Logic

I was, until this thread, completely unaware of you as a poster. Respectfully, I'd like to go back to that blissful ignorance.

https://www.theringer.com/2025/01/17/nfl/baltimore-ravens-buffalo-bills-matchup-preview-divisional-round I thought this was a reasonably enjoyable article from the Ringer this morning. "The ball-knower's guide to Bills vs Ravens". It points out some of the ways in which Baltimore's strengths are bad news for the Bills. Specifically, the Marlon Humphrey/Kyle Hamilton combo usually capably limits slot receivers and TEs, Baltimore is good 1st in the league defensively against jumbo formations, Baltimore's 12 and 21 personnel packages may pose (and have posed) difficult challenges for the Bills defense, and Baltimore's key passing concepts are good (and offer diverse options) against teams that play heavy zone coverage. On the other hand, the writer (who ultimately picks Baltimore to win) completely fails to mention that Shakir, Bernard, Milano, and Johnson all missed the first matchup, or that the Bills have since added Amari Cooper. Those all seem like very important things to mention in a "ball-knower's guide". Other than those omissions, I thought it was a nice little writeup.

It's confirmed: The year the NFL takes the first round bye away from the one-seed, the Bills will immediately begin perennially winning the one-seed.

I think the weather WILL play a part in this game. For those saying "Baltimore plays in cold weather, too". Well, yeah...but not like this. The coldest temperature Lamar Jackson has ever played in is 27 degrees. It's supposed to be 8 degrees at kickoff on Sunday. There is a world of difference between 27 degrees and 8 degrees. Lamar also said he won't be wearing gloves on Sunday. I realize they have giant industrial heaters on the sideline, but...fingers in 8 degree weather get cold regardless. They can tingle and lose feeling. I don't see how that wouldn't at least POTENTIALLY alter throwing ability to some degree. Aside from all that, Harbaugh has the team practicing indoors this week. He said he'll make it as cold as he can in there, but he refuses to have the team practice outside right now because he says the practice field is frozen. I respect the perspective of those who say the weather won't matter, and I respectfully disagree.

Agreed. I also think that Wild Card Weekend is now usually a watered down affair. The 2 vs 7 game is rarely competitive. The NFL needlessly punishes the 2nd best team in the conference for the sake of an added game's worth of television revenue. It prioritizes profit over the quality of the on-field product and fairness to the 2-seed team. I wish they'd do away with the 7 seed format, but I know they won't. Money rules all.

Of course. I get that the 1 seed always faces the lowest remaining seed, but it would be nice if the Chiefs had to face at least a LITTLE bit of a challenge this weekend. Oh well.

My favorites were Josh chopping down a live tree with the blade cover still on (legendary stuff, that), and his secretly having his own deck of Monopoly Deal cards so that he could pack his hand with the most powerful cards. Like...who DOES that? Josh, apparently.

I liked this article. It's behind a paywall, but I'll post some of the quotes. There's a bunch, but here's a sampling. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6064535/2025/01/16/josh-allen-stories-college-football-wyoming-bills/?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=twhq&source=twitterhq The best stories from Josh Allen’s college days: ‘People follow him. He’s very authentic’ If you know one story about Josh Allen’s college recruitment, it’s that he did not receive a single Division I scholarship offer. Overlooked at Firebaugh High in California’s Central Valley, Allen instead attended Reedley, a nearby community college, where he drafted a short email with a link to a highlight video and blasted it out to more than 1,000 college coaches. Baked into that story is a larger idea: Allen believed in himself at a time when nobody else did. His confidence and force of personality led him to the University of Wyoming, where he developed from a raw gunslinger into a top-10 pick and future franchise quarterback. Ten years later, he’s a co-favorite to win his first NFL MVP award. Allen’s talent is undeniable, but it’s only part of the reason he’s successful. To understand how he became one of the NFL’s most authentic leaders, The Athletic called his childhood friends, college teammates and coaches. For three seasons in Laramie, Wyo., Allen heaved 75-yard bombs in practice, lived off Applebee’s and charmed teammates with his leadership style, a goofy sincerity and plenty of drinking games. “His personality goes a long way as far as being a leader, ” said Tanner Gentry, a teammate of Allen in Wyoming and with the Bills. “It radiates throughout the whole team.” The stories of Allen’s college days are legendary, informative and completely college. And according to close friends and former teammates, they help explain the essence of Josh Allen, the player, teammate and leader. Craig Bohl, former Wyoming head coach: People follow him. He’s very authentic. Cooper Rothe, former Wyoming kicker: We always used to describe him as a big little kid. Vander Waal: Our lockers were right next to each other. He pulled a Nerf gun out of his locker. I’m like: “What are you doing?” He’s like: “Dude, we’re about to have a Nerf gun fight in the locker room.” Espinoza: He’ll take your watch off. He’ll shake your hand and be looking you dead in your eyes and just take your watch. Rothe: My freshman year, I’m a kicker. We’re standing on the sidelines during a team scrimmage. Sure enough, the ball ends up on the sideline. I’m holding the ball, usually the equipment managers are quick to come grab it, but I see Josh calling my name: “Cooper, Cooper, throw me the ball, let’s go.” I’m supposed to give it to the equipment manager, which is the right move, but Josh is the team captain. I don’t want to be the guy to say no to Josh. So I make eye contact with him, throw probably the best ball of my life, perfect spiral. As I release the ball, I see him look away on purpose. Best ball of my life. Going right at his head. He has his helmet on. It hits him. He flails his arm, throws his head back … “Cooper, what the hell, man?” Cameron Coffman, former Wyoming quarterback: Leadership essentially comes down to influence, and whether you’re an NFL quarterback or a 10-year-old kid on the playground at school, there are certainly people that other people are attracted to, that they’ll follow. And from the beginning, he had that characteristic. Gentry: Fourth of July trip. My grandparents own a cabin in Red Feather Lakes, Colorado. We had a big crew there and it’s out in the middle of nowhere so we’re playing drinking games. It was an unreal trip. About a week and a half later, my grandma texted me that one of the trees was chopped down and the cover for the axe was still on it right by the tree. I sent it to the group and was like: “Who chopped this tree down?” And Josh was like: “That was me.” I was like: “Dude, you left the cover on.” And he goes: “Oh, that’s why it was so hard to chop it down.” Price: He’s probably the best competitor I’ve ever been around in my entire life. Hall: He always had that Kobe mentality: “I’m the best, and I’m gonna prove it today.” Pilapil: We would play Monopoly Deal and he would blatantly cheat. He went and bought another pack of Monopoly Deal cards so that he could pack his hand with the high-powered cards. Gentry: He doesn’t have an off switch. He’ll do anything it takes to win. Price: He’s always had that confidence and belief in himself, even when everyone else around him doubted. Gentry: When he was named the starter, he told me: “Dude, if I’m rolling out, don’t come back to the ball. I don’t want to throw a 10-yard or 15-yard completion. You run to the end zone and I’ll throw it up and we’ll have a chance.” Bohl: It was a cold blustery spring day, so I was standing back and we called a traditional bootleg. The rules on the bootleg were: If the fullback is open in the flat, take it. Just take the profit. If he’s not open, check the tight end. If he’s open, take that. And the third option is to run. Well, on this particular play, the fullback was open. Josh didn’t take it. The tight end was open. He didn’t take it. Instead he threw a ROPE on a backside post against a 60 mile per hour wind 60-some yards down the field. A touchdown. He was happy, much to my displeasure because he didn’t follow the rules. I said: “Josh, the rules are you throw it to the fullback if the fullback is open.” He looked at me and goes: “No, Coach, Favre says touchdowns first.” Bohl: Needless to say, there’s a cowboy in him. I think that probably captures everything about him that’s really special. Espinoza: He is just the most confident and sure-about-himself person in the world. Gentry: The mindset piece of it, he definitely believes he’s the best in the world. But you’ll never hear him talking about how good he is.

I just saw that Cook was the first Bills RB since Thurman Thomas in 1995 (!) to have over 100 yards rushing in a playoff game! Can that be true? Wow. THAT’S what makes this year’s Bills offense different. Josh finally doesn’t have to do it all by himself.

I wouldn’t wanna drive a car right now, but a lifetime of Bills fandom and it’s associated gameday rituals has trained me to still be able to wax eloquent about a guard and tackle expertly passing off a DL stunt even through the thickest of alcohol haze. alternate comment: you got a perdy mouth. Can I buy you a drink? (I couldn’t decide which to go with)

I’m in Cancun (where I’ve gotten a good amount of “Go Bills” from people all day while wearing my Allen shirt and Bills hat, and I’ve had some rum and tequila, so I’ll do my best: - O-line. Some games you can tell who will likely win by seeing who is controlling the line of scrimmage. Our OL absolutely dominated the line of scrimmage all game long. Elite stuff. - James Cook. Silky smooth. Great vision and cutting ability, and he can get skinny with the best of ‘em. What an asset to have in order to take pressure off of Josh. - Ty Johnson. Elite pass catching back and legitimate offensive weapon. Who saw that coming? - Shakir. Human pinball. - Curtis Samuel. Good for you, kid. Way to make a big play and break the game open. Keep it up! - Is Milano back? - HOF spin love by Von on that one play. - Groot. Beast. - Bills defense. Gave up one explosive play for 7. Other than that? Nada. Good team D. - ST kicked away from Mims all day and didn’t allow him to impact the game on teams. Good stuff. - Playoff Josh. A sight to behold. His .67 EPA was ridiculous today. Only negatives: thought they leaned on the run just a liiiittle bit too much in the third quarter. Another fake punt conversion given up (though it didn’t result in anything). Other than that, a nice performance all around, and a convincing win against an inferior opponent. Go Bills!

He has returned to the team and is practicing today.

There's no way Sean McDermott or Matthew Smiley instructed Tyler Bass -- a kicker who has struggled with consistency and confidence all season -- to intentionally miss a kick in the game before the NFL playoffs. No way. 0% chance.

You're obviously right. I still kind of prefer my version.

Yeah, maybe. I'd rather not have to shut myself into a hotel room in the middle of a tropical afternoon if I can help it. But if there are no TVs at the bars, I may have no other choice. I know I know...vacation plus a Bills playoff game. First world problems. Woah is me!

I don't think that Coleman should EXCLUSIVELY be used as a big slot, and I don't think he should displace Shakir. They move guys around a lot. Starting them in one spot and having them shift or motion. The receivers also seem to all know the X, Y, and Z positions in this offense. I think there's room for Shakir to be the primary slot guy and for the Bills to also flex Coleman to the slot in big spots and high leverage situations and to exploit certain advantageous matchups. But ultimately, that's kind of the problem the Bills have right now: They have Cooper, who is a true outside guy, Hollins, who is an outside guy but not a particularly above average one, and then everyone else sort of seems better suited for the slot. While I expect a lot of attention to be paid to the defense in the offseason, I also hope they add more quality receiver talent. Not done building there.

I'll be in Cancun this weekend. I'm glad the game is on Sunday at 1pm. Now I just have to hope there are some TVs at one of the poolside bars. Otherwise I'll be squinting at my cell phone screen for a playoff game. (Side note: always do a "Bills schedule check" when booking trips in advance. *sigh*. Stupid Logic)

First I'll give the caveat that Coleman HAS shown potential this season, his RAC has been impressive, and I've not in any way given up hope that he'll be a good and useful WR for the Bills moving forward. That said, I'm with Matt Harmon and others who have stated: Coleman's best chance at sustained success in the NFL is as a big slot and to be used similarly to the way the Chiefs use Rashee Rice. Sticking him outside at X and telling him to win against outside corners regularly is never going to be his strong suit. Having a big, strong jump ball guy on this roster -- so that when the play breaks down and Josh is rolling out, he has a target to launch it down field to -- is valuable. But I think that in order for Keon to be successful beyond that, it will take intelligent scheming, and it will require improvement on his part in terms of route running and the nuances of the position.

Agreed about him looking great in preseason, but I think that's a good reason NOT to elevate him. Don't wanna give any other teams in the league a reason to sign him to their roster. Wanna keep him stashed on the PS until camp next year.

Call me crazy, but I think we're witnessing a guy coming into his prime who may go down as an all-time great Bills offensive tackle. He's gone from raw, to "promising flashes", to "definitely on the ascent", to -- in my opinion -- a dominant force. And there's a decent chance he's still not done improving. I know some scratched their heads at his re-signing because of the presence of guys like Grable and VanDemark, but man....Spencer Brown is a good one, and health permitting, he may turn out to be a GREAT one.

Just wanted to add this video to the pile. Not gonna lie, I got pretty choked up watching it. Bills fans are just...different.

Just curious. What, in your estimation, registers as hyperbole here? Do the Bills have a 1,000 yard rusher? A 1,000 yard receiver? A bona fide star at any position other than QB? If you go through the list of offenses that have put up similar scoring production throughout NFL history, they all have star players (and, in many cases, multiple HOFers) on the roster. Given the relative dearth of start talent on this offensive roster, what is it about the production of this year's Bills offense that you don't feel merits serious praise for the offensive coordinator?

It would be so Billsy to earn the two-seed, only to see the lineup of Bengals - Ravens- Chiefs sitting before them in order to get to the Super Bowl. Just like its extremely Billsy that the team started getting the two-seed darn near every year the season AFTER they took away the bye week.

This entire thread by Michael F Florio (who, I should note, is not the same person as ProFootballTalk's Mike Florio) is excellent. It's worth reading the entire thing, which is too long to post all of here.