clayboy54

I do believe that the real value in a top center is setting the line and calling and adjusting protections, which no doubt Bates is capable of. However, the key is years of experience is sliding protections to the D's strength. I don't think Bates is ready for that...yet.

Interview with CBS.

Do you think Bates could’ve called protections as well as Mongo?

A division win is huge no matter what could’ve been.

The Bills can absolutely be stout against the run. We proved that in the Titans game, but Tannehill beat us with his arm. I am not ready to concede that Cam can do that as well as Tannehill did. If Mongo plays we'll have a much better running front. Even if he doesn't play don't you think that Daboll is planning to attack their weakness?

That take didn’t last long! All I can say is that if I see anyone post that we have the worst run defense in the league again, I’ll thrash them. Carolina can’t stop anything at all.

I sure picked a bad day to stop sniffing glue!

He’s got the patented Quinton Spain boo-boo.

Ihr wiener ist sehr Klein!

Virgil, I believe you're overthinking this. That is to say, unless you're planning a class-action lawsuit for cruel and unusual punishment. Remember, Bills fans are chronic complainers.

This HAS to be the worst!

17

Remember that Belichick's scheming however great it may be, is only as successful as the players trying to execute it. This year, the Pats just don't have the horses to accomplish the ideas in BB's mind. Between their opt-outs, defections and injuries they are a much weaker team physically. It doesn't mean they won't still try, but it means that the match-ups are much more in our favor on both sides of the ball. Plus, it looks to me like Gilmore might be checking out, or at least thinking about it. You always meet the same teams on the way up and on the way down. This year the Bills are the team on the way up.

Their offensive line is suspect and has two injuries this week. Don't be so sure to jump on the bandwagon of "they're going to kill us on the ground."

I can't say that I agree with you. There are plenty of middle-of-the-road teams. There are really only four truly elite teams and only a couple really bad ones. Okay, add the Cowboys in and there's a few. As you see on here, the perspective of what makes "bad" is skewed by frustration. The Bills don't stink, no matter what anyone says. Neither do most of the other teams. The Jets truly stink. The Giants stink. The Cowboys are playing like they stink, although their talent says otherwise. Evidenced by the shellacking that Washington put on the Cowboys, they do not stink. They are middle-of-the-road. Maybe on the fringe, but still... Rivera has them playing ball. Same with Philly. It's just that expectations were so high for some of the clubs and they are falling short. They don't stink. Even the Jets will almost surely win a game.

If we make the playoffs this year, we’re legit - no question.

The NFL should go back to a true "sudden death" format and play until there is a winner.

I really don't believe that any single game can define any coach or player. Time and time again it has been shown that bad teams can win big games and good teams can lose big games. Seldom is a good organization suddenly bad (maybe the Falcons were after their SB collapse) and almost never are poor organizations suddenly good. It takes a long time for these things to change. Beane and McDermott have begun a transformation to a good organization and have a good team. It will be a nice measuring stick to win at home vs NE. We should win and we probably will because we are the better team. But, in the NFL no team cannot win a given game. The Jets will surely beat someone who least expects it. There is one absolute. We will all know without doubt where the Bills are in their transition after the NE game.

This is a very straight-forward and accurate view of the where the Bills are right now. I agree, a very nice write-up, Shaw! After watching the Seahawks loss Sunday night, it became more clear that every team has a little "collapse" at times. The vaunted Seattle Seahawks had that in their 2nd half in Phoenix. Who really cares? They're still the class of the NFC. The mighty Chiefs has theirs against the Raiders. I imagine the Steelers will have theirs soon. They keys to a successful season is to get it turned around quickly and to scheme to take advantage of holes left when teams take away your strengths. Sunday afternoon, Greggo followed the blueprint of the Titans and Chiefs and took away our downfield passing game. But Sunday, the Bills found success underneath with Beasley repeatedly and also has some modest success on the ground. I'm 100% certain that Belichick will do the same against the long pass. The Bills have to start with their underneath game and sprinkle in the runs early and often. BB will undoubtedly adjust to move the defense up to shut that down. Then, Josh will need to hit a few long balls. This is exactly how the Bills can continue to grow in their new identity. As this develops and matures, we will be able to compete with the most elite teams, and probably beat one or two. Shaw, you are completely right. This is progress and the process.

Nice work Matt!

I respect what you are saying. I don't think it's a realistic gauge in today's NFL because there are no dynasties anymore. Today, if a Team wins all their games against non-elite teams, they will make and win in the playoffs every year. Then, barring a fluke where a non-elite team makes it to the championship game or the Superbowl, you will have to have a signature win or two to take home the Lombardi. Until we get to that place, I could care less about signature wins.

The case that I most remember isn't a good Bills team loss, but rather a bad Bills team win. In the 1968-69 season, you know - the one where Joe Namath guaranteed a Jets Superbowl win over the Colts - the lowly 1-12-1 Buffalo Bills beat the soon-to-be Superbowl champion NY Jets. The Bills were clearly the worst team in football. It was technically our 2nd worst team of all-time (1-13 in 1971). Those were dark days to be a Bills fan. On September 29th at the Rockpile, we beat Namath and the Jets 37-35. I was at that game and it was fun. It proves a point that even the worst team in football can beat the eventual Superbowl champions on any given Sunday. In that game Tommy Janik had a 100-yard pick-6. Butch Byrd had a 53-yard pick-6 and Booker Edgerson had a 45-yard pick-6. Talk about embarrassing for an elite Superbowl champion! I'm not sure that the good Bills ever had one get away from them like that. But in 1968, the bad Bills snatched one from the elite Jets.

The game was 24-0 on ice when Tua stepped in. What in God's name are you thinking?

As I said in my other post, I am finding wins against everybody except the Seahawks and the Steelers. I predict we'll probably lose to one of the Cardinals or 49ers depending on their health. I will stick to that and say 11-5. Yes, that means we are losing to all the elite teams we face.

Wow! That is really a surprise to me. Fitzy was having a really good season. Why not let the kid learn while you can and put him in when Fitz inevitably cools off? This could be a real mistake if Tua has some rookie struggles.