starrymessenger

Sure but my feeling is that they will need to control the ball and score points. I don't know that they will be able to do that. When the game speeds up I also think that turnovers may well prove to be a problem. All remains to be seen.

You don't get kudos for predicting a changing of the guard at the QB position, especially in the AFCE. Brady is ancient, the Bills have Allen, the Jets have Darnold and the fish will be drafting a talented prospect in 2020. Oh, and lest I forget the Pat's current backup is a guy has given indications that he can develop nicely. Having a successful organization supporting him only improves his chances. I agree that Brady even in his offence looks very much and at best like an average to above average starter and a game manager. And I can certainly see why Tom desperately wants Brown. Edelman is very good but he alone won't be nearly enuf to get it done, especially if they continue to have a less than dominant ground game. To me the question is whether Tom still has it in him to raise his game to its former level consistently in the playoffs. I don't think he can but neither can you disregard the fact that no one has done more to prove doubters (like me) to be very wrong.

Makes sense. I would actually cut Kroft some slack and see how he makes out. In Fosters case however I suspect more his background with Daboll at Bama. I have no idea what's wrong with that guy.

Yeah the intangibles are great and extremely important. Almost, but not quite as important as, with the benefit of good coaching and experience, and with the addition of talent and continued growth of the O together with other young players like Singletary and Knox, having the game slow down for him. I think there is a good chance that all of that comes to pass in due course. I continue to think that Rosen is very talented as a passer. If his alleged lack of leadership skills is accurate however that is a big disadvantage for him to overcome. Playing QB at this level is not like playing tennis. I do think it's still much to early to write him off as a bust. As with all things only time will tell. Josh's year was a good class IMO.

Can't say I know how he would make out but I think I'd rather check him out than Foster or Smith who for different reasons pretty much stand out as a couple of non-performing deadbeats who I am tired of having to look at. I get the impression that maybe these guys get the nod because members of the coaching staff have an investment in these underperforming assets. Sometimes that happens. All aboard the A Train, choo choo. Remember that? And who was the guy from the bush leagues who had to sit? The fans clearly knew better than the staff in that case. I don't really have a dog in this fight however and for sure the coaches are more knowledgeable and closer to the action and should be making the right decisions.

The article is well written. In tone it is undeniably positive but to me it's not a product of homerism. Rather it's an accurate and realistic assessment IMO. Allen was and remains a top shelf blue chip prospect. He is not less so today than current MVP candidate Lamar Jackson once adjustments are made for differences in circumstances. As many have said there will continue to be ups and downs. I will be happy to take whatever success the Bills enjoy in the meantime but my expectation in terms of the timeline is pretty straightforward: I expect the Bills to add receiving talent, probably 2 players, another RB and one or more OLine next year. If the universe unfolds as it should, while of course nothing is guaranteed, I expect the Bills to be legit as contenders in 2021 and obviously for Allen to be a big part of that. Overall it looks to me like they are building it right.

I was only being half-serious. But I do suspect that Fitz can read a defence as well as Tom can. And Fitz is more mobile - he scrambled for a 20 yard gain yesterday until it was all called back on a bogus holding call lol. Never seen Brady do that.They can both work the pocket, especially Brady. But bottom line neither one of them can do what Aaron do (Fitz never could) as Chad would say. Anyway, though Tom was great Belly has always been the brains of that operation IMO.

He now reminds me a lot of Fitz. Except with a (still) better arm, more talent to work with, and a better OC. Fitz has better mobility. I think Fitz would be pretty good in that O. Brady will be happy to get his tackle back. I can't believe what a turnstile that Newhouse guy is.

Just curious, but if he lacks (for now) Allen's laser on out patterns, would that middle of the field soft zone coverage we are often in play to his strengths as a passer?

Agree. You no doubt recall the pre-draft commentary about this mechanical flaw. The analysts who liked him seemed pretty sure this (the narrow base) was correctable and minor as flaws go. I recall other analysts making similar comments regarding the lack of rotation in Allen's hips when following through his throwing motion (in addition to other issues). I haven't seen much of Lamar this year. Sounds from your comment that he still has work to do.

Yikes. I hope never to see Allen looking like Trubisky did last night on the sideline after he was pulled with only one or two series left to play.

And not just in football. Happens in ordinary workplace environments all the time when the new boss shows up. And it's not less stupid. I attribute it to insecurity.

Jackson looks natural throwing the football. To me anyway.

Lamar maybe doesn't come across as the next Einstein but he was smart enuf to believe in himself so he has my respect for that. He seems to know football.

Well in all honesty I don't think his season justifies that accolade so far but I don't think he's been totally right physically either. When he's on he looks really good to me so if he can play with more consistency I could see him receiving that consideration.

True and Edmunds too has been very inconsistent getting off blocks but I agree with those who say he has not been 100% physically. When on his game he's clearly playing at a high level and doing exactly what's expected of him in this defence. Plus he's a natural playmaker.

Milano is struggling to fall out of Pro Bowl contention. He really needs to crap out.

If next year's class is as great as people say, I'd consider drafting 2, with one in the later rounds if a good one is there. Regardless I think they need 2. An outside guy to complement Smoke, and a big intermediate range possession and red zone target (like Duke was supposed to be - or maybe is- who knows).

I loved Jackson coming out but I figured that he'd be a very hard sell in Buffalo after Tyrod, although it was, or should have been, clear that he was a huge upgrade. Not only was he a better runner than Tyrod even in his prime but his college tape offered the legitimate possibility of his being immeasurably superior as a passer. He has Mike Vick wheels while again with the potential to be a better passer than Vick in his early career ( though in fairness to Vick he at first had only a fat A. Crumpler to throw to). Right now Lamar looks to be the kid born with the silver spoon in his mouth benefitting, unlike Josh or Darnold, from all the advantages a privileged upbringing can confer - Roman, Harbaugh, a great front office, a good O-line, TE and WRs (not to mention a top D that will help put the ball in his hands). The suggestion that he cannot throw to wide receivers is erroneous IMO. Ravens are bringing him along properly in his, and their, passing game. Last year his was exclusively a running QB. This year the passing game is opening up albeit not fully but, over time the expectation that it will is not at all unreasonable. As he develops they will lighten up with the designed runs, RPOs and read options (although he will always be a threat to run). If they don't he might not have the lengthy career he should enjoy even if he is good at avoiding impactful hits. I think the Ravens are too smart for that to happen, especially because the payoff will greater if he refines his skills throwing the football. I think they believe he can do it. I saw him throw a thirty yard strike to the back of the end zone (Hollywood?) off his back foot falling backwards to avoid a rushing D lineman. There are only two other QBs that I've seen do that sort of thing: AR and PM. Having said all that, I would not be at all surprised either if over time the performance gap separating Lamar and Josh (or Darnold) narrows considerably. They may very well all turn into good, possibly very good QBs.

I agree with the OP. There are not enuf Julios or Hopkins to go around. Brown and Beasley are not HOF guys obviously but they very significantly upgraded our WR corps. Where would we, and Josh, be without them. We need to upgrade again in 2020, not at all necessarily with an "elite" player (though that would be nice) but with good to very good players who bring different above average skillsets to the table to address the different requirements presented by different game situations. With any luck they should be able to do that. This O also needs another RB. There is plenty of evidence that again, with some luck, you can find a really good one in the mid to late rounds. O-line obviously needs some attention, but if the Bills can address those needs, and if Daboll can settle down with better talent and properly implement his offence you could quite easily see a much more potent and consistent performance next year on that side of the ball. That's when and where I would expect a major step forward for Allen and his teammates.

I think he is showing good progress considering how raw he was coming in and considering also that he's not really playing in a good offence. Daboll has put a lot on his shoulders and calls a fair number of low percentage head scratchers . He's made productive use of Brown, who is a good WR but not exactly Julio or AJ Green. Beasley is a decent slot receiver. Singletary and Knox are coming along but they are rooks. And that's about it. Bills will get him more weapons next year, like a few more quality wideouts (including a big one).

J. Brown gets first half game ball.

Mason is not beyond reproach IMO . Think a four game suspension would be appropriate.

IMO Knox will break out big time. It prolly won't happen next week but it'll happen before the end of next year. Knox and Singletary encourage me to think that Beane and his boys can identify talent on offence. If so that's great because it's now job 1.

I too doubt that football professionals need Football Outsiders or ESPN to evaluate their QBs (that was sort of my point). If they do they should be looking for other employment. They don't need these performance measurements to form an opinion on where their QB is relative to eg league averages. They independently know, or should know this because they are close to the action and their careers depend upon the accuracy of their projections, especially in evaluating young and inexperienced QBs. But more particularly the relevance of this information as a basis for making crucial decisions is by its very nature unreliable. It may give you the heads up on where your QB is now on a comparative basis but it doesn't tell you what exactly he (and indeed the offence as a whole) needs to do to improve and, more importantly, whether he (and it) can improve. I certainly wouldn't go so far as to say that the relationship of these measurements to the all important assessment is empirically accidental. Duration, with consistency of the results over time, can certainly be indicative, especially when, needless to say, a young QB fails to improve. But, y'know, that's not good enuf when it comes to projections. The past can foretell the future sure. Or not. Will Allen improve and develop into the QB we all want to see? Idk. But I don't need Football Outsiders or ESPN to know what the issue is. The Bills knew what the issue was when they drafted him. Some of the more astute posters on this board (and I don't mean me) also know what the issue is. Some say "accuracy". Some say "mechanics". Some say "anticipation". But all these are merely derivative results. What mainly drives all of them is the ability (or the lack thereof) to process with sufficient speed the live action. Allen's accuracy (including the ability to throw his receivers open) suffers when his mechanics deteriorate. His mechanics deteriorate when he has to overcome with raw physical ability a momentary lag between how the action is developing and his reaction time. But when he is on time (and it does happen with regularity if not with desired frequency) what he is demonstrably able to do places him immediately above the average of starting calibre NFL QBs. He made some throws against the Browns that not all starters can do, or at least not nearly as well. That's what having a sky high ceiling is all about. I don't know that "boom or bust" quite captures it because I think there may be a large performance range between these extremes, but that's what people are getting at when they use these catchwords. It's a big problem and an unanswered question (although in Allen's case it looks like it has been answered to your satisfaction, albeit negatively). We often hear that accuracy is something that a prospect either has or has not, and that it really cannot be developed, and there is certainly evidence for that. What that means is that a rare and not often found chip, processing speed, is missing from Allen's computer and that his is a model that cannot be refurbished to insert it. My own view is that he may, but not necessarily will, improve. Give him a clean pocket and he performs a lot better. He.has improved his short/intermediate range accuracy. Overall he manages his progressions better than he did last year. I hope to see continued improvement. If he (and the O as a whole) can get there the payoff will be well worth the growing pains. I'm not a fanboy and I'm not making excuses for him (or Darnold) but Lamar was lucky to land with Harbaugh, Roman and a much better complement of skill position players and O-line, and a much more cohesive unit overall. In Allen's draft year I actually had Lamar graded ahead of him (I pat myself on the back). I also preferred Rosen (I kick myself in the butt). But I was, and remain, enthusiastic about our QB, fully realizing that he may not develop the way we would like. I thought, and I continue to think, that he fully justified his draft position (I thought Lamar almost faling out of the first round was ridiculous - clearly Ozzie knew better when he made sure he got that fifth year option). I agree that the Bills should draft a developmental QB if they see one they like. There should always be one that the team has some commitment to on the PS. If you feel you need to you carry three. Gardner is a hoot and he looks like he can play.