Utah John

The NFL moved away from selling big hits, to selling high scoring, and also moved away from brain injuries to protecting players. The game has changed enormously. I think Madden had a lot to do with it -- Madden the game more than Madden the coach. People get used to seeing offensive production and they expect to see it on the field too.

Daboll has shown that if he's NOT given great players, he struggles (ref: last year), but when he gets great players to work with, he's extremely creative and has a lot of fun. So pay him, Pegulas, and convince him he's never going to get a situation more fun that this one, where he can live hear his grandparents and be loved by the community he grew up in, and continue to win because ALL the Bills' key offensive players are still growing into their prime. Well, except Diggs, whom we shouldn't reasonably expect to get any better than he already is. I learned in my own career, years ago, that if you go chasing prestigious job titles, you're going to struggle. If you find and take jobs that you find interesting, challenging, rewarding, and important, you'll be more motivated and more challenged and more satisfied. I hope Daboll feels the same way.

If you want to see why statistics really don't matter, take a look at the stats from today. Except for the turnovers, it looks like a pretty close game. The Dolphins actually had a substantial edge in time of possession. Big deal. Your eyes don't deceive. I had been a little concerned because it seemed that whenever we played a top defense, the other team was missing a key player or two. Was our offense really that good? As far as I know, the Dolphins had their whole defense available, and it was embarrassing to watch what happened to them. Fun, but embarrassing.

If Frazier gets a HC job and leaves, which is a real possibility, maybe we could get Schwartz back as DC. I think the personnel in Buffalo would fit his general model, and he could adapt his approach to the personnel as needed. If Frazier (or Daboll) leaves, the risk is that the replacement will be viewed as the guy who is now doing what Frazier would have done. I would like a proven coordinator who can take the reins and make changes as needed.

Things are lining up. It's very possible the Titans will get the fourth seed, or be the fourth-highest remaining seed after the first round, which puts them up against the Chiefs. That's going to be a barn-burner offensive show, except that Tennessee will control the clock. The Bills will play the Steelers in round two in Buffalo, and then host the Titans in the AFC championship game. In the SB, if the Packers can still get in without Bakhtiari, I think the Bills will be able to pressure Rodgers, Tre White shuts down Devante Adams and no one shuts down the Bills' passing attack.

I remember a time when a 300 lb player was viewed as enormous, and too big to do anything except kill the grass. Now every team probably has 10-12 guys well above 300 lbs. And a lot of them are pretty fast runners. I remember a time when a 4.4 40 was killer speed. Now there's someone faster than 4.3. How many players in the 60s could bench 225 fifteen times? Now, most of the players in the league can do that. I don't know if it's better conditioning, or better diets, or better training, or what, or maybe it's just the pro money is so good that athletes commit themselves to football at a young age and stay with it. The level of athleticism, strength, speed, and agility in the game now is astounding.

I suggest that whatever teams the league wants to put into the playoffs, go with that list and the seeding that results. Then instead of forcing the top seeded team to play the lowest seeded team, let the top seed that doesn't have a bye pick its opponent, then the second seed picks its opponent, etc. Sometimes a lower seed team is playing better at the end of the year than a team with a great record but which has been falling off in the last month. The stronger team gets seeded lower, so the highest seeded team plays the team that's playing the best. And, in a year when the NFCE is a total joke, why should the fifth seed in the NFC get to play the least-bad team in the NFCE, instead of whichever team gets the second seed? I would rather see the second seed choose the NFCE team as its reward for a great season where the Packers just dominated. Then, go through the process again after the first round of playoffs. The original seeding remains in effect, for all the remaining teams.

I hope you're right. But a lot can go wrong. The NFL is designed to let teams get better quickly but not stay on top. The Patriots and the Chiefs, like the Bills of 30 years ago, are doing a very hard thing, staying on top. There are more challenges now. Top QBs make so much money after their rookie years (again KC seems to be managing -- but Seattle gutted their defense to pay Wilson). Coordinators move -- will the Bills offense be so hard to stop if Daboll leaves for a HC job? Frazier should be getting HC consideration too -- what would his potential departure do to the team? The Bills got really lucky at right tackle, with Williams, but probably can't afford to keep him, also Feliciano is the only real road-grader on the O ljne and he's a FA too. Also the Bills pulled some games out of their butts this year. We easily could have lost the first Pats game and the Rams game, which could have made them part of the pack trying to squeeze into the playoffs this year. I am enjoying the hell out of this year because I know nothing about the future is guaranteed. I agree the Bills look well-positioned for the future. Still, a lot can go wrong. I don't see any reason why the Bills shouldn't EXPECT to get to the SB this year, and I think the Bills, Chiefs, and Titans all look better than any NFC team. This could be the year.

What I'm worried about is that the 2020 version of the 1990 Bills, is the Chiefs. The loaded team that has everything working. When the 1990-era Bills were so dominant, other teams would bubble up for a year or two to pose a challenge, then fall back. It wasn't really until Kelly retired that the Bills lost that edge. My fear is that the 2020-era Bills will be like one of those other teams, and bubble up for a year or two to challenge the Chiefs before falling back. The Bills are playing really well now, AND they don't have a serious covid problem, AND there aren't many injured players unavailable at the end of the season -- almost a miracle, actually. The Chiefs have lost Edwards-Hillaire and that's a pretty significant blow. If the Bills get through Week 17 and win two home playoff games without many more injuries, they'll be in good shape to challenge KC.

Of course we all noticed that Jordan Poyer wasn't picked this year for the Pro Bowl, despite leading all DBs in tackles. I wonder why there hasn't been a peep about Corey Bojorquez not being selected. Bojorquez leads the NFL in punting average and has a been a consistent top performer. He had a few shanks last year but only one this year that I can remember. The punter who was selected from the AFC is Brett Kern from the Titans. Was he really better than Bojorquez?

If Taiwan Jones had caught the pass Josh Allen threw to him, he would have been the 14th Bill to catch a TD pass this year. The Bills are tied with the 2016 Falcons for the most in league history, at 13. Other than possible injuries, not much else went wrong tonight.

Is that what they're saying? It always sounds like 180. Either way, (1) I don't know what it means, and (2) a lot of teams have their QBs use that just before the ball is snapped.

Just win the damn game tomorrow night. That's the only thing that matters right now. The Bills beat the Pats earlier this year by NOT throwing and instead running it down their throats. If that approach still works, then that's what the Bills should do. Besides, Mahomes has it locked up anyway. Allen will get it in time.

Fitz will be NE's starter next year, to complete his AFC East bingo card.

Williams was signed to a cheap, prove-it contract. He's proving it! He's due for a BIG pay increase, unfortunately for more than the Bills can likely afford.

As a fan of really good football, I hate the idea of Lawrence going to the Jets and having his career ruined, just like Sam Darnold has, so far. Lawrence has the talent to be a star but he won't get a chance if he goes to that loser of an organization. OTOH if the Jets DID get Lawrence, they'd cut or trade Darnold, who could then join a professional football franchise and we could see what he's got going. The worst thing is that he goes to New England and Belichick turns him into a great QB.

Good times for us when the Bills don't have enough room for players like JK. Welcome back John Brown (assuming that's what Kumerow's release means).

And we don't have John Brown back yet. It's going to get even better.

The last team I want the Bills to play is the NFC champion. I hate the fish AND the Pats. My Bills days go back far enough that I remember our competition with the Boston Patriots in 1963. Then we went a decade without beating the fish, and it seems like two decades where we hardly ever beat the Pats. The way I see it, it's been almost forever since two AFCE teams, neither of which was the Patriots, made the playoffs. I kind of like the idea of two out of four AFCE teams in the playoffs, and Belichick sitting at home stewing.

It's completely possible we could face the Dolphins in Orchard Park the last week of the regular season, and then again the first week of the playoffs. I don't know whether that would help us, but it's tough to beat the same good team twice in a row.

I think we all realized in 1995 that the team was slipping down. We had lost a lot of key players from the SB teams, and the new guys weren't working out as well. Key: a lot of the leaders on the team had left as FAs, or retired, and there wasn't as much cohesiveness or determination any more. I think 1995 was the end of the era. When we got back, in 1999, we had a great defense but the QB drama had started. It's been a long time since we finally got that fixed.

My daughter was born on the day the Bills clinched the AFCE in 1995. My wife is still upset that I went home to go watch the game. And why not? She was asleep after giving birth, and our daughter didn't care. Nothing so dramatic this time.

Boy it would be great to have Wyatt Teller back. I think trading him for peanuts was one of McBeane's mistakes (not that he's made that many, but no one is perfect).

No. Just no. The Bills are in good shape to get to the SB, and even win it, and taking a chance on pulling a muscle for a silly contest like that is just not worth it.

He had an odd career. He was a dominant player but his stats don't reflect that. He did move around a bit, away from his natural position of OLB, and that hurt his stats. I don't think he'll be selected.