How much better is the Ravens team on paper than the Bills?

[Lost]

11 minutes ago, Mister Defense said:

One of the best things about victories is we then see the haters, those who bash almost all the Bills' leadership does, not know what to do with themselves.  As they come out from the cracks and crevices under the sink to throw water on the victory, no matter how they have to do it:

 

'Oh yeah, your Bills are so good, huh?  What about this....?"

 

They don't know how to react to wins, big wins like last night's especially, so they just comically flail at something, hoping that gets the other haters flailing along with them. It gives them a sense of confidence that it is still okay to bash away, no matter the situation.

 

Like I said in a previous thread today, it is completely expected, like clockwork.  Simple and obvious.

 

When one sees an OP like this, and are not sure what to make of it on a day like this especially? Just check the poster's history quickly and you will likely see what I just saw.  Try to find almost any of this poster's posts that are not super negative, super sarcastic--with our team always the target.

 

 

 

 

 

Calm down Jan,

 

I wasn't bashing the Bills with my post.  Just thought it would be an interesting conversation.   If anything it emphasizes how important Josh Allen and the culture building under McDermott has been here and their ability to do more with less.   Or maybe it's an indictment of the leadership over in Baltimore who seemingly have one of the best rosters in football but still haven't gotten over the hump.  

[BullBuchanan]

1 hour ago, Generic_Bills_Fan said:

I really think cbs we are and that showed up pretty big last night if not making all the difference…Alexander got absolutely bullied down the stretch it was embarrassing.  Our third string cb2 in his first nfl start significantly outplayed him 

 

qb I’m going josh too 

You can prefer Josh, but most serious analysts are going to call that a push. You have MVP QBs on both sides.

[Rocky Landing]

16 minutes ago, Mister Defense said:

One of the best things about victories is we then see the haters, those who bash almost all the Bills' leadership does, not know what to do with themselves.  As they come out from the cracks and crevices under the sink to throw water on the victory, no matter how they have to do it:

 

'Oh yeah, your Bills are so good, huh?  What about this....?"

 

They don't know how to react to wins, big wins like last night's especially, so they just comically flail at something, hoping that gets the other haters flailing along with them. It gives them a sense of confidence that it is still okay to bash away, no matter the situation.

 

Like I said in a previous thread today, it is completely expected, like clockwork.  Simple and obvious.

 

When one sees an OP like this, and are not sure what to make of it on a day like this especially? Just check the poster's history quickly and you will likely see what I just saw.  Try to find almost any of this poster's posts that are not super negative, super sarcastic--with our team always the target.

 

 

 

 

I went, and did just that-- yikes....

[Doc Brown]

14 minutes ago, Mister Defense said:

One of the best things about victories is we then see the haters, those who bash almost all the Bills' leadership does, not know what to do with themselves.  As they come out from the cracks and crevices under the sink to throw water on the victory, no matter how they have to do it:

 

'Oh yeah, your Bills are so good, huh?  What about this....?"

 

They don't know how to react to wins, big wins like last night's especially, so they just comically flail at something, hoping that gets the other haters flailing along with them. It gives them a sense of confidence that it is still okay to bash away, no matter the situation.

 

Like I said in a previous thread today, it is completely expected, like clockwork.  Simple and obvious.

 

When one sees an OP like this, and are not sure what to make of it on a day like this especially? Just check the poster's history quickly and you will likely see what I just saw.  Try to find almost any of this poster's posts that are not super negative, super sarcastic--with our team always the target.

 

 

 

 

The OP said that we're getting to a Chiefs like level where this team has a championship like mentality to win games where we have the lesser roster which is absolutely true on paper.  That's not a the Bills aren't good post.

[Generic_Bills_Fan]

Just now, Doc Brown said:

The OP said that we're getting to a Chiefs like level where this team has a championship like mentality to win games where we have the lesser roster which is absolutely true on paper.  That's not a the Bills aren't good post.

Agreed…I think the gap is smaller than I originally thought though now that I have recovered emotionally haha I think the ravens have just been signing veteran corners to one year deals for a bit too long and it’s gonna get bumpy there.  Their pass rush is lookin like it could take a step back this year too 

[Peace Frog]

 

[GASabresIUFan]

If the Ravens roster is so much better than the Bills’ roster, why is Buffalo 4-1 in the last 5 match ups including 2–0 in the playoffs when it really counts?  
 

If their defense has so many elite players and the Bills offense lacks any elite talent besides Josh, why have we torched them for 41 last night? 
 

One issue with making this comparison is that the Ravens rely on many more experienced players.  The Ravens have 10 guys with 7 or more years of experience as starters or as significant role players like DeHop.  The Bills only have 7 including Tre White.  
 

The core of the Bills are McGovern, Brown, Torrence, Bernard, Benford, Cook, Kincaid, Coleman, Shakir, and now Palmer and all have 5 years or less of NFL experience, most 3 or less.   

[HamptonBillsfan]

If the Bills play the Ravens in the playoffs with the same roster I wouldn’t be optimistic. Even with Josh’s heroics, we needed a freakish tip drill TD by Coleman, a fumble by a sure handed Henry, and play calling that insured Josh having a minute twenty five to get a game winning FG. Our defense could not stop Henry,, Flowers or Lamar before they were able to score 40. They have a young kicker with plenty of leg and an O-line that didn’t allow much pressure and opened gaping holes in the run game. Our secondary is lacking at safety and corner. Adding to our roster to fortify these two positions with quality would be a reason to be confident going forward.

[billsfan89]

3 minutes ago, HamptonBillsfan said:

If the Bills play the Ravens in the playoffs with the same roster I wouldn’t be optimistic. Even with Josh’s heroics, we needed a freakish tip drill TD by Coleman, a fumble by a sure handed Henry, and play calling that insured Josh having a minute twenty five to get a game winning FG. Our defense could not stop Henry,, Flowers or Lamar before they were able to score 40. They have a young kicker with plenty of leg and an O-line that didn’t allow much pressure and opened gaping holes in the run game. Our secondary is lacking at safety and corner. Adding to our roster to fortify these two positions with quality would be a reason to be confident going forward.

 

It's not really easy to say how optimistic I would be because that's months away. You have injuries, new players developing, coaching adjustments based on a whole seasons worth of film, and possible trade deadline acquisitions. The Bills also have two possible higher end rotation players coming off suspension in Hoecht and Larry O who could be in a possible rematch in the playoffs. So many variables that I'm not gonna feel one way or the other. Hell no guarantee these teams meet again the NFL is wild. 

 

I get the case for pessimism because when you get gashed on defense and win narrowly on a small margins comeback it can feel like the team got lucky to win. What's the case for optimism is that the Bills got blown out 35-10 and looked like they didn't belong against the Ravens in Baltimore last year (and I don't think being home makes up that margin) and they won the playoff game with a smart disciplined effort. Whereas lets say the Ravens don't fumble and the Bills lose 32-40 the Bills look a lot more competitive against the Ravens this time around than they did in 2024. 

 

The secondary is as of now a possible concern (although I am not really concerned at corner Tre and Max will be back and I actually think Strong looked competent in a tough spot) but I think if the Bills do need a boost at safety they can find some trade deadline help fairly cheaply. 

[GASabresIUFan]

20 minutes ago, HamptonBillsfan said:

If the Bills play the Ravens in the playoffs with the same roster I wouldn’t be optimistic. Even with Josh’s heroics, we needed a freakish tip drill TD by Coleman, a fumble by a sure handed Henry, and play calling that insured Josh having a minute twenty five to get a game winning FG. Our defense could not stop Henry,, Flowers or Lamar before they were able to score 40. They have a young kicker with plenty of leg and an O-line that didn’t allow much pressure and opened gaping holes in the run game. Our secondary is lacking at safety and corner. Adding to our roster to fortify these two positions with quality would be a reason to be confident going forward.

These are the exact things said before the playoff game last year. 

The Ravens have also failed to stop our offense the last two games despite all their name brand talent on defense.  As I mentioned before the Bills are 4-1 against Lamar and the Ravens in the last 5 matchups including 2-0 in the playoffs.  

[Generic_Bills_Fan]

41 minutes ago, HamptonBillsfan said:

If the Bills play the Ravens in the playoffs with the same roster I wouldn’t be optimistic. Even with Josh’s heroics, we needed a freakish tip drill TD by Coleman, a fumble by a sure handed Henry, and play calling that insured Josh having a minute twenty five to get a game winning FG. Our defense could not stop Henry,, Flowers or Lamar before they were able to score 40. They have a young kicker with plenty of leg and an O-line that didn’t allow much pressure and opened gaping holes in the run game. Our secondary is lacking at safety and corner. Adding to our roster to fortify these two positions with quality would be a reason to be confident going forward.

There were some fluky things going on both ways tbh.  I don’t really get the corner depth concern…I think the ravens are the ones that should have corner depth concerns.  Awuzie looked ok but Alexander looked horribly washed and I’m not sure Wiggins is even good(yet).  Wiggins had a nice run last year where the ravens saw two straight months of absolute garbage qbs due to a scheduling quirk.  Humphrey didn’t have a good game but it’s safe to assume he’ll bounce back much like taron Johnson 

on the bills side I feel like Dorian strong was similarly solid to awuzie and he will drop to third string when Hairston and Tre return probably.  Might be the best year of corner depth we’ve had 

 

Edited September 8 by Generic_Bills_Fan

[El_diablo]

We have better coaching.

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

4 hours ago, RyanC883 said:

yeah, their roster is STOCKED.  That team still scares me, and I think the Bills know the Ravens are the real deal, so I don't sence any cockyness from our group.  

 

Interestingly, while Mark Andrews blocked well, he was absent in the passing game.  

 

To answer the question, I'd take: Allen, Brown, Benford, and Shakir/Coleman/Palmar over Bateman.   

I was thinking that too. He was surprisingly quiet when you’d think they would need him even more. 
 

Extremely quiet actually. 1 reception for 5 yards 😆 still in the dog house from last year ? 

[Paup 1995MVP]

4 hours ago, Lost said:

 

Just imagine if we had managed to land Hamilton or even McDufffie instead of Elam in 2022.   That probably woulda been all the difference we needed to get over that hump.  Both our biggest competitors landed all pros with their 1st pick in that draft and we got a complete bust.  

Your avatar is a riot.  

 

Hamilton is a freak on the back end.  And McDuffie is pretty dam good also.  Elam never panned out for us.  He got beat on the long pass against the Eagles.  But I did not follow him the entire game.  I hope for his sake he becomes a solid NFL player.  He doesn't seem to have a lot of twitchiness.  You watch him, and then you watch Duron Bland or Christian Benford, and they just look a whole lot more athletic.  I see Elam's high end as a poor man's Leodis McKelvin.  But I liked McKelvin's game more than a lot of peoples.  

[billsbackto81]

On paper?

A lot.

 

On heart?

None at all.

[BuffaL0L0k0]

5 hours ago, sven233 said:

Allen, Benford, Brown, Oliver, and maybe Bosa eventually.  But it is really a short list.  The Ravens really have no weaknesses in terms of their roster.  Quite honestly, I have no idea how Allen did what he did to that defense last night.  We won't see a better group until we run into this team in the Playoffs.  They are a crazy talented team that is only going to get better throughout the year the more they play together.

I agree, and I need to pitch in the huge difference in Safety, when you compare i.e. Rapp, to Hamilton, when he was coming off the locker and looked like a TE in height

[HamptonBillsfan]

3 hours ago, GASabresIUFan said:

These are the exact things said before the playoff game last year. 

The Ravens have also failed to stop our offense the last two games despite all their name brand talent on defense.  As I mentioned before the Bills are 4-1 against Lamar and the Ravens in the last 5 matchups including 2-0 in the playoffs.  

Forget the heroics after the fumble and I’m not diminishing Josh, Cook, Palmer and Coleman, they were awesome, how did you feel about our ability to stop the Ravens for the first 31/2 quarters. You want to depend on  Mark Andrews dropping an easy 2pt. completion or  Henry fumbling to win a big game? When a team runs at will against a defense that knows what’s coming and gets up 40 to 25 with 4 minutes left, you have to be concerned about your defense. Not saying Josh can’t pull miracles out of his rear end, he’s that great but these kinds of games(the last regular season Ravens game and last night’s contest) is not a formula going forward  for success. 

[HamptonBillsfan]

4 hours ago, billsfan89 said:

 

It's not really easy to say how optimistic I would be because that's months away. You have injuries, new players developing, coaching adjustments based on a whole seasons worth of film, and possible trade deadline acquisitions. The Bills also have two possible higher end rotation players coming off suspension in Hoecht and Larry O who could be in a possible rematch in the playoffs. So many variables that I'm not gonna feel one way or the other. Hell no guarantee these teams meet again the NFL is wild. 

 

I get the case for pessimism because when you get gashed on defense and win narrowly on a small margins comeback it can feel like the team got lucky to win. What's the case for optimism is that the Bills got blown out 35-10 and looked like they didn't belong against the Ravens in Baltimore last year (and I don't think being home makes up that margin) and they won the playoff game with a smart disciplined effort. Whereas lets say the Ravens don't fumble and the Bills lose 32-40 the Bills look a lot more competitive against the Ravens this time around than they did in 2024. 

 

The secondary is as of now a possible concern (although I am not really concerned at corner Tre and Max will be back and I actually think Strong looked competent in a tough spot) but I think if the Bills do need a boost at safety they can find some trade deadline help fairly cheaply. 

Nice take, you made some solid points especially about the PED suspensions coming back and Strong being fairly solid in his first game. My concern is that we can’t adequately defend Henry and Lamar. Henry breaks off big runs every game and remember Flowers didn’t play in the playoffs. Defending Lamar is tough on everyone  Our defense gives up too many yards and points with only Oliver getting pressure up the middle. Again, Allen is a nightmare to play against and he is the only QB that could have pulled that game out, but at 40 to 25 with 4minutes left I acknowledged they are a bad matchup for us.

[Mikie2times]

6 hours ago, Mister Defense said:

One of the best things about victories is we then see the haters, those who bash almost all the Bills' leadership does, not know what to do with themselves.  As they come out from the cracks and crevices under the sink to throw water on the victory, no matter how they have to do it:

 

'Oh yeah, your Bills are so good, huh?  What about this....?"

 

They don't know how to react to wins, big wins like last night's especially, so they just comically flail at something, hoping that gets the other haters flailing along with them. It gives them a sense of confidence that it is still okay to bash away, no matter the situation.

 

Like I said in a previous thread today, it is completely expected, like clockwork.  Simple and obvious.

 

When one sees an OP like this, and are not sure what to make of it on a day like this especially? Just check the poster's history quickly and you will likely see what I just saw.  Try to find almost any of this poster's posts that are not super negative, super sarcastic--with our team always the target.

 

 

 

 

It was an all time win. I don't think OP was diminishing it. It works both ways, I think we have shown to be the better team in the Chiefs games, but we haven't come up on the right end. 

[JerseyBills]

8 hours ago, Lost said:

The Bills are now a team like the Chiefs that have that Championship mentality and can just will themselves to victory in games that sometimes they should have no business winning.   Someone had an interesting comment in the gameday thread that I think would be interesting to dive into a little further.  

 

The comment was that if the Ravens and Bills combined rosters, there would only be like 2 or 3 Bills starters.

 

Hell, some people would make the case that even Allen wouldn't start over Lamar.   

 

 

So who do you think on the Bills roster would get a spot over their Raven's counterpart on the depth chart?

 

 

For me it's Josh Allen, Spencer Brown, Ed Oliver.  Maybe Benford and maybe Shakir or Coleman over Bateman.   That's probably it.

idk their OL besides Stanley but I'd take our OL as a unit and their DL got no pressure,  I'd take ours as a unit. 

I'd also take our WR corps as a unit. Flowers is a stud but Keon Shakir would start for them. 

 

The TE groups I'd say is a tie, Andrew's is getting up in age 

 

I'd give them a slight edge at CB and a big edge at S 

Edited September 9 by JerseyBills