billsfan1959

Thanks for the reply, Thurman, but my point was that you cannot set context aside. I believe this view of Allen being wildly erratic with his ball placement was (1) a bit of an exaggeration based on a faulty narrative and (2) cannot be made without looking at the context of such things as: His offensive line being nothing more than a turnstile leading to Allen being one of the most pressured QBs in the league and making a lot of throws on the run or without the ability to set up; throwing deeper passes per attempt than most other QBs, a receiving corp dead last in ability to separate, etc. He was more raw than other QBs, had less experience coming into the NFL, and was thrown into the fire on an awful offensive team from a talent perspective. His play certainly reflected all of that; however, IMO, that is different than saying he was a terrible QB. IMO, he wasn't.

I understand what you are saying, Gunner, however, I do not believe you can really separate the two. To make any statement without a foundation based in context is, by its very nature, an uninformed statement. My post was addressing those who believe he was a terrible QB in 2018. My point was that, IMO, if you examine the context in which he played in 2018, the results may not have been good; however, he was not a terrible QB. I think to say he was a terrible QB is, at best, a lazy analysis. As always, appreciate your posts.

To a point, yes. However, every QB situation is different. Allen came out of college with a lot less experience at the position, having played with a lower level of talent around him (relative to other QBs starting as rookies), was pressed into the starting position with no veteran QB presence and no QB coach, and arguably the worst offensive talent (collectively) in the league at the offensive line and receiver positions. He threw passes to 12 different receivers (not including RBs) in 2018. Of those, Isaiah McKenzie is still with the team, 6 of them are no longer even in the league, and the other 5 are with other teams. Of those five, Logan Thomas had a career year in 2020 with 670 yds and 6 TDS, while the other 4 managed a grand total of 269 yds in 2020. Given the totality of the circumstances, I wouldn't agree with people who say he was terrible in 2018. There were plenty of moments where Allen's potential was there for anyone who cared to really see it.

I don't know if it made McDermott the favorite; however, it should remove Flores from contention

You know how sometimes you type out a post and then come back 3-4 years later and realize you forgot to hit "send?"

Yeah, that was a pretty silly argument being made here that the return of a player of his caliber wouldn't make the offense better

Right. The Eagles were not goiing to the playoffs and the game was meaningless. They certainly were under no obligation to play in any way that would help the Giants or any other team. They are a bad football team making bad decisions with subpar personnel. In the end, they pulled a QB who was awful to get a look at another QB who was awful. Not sure what the uproar is about here.

Remember 24 hours ago when Miami was number 1 in defensive points allowed and all the talk about how they would be only the second team ever to go from worst to first in that category? And then they almost went from first back to worst in one game? Good times indeed.

I always want them to win. Today is no different. I want them to secure the second seed, stay sharp, keep their momentum going, and then play whoever they draw in the playoffs.

You are welcome to feel however you want. For me, I would like to see the starters on the field to start this game.

Not everyone lives their lives in fear...

There are some very good teams in the AFC playoffs this year. I doubt the Bills fear playing any of them, anywhere. Nor should they.

Some of us have lived through many more rough years with this francise than just through the last 20. Because others don't care to continually go off on tirades about the past does not mean they do not have every bit as much passion and desire for their team to do well as you do.

I suggest they just postpone Cleveland's games until after the Superbowl...

I won't take anything away from Mahomes in terms of ability. However, people forget that, when it comes to offensive talent on the field and at the coaching level, Kansas City is at the top. Mahomes had the luxury of sitting for a year in an Andy Reid system and then become the starting QB with, arguably, the best offensive talent around him in the NFL. Alex Smith threw for over 4,000 yds under Reid the year Mahomes sat on the bench. Mahomes is a great QB, but he started his career, and remains, in the best QB situation in the NFL. Reid was able to showcase Mahomes' abilities from the moment Mahomes first stepped on an NFL field. The results speak for themselves and Mahomes is perceived as a QB who started his career playing at a top level, without much thought about the advantages he had (and has). Allen is just the opposite. He was put on the field in his rookie year surrounded by, arguably the worst offensive talent, in the NFL. Add to that the ridiculous narrative that developed during the draft and followed him into the NFL, and the negative aspects of that first year formed a lens through which many people still view him. The offensive talent around him has improved since year one and he has a pretty good offensive team around him; however, I would still rank KC ahead in overall talent at the skill positions. Yet, many people still want to view Allen through the lens I described above. I put Rogers with Allen in terms of talent level around him on the offensive side of the ball this year. But Rogers also has a history of being productive regardless of the level of talent around him. Rogers, even after sitting for 3 years, was 6-10 his first full year as a starter. He was on a bad team; however, he still managed to throw for over 4000 yards. Since 2008, he has failed to win at least 10 games only once in a full season of play (2013 and 2017 he was injured). So, in 10 of 11 full seasons, he has won at least 10 games with varying levels of talent around him. The perception of him, rightfully so (IMO), is that of a QB who can win with different levels of talent around him. While the MVP really should be about the most value to the team for the given year of the voting, unfortunately, there are always other variables involved. This year, I think those perceptions of Allen put him at a disadvantage every bit as much as the perceptions of Rogers and Mahomes put them at an advantage. Based soley on this year, I would put Allen and Rogers on about equal footing in terms of value to their team, with Mahomes behind them.

Absolutely. A narrative developed about Allen based on lazy analyses and became gospel. I doubt it will ever fully go away, no matter how successful Allen is in his careeer.

It should at least be a legitimate national debate between Allen, Rogers, and Mahomes. Allen should not be looked at as the 3rd best, just on the outside of the MVP debate, looking in. Not only are his overall numbers similar, in terms of total yards and total TDs, but he has done it against pass defenses that have an overall higher DVOA rating than the teams faced by Rogers and Mahomes. Against pass defenses ranked in the top 10 (DVOA): Allen: 5 games, 5-0, 136-200 (68%), 1623 YDs, 325 AYPG, 8.1 YPA, 16 TDs, 4 INTs Rogers: 5 games, 3-2, 110-165 (67%), 1270 YDs, 254 AYPG, 7.7 YPA, 14 TDs, 3 INTs Mahomes: 3 games, 3-0, 87-130 (67%), 1109 YDS, 370 AYPG, 8.5 YPA, 9 TDS, 3 INTs I'm sure Rogers or Mahomes will win the MVP, and either one would be deserving. But Allen would be every bit as deserving.

I doubt the innacuracy myth will ever really die...

I going to have to go with no, they should not...

I thought it might be something like that. It's all good, brother

What are you going on about? Someone asked what the announcers said about Duke Williams and I relayed what they said. Nothing more. I didn't offer any kind of opinion at all...

I saw that graph on first take. There was a tough stretch, for Allen and the team, during the middle of the season that occurred for a variety of reasons. This graph (passer rating with absolutely no context) was nothing more than Nick Wright's attempt to bring some sense of legitimacy to his ridiculous takes on Allen. Personally, I couldn't care less. I can see how Allen and the team are playing now. That is all that matters to me.

In the immortal words of Homer Simpson: "Doh!"

In reference to how important Diggs is to this team and how much better they are, they referenced that Allen was throwing to Duke Williams in the playoff game last year...

Love how Kyle Brandt put last night's game in perspective