GunnerBill

If course that team would have been better with Allen. Who is disputing that? The point is it would have been worse with any head coach we have had in my fandom other than McDermott. I can't comment on Wade. Before my time. I saw the end of Greggo, Mularkey, Jauron, Chan, Marrone and Rex. None of them would have got that 2017 roster to the playoffs. I am very confident in saying that. The rosters Marrone and Mularkey got to 9 wins with were both better than the 2017 roster. Your point, so far as I understand it, is you can't give Sean McDermott any credit for being a better coach than all the other guys we have had because he has Josh Allen. My counter is if course Josh Allen makes any Head Coach better. That is the law of the NFL. Almost every top HC you can name had a top QB. And the biggest single difference between the teams of the last 4 years 2019-2022 and the teams of the drought era is they have Josh Allen. But McDermott is also demonstrably through his 2017 performance (and frankly through gettting to 13-3 last year with everything they endured and a hurt Josh) a better Head Coach than all those that I named above. And given the same rosters I think he would outperform all of them.

I don't think he will be, but I don't think it is impossible.

The only mystery is how the Bills hadn't worked this out before they signed him. Not like Titans games are blacked out or played on the moon.

I think Jonathan. He is raw but there is some potential there.

It won't be popular but at the Spotrac estimate $10.5m AAV yes I'd extend Ed. Not sure he'd take that now though. He would want to test the market (and may well get more). Not sure I'd go much above that. Maybe to $12m AAV for a lower guaranteed % and out after a couple of years. Jones will be the starter IMO. At the right price, yes on Houston. Don't feel great starting a season with AJE, Boogie or Shaq as a pencilled in starter until Von returns.

1. Von can fluff him up all he wants but I am telling you what I saw on the field and even allowing for injuries it was poor. 2. I don't have any issue with DL rotation. I am a proponent of it. The Eagles and Howie Roseman have believed in it for years. What I question is do you need 4 paid vets? It is at the cost of other parts of the roster. I refuse to believe that the rotation would be sunk if you swapped out Tim Settle for Brandin Bryant or someone of that ilk and that money might have got you another outside receiver or a better vet tackle to challenge Brown or a better #2 tight end than Morris.... or whatever it may have been.

Yep. Blaydon Races followed by Local Hero. Classic.

I agree on McGovern. It is a gamble that the ascension he showed last year continues. Similarly agree totally on Hines. On Harty when you look at the guys on those sort of value deals his last healthy season is right in the ballpark. I think that is just an example of some of the stupidity of the WR market to be honest rather than a very obvious overpay by Beane.

I am sure Terry consults Kim (health withstanding) I do get the sense they are very much a partnership. But in terms of outside counsel which is what I took the question to be - I don't think he is big on valuing other opinions above his own.

Nope. Week 2 was hamstring. He did it chasing down the field on Milano's pick 6. Yep. He had two different hamstring injuries (or an injury and a re-injury) before the shoulder.

Phillips had two hamstring injuries. He has a history of hamstring injuries during his time with the Cardinals. And he underperformed when healthy except for week 1. My problem with Settle was never Settle per se. It was that they felt the need to have 4 established, paid, vets in the DT rotation (at the moment it looks like 5 this year!) and that money comes from other areas on the roster. Whether that is OL, WR, TE, a better backup QB.... a better bet LB this year than AJ... it is the opportunity cost as much as Settle not playing that well IMO.

I also think they believe (and to an extent I agree) that if you can keep the blindside secure and the middle clean you can let Josh account for the rusher round right tackle. It is in his field of vision and if they beat Brown he can step up / escape / make them miss. The problem much of the last two years but especially 2022 was the middle collapsed too.

$6m doesn't get you much these days. I said it at the time, Von apart I hated what the Bills did in FA in 2022. I know Daquan Jones played well for them too so I take that into account but overall that was a horrific use of money. $23.5m on one year of Jordan Phillips, one year of Roger Saffold, two years of Tim Settle (who might now be a cut candidate) and OJ Howard (who didn't make it out of camp). So when Beane pleads cap poverty now someone should remind him of how he got there. This isn't a fire Beane post. He has done a good job for Buffalo overall. But I took a lot of heat at the time for being critical of their 2022 FA strategy (Von apart). But all my worst fears were realised.

So 2002 was my first season watching the Bills and watching the NFL. I don't remember thinking the Bills were very good but my understanding of what I was watching then was pretty rudimentary so I am not going to pound the table for my view. I am 100% confident in saying from 2004 onwards Sean McDermott would have got AT LEAST one (and in some years more than 1) extra win out of every roster. From 2004 to 2016.

I mean it's incredibly subjective, but sure. I am not sure what it will prove though.

Nonsense. McDermott won 9 games with a bad team. McDermott with Jauron's roster wins more games than Jauron. Why? Because he is a much better football coach. Of course having Josh Allen is the difference between a team that wins 9 or 10 games and a team that can win 13 or 14. That is absolutely right. But Sean McDermott had a bang average roster and a backup level QB and won 9 games and made the playoffs. The proof is right there.

Which was what?

Jess only has another 4 or 5 years in top level tennis tho. She is 29. I know she was a late developer but that is very much veteran in women's tennis.

The 2017 team was worse than the 2012 team, the 2014 team, the two Rex teams and at least one of the Jauron teams. Sean made the playoffs.

Err only four coaches between Jim and Josh managed 9 wins. Wade Phillips (twice in three seasons), Mike Mularkey (once in two seasons), Doug Marrone (once in two seasons) and Sean McDermott (once in one season). The only year that I think McDermott has underachieved as Bills coach was 2021. They underachieved in the regular season, then still got hot at the right time in the post-season then blew it. In 2022 I think given the injuries they had all year 13-3 and a playoff win was probably a slight overachievement, despite the disappointing ending. With Josh Allen McDermott's playoff losses were to a Houston team that had Watson, Hopkins and Watt; twice to a Chiefs team with Mahomes, Kelce, Hill, Jones and Mathieu; and to a Bengals team with Burrow, Higgins, Chase and Boyd. I am not sure which of those you think the Bills were clearly more talented than. But they were all at best a wash IMO.

Yuck. Yuck. Yuck. No Head Coach loses big games to teams they have more talent than more often than Jim Harbaugh. I'd rather re-hire Marrone than that mug.

I'm 39 tomorrow. I feel very old.

Sean is, from what we evidence we have in Philly and Carolina, a more aggressive play caller, but scheme wise expect the Bills to still be a bend but not break scheme that tries to limit big plays and keep the game in front of them. That's how McD's defenses succeeded as well. You may see him bring more pressure in certain situations where Leslie would be inclined to play coverage but there will be a lot of simulate pressure and drop out as there was in Frazier's defense.

Before my time watching the NFL. I didn't start watching the NFL until a trip to the US when I was 18 in 2002. I am just about old enough to remember Jim playing but I wasn't interested in the sport in those days. Was soccer, cricket and cycling only back then.

Marty, yes. Marv? Less so. Marv never won a playoff game. McDermott reminds me more of Bill Cowher or Marty, who won playoff games but kept coming up short. Marty resigned from KC and never won one. Cowher stuck it out in Pittsburgh and did.