WhitewalkerInPhilly

I wanted to take a moment to stop, reflect, and collect associated thoughts as the season is over. I had a crazy fall, spending most of it commuting back to Buffalo on weekdays and spending what time I could with my fiance in Philly, getting married, and starting a new job. So I haven’t posted as much as usual this year. But now that I can reflect, I guess here’s a lot of what I’ve been mulling on as we close out and look ahead to the rest of 2018: Ever since I signed up on the board here, the most exciting times we’ve had in a year has been the offseason. I really doubt that’s the case in 2018. I was floating on air to start 2018 as New Years hit. As a buddy of mine put it “I didn’t know how much making the playoffs and breaking the streak mattered to me until it happened”. I know what he means. It was as if a weight had been taken off my chest, and I could breathe during the playoff game, as heartbreaking as that was to watch. When Darby and Sammy were traded, I honestly thought we were tanking. I said so at the time, fairly definitively. I was wrong. Looking now, maybe they might have made a difference against the Jags, especially if Sammy is the one on that goalline pass attempt (more on that later), but looking at what they did elsewhere and what we got, I can’t say that we were on the wrong end. Of note is that we managed to get Benjamin, who is a very nice piece, for a third and still have one in reserve. I know the tide is agaisnt paying running backs hitting the wrong side of 30, but Shady currently is worth every dollar we’ve paid him. The man was a huge part of our offense in an offense that didn’t have much else going, and he took plenty of shots across the middle as a result. Numbers wise, it’s going to look like he had a down year, but he looks as elusive as ever. I blame...let’s call them “other factors”. Again, I will get to them soon. I was annoyed at Darby leaving, but I’m going to say: the secondary looks pretty solid. Safeties always seem to get passed over in the discussion of big money contracts. I remember the talk about how Byrd wasn’t worth the money he was asking (he wasn’t), but it always struck me that safeties get the short end compared to the “lock down corner”. Hyde and Poyer were absolute steals in free agency. I expected Hyde to be good, but not that good. I honestly didn’t expect much out of Poyer, and he absolutely defied expectations. Gaines was solid (when not injured) and I think it is a disgrace that White is not part of the DROY discussion. If we can get Gaines on a reasonable deal, I think our secondary is locked in for the next few years. If there’s one huge knock I have on McDermott as a defensive coach, it’s how the Darues situation worked out. I get that the man was dragging. I get that the contract was part of the old regime. But we slammed Rex for not motivating Mario, and I am going to hit McD with the same stick here. Maybe there was nothing that could be done, but that was a whole lot of dead money and a pathetic return value for a player who can be very good when he wants to be, and it took a while for us to get the run defense back on track. Now, for the part that will get me death threats: Tyrod. I have been a Tyrod defender. I think that a great deal of criticism has been unjust. But this year made it clear to me: as we go forward, and look to be a perennial contender, he is just Not. Good. Enough. He had plenty of things working against him: a new system, his most familiar receivers leaving, an OC that didn’t make the best of his strengths but at the end of the day, we have seen what he is. It isn’t going to get better than his first year. The Bills *need* to have a plan going to upgrade from him this offseason. That said, I can see him starting week 1. Trubinsky and Watson weren’t ready week 1. Mahomes rode the pine all year. Let’s not repeat the mistakes of the past and have another EJ situation. But we need something: throw a stupid number of picks at the Colts for Luck, or take a shot in the 1st round on a guy, but we need something that isn’t Peterman. Peterman: I do not understand the love for this guy. If my choices are Billy Jo Hobart, or this guy, I am seriously considering Hobart. Hobart had fewer interceptions while not giving a damn. Maybe magic happens, or he rebounds, but I will not watch next year if he is our starter. Dennison: He is not a great OC. That is not to say that there weren’t periods when he could string together nice drives. He can. My knock is that he simply does not make the best of the players and talent he has. The O-line blocking regressed. He had a QB who was at his best as a “roll out in the pocket” and “home run hitter”. Dennison focused on a WCO better suited for a traditional drop back passer. Yards, YPC, Touchdowns, TD:Int ratio and rushing yards all dropped. The 10th scoring offense went to 22nd. Maybe if you get him a shiny unicorn of a perfect QB he looks good, but right now, he stinks. Shopping list for 2018 QB. We need another option. He doesn’t have to start right away, but we absolutely need to get one going. WR. Benjamin is ok, and perhaps with some seasoning Zay cures the dropsies, but the position desperately needs an upgrade DT. Probably 2 DTs if Kyle is leaving as expected. The D-line as a whole dropped off this year, but Hughes and Lawson are not the problem at the moment. We have to fix the center first. LB. We made do, but we could really use an upgrade here if we want to be a defense first team. Ok, roast away.

I get your frustration. And if we were tanking, I would agree with you. But all signs say that we are not. Taylor doesn't win games for us, but rarely loses them. Even if we use our firsts on a rookie, neither Trubinsky nor Watson were ready week 1. Mahomes didn't see the field the entire year. The last thing I want is to destroy another project QB like Marrone did EJ

*Looks at Peterman* we did?

Exactly! I thought he got a raw deal and that we were too harsh, and even I was willing to say "that's enough" People wanted to tar and feather the man, and even he didn't look as bad as Peterman has. The mystery to me isn't why so many people are down on Peterman. it's why, after seeing so much vitriol for EJ, and Losman, how someone who has done objectively worse is getting the benefit of the doubt.

By that logic, we should reach out to Jeff Tuel. He has shown just as much, if not more, in his time here as Peterman. Fewer picks for one thing, and they are tied for crucial killer ones. I'm not saying we kick him off the team. Maybe after another off-season, he "gets it" and shows improvement. But that sure as schiesse isn't stopping me from drafting someone who I would expect to start over him, never mind the lunacy of benching Tyrod for him.

I might go with you on Bledsoe, but the last two go a bit far for me. However, I will note that you didn't address his main point: why are you in a rush to dump Tyrod when you don't have a known better option on the roster? Look for one, certainly. But if we are putting Peterman out there in 2018, you can kiss your chance of returning to the playoffs goodbye (right before it files for a restraining order)

I honestly cannot say that the "disrespect" is unearned. Maybe, maybe, MAYBE Peterman gets better. Alex Smith came around to have a decent career. But based off of what I've seen this season, here are a few descriptors I thought of as the game ended: -Peterman is a poor man's Fitz. Less arm talent, less experience, less of a knack for lucky breaks. -Peterman makes me long for the days of EJ. -If Peterman is our savior, I think being a Bills fan might literally be hell. Draft a replacement in the 1st. Let him cone along under Tyrod until he is ready. The only reason Peterman should be on the field is if our O-line is hurt and we need a warm body to be battered into concussion protocol.

In case anyone wonder why I hate Peterman. I'm not saying Taylor is blameless. We absolutely need to start looking at a successor. But Jesus, you would think that We were talking about Billie Jo Hobart as our starting QB for 3 years running. Seriously, y'all beating up on 26 are delusional. And that's coming from a Kool Aid drinker

I certainly can. That was a horrible decision to begin with, and the fact that it ended our season does not help. I think we all understand that Tyrod is not the long term answer. But anyone who thinks that Peterman has a serious hope of being an Upgrade is delusional.

From your lips to God's ears.

I know. And it's a huge drop off. But even the biggest haters of Nick Foles are going, "whoa, let's pump the brakes on the Nate Sudfeld talk". Instead, they are talking "seriously, let's get Adjayi going to take the pressure off and focus on getting the defense to clamp down." Sound familiar?

This is my logic. Living in Philly, I have seen the drop off levels between elite QB play (Wentz), marginal starter/ quality back up (Tyrod/Foles) and the unknown dregs that idiots call for because they think anything will be better (Peterman/Sudfeld). Elite talent will mask deficiencies you didn't know you had. Losing that changes election from Super Bowl to "maybe we win a playoff game". Dropping from the next level to Peterman level goes from frustrating to "I might be physically I'll watching this." Unless my fantasy of the Bills trading for Luck comes to pass, we should start Tyrod Week 1, draft a guy in Round 1, and see how the season takes us.

Bluntly: no. Maybe he is better with a traditional pocket passer but unless we get Andrew Luck in the offseason there is none of those without serious question marks. My question is who we get. That TD was. I am annoyed at the lack of use of Tyrod's mobility, but he goes get some nice routes. O'Leary was wide open

It's hard to move on from a guy when he did enough to get us in the playoffs. There are mitigating factors too with not a lot of WR talent for most of the year. With Benjamin, the offense really looked better. I would like to see him with another year, with better recievers.

Lol, I had to reread that. In seriousness, I think that if we shut down the run, I trust our secondary to single cover and force Bortles to try to be a hero. I need to make that my profile picture.

With all of the focusing (at least dollars wise in FA) cornerbacks, it's somehow a surprise that quality safety play elevates the whole secondary. These were two huge pickups, and Poyer in particular has surprised me. I agree that if we sign Gaines back and draft another CB our secondary looks set for years.

Holy ****. Guys we are in the playoffs

That we "stole their birth" and that they had given it away. But they have enough

Thank God. I have to work Saturday

My Ravens friend fan is bitching, but they have 2 super bowls since we last went to the playoffs so he can suck it

I was in elementary school. Depending on the date, there will be people who hit 18 before the Bills return to a playoff game.

This is my vote for post of the day

Short answer: No. Long answer: Haaaaahaaah. Bwahahaha, haa! *pounds the floor* Haha haha. Oh Jesus effing lord *chokes laughing* has a *paidr* Oh wait, you were serious. No. Haha

Those are not homer calls. These are "Pats bribing the refs" calls

My unlucky tee shirt... Lol, just kidding. It's Kraft bribing the refs.