blacklabel

McDermott: "As a gesture of my appreciation to the fans here in the fine city of Buffalo, Mr. Pegula is writing every fan a check for 2 million dollars. Also, we drafted Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen and Lamar Jackson. We also signed Tom Brady and Drew Brees as alternate options. Also, we are very proud of the 19 straight Super Bowl wins we've racked up." The Fans: Puke! Barf! Get this bum outta here! This is crap! I have serious concerns! This is not good enough! Spineless! They didn't put a hit out on Gronk, losers!

At game speed it looked like a legal lateral. When they slow things down and look at it, you see all sorts of different angles and such so it opens the situation up to a lot of questions. But at first look, and again, at game speed, it looked like it was a legal lateral. It's difficult to ascertain exactly what direction the ball went when you have two players carrying a bunch of forward momentum but the Eagles had time to look at it and challenge it and they didn't so I guess they felt it was legal as well.

So of all the players on the team you single out the most respected and tenured one? Because he didn't run across the field and deliver a Hulk Hogan-style leg-drop on Gronk? This team is coached to keep their composure, this isn't Club Rex anymore. Retaliation would've caused penalties for them, and I guess it didn't matter anyway because they ended up being penalized when it was all said and done, which is ridiculous because they basically said, "55, Buffalo, hurt the officials feelings and this takes precedence over the cheapshot and head injury that just happened so, uh, yeah..." I mean, honestly it looked like they weren't even gonna throw the flag until P. Brown and T. Elston looked at the nearest official like, "WTF?!" and then the flag came out. I dunno what Hughes said but I don't really care because the officials botched that entire situation and should receive discipline from the league. But this is the Bills we have here so clearly Gronk will be let off the hook, that officiating squad will be selected for Super Bowl duty and Hughes will be fined some moronic amount for mouthing off.

That's fair. I mean, he's a team guy so obviously he wants to turn things around out there but he can only do so much. But just with this current situation he's been dealing with and the way its been handled by his organization, wouldn't be surprised if he's at least thought about a trade. But seems he's stuck there for the long haul.

You're spot on. Grigson has to be one of the worst GMs I've ever seen. Year after year he ignored the obvious weak spots on the team and drafted players like Phillip Dorsett. And then the owner, also one of the worst in sports, recently overheard telling Tony Dungy that he believes Luck's injury is "all in his head." On top of that there's now speculation that this injury could end his career. It was absurd for Irsay to hype him up all off-season and say he'd be ready for the opener when it was clear he wasn't anywhere close to being healed. Luck is a good dude so I'm sure he just wants to heal up and get back to work but he's human as well and I wouldn't doubt that he's at least thought about asking for a trade as he sees how things have been handled with this team and he's just kinda been left hanging in the wind at times.

Yeah, it's pretty much been said already but the reason he remains on the radar of many teams and still receives praise from scouts is because there are a lot of things there to work with. Teams see a QB with all the physical tools, some intangibles, etc. Some feel like he could be the next Wentz, and I think that comparison comes into play simply because they're both dudes who went to smaller schools, didn't have many big time scholarship offers, etc. Happens every year, there will be a team out there that loves his skill set and believes they have/will have the right coaching in place to mold him into a franchise guy. By all accounts his character is very good as well, good team leader and he's got the work ethic teams want in their QB. With intangibles like that, teams will look past his flaws and say they can fix them. And it certainly seems like the guy is driven to be the best he can be. The stats don't look great this year but he hasn't had a lot to work with. It'll be interesting to see where he winds up.

It doesn't bother me that Hughes spoke up and got a penalty. What bothers me is the officials decided that him getting mouthy with an official was a more egregious offense than what Gronkowski did. Yeah, that really shows how much the league cares about player safety. White takes a cheapshot, probably gonna have a concussion to deal with, but that's less important than an official getting his widdle feewings hurt. Absolutely ridiculous.

Extremely tough to argue that any other combo aside from TB/BB are the best of all time. But someone mentioning how combos like BW/JM played/coached in different eras that didn't favor QBs and the passing game so much is interesting to think about. Would TB have thrived in that era? Who knows. For me, the thing with Belichick is that it's hard not to respect him as an all-time great coach... but there will always be some dark clouds associated with his name. Obviously the Spygate and Deflategate things. Now, people can call it straight up cheating but I don't know how much of an effect it had in actual games. What I do feel is that Belichick doesn't get the benefit of the doubt with this stuff because he's pushed the envelope and stepped over the line too many times for it to be just coincidence or ignorance of certain rules. His competitive fire is so intense that he'll push things as far as possible to win. And he's all business, which I'm certain can be a cold reality for players that played for him for a long time only to be shipped out and see their careers end in New England with a deadpan 30-second conversation of, "Player, you've been traded to Oakland, see Pete for more information, thank you for your time." Or, "Player, we're gonna move on and cut you from this team, best of luck, leave your playbook." But the thing that makes him a great pure football coach is the fact that he prepares for EVERYTHING. And he doesn't really hold his offenses or defenses to certain schemes. They morph and adjust week to week depending on the opponent. One week they can look like a run-first team with a complimentary passing game. The next week they tell Brady to air it out 50 times. Defensively it's the same. He just gets his players to be so versatile and prepared that they can pull these things off. It's crazy. Don't know of many coaches that can or will be able to do that.

Another day, another Doug. That would be pretty cool to sit down and talk with a GM (current or former) just to get some real insight on what it's like behind the scenes of running an NFL team. Doug's a good scout, has a pretty good eye for players but I think his team building philosophy wasn't well thought out. "I'll draft guys from big name schools who are used to winning and that winning will spill over into our locker room." Yeah, not so much.

Yeah, I'm not trashing Peterman, I'm just of the mind that he has a few strong qualities but not enough (nor does he play consistently enough) to be a #1 franchise guy. He's a roller coaster. There were games in college where he was rock solid, accurate, keeping drives alive, scoring points, etc. And then games where one bad play seemed to stick in his head and his play would be affected for the rest of the game. He might be able to figure it out but I can't say I have a ton of confidence in a guy like Rick Dennison developing a 5th round pick into a franchise QB.

I had been signed up for the BBMB since 2002. In 2004 they overhauled it and that was the forum/system they used until it was shut down. The reasoning they gave was because they felt other social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc) would be more effective/better at reaching their fans than a message board. Shortly before they decided on that, they hired a new guy to head up their PR department and I think he made the call. I was never a moderator and I didn't know any of them but I remember wyobillsfan (something to that effect) being a mod, maybe, at one point. I think her name is Robyn and she has some stuff that goes up on the SB Nation blog (Buffalo Rumblings) from time to time. The board was a daily stop for me. There were times when it sucked and every post was drab and negative. There were also a handful of people who liked to troll, make up different usernames and do things specifically to rile people up. I don't recall mods being "ban happy" but I never paid that close attention. I do recall there were a handful of posters with legitimate connections and inside information that they would post about from time to time. There was a guy that would be more active around draft time and usually he was pretty accurate in predicting the prospects/free agents they were going after, leading some to believe he actually worked in the scouting department (he denied this) and most to think that he probably had a friend or family member that did work in the front office in some aspect. I was aware of this board while BBMB was still up and it has definitely seen a major uptick in traffic and new users and it's pretty good. I'm sure some of the "OG" TwoBillsDrive board members haven't been thrilled with the migration of posters from BBMB but this board is super active and usually pretty good. As for how the Bills are doing with their numerous social media platforms... it's awful. Every Facebook/Twitter/Insta post has tons of comments with 80% of them ripping the team and players. The other 20% are supportive or trying to tell the negative people to can it. I tend to stay away from any comment section discussions regarding da Bills because it's usually a crapshow.

I don't think Mayfield has nearly as many red flags or similar traits as Manziel. He keeps getting comparisons to him because of his size and style of play but Mayfield doesn't appear to be a massive knucklehead like Manziel. And I think the upside on Nate Peterman is pretty limited. He picked up steam heading into the draft because he played in a pro-style system at Pitt but I don't think he's franchise material. When I think franchise QB, I think of a guy who can do it all, make all the throws, read defenses, check the offense into the right plays at the right times, see the field well, come through in clutch situations, etc. I think Peterman has a couple of those traits. It looks like he can make most throws and his accuracy/ball placement isn't too bad. His intelligence and work ethic are also up there but he's streaky. If he starts a game in a funk he usually stays there. He had some games at Pitt where he got hot and was able to keep it rolling but overall I really can't see him being a number one guy anywhere in this league. IMO he will carve out a decent career as a solid backup, though.

McSorley is actually smaller, it's pretty clear when you watch games how big the difference is between him and not just OL but his WRs and backs, etc. Most of what I've read about him says his game won't translate to the NFL. Late round or UDFA.

Yeah, Rudolph has decent arm strength. Given his size one may think he'd have a rocket but that's something he can develop. Lamar Jackson has a great arm but seems like most on this board are against taking him because he's "Tyrod 2.0." He's a little bigger than Tyrod and has more of that "it" factor where you could see him as a guy that always gives the team a shot. To me, Rosen is the best QB in this class. His attitude will be the big thing talked about leading up to the draft. I think Darnold goes back to USC. Luke Falk plays in a system that throws the ball a ton and that coach up at Washington State has always been known to have QBs who rack up mad stats but their games rarely translate well to the NFL. I wouldn't be surprised if Buffalo goes with one of these guys who isn't mentioned in the same breath as Rosen, Darnold, etc. Maybe that Northwestern kid or the NC State kid. Who knows. Actually the NC State kid wouldn't surprise me at all given that Beane and McD probably have a decent amount of knowledge on him given that he's played in the same state they just got done living in for, like, 25 combined years (McD like 6 years but Beane was there 19). And he's experienced, he's developed and improved each year he's played. Just needs to gain some weight to hold up to NFL hits.

We know dis. Taylor's ball placement has always been shaky. There are handfuls of plays in every game where you go, "Yeah, he completed the pass but if he hits that guy in stride he's getting an extra 15-20 yards." I'm sure those types of throws drive Taylor nuts. But his problem has always been how his height limits his view of the field. He's forced to peek through lanes and windows in between giant lineman battling each other. He doesn't have the luxury of simply seeing over everything. They could combat this with deeper dropbacks like they do with Wilson in Seattle or more rollouts and pocket movement, which I thought we'd see a lot of this year but I think Dennison is kind lost right now.

I think Rudolph is exactly the type of QB McBeane wants. We've heard Beane describe his ideal QB as a big dude with the ability to hang in the pocket. Rudolph shows that but he also has inconsistencies as well. They all do. But they're gonna take one of these kids, they almost have to. I've been saying it in threads all over. I really hope this front office/coaching staff is flexible when it comes to how high they prioritize certain player traits. It's well understood that they want team-first, high character guys, guys who play for love of the game as opposed to getting paid, etc. But I wouldn't let those traits limit my decisions. If they have Player A and Player B on the big board and one guy is a naturally gifted athlete who would likely be a great player but has some character stuff and Player B is gonna be a solid but never spectacular player but he drives a bus of 50 grandmothers to church every Sunday... I sincerely hope they give consideration to taking the purely better player, not necessarily the better person with higher character traits. Plus, if McD wants to shape the culture to his liking, he should be confident that his locker room can be a positive influence on a player with a couple red flags.

McDermott is here for the long haul. The Pegulas were blown away with his interview, his presentation, attention to detail, his philosophy, his plan to turn things around. He's going to get substantial time to get this team headed in the right direction. As for Dennison, I mentioned in a different thread, I think he needs to be held to the same standards that McD holds his players to. They all gotta earn their spots, right? Well, I don't feel as though Dennison is doing enough to earn his spot and keep it through next season. This is his first year as a play-caller (IIRC) and he leaves a lot of us scratching our heads with his choices. So after the season, I would hope McD isn't too stubborn or too loyal to his assistants not to make a move in an effort to improve the team. Up until the sudden switch to Peterman, McD struck me as a "stay the course" kinda guy, a coach who wouldn't make big changes mid-season, but he did so that at least shows that he's willing to change things up if needed.

I wouldn't be 100% confident that they don't at least make an offer to Matthews. He's talked about how much he likes being on this team and he personifies the qualities McBeane wants in their players. He may be one of those guys they keep for his locker room presence.

This is silly. McDaniels had a massive ego when he took the HC job in Denver. I read the book "Slow Getting Up" by Nate Jackson, a former WR/special teams guy who played in Denver while McDaniels coached there. He stated that McDaniels was arrogant, cold and disconnected from his players and talked out of both sides of his mouth. Generally just a cocky SOB who felt his schemes could create winners anywhere. McDermott is a humble guy who has made it one of his top priorities to create strong team chemistry and a family-like atmosphere. You've heard it from some of the players this season. It's one of the closest teams they've been on. And that's because McDermott and Beane have a pretty specific set of traits they want in their players. I was very surprised when McDermott made the switch to Peterman because from day one he's struck me as a guy with a very detailed plan and a "stay the course/weather the storm" mentality where he typically wouldn't make major changes mid-season. It is interesting, though, that Dennison wasn't his first or even second choice. I feel like he hired Dennison because of his experience and I think it was a smart move for McDermott to round out his staff with experienced coaches he could lean on and learn from. What I hope McDermott isn't is a coach that's too stubborn and/or loyal to his assistants to make changes after the season. If he's true to what he says about constantly evaluating all aspects of the team and how each position needs to be earned, then that should apply to coaches as well. And at this point I would say Dennison hasn't done well enough as a playcaller to keep McDermott from giving serious consideration to making a change after the season. But he's not like McDaniels at all. They turned over this roster primarily to open up cap space so they have the money to go after the types of players they want. Some of it has been about buying into the process but no coach can expect every single player to be 100% on board with their vision. There will always be guys that question the process and that's fine. Coaches need to be smart enough to know that they won't have complete buy-in from everyone. But if the talent outweighs the lack of buy-in (and depending how much they lack that commitment to the process) he's gotta be smart enough to keep players like that. I've said this before. I hope this regime doesn't limit themselves to drafting/signing nothing but choir boys for this team. If they have two players on the board that they both like and one has superior athletic talent and a bit of an attitude problem vs. a guy who is a solid but not spectacular player with high character, I hope they have the wherewithal to take the better athlete in certain situations.

I'm inclined to agree with you, sir. Definitely need an upgrade for the nickel CB spot and some better depth. Safety-wise I can see them hanging onto Elston. They seem to like him and might wanna develop him. Season isn't even over yet, they still have a legitimate chance to make the playoffs but we can't help ourselves in talking about which types of players they need to go get to strengthen this team, haha. I think I have a decent idea on the kinds of players they'll try to get in the draft so I'm more interested in who they're targeting in free agency.

Taylor is definitely the type of QB a team can win with but he needs to have a very good team around him. He isn't the type of QB that makes one think, "Hey, under a minute left and they need 60 yards to get in range for a game-winning field goal, there's definitely a chance with this guy under center." He needs a certain set of circumstances to achieve his full potential, strong run game, strong defense and a receiver or two that can get over the top so he can take some deep shots which is a strength of his. If they roll with him in 2018 (even if they draft a QB) I can see them going for a speedy WR somewhere so they'll have that option.

I agree. He is banged up quite often but when he's on the field, you can see why they traded for him. He's a great zone CB. If he can stay healthy and consistent I think him and White can be the top corners for the future. But beyond those guys they know they gotta do better than Johnson and Wright. Johnson isn't great in coverage but he's on this team because he's a sure tackler who usually takes good angles. Wright on the other hand is just another guy. Most thought that the secondary would be the weak spot on defense but they've been really good. I think Hyde was a huge acquisition, not only is he a very good player, he's very smart and he's the director on the back end, making sure guys are lined up where they need to be.

No argument here, haha. Tyrod does have a small team of PR people, agent, manager, etc. so it's possible someone from his team put out the tweet and not him himself.

Ball control. Game plan for long, clock consuming drives on offense to keep Brady off the field. Defensively, they need to do a better job covering the middle of the field, as they've needed to all year. He's going to unload the ball quickly, three step drop and out, gonna be tough to get to him with a 4-man rush. But even if they aren't getting to him, at least collapse the pocket and get some hits on him. If I'm Frazier I'd also work on showing them some different fronts/looks/disguises, hopefully stuff that they haven't put on film too much this season. This Bills defense works on preventing the big play by keeping everything short and underneath but that's where Brady lives. He'll take those short slants and out routes all day and nickel and dime his way down the field. To me, one of the biggest reasons for the Pats' sustained success is that they really don't have a strict offensive or defensive identity. They practice everything so they can morph into different schemes based on their opponents. One week they'll beat a team with a vertical passing game, the next week they'll run it 35 times, after that they'll run the dink and dunk. They're just always so prepared for anything that they can play just about any style or system they want.

This isn't as bad as the Jets' Robbie Anderson asking for Pro Bowl votes during the game vs. Carolina this past Sunday. Chris Spielman was on the color commentary and after Anderson made those comments Spielman said something to the effect of, "How about you worry about trying to win the game you're playing right now instead of thinking about Pro Bowl votes." The clip is online somewhere.