Dan

I completely agree. The one thing that seems to stick out and really get at me more than anything is too many of our "great" players, play without heart. And have for quite some time. That was my big grievance over cutting Fred Jackson. He was one of the few guys that played with heart. He could lift his level of play and the players around him. Now... Who does that on this team? We get guys coming out saying... When the QB gets the ball out in under 2 seconds, what can we do? When the refs throw flags all day, what can we do? It's like they all have built in excuses to accommodate their mediocrity.

Your last sentence says it all. We can talk about the player stats and the field position and the QB giving up 3 turnovers and the penalties and all that. But the bottom line is this defense is not getting it done when it counts. People blame EJ for the loss to Jax, and yes he sucked it and showed us all why he's not starting, but.... he also dug himself out of that hole and got the lead back. The defense wasn't overly tired or anything, yet when it mattered most... They couldn't stop Jax from driving all the way down the field and winning the game. That's on the defense, plain and simple. Man up coaches and players, stop making excuses and stop them when it counts. I figured the defense would take some time to come together under Rex and an entirely new staff, but what I didn't expect was that at mid way through the season I'd feel better with the offense on the field with 5 mins left in the game, needing a score to win versus having the defense on the field needing to make a stop to secure the win.

I agree... It'll never stop. Some people are just born to B word. And after the last couple decades of Bills football, these people have perfected the art. We've seen a very limited amount of Tyrod. However, in those few games, he's looked and carried himself like a starting NFL QB. Will he continue to grow and get better is still the question. But, only more playing time will tell us all that. He struggles with consistency and decision-making right now, but name 1 QB in the league that doesn't do that... Let alone in their first season as a starter. I also find it funny how young QBs like Tyrod and EJ are damned if they do, damned if they don't. Everyone wants a pocket passer to dissect defenses, with minimal running to avoid injuries. So, if Tyrod takes off on a run... He has to learn to be a pocket passer! He's gonna get killed. But, then if he stays in the pocket and gets sacked... He has to use his legs and run more! He's taking too many sacks. It's just funny is all.

You are correct. I should probably ban myself from the board for such a mistake. Or maybe the demand for immediate perfection doesn't extend to TSW posters?

Whether they knew what they were doing or not, or even if they should have been doing it, doesn't matter. The fact is, the Pegs were both very much involved in the interviewing and hiring of Rex. There's almost no chance whatsoever that they pin the HC hire, good or bad, entirely on Whaley's shoulders. If you want to blame Whaley for hiring Rex and see him fired after 7 weeks, you're gonna have a long wait. Apparently that's what you do now, fire everyone and bench the players after one loss. Nothing less then perfect wins, against the best teams in the league, every week should be acceptable. Oh yeah... And every draft pick should be a probowler and never get injured! The demand for complete and total perfection is all that matters.

Isn't Luck playing with cracked ribs? If so...why? Is their backup that bad?

Pressure up the middle, blizting safeties if you have to. And man, press coverage on all the receivers. You absolutely have to disrupt the timing of the offense. Laying back in a zone is stupid. Playing 7-10yds off the receivers to tackle after the quick catch is stupid. Rushing 3-4 all game and no pressure is stupid. Yes, you'll give up big plays blitzing Brady, but that's the only way to get him to make a mistake. And you're gonna get the ticky tack BS calls... so make them count! Lay Brady and that eddleman out every chance you get. Offensively, go no huddle the entire game and don't let them substitute. And if you're in 4th and short... Go for it. You need TDs, not field position. edit: fake calls on the sideline into the helmet and from the booth, the wristband has the plays listed on it with a number, change the wristband/numbers with each quarter, fake game plans in the locker room, and every other means possible to circumvent their cheating

This is total marketing crap designed to sell jerseys. Rather than actaully address the issues on the field, like Refs blowing calls, or refs not knowing the playbook, or one team's incessant cheating, or teams rolocating, or fans losing the chance to see their team in favor of international fans, or any of the other crap that's going on in the league; we get... color rush uniforms that celebrate the rich history of seeing red in Buffalo. It's so stupid. When did red become the history of Buffalo? Am I missing something?

Agreed. After the first half, I finally admitted EJ just doesn't have it. I've been hoping EJ would finally prove to be the QB we all wanted him to be, but Tyrod needs to be our QB, period. Then the second half happened, and EJ looked like a decent backup. After a couple days, I stilll have the same opinion. EJ needs more time to learn the game, work on his mechanics, and gain confidence in himself. But, in the meantime, he's not a complete disaster as a backup. For those saying... Anyone but EJ; I say step back and look objectively at most of the backups, and waiver wire guys out there. They suck. Look at what Dallas is going through, or Houston, washington, or Arizona last year when their starting QB went out.

Are people suggesting that 7 games into the new regime we need to fire the coaches and GM? Honestly, this is an absurd notion. I know people are tired of not making the playoffs... But there's not a coach, GM, Free agent or draft pick that's going to come in and be 100% right and good and have us on top of the AFC from day 1. The world doesn't work that way people.

There's only one more off season move I want to see Pegula make.... Become a member of the NFL rules committee. It's the only way I can see doing something being done about the amount of BS calls that go against this team.

He's the Fred Jackson of TSW.

It's completey unbelievable that a multibillion dollar league does not have professional, full time referees for every game. Especially, when you consider how thick and obtuse the rule book has become.

Bill it is great to see you back and posting! That's the most important thought for me.

Exactly. And that's what too many people forget. They want to just blame EJ and call it a day. But, they ignore the fact that EJ actually kept fighting and made the plays that put the bills up by 4 late in the 4th quarter...AND that the refs blew 2 extremely critical calls at the most important time of the game.. Both in favor of the Jags. If the refs don't give the Jags that score, how different does this game and the story about EJ's performance get written?

Exactly... Put the 2 bad calls in a row, on a game winning drive... And you have the league once again deciding the outcome of a game... More than the players on the field. Yes, the Bills did plenty to lose that game and in many ways deserve this loss. But, they also did plenty to fight back into the game and get the lead. So, to those that say don't let it come down to one play... I say the Bills made plenty of plays but were once again screwed by the refs when it counted the most.

This is stupid.... I've seen more commercials than football. I literally see 1 out of every 3 plays... And that 1 play is either choppy or blurry.

Same here. Its frustrating to say the least, especially when I consider the money I paid to DirecTV to watch all the Bills games.

I feel like I'm in 2003. 2nd down... mario is closing in on bortles.... Wait for it.. Wait for it... Wait... Its 3rd and 21! Wtf. About to hike the ball.... Wait for it.. Wait...refs calling. Penalty (frozen screen). Commercial... No streaming problem... Thnkfully its working better! Whew, i almost missed another kohls commerical. I assume the jags punted?

Typical streaming for me.... Missed all but 3 random seconds in the Dareus piece, waiting for it to buffer repeatedly. Now they go to commercial... Not a single problem; clear, beautiful, uninterrupted picture!

See klos' post. I'm not saying the league shouldn't stream games online. I'm saying they should do that AND have the game on TV. That way fans can choose which is the best way to view the game for themselves.

This is part of my issue. I pay for the Sunday ticket plan that lets me stream games. I do this specifically so I can watch all the Bills' games. Now will I get reimbursed by DirecTV because I'm not actually getting all the games? I get the league wants to do this, but they should still show the game through the traditional channels as well. Oh and for all the witty guys that say, simply plug in an HDMI cable to your tv. What about those of us that are in cheap hotels without HDMI ports on our TV? What about for the technically challenged folks that still can't program their VCR? What about those of us that have crappy throttled back internet? There's all sorts of reasons this game is gonna be a pain in the ass to watch. Hence, all the more reason to stream it on Yahoo, but still have it on network or sunday ticket tv.

I like how they feature penalty flags so prominently in the logo. How can the league continue to let penaties be such a huge part of every game? Everyone sees the discrepancies and influence the refs have on the games... Even the Brits.

I could argue that the better passing statisitics are due to better CB play this year. Or do you contend that dropping Mario and Kyle into coverage, at the expense of QB pressure, is what's lowering the opposing pass yards? Would the defense not be better if we had our current level of CB play AND last year's pass rush? It seems to me they've decided to go all in and stop the run, which our run defense seems significantly improved. However, in a passing league, when they face top teir QBs, they need to adjust. That's what they're not doing, IMO. They're not making the proper adjustments to put the DL in the proper position to succeed to their ability. Could it be that Rex's scheme of confusion and moving guys around has been figured out by the league and he's unable or unwilling to adjust and keep up with the better offenses? And this line that they've done good... Except for when they faced good QBs like Brady and Dalton. Well, isn't that special. So we should be happy with beating up the little guys, but the big guys are just too good for us. That's not the defense I want nor think we should accept. I will agree with you, we're only 6 games into an entirely new coaching staff and scheme. Expectations should be, and should have been, tempered with the reality that few teams click right off the bat. But that still doesn't alter the fact that up to this point, the defense is greatly underperforming compared to their salaries, previous years' efforts, and coaching reputations. That needs to change.

This team lacks heart. They play uninspired, undisciplined, heartless. Its unworthy of our support more often than not.