HappyDays

I don't know how likely it is. I know it is possible and I would like us to do it. I would take Hopkins on the team over Ed Oliver. That's how far I would be willing to go because in recent history the teams that make it to the Super Bowl have a much better #2 weapon than Gabe Davis. I would do whatever it takes to make sure we have that baseline fulfilled. Maybe Kincaid explodes onto the scene as a rookie. Maybe Cook becomes a true pass catching weapon. If neither of these things happen and we have another disappointing playoff exit because of inconsistent WR play, Beane will have to answer for that. I entered the offseason saying that the success of this offseason depended on him finding an upgrade to Davis. As of now he has not done that. I feel that we're entering the season with the same question marks in the WR group as last year, just with the added hope of Kincaid becoming a pass catching weapon.

He still has not gotten the offer he wants which means we still have a chance. If some team like Houston offers him $40 million for two years, so be it. But that has not been the case. I believe we CAN give him the best offer if Beane is willing to make the necessary moves.

Every single player goes for the most money every single time. We didn't sign Von Miller just out of the goodness of his heart. I don't know, I wish Beane would just find a way to close the deal. Play hardball as long as possible, I'm fine with that obviously, but ultimately we need someone to upgrade Davis as WR2 and insure us in case Diggs or Davis get injured. I worry that at the end of the year we'll look back and see that one game we lost that would have earned us the #1 seed and there will be a critical Davis drop in that game. That's been the exact outcome in each of the past two seasons.

Beane does this every year. He works out players he has no intention of signing now, so that he can circle back in a "break glass in case of emergency" situation. If Davis suddenly sprains his ankle in October and Shorter isn't ready to play we can sign Preston Williams to the PS and call him up the maximum number of times while Davis recovers. It's just contingency work, it doesn't mean anything about Deandre Hopkins or anyone on the team.

Those higher ranked coaches are going to have their job for at least as long as Allen is our QB. So if McDermott can't topple them in the playoffs, isn't that one more reason to move on from him and try for somebody that can go further? By the way I'm not saying McDermott should be fired now but I agree with Ross when he says this is a big year for him. If we lose a couple stupid regular season games and just miss the #1 seed and then get bounced in the divisional round again, you don't think that is a reason to think McDermott isn't the guy?

The level of play can also be reflective of the coaching. Nobody on the team looked prepared for anything Cincy did on either side of the ball. If the team is completely unprepared how is that not on the coaches? Ross talks about this game on the podcast. He says Burrow was getting the ball out in 2 seconds while Allen was patting the ball forever and he attributes this to coaching. I don't need to make excuses. The Bengals came in with a banged up OL and designed a game plan around it. They designed a game plan to account for the snow. What was our game plan on either side of the ball? I couldn't tell you.

It isn't clickbait. He admits that after hearing the arguments he might put McDermott ahead of Staley. For the rest of them he says he is ranking them based on what they did with the roster they had. He thinks most coaches would have more than just one AFCCG appearance and no Super Bowl appearance to their name with 5 years of Josh Allen. I don't think that is an out of line statement. To me it seems obviously true.

Ross Tucker was on Locked on Bills today defending his ranking. Skip to 4:45. He talks like a meat head but you know what he makes some very good points. His overall point is that if Mahomes, Burrow, and Allen are the 3 best QBs in the world, Allen shouldn't be lagging so far behind Mahomes and Burrow in their playoff success. He attributes that difference to coaching. He makes the argument that if you traded McDaniel for McDermott in the wildcard game this year, no way the Bills squeak by with a 3 point win. He says in the divisional game Burrow knew exactly where to go with the ball in 2 seconds while Allen had no clue and he attributes this to coaching as well. It's a good listen. I highly recommend it.

I wouldn't trust anything reported by Buffalo Fanatics. They have a history of "breaking news" that never actually breaks.

The ignore feature is one of the most underrated features on here. More people should give it a try.

The final score of the AFCCG was 23-20. It is actually possible to slow down top offenses - the Bengals have done it multiple times in two consecutive playoff years. Their DC has proven to be one of the best in the league and changes his scheme for the opponent. Will McDermtt finally be willing to do that? We'll see.

I watched the Chiefs rookie CBs press the Bengals WRs in the AFCCG. It kept the WRs occupied long enough for the Chiefs pass rush to take advantage of the Bengals banged up OL. You don't think our more experienced CBs and the press man CB that we drafted in the 1st round could have handled that responsibility?

You mean guys like Adam Schefter? The guy that directly sources information from agents said on his podcast that even though Mahomes is saying all the right things in public, he actually wants a new contract. Which makes sense. The QB market has been reset and he's likely got family members and an agent in his ear telling him he can get more with very little effort on his part. Before long I expect us to have to pay Josh Allen more too, especially if he brings home a Lombardi.

Schefter today said that behind the scenes Mahomes wants a new contract. If he wants one they'll have to give him one. When the best player in your franchise's history says jump you say how high.

That is a cherry picked summary of what Schefter said. Nothing new is really reported here. The Bills and seemingly every other team are unwilling to give Hopkins the contract he wants. It will be a long process to get the right deal that both sides are happy with.

That part of Matt Parrino's recap was certainly exciting.

If $10 million plus incentives is the number, just get it done. Make it $12 million. A lot of detractors to the idea have said no team has the ability to pay two high-end WRs, but $10-$12 million is actually a fair rate for a #2. If anything that is a discount given where the market has gone.

Yeah I take him hiring an agent as a good sign. It's a sign that he isn't getting the offers he expected so he wants an agent to figure out the best offer he can get. If the Chiefs spent their Hopkins money on Donovan Smith that makes us the front runner.

More info from that article: https://www.si.com/nfl/2023/05/30/inside-deandre-hopkins-release-options-bills-chiefs