mjt328

The Bills have reached the place where they MUST start getting strong returns on their draft picks. Otherwise, we aren't going to be a true contender in this league for long. Jerry Hughes is getting older, and could see a drop-off at any time. Mario Addison is already there, and is highly overpaid. We probably don't have the cap space to make a huge splash in free agency for a pass rusher. We absolutely NEED to get something from AJ Epenesa on the D-Line. Next to him in the middle, this is the time for Ed Oliver to start playing like an impact Top 10 pick at defensive tackle. On the other side of the ball, it's highly unlikely that we can keep both Jon Feliciano and Daryl Williams. Which means it's time for Cody Ford to step up and become a valuable part of the starting unit. One of the marks of truly great teams... is the ability to let starters walk in free agency, and then replace them with a younger option... with little to no drop-off in play.

The problem with Tremaine Edmunds is that Buffalo may never get the full return on his development. By the time he finally blossoms into a true Pro-Bowl player and difference maker, he may be playing for a different team. You ideally need your draft picks to start making an impact by late in Year 2 or early Year 3. Especially those guys drafted in the 1st Round. The front office has until May 3 to make the decision on picking up Edmunds 5th Year Option. Which is a financial commitment they may not want to make, considering all of his ups and downs. If the team decides to decline the options on Edmunds (very possible), then he's a free agent in 2022.

When you make it to the AFC Championship game, it's probably smart to keep as much continuity as possible. Figure out why you fell short against the Chiefs... make some tweaks... and go for it all in 2021.

If the rumblings around the league are true, this was a smart move by Mitch Morse. Reports are saying that a lot of veterans are in danger of being cut this offseason. And there probably won't be much cap space for them to get big bucks by re-signing with someone else. In other words, many of these guys are going to be forced into pay cuts... whether they like it or not.

Don't forget the Bills also had Marshawn Lynch, who some consider a future Hall of Famer.

Sounds like the smart play this offseason will be to sit-back... wait until the bottom-feeders blow their cap space on second-contract guys hoping for a big payday... then swoop in and get bargain discounts on the vets who became cap casualties.

It's ridiculous to me how people refuse to be thankful for their own blessings. Instead, they look with envy and hatred at anyone with more. Low income Americans with cellphones, high speed Internet, two vehicles and a nice house consider themselves poor, despite having more than 75% of the world. The Middle Class with everything they could ever need, complain that athletes are making millions for playing a game. Pro athletes who are making millions of dollars per year, think the owners are selfish for not wanting to cough up more of their profits. The NFL Players Association signed a very generous contract, making the salary cap dependent on revenue around the league. If the owners are taking a hit from the lack of attendance, then the players take a hit too. End of story. The vets who get cut can always sign for less.

Despite what people think, the Bills front office is not trying to make a carbon-copy of the Carolina Panthers. With our GM and HC both from that organization, there are obviously going to be similarities. But over the years they have learned what works and what doesn't. They are clearly trying to do their own thing here. Josh Allen became a Top 5 quarterback in 2020. That was the main reason for our success on offense. If you don't believe he can replicate that going forward, then yeah.. maybe we were playing over our heads. But personally, I don't see any reason to believe he's going to step back as his career progresses. I've heard many state that Allen is possibly the most physically gifted QB to ever enter the NFL. The question was if he could develop that talent, and he's clearly doing that. On defense, we lack a big-name All-Pro talent on the Front 7. No disagreements there. But I would also say that Buffalo's secondary (Tre White, Jordan Poyer, Micah Hyde) has more talent than anything Sean McDermott had on his defense in Carolina. Very few teams can boast more than 3-4 elite guys on their roster. The Chiefs are considered the absolute class of the league, and they basically have Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill and maybe Chris Jones that you can put in that elite category. The Bucs won the Super Bowl. Their elite guys are basically Tom Brady, and maybe Mike Evans and Shaq Barrett. The Bills have Allen, Stephon Diggs and Tre White as elite players. Like Kansas City and Tampa, we have very few holes, solid/good starters at most positions and strong depth on the sideline. Bottom line, we really aren't far behind anyone in the NFL in talent.

No way to tell until the draft is happening, and we get a better idea of where prospects are going. Good GMs utilize all of the tools in their belt, and don't push themselves into a corner with a "single philosophy" on roster construction. Sometimes trading up is the best move. Sometimes trading down is better. Sometimes you stay put. I recall when Marv Levy was hired as GM, and he spoke about good teams only building through the draft. He was very reluctant to participate in Free Agency or retain guys with expiring contracts (but ironically still managed to overpay tremendously for average players). Buddy Nix pretty much refused to consider a trade up in the draft, and we always seemed to be 1-2 picks away from getting that true difference maker.

After this offseason, the Bills will probably have Top 5 paid (at their position) players in Josh Allen, Tre White and Mitch Morse. It's possible they can restructure Morse, but then I imagine Stephon Diggs will start pushing for a new contract. Dion Dawkins sits just outside the Top 10 on offensive tackles. Jordan Poyer is just outside the Top 10 on safeties. My point is that our roster, in terms of salary cap, is starting to get a little bit top-heavy. Every team can have a handful of big contracts. But after your QB and maybe 2-3 other positions, those big contracts are eventually going to start costing talent everywhere else. Would you rather have a roster with several big name Pro-Bowlers, hoping they can make up for big weaknesses at a couple other spots? Or would you rather have a couple Pro-Bowlers, and strong depth across the board? 1 good player + 2 below average players? Or 3 good players. In my opinion, the latter is a better recipe for consistent/long-term success. The Bills were close this year. Their offseason plan should be improving a few places, without upsetting what worked in 2020. If JJ Watt costs them a combination of Matt Milano, Darryl Williams, Jon Feliciano, or forces them to cut guys who have contributed... he's not worth it.

I'm basing it on him being 32 at the start of next season, along with him missing 13 games in 2016, 11 games in 2017 and 8 games in 2019. In the 4 seasons prior to when the injuries starting hitting, Watt had 69 total sacks. In the last 5 seasons since the injuries started, he's got 26.5 total sacks. I realize that pass rushing is about total pressure, and not just about sacks. But the ELITE guys usually get to the QB and finish the job. We already have a pretty good DE (Jerry Hughes) who causes lots of pressure, but isn't great at actually sacking the quarterback. Watt would certainly be an upgrade over Mario Addison. But I don't believe he's among the elite guys anymore, and isn't worth getting into a bidding war over... especially considering the cap issues we have at other places on the team.

I'm not sure JJ Watt is playing at that elite level now. He was great as a younger player, but injuries have really taken their toll.

Ken Dorsey is not stupid. He understands that Brian Daboll will likely be with the Bills one more season, and then he will be promoted to the Offensive Coordinator in Buffalo. So his decision is to pick up his family, move to Seattle and run a team with inferior offensive weapons 😁, just so he can get the promotion 12 months early? Or stick around with a Super Bowl contender for another season, and then take over in 2022?

This offseason has the potential to have LOTS of quarterback moves. So it's really hard to answer that question until Free Agency has finished. First you have the aging vets finishing up their careers: - Phillip Rivers has officially retired - Drew Brees hasn't announced, but all the rumors say he's done - Ben Roethlisberger hasn't given an indication either, but he definitely needs to Then you have the vets nearing the ends of their current contracts: - Dak Prescott, Mitch Trubisky and Cam Newton are all free agents in 2021 - Jimmy Garoppolo, Derek Carr and Teddy Bridgewater could be easily cut in the offseason with very little dead-cap Then you have the guys forcing the way out with their current teams: - The Texans are a mess and Deshaun Watson is likely to formally request a trade - It's hard to imagine Carson Wentz coming back to Philly, regardless of his contract That's not even getting into the trade rumors surrounding Matthew Stafford and Matt Ryan. Or the fact that Tom Brady and Alex Smith are still old, and their teams could be looking for a QB of the future. Or the bizarre situation involving Tua Tagovailoa, and whether the Dolphins actually want him to be their guy. My count is that New England, New York, Indianapolis and Jacksonville will absolutely be in the market for a new QB this offseason. Pittsburgh, Houston, Washington, Chicago and New Orleans are almost certain to join that list. Depending on how things shake out, it's possible that Miami, Las Vegas, Dallas, Detroit, Atlanta and San Francisco could be as well. That comes to 15 teams (almost half of the league!!!!) with questionable situations at the most important position.

I was very interested in seeing how Kansas City came out Sunday against the Browns. Despite their 14-2 record, the Chiefs have been barely squeaking by over the last 2+ months. Each week they go through long stretches where they seem out of sync, and struggle to put points on the board. For a team that has a reputation for being "totally unstoppable" on offense, they haven't managed a double-digit victory since November 1st (against the Jets). My initial thought was that maybe the Chiefs were just coasting through games, and could pretty much turn it on whenever necessary. Once they hit the postseason, they would start rolling again. But even in the Divisional Playoff round, they started very strong... then started settling for field goals, and gradually let the Browns back into the game. That was before Patrick Mahomes went out of the game, so no excuses there. No doubt the Chiefs are currently among the top 3 teams in the NFL (along with the Bills and Packers). And they have a great chance of repeating as Super Bowl Champions. But I don't agree with the idea that Kansas City is in some kind of elite tier over the rest of the NFL. Just a few weeks ago, they struggled badly to defeat the 4-12 Atlanta Falcons. I'm 100% convinced that Josh Allen's "slump" during weeks 5-8 was due to his shoulder injury (which got almost no attention from the media). The Bills have also done much better against the run since Matt Milano returned, and Tremaine Edmunds healed up. The Bills have improved drastically as a team since that game in Week 6, while the Chiefs have seemingly gone the opposite direction. Don't forget that Andy Reid also has a 2-5 record in conference championship games.

I've noticed, and figured it had something to do with Isaiah McKenzie's injury. He exploded for a career day against the Dolphins in Week 17. Then he almost completely disappeared from our offense. If it's not due to injury, then my guess is that something on film (against the Colts and Ravens) suggested to Daboll that we weren't going have much success with misdirection plays and jet sweeps.

Actually he didn't. Tom Brady agreed to a lower contract, while the Patriots were investing in his health company TB12. People think Brady was being unselfish and taking less money, so his team could afford better players under the salary cap. In reality, this was just another questionable tactic by the New England Patriots organization to get around the league rules.

Pretty much every game can be defined by a handful of plays. Even blowouts start 0-0, and a few early plays start pulling the momentum towards one team. The thing I find interesting is that Baltimore and Buffalo both missed 2 field goals. The quarterbacks also both missed wide open deep throws, which likely would have gone for touchdowns. Both defenses were tough, and yards were not easy to come by. The difference in the game was that when Buffalo got down into the Red Zone in the 3rd Quarter, they punched it into the endzone. When the Ravens did the same, they threw a pick-6.

If what you are saying is true, there would be A LOT more uncertainty and nervousness this morning about Patrick Mahomes playing next week. Less than 24 hours ago, following the on-field collision, Mahomes was unable to stand on his own and had a dazed look in his eyes. The Chiefs later confirmed to CBS reporters that he indeed suffered a concussion, and declared him out... in the midst of a close playoff game. Andy Reid suggested after the game that Mahomes "passed" concussion protocols, even though that would be impossible so soon. The NFL requires a 5-step process of gradually increasing activity during the week, while being monitored by doctors. The average length of being out for a concussion is 19 DAYS. Following this train of logic, the only person on this planet with the slightest clue whether Mahomes can play is the neurologist examining him. Not the Chiefs staff. And even that doctor won't know until the middle of the week, after observing his progress during physical activity. Further more... based on what we've seen with other (non superstar) players in (non championship) games when it comes to concussions, the odds of Mahomes playing on Sunday is extremely low. Yet if you listen to the NFL reporters this morning, most are expecting him to play. Andy Reid clearly expects him to play. Mahomes himself clearly expects to play. The NFL does not care about player safety. They implemented these concussion rules to avoid another lawsuit. But if Mahomes and the Chiefs agree to keep this hush-hush behind the scenes, don't doubt for a second that an "independent" doctor wouldn't let him play. And everyone knows it.

At this point, I really don't care what the fools in the media say. As the year has progressed, Josh Allen has continued to make his critics look stupid. Most have been forced to admit they were wrong about him, but there are still a few holdouts. Some are just trying to get a rise out of Bills fans and should be ignored. Some are just lazy, never watch film and want to credit all of his success to Brian Daboll or Stephon Diggs. I say that we just go out and win some Super Bowls, and check back in with them when Allen's getting his yellow jacket.

The NFL's rules about hiring coaches still in the playoffs was likely a huge factor. Teams realize there are multiple job openings, and they can't just sit around waiting for weeks and weeks to choose their next Head Coach. Otherwise they will end up with the scraps. I'm sure the Chargers really liked Brian Daboll. But they couldn't offer him the job until the Bills were out of the playoffs. Which means they would need to wait at least another week, and possibly another three. And there is no guarantee he would even decide to take the job. I believe it's the same reason Eric Bieniemy was not hired last year.

The Chiefs are the defending Super Bowl champions, and finished with the best record in the NFL. If I was a gambling man, it would be very difficult for me to put money on any other team to win it all. At the same time, I don't understand the narrative that Kansas City is some unstoppable dynasty. They haven't beaten a team by double-digits since November 1. Over the last 2+ months, they have scraped out every game by the skin of their teeth. They seem to go long stretches where that explosive offense looks flat and uninspired. Don't get me wrong. Patrick Mahomes looks like a player who could win multiple rings during his career. But so did Aaron Rodgers, who is still chasing #2 at 37 years old. Russell Wilson will be in his 10th year next season, and still hasn't gotten his second. If the Bills put together a complete game on Sunday, they can certainly walk away with the victory.

These fights were clearly incited by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. There is video evidence that he encouraged Bills fans to go the stadium. He should be removed from office immediately.

In my opinion, a "good" defensive performance requires OUR players to actually make stops. Turnovers. Sacks. Pressure. Tackles. Passes Batted Away. We got no pressure on the QB at any point during the game. We continually missed tackles. We left receivers wide open all over the field. The only turnover we got didn't actually count. The Bills defense failed over and over to get stops on 3rd Downs, and were totally gassed by the 4th Quarter. If you want to just look at the points allowed and say "hey we did pretty good holding them to 24" then fine by me. Personally, I try to look at the game as a whole. And it was only Colts mistakes that kept our defense from allowing 35-40. Yes, mistakes are part of football. Which is why the Bills won. And they did enough on offense to deserve that win. But I completely understand why Saturday's performance is making fans nervous about facing the Baltimore Ravens.

Michael Pittman was open on the 4th Down throw into the endzone. Phillip Rivers just threw the ball a little bit too far. That's not a credit to our defense. That's a mistake by the Colts, which would have given them 17 points in the first half. The Colts only drive of the 3rd Quarter went 14 plays, and finally ended when Rivers threw behind Pittman (wide open again) for what would have certainly been another first down conversion in the Red Zone. Their kicker then proceeded to miss a 33 yard field goal. Once again, this had nothing to do with our defense and everything to do with untimely mistakes by Indy. Sorry. Our defense played poorly, and they are truly a concern going into the Divisional Round. We can thump our chest all day about stopping Jonathan Taylor. We failed to get any pressure on the quarterback, and left guys wide open all over the field. And at the end of the day, the Colts still had 163 yards rushing at 5.4 ypa.