A Few Thoughts about the Steelers Game - Community Edition

[RoyBatty is alive]

19 hours ago, DeepPass said:

Why not 2nd guess his wife / marital status??  Who's the #1 person in your life??

Because it will be full of uniformed martial "experts" opining on zero credible knowledge.

[corta765]

11 minutes ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

Because it will be full of uniformed martial "experts" opining on zero credible knowledge.

 

Sir my Lincoln Hawkeyes (moved the Cards) in Madden 2004 had a ten year dynasty which we made the Superbowl 8 of 10 years and won 5. Who are you to question my knowledge!!!

[somnus00]

Funny thing about Epenesa's dumb penalty. Benford's int came right after that.

 

Dumb luck that his penalty worked out in this case.

[quincy]

For me going forward, for the rest of the season I want Jackson Hawes as TE1, after Josh and James he is the 3rd best offensive skill player right now.

 

Can he be on the field for 75% of the snaps on offense?! He's going turn 25, his time is now and we need him to develop into that elite 3d "J" on offense. 

 

Kincaid is so fragile and unavailable, he is still an asset no doubt and has the trust factor with Josh so I would live and die in 12 personnel when needing to pass. 

 

I personally would deviate away from Shakir somewhat with the skill postion guys being Cooks, Palmer, Hawes, Kincaid and Cook but two of those guys are constantly banged up and I am unsure whether this lineup can ever have a chance to show what it can do. Shavers could be Mack Hollins jr this year. 

 

Very glad we got the W against Pit, would like to see the DL really bring the heat on Burrow and will we see Benford following Chase next week?! Go Bills. 

[Niagara Dude]

On 12/1/2025 at 2:16 PM, Virgil said:

When the Bills started to get more primetime attention for their games, I thought the people on this board complaining about them were just grumpy old men.  While this wasn't a primetime game, I am finally starting to feel the non-1pm start-time fatigue.  As dumb as it sounds, I have a certain rhythm to my day before a 1pm game and these 4p or later games just don't feel the same.  

 

Also, I feel like I should note that many of these thoughts are not going to reflect a 19 point victory on the road in a crucial conference game, as I still can't figure out if the results were more about the Bills being better or the Steelers being worse.  Forgive me. 

 

1 - Late Hit on Allen - There's so many things about this moment that stand out to me.  First off, how that wasn't called by the refs is beyond insane to me.  There is no question that Queen started his tackle well after Allen began his slide and usually the refs err on the side of caution.  Not sure what happened here, but it was as bad as missed flag as I've seen.  Beyond that, so many Bills after the game said that was the turning point for them and played with attitude afterwards.  WHY?  Why does it take that hit in the final two minutes of the first half to get you motivated?  My biggest issue this season has been how this team has not even shown up for their losses, and even some of their wins.  To me, this is either coaching or the players have lost faith in the McD message.  Either way, being outside the 1 seed and the AFC East leader apparently isn't enough motivation alone.  

 

2 - Obstacle Required? - Call me crazy, but do the Bills tend to play better when they have an obvious obstacle on the team, or if there's a focal point on the opposing defense they need to scheme around?  It seems to me that whenever the Bills are going up against a TJ Watt, Parsons, missing offensive lineman, etc, that they are able to devise a scheme that overall results in a win.  However, when it's just a "must win" or scheme against an overall good team, they can't get the same results.  Watt and our minted Tackles were talked about, but never came to be a factor in the outcome of the game.  Watt didn't get a sack, nor did anyone else, and the Bills ran the ball at will.  But why do they need that extra motivation to achieve that result?

 

3 - Vintage Gabe - Remember when we were ready to let Gabe walk because he consistently gave up on routes, or ran the wrong ones?  Maybe I'm wrong, but the Josh interception seemed to be a prime example of Gabe not following through on his slant route and then not fighting for the ball.  Outside of that, Gabe was fairly non-existent as were the other receivers.  I don't want to give Coleman his own slot, but he also looked disinterested in his routes again, but thankfully came away with a touchdown.

 

4 - Benford - Benford stated post-game that he was assigned to follow Metcalf all over the field, and overall shut him down.  I can't remember many games where McD allowed that kind of shadow coverage to happen, but I'm glad to see the flexibility and result.

 

5 - Brady - I can understand how the media and others might view Brady calling the same running play over and over again would be imposing of wills and daring the other team to adjust, but to me, it's infuriating.  Yes, it worked and we won.  But we also know that it can easily not work and Brady won't know how to get away from it.  This has been feedback against Brady all season and it's frustrating to see it continue.  Brady also confirmed again that he does not know how to incorporate wide receivers into his gameplay.

 

6 - AJ - I'm sorry, but McD should have pulled him off the field after that stupid Unsportsmanlike Penalty.  AJ, you are not good enough to be pulling crap like that.  It was pointless and extended a Steelers offensive drive that was all but dead. 

 

7 - Villian - Can we please get someone from the opposing team to fight with Josh at the beginning of every game?  Clearly the vomitting, McD, and playlist aren't working for Josh anymore and he needs something else to get him going.  Thank you Heyward.  

 

8 - Cook - I mean, what else can you say about the guy.  So glad we extended him as you can just see the difference he makes out there.  His vision, cuts, burst, and overall speed is such a game changer.  His recent receptions surge has also been a nice bonus.  Many Steelers players said in the post game that they knew Cook was good, but it was next level seeing him in person.  With the way Shakir and the receivers have been non-existent as of late, it's good to know Josh has other support.  

 

9 - Josh - I would literally give anything right now for Josh to have an open and honest conversation about what's going on in his mind right now.  Josh wasn't bad in this game.  You could see him get fired up after some good runs, make some good throws, and the fiery competitor shine through at times, but Josh still isn't quite Josh.  I have no idea why, but I really do believe he's as frustrated with the coordinators and effort around him as we are.  It's very unlike Josh to show his frustration towards teammates, but you saw it on some of the false starts and broken plays.  I know Josh wants to be a good captain, but I think that also means knowing when to call people out.  Granted, not the way that Rodgers did in his postgame, but somewhere in-between.

 

10 - Pass Rush - When you only give up 7 points off a turnover, it's hard to want to talk negative about the defense.  I do still think the Steelers being inept on offense made us look better than we were.  With all of that, I'm very worried about the Bengals coming into town next week with our lack of pass rush.  We haven't received a status update on Bosa's hamstring, but he seems to be the only one that can generate any pressure right now.  Bosa's hit on Rodgers was amazing in both the execution and timing.  Burrow, with all day to throw, is a scary thought.  We aren't the same Bills offense that can keep up with a high scoring offense, so next week it going to require some work.

 

Go Bills!!!

I agree 100%,  i hope the Bills play most of the games next season at 1pm on Sunday, i cannot stand waiting around for either 4:25 game or even worse Sunday night or Monday night games. It leaves no time to talk about the game after the game Sunday and Monday night games are a killer for sleep and that gets worse after they lose.  

[RunTheBall]

14 hours ago, quincy said:

For me going forward, for the rest of the season I want Jackson Hawes as TE1, after Josh and James he is the 3rd best offensive skill player right now.

 

Can he be on the field for 75% of the snaps on offense?! He's going turn 25, his time is now and we need him to develop into that elite 3d "J" on offense. 

 

Kincaid is so fragile and unavailable, he is still an asset no doubt and has the trust factor with Josh so I would live and die in 12 personnel when needing to pass. 

 

I personally would deviate away from Shakir somewhat with the skill postion guys being Cooks, Palmer, Hawes, Kincaid and Cook but two of those guys are constantly banged up and I am unsure whether this lineup can ever have a chance to show what it can do. Shavers could be Mack Hollins jr this year. 

 

Very glad we got the W against Pit, would like to see the DL really bring the heat on Burrow and will we see Benford following Chase next week?! Go Bills. 

 

I love Hawes. In no universe is he a TE1. At best he’s a solid TE2, elite TE3. He is sloooow. He has no chance of threatening the seam, you could cover him with a DT. The only way he gets open is because he’s blocking 99% of the time and teams don’t expect it. He’s a great piece of the offense but I think you are looking at him with BIlls colored glasses which we tend to do on this board. 

 

[Coach Tuesday]

2 hours ago, RunTheBall said:

 

I love Hawes. In no universe is he a TE1. At best he’s a solid TE2, elite TE3. He is sloooow. He has no chance of threatening the seam, you could cover him with a DT. The only way he gets open is because he’s blocking 99% of the time and teams don’t expect it. He’s a great piece of the offense but I think you are looking at him with BIlls colored glasses which we tend to do on this board. 

 

 

I guess it depends what he means by "TE1".  First TE option in the passing game?  Absolutely not.  But on the field more than any other TE?  If they are really going to lean into the run-first approach than yes, he's such a versatile piece, he's basically an extra offensive tackle who can also run pass patterns.  I could see him overtaking Kincaid and Knox in overall snap count.

[Mark Vader]

On 12/1/2025 at 2:49 PM, AlCowlingsTaxiService said:

That sounds great, except for the “living in California” part 

There are other states in the Pacific time zone, even Las Vegas is in that area.

[muppy]

Quote

9 - Josh - I would literally give anything right now for Josh to have an open and honest conversation about what's going on in his mind right now.  Josh wasn't bad in this game.  You could see him get fired up after some good runs, make some good throws, and the fiery competitor shine through at times, but Josh still isn't quite Josh.  I have no idea why, but I really do believe he's as frustrated with the coordinators and effort around him as we are.  It's very unlike Josh to show his frustration towards teammates, but you saw it on some of the false starts and broken plays.  I know Josh wants to be a good captain, but I think that also means knowing when to call people out.  Granted, not the way that Rodgers did in his postgame, but somewhere in-between.

 We all expect Superman Josh to perform each week. Even Superman was human under his cape. He's not perfect. He shouldn't be judged as if he is and then criticized for being human

 

In regards to the bolded these types of conversations he is having with himself and his teammates are  done behind closed doors. And his expectations for himself and everyone around him on the gridiron also.  I would be shocked if these conversations were NOT happening already,  And as the most respected member of the roster he best be listened to. He's a very smart guy. 

 

Having said that asking any QB to perform flawlessly with a flawed supporting cast,  flawed coaching schemes  as well as  a team lacking in discipline is asking a lot  I'd blame that before I call him out for being too happily married. . 

 

Maybe Hailee is his kryptonite. She is a handy excuse.  I'm not buying it. Being happy shouldn't automatically be seen as a negative in his life. 

 

It does seem clear that he needs take a few hits in games to settle down. and in the Pittsburgh game take a cheap shot and get mad. Making Josh Allen mad is a terrible look for opposing teams.

 

so in summary I will say that QB1 is the least of the Bills problems .  It is a team game. The defense won the game last week. What a welcome sight it was seeing them make  huge splash plays

 

Can our bills PLEASE  stop with the undisciplined bonehead penalties. Get some healthy bodies back in the game  and see what happens. 

 

 

 

 

 

[RochesterLifer]

18 minutes ago, muppy said:

 

Maybe Hailee is his kryptonite. She is a handy excuse.  I'm not buying it. Being happy shouldn't automatically be seen as a negative in his life. 

Thanks @muppy.

 

Speculation that Josh's play has diminished, first off, is incorrect. Then, to extend that false narrative to wife-blaming only points to a poster's wharped life view.

 

Simply celebrate the happy couple and go Bills.