Well, I think Dan Hanzus summed up the season pretty well for me

[zow2]

The off season is summed up for me as follows:

 

I'm sick for Josh Allen, who was perfect in two games.  He could not possibly play any better.. and he goes home.

I'm sick for Gabe Davis, who could not properly enjoy his career night in the playoffs.

I'm sick for us fans,  who once again have to be gracious losers of a historic game that will be brought up for generations to come.

I'm sick that another fanbase is gifted a W.  One that they likely felt entitled to.

[Bob Chandler's Hands]

57 minutes ago, SirAndrew said:

Yeah, maybe it’s an exaggeration, but the extra game seems to change the complexion of the regular season. I got an NHL, NBA vibe from the better teams. It looked like teams are occasionally laid back during the regular season. The postseason has always been a level of intensity above the regular season, but teams seem more focused on the postseason than ever before. The regular season is becoming a formality. Teams with elite QB’s are always getting to the playoffs, and they know this, causing some games to lack intensity. Our regular season had this issue as well. The Steelers, Jags, and Colts were essentially bye weeks. I never like questioning effort, but did pick up an NBA vibe a few times this year. Players have the need to preserve themselves to an extent. What better time to dial it back then versus inferior opponents? I think we’ll see more of that going forward. More games hurt the product. 

Wait until they go to 18 games. Product quality takes a back seat to more revenue, unfortunately. 

I think depth is going to become more of a differentiating factor between teams than ever as injuries and wear and tear (physical and mental) accumulate. 

[ArtVandalay]

The fact of the matter is Allen was playing at a level that is rarely ever done and coaching failed him.  We don't know if we will get that historic level of play from him again, guys get on a tear and you need to take advantage of it like the Joe Flacco super bowl run.  Allen will continue to play at a high level but his quality of play was other worldly and we wasted it.

[Saint Doug]

39 minutes ago, Wayne Cubed said:

 

We got into a shootout with Mahomes, that much is correct, and the Bills were winning with 13 seconds left. I'm sorry but do you think it was the players that lost the game in those 13 seconds? So yea, the defense was good enough and that was with our 2 All-Pro safeties, our 2 LBs and most of the DL playing piss poor.

 

You should be blaming the coaching for the 13 seconds that lost the game. 

The blame is being debated ad nauseum on here. Coaches vs the actual defense executing on the field. That’s all besides the point though. It still remains that our offense was playing to perfection that game. We didn’t lose because Allen didn’t have anyone to throw to or a lack of weapons. He was on fire. 

[SoCal Deek]

3 minutes ago, Saint Doug said:

The blame is being debated ad nauseum on here. Coaches vs the actual defense executing on the field. That’s all besides the point though. It still remains that our offense was playing to perfection that game. We didn’t lose because Allen didn’t have anyone to throw to or a lack of weapons. He was on fire. 

There really isn’t a debate. The coaches blew that one. There might be a debate in Dallas about whether Dak made a mistake but there’s really no debate about the Bills game. 

[Sammy Watkins' Rib]

4 hours ago, Nextmanup said:

It felt like we got back to the playoffs fairly easily this year despite playing poorly along the way at times, and we'll do that again next year as well.

 

Since last year and the addition of the 7th wild card team I see it as nearly impossible for this team to not make the playoffs as long as Allen is under center for how ever many years that may be going forward. And unless the three teams in our division take massive steps the division should be ours nearly every year. It was nice to see that big bad New England is in fact a thing of the past. Their mid season winning streak against bad teams and their win against the Bills in a tornado were fools gold. But there was a sliver of doubt in I think most of our minds after we loss that MNF game. 

[eball]

I don't have a problem with that summary of the season.  We all know nothing is guaranteed going forward and this was a golden opportunity wasted.

[PetermansRedemption]

2 hours ago, HOUSE said:

That show is designed for negative Bills fans, Schoop is the leader of that clan. I gave up on him long ago because his comments are to predictable.

He’s unbearable. I haven’t turned on WGR in years. Trash station IMO. 

[Sammy Watkins' Rib]

4 hours ago, HOUSE said:

Lets hope that Brandon Beane can see the urgency here and make a couple of bold moves making Buffalo the undeniable favorite in 2022 or this team may never recover mentally.

 

 

To the bolded, the guy i worry about most is Diggs. He seemed so pissed at the lost last year at KC in the playoffs. What will his mind set be throughout next season? Everything seemed to go right this year. We proved we could beat them in KC early in the year only to screw up along the way and lose homefield advantage. Then we seemingly beat them again in the playoffs only to have victory snatched away in a 13 second collapse. Digg's production could also continue to decline as our offense evolves and Allen continues to spread the ball around. It may be to our benefit next season to try and get Diggs up there again in the league leaders of receptions and yards to keep him sharp and motivated. Maybe I am worrying about nothing but he's just the one player I would worry about.

[Wayne Cubed]

9 minutes ago, Saint Doug said:

The blame is being debated ad nauseum on here. Coaches vs the actual defense executing on the field. That’s all besides the point though. It still remains that our offense was playing to perfection that game. We didn’t lose because Allen didn’t have anyone to throw to or a lack of weapons. He was on fire. 

 

That's great we didn't lose because of Allen didn't have anyone to throw to. You do know we are going to be losing players on offense yes? We still could do with a better OL, yes? Just because Allen got it done doesn't mean we don't invest and make his life easier. There were plenty of games in the regular season where Allen had a down game and the offense needed a lift. We cannot just keep drafting and picking up defensive FAs just because we have Allen.

[CincyBillsFan]

2 hours ago, SoCal Deek said:

My two cents: If the Bills don’t get home field advantage next year it’s going to be a real struggle for the team not to enter the playoffs with a ‘here we go again’ attitude…which is no way to approach a super bowl run. 

And this is why the Bills reaction to this years disappointment will resemble how the 1990 Bills reacted to the heartbreaking loss in the playoff to the Browns back in 1989.

 

As time goes by it will become clear to the Bills players and organization that this season was NOT lost in the last 13 seconds at KC. This season was lost in the opening game against Pittsburgh; this season was lost at the Titans 4ard line on 4th & inches; this season was lost when the Bills couldn't beat one of the worst teams in the NFL.  This understanding will focus the Bills like a laser on the regular season.  And with Allen & home field advantage we will be going to the Super Bowl.

 

 

 

 

Edited January 28, 2022 by CincyBillsFan

[Dr. Who]

35 minutes ago, ArtVandalay said:

The fact of the matter is Allen was playing at a level that is rarely ever done and coaching failed him.  We don't know if we will get that historic level of play from him again, guys get on a tear and you need to take advantage of it like the Joe Flacco super bowl run.  Allen will continue to play at a high level but his quality of play was other worldly and we wasted it.

I need an angry/sad hybrid emoji. Such a shame.

[TampaBillsJunkie]

Great summary. I think they can get over the hump because we have Josh, but it is a talent and execution problem that still needs to be addressed. 

#1 We need a running back who can take the pressure off Josh at any time.  Singletary had his moments, but when the pressure was on he couldn't carry the load and we had to rely on Josh running the football. That can't be. We need more balance. 

#2 OL. It goes hand in hand with the running game. We got pushed around too much in the trenches when it counted. It will be interesting to see how Doyle develops. I'd love to get some maulers at guard.

#3 DE. This could be #1 too. Man do we need someone who can finish a damn sack. When Addison leads the team with 7, you've got problems. 

#4 LB  We could really use a MLB that can punish people and make plays. 

#5 Coaching. If we lose coaches we need to find better ones.   Special Teams will be on the hot seat if we truly made the call to squib and it never got to Bass. It hardly felt like we had the #1 Defense.  Especially against the Colts and KC.  

 

 

 

[Buftex]

2 hours ago, Wayne Cubed said:

 

Exactly.

 

We need a defense that is just good enough. Elite defesnes don't exist anymore. We can't just keep adding pieces to the defense while not giving Josh more help. And you can't do both nowadays.

Agreed.  I watched the Divisional round playoff game with a friend of mine...he is not a die-hard Bills fan (his team is the Bear..s), but pulls for them, because of me.  A few times during the season I referred to the Bills having one of the best defenses in the league... he never said much.  During the game this past Sunday, they showed a graphic which illustrated that the Bills had, indeed, the #1 defense in the league...by any statistical measure.  He turned to me and said "all this time, when you were saying the Bills have the #1 defense, I thought you were just being a fan.  It seems like every-time I have seen a Bills game this year, the number of big runs they give up always stands out to me...I would never guess they were a top defense in the league, from watching them".  Now, he mainly saw only the prime-time games, and the playoff games, where the Bills were playing the better teams in the league...but his point was taken.  As much as I love our defense, the number 1 defense in 2022 is a far cry from the #1 defenses of 20 years ago.  The game has just changed so much.  QB's on lousy teams still easily put up 300 yards on a fairly regular basis.  

[Nextmanup]

5 hours ago, Chaos said:

We already regressed in terms of wins and losses and final position. We made the championship game last year and fell short this year.  Josh Allen is about my favorite player to ever play the game.  A strategy of

relying on record breaking play by one player in the playoffs each week combined with in game coaching blunders may never be the formula to go further. 

You're failing to see the forest for the trees.

 

True, in numbers, our record was worse and we didn't advance as deep in the playoffs.

 

But last year we were outclassed by KC; this year we were their equal and should have beaten them, in a game that was effectively the AFC Championship Game for the second year in a row.

I'd say we made important strides this year.

 

 

[GoBills808]

5 hours ago, HOUSE said:

 

I believe he is referring to a team returning AFTER a huge mental letdown.

The Chiefs got smacked way worse than the Bills in a much bigger game and came out just fine the next year 

 

Article is dumb

[HOUSE]

16 minutes ago, GoBills808 said:

The Chiefs got smacked way worse than the Bills in a much bigger game and came out just fine the next year 

 

Article is dumb

I think the article is spot on but who am I to say. It reflects my belief for the 2022 season, there are metal challenges ahead

[corta765]

2 hours ago, eball said:

I don't have a problem with that summary of the season.  We all know nothing is guaranteed going forward and this was a golden opportunity wasted.

 

Agreed. I think a reasonable person would say Allen and the Bills will break through at some point to get to the SB. With that said sports is littered with superstars who had one shot and never got another so caution is something that makes sense.

[eball]

5 minutes ago, corta765 said:

 

Agreed. I think a reasonable person would say Allen and the Bills will break through at some point to get to the SB. With that said sports is littered with superstars who had one shot and never got another so caution is something that makes sense.

 

Yep.  Dan Marino never thought he'd only see one Super Bowl appearance.  That said, even Dan Marino is no Josh Allen.

[purple haze]

5 hours ago, 78thealltimegreat said:

Mike Schoop just doesn’t like Allen he actually had a list of 10 QBS awhile back he’d take over Josh and the list was laughable.
A couple years ago he literally had to be told by WGR management hey it’s ok to be critical but you’re getting ridiculous and literally attacking fans who disagree with you cut it out or your out.

Dude wakes up everyday hating the team he covers so take him with a grain of salt.  

I don’t know if he likes sports in general not just the Bills; not in the way a majority of fans do anyway.  He seems more into the side dishes of the games:  the analytics, fantasy sports, gaming and gambling aspects.  I’m just clicking in for the main course.  Matchup breakdowns, player news, etc. about the game/games.

 

Buffalo, it seems, doesn’t have a true sports radio station which is weird AF considering it’s a sports town.  I’m talking a station where any sport can be credibly discussed.  Any news on the MLB lockout?  The Lakers implosion?  Or dozens of national sports stories.  There would still be plenty of Bills/Sabres talk, but less filler.   
 

Maybe Buffalonians are satisfied with what they get.🤷🏾‍♂️

[ToGoGo]

13 minutes ago, purple haze said:

I don’t know if he likes sports in general not just the Bills; not in the way a majority of fans do anyway.  He seems more into the side dishes of the games:  the analytics, fantasy sports, gaming and gambling aspects.  I’m just clicking in for the main course.  Matchup breakdowns, player news, etc. about the game/games.

 

Buffalo, it seems, doesn’t have a true sports radio station which is weird AF considering it’s a sports town.  I’m talking a station where any sport can be credibly discussed.  Any news on the MLB lockout?  The Lakers implosion?  Or dozens of national sports stories.  There would still be plenty of Bills/Sabres talk, but less filler.   
 

Maybe Buffalonians are satisfied with what they get.🤷🏾‍♂️

 

I think Buffalonians don't know what's out there. They just settle for average. 

 

Adding to this: The only people I know that are into those "side dishes" as you call them, are not sports fans. They weren't sports fans growing up and have only become "sports fans" for social reasons, such as fantasy and gambling as you mentioned. 

 

You might have hit the nail on the head. He doesn't actually love sports. How else could you have a dream job where all you do all day is talk sports, and you're so miserable? You'd be miserable if you hated sports, and you hated the city.

Edited January 28, 2022 by ToGoGo

[corta765]

23 minutes ago, eball said:

 

Yep.  Dan Marino never thought he'd only see one Super Bowl appearance.  That said, even Dan Marino is no Josh Allen.

 

Agreed. I think the big difference for many of these young QBs on why they may all at least get their shot is the way the league has swung to being so QB driven. If you have a QB you have someone for 10-15 years who will almost guarantee a post season birth and anything is possible. Plus the league added another wild card too.

 

If you look at this last generation of great QBs only two come to mind that didn't at least make the game and that is Stafford who is on the door and Rivers who I personally believe got screwed over by his own team. Other then that Brady, Big Ben, Matt Ryan, The Mannings, Wilson, Rodgers, & Brees all have gotten at least one moment in the dance. Conversely guys like Fouts, Kosar, Marino all never got a ring or only Marino got a chance in there.

[BuffaloBills1998]

49 minutes ago, eball said:

 

Yep.  Dan Marino never thought he'd only see one Super Bowl appearance.  That said, even Dan Marino is no Josh Allen.

To be fair Marino was never given a great team. Both Shula and Johnson failed to give Danny a running game and quality receivers especially after Duper and Clayton retired 

[muppy]

6 hours ago, ToGoGo said:

 

I think people are just nervous to put a Bills player in an all-time pantheon. 

 

After Palmer called Allen "perhaps the greatest talent at the QB position ever" Schopp jumped in and said it was an "interesting claim" in his classic condescending tone. It's almost like they don't want it to be true, so they can lay in their misery undisturbed. 

I had to google pantheon: .....very interesting word.  pfft yeah imo Schopp probably didn't understand that word either haha

 

m

[Saint Doug]

4 hours ago, Wayne Cubed said:

 

That's great we didn't lose because of Allen didn't have anyone to throw to. You do know we are going to be losing players on offense yes? We still could do with a better OL, yes? Just because Allen got it done doesn't mean we don't invest and make his life easier. There were plenty of games in the regular season where Allen had a down game and the offense needed a lift. We cannot just keep drafting and picking up defensive FAs just because we have Allen.

I’m 100% on board with bolstering the OL. As for people leaving the offense, the 3 key ones I care about the most won’t be: Diggs, Davis, and Knox. With Allen throwing any other ball catchers are interchangeable. 

[ToGoGo]

10 minutes ago, muppy said:

I had to google pantheon: .....very interesting word.  pfft yeah imo Schopp probably didn't understand that word either haha

 

m

 

Haha I only know it because Bill Simmons always used it for his all-time NBA player list. 

[Success]

We're going to go to multiple Super Bowls, imo.  People always mention Marino's famous quote, but the situations aren't comparable, at all.

 

Either we go to a few, or KC is going to go to 10 in a row.  Not discounting the other good AFC teams & QB's, but it's going to be us & KC much more often than not.

 

[muppy]

10 minutes ago, ToGoGo said:

 

Haha I only know it because Bill Simmons always used it for his all-time NBA player list. 

love it matey. Im a wordsmith you enriched me muchas gracias

7 minutes ago, Success said:

We're going to go to multiple Super Bowls, imo.  People always mention Marino's famous quote, but the situations aren't comparable, at all.

 

Either we go to a few, or KC is going to go to 10 in a row.  Not discounting the other good AFC teams & QB's, but it's going to be us & KC much more often than not.

 

this is SERIOUS Rivalry talk right here................Bring it on. You all know where I stand. Ever onward and UPward!!!!!

 

@leh-nerd skin-erd

EDIT: what say you. Im ever hopeful and dont want to relive a reverse Buffalo-miami rivalry....Ancient history but 10 year talk  kinda freaks me out evein if hyperbole. Talk to me leo

 

m 

Edited January 28, 2022 by muppy

[Chaos]

6 hours ago, Nextmanup said:

You're failing to see the forest for the trees.

 

True, in numbers, our record was worse and we didn't advance as deep in the playoffs.

 

But last year we were outclassed by KC; this year we were their equal and should have beaten them, in a game that was effectively the AFC Championship Game for the second year in a row.

I'd say we made important strides this year.

 

 

The trees are the unsustainable record setting play of one player. The forest is failing to win more games and go farther despite the brilliance of the trees. 

[Real McClappy]

It all comes down to beating the Chiefs our new Patriots of the post season. 

[purple haze]

14 hours ago, ToGoGo said:

 

I think Buffalonians don't know what's out there. They just settle for average. 

 

Adding to this: The only people I know that are into those "side dishes" as you call them, are not sports fans. They weren't sports fans growing up and have only become "sports fans" for social reasons, such as fantasy and gambling as you mentioned. 

 

You might have hit the nail on the head. He doesn't actually love sports. How else could you have a dream job where all you do all day is talk sports, and you're so miserable? You'd be miserable if you hated sports, and you hated the city.

I don’t think he hates the city at all, but I do believe he’s bored by what die-hard sports fans are interested in so he gets frustrated.  He needs a different platform; a podcast would probably serve him better or a change to a public radio station where he can talk about sports lifestyles, etc. or his other interests in general.

Edited January 29, 2022 by purple haze

[BobbyC81]

22 hours ago, Nextmanup said:

It felt like we got back to the playoffs fairly easily this year despite playing poorly along the way at times, and we'll do that again next year as well.

 

We are still on our way up the mountain, not down the other side.

 

 

Can’t lose games to teams like the Jags.

14 hours ago, purple haze said:

I don’t know if he likes sports in general not just the Bills; not in the way a majority of fans do anyway.  He seems more into the side dishes of the games:  the analytics, fantasy sports, gaming and gambling aspects.  I’m just clicking in for the main course.  Matchup breakdowns, player news, etc. about the game/games.

 

Buffalo, it seems, doesn’t have a true sports radio station which is weird AF considering it’s a sports town.  I’m talking a station where any sport can be credibly discussed.  Any news on the MLB lockout?  The Lakers implosion?  Or dozens of national sports stories.  There would still be plenty of Bills/Sabres talk, but less filler.   
 

Maybe Buffalonians are satisfied with what they get.🤷🏾‍♂️

When I was growing up, WBEN had some good coverage.  Even back then, though, to get good sports talk I’d pull in Pete Franklin on WWWE (known as 3WE)

[Chaos]

As a team the Bills took a step backwards in 2021.  They went from 13-3 and a visit to the AFC Championship game in 2020 to 11-6 and a loss in the divisional round of the playoffs in 2021.  

I am reminded of an old Seinfeld episode where Jerry argues with a rental car clerk.  She claims they have the reservation. He says "See, you know how to take the reservation, you just don’t know how to hold the reservation and that’s really the most important part of the reservation, the holding. "

Previous Bills regimes couldn't even take the Super Bowl reservation, this regime just can't seem to hold the reservation. 

It's been said it is hard to win in the NFL. 

Note:  This was merged by a mod.  This comment is not a comment on the Dan Hanzuz article. 

Edited January 29, 2022 by Chaos

[SoCal Deek]

Here’s a shorter summary: Call heads in the OT coin flip and the Bills return to the AFC Championship and quite possibly the Super Bowl. 

[Stuartjohn]

7 minutes ago, Chaos said:

As a team the Bills took a step backwards in 2021.  They went from 13-3 and a visit to the AFC Championship game in 2020 to 11-6 and a loss in the divisional round of the playoffs in 2021.  

I am reminded of an old Seinfeld episode where Jerry argues with a rental car clerk.  She claims they have the reservation. He says "See, you know how to take the reservation, you just don’t know how to hold the reservation and that’s really the most important part of the reservation, the holding. "

Previous Bills regimes couldn't even take the Super Bowl reservation, this regime just can't seem to hold the reservation. 

It's been said it is hard to win in the NFL. 

 

4 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

Here’s a shorter summary: Call heads in the OT coin flip and the Bills return to the AFC Championship and quite possibly the Super Bowl. 

Fire Lesley Frazier ! Nobody wants him now - Bills are stuck with him! Nothing will get better - 13 seconds 13 seconds 13 seconds!

[Chaos]

7 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said:

Here’s a shorter summary: Call heads in the OT coin flip and the Bills return to the AFC Championship and quite possibly the Super Bowl. 

Denying the facts doesn't change them. Your comment is simply speculation.  My summary is 100% fact based. 

Edited January 29, 2022 by Chaos

[SoCal Deek]

7 minutes ago, Chaos said:

Denying the facts doesn't change them. Your comment is simply speculation.  My summary is 100% fact based. 

Relax. Sunday’s game was as close as I stated. Tied at the half and tied at the end of regulation. I think you’re assessment is more gloomy than need be. With just a really minor change in circumstances in a very long season the Bills would’ve had home field advantage and a direct path to the Super Bowl….or they could’ve called Heads and gotten there anyway. It REALLY was that close. And those are the facts. 

Edited January 29, 2022 by SoCal Deek

[st pete gogolak]

9 minutes ago, Chaos said:

Denying the facts doesn't change them. Your comment is simply speculation.  My summary is 100% fact based. 

LOL.  Saying they went from 13 - 3 to 11 - 6 is "fact based".  Saying they "took a step backwards" is your opinion. Last year they got destroyed by the Chiefs in the AFCCG.  This year they battled the Chiefs toe to toe and had a 95% chance of winning the game with 13 seconds left.  I guess that based on that they took a "step forward".

[Coach Tuesday]

Lol “high-level”

[Chaos]

1 minute ago, st pete gogolak said:

LOL.  Saying they went from 13 - 3 to 11 - 6 is "fact based".  Saying they "took a step backwards" is your opinion. Last year they got destroyed by the Chiefs in the AFCCG.  This year they battled the Chiefs toe to toe and had a 95% chance of winning the game with 13 seconds left.  I guess that based on that they took a "step forward".

11-6 is a step backwards from 13-3.  Not advancing to the AFC championship game is a step backwards.  Facts. 

Just now, Coach Tuesday said:

Lol “high-level”

you clearly are not familiar with the common use of the phrase. It simply means "not detailed"