msw2112

I was thinking the same thing. I do think he's one of the greatest defensive minds of all time and he's a good head coach, but maybe not as great as his reputation. This also goes to show how great Brady is, love him or not. The fact that he could go to Tampa at age 42 (or whatever age he was at the time) and win a Super Bowl, then last year lead the NFL in yards and TDs at age 44 or 45 is pretty amazing. The success in New England with Brady was not an accident.

I hate this too. I live in the west, so the Bills game is starting at 4 PM for me. I booked a private "meeting" on my calendar and will try to sneak out of the office a couple of hours early. I have a DVR and can always record and watch later, but my phone blows up with texts from all my Bills fans friends (who live all over the country, but many in Buffalo or elsewhere in the eastern time zone). Between that and my TV being accidentally left on ESPN (so I turn on the TV and see the live game/score before I have a chance to queue up the DVR recording), my car radio, etc. it's almost impossible to avoid knowing anything about the game. If I see my neighbor and say hello, he is guaranteed to say something about how the Bills are doing. He's just being friendly, but it ruins the game for me. If they had one game at the regular time, this would be much less of a problem (it would likely start around 5:30 PM for me). As a side note, I did not like the Amazon Prime streaming experience last night. By the time I got home from work, fed the kids, got them to bed, etc. and I was able to sit down and watch the game, it was almost over. I was able to figure out how to start the game from the beginning, but the "DVR" functions on Prime (I use Fire sticks) are not very good. It was very difficult to fast-forward to the spots in the game I wanted to. It went too slow or too fast. I kept going past the point I wanted to be, and had to rewind, and tried to do so without seeing the score. Plus, I watched it across two different rooms, so I had to start over each time I moved. Then the whole thing locked up becuase my usually extremely fast and reliable internet service was supposedly sending a weak signal. I recycled the modem, it was fixed for 15 minutes, then it locked up again. Then I fell asleep just before getting to halftime...Bottom line, streaming is not a great option for me. I hate it. When I record a game via Directv and watch later on my DVR, it's a very smooth and easy experience. I'm curous about the experience of others who watched the game "on delay." But enough complaining and grousing. It's Friday, the Bills are awesome and I'll figure it out Monday night so that I can see the Bils crush the Titans!

My first reaction is that this looks terrible and ridiculous. I thought it was something new they just created, in which case the entire marketing team should be fired. Given that is actually part of franchise history, it's not as bad as I originally thought (but still highly questionable): https://sportsmascots.fandom.com/wiki/Brownie_the_Elf_(Cleveland_Browns)

They are so desperate to get rid of those things, they will throw in a conditional 7th rounder.

This kind of stuff is really bad. I'm sure that teams and the league are looking for excuses to curtail tailgating. It leads to more unruly fans, a mess in the parking lot, and less food and drink sold inside the stadium (less revenue). I personally LOVE tailgating, so I don't want to see stupid stuff like this that could jeopardize it.

Yes - this is a great point - and similar, in that this trade also worked out in a big way for both franchises.

It could be argued that the Vikings "won" the trade because Jefferson is even more productive than Diggs, he is younger, and paid much less (still on rookie contract), and the Vikes got additional draft picks. That said, I am going to agree with you that Diggs brought/brings intangibles to the Bills that were needed and call this trade a win-win, and agree that it looks so far like one of the best trades the league has seen.

I was 514 row 7. I might have reached up to high five you a few times....

I did not realize that there were zero blitzes in the game. Looking back, I can't remember one. This is the statistic that impresses me the most. Not that any of the other statistics are not amazing, but because it shows HOW MUCH THIS TEAM HAS IMPROVED FROM LAST SEASON. The Bills of recent vintage got lots of pressure, but never got to the passer. Last night, they did, and did a lot, and did it without blitzing. They also did it against a QB who is a savvy veteran who has a very good shot at the Hall of Fame. Incredible!

What I was getting at is that the balls on the long throws to Diggs and Davis were a little bit underthrown. Both guys had to hesistate slightly to haul the balls in. So they weren't perfect throws, but they were still amazing plays be Allen. I understand that Allen was on the move and being pursued by a defender, which is WHY the balls were slightly underthrown. I'm in no way being critical of Allen. 90% of QBs in NFL history can't make those throws AT ALL. Both were amazing plays on his part. In comparison to the long balls, however, the third down throw to Diggs on the left sideline in the 1st half was truly perfect. Diggs was very tightly covered and the ball was placed such that only he could get to it. It was the classic, perfectly-executed "back shoulder" throw. It was the perfect combination of timing, velocity, and accuracy. I'm not one of those people trying to nitpick and find fault in the Bills after a fantastic win. I was simply trying to explain what was, in my opinion, the best throw of the game and why, and compared it to some other throws to make the point. Allen is fu%*&ng awesome and I love everything about this team!

Allen was great. The int on the pass to Crowder was part on Allen and part on Crowder for not coming back to the ball and breaking it up. The reason I say that it was part on Allen is that he had more time to throw on that play than any other play all game. I watch most games on TV, but was at the game and high up on the 50 yard line. Could see every play develop in a unique way that you don't get to see on TV. Allen could have run on that play. He could have dumped it off. He could have waited to find a receiver who was more open. He had a totally clean pocket and could have gone through his reads again. Instead he chose to throw to a guy who was pretty well coverd. But that was one bad play in a game full of stellar ones. The back shoulder throw to Diggs along the sideline on third and long was a piece of mastery. It was the most incredible throw he made all day. The deep throws to Diggs and Davis were not great THROWS per se (for exmaple, he didn't hit Diggs in stride), but they didn't need to be. They were amazing PLAYS in which he scrambled, manipulated the defense, and got the ball downfield to the open receiver. It was a true clinic in quarterbacking.

Seattle's defense was awesome that year, but Wilson was also an excellent QB and played a big role in the success of the team. And Trent Dilfer also says hi.

I (respectfully) disagree on this one. The Rams should have immediately taken a TO after the previous play to give themselves time to decide what they wanted to do. If they had, they could have attempted another play to get closer, then used another TO for the FG attempt. By letting the clock run down, they only had time for one play and HAD TO try a long FG (or a Hail Mary). It worked out for them, as their kicker made a great kick, but they could have managed it much better. If the BILLS had taken the TO, they would have done the Rams a favor.

Many reasons those timeouts were a good idea: 1) Prevent a last score by Rams' starters (being competitive, playing for pride, practicing situational football) 2) Prevent injuries or illness - it was very hot and humid, so let guys get properly hydrated to avoid cramps or pulls 3) Get backups into the game - prevents injuries to starters AND gets younger guys reps 4) Give those of us Bills fans in the stadium to fully enjoy a few more minutes of the sweet taste of victory. It was such a great win for the franchise. None of the Bills fans were running for the exits. I think we all just wanted to enjoy the moment and soak it all in. (Plus, the cost-per-minute of the ticket went down with each extra minute in the stadium). This obviously shouldn't be a factor in McDermott's decision, but it was a nice side benefit.

I agree that Allen should run less. I hope and think that because this was big game - national stage, opening game against a top opponent, etc. that they wanted to set the tone for the season with big win. The one "designed" run I didn't like, as mentioned above, was the one with under 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter, up by 3 scores. We were at the game and could see the whole play develop from above. I think that play was similar to the first TD. They expected the Rams to sell out on the run and that when Allen rolled out, the WR would be wide open dowfield like Davis was on the first TD and Allen would just dump it over the top. When the defensive player didn't cheat to Allen, there was a huge running lane and Allen took it. He should have just done the QB slide and gone down. Running out of bounds would not have been the right play, as they wanted to keep the clock running. I also thought that late in the game, the Bills should have run the ball every down and either 1) forced the Rams to use their TOs, or 2) milked the clock. Moss' fumble might have caused them to move away from that strategy. Oddly, the Rams didn't use TOs and didn't even try to get the ball downfield. Stranger things have happened in the NFL - if they managed to score a quick TD and recovered an onsides kick, the momentum shifts and they might have a shot. A longshot for sure, but a shot. Instead, they pretty much conceded the game inside of 7 minutes.

I'll be there. We have a group of 4. Unfortunately, the tailgate was sold out and the all stadium lots are sold out (inlcuding the Pink Lot, which is the only one that allows tailgating). We'll be parking in a sterile lot at the Forum (at the bargain price of $100) and walking over to SoFi. Looking forward to seeing all of the Bills fans in the stadium and enjoying our victory! No matter how nice this stadium is, it's clear that the pregame experience can't hold a candle to Buffalo.

$17 beers and $8 hot dogs.

Flacco is terrible at this stage of his career, but he's still better than Wilson. Yes, Wilson is injured, but this is an excuse for the coach to play the experienced veteran QB. It's like Marrone going with Kyle Orton over EJ Manuel. Coaches want to put in the guy who gives them the best chance to win, as they like to keep their jobs. Long-term successful veteran coaches (like Shanahan in SF) and first-year coaches (like Saleh last year) can get away with playing the young QB and letting him develop, but 2nd and 3rd year coaches who have not had success need wins to keep their jobs. I should add that if playing guys like Joe Flacco (at this stage of his career) or Kyle Orton (where he was with the Bills) is your best option, the team is going nowhwere.

Under the radar, but if Jordan Phillips can rediscover the magic he had rushing the passer from the inside that he had a couple of years ago, combined with Miller and an improved Rousseau (and throw in some Oliver, DaQuan, and Settle), this could be the best Bills D-line we've seen in years.

Losing a top defender is never good for a team. If Tre White had been healthy, perhaps things would have been different for the Bills in KC during the playoffs last year. I think the Bills beat the Titans in Buffalo whether Landry plays or not, but this definitely gives more of an edge to the Bills.

I'm neither a sexist nor a mysoginist. I have a wife and daughters who are as capable as their male counterparts in everything that they do. There may be women who are competent and capable of working in a NFL broadcast booth and despite it being uncommon, I would support it. That said, I can't stand Beth Mowins and I cringe while she does one of my team's games - college or pro, football or basketball, or any other sport. To be fair, I do the same when Spiro Dedes does a Bills game. In both cases, their sound, style, and commentary are distasteful to me.

I can't stand Beth Mowins, but each to his or her own.

My understanding is that the Bills reached out to Kern to gauge his interest and he said he wasn't. He certainly was not offered the job. Would have been a nice hometown story, but Martin may be the better fit, as he is 4 years younger, and his numbers are slightly better than Kern's. Good luck to Kern, a hometown kid who has had a very successful career, in retirement, and welcome to Buffalo, Sam Martin! To the OP - time to change the thread title to - Bills sign Sam Martin!

This is a good signing. Martin has very good career numbers and has punted and held in inclement weather in Denver. Based on some stats I saw earlier (posted here), his road numbers were the same or slightly better than his home numbers, so his numbers weren't artificially inflated by the thin mountain air in Denver. It's also noteworthy that he was originally drafted in the 5th round (by the Lions), which is very high for a punter, even higher than the 6th round pick that the Bills recently used on a punter. There should be no rookie jitters with punting or holding this season.

I'm not sure that it was reported on WGR, but it was reported in this thread about an hour ago! And, it has been confirmed that they DID NOT let him leave the buiding! Martin signed, as per the tweet three posts upthread. This is a great result. Martin > Haack. Martin > rookie Arazia. Martin may not be better than Arazia's potential, but that's water under the bridge.