Rocky Landing

Probably a little late in the conversation to just say, "yeah, what I should have said is the owners of Walmart are buying the Broncos..." and moved on.

Honestly, considering your OP, when I clicked on this thing, I was expecting to hear something compelling. I didn't. This episode of this guy's podcast gets a blue ribbon for whining. "Patriots* fans never punched down on their division rivals..." Oh really...? Go to any Pats* forum right now, and see what they're saying about the Jets. Patriots* fans have been some of the most arrogant, obnoxious, and insulting fans in the history of sports. I know lots of them. I have quite a bit of family in Boston. My brother lives in Boston. My wife is from Boston. I have co-workers, and friends who are Pats* fans. I have endured the gloating, and smarmy posturing from these fair-weather fools for 20 years. And this jackass has the audacity to tell us to "let it go...?" THEY still can't let it go. If you know Pats* fans, you will still hear the refrain of "we have six Lombardis... how many do the Bills have?" and "13 seconds," and "Bills can never win the Big Game," and "the Von Miller contract is going to destroy your future..." blah, blah, blah. For the most part, the only Pats* fans who understand that their reign of dominance is over (and not just on hiatus) are the ones who have left. (Like my father-in-law. He is now a Rams fan). I will "stop punching down" when the Patriots* are sitting at the bottom of the division, daydreaming about Tom Brady* over a stale Sam Adams Winter brew. Maybe.

https://www.theonion.com/deshaun-watson-rethinks-life-choices-after-finding-self-1849004731

I know many Patriots* fans. My wife is from Boston-- her entire family are Pats* fans-- and I have several co-workers also from New England, who are Pats* fans. Right now, they all have one thing in common: They all love to talk about the Patriots*' legacy, and how the Bills' legacy will never stack up to theirs. And this may, in fact, be true, but I don't envy them. Bills fans learned long ago not to dwell on the past, and to look towards the future. Pats* fans have little to look forward to, and so they crow about their six Super Bowls. They (pretend to) love to point out that "the Bills have never won a Super Bowl," as if that's news to us. They (pretend to) love to remind us of Von Miller's age, as if our #1 defense revolves around a player who has yet to play a snap in a Bills uni. They (pretend to) love to bring up "13 seconds," as if that defines us. But, look at them. They do still have a 70-year-old GOAT HC-- but for how long? They just lost their long-time OC, and a legendary O-line coach. If Belichick* left tomorrow, their coaching staff would be a shambles. And so would their team. They arguably got worse over the offseason, and all three of their division rivals inarguably got better. Every season that "Patriots* Legacy" is going to be further, and further in the rear-view mirror, and all of that gloating on their past achievements is going to start tasting more and more bitter. At some point, Patriots* fans are going to have to come to grips with their own mediocrity, and a future of irrelevancy behind a Bills team that looks to be dominant for years to come.

I've read a lot of annoying things in PFF, but this may be the worst. Ignoring the article's rankings, and just reading the author's comments is enough. He completely ignores such concepts as team building and culture. It appears that he doesn't consider anything a head coach does beyond game-day on the sideline. The only thing he seems to regard before last season is coaches reputations. I frankly think he knows almost nothing about many of these teams, and coaches beyond the stat sheets in front of his face. And seriously-- Kliff Kingsbury #4...? And I'll just go ahead and be a homer here in defense of our Sean McDermott: "...not always getting expected results out of his offenses based on talent level." Perhaps this author doesn't know the Buffalo Bills of 2017 (and their first playoff appearance in nearly two decades) , captained by Tyrod Taylor throwing to fat-ass Kelvin Benjimin, and Mills, and Ducasse protecting the right side of the O-line?

They're from Arkansas. Not a huge difference.

I know it's a brave, new world, and all... but I have a hard time imagining Crowder, McKenzie, Austin or Shakir being rotated through the practice squad. I would add that if they have an eye on Shakir as P/KR (and many assume they do), Austin could be a valuable vet presence during TC in that regard.

I basically disagree with this. But, I do think that this signing shows that the Bills have obviously not decided on a P/KR, and that they plan on a serious competition for the position. I also think Austin is being a bit underrated in this thread. He certainly never lived up to his first round hype, but he did have occasional play-making ability, and great speed. And as far as being a vet-presence, at least in the return game, he has more experience as a P/KR than anyone else on the team. Crowder is second. But, if they have plans for Crowder in the slot, maybe he isn't as involved in the P/KR competition? Could Austin's vet experience in the return game be a help to someone like Khalil Shakir? I would think so.

I'm parking in the pink lot. My 12-year-old Bruno and I will be doing some sort of low-key tailgate, but I'm not sure what. I'm assuming we're going to be surrounded by Rams fans. And we're going to bring our bikes-- looks like a long walk to the stadium, and they're supposed to have bike racks all over the place. And yeah, the cost is stupid.

He's teaching him the chicken dance.

It's a petty gripe, but I don't like the new numbers with so many being single digits for so many different positions.

By some odd chance, do you ever sail out of CYC?

I live in LA, and I'll be there with my kid. If you're traveling from out of town, you will be shocked at how many transplant Bills fans there are in LA. It will almost sound like a home game. Should be some fun tailgating, also. Stay tuned!

Can we please dispense with this notion that Poyer has in some way not honored his contract? It is simply not the case. Voluntary workouts are voluntary. He is not contractually obligated to be there.

Elam is so engaged in everything.

Did I miss something? Is someone not fulfilling a contract?

They could free up cap space with a restructure.

The NFL is a business. The owners, coaches, players, and their agents all understand that. Not participating during OTAs while a player's contract is unsettled is part of the negotiating process. Poyer certainly understands that. Your characterizations of Poyer pouting, and crying suggest that you don't.

I personally have every intention of trying out this "Loganberry Whiskey Sour." But, in the meantime: 4 oz. bourbon whiskey 2 oz. lemon juice (lime works-- lemon/lime is even better) 1 oz. 2:1 simple syrup 1 T. orange marmalade 1 T. egg white (or just throw in an entire egg white) Shake vigorously with ice (you want the egg white to get all frothy), and double strain into a chilled heavy lowball glass. (If you don't have a heavy lowball, drop in a large ice cube, or sphere.) Drink, and enjoy, and don't bother listening to a podcast that would have the audacity to suggest that Isaiah McKenzie isn't a versatile player.

Perhaps there is a point to be made that McKenzie lost his P/KR role. But, to suggest that McKenzie isn't versatile is just ludicrous.

I only ever see tickets being sold in pairs. Really hard to find a single. About where are you sitting, if I may ask? Just curious.

Oh, I feel you, believe me. This was a bitter pill to swallow. Part of it is the nature of this particular game. Looked into what a Rams ticket in October would be for comparison, and they're about a third the price. I wasn't going to do this game myself, but friends I know who have been to SoFi were telling me what a great venue it is. If you go onto Gametime, I believe you can get two tickets for maybe a little over $350, before fees, and taxes (so $400ish?). That will put you over the corner of the end zone in the top level. Basically the worst seats in the house, but... if there "aren't any bad seats..." I found an interactive map that shows about what your view would be. https://chargers.io-media.com/web/index.html# Parking though... Holy crap! I'm going to have to get creative on that. I think we might take the train in from a few miles away with our bikes. Parking at the SoFi for that game starts at $296!!!

Well... no...

Gametime seemed to have the best prices by a little, but I actually got lucky with a couple resale tickets from Ticketmaster.

Just bought tickets for myself, and my soon-to-be 12-year-old son Bruno to the Bills @ Rams game at SoFi. OK seats, I suppose-- front row of the top tier, and they weren't cheap, considering the altitude. I haven't yet been to SoFi, but I'm told "there aren't any bad seats." We'll see... The last Bills game I attended was the Chargers debacle at Stubhub center (that's a 24,000 seat venue) where Nate Peterman schatt himself in the first half. I witnessed that abomination from the fourteenth row at the twenty yard line. Fourteenth row at the twenty yard line for this game was listed at $1,850 a seat. So, I'm getting Bruno a set of binoculars for his birthday.