Kirby Jackson

Can we add Zach Davidson to this poll? I think that he gets elevated this week and sees some targets. He almost had one the other time he was elevated.

That makes sense to me. While this game has star power in Josh Allen, it doesn’t have many other “stories” (unless it’s the Bengals). The Broncos are just kind of there and the Bills/Dolphins “rivalry” doesn’t captivate the nation. I was hoping for Saturday afternoon instead, but Sunday at 1 works for me.

We scored a lot except a few times (specifically Baltimore). When teams defend you well, you need guys that just win on their own. Obviously Josh Allen does that regularly. James Cook makes some plays on his own as well. In the passing game that was CLEARLY lacking. That’s why the Bills traded a 3rd for 1/2 of a year of Cooper. Sometimes you just need to chuck it down in his direction and hope that he wins because he’s better than the guy across from him. That’s what #1 WRs do. That’s what he did last week. Coleman is also capable of making some plays where he just wins vs. the DB. It’s less consistent though because he rarely has space. Throws to Coleman are constantly in tight coverage but his ball skills are quite good. The difference with stars and role players is when teams have a good defensive scheme (as Baltimore did). When Brady can scheme guys open everywhere, “everybody eats” is fine. When he can’t, you need talent to win or you get trounced (as they did in that game). The whole offense was unlocked when Cooper got here (forget about snap percentages). Teams can no longer jam the middle and challenge you to win on the outside. That absolutely is a function of an outside threat. Again, the Bills traded a 3rd because, to their credit, they saw that.

I picked Denver. While I’d be really surprised if Miami beat the Bills here, playing a team 3 times makes me hesitate a little. The Bengals are WAY down the list for me. I’d be really nervous about the Bills defense stopping Burrow. The Bills would score their points but I’m not looking for another playoff game where I hope that the Bills have the ball last to win.

Reread what I wrote. I’m assuming that’s directed at me. I said, “at this point” and “obviously, it’s early.” He is 100% behind other guys recently picked around him, at that position. It doesn’t mean that his career is over. At the same time, the Bills would be in much better shape if they called “Calen Bullock” instead of “Cole Bishop.” If you disagree, I question which one of us isn’t understanding the safety position. 🙄

Shakir is almost exactly who we expected. He’s really good with the ball in his hands. He has good hands. He’s a top 5ish slot receiver. He isn’t a guy that terrifies people. He’s a nice piece. He’s a piece not a guy.

Almost exactly how I feel

Yep, I do remember. Milf I also recall us talking a ton of s*** to Chris Tucker. 😂😂

This isn’t a question as to who you think it will be. It’s a question of who you want it to be.

Alright, I’ll say it. Safety is a position that we see guys come in at early and play well (Bullock, Brian Branch, Dejean, etc). Bishop is not there despite being a 2nd rounder. Maybe he gets better but at this point, he looks like a bad pick. Yes, I know it’s early. That why I used examples of other guys drafted around him that are currently much better than him.

What you saw today is why “everybody eats” isn’t the answer. It’s a nice part of the offense. It’s great to be able to throw to different people. Sometimes you need to just throw the ball to your best and they need to win. That TD today was EXACTLY why the Bills made the move. He’s a great player and hope he’s here long term.

Sometimes you just need a guy that wins because he’s better than everyone else. THAT is what a number 1 WR looks like.

“When it’s too tough for them, it’s just right for us.” - Jim Harbaugh

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Ladd McConkey…

I have a few on the other end of the spectrum (at least from a tailgating standpoint): the Miami game a few years ago where OSHA was called. Fortunately, I was in a suite so once we got in it was fine (thanks @eball). The tailgate before the opener vs. the Rams was ungodly hot as well and on blacktop. The Bills game in Charlotte in 2017 is absolutely on my list. We sat about 2 rows from the moon and it had to be in the mid ‘90’s. I was drinking for days so that didn’t help but I remember thinking I was going to die. The same for the postgame in Houston this year but I wasn’t drinking nearly as much. The walk back to the train was as miserable as any that I could remember. With the exception of the Rams game the Bills lost the other 3. Those days were all horrible.

That Giants game is such a good call. That was awful!! The Raiders AFC Championship was brutal. That Pats game where Mac threw it 3 times has to be in there. This Cardinals game always comes to mind:

Lol, I haven’t broken down each snap of every WR. If you have some information that disputes this please feel free to share. If not, it sounds like you only want to see information that supports your hopes and feelings. That’s not a strong way to analyze performance. P.S. I can find a similar chart from Coleman in college that is even worse looking.

This is tricky for me because I wasn’t a Coleman guy coming out. I had a lot of guys over him (Worthy being one). I think Ladd McConkey would have been the right pick for his consistent ability to get open. I thought that skill set was way more important than a jump ball guy. I thought that they needed someone that could handle volume and win his matchups when things were tough like last week. Unfortunately, that appears to be true. Worthy’s explosiveness would have added an element to the Bills. He’s good and going to be good. Coleman has been a little better than I expected but that’s not a huge endorsement. He has good body control and can get down the field. This was my concern though and he’s living up to it:

I’m not trying to denigrate anyone. I’m also not trying to see anyone comparing Schobel to Bruce. Kelly was very good. He played with an elite team. He was to the Bills as Goff is to the Lions. That’s not an insult. That’s a top 7ish QB. That who Kelly was. The Bills rarely won BECAUSE of him. They almost always win BECAUSE of Josh. Winning with someone and winning because of them aren’t the same. If someone believes Kelly is better, I’m going to continue challenging, “based on what?” Team record isn’t an acceptable answer. Kelly is the 2nd best QB in Bills history and one of the 3 most important players they’ve ever had. He’s not their best QB.

That’s fair. If we want to give them an extended look over the next couple of weeks I’m cool. At this point, neither should be out there in the big moments unless we don’t have a choice.

No he’s not. You show me a list that has him there. He’s borderline top 25. He’s Moon or Aikman. Josh is trending towards top 5 and will be top 10. Allen is MILES ahead of Kelly. I do remember the early 90’s teams well. They were like a better version of the current Eagles with Jim Kelly playing the role of Jalen Hurts. They had the best 2 way back in the game and an elite defense with a DPOY candidate. They had an elite number 1 WR and a great OL. They won a lot. The current Eagles are a great comparison. I had both Shaw and Sestak, along with Ernie Warlick on my list. I’m not ignoring them. The 90’s teams are the best teams though. You’re a great poster. I’m not going to debate on Christmas. I saw every game each played and the gap is wide. If both, in their primes, were on the same team, it wouldn’t be a QB competition. Allen is way ahead of Kelly in terms of impact. Kelly was what Jalen Hurts is to the Eagles.

Nope. Elam is too handsy and Bishop isn’t very good. I’m cool without either of them playing. I’d rather Ingram and an old Micah Hyde. You can work on developing Bishop in the offseason and probably need to find a new home for Elam.

Agree again!! Bruce was incredible. Prior to this season he was the best Bills player that I ever saw. I think that I have Allen ahead of him now because of positional value but it’s close. Those ‘90’s teams were far and away the most talented teams in the history of the franchise. They, along with those Cowboys teams in the later years of the run, were the most talented teams in the NFL (and by a lot). Wait so you have Kelly over Allen but didn’t see Kelly?!? 😂😂😂 Nevermind, it sounds like you were told some pretty incredible tales of that era. I’m not here to confirm nor deny the existence of the tooth fairy. Merry Christmas!!

With all due respect, the nostalgia of what Kelly’s teams accomplished, is far beyond the quality of Kelly as a player. He’s not in Allen’s league. It’s just not a reasonable opinion, at this point to believe that he’s a superior player. This list is the BEST players at each position in Bills history not THE MOST IMPORTANT (even still an argument could be made that Allen was more important). That’s an important distinction. Let me ask it a little differently, “if prime Kelly and prime Allen were both on this team now, who would start?” What about, “if prime Kelly and prime Allen were both on those early 1990’s teams? Who would start?” When you do it like that there isn’t a logical argument to make for Kelly. He was very good. He was ELITE at operating that system. There’s a guy in the AFCE that is very good and elite at operating his system. It’s not Allen, Rodgers or Maye. I’m not saying that Kelly is Tua. Of course, he’s way better than that but you get the point. There’s a massive difference in guys that you win with vs. guys that you win because of. You won because of Kelly sometimes, like you do Jalen Hurts. Often, the quality of his roster overwhelms teams. It’s extremely rare that the quality of the Bills roster overwhelms teams if Allen isn’t at least very good. Both teams win a lot.