Kirby Jackson

He was LOST last night. Tunnel vision mixed with poor decision-making. Josh lacked any sort of presence in the pocket. He turned it over 5 times (fortunately they blew one dead). Twice he could have run for huge gains and he threw a pick on one and an incompletion on the other. I’m comfortable saying that’s the worst that I’ve ever seen him. Also, Dorsey sucks. Can someone tell me why they never move the pocket?? They should have him moving every play.

At the Bills Backers Tailgate and it is REALLY subdued compared to most road game tailgates over the last few years. It’s a cautious group. Let’s hope it goes crazy in about 6 hours.

I can’t speak for anyone else but that wasn’t the purpose of the thread. I’m as committed as ever. I flew into NY Saturday and will be there ready to go. I just went from EXPECTING to win the Super Bowl (last year) to knowing that they CAN this year (but it will be really tough). Last year, all that I thought about was that game in LA for months. This year, it is more like, “play well, secure as many home playoff games as possible and execute against great teams in January.” I believe, more than ever, that the gap between Bills/Cincy/KC and everyone else has all but closed. The Bills are still elite. They just have more competition. They didn’t get over the hump with less competition. It will be harder than ever in 2023.

Am I alone in lacking the energy and excitement of the last few seasons? Don’t get me wrong, I think that the Bills will be really good. Last year, I was sure that they were winning the Super Bowl. Maybe I just haven’t “recovered” from how last year ended but I’m not feeling that same energy as last year.

For me, it is 2 on both. The Bills are playing with house money this week. When you look at the schedule I have them splitting Miami and NYJ. To me, that means wins at home and losses on the road. If the Bills win this game they are a game ahead of where I thought they’d be. If they lose, it’s not a huge deal (assuming health is intact).

That’s an antiquated way of thinking. Schools used to recruit regionally. That died maybe 15 or so years ago. Now, the biggest programs have a national recruiting base. That basically erased that narrative. Caleb Williams isn’t some “California surfer kid” (a la Leinart, Barkley, Rob Johnson). He is an Oklahoma transfer from Washington DC. The arguments you’ve made to this point were MAYBE relevant 20 years ago but the game has changed. The schemes have changed. The college game now influences and dictates the pro game, not the other way around. The spread and RPOs have all moved to the NFL game. There has been a consolidation of talent at the college level with national recruiting. I’m an Ohio State fan. Their starting offense right now by state: QB - PA RB - VA WR - PA WR- WA WR - PA TE - OH LT - CA LG - TX C - WI RG - NY RT - IN This is why the narrative of “_____ school doesn’t produce ____ positions” is dead. The best players now go to the best fit, not the closest big school to home. USC starts 1 skill player on offense from California (an elite football state). The “history” of a school with a certain position has never been less relevant. NIL will continue to make this even more of a reality.

The same system is potentially relevant (or at least somewhat). In this case it would be a bonus playing for Reilly. The rest of it seems like a stretch. That’s at least true for the teams with a national recruiting base.

I don’t know who said that college and the NFL were the same? Equal shot? What does that even mean? It’s COMPLETELY irrelevant how previous players played at a school. You ONLY evaluate the player. The history of the school at a position means nothing. That holds especially true with a different coaching staff. In terms of the Heisman, it wasn’t a great indicator of pro value for years. Guys like Jason White and Eric Crouch won. Over the last 16 years, 15 Heisman winners have been 1st rounders (Derrick Henry as the exception). 7 of them went first overall (Williams will be 8). The Heisman is a decent indicator of draft position in 2023. That’s how NFL teams view these guys.

Lol, one has nothing to do with the other!!! The PLAYER needs to be evaluated not PLAYERS THAT USED TO PLAY THERE!! This is so simple!! It remains the dumbest argument in sports. Don’t be so simple. I’m not going to appease your ridiculous argument but what kind of success have Lincoln Riley developed QBs had? That’s INFINITELY more relevant in this discussion. If that happened, he’d be, without question, the greatest college player ever. He already has a decent shot at a 2nd Heisman.

Name the last great Texas Tech QB before Mahomes? Wyoming before Allen? Miami (OH) before Ben? That’s the stupidest argument in football. There is ZERO correlation. If you don’t think that he will be good, fine. You’ll be wrong, but if you have football reasons, fine. If your reason is because he went to USC that’s stupid. If it’s because other highly-touted guys failed, that’s also stupid. There is zero correlation. He has ELITE traits and plays the exact style that the best players play currently. Lol, in 2023 do people really care about that? I care if they win, not if they graciously hand the ball to the official. Deion took a trash program, went on the road, and knocked off the National Runner-up. That’s what I want in a coach. I want winners. I don’t care how they act when they win. I also don’t care if NBA players have a dress code when they show up to a game.

I’ve met a bunch of them. It’s an underwhelming group 🙂.

Well said!! I was coming here to say something similar. The Bills missing the playoffs isn’t asinine this year as it has been in past years. They have an extremely difficult schedule and 2 potential contenders in their division. I still think that this Bills win the division but it isn’t the lock that it has been over the last couple of years.

I’ll be there (at the tailgate at least). We are staying on the Upper West Side and driving in at like 2:15-3:00. Looking forward to it!!

“I hate college football so much that I’m going to start a thread, on a football message board, to tell internet strangers, how much I hate college football.” That’s sad. Anyways, for those paying attention, the first month contains weekly matchups with playoff implications: LSU - FSU, Texas - Alabama, and OSU - ND. OU - Tennessee and OU - UGA were both called off because of OU entering the SEC. Speaking of which, conference consolidation will do wonders for college football. There will be more “best-on-best” matchups before determine the playoffs.

I don’t know much about the PSE situation. I’ve always thought that it was stupid to operate both brands with the same leadership/people. The NHL and NFL are completely different business models with different revenue streams. A lot of teams combine their staffs but their roles are different.

Malik Willis? Davis Mills? Andy Dalton? Case Keenum? Jameis?

https://x.com/adamschefter/status/1695214383729717550?s=46&t=aIi6rXjE4r9_s--847m7fQ

I’ve seen enough of Kyle Allen and Matt Barkley to not believe that they are more than scrubs. Lance has elite tools and basically no experience. I KNOW that they can’t play. If we had Keenum or Trubisky still, I wouldn’t care for Lance. I’d buy the lottery ticket because I believe that if Kyle Allen, Matt Barkley and Trey Lance each started that Lance would have the best results. The bar is VERY low IMO with the current guys. It’s as bad of a backup situation as there is in the league.

Well of course!! Lol, who said that it raises the ceiling? Your ceiling is the Super Bowl. It raises the floor!! If Josh were to miss a month, “could you go 2-2?” That is what you are trying to get to. I believe that it is more likely with Lance than Allen/Barkley. You also get the bonus, if he looks good in those games, of one of the best trade chips in football. It isn’t about a season!!!! Every team is done if their QB misses the year. It is about if your QB misses a week or month.

Fair question: I should have rephrased to “improved backup situation.” I do not believe that he could be worse than Allen/Barkley. I just don’t. I think they’re scrubs. If he is “not very good” it’s an improvement. His talent / style give him a floor as a decent backup IMO. Remember we wasted a 5th on Fromm and he had NO CHANCE to even be a decent backup.

Maybe, maybe not, he is in a similar situation to when Trubisky came to the Bills. He does need to rehab his image as apparently he is playing behind Darnold. MAYBE, someone like Atlanta, looks at him as a potential starter. If not, he needs to go to an established program and rebuild his value. Right now, the perception is, “he must not be very good.”

I would if I could but it would be contingent on a 2 year extension (acceptable base with lots of upside). Worst case scenario you have a solid backup for a few years. If he plays and succeeds, you have an elite trade chip. I think that it raises the floor on this team (he is better than Kyle Allen and Barkley). It potentially raises the ceiling if he shows out and they trade him.

It isn’t just in hindsight that it was a bad pick. Many of us were critical of it from the jump. He was, and is, a scrub. I have no issue with the Bills using a late round pick on a backup. DTR would have been great late in this draft. I have an issue using it on a guy that was never going to be any good. Fromm is an XFL QB (maybe).

I don’t want to overreact to the preseason. I had 2 big concerns with this team: OT and #2 QB. They are both worse than I was worried about. Add in the MLB situation and there is reason for concern.

I agree. I don’t think that the swing tackle is currently on the roster