billsfan1959

Agree 100%. I do not like his injury history over the last few years; although, I have no problem at all signing him on a reasonable deal. However, I wouldn't count on him staying healthy and I would target the best WR available to them and maybe explore a trade as well.

You assume correctly, my friend. It is interesting how we form this, as you say, irrational connection, to a sports team. And, once it happens, it seems it can never truly be broken, even when you move away. I have loved this team since I was a kid, and the Sabres as well. I understand the emotional attachment and the emotional reactions after wins and losses - even some of the more extreme reactions I have seen here - been there. I am passionate and competitive by nature, and it took me a long time to gain real perspective on my fandom and many other things in life. That is the real benefit of growing older: The "growing" part. I have always loved the Bills. I haven't always liked who I was during a game and particularly after a loss. It took time to change that, but, I did. I still loved my team; however, it became much like it is for you: a source of enjoyment and bonding with others, particularly my son. The best part of the Bills games for me now is texting with my son and friends during the game and the talks my son and I have after every game. Trust me, I felt the frustration and disappointment Saturday night, as I am sure you did. However, it didn't consume me, it was in the moment, and then I let it go. I had a great talk with my son after the game and we are both looking forward to next season. He is as much of a fan as I am, and I am amazed at how well he has handled the frustration and disappointment that has been this team for most of his life. Hopefully, the example I set for him plays at least a small part in that.

Do you plan on factoring in anything else into your equation, like, say, new additions to the team through the draft and free agency, another year of experience and continuity for the young core of existing players, that the actual, not predicted, strength of opponents next year might not be what you think right now, etc.? Or are you just going to stick with that simplistic approach?

Even with those "Old Josh Allen" head-scratching decisions, he still led the team to the game tying FG and, had it not been for the penalty on Ford, a chance at the game winning FG in OT.

I'm thinking a message board version of the Wonderlic might be useful here.....

That was probably the craziest aspect of that play: He could have actually caught the ball. He completely mistimed his jump.

What results, specifically, are predictive of less wins next year?

It has been two off-seasons for Beane. This will be his third. I felt it would be reasonable to give him three full years on a rebuild and that is what I am going to do.

I get all that and agree, for the most part. However, I believe the glimpses of the really important improvements I saw this year will become even more tangible next year with additional poeces added around Allen. It may be a leap of faith for some; however, I said I would give Beane three full seasons of roster moves. If at the end of next year we are looking at much of the same, then I will me more than willing to accept my faith was misplaced.

Haahaa! A 9 year old at his very first football game with his dad...

I have been a die hard fan of this team since 1968. I have followed every game they have played in that span. My son, who works and live in another state, talk 2-3 times a week about the Bills and Sabres, text during every game, and talk after every game. I have learned to not waste my time expending negative energy and emotions on things I cannot control and that have no tangible effect on my life. And, it is just a game. You can choose to deal with your emotions in a childish, maladaptive way, that is your right. I think it is ridiculous; however, I won't question how much of a fan you are. So, stop being a d*&k and questioning whether other posters are real fans because they choose to act more mature after a loss.

If you list every person in every "who should be blamed" thread and post, it would probably be more accurate. In other words, there is plenty of blame to go around for last night's loss. Not many would be immune.

I am not depressed today. I was disappointed last night and let it go.

Of course it doesn't count. Apparently, then, none of their wins should count - only the losses. Maybe the Bills should forfeit every win they had against a "bad" team. Maybe they can then, retroactively, give a team like Pittsburgh, or Oakland, or Indy their playoff spot, and just redo wild card weekend.

What exactly sucked? the offensive improvements from last year to this year? Going from 6-10 to 10-6? Making the playoffs? Seriously. And what is this "next plan" you speak of? What I said is that they chose to rebuild the team. Next year will be the third year of Bean's decisions. That's a continuation of the plan, not a new one....

Nor do I. As I said, they made their choices on how they wanted to proceed. I don't believe they thought the offense would be as bad as it was last year, and honestly, not many fans here did either. However that is what happened. My point is, they chose their path and the consequences of that choice. It doesn't matter one bit whether you agree with it or not. It is the path they chose. They made good strides this year and I choose to give Beane through next year to convince me he knows what he is doing. You can choose not to.

The basis of my sarcastic post to your OP is because I am fairly certain Beane and McDermott are well aware of what they need to do - and that your assertions were based upon an incomplete foundation. And yes, I think giving Beane three years on a rebuild is reasonable. Feel free to differ

I didn't say their plan was to have the worst line and receivers in the league. You are better than that. They chose to rebuild. They chose to get rid of players they did not fell fit their plans. They chose to eat all that dead cap space. Those were their decisions, whether you agree with them or not. Those decisions carried consequences and they did what they could, going into last season, with a limited ability to make drastic improvements. This past off-season, they made bigger strides and it showed on the field. Some of Beane's decisions didn't work out and many of them did - no different than any other GM. Next year is the year they need to show that their plan was the correct one, and that, for the most part, they are making correct personnel and coaching decisions with the product they put on the field. Until then, I reserve the right to reach difinitive conclusions prematurely. Beane has been here for two off-seasons and two drafts.

Yeah, it is a little difficult to objectively dismiss the defense's role in the loss last night. As I've said before, there is always enough blame to go around in a loss. Last night's game was no exception.

A little disingenuous, I believe. They made their choice on how they wanted to structure the rebuild of this team. Whether you agree with the plan they laid out is irrelevant, that is what they chose and they stuck to it. The consequence of those decisions, as well as personnel issues they had no control over (Woods, Incognito, etc), was what we saw last year. There were a number of personnel decisions made by Beane, from an offensive perspective, last off-season that made this team much better, offensively, this year than last year. If you can't see that, then you really must have forgotten how bad this offense was last year. And, like it or not, they still don't have the offensive personnel to establish their identity. They have the draft picks and cap space to continue that improvement this next off-season. For me, next year is the year to see that offensive identity established and for this team to move to the next level. It will be Beane's third full season of his rebuild. I think that is a reasonable time to wait before I reach any difinitive conclusions about how good or bad he is at personnel decisions.

My apologies then. As to the other, I really don't recall arguments that the offense carried this team. I do recall discussions that it wasn't JUST the defense that carried the team - that the offense helped to win a number of those games as well, which they did. I don't think any reasonable poster would conclude that it was the offense that contributed the most to their record this year.

You kind of left out the fact that, while McDermott has been the HC of the Bills, he hasn't exactly had the offensive talent to match up with the NE defense. And, actually, McDermott's teams have put up a couple of dominating defensive performances against Belichick as well. However, overall, I understand your point. I also think Beane and McDermott are well aware of everything you said.

I've been a fan a long time and it took me a long time to not let affect me, emotionally speaking. I was disappointed when they lost last night; however, as you say, it is nothing that I can control, and it isn't anything that has any tangible impact on my life- and, in the end, it is just a game, so I'm not going to dwell on it. I am looking forward to the offseason and next year. Good things on the horizon, IMHO.

Maybe, somebody should tell them...

Why all the aggression? Seriously.