping at times.  He just keeps getting better - in his accuracy, decision-making, release - all of it.  His ceiling is still out there somewhere.  I think this is a guy who could be in the GOAT conversation before all is said & done.  I know that sounds homer, but he has those intangibles, and the work ethic to make it happen.

 

As for the Bills, it's nice to see them not falling in the same old patterns.  I listened to Bill Simmons' podcast last week, and both he & his guest agreed that every time in the past when the country started talking about the Bills and expectations were high, the team would come out flat and lose.  They predicted that for the Broncos game - and we end up with what can only be called a massive statement game, on national TV, to win the division for the 1st time in a quarter century.

 

Life is good.

 

 

Ex NFL QB Jim Miller and now analyst said the same thing...he said that Allen possesses physical gifts that not even Mahomes has and that he has the potential to be better than even Mahomes does.

 

He says Mahomes might have more guile and off schedule type ability but that Allen is not far behind in that and has more physical tools than Mahomes.

[Big Turk]

32 minutes ago, Magox said:

I have a slightly different take on Allen.  Early on he was throwing a little high and missed Knox when he was rolling out of the pocket, but he quickly cleaned that up.  Aside that and the attempted pass in the front corner of the end zone that was almost picked off he was damn near flawless and his decision making and command of the game is next level.   I though he played an A game.

 

It's to the point where if Allen misses a throw it's a big deal because it happens so infrequently now.  We forget that stuff happens all the time around the NFL.

[Apocalypse Nuts]

Great stuff as always, Shaw.  There were so many great moments to choose from. 

 

The 55 yard bomb to Diggs was so great to see for me for at least two reasons:

 

1. Seems to me that the deep go route throws have been a weakness for Allen.  He's got the crossing stuff down with some ridiculously amazing touch, but the straight-line deep passes have eluded him.  It's gotta be a real challenge when you have the arm like he does and you have to time it so perfectly and just lay it in there with just the right arc on it.  I know he's been working on it and he finally nailed on in a game - AND IT WAS PERFECT!  That's going to get his confidence on those throws really going.  And we know what happens when Allen gets that confidence going.  Holy cow!  Watch out!

 

2. Loved the play call by the coaches on this one so much.  The Bills were up 35 to 13 (!) at this point.  Every, and I mean every, other Bills coach the last 20 years would have shifted into run out the clock mode to start salting the game away.  You know it.  We've seen it for so long.  But not this crew!  They come out and go deep right away?  WHAT?!?!?!   I was literally giggling sitting here watching the game on my phone.  I mean, this team, these coaches, they want to be high powered and they friggin' mean it!  Wow!  Just wow!

 

Anyone else still pinching themselves to be sure we're not dreaming all of this?  I was 21 years old in 1995 and I was so spoiled that I thought for sure when Kelly retired they would find the next QB right away and just keep rolling.  And, as we know, I could not have been more wrong.  But by all appearances, we just might be living the dream right now, folks.  And it's rolling out better than I could have ever imagined.

[Figster]

2 hours ago, scuba guy said:

Wow shaw great post as always

I was to tired to read virgal post but I,guess,it,was really late

Did you just called Virgil a gal?  Whats next, Virgin? Lol, kidding

 

Both reviews are excellent.  These fellas are more accustomed to reporting the birds eye view of the 12th man. All the sights and sounds that go with it . Sometimes even going on the road to do it. Having to refer more now to past experiences and pure writing skills our on board reporters have taken it to the next level.  Along with Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills.

 

Well done OP, and Virgil...

 

 

 

Edited December 20, 2020 by Figster

[Apocalypse Nuts]

12 minutes ago, matter2003 said:

 

It's to the point where if Allen misses a throw it's a big deal because it happens so infrequently now.  We forget that stuff happens all the time around the NFL.

And I just had this amazing, comforting feeling last night, that all the mistakes wouldn't really mean much at the end of the game except to keep the score from totally humiliating the Broncos which sort of happened (I guess).  Normally I would either curse or put my head down in my hands when Allen makes a dumb throw that is, or almost, picked off.  That never happened yesterday.  I kept thinking "well that's going to keep the score somewhat respectable for Denver I guess."  It just always felt like the Bills O was in nearly complete control the whole time.  The D stepping us so big like that is just gravy now.

[HomeTeam]

Being able to host two games in January and avoid Kansas City until AFC championship game would be massive. 

 

It's hard not to get ahead of yourself and start day dreaming of being superbowl bound. 

 

 

[Shaw66]

1 hour ago, SoCal Deek said:

Shaw? No love for the behind the back Allen handoff for yet another erased touchdown? From your posts I know both you and I have  watched a lot of football in our many years and I don’t recall ever seeing that play. A QB hands the ball off with a no look behind the back using his off hand? I’ve got to wonder how often they’ve practiced that. BRILLIANT! A bit crazy, but still BRILLIANT! 

Yes, it was brilliant.   I've seen it before.   That's the way the classic Statue of Liberty play is run, with the QB holding the ball behind his back for the back to take.   

 

It was beautifully executed, and as someone said somewhere, the holding call was pretty weak, if not non-existent.  

[Shaw66]

1 hour ago, HappyDays said:

 

He did make a big leap this year, it just wasn't as unlikely as many analysts made it out to be. He's hitting 0-10 yard passes with lethal accuracy right now. That is something he wasn't doing at all his rookie year and too infrequently last year. The pass to Beasley over the middle where he first pump faked the MLB to hold him for half an second, and the pass was accurate enough to give Beasley yards after catch, that is a sign of progress.

As I said, I think the leap was statistical, and it's startling, but I think his skill set is progressing linearly.  That is, I think his improvement from year 2 to year 3 isn't all that different from his improvement from over the summer year 1 to year 2.   He's down to learning and executing little things, like the pass to Beasley.  Being able to do that has big impact on the game, but the actual improvement in his skills to be able to do that is pretty small.  Just learn to recognize the situation and execute.   He's been making those little improvements, lots of them, since he came into the league.  

 

I think what we see is that the cumulative effect of mastering little things like that has some kind of multiplier effect.  He masters that kind of play, and the Bills get more first downs.  More first downs means more plays for the offense and eventually more offense.  That stresses the defense more, and creates other opportunities that Allen already knows how to take advantage of.  

 

My point is, I think he just keeps working and keeps getting better, but the impact on his stats hasn't happened in a straight line.  

 

Also, I think all this stuff about Allen changing his mechanics is way, way overblown.  Yes, apparently he's looked at his mechanics.   But if I recall correctly, over the summer Palmer said all they did was tweaking of mechanics.   I've said all along that Allen has always been an accurate passer, just inconsistent.   He would recognize a situation late and not be in optimal position to make the throw, and he'd be inaccurate.  Next time, same situation, if he recognized the situation more quickly, he'd be right on the money.   I think what they did with him was to get him aware of his mechanics so he understands better how to make the throw correctly even when his body isn't in the right position, but what's really happening is mostly that his recognition of what's going on keeps improving.   He sees the defense better, he understands the routes better, so he isn't surprised.  When he isn't surprised, he's accurate.  Again, these are little, incremental growth items that are having cumulative effect.  

 

I think that's exactly what's going on with his short-yardage accuracy.   He's learned over three years to get away from hero-ball, down the field stuff and accept the short pass as the right decision.   That means he's coming to the short receiver on time, instead of late, and he's prepared to make the throw.  He's prepared not because his mechanics have changed - he's prepared because he has the time to make the throw properly that he's always made when he's prepared.  

 

Finally, there simply is no denying the impact Diggs has had on the passing game.   Diggs and Beasley together in the short game is what the Patriots would have looked like with Welker and Edelman on the field at the same time.   One of those guys is ALWAYS open, and Josh usually knows which one will be open when the play starts.   Josh gets a lot of easy throws, in position, in rhythm, because those guys are so good.   And, of course, because those guys are so good, Davis and Knox get open more.   

 

The amazing thing to me, and to a lot of people, is that Josh is still learning.  I've said all along that we aren't going to be seeing the full-blown Josh for another year or two.   And that's why he could end up being better than Mahomes.   Josh is on his way to being Aaron Rodgers in Cam Newton's body.  

[Paul Costa]

I remember saying to my wife after the Arizona game that the way we lost this might be the best thing that happened to this team. The NFL is so fragile and the games are so close and we have come back from that game with 3 wins by at least 2 scores. Seems  like the team is playing with purpose. All 3 facets are playing at a high level. 

[scuba guy]

4 hours ago, Figster said:

Did you just called Virgil a gal?  Whats next, Virgin? Lol, kidding

 

Both reviews are excellent.  These fellas are more accustomed to reporting the birds eye view of the 12th man. All the sights and sounds that go with it . Sometimes even going on the road to do it. Having to refer more now to past experiences and pure writing skills our on board reporters have taken it to the next level.  Along with Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills.

 

Well done OP, and Virgil...

 

 

 

Auto correct typed it in right

My bad

[Halloween Land]

I think it was one of Allen's best games but whatever...

[Shaw66]

2 hours ago, Halloween Land said:

I think it was one of Allen's best games but whatever...

He had five games this season with a higher passer rating.  By that measure, it was sort of an average game.  

 

There  are many measures of Josh's greatness.  This game is one of those.  If Fitz or Tyrod had that game, we'd be excited about it.  Josh has it, and it's just an average game.  After all, he didn't even complete 80% of his passes!   Only two TD passes!   

 

The guy is amazing.  His average games are excellent.  

[Cash]

Great write up as always! Only thing I disagree on:

13 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

 

What’s important about the remaining games?  Well, there’s symbolic importance at Foxboro next week.  McDermott and the Bills don’t care about symbolic importance, but the fans do.

 

I think McD and Beane ABSOLUTELY care, and probably the players do, too. McD has never beaten Belichick before this year. His and Beane’s off season comments always brought it back to beating the Patriots. It’s definitely much lower on their list than playoff seeding, but I’m sure it means quite a bit more to them than it would against some other 6-8 team. 

[billspro]

This team is playoff ready

[NickelCity]

11 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

As I said, I think the leap was statistical, and it's startling, but I think his skill set is progressing linearly.  That is, I think his improvement from year 2 to year 3 isn't all that different from his improvement from over the summer year 1 to year 2.   He's down to learning and executing little things, like the pass to Beasley.  Being able to do that has big impact on the game, but the actual improvement in his skills to be able to do that is pretty small.  Just learn to recognize the situation and execute.   He's been making those little improvements, lots of them, since he came into the league.  

 

I think what we see is that the cumulative effect of mastering little things like that has some kind of multiplier effect.  He masters that kind of play, and the Bills get more first downs.  More first downs means more plays for the offense and eventually more offense.  That stresses the defense more, and creates other opportunities that Allen already knows how to take advantage of.  

 

My point is, I think he just keeps working and keeps getting better, but the impact on his stats hasn't happened in a straight line.  

 

Also, I think all this stuff about Allen changing his mechanics is way, way overblown.  Yes, apparently he's looked at his mechanics.   But if I recall correctly, over the summer Palmer said all they did was tweaking of mechanics.   I've said all along that Allen has always been an accurate passer, just inconsistent.   He would recognize a situation late and not be in optimal position to make the throw, and he'd be inaccurate.  Next time, same situation, if he recognized the situation more quickly, he'd be right on the money.   I think what they did with him was to get him aware of his mechanics so he understands better how to make the throw correctly even when his body isn't in the right position, but what's really happening is mostly that his recognition of what's going on keeps improving.   He sees the defense better, he understands the routes better, so he isn't surprised.  When he isn't surprised, he's accurate.  Again, these are little, incremental growth items that are having cumulative effect.  

 

I think that's exactly what's going on with his short-yardage accuracy.   He's learned over three years to get away from hero-ball, down the field stuff and accept the short pass as the right decision.   That means he's coming to the short receiver on time, instead of late, and he's prepared to make the throw.  He's prepared not because his mechanics have changed - he's prepared because he has the time to make the throw properly that he's always made when he's prepared.  

 

Finally, there simply is no denying the impact Diggs has had on the passing game.   Diggs and Beasley together in the short game is what the Patriots would have looked like with Welker and Edelman on the field at the same time.   One of those guys is ALWAYS open, and Josh usually knows which one will be open when the play starts.   Josh gets a lot of easy throws, in position, in rhythm, because those guys are so good.   And, of course, because those guys are so good, Davis and Knox get open more.   

 

The amazing thing to me, and to a lot of people, is that Josh is still learning.  I've said all along that we aren't going to be seeing the full-blown Josh for another year or two.   And that's why he could end up being better than Mahomes.   Josh is on his way to being Aaron Rodgers in Cam Newton's body.  

 

Flawless. My thoughts exactly but much better articulated. Thanks for taking the time to type it up.

[freddyjj]

@Shaw66 another great summary my friend. I agree with your assessment that Josh is still on an ascending developmental path.  In the short term getting John Brown back will be the next ratchet up - hopefully by the playoffs. 

 

Can Daboll get the RB / TE screen game going to combat the pressure packages Josh will likely see in playoffs?   The Pats and Fins may be good tests in this regard as both teams have shown these pressure packages. 

[PrimeTime101]

20 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

Exactly right.   We've been living with it for three years now, living with the feeling that he can go off at any time.  First and goal from 30, I thought the Bills were going to get the touchdown.  Two plays later, Kumerow scored.   Not since Jim Kelly did any of us expect the Bills to get seven on first and goal from thirty.   In fact, we were just hoping the Bills didn't lose any more yards and miss the field goal opportunity.  

 

Allen is amazing.

 

I have to say, though, that I'm tired of all the announcers talking about this enormous leap he's made this year.   The only enormous leap has been in the stats.   He was amazing as a rookie, and he was amazing in 2019.  He's been learning every week and at least for me, there is nothing surprising this season.   He's doing what I expected.   At the beginning of the season I said it would be this season or next season that he'd be a serious top-10 QB.   The acquisition of Diggs made it happen sooner rather than later.  

Those of us who are old enough, that have seen talented QB's play for Buffalo saw how good Josh was asap "he passed the eye test" for us. for people 30 years old or younger.. they likely have not. What Josh Allen brings is this amazing story of how the heck could a QB be taught or learn accuracy? The problem is we older fans new the problem wasn't just Josh being a rookie or first year guy. The problem was the pieces were not all there and didn't have a year on the bench to learn.

 

BUT.. It is a story.. and us as humans are suckers for a good story. In some books the first few pages isn't explained till you reach page 10-15. That's where Josh is at. He has now explained the first pages.. I can not wait to see how this book ends.

[timekills17]

22 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

 Weaving through would-be tacklers like a cross between Barry Sanders and a couch potato

 

Every week you have one or two quotes that make me spit up my drink.

 

As funny as that one was, I think a more accurate cross would be between Barry Sanders and a rhinoceros.

 

In all seriousness, he might be a good choice for a 3-yard gotta have it TD. He's big and could get low, bend, and make the one cut to the hole needed for that play that's just a bit too long for a QB sneak.

[Shaw66]

31 minutes ago, PrimeTime101 said:

Those of us who are old enough, that have seen talented QB's play for Buffalo saw how good Josh was asap "he passed the eye test" for us. for people 30 years old or younger.. they likely have not. What Josh Allen brings is this amazing story of how the heck could a QB be taught or learn accuracy? The problem is we older fans new the problem wasn't just Josh being a rookie or first year guy. The problem was the pieces were not all there and didn't have a year on the bench to learn.

 

BUT.. It is a story.. and us as humans are suckers for a good story. In some books the first few pages isn't explained till you reach page 10-15. That's where Josh is at. He has now explained the first pages.. I can not wait to see how this book ends.

I like this.  I think we do see some things when we are older. 

 

I will say this about th we announcers.  I think part of their falling for this mechanics stuff is they just don't do their homework.  They weren't paying attention last year to what Josh was, and now this year they feel a need to explain why they didn't see it last year.  The great jeap forward is a better explanation than "I didnt know what was going on."

[PrimeTime101]

1 hour ago, Shaw66 said:

I like this.  I think we do see some things when we are older. 

 

I will say this about the announcers.  I think part of their falling for this mechanics stuff is they just don't do their homework.  They weren't paying attention last year to what Josh was, and now this year they feel a need to explain why they didn't see it last year.  The great leap forward is a better explanation than "I didn't know what was going on."

not just a better explanation. its an easy one to tell.