HappyDays

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

Fake account, he does not work for ESPN.

He is being "represented" by Saint Omni, the guy that the NFL sent out a warning on to teams because he was working with Lamar Jackson despite not being a certified NFLPA agent. He also helped Laremy Tunsil and Roquan Smith get their deals. Somehow this guy has built a following among superstar NFL players and is basically working for them off the record.

It's because he can't do it. His skill set doesn't lend itself well to routes that require short area quickness. He releases well and can run vertical. That's a great skill set for a #3 outside WR. For a #2 it limits what the offense can do. Do you really think two OCs in a row now haven't had Davis run those shorter routes for no reason?

You don't think it's a problem that our supposedly #2 WR can only run long developing routes?

I know Arizona gave Hopkins permission to negotiate with other teams when they were actively trying to trade him. So I would assume we and other teams at least have a framework in place for what he's looking for.

I wonder if teams have been able to actively negotiate with him since Friday, or do they have to wait until he's officially released?

I can't believe some fans are already trying to rationalize Hopkins possibly going to KC over us. It's an unmitigated disaster if that happens, period. The next time Davis drops a pass that costs us the #1 seed I'll look at our salary cap table and feel better I guess.

My level head tells me that if we have to contend against Kelce/Hopkins and Chase/Higgins for the next two years, we become dark horse Super Bowl candidates. Who knows what happens after that but I'm not comfortable waiting to find out.