Alphadawg7

Then why didn’t the Packers win today without Alexander and Jones? Why didn’t the Titans beat Houston today without Henry? Why did the Niners struggle without key players they previous weeks? Why did the Chiefs D look so bad without Clark? Your statement is absurd and not based on facts or reason. Injuries matter to everyone, and key injuries hurt teams. Period. We lost today and sorely missed Edmunds, Star and Spencer. But we lost today because we keep beating ourselves on all sides of the ball. Thats a good question and the one that MUST be answered then solved. It’s not our “depth” or drafts.

Lol, I know teams have injuries. That’s not what I’m saying is cliche. I’m saying your fact less claim that teams still keep winning when dealing with the loss of key players is cliche. It’s most often not factual.

Did you watch the Baltimore games? They had some low percentage miraculous wins. They won because they DID NOT shoot themselves in the foot like we keep doing every game. It’s NOT their depth and several of those games were against bad teams they barely beat. Again, your statement is cliche, is proven wrong by every other team in the league and every season. You act like all teams missing important players just always keep winning. What happened to the Titans today? Oh yeah, they lost to Tyrod Taylor and the Texans. I mean there are a plethora more examples of good teams dropping games while missing important players. So stop with this cliche, it’s more often false than correct.

People need to stop with the cliche “every team has injuries”. It’s ridiculous statement, because those teams struggle too. That blanket statement is just thrown around without any facts. It’s a fan myth. Facts are, when teams lose key players games get harder to win. It’s been proven time in and time again. Occasionally injuries lead to teams finding new stars and do better than others at times. But no team is just stacked with a full starting caliber roster backing up their starters.

Wrong...most defenses struggle more when missing their key DL player that sets up McD and Fraziers defense, not to mention their captain of the defense at MLB. It was the mental mistakes all 3 phases made today that cost us this game though. No disrespect but I hate the "other teams have injuries" statement. No injuries are equal, no team is built the same way. And most teams with key injuries are having their own struggles, so its never even an accurate statement.

When healthy, we are absolutely a contender. When not healthy we are vulnerable depending on who is out. But we have one major issue...we are committing way way way too many dumb mistakes to beat ourselves. We are our toughest opponent. We continue to leave points on the board and also let opponents have free points because we make untimely mistakes and penalties. 3rd and 2 and going to easily pick it up...play blown dead...false start. Next play holding...suddenly 3rd and 18 instead of TD or FG. Happens way too often like it did today. Several times we would hold them and again a bad penalty gives them a free first down or do over. 3 plays in the first half led to this being a 3 score game at half time. 3rd and 2 false start on our opening drive that led to 3rd and 18 and an INT. We were moving the ball at will at that point, we likely score a TD or at the very least a FG. Instead we give them great field position and they convert into another TD. Next...we had them 3 and out...give them a free first down with penalties. Eventually gives them 3 more points. Then...McKenzie fumble gave them a free TD. Just those 3 plays completely turned the game substantially in their favor. Then we still had a drive to end the half and open the half...both drives killed by mistakes and dropped passes that we self inflicted on ourselves again. This is our BIGGEST issue. We have done this in so many games...its why we lost every game this year coming into this game...Pitt, Tenn, and Jags were all losses that were the result of plays we shot ourselves in the foot with unnecessary and stupid mistakes. For this reason, I feel like we can still compete for and win a SB this year. We need to significantly reduce those kinds of mistakes, and its something we CAN do...and if we do, we are as tough as anyone in the league to beat. Heck, had we just been better on that alone thus far, we would be undefeated coming into this week.

But you are ignoring a SUBSTANTIAL amount of context from the game. First drive, could have been stopped on 3rd and 2, they ran it right up the middle for 3 yards. You telling me Star doesn't give them a better chance to get off the field? Bills first drive...3rd and 2, Josh out on the run about easily pick up the first...play blown dead, false start. Next play Holding...becomes 3rd and 18 which leads to Allen INT on a play Davis was being big time held by his defender while trying to come back for the ball allowing the other CB to step in front and intercept the ball. McKenzie fumble gives them a free TD. Other times we stopped them on 3rd down and had penalties undo it. You guys want to all look at the scoreboard and put the sole blame on the defense. We were missing 2 important players on our D, this was already going to be a tough game. But what we can NOT do is continuously shoot our selves in the foot. That is what was the bigger factor today...we let the game get away because of stupid mistakes we committed on both sides of the ball. And even with all that, offense had a shot to put up points on back to back drives to end and start the half. Dumb mistakes again killed us, including a ton of drops and instead of being a one score game, it remained a 3 score game because we couldn't put points on the board. So piss and moan all you guys want, but the loss of Star and Edmunds was felt today...and more importantly, our OWN MISTAKES did us in way more than anything else. And that is something to be concerned about, because we have had a real problem with beating ourselves lately.

Our defense was a lot worse last year, not sure how you dont remember that

All 3 of you need to pay more attention when Star is on the field. He is substantially more important than you are giving him credit for, and it shows on the field and on the stat sheet for this defense.

Number 1 defense across the board entering today. Suddenly now its terrible according to this thread while cleverly over looking that we were missing 2 critical players on defense in Edmunds and ESPECIALLY Star (against a run dominant team) and also continuously shot ourselves in the foot on both sides of the ball with bad penalties and turnovers? Today was way more about not having our size in the middle of the field, dumb penalties, and dumb mental errors.

Geezus, a stupid thread before the game is even over. How lets these fools who have nothing to say unless its a loss start threads?

I feel like this was pre written on a piece of cardboard using a bunch of broken crayons before transcribed to here

I’m not normally that guy, but we 9 pages deep and the OP and title still have it wrong and it’s amazing how badly his name is getting butchered in this thread lol

Geezus, can anyone on this board spell his name right? It's Le'Veon Bell. New rule...if you cant spell their name, you can't post about them.

Are they over hyped: Yes. Should they be overlooked: No The 3 best teams they faced they lost to. During their 4 game win streak they beat a mediocre Eagles team, and decimated Browns team missing its best offensive players the offense is built around, the lowly Jets, and a reeling Panthers team with lousy Darnold. 4 game win streak is a 4 game win streak still. But the quality of opponent during the week they played them was pretty bad. When facing a quality team at full strength, they lost every game. So yes, over hyped. But they are definitely someone to still take serious. Their schedule, outside the 2 Bills games, is pretty squishy rest of the year too, so they have a legitimate shot at making a push for the playoffs. I can’t see Atlanta beating them Thursday. Bills are going to need to avoid any more Jaguars like hiccups and definitely going to be sure to win at the very least one of the head to head games to insure we win the division. Personally, I think we will win both Pats games and win the division handedly. But that is no longer the slam dunk it was thought to be when the season began. We handle our business though, we will win the division with a multiple game lead.

I think its possible to get 2 guys over 1000, but with Knox back and Davis and McKenzie even getting more snaps, I am skeptical we do just based on how much we spread the ball around. For example, some context is missing from those stats though...Knox missed 3 games and Davis wasn't used a lot first half the season. Knox is obviously an important cog to the offense, but I also think they are trying to get Davis more snaps too, even McKenzie is starting to show up in the offense some lately. Plus, I suspect Diggs will see more targets moving forward as well. 2 guys over 1000: Possible, but skeptical with everyone healthy. 3 guys over 1000: Not likely without injuries.

Yes it proved no one needs to think about the Jags game ever again. Off day, it happens to everyone, this is the NFL.

I have thought about this too given how much more sporadic his usage is this year, he is not as "essential" it seems week to week in our game plan. That being said, McKenzie is no where close to Cole in ability. He doesn't have the same chops when it comes to route running, abusing defenders, and hands. McKenzie has been outstanding as a returner, and love him on the team. But our offense would take a hit if he had to replace Cole. To put it simply: Beasley is a dog out there in all the best ways. McKenzie is a finesse player. However, I don't know what Cole's future is here. He certainly didn't do himself any favors when he was boasting about not adhering to COVID rules and doing what ever he wants even if it meant losing game checks. But, I think that talk was just that...talk...and he seems to be, at least as far as we know, behaving and not putting his teammates at risk. So maybe that is behind him now. I think Cole likely is a Bill come week 1 next year, but admittedly its not as much a foregone conclusion as I would have thought it would be at this point in the season.

Things I think about Devin: Pros: Shifty - He is a guy who can make people miss and find extra yards in tight spaces. Runs hard - He is actually difficult to tackle with his powerful legs and low center of gravity, frequently keeps the pile moving forward once contact is made for such a small guy. Good vision - He sees the field well and finds seams even when none seem to be there. Cons: Quick but not fast - He is shifty and quick, especially when cutting, but he doesn't have that next gear explosion. Unreliable hands - While he can be effective in the passing game, his hands are nothing to write home about. Fit here: I wish Daboll used him better, same with Moss. We need to play to the strengths more of our RB's and give them chances to get the ball and hit the hole. We seem to run too many run plays that are slow to develop. For example, RPO's or delayed handoffs from shotgun formations. This can be maddening to watch because when they don't work, instead of it being something like a short gain to a short loss, we end up losing 4 to 6 yards which is worse than a false start penalty. At least with a false start penalty, you get to replay the down when you lose 5 yards. I wish Daboll would give our guys more opportunities to get the ball and hit holes. Until then, its not clear just how good Devin or Moss could be.

Oh gawd, please no "lets sign him BS"! He has nothing to offer. Lets recap his tenure since he last played a snap with Pitt. 1. Gives up a huge amount of money by sitting out a year to end up with a smaller contract than he would have gotten had he just stayed in Pitt and resigned. 2. Jets pay him a butt load...despite the money invested, they feel they are a better team WITHOUT him and cut him even though they badly needed a RB. 3. KC gets him for nothing, badly needed RB help...and still despite costing them barely anything, he wasn't valuable enough to keep around. 4. Ravens take a chance on him, costing them practically nothing...and despite BADLY needing help at RB dont feel he is worth keeping on the roster even though he costs them very little to have around. Seriously, what could he offer anyone at this point? Disaster at the Jets and shown to be of little value to two well coached and top flight franchises in KC and Balt even though he cost them nothing. There is no possible chance he could come here and take any playing time from Moss, Devin or even Brieda at this point. He sucks and is done.

Lol, talk about over exaggerating a win against what is a hurting and struggling Browns team missing all its best offensive players. Pats are definitely a team that has improved, but roster to roster, ours is still quite better. The Browns defense outside Garrett is terrible. Their 4 game win streak is against a dismantled Browns team, the woeful panthers where Darnold was hot garbage, the woeful jets, and a struggling Chargers team whose only win in the last 4 weeks was a narrow one against the mediocre Eagles. So lets not over exaggerate the Pats as if they are running through the NFL's elite. They still lost to the Bucs, Saints, Cowboys, the only good teams they faced. They also lost to the Dolphins week 1. I mean the Pats barely beat the Texans even. Roster to Roster...Bills are superior in pretty much every unit. Better secondary, better safeties, better LB's, better DL...so the entire Defense. We have a far superior QB and WR group as well. We even actually have a more productive run game thanks to Allen also being a weapon in the run game. About the only area the Pats have an edge is at OL right now given our injury issues. But once we get healthy, I think they grade out a lot closer. So barring injuries, I cant see a path for the Pats to win the division over the remainder of the season.

I never said he was a bum, I have said many times he is a good player and I like him. Again, you took one comment out of context. I already explained my stance on him many times, and you don't actually seem to disagree with that stance. You just keep coming back to this one thing that I already acknowledged came across as exaggerated. But...you are also exaggerating him a bit on the positive side. He isn't being targeted because the Cowboys are up big...they have only been up big 3 times like that the whole season. Also, this notion that his INT's aren't "lucky" either is just not entirely accurate either. Atleast 4 of them were flat out lucky. I went back and just watched all 8 only because I know there were serval I saw live that were more of the lucky caliber. Int #1: Lucky...ball bounces off hands of RB on a screen and goes right to him 4 yards away. Otherwise its a big gain as they had plenty of blocking out front for that screen to Fournette. Int #2: Not luck...makes great play on the ball thrown by Herbert. Int #3: I wouldn't call it lucky, but awful awful pass by Hurts that was behind his receiver on an out where the receiver also fell down. Easy pick for any DB. Int #4: Lucky: Darnolds pass was no where near Anderson and not only behind him but off target...had it been on target it was a big gain by Anderson who had a ton of room in front of him to run. Int #5: Not Luck: Makes a great play, similar to the one on Herbert at #2 above for his 2nd of the game against Darnold. Int #6: Not Luck: Well played on a poorly thrown deep ball that was under thrown by Danny Dimes. Int #7: Lucky: Ball went through the receivers hands, otherwise its caught for a first down. Mistake by the WR, not good coverage by Diggs. Int #8: Lucky: Pitts was wide open and Ryan throws a terrible ball that was both behind and sailed over his head right to Diggs. On target and another big gain by Pitts. FWIW, I am sure you can do this with any DB, so not meant to discredit Diggs, his 8 Ints this early in the season are insane. But you said his INT's aren't luck multiple times now, and I already knew of several that were. Again, does not diminish his 8 int's by any means, he still needs to make that catch when the opportunity arises and many cornerbacks drop a lot of those. So still deserves a lot of credit. My point here is that when he no longer gets those fortunate bounces, what are you left with? So I still think he is going to need to adjust in order to become a consistent top corner in this league. There are a lot of guys who have those big INT total seasons...but never repeat. Its what he does when he is not getting those INT's I am always more interested in when it comes to a cornerback. And right now, I think he is too hyper focused on trying to get the INT and I have a feeling its going to hurt them when they are playing in a lose and go home playoff game.

What a ridiculous comment. Gee, wonder if it had anything to do with Tyrod Taylor, young developing Josh Allen, a terrible WR group, etc etc while Tom Brady and BB were winning Super Bowls still. That is the REASON why McD was 0-6...not because he is some kind of terrible coach in comparison. In those 6 losses were over whelming underdogs for a reason and the Pats were contending for SB's as we were rebuilding.

We played the Jests. Everyone calm down...our whole Defense looked HOF worthy yesterday.

Its not just big plays, he is middle of the pack on giving up receptions. Like I said, there is a reason he is targeted so much. Maybe "often" came across as exaggerated, but the point is he has been playing an all or nothing style committing to the INT. And I think that is a more selfish style of play, and don't be surprised if it contributes to the cowboys getting bounced in the playoffs because he gives up too much in a game and doesn't get the INT he is selling out for. Again, I don't disagree he is a talent, but IMHO his overall play is being over rated because of the INT total is so incredible.