Utah John

The problem isn't the chains, it's where the ball is spotted. If the ref gets the spot wrong by an inch or two (which isn't hard to do -- I'm not blaming the refs) and the chain measurement comes down to a sliver, what difference will the electronic system make? (And there are times when the spot is quite wrong, not that often but usually critical when it happens.) The only electronic system change I'd really like to see is to have a horn go off when the play clock expires. The current system, where the ref sees the clock go to zero and then looks to see if the ball is snapped, is inconsistent and subject to error. Too many times the ball is snapped when the clock had clearly already run out, and the offense gets to make a big play when it should have been penalized five yards. This should be the easiest system of all to implement. Ask the NBA how to do it if the NFL can't figure it out.

Well, so do I. I think the Bills got a little out over their skis on their safety reboot. Another year of Poyer, even a guy who's noticeably slower, would have helped transition into the Bishop +? years. I just don't think Beane wanted to keep paying Poyer what he'd been getting, and Poyer didn't want to take a pay cut. Fine, let Miami cut him, and then bring him back to the Bills on a vet minimum contract. Any intel on Miami's offense and Tua would be appreciated.

Nope, just curious. As others have said the Bills seem to find excellent FO personnel.

No one seems to pay attention to the scouting staff but they're one of the most important parts of the team's front office. The Bills' web site mentions the moves on the staff and who's been added, but not who's been dropped. I think it would be very interesting to see which scouts found, and contributed to the Bills drafting or signing as UFAs, which players. Are the ones that Beane listened to, the ones he kept on board? This might be a little too hard for reporters to uncover, but it would be a whole lot better than endless articles about the WR situation or where the team will hold training camp (of COURSE it's back in Rochester).

Why on earth would a school pick a football player, particularly a kicker, to be the commencement speaker?

I've been thinking that Beane is ahead of the curve in this. His approach is to flood the field with 4-5 really big, reasonably fast receivers, and let Josh Allen find the open guy. A lot of offenses are being built with really fast receivers and so most defenses are being built to stop them. The Bills can field at least four receivers at 6'3" or more (some combination of Kincaid, Knox, Coleman, MVS and some of the others, with a smaller and quicker receiver in the slot) and one of them is going to be single covered by someone a lot smaller and lighter. I think size, strength, and agility will become the new speed in the NFL. Until defenses adjust again, hit em where they aint. Shakir didn't get as many targets or catches largely because Diggs and Davis were on the field as the primary receivers on most plays. I am not saying Shakir is as physically gifted as ASB but he does seem to be getting better each year.

I see you're catching on.

For anyone else still struggling with The Athletic, you can call the NY Times help desk at 855-698-1150. I did this and now am back with access. Apparently they switched their servers or something and that caused the problem.

Tyrod Taylor is 34 and will turn 35 before the season starts. Not as old as Rodgers, but no spring chicken either. I wonder if this won't be the oldest starter and backup QB in league history.

Is anyone else having trouble logging into your Athletic subscription? My email/password don't work, and the system does not send me a link to update my password. I renewed my subscription for a year, last September. And there doesn't seem to be any way to get help without logging in first.

The thing about Goff is that he's inconsistent. He can have great games but then have stinkers. Josh had a season like that last year, particularly while Dorsey was still OC, but Josh's ratio of great/stinkers is a lot higher than Goff's. Both Goff and Josh can lead their teams to the playoffs. Josh has shown he can excel every playoff game, but Goff collapses sometimes, and that's enough to derail the season for his team. However the Lions do seem to have put together one hell of a roster, so perhaps they could survive a below-normal performance from Goff. I wouldn't write the Lions off.

Supreme Court Associate Justice Kavanaugh approves. (Probably the only thing I agree with him about.)

I got to be a Utah football fan while living in Salt Lake City, and there have been several Utah players I wanted the Bills to draft. I liked the Zach Moss pick, and he's showing out with Indy. Of course I loved the Kincaid pick and I even recommended back in January that the Bills draft Cole Bishop. But I also held out hope that the Bills would draft Bills. I don't know if he's an NFL-caliber player or not, but boy that jersey would be special.

Cam Newton had once superb season. Josh Allen puts up superb seasons, year after year. The biggest difference is that Newton didn't have to overcome Mahomes in the voting. Face it, Mahomes is a great player on a great team with a great coach, and the Bills with Allen and McBeane get respect but not the top rating. If Mahomes wasn't playing, Allen would be regarded as better than Newton, but Mahomes IS playing, so Allen gets overlooked as MVP material.

Lou Saban left the team just as it was getting old, and Collier (I always thought his name was Joel, not Joe, but whatever) got handed the mess on the slide into obscurity. Not his fault. The Bills defenses were really outstanding, in part to Collier but also the front office who found players like Sestak, Maguire, Jacobs, Byrd, Edgerson, Janik, Saimes, Day, and McDole. Sixty years later I can still remember the names of the players on that team.

This is the part of Diggs' game we'll miss the most. Diggs is an elite route runner and that's one reason Beane brought him in from the Vikings. Route running is probably the thing that Diggs does best, out of all aspects of his game. My point is, don't expect Coleman to have this skill, at least not to start with. I think the Bills will be using numbers to try to get at least one of their receivers open on every play, instead of expecting someone (i.e. Diggs) to be open on almost every play.

I think Beane is done wrt WRs. What you see is what we're getting. He's intent on having a pile of cash in 2025 to go fill any holes that appear in 2024. Adding an expensive, older veteran is just moving in the wrong direction.

On draft day, people were saying KC fleeced the Bills. Considering Worthy's physique, I'd say KC "flea-ced" itself, taking a junior mint version of Tyreek Hill. Hill is NOT a slight, light guy. He's an athlete with an athlete's body, who happens to be really fast. Worthy will suffer with physical abuse from NFL LBs and DBs, he'll catch some long TDs and drop some others, and he won't get a second contract. In the meantime the Chiefs waste a roster spot and the chance to draft and develop an actual NFL WR.

Although I think the Bills would be better with Hyde back for another year, I hope he retires. He's had serious neck injuries and he needs to get out and enjoy the rest of his life with his family. With our thanks and highest regards for years of terrific play.

Not sure which of those plays ought to be allowed. Not the clothesline tackle, not the face mask, for sure. Maybe not flipping a guy and driving him head first into the ground.

These new WRs at 6'3" are almost as tall as the TEs (Kincaid is 6'4" and Knox is 6'5"). With so many really fast WRs and RBs, the league is moving to faster, smaller DBs. By counter-programming to big and strong, the Bills are going to present teams with a unique challenge they might not able to adjust to. I like this, a lot.

Every team is in transition every season. If they're not, they're getting older and closer to a disaster. Teams always bring in 6-10 new players for their 53, every year Sometimes a team has more holes than other years, but every team has to be thinking about moving toward the future. Think about a car company designing its new models. It takes several years to put a new design on the road, so the companies are thinking about what they'll be trying to sell in five years, and tailoring their strategies over the intervening years to get where they expect to be. And if it turns out their current guess about the future isn't right, then they have to adjust as they go. Football teams do the same thing except they have to take injuries, free agency, and the salary cap into consideration.

Maye reminds me of Josh Allen. Big, strong, tough, lots of mechanical issues. Josh spent his first few offseasons working with Jordan Palmer, a QB whisperer and coach, who along with the coaches on the Bills staff got Josh sorted out. It might take Maye a couple of years to blossom. Unfortunately he's growing in a weed patch, without much help and without a solid culture of excellence. The Pats of today have no connection with their great teams under Brady.

I think last year's O line was the best the Bills have had for many years. Maybe that's still slightly better than average, or maybe it's better than that, but it was quite solid last year. Cook's rushing numbers are evidence. (But don't forget our O lineman playing WR, Gabe Davis. We'll miss his downfield blocks this year.)

A couple (two) years out -- that looks right, unless one of the starters gets seriously injured, or Van Pran doesn't work out. Four years out, we'll have a new left tackle and possibly a new left guard. Beyond that it's impossible to speculate.