SageAgainstTheMachine

I'd argue that's Leonidas McMumbles.

Of 22 expected starters, one guy is out. Two if you count Kiko. This isn't exactly an injury bug situation yet.

Yep. The "Oh crap, I'm gonna be in trouble with coach!" mentality probably doesn't live in the hearts and minds of most NFL players. Being strong and bombastic is one thing, but I get the sense that Harbaugh is a condescending ass.

Plus, diabeetus. But it's not Cutler I worry about. It's covering Marshall and Jeffery. I think any QB in the league would look above average with two top-10 receivers.

In other words, a pretty solid chance!

If Orton comes in, it's probably for the rest of the season. I don't think Marrone presses that button on day 1. Also, Orton's command of the playbook must still be pretty limited. Even though he's a veteran, he'd probably enter the game with a dozen or so plays in his back pocket.

For one, it's when the most people are thinking about football. Personally, I think that the players make their own choices to play. They have agency. But when a multi-billion industry is motored by guys who are willingly lopping off a third of their lives, it's a relevant story and journalists who cover sports are obligated to pay it mind. NOTE: I've yet to read the article (though I will now) and moreover I don't think of Bucky Gleason as some intrepid ace reporter. I'm speaking mostly on principle.

I'll revisit this after the season and see if even half of these are correct... 1. Sammy Watkins, while having an encouraging season, will finish second on the Bills in yards (to Robert Woods) and touchdowns (to Scott Chandler). 2. Not a single defensive lineman nets double digit sacks this time, but the Bills in total will still get at least 45. 3. Bryce Brown will touch the ball 100 times. 4. By the end of the season, 33 year old Fred Jackson has 900 rushing yards, 300 receiving yards, and 9 touchdowns, yet will enter the 2015 fantasy season vastly underrated. 5. Kyle Orton starts more games than EJ Manuel. 6. After each Bills loss that renders the team at .500 or lower, 20% of new threads will be about quitting the team forever. 7. Brandon Spikes will have 110 tackles, include 80 solo tackles, after playing a surprising number of 3rd downs. 8. Aaron Williams will lead the team in interceptions and be a backup FS in the pro bowl. 9. Of the current starters on the offensive line, only Eric Wood and Cordy Glenn will be un-replaced at their position by the bye week. 10. The Bills will overcome their QB deficiencies to go 8-8, and the Browns will use the 17th pick of the draft on a bust.

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I'll address the other article that OP brought up. You can't have your cake and eat it too. If you're going to invest time and energy, and derive entertainment value from a combat sport, then you can't really shy away from hearing about the negative effects that the sport has on the players.

I broke into Brandon Marshall's home and hypnotized him into thinking he plays for the Bills, the trigger being a flipping coin.

My big question is Mike Wallace or Terrance Williams for my WR3. Both are kind of boom or bust options and I'd normally pick Wallace but he's going up against Revis this week. Then again, is this the same Revis from a few years ago?

'' I don't agree that it's the least important game on the schedule. Things could snowball very quickly if the Bills arrive home with an 0-1 record and a bad loss, after all the booing in the pre season.

Wow. Well done, Bengals.

So, Brady is Fred Jackson's dad? Doesn't seem plausible.

Nickell Robey is our Ewok.

Meh. Assuming some intern inputted these at 3 am, do you really fault whoever that was for associating the Bills with last place? It's not what I'd call "on purpose". The Bills are just the 4th team that comes to mind when people think of the AFC East. For the record, the high profile Giants and Falcons are also listed last and the Superbowl champion Seahawks are listed 3rd in their division.

Yep. Imagine if the draft and the salary cap didn't exist in the NFL - if there was a completely free market.

True, but certain teams are paid attention no matter what. It mostly has to do with recognizable stars, though, and not the size of the market. If the Bills are pedestrian and start the season 2-3, they'll do so with incredible anonymity. If the Browns (formerly in the same boat) start a pedestrian 2-3, Johnny Manziel will be gettting headlines.

I could only see those numbers happening if Bernard gets injured, but I do like Hill a lot. My bold prediction is that the AFC East will be decided by 1 game or tie breakers.

Looking back at those Jauron teams, how did they get to 7 wins?

I don't think he's ranking the teams. It's an article about a large group of "bottom feeders" and he happens to mention the Bills first. Barnwell is most disparaging toward the Raiders in this article, who he mentions last. That said, it's all kinds of dumb analysis. The BEST case scenario is that our starting QB fails?

Jordan Palmer may not have been around for long, but at least we know that he taught Chris Hogan how to wide receive while he was here.

I'm not going to bash you, ex-fan. Because you're not an ex-fan. I believe that you've convinced yourself you're rooting for the Steelers. I even believe you watch them instead of the Bills on Sunday afternoons. I get that. Must be kinda nice. I don't believe for a second that you don't feel more (good or bad) when you check the Bills score. I don't believe that you'd feel good if the Steelers beat the Bills head to head. I don't believe that you'd refrain from cheering on the Bills if they found themselves in playoff contention. Why? We can't rationalize our emotions or simply decide that they don't exist, and sports fanship is usually emotional. Hope to see you back here soon, Bills fan.

There have been important games. It's just that we've lost pretty much all of them. Remember 2008, when we were 5-1?