Rocky Landing

relevantish...

This article strikes me as almost defeatist regarding the quarterback position. Or, maybe it's denial. Quote: "While quarterback continues to be the biggest question mark on the roster going forward, Kyle Orton has proven to be serviceable enough to be a holdover through the 2015 season." Really? That's it? He expects, Whaley, et al, to just ignore the position???

Hard to imagine the Jets getting a win this week. The Jets I saw on Monday had utterly given up in the second half. Vegas has the Dolphins favored by 6.5, and I think that's being kind. With Miami playing for a wildcard spot, and the Jets playing so uninspired, I'd expect another blowout. Can you even imagine what their locker room is like?

On the plus side: Bills win the turnover battle. They know how to shut down Vick. The Bills are a better team. On the negative side: No longer a home game. limited practice. Coaching. Were this still a home game, and Buffalo wasn't buried in snow, the Bills would be favored by 5 or more. As it is, they are still favored by 2, and I think that is a fair assessment. I believe that the Bills are still focused on winning games and haven't given up on the last six weeks of the season, regardless of their playoff hopes-- unlike many posters on this site. Bills by 2.

It'll be a tough game if EJ is starting.

Whoops! Went right over my head! (like many things) I haven't seen that move in twenty years.

Who'e being dishonest here? The attitude I was refuting was one where fans, such as yourself, claim that the "season is over," "we may as well test (once again) EJ to evaluate him," "we have nothing to lose," etc. Now you're claiming that Orton is worse than EJ? Based on what, exactly? If you're going to argue that the rest of the games don't matter (you did), then support that claim. If you're going to make the argument that EJ gives us a better chance of winning now, then that is a very different argument. And, anyone who says that EJ is better than Orton is suffering from willful amnesia. I've posited this question several times over the last couple days, and not gotten a single response: If a secret poll were conducted among the players on the roster, who do you think they would want starting next week? Sure, you "don't care what they think." I get that, and that's the biggest part of your attitude that I find the most objectionable. ("All losers???) But, if you think they don't have a pretty good idea of who is the better QB, well, I don't even know what to say to that. Personally, I think the answer is obvious, and I'm just assuming that the players on our team don't share your defeatist attitude, and actually want to win games. And, for myself, I want to watch them win games, regardless if they're going to the playoffs. To me, the regular season doesn't end until week seventeen. EDIT: I keep going back to your post and seeing other little obnoxious statements! "...the players on offense looking like crap." ??? Tell that to Fred Jackson. Or Chris Hogan who has vastly exceeded people's expectations. What about Sammy Watkins? Seantrel Henderson? And there are five games (not three) in which we "looked like a winning team"-- those would be the ones we won.

No offense, but I despise your attitude. This is no way to build a winning team by declaring the season "over." Sure, we're not making the playoffs, and everyone knows it. But, I would sure hope that every member of the team still wants to win games from now until game 16. Maybe you don't care it EJ throws 15 interceptions. But, I'll bet it would be a pretty serious downer for him and every other member of the team. I have a hard time believing that making the rest of the season some experiment that does't include winning games does the team any good. Losing more games isn't going to make our team better next season. It's only going to make us losers.

If a secret poll were conducted among the players on the roster, who do people think the team wold want starting next week? I have to believe that every player on the team wants to win games. And, personally, I'm tired of this idea that because we aren't going to the playoffs (again), that the rest of the season doesn't matter. You don't build a winning culture by only bothering to win the games that "matter." Regardless of how "done" our season is, I still want us to play every game to win. I believe that is what's best for the team in the long run. That, IMHO, is how you build a winning culture. If Kyle Orton is our best QB (he is), then he should start until he isn't.

Sober and realistic. I'm a little down on the common attitude on this site that unless we make the playoffs, the season is meaningless, and the notion that once we are eliminated from the playoffs, wins no longer matter. I watch the Bills play every week, and when I watch them play game 16, I still want to watch them win.

If a secret poll were conducted among the players on the roster, who do you think the team wold want starting next week? Assuming that all of our players actually want to win games for the rest of the season (and, perhaps even create a "winning culture" in Buffalo), how many do you suppose would say things like, "we should start building for next year," or "let's give ___(fill in the blank)___ a shot- we have nothing to lose?" Regardless of how "done" our season is, I still want us to play every game to win. I believe that is what's best for the team in the long run. That, IMHO, is how you build a winning culture. If Kyle Orton is our best QB (he is), then he should start until he isn't.

Yes, we should bring back EJ because I've totally forgotten how badly he sucked earlier in the season. And, he could really benefit from the experience of losing games. What a great morale boost it would be for the rest of the team. The defense could get some extra time on the field. The receivers could improve their proprioception by not knowing where the ball was going to land. From here on in, we should play to lose. (edit: this is, of course, sarcasm.)

I don't even remember which quarter it was, but there was a play where Smith slipped out of the pocket, and Darius sprinted after him, and Smith threw it away. I just couldn't believe how fast Darius moved, considering his size. This is one of the things I truly love about football: Every type of athlete is represented on the field. And, Darius is an exceptional example of his type of athlete.

I was just looking through some of the posts on this thread, and I just want to comment: Anyone who thinks that Orton lost us this game is either: a) trying to further some "agenda," b) didn't really watch the game, c) thinks that "passer rating" has some statistical relevance, d) doesn't understand football, or e) all, or some combination of the above.

A Buffalo Bill player named Williams, and Williams, and Williams, and Williams, all said to each other, "don't sweat it, my brother, mediocrity will still make us millions."

I have a hard time with this notion that sticking EJ into the end of a losing season, and losing more games than we would have otherwise is going to help him. I also have a hard time with the idea that such a strategy won't hurt the rest of the team.

Personally, I do believe that our playoff chances are as good as dead. But, even if they were completely dead, I still want us to play to win every week. That's how you create a winning culture. We don't do anyone on the team any favors by throwing EJ in so he can gain experience by losing games. Orton is the best QB we have. He should start until he isn't.

I'm just going to R-E-L-A-X now, because our playoff chances are O-V-E-R. They were S-L-I-M to begin with. This was not a coaching loss, IMO. Two very bad mistakes, and WAY too many dropped balls.

OK sorry. Mods should delete this thread.

So, in 2015, the Dolphins, Jets, and Bills all have to drag their asses across the Atlantic, and get hammered by jet lag, but the Patriots get to stay home. WTF?

It was a groin injury, not a concussion.

For my 50th birthday this year, the Universe gave me a staph infection on my scrotum. (That's right, my SCROTUM!!!) It was awful. It ended up taking about five weeks to get rid of, and the potent antibiotics I was on was like eating poison twice daily. It took about three months before I felt like myself again. Of course, what JK has is quite a bit more serious-- certainly life threatening, and the antibiotics are going to kick his ass. My thoughts are with him.

That was a great read.

That's how I remember it. But I'm irrationally biased, and often wrong about many, many things.

Here is my problem with the Quarterback Rating Differential (and this is going to sound picky, and semantic because it is): The Quarterback Rating Differential should not be called the Quarterback Rating Differential. Hear me out. The Quarterback Rating (QBR) is a formula used to rate a quarterback’s performance based on completion percentage, yards per pass attempt, touchdowns, and interceptions. It is statistically meaningless because it doesn’t take into consideration the playing level of anyone else on the field other than the quarterback, and the null hypothesis is easy to prove. The Quarterback Rating Differential (QBRD), on the other hand, is a measure of team performance based on those four metrics. In other words, everyone’s performance on the field, including the offense and defense of the team being measured, and the opponents of that team factor into the equation. That is why the above list doesn’t state Aaron Rodgers’ QBRD, but the Packers’ QBRD. In fact, there could be several quarterbacks playing during any game that would be included into QBRD. Really, this stat should be called Team Rating Differential. And, with that being said, if someone (or some group) with a firm understanding of statistics, and a lot of time on their hands would calculate, and include corresponding values for running plays, rushing touchdowns, and field goals, the statistic would be even more useful.