GaryPinC

People were talking that this game was almost meaningless, McD admitting the Chiefs are too good to kick the late field goal followed by staying aggressive on defense the last drive blows that perception out of the water. Now his players have lived it and that confidence has been created for next time. Let's hope he applies it to all the playoff teams past the first round. Continuous improvement McD, well done.

I agree with you about play action, I would also counter that all the boring plays are needed to set up the exotic in a game like this. This was always going to be a tough, grind it out game against a great defense and so as tough as it is to watch, it set up things like the second half flats pass to Shakir for a first down, TD pass to Samuel, and of course Josh's run. They had that 4th down perfectly defensed as they had seen the look a lot!😂 Lulling the defense to a bored state of mind so you can exploit a variation when needed for a big play. Running down the clock with the lead. I think this was purposeful, and especially because we held the lead. And it truly gives me hope for a Superbowl because it's next level stuff this year.

You're going too far with the irrefutable, but not having Bernard, losing Benford, and Von being limited goes beyond their injuries. All three are playmakers, excelling when the moments are the largest with game changing plays. Next man up, yes, but you can't replace losing that big-time factor.

Reminds me of watching the Bills' K gun during the 90's. Just breathtaking watching it click.

What do you bet Bernard goaded Mahomes into that pass. Stayed off Kelce just enough but kept a good angle between Mahomes and Kelce?

Thank you for noticing all that, this is exactly my point with McD. He's gotten us this far, but is he doing everything he can to get us over the playoff hump? Sure it's only a handful of snaps but the troubling aspect is his mentality and lack of emphasis on finding these guys max number of snaps. Set aside the debate of whether or not Elam and Bishop could replace the current starters. They appear to be the first option off the bench if a safety or boundary corner gets injured. What if the injury occurs in the playoffs? Will these guys be as ready as they can be? We know our future, it's certainly true that you get there by focusing one game at a time, but McD is the one leader who has to concurrently tweak and plan for this future now. And for me he appears a bit lacking.

Tyrel Dodson is JAG who was here since 2019. For the FO to not draft and act the way they did, they knew how the formality "competition" would go. Bernard earned it the year before and McD chose to sit on him for whatever reason. I watched his first start and despite the mistakes it was completely obvious why the FO had faith in him; his intelligence, aggressiveness and playmaking ability quickly popped. He was the revelation Dodson or even Edmunds was never going to be. You're right about the command structure, thanks for pointing it out and my apologies. Imagine McD getting a warning any way you want. Not sure if it happened but if not it needs to happen: -McDermott is in his eighth season, Allen his seventh. Culture is firmly established. -We haven't sniffed the super bowl since 13 seconds, a disaster that McD with his two timeouts to set the D, has never been fully accountable for. -Our defense is stagnant and a major part of what results in our playoff losses. Our D line has never been a dominant force when we need it. -It doesn't seem like the defense is any better this year, perhaps it's regressed a bit. Change is needed. I would like to see McDermott himself change and tweak things to be more successful, do better to give every chance for playmakers to get on the field ASAP rather than next year. Is his system really maximizing the talent we have? I'm obviously not very confident it is. If we can't move forward out of stagnation this year, then it's time for a new voice, leadership and direction. McD has done a phenomenal job establishing this team but has stalled out like his defense.

Because for the playoffs, we really need a safety who can anticipate and close on the ball quicker than Hamlin. It's going to be a problem. It already is, it's just less obvious with winning. I understand the coaches if Bishop is making zero forward progress in practice, but if he is progressing they need to do everything in their power to help accelerate it. I'm also not suggesting he gets shoved into a starting role at this point.

I don't agree that TB hurts my case, because he didn't have to earn it in 2023. He earned it in 2022, they made a point in the off-season of saying Edmunds' replacement was already on the roster so drafting one was not a priority. We don't know at what point in 2022 the coaches decided TB was ready only that they didn't act on it until 2023. I agree with you on the rest, I just feel the coaches need to more prioritize getting him minutes. Not starting, just finding him more minutes to accelerate his development. Bottom line is to this point we are wasting Josh's career and our window. McD needs to tweak his "process" to take that next step in the playoffs. Best analogous example I can think of is the Cleveland Cavaliers and specifically their last game against the Nets. Their old coach Bickerstaff was a rigid process guy, not a lot of player development and limited success in the playoffs. The change in player development under new coach Atkinson is an explosion. Multiple players are trying and doing things on the court they seldom did before. Against the Nets, their 2 bigs starting lineup just wasn't working, Atkinson recognized it and went to a 4 guard lineup to seize and close out the game. Bickerstaff would have stuck with his starters and lost the game. I'd like to see McD transition from Bickerstaff to Atkinson. I do wonder if Beane's given him warning because in pressors he face seems more sullen and stressed than in years past. We'll see.

Bishop got caught looking on the long TD, I didn't see what happened on the other one. But to your points about him costing us more games, what if he does something many here including you think unheard of and learns from his mistakes? What if he cuts way down on his mistakes next game? What if McD instead plugs him in for a series or two in games when we have a comfortable lead? Every NFL player has to adjust to the speed of the game, secondary is particularly rough but it has to happen in a game. Practice can't simulate it. For those that say coach will put him in when he shows ready in practice, it didn't happen that way for Terrel Bernard so I don't trust the coaches. TB did get in early 2022 but of course made mistakes and was never seen again that year. Yet when Edmunds left they knew TB was the answer so much so they didn't draft anybody. That implies to me he earned it in practice but the coaches still held him out. TB was a revelation when he started 2023, smart, attacking. Everything Edmunds wasn't. And he elevated Milano's game as well. Would have been interesting if he and Milano could have had more chances to develop that in 2022. The other thing about giving Bishop some opportunities here and there is you challenge Rapp and Hamlin, let them know why Bishop is getting some time and how they need to pick up their play. I agree with BananaB that this defense isn't good enough to survive deep in the playoffs, especially with how slow our safeties are to react with little anticipation. We need to be doing everything we can to get better in time for that.

I think the idea of game oversight by a studio official with power to overrule is a good potential option due to the speed of the game. The other biggest thing to me, is getting more consistency of calls by officials from game to game. I think there needs to be more and a lot of feedback from an oversight committee between games and even within games about the judgement quality of the calls being made, and if the officials are zeroed in on one team too much. Much of the PI and holding rules have evolved to depend on refs judgement, whereas in the past they were looking at specific markers. Holding now means significantly restricting or changing the path of the defender and doesn't discuss hand placement inside or out. PI has to significantly impact the receiver's chance to catch the ball and in many situations the defender has equal opportunity to attack the ball. "Incidental" contact/hand fighting is now more allowable than in the past. Refs in all sports swallow the whistle more at the waning moments of games, regardless that Cincy TE got hosed on the two point conversion. Yet, if the ref didn't have a good angle, I could see how they felt the contact wasn't impactful enough.

I get it, you think he's had enough opportunities and I don't. Definitely understand and respect your view, just happen to disagree. If I'm blinded by anything about him, it's 6'1" 4.39 sec and the fact that he "pops" at times on the field with quick agility and playmaking ability. I would also say McDermott probably shares your view, I just hope he changes his mind enough to throw him more scraps. The kid seems tough, wants to win and is eager for opportunities.

Sure, but if a late developer, you take his rookie season with a grain of salt. Last year he was trying to play with torn ankle ligaments until the team IR'd him. Sunday he probably sustained a dislocated shoulder on that long pass play to Hill. https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/sports/football/nfl/bills/2024/11/03/kaiir-elam-injury-update-buffalo-bills-cornerback-hurt-giving-up-catch-tyreek-hill/76033886007/ I can't find his quote but saw it post game to the effect that once they popped his shoulder back in he returned to the game because he wasn't leaving for anything. Make the effort to get the kid some reps where you can. His body of work isn't very extensive.

Looking at it again, I think the ref pinned the foul on Dawkins but clearly Edwards didn't fall on Chop until he was on the ground, probably the ref felt the effect of both men combined was a foul.

I think it's a very weak call, but I think the call was made because you're not allowed to hold down a defender on the ground. Not sure if the guard laying on top of him mattered, but the ref doesn't throw the flag until the defender's on the ground trying to move his torso with Dawkin's extended arms on his shoulders/upper back. From the NFL Rule book: https://operations.nfl.com/the-rules/nfl-rulebook/#article-3-illegal-block-by-offensive-player If a blocker falls on or pushes down a defender whose momentum is carrying him to the ground, Offensive Holding will not be called unless the blocker prevents the defender from rising from the ground. So they could have called it on the guard who fell on top of Chop.

Totally agree on Bishop, I know my take on Elam isn't very popular, just as it wasn't when I voiced my disagreement with them stashing Bernard his entire rookie season. I respect McDermott and his process, but we're not trying to build a contender anymore, thanks to Josh we ARE a contender. In the bigger picture McD needs to add some wrinkles to his process to identify and maximize our unique talent contributions every year. That's why I feel Elam deserves a quicker and better plan until he fails. He's got great speed and potential intangibles. If developed, even if still a backup, he could give us an extra dimensional matchup and playmaking ability in the playoffs. We can't be content with simply winning the regular season and how things appear against the weaker teams in the regular season. We know what to expect in the playoffs and must gear for that even if it means mistakes and taking some losses to develop our best talent now.

And this is the crux of where I feel McDermott needs to improve. Thinking something isn't broke during the regular season isn't the same as when we are up against the top teams in the playoffs. Push the development of targeted rookies/backups that could have critical roles in improving what doesn't appear broken yet. Especially if they may be playmakers, not just scheme executors. DL, safety and CB. It's going to take multiple games for rookies/backups to get comfortable on the field and there is no substitute for it. I'm not saying the change of personnel has to happen, just that McD whittle out some opportunity when game conditions allow and see if these guys show enough to warrant it. In Elam's case, he seems able to handle game situations, but no one will truly know how well until he gets game minutes. Why wait until next year if there's a possibility you can develop him to contribute in the playoffs this year? Yeah, this guy gets it: https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/bills-defense-in-desperate-need-of-injection-of-rookie-talent/ar-AA1tybz8?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=658e77147ca04fdda4486a48d8c5bcf0&ei=17

Such a small, picky correction, I know. But let's not minimize the degree of our ownership here!😉

No. Douglas and Benford are 1,2. You don't just push them out and plug in Elam. If Benford had been healthy for Miami, Elam never sees the field. But get Elam some work in games where the score isn't close like second half Seattle or Titans. A series here, a series there. This guy has speed and seems to be a playmaker with the ball. He's no longer a big liability out there, give him some extra opportunities to grow and see if he takes off.

Thanks for mentioning, that's weird too. Gotta wonder if his personality isn't a team fit and is part of the problem.

It's still weird for me. Douglas 40 time: 4.59. Benford 40 time: 4.53 Elam 40 time: 4.39 Yes, Douglas and Benford have overall played really well this season. But we're trying to win a Super Bowl, Elam shows signs of being a playmaker and has never been given a consistent chance to log some minutes and get comfortable on the field. He's got elite speed and noticeably more quickness to the ball than the other two. He looked fine out there against Miami. I like McD and want him to continue to be our coach. I agree with his philosophy about making players earn it. But, when you have a guy with Elam's potential, when Elam starts progressing in practice enough you tilt the scales a bit and cycle him on the field judiciously to see if you can accelerate his development. He could have logged second half minutes in Seattle and Tennessee but didn't. Not just EOG garbage time either. Douglas is also a potential FA after this season. Another reason to give Elam more chances. I respect McD's system, but worry he and it are short-sighted in terms of having our most talented playmakers developed to help win a Super Bowl now.

It was earlier in the play, on Dolphins #20. The clip is bottom of page 1. Still a weak call.

I believe that's called penetration. Thankfully I've never witnessed it during a football game.

Their FO was not dumb as hell if you believe Haslam mandated Watson start no matter what. Same reason why Winston didn't come in after Watson got hurt. There's a good chance if Winston has a good season they get rid of him since I hear Watson will be ready by the beginning of next season.

Ironic that he often took great care avoiding contact after a catch and now this. Mercifully, I don't think his fashion tastes can stand up on their own as a career.