HappyDays

KC hasn't been dominant since they traded Tyreek Hill. The last three years they've been in a bunch of close games, even against inferior opponents, but they always find a way to make the 1-2 plays at the end to pull out a win. Even moreso this year than ever before. Offense, defense, special teams, somebody steps up and makes the play. The difference against us is Josh Allen said no thanks, I'm going to make that one play at the end. That's why we succeeded where everyone else has failed. And like I said he might be the only player in the league capable of that. This year at least he's the one and only player that's shown that capability. Maybe KC's almost-loss against Denver followed by a true loss will throw their season off the rails a bit and they'll lose some of that magic, but I'll have to see it to believe it. FWIW I think they will lose one more game somewhere along the way just because of probability, but I will genuinely be surprised if they lose two.

Yeah root for freezing rain. Bad for the fans in attendance but great for our chances of winning. Remember the 49ers played in the rain against Cleveland last year and their offense was almost non-functional. Purdy isn't built for that weather.

I think people are too dismissive about KC's chances of winning out. I wouldn't bet the house on it but they just have a knack of finding some way to win at the end. Losing last week doesn't strip them of that special ability. Because let's be honest - Buffalo didn't beat KC at the end, Josh Allen beat KC at the end. He's maybe the only player in the league that can make that play in that moment against that team. No one else on their remaining slate of games is remotely capable of that.

Well, Edmunds is a good counterexample because now we've seen the sorts of big play opportunities that exist for the MLB in this defense if they are up to the task. The INT that Bernard had to end the Chiefs game, Edmunds never did anything like that in his time here. Same with the sack Bernard had on Mahomes while spying him. Those sorts of plays were there to be had when Edmunds was our MLB but they weren't being made. So it isn't just crapping on Edmunds, it's pointing out that Bernard by comparison is a big step up at the position. And I recognize Edmunds did his 1/11 while he was here but Bernard is going above and beyond, so fans are going to comment on it.

I've followed Derrik for a while, even before he was a writer for The Athletic. He was the first draft analyst I saw who gave high marks to Keon Coleman as a prospect, this convinced me to look into him more and he ultimately grew to be my #1 draft target for the Bills. With Bernard I think it is just stylistic preference. Derrik values LBs that can shed blocks and play through contact. That isn't Bernard's game at all. My response of course would be that McDermott's defense doesn't need him to do that. McDermott puts his LBs in a good position to create plays, and Bernard has done that way better than Edmunds ever did for example. He also QBs the defense which is incredibly important given the complexity of our scheme. As a playmaker and an extension of McDermott's brain, I think Bernard is critical to our defensive success and I expect us to eventually sign him to a long-term deal. I think Derrik's concerns are valid, and luckily that should help us lock him up for what will look like a hometown discount just like we did with Milano. Not every defensive scheme could make use of Bernard's skill set. For our defense however he's a perfect fit IMO.

I'll admit the stretch of Baltimore, Houston, and NYJ fed into some of my worst fears about McDermott. My biggest lingering concern with him is how he and his staff perform in critical high-leverage moments. Each of those games featured bizarre decisions that directly led to us losing or letting an inferior team back into the game. You have to execute a few of those moments during a deep playoff run and historically those are the moments that have kicked us out of the tournament. Since the Jets game we've done a much better job in those moments so I have some hope that McDermott has finally figured it out, but the lingering concern is still there and won't be fully excised from my mind until I see it happen when it counts.

That's Derrik Klassen who I actually really like, but I don't agree with him at all on Benford. The play he made in 1v1 coverage against Deandre Hopkins to pop the ball out as they went to the ground was not just McDermott's scheme. That was an individual CB flat out winning against a WR that is usually elite in those contested situations. I don't know what else Benford needs to do to get out from underneath Dane Jackson and Levi Wallace's shadow. He's delivered in every big moment this year and opposing offenses are barely even throwing the ball in his direction.

Honestly probably not that much earlier than we took him. Late 2nd if I had to guess. He has been injury prone and is pretty scheme specific IMO.

Much like MVP, coach of the year is ultimately an award about narratives. It is too difficult for a long-time head coach with expected success to win that narrative battle. Let's be honest, Belichick should have been coach of the year for two straight decades but that's not how it works. I think for McDermott to have a shot we would have to go undefeated the rest of the way. Then the narrative would be that everyone predicted a downturn for the Bills but instead they had their best regular season ever under his leadership, and he would beat another candidate in Dan Campbell along the way. If that happens we are the #1 seed, Allen is unanimous MVP, and McDermott probably has good odds of getting coach of the year.

He had practically the exact same play against Miami but the officials took it off the board with a phantom holding call. I was happy to see him add it back to his career highlight reel, in an even bigger moment.

More times than I watched Bass' 61 yarder which is saying something.

I questioned the positional value of the signing, especially with other players like Benford, Bernard, Rousseau, etc. coming up soon. I had zero doubts about Brown's talent. He's grown to be a very good RT and is critical to our run scheme.

Brandon Thorn is very impressed by Spencer Brown this season which is about the highest compliment you can get as an offensive lineman:

Cooper really is the anti-Diggs. Look at him casually making a one handed catch for a massive 3rd down conversion, with the expression of someone waiting in line at the DMV.