SoMAn

You're still relatively close to Atlanta, Paces Ferry, 285. I'd guess you're only 30 minutes or less from the airport and I'd think in Buckhead in maybe 15. I'm in Woodstock. Airport is usually 50 minutes, depending on traffic, with the longest part (for morning flights) just getting past Marietta. Ughh. Growing up in Williamsville, the airport was less than 10 minutes away. We didn't know then how good we had it. We thought Akron Park was the other side of the world when we were little kids and went there for picnics. Better take snacks and a blanket for the drive. Now I look at Google maps and laugh when I see it was about a 22 minute drive. When non-WNYers hear 'Buffalo', they immediate think 'snow'. Yes, and that gets old. But I sure miss how quickly you can get anywhere in metro Buffalo. The good news is that most the suburban towns around here have brought entertainment, restaurants, nightlife, and easy parking into these locales. There's very little reason for me to go ITP now. (IYKYK). 😉

A little off topic, so forgive me. Living in metro Atlanta, I laugh when anyone in Buffalo talks about a 20 minute trip being "a longer drive". The drive from the Millersport Marriott to Highmark (normal traffic situation) is about 20 minutes. I used to live within spitting distance of that Marriott, and I thought Orchard Park was not very close, and other than Bills games or concerts, would never venture that far. But, your perspective changes when you relocate to someplace like Atlanta, and everything isn't within 20 minutes as it seemed to be in metro Buffalo. While living off of Millersport Hwy, I had a girlfriend in West Seneca. Again, I thought that was pretty far to travel. Looking back, it was probably 15-20 minutes away - less time than it takes me now to go to most places. The thing I think I miss the most from living there is the ease of getting around and how many desirable destinations are less than 30 minutes away. The airport was never more than 10-15 minutes away. Downtown - 15 minutes. Here, in the northern Atl 'burbs, it's almost 15 minutes just to get to any interstate or major highway, and then you have to hope somebody didn't wreck and bring the road to a standstill.

This has got to be an April Fools joke. Am I understanding this correctly? If I'm understanding your proposal, in effect the Bills would be trading 5 picks for an extra second round pick. 😗 However you try to spin this, it comes down to giving up 5 picks for a gamble on a second rounder. They'd effectively be swapping their 30 for #33 (best case scenario) and 5 other picks for a gamble on a single pick somewhere in the 2nd round (best case scenario is # 34 to go with #33). Duh. I like my odds better with the 5 picks. Beane has had pretty good success with mid to late round picks. They can have good value to a team like the Bills.

Not exactly what that is, but still funny. Are you referring to the 'A' you might hear in.... "I left my paahck of Caahmel cigarettes baaahhck in Caahnada". That one? If I go to Buffalo, I have to practice the similar sounding 'O's'....To say "I stopped at Tops to get some pop".....repeat after me... I Staahpped at Taahps to get some paahp. Speaking of One Bills Live callers. did you ever notice that the old timers, the ones who proudly brag about the being a Bills fan from the days of Kemp and Dubenion, always sound like they have a throat full of phlegm and a deviated septum. Reminds of Tom Carvei pushing Cookie Puss on late night TV ads.

I'll have to look at that when I get a few minutes. Me and my best buddy drove up from Atlanta that weekend for the game. (it was easy to get tickets and was very affordable for guys like us who barely had rent money). We stayed the entire week in Buffalo, visiting old friends and relatives, too many of whom are now gone. We left the following Sunday and stopped in Cincinnati to watch the Bills and Kelly's second-ever game at the old Riverfront stadium. Cincinnati is exactly the halfway mark between Buffalo and Atlanta, so it was a perfect stopping point. We watched the game (another loss), got in the old car, and headed straight home to Atlanta. Needless to say, it was a long day. But when you're young, it's a lot easier. Our ride was a light blue mid-70's Chevy Impala station wagon, identical to the one driven in the Travolta movie, 'Michael'. Great memories from the days of 'roughing it'. Sadly, my buddy/best friend will never have the chance to see our Bills win a super bowl.

She has a thick Inland Northern accent heard all around the great lakes, where there are only has slight sonic variations. The Chicago accent isn't much different from the WNY accent. So, for anyone annoyed by her nasally accent with the Inland vowel shift and the hard R's, that's pretty much how y'all sound to other people outside of your native Buffalo. I laugh to myself when WNYer's say "we don't have an accent". Uh yeah...you do. It can go from full-on Cheek-a-tow-oga Polack to Sowt Buffalo Irish Slavic in 60 seconds and several versions in-between. If you can get past the accent, Glabb is actually knowledgeable. She's done her homework and is quite capable of debating and backing her statements. She comes off as very down to earth and kind of girly, which may be an annoyance if you have outdated chauvinistic tendencies. I much prefer her to the female reporters who go overboard trying to sound masculine and authoritative, like occasional CBS color voice Beth Mowens. Mowens is another one with an annoying voice to some ears, but again, she knows what she's talking about. One Bills Drive is a great alternative for us out of towners to get some Bills talk and local flavor. It's to their credit that they're able to fill so many afternoon hours of Bills and NFL talk throughout the offseason. It is funny that they only have 4 callers - Butch from the east side, Tom from Tonawanda, Ryan from Toronto, and Judy from ? As state previously, if you don't like it, turn it off.

Cook played an important role in 2024, making some great plays. But the reality is that the market for running backs just isn't what is was before rule changes and mobile QBs changed way most offenses operate. Some teams don't even have a roster spot for a fullback any more. Would hate to lose Cook, but finding an adequate, or maybe equal RB wouldn't be as difficult as replacing a top edge rusher or CB. RBs typically have a shorter shelf life. He could have 5 more years of similar production before he starts to wear down. He's under contract this year. Meanwhile, the Bills still have Davis and Gore Jr., both of whom have shown a lot of promise, and may be able to take on the role of feature back if Cook leaves for greener ($$) pastures. Bottom line, don't break the bank for a running back when there are greater needs, particularly on defense.

I was at the first Monday night game with my older brother (Bills’ first) against Chiefs in week 7 during the stadiums inaugural 1973 season. He’s gone now, but I’d like to be at first MNF in the new Highmark with my younger brother. A passing of the baton in a sense.?

Considering the lifespan of modern stadiums and the length of time it takes to get anything done in WNY, NOW is the time to start the downtown stadium study along with all necessary planning so they can have everything in place to begin construction in 2048. That might be the foresight needed to have a covered downtown stadium ready for the opening of the 2051 season. Picture that with the long-promised flying cars! 🙂

I didn't get the feeling that he was a great fit for this team. Nice guy, decent player, but I never got the sense the chemistry was there with Josh and the rest of the offense. More serious personality than the Mr. Brightside bunch that Josh seems more comfortable hanging with.

The smiley face emoji was supposed to let you know it was meant with tongue in cheek.

Ummm...that's a big 'NO' from me. With his NFL salary, endorsements, future pension, and smart investments, Josh will probably be a billionaire before his 40th birthday. He gets plenty from all of us via tickets, NFL Sunday Ticket, merchandise sales, endorsement purchases, etc. etc. Apart from the material indulgences, he also gets his bell rung by a Hollywood starlet, with an estimated net worth of $22M. He hardly needs trinkets from this group of keyboard idiots. Now, if he cares to donate something to my Roth, I'm all ears. 🙂

Realistically, we may be wise to look at the big picture. Suppose Elam turned into a pretty good CB and our round 6 pick spent most of his time inactive or on the practice square. We'd be in exactly the same position we are now and few people would be complaining about the round 6 CB not securing a starting role. We got lucky and the Bills were able to get a good starting corner, even though it wasn't the player that was taken late in round 1. You win some, you lose some. I don't know if it's our expectations or just luck, but Beane seems to have more success in mid rounds than he does in the first. Any time a GM is questioned about the process of drafting and bringing in young talent, they all have the same view; there's almost no player that is a 'sure thing', even though statistically there's a better chance of a top 10 pick being a starter. Go back and look at the first round picks over the past several years. I'll bet about a third never see a second contract with the team that drafted them.

I've stated this previously, so forgive me for being redundant... Beane was caught between a rock and a hard place when they reached for Elam. Levi Wallace was gone in FA. Tre White was coming off a serious injury and his immediate future and ability to contribute was in doubt. Then, the icing on the cake was the run on CBs in that draft before the Bills were up. I believe Beane desperately wanted McDuffie, but of course, our arch nemesis Kansas City snagged him a couple picks ahead of us. Ughhh! There weren't too many options in free agency. Beane had no other choice. There was a gaping hole in the CB position(s). He had to gamble. Elam seemed eager to learn and he had athletic ability. For whatever reason, it never worked out. I suspect he was simply unable to process the defensive schemes that rely on communication and everyone being on the same page. He was unable to be part of a bigger unit that had to work in concert. Unfortunately, I don't believe Beane learned his lesson. I hope I'm wrong, but I think he took the same 'desperation and need' approach when they took Coleman as a consolation prize after the run on WRs. Best of luck to Elam. Just glad we got something in return that can be used to find a contributing player or as trade capital when bundled with other mid round picks.

Another consideration might be the era of dynasties. First, the Pats, now the Chiefs. Even the 49ers, Steelers, or Cowboys who were dominant for multiple years didn't have dynasties that lasted as long as the Patriots and the Chiefs, who appear positioned to extend their domination for several more years. If not for Mahomes, Reid, and the Chiefs, Josh would probably have reached at least 2 super bowls by now. A play here or there can mean the difference. On the plus side, the Bills have remained competitive, even in what was thought to be 'a transition year'. Staying competitive annually increases their chances to eventually reach the super bowl. Whether or not they get there remains to be seen, but if Josh and the Bills don't get there, they won't be the first great QB/team combo to miss out.

Maybe a better comparison would be to include the most playoff wins by QBs before finally getting to the Super Bowl. I'm not going to bother doing the research, but I'm thinking Elway, Manning, maybe some others had as many playoff wins (as Josh) before finally getting to the big game.

Maybe. Then why would KC not use that pick for an economical RB that may be as good as Cook?

It is. Their big boys against ours. A reverse tug-of-war. I kind of agree that it’s not really in the spirit of traditionally accepted football skills, but fans like it, so it probably stays. Clocking the ball to swap a down for a time out isn’t in the spirit of the game, but it’s become part of time management in desperate situations. I won’t be surprised if the NFL revises or enforces the runners be aided by a group of their Offensive teammates. They’re not supposed to be pulled forward, but I’ve seen it done numerous times and haven’t seen it flagged.

I was also at both events. ‘74 opener Monday night with OJ out after early injury. The final minutes were not dissimilar to the 13 second game with several lead changes. I was also at first Bills’ Monday night game in Oct ‘73 against Chiefs. The Stones concert was Aug 8 ‘75. One of the sheets hanging from upper deck was spray painted “Mick Jagger- Starf__ker”. I didn’t know then that it was the name of a Stones song. Also saw them July 4 ‘78 at Rich.

I can't really argue too much with any of your player assessments or the grade. My only hope is that the team is able to develop a few of the questionable rookies into dependable veterans. But right now, I don't see anyone from the 2024 draft that has any more value than a journeyman 'prove-it-deal' one year signee.

Use some draft capital to move up if a 'difference maker' is available, particularly on the D-line. The constant end of round 1 picks are not yielding anything better than day 2 and sometimes day 3 picks. If there's no opportunity to move into the top 15 (+/-), drop back and accumulate more picks. Play the numbers game and hope to hit on a couple economical picks that turn into Kyle Williams, Shakir, or MIlano level players.

One of the challenges teams with elite QBs face is paying the main man and still having enough cap room leftover to sign or extend complimentary players. Commercial endorsements could bring in a substantial supplemental income for a star player that may be enough incentive to accept a 'below-market' playing contract, leaving additional funds to retain important teammates. I believe Brady used to accept a lower paycheck, preventing other key players fleeing in FA. Mahomes is probably making a small fortune doing TV ads and other endorsements. He could easily forego half of his QB paycheck to stay in the spotlight on an elite team, which would create more endorsement opportunities. If Josh can make a killing doing ads, while at the same time leaving more money for the Bills to sign others, more power to him.

O.J. Simpson hosted.

Not as a player who ever sees the field, but maybe as a practice squad, suited-up mentor - in a similar way that Hyde was used last season. But really, not much need there either. Supposedly, Hyde was brought in later the season to coach up Bishop, who was likely to get playing time. The Bills have been following the old Patriots model of 'better to cut them loose a year too early than to keep them a year to long'. Good scouting, development, and player attrition are the keys to keeping a team fresh and not over-extending veteran contracts, unnecessarily challenging the salary cap. Bring Tre back to lead the pre-game cheers as The Legend of the Game - in full goalie gear.