NFL Week # 16 - Bills at Bears - post game thread

[HappyDays]

3 hours ago, finn said:

With his size and ability to make sideline catches and the occasional fly route

 

The worst part is he hasn't even really done this lately. The last tough play he made was in week 5 against the Steelers. Since then every play he's made has been an easy catch delivered right into his hands without a defender contesting him. His rookie year he was making amazing sideline catches in critical moments in a playoff game. Yesterday he flubbed his one opportunity to make a difficult sideline catch. In a year when we needed him to step up in a bigger role he has instead regressed. It's the biggest disappointment of the season IMO.

 

Edited December 25, 2022 by HappyDays

[newcam2012]

5 minutes ago, Billsfan1972 said:

They had their A game and yes one drop, tjay was a tough, but catchable ball.  

 

Bills played well, but not great.  Theorn3rd quarter was dreadful.  

 

Defence was okay, but not great.  

 

And again outside some success in forcing fumbles, only an int vs. Peterman (does that count?).

 

 

I think Dolphins fans, player's, and coaches would disagree with your take. I don't think any of them think they played their A game. What jumps off the page besides the TD drop was the Dolphins coaching calls on 3rd and 4th and 1. They refused to run the ball which likely would have netted a first down according to analytics. Strange series of calls when their Oline was clearly getting the best of the Bills. Yet, give the Bills D credit for great plays. Listening to fans and experts they clearly felt like the Dolphins blew a golden opportunity. An "A" game performance doesn't include the above mentioned events. 

[Big C]

12 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

 

The worst part is he hasn't even really done this lately. The last tough play he made was in week 5 against the Steelers. Since then every play he's made has been an easy catch delivered right into his hands without a defender contesting him. His rookie year he was making amazing sideline catches in critical moments in a playoff game. Yesterday he flubbed his one opportunity to make a difficult sideline catch. In a year when we needed him to step up in a bigger role he has instead regressed. It's the biggest disappointment of the season IMO.

 

 

Wonder if that ankle is nagging but those hands are a different story. He just doesn’t look like the same player this year. 

[HappyDays]

2 hours ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

The bad decision picks though are painful to live with.

 

The first pick wasn't a bad decision so much as it was a lazy read. He didn't intentionally throw into double coverage. He saw CB Kyler Gordon at the snap at the LOS and pre-determined that McKenzie would be open. Nothing wrong with making that pre-snap read. The issue is post-snap he never bothered checking the backside for an ancillary defender before throwing the ball and by that point Gordon had gotten back into the throwing window. At the snap he practically sprinted back to the end zone, probably because of something they saw on tape. It was an excellent disguised coverage and an excellent display of athleticism from Gordon. But it's on Allen to do a quick check in that area before throwing the ball.

 

My overall take on Allen yesterday, from this play and others, is that he was not anywhere close to 100% locked in like he normally is. He was being lazy with his mechanics and his reads. There was that one play where he tried to throw the ball back across his body all the way to the other side of the field, a total IDGAF play. For Allen his level of play always coincides with his focus. That's why he goes into god mode for primetime games and in the playoffs.

 

So as annoyed with his play yesterday as I am I'm not remotely concerned about it for the remainder of the season. We have three years of elite football to point to. We know who Josh Allen is.

[finn]

30 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

 

The worst part is he hasn't even really done this lately. The last tough play he made was in week 5 against the Steelers. Since then every play he's made has been an easy catch delivered right into his hands without a defender contesting him. His rookie year he was making amazing sideline catches in critical moments in a playoff game. Yesterday he flubbed his one opportunity to make a difficult sideline catch. In a year when we needed him to step up in a bigger role he has instead regressed. It's the biggest disappointment of the season IMO.

 

It's funny, because he came into the year looking like he was ready for his new role. He had added ten pounds of muscle and was understandably pumped after his extraordinary playoff game against KC. But that game looks like an outlier event for a guy who is just pretty good. Give Allen a second receiver like Burrows and Tua have and look out. 

[UKBillFan]

56 minutes ago, newcam2012 said:

I mean just go back to the Miami game for a reference point. That game went right down to the wire. Bills were at home and conditions slowed down the likes of Waddle and Hill. The Dolphins WR dropped an easy TD pass that clearly would have changed the complexion of the game. According to msny Dolphin fans, the refs were not favorable in their calls. Point being the Dolphins clearly didn't play their "A" game. They clearly had the edge on both sides in the lines. The Dolphins could have easily won this game. I'm sure Dolphins fans/players feel like they should have won the game. They let one slip away. The Bills were very fortunate to win the game. This Bills team is clearly one of the teams to beat. However, they aren't as dangerous offensively as in the past. No Hyde and Von makes the defense very good but not elite or dominant like the 49ers. Thus, teams have a much better belief that they can beat the Bills even without their "A" game. The Bills are winning but they appear to be beatable. Same goes for everyone in the AFC. Every little advantage is huge and the number 1 seed has a huge advantage. 

 

The Bills hardly played their A game either. The Dolphins were off but so were we. I think they were on their B game, the Bills were on their B/C game and won.

[Billsfan1972]

36 minutes ago, newcam2012 said:

I think Dolphins fans, player's, and coaches would disagree with your take. I don't think any of them think they played their A game. What jumps off the page besides the TD drop was the Dolphins coaching calls on 3rd and 4th and 1. They refused to run the ball which likely would have netted a first down according to analytics. Strange series of calls when their Oline was clearly getting the best of the Bills. Yet, give the Bills D credit for great plays. Listening to fans and experts they clearly felt like the Dolphins blew a golden opportunity. An "A" game performance doesn't include the above mentioned events. 

The Bills are the better team so ergo the Dolphins played very well on the road and the result was a 3 point game.

 

The gashed the Bills rushing had a 60 yard td pass and stymied the  ills the third quarter  (though I blame the Bills).

 

Regardless they played well on the road.

 

The Bills are very good counterpunchers in this case.  

 

 

 

[Mark Vader]

1 hour ago, BIGFOOTspaceman said:

😂 Rent free, in your head 😂 

You need new writers

[HappyDays]

55 minutes ago, newcam2012 said:

I think Dolphins fans, player's, and coaches would disagree with your take. I don't think any of them think they played their A game. What jumps off the page besides the TD drop was the Dolphins coaching calls on 3rd and 4th and 1. They refused to run the ball which likely would have netted a first down according to analytics. Strange series of calls when their Oline was clearly getting the best of the Bills. Yet, give the Bills D credit for great plays. Listening to fans and experts they clearly felt like the Dolphins blew a golden opportunity. An "A" game performance doesn't include the above mentioned events. 

 

That's because an "A game" is a myth. When fans talk about it they're seemingly talking about a near perfect game with zero mistakes from players and coaches. That is an unrealistic standard. You don't win by playing perfect, you win by managing game situations appropriately, making more plays than your opponent, and minimizing mistakes.

[Ralonzo]

Just now, HappyDays said:

 

That's because an "A game" is a myth. When fans talk about it they're seemingly talking about a near perfect game with zero mistakes from players and coaches. That is an unrealistic standard. 

 

https://www.nfl.com/videos/patriots-vs-bills-highlights-super-wild-card-weekend

[newcam2012]

16 minutes ago, Billsfan1972 said:

The Bills are the better team so ergo the Dolphins played very well on the road and the result was a 3 point game.

 

The gashed the Bills rushing had a 60 yard td pass and stymied the  ills the third quarter  (though I blame the Bills).

 

Regardless they played well on the road.

 

The Bills are very good counterpunchers in this case.  

 

 

 

I agree the Bills are the better team mainly because Allen vs Tua. However, it's clear to me that the gap is much closer than I thought. Miami is more than capable of beating the Bills. The dominance of the Bills team in the AFC is no longer a given. 

[HappyDays]

Maybe I was too hard on the OL for some of their penalties yesterday. This officiating crew is awful.

[Ralonzo]

2 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

Maybe I was too hard on the OL for some of their penalties yesterday. This officiating crew is awful.

 

Was hollerating at screen and in GDT about that one, I happened to be watching exactly that block on the play and was flubbergusted at a flag.

 

That crew gave the appearance of being bumbling idiots but somehow it only went one way. I mean, pee wee refs don't let a guy on his knees extend the ball out and then give him that spot. Horrible.

[ColoradoBills]

2 hours ago, Nitro said:

Bears quit.  Their fans were upset that they did not try to throw.  I was sitting among a group of passionate but reasonable Bears supporters.  They were baffled down by 8 and they basically stopped trying to win. Their words.  Not mine.

 

Suddenly, the Bears are a half game out from the #1 overall pick.

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

1 hour ago, HappyDays said:

 

.For Allen his level of play always coincides with his focus. That's why he goes into god mode for primetime games and in the playoffs.

 

So as annoyed with his play yesterday as I am I'm not remotely concerned about it for the remainder of the season. We have three years of elite football to point to. We know who Josh Allen is.

This is a really great take. Makes Allen and his play make more sense to me. 

30 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

Maybe I was too hard on the OL for some of their penalties yesterday. This officiating crew is awful.

Couldn’t even get mad about it. Going into the game, I knew Cheffers would be pulling stunts like this. He doesn’t know what holds look like and he uses bad shortcut cheats to call penalties, rather than seeing them with his own eyes. 

[Motorin']

4 hours ago, Nitro said:

Bears quit.  Their fans were upset that they did not try to throw.  I was sitting among a group of passionate but reasonable Bears supporters.  They were baffled down by 8 and they basically stopped trying to win. Their words.  Not mine.

Laugh but those offenses are formidable.  Be honest.  The Bills are playing some sloppy and at times reckless football.

Odd that it was not bad but only a dozen rows up you could feel it.  

 

I was at the game with a Bears fan buddy. He actually wanted the Bills to win for the #1 seed, and the higher Bears pick. But he was also not happy with the conservative play calling...

 

Unrelated, my favorite part of the game day experience was a shouting match between a Bears fan and a group of Bills fans. 

 

It started when the Bills went up 28 to whatever and Bills fans start singing "hey yeah hey yeah." The Bears fan stands up a screams, "well you know what! F*** Aaron Rodgers!" 

 

And then this Bills fan stands up and says, "well you know what? F*** Tom Brady!"

 

They went back and forth until they started chanting "F Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady!".

 

[Nitro]

59 minutes ago, Motorin' said:

 

I was at the game with a Bears fan buddy. He actually wanted the Bills to win for the #1 seed, and the higher Bears pick. But he was also not happy with the conservative play calling...

 

Unrelated, my favorite part of the game day experience was a shouting match between a Bears fan and a group of Bills fans. 

 

It started when the Bills went up 28 to whatever and Bills fans start singing "hey yeah hey yeah." The Bears fan stands up a screams, "well you know what! F*** Aaron Rodgers!" 

 

And then this Bills fan stands up and says, "well you know what? F*** Tom Brady!"

 

They went back and forth until they started chanting "F Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady!".

 

They were a friendly crowd

 

4 hours ago, BlazinBill said:

My friend Didn't say that  - there was just literally nothing good said is all- all he ever does is look for silver linings even when things are bad especially when in a win and and a division being clinched in -25 degree weather.

He often tries to add humor in those moments my mistake on sharing his take in the post as we all look a things different.

Happy Holidays 

Best wishes to you and yours

2 hours ago, ColoradoBills said:

 

Suddenly, the Bears are a half game out from the #1 overall pick.

The conversation turned to what position should they draft in the first round in the fourth quarter.  Good debate was had.  I recall those on this board not too long ago. 

[Big Turk]

We handed the Bears their worst loss of the year.

[No_Matter_What]

On 12/25/2022 at 3:15 AM, SageAgainstTheMachine said:

The official scorer makes a judgment call on whether the QB was intending to run or pass.

Thanks. I never knew. I thought that it is always a sack once QB is tackled behind LOS. Apparently this is not true when he doesn't try to pass.