Buddo

https://theathletic.com/2194262/2020/11/27/stevie-johnson-bills-dropped-touchdown/ I highly recommend this. 'For nine years in the back of my closet, it remained in a UPS box, tape intact and seal unbroken. At best, I’ve been confused about what to do with the contents. That’s when I can reconcile being in possession of this stuff at all. Part of me feels guilty, evidenced by three address labels. I bought it, signed for it, felt silly and sent the box back, reconsidered and reversed shipment back to my house. Something indescribable compelled me to save it, but not enough to look at it. Inside is the representation of another man’s agony, albeit an existential crisis that eventually enriched his life. He’s a man I know, a man I respect. Yet I always wondered how often he contemplates navigating that moment and what he would think about me having that UPS box. Stevie Johnson was in Buffalo last month, and it was time to sort this out. The play happened 10 years ago this weekend. In sudden death, Johnson sprung open behind the Pittsburgh Steelers’ secondary for the end zone. Ryan Fitzpatrick heaved a perfect spiral that Johnson stone dropped. The Buffalo Bills lost.' This is both about the drop, and Stevie, and a mysterious box that Graham has had for years, that relates to it all. The article is behind a paywall I believe but I also know many here have a sub. I can't say too much about it, as it would spoil the effect, but it's a terrific article. If it's been posted before, then please merge this.

That's also a pretty good list in respect of actual outcomes so far.

I didn't know he played with Bill Cosby.....;) And you can't have heard his first solo album.

In that game, you had probably the worst and best of Maradona. The second goal being the best of him. Just 5 minutes (or less) earlier, he scored the infamous 'Hand of God' goal, where he deliberately punched the ball over the Goalkeeper - with never a regret for having cheated. As someone said earlier, probably his best performances were for Napoli, when he almost single-handedly, took them to their two titles in Italy. Considering that it's 11 a side, that was a phenominal achievement. It also should be said, that around that time, overall, Serie A, was probably the best, most competetive top league in Europe. Personally, I wouldn't say he was the best ever, as I feel that unlike others of similar transcendent ability, he was more personally flawed - especially in terms of sportsmanship, but I don't think he should be left out of the conversation. I don't think there's an argument, that he was the best player of his era, however. R.I.P.

Never liked Brady. Don't think he is remotely the Goat. He hasn't been, nor ever will be, an especially likeable human being, and his petulance simply confirms that.

He is, but as explained earlier in the thread, beause he's released after the trade deadline, he still goes through waivers. He can choose not to play, but he can't choose where he goes.

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2020/11/26/lamar-jackson-tests-positive-for-covid-19/ Seems like the way it's going, the Ravens might struggle to put out a team of backups, let alone starters. In many respects, it seems as though the NFL as a whole, has done remarkably well to avoid this type of scenario, for as long as it has. I think we are getting to the point where there are going to be some decisions made, that a lot of people aren't going to like, simply to keep the season on track. There may be a need for teams to forfeit games, not so much because they couldn't be rescheduled, but more because there is no guarantee, that a rescheduled game, can be played at a much later date - e.g. week 18 In some ways, it's ironic that the NFL has got through almost 3/4 of the regular season, but might have to then go down the route of some games being forfeited, because they are running out of time.

For some reason I hadn't spotted this. A tough break for Sweeney, to be sure, but hopefully he can bounce back from it next year. Credit must also go to the guys who devised the protocol for returning. Without getting cleared by a cardiologist, how badly could things have gone for any guys affected like this? I've always thought that Sweeney has got more to offer, and had hoped we would get to see more of him this year. Atm, if he had been fit, I would have had him behind Kroft as our #2 TE, simply because Knox appears to have not improved. I hope everything goes well for him, and will look forward to hearing about him lighting up TC next year.

That's an interesting point Banana. Ravens and Belicheck seem to be unable to draft decent WRs. They get the odd one now and then, but it's more by luck than judgement. They miss on a whole lot more of them than they hit on. Bills major blind spot currently is TE. We either don't draft them, or they don't seem to be much good - even if there is occasional promise, before an apparently inevitable downfall. In recent times, the 49ers look like a good drafting team. As do Indy. Alongside other teams already mentioned, in the Steelers, Ravens (WRs notwithstanding), Saints. Oddly enough, I think the Cowgirls are better than people give them credit for, irrespective of how many Joneses they have doing it. Their problems stem more from coaching than a lack of talent, although it could be argued that they simply pick talent without bothering to worry about schematic fits. Where does Beane sit in all of this? Still too early to say, imho. There are guys who have contributed, yet can't be deemed to be 'stars' yet, their body of work simply isn't there. He does get tremendous kudos for drafting Allen. Atm, there isn't another QB from that class I would rather have. Jackson has had his moments, but I'd rather have Allen, as it should be obvious, that injuries aside, he is on a development path that gives him the potential for a very long lived career. I'm not convinced that Jackson will last unless he develops better pocket skills.

From the highlight reel, it does appear he has good hands. Also looked like he was concentrating on bringing the football in before anything else - something Knox can learn from. Looked comfortable catching the football away from his body. I wouldn't be too quick to assume he won't get on the roster, as he can give something a little different, due to his size, and it's possible he can be worked into the offense in a game that doesn't mean so much, hopefully.

If you look at the tweet in the thread mentioned, there is the reason why Powell was referenced - because Trump tweeted she was part of the team. There's no sloppy journalism about that. It would be sloppy journalism not to include her after the tweet. I don't see that as partisan, at all, merely a statement of fact based off of what Trump has tweeted. While it certainly has become increasingly difficult to get any unbiased viewpoint about the election, sometimes you just have to call a crackpot, a crackpot, additional evidence being the fact that Team Trump is trying to move several steps away from Powell, quickly.

I look forward to Mayor Giuliani spearheading the legal effort to defend OUR RIGHT to FREE and FAIR ELECTIONS! Rudy Giuliani, Joseph diGenova, Victoria Toensing, Sidney Powell, and Jenna Ellis, a truly great team, added to our other wonderful lawyers and representatives! That's a tweet from Trump on 15th November, that is in the 'Legal Machine Grinds to a Halt' thread on the last page. I don't know how to link it between the threads, but clicking on it in the thread, does take you to the actual tweet. I'm assuming that there is the evidence you wanted that Powell was associated with Trump's legal team, and it's also why msm have linked her o it. That and being around some pressers with Guiliani et al.

Don't know about that, but Malik Reed is a one man wrecking crew atm for them.

Hasn't that already been done though? I would assume that they will have to pay for another recount themselves, i.e. the Trump campaign, as Georgia has already fulfilled its own oblligation to recount the votes once, due to the closeness of it in respect of percentages. Another suit has been thrown out of court in Pennsylvania, as well.

Thanks for posting the article. It's a good one. Allen's 'inaccuracy' has been linked to his 'mechanics'. Iirc, Beane addressed this some time ago, in that when he watched the tape, he saw an accurate QB, whenever his feet were right. Working on his footwork, is a large part of his improvement, year on year. Allen is a 'natural' thrower and with his size and long levers, it's where a lot of his arm strength comes from. I'd say he has known for a long time just how strong his arm is, but what he's also just learning, is that for someone of his arm strength, the amount of velocity/mustard/heat he puts on a football, is just as critical. One of the most important aspects in all of this, is that Beane et al, decided that Allen's 'flaws' were fixable, and that the man himself had the requisite desire and smarts, to do so. While I still believe that they were very naive in not having a vet option in place, ultimately, it is to the coaches and Allen's credit to the way he has developed. With the beauty being there is still more to come.

This isn't entirely unfair, but it also doesn't alter the fact that they have improved the offense immeasurably. The 'heavily invested' D, was very good last year, and have had definite continuity issues this year, starting with Star opting out. I think he's been badly missed, not so much because he was a stellar performer, but more that he was solid, and other guys were able to play off of him - especially Phillips last year. I believe the guys they brought in to replace Phillips and Lawson, were intended to be used in a similar fashion, that hasn't materialized due to the absent Star. Injuries haven't helped either, yet there has been noticeable improvements recently, in that guys are starting to make important plays again, even if the overall numbers don't look good still. I'm hopeful that with the bye week upon us, we can get a healthier team on the field, for the important run in.

Another Jackson, maybe another 'diamond in the rough'. Too early to tell, but definitely promising, and with both McDermott and Frazier to coach him up, I think there's a lot of promise there, for the future. I'm glad that Epenesa was gradually getting some time on the field. I think that shows that he is showing the staff something. There are a bunch of vets (sort of) ahead of him, and without pre-season games, it must have been tough going to get the coaches attention. Again, there's promise there, and with the age of (some) of the guys ahead of him, he will get opportunities going forward - he just has to make the most of them. Bass has a leg and a half. He has also improved as the season has gone on. Possibly a bit of a calculated risk to keep him ahead of Hauschka, but it seems to be paying off. A bit of patience will still be needed, as I'm sure he will make a pig's ear of the odd 'gimme' kick still, but he's also going to outright win a few games with that leg of his. Davis has generally been impressive. Seems to make at least one good play a game. Not yet as rounded or refined as he will be in time, but already a valuable contributor, and likely to remain so well into the future. Lastly, Moss. I have been critical of him, as early on, I thought he wasn't getting the speed of the NFL, at all. I think he does now. It is possible that it was in part injury related, but I also think that the couple of games off he had getting fully healthy again, were a bit like Allen in his first year, where he got the opportunity to work a few thing out. He should be a decent part of a RB rotation as we look forward. We just need our line to start run blocking. All of the above have contributed this season, and appear as though they will do so in the future. If they do, and improve, it will turn out to be a very handy draft. Where the draft has been a roaring success, is with the trade for Diggs, who has, if anything, been better than advertised. It's also, oddly enough, a trade that looks like everyone is happy with. Even taking the 'opportunity cost' arguments on board, in respect of picks and contract, I still believe we are getting more than good value for what we gave up.

As with others, I think the time out wasn't wrong. At that point of proceedings, I believe the coach is looking to make sure that his players do the right thing, and it's a lot less about the opposition, strangely enough. I also think that our coaches, at that point in time, were pretty happy with where they 'had' the Cards. In a game like that, if you were in a situation where the opposition need a TD to win, and have at most 2 plays left and no time outs either, with 40+ yards to go, you would take that game situation, probably 99 times out of a 100. There were two parts to the play that made it successful. Murray's ability to get clear enough to throw the Hail Mary, and then the exceptional catch by Hopkins to complete it. While it was absolutely gutting, it can, and has, happened in the past to other teams. It's simply a great player making a great play (Hopkins). Personally, the only issue I have with the loss, is the fact that before the Hail Mary, we were far too obviously in 'prevent', and gave up too many easy yards in the earlier part of the drive. I disliked that enormously, and I still do. Our D is more than capable of showing pressure, then dropping back into coverage, yet we didn't and made our intentions far too obvious.

I don't blame White for the catch. Imho, Poyer is actually more at fault, and yet he is also only trying to disrupt the play. But it's Poyer who collides with White, when he's in the air, and removes the chance for White to do something on the ball, as he puts his balance off. White was in position, but got stymied by one of his own, in effect. That isn't really an outright criticism, as all the guys were just trying to make a play. Even having said that, there's no guarantee that White could have got the ball away from Hopkins, but without Poyer, he has a chance, at least.

Once is annoying but understandable, the second one should not have been allowed to happen. We used Smoke on the same play we got good yards from the previous game. It worked again the first time we used it. It didn’t work again and I think we tried it twice more. That’s what is supposed to happen.

I'm not sure who the other guys are, but he is now in a select band of not very many, who have made 3, 50 yard plus kicks in one game.

I pretty much agree with the assessment Shaw. Allen was 'off' for good portions of the game. He started pretty decently, then the Cards started to get more pressure, and he then became less accurate, both with reads and throws, or should I say more hesitant in his reads. Much like against the 'Hawks the D was another 'curate's egg'. They did a lot right to keep everyone interested, but enough wrong to let the Cards be in the game. Biting on Murray's 'sell' for his TD runs is always possible, as he does a great job of disguise, but doing it twice, in effect, was poor. While they may have largely 'contained' Murray's own rushing, they didn't for the Cards other RBs. It's still an issue. Two last quarter TD drives from both teams, and the one that was far better was the Bills. The pass and catch to Diggs, was exactly the sort of quality play you want your QB and #1 WR to make, and it's a sign that you have a good pair, when they do. The Cards were ushered to around the Bills 40 yard line, and then Murray heaves up a prayer, which Hopkins answers in some style. I'm sure Murray is getting a lot of plaudits for it, and yet the man of that play, was Hopkins. Any QB in the league could have thrown the football in the air that far, and in that fashion. The only kudos Murray deserves, is in creating himself time to chuck it up there. That isn't trying to belittle Murray as a QB as such, it's just an observation off of those two last quarter drives. Murray looks like a keeper, and is exciting to watch, yet is also still developing. My last 'observation', if you will, is in regards of the Bills 'prevent' D on the last drive. While I think there's a time and place for it, I didn't think it's there and then. Im not entirely worried that they went 'prevent', but I didn't like that they made it so darned obvious. There was nothing stopping them showing 'pressure', but then dropping into coverage as the ball was snapped. We just said 'we are in prevent', and that was the end of it. Having said that, the sequence of plays, probably went largely as Frazier and McDermott would have hoped/expected, at least until Hopkins grabbed the Hail Mary. In the heat of the moment, I think Poyer actually knocked White away from just possibly breaking it up. Oh Well.

If Hyde is good to go, we should be largely okay I think. Kroft will be a loss, as will Wallace and Marlowe, but they haven't been essential guys to how the team has been performing. Otoh, if Hyde isn't going to play, then we are 'in trouble', as his loss impacts the secondary hugely, and with Marlowe out, that also has a knock on effect.

It might be more competetive, but I'm not sure it'll be any more entertaining. Atm, the Bills are one of the best 'watches' around. Mainly because of the 'Josh Allen Experience', but we are playing some very good football at times, with plenty of 'big' plays to keep neutral fans engaged. As an asie, Gunner, if I have to keep watching the Bills on Sky Sports every Sunday, I might have to ask for a refund on Gamepass.

Wouldn't surprise me either way tbh. Carroll isn't without a fairly large ego. We've all seen coaches get gameplans way wrong - including McDermott and his crew. Adjusting them, and quickly, is what sets good coaches apart. Carroll tried to adjust, but when he did, the Bills adjusted also, with the dump off to Singletary, and then the quick sideline pass to Brown, that he then ran through an empty middle of the field to close to a TD. I suspect Carroll thought we were going to use the run to set up the pass, but we didn't bother, and they never had anyone in their secondary that could hang with our WRs. Thankfully, we didn't try and out think ourselves, and just kept gashing them with the pass, as they couldn't stop it.