Drunken Pygmy Goat

I think maybe you're putting too much thought into "upgrading talent" and not enough thought into the lack of experience of that talent. In year one, I wouldn't expect guys like Allen and Edmunds to come in and instantly improve the production at those positions. Edmunds has the talent, much more so than Preston Brown, and is a great fit for this defense, but he's very young. Brown may have had physical limitations, but he was the "QB" on defense each year. Edmunds will likely show flashes, but his lack of experience will probably negate some of his talent in the first year or two. Allen has a ton of talent as well, but also has a lot to learn. McCarron has some experience, but most of his time was on the sideline. At DB, the experience is there, but Gaines was a great fit for this defense. Replacing him with Davis may be a bit of a wash overall. White looked great as a rookie, but there could be a "sophomore slump". Our RBs are long in the tooth, and with a (perceived) worse offensive line, their overall production could take a hit. Then there's Daboll...unknown, and lacks experience in the NFL. So in relation to this year, I think the Bills take a step back, especially if you consider that they overachieved a bit last year, and had some luck along the way as well. I still think they're a 6-8 win team, but mainly due to the improvements on defense. Most of their additions there are seasoned vets, so experience won't be an issue. Now, if you were asking about 2-3 years from now, I think we're in great shape, talent wise and cap wise. We'll see how Allen factors into that, but I'm rather optimistic that he'll turn out ok at the very least, as opposed to busting.

I don't understand why people knock the idea of bringing in guys that they know a lot about.

So don't make it an excuse. Make it a factor. It's valid.

There's been plenty of times where he "processed the game within 2.5 seconds". So because you claim they were "afraid" to throw the ball, that makes it true?

It's one thing to throw a QB "to the wolves", but what the coaches did with Peterman was throw him to the hungriest, most vicious "wolves" in the NFL in the LA pass rush, while employing probably the worst possible fighting strategy that they could have. By that, I mean they seemed to expect him to come out and sling it much more than they should have. The smart approach would have been to lean heavily on the run, and give NP more opportunities out of play-action, with a heavier dose of draws and screens to help negate the pass rush. Perhaps their thinking was that LA expected the Bills to do that, and maybe were guilty of over thinking things regarding their game plan. I know hindsight is 20/20, and 5 picks happened, but that's what I expected to see going into that game with a rookie QB making his first start and first playing time. The decision to bench Tyrod had been and is still criticised immensely by the media, but I'm not questioning the Bills' reasoning for doing it. It's just that it could have had a much different ending than it did, had they handled it properly IMO.

Thanks for all that you do!

Well aren't you just the life of the party...

I won't get my hopes up about a ride in his jet, but I'll accept bus fare.

To be honest, I don't think it's worthy of an entire show. It would make for a good segment piece on Sunday morning pre game shows, but I don't think the magnitude of how it all went down is something the networks would dedicate a whole show to. Not trying to downplay what happened, I just don't think the networks see it the same way. It was a great story at the time, and shouldn't be forgotten. The "ripple effects" of the donations will probably last longer and have more of an impact than a tv show would. I expect that type of thing to happen much more often in sports moving forward (not the circumstances surrounding the Bills playoff birth, but the donations that resulted from it).

It's probably been posted already, but I'm pretty sure they aren't candidates this year due to the rules. Would it be interesting? Of course. That said, I don't think I ever want to see them on Hard Knocks.

Good read, thanks for posting. I know a lot of people will chalk it up as "coach talk", but I thought it was very honest, and he actually touched on several of the things that I've been posting here lately, as far as "defending" Allen goes, and contradicting what all the media pundits have said (that many fans run with). They lost 2 good pieces of their offense to the NFL after 2016, their offensive line wasn't great, completion percentage isn't necessarily an exact measure of accuracy, etc. Allen had some issues, but we cannot simply look at numbers and put it all on him. Too many factors and variables in football, and his OC mentioned several. But what I really took away from this is just how well a "fit" Allen appears to be for the Bills and Buffalo in general, and the mental traits you look for in a QB and leader, and I really think Beane and the staff looked at those things and it helped make their decision easier. My thoughts exactly. I've definitely warmed up to the pick much more since the draft, with every piece that I read (many of which were posted before the draft). Of course, many are a bit "fluffy", but I can see past that. All things considered, I think we're in good shape. The way Beane has handled the roster and cap has been very good, and should allow for a nice window to compete in a couple years if he continues to build the team properly. like said, we jus don't know what Allen will become.

Sharp is certainly adamant about painting a certain picture, but all he's done is look at numbers, and make a conclusion based off of them. There's so many factors and variables in football, yet Mr. Sharp seems to things it's very cut and dry. He does nothing to elaborate on why the run game was so poor. No mention of studying tape, assessing the offensive line, etc., yet he puts out some tweets based off of numbers, and us common fans assume he's such a reputable "source" and take his word as gospel. Now I'm not saying that he's off base or not on to something, but it just comes off as very bland "analysis" and somewhat agenda driven, and people like Mr. Carter here take it and run with it, saying that the coach was "taking the ball out of his hands", when really it could simply be more about a coach that sticks to a game plan or philosophy of establishing a commitment to running the ball, for whatever reason. Wyoming lost a good RB and WR after 2016, and (shocker) their rushing and passing yards overall decreased in 2017. And the quote about having a harder time when you're behind the sticks on 2nd and 3rd down is valid in all of football, yet Sharp seems to try and dismiss that idea...

Good post, pretty much described my position as well. Ironic how things turn out sometimes. To be honest, I haven't had the time to watch very much "film" of Allen at Wyoming, but I will say this: too often, people directly correlate completion percentage with accuracy, but that's not a true reflection. There's several things that factor into each pass being completed or not, and it's not always on the QB. I'm sure that there's several throws that he put in the right spot, yet the pass wasn't completed for one reason or another. I did read that, had he completed something like 15 or 16 more passes, his % would be above 60. Still not a great number, but would be a noticeable mark up from his actual completion percentage with just a few passes. What I have done since the draft is read up on Allen, and I've definitely warmed up to him, but I'm not reaching for random, irrelevant things to convince myself or others that he's the guy. Quite honestly, though, it's easy to get caught up in the pre-draft hype and pundit chatter that circulates for months. As fans (the vast majority of us, not knowing what's fact, but going off of the words of "professionals"), we're easily convinced that the ideas that are spread in the chatter are accurate, but they're not always totally true. The "accuracy" concerns with Allen may not be as much of an issue as perceived, just like the character concerns with Rosen may not and up being either. But only time will tell.

Congratutions???

Milano always seemed to be around the ball last year. The instincts are definitely there. I think his progression will be rapid. Not the most atheletic guy, but his ability to react quickly can make up for some of that. With Edmunds, you have a guy that's bigger and longer than Kuechly, and having a faster 40 time at the combine. His wing span is ridiculous. Those kind of measurables are perfect for a MLB in a short zone defense, and if his insticts really show at the next level...watch out. I will say that I'm a bit worried that he'll get gobbled up defending the run. He could use some extra time hitting the weights, IMO.

They did lose a good RB and WR after the 2016 season. Perhaps the offense was much more "reserved" last year after losing 2 big keys to their offense the previous season.

Have we reached a point where we will reach for literally anything at all to hang our hats on when it comes to Josh Allen? I'll be honest, I wasn't totally against the pick at the time, but I wasn't thrilled. Since then, I've become more optimistic about it for various reasons, but I'm not trying convince myself any way I can that he'll be good. I/we just don't know. There's no need to try and convince yourself of anything in order to justify the pick. I'm just going to trust that the people in charge know what they're doing, and see where it goes from here. Do I think he'll end up being a good one? Yes, and not based off of a hope that he will be, due to playing for my favorite team. My vindication will only come after he sees the field, and proves it, not from trying to read between the lines of Jordan Palmer interviews. Not trying to be a jerk here, Transplant. Its just that I've seen plenty of posts here lately that try however they can to justify taking Allen over Rosen. And while many of them, I can agree with, it's the whole idea of what we as fans are doing that seems foolish. What's done is done, and quite honestly, it's pretty easy to understand why the Bills took Allen over Rosen IMO. Let's let their play on the field be our justification. It's a big red flag when someone tries to support their agenda by pulling something out of their @$$ and posting it as fact...

Damn Russians! Always playing dirty games.

I can't disagree with any of this, but I would say that the "attitude/character issues" of Rosen and Kelly aren't necessarily the same. Both seemed to have a bit of cockiness about them coming out of college, but Kelly was a tough kid, while Rosen seems a bit soft. Also, Rosen's "attitude" seems to stem more from an elitist, entitled environment, whereas Kelly came from a blue collar family in western PA. And quite frankly, I think Kelly was a much more coveted prospect coming out of college than Rosen. Kelly was just that good, and I think teams were able to see past the "character" concerns much more so than perhaps they are now with Rosen. This is all just my opinion, of course. I'm only going off of what I've heard. But yeah, there's no denying that Rosen got to this point by working hard. Maybe he, too, will overcome the character issues.

I think the comments in this thread that you're referencing are valid. Kim basically said nothing substatial in the quote posted, although it comes across as optimistic (that they'll stay at SJF). She basically stated facts, as they currently stand. As of right now, it would be way too late to move camp elsewhere, unless the Bills have had secret talks with another facility for some time now, which I doubt. But if the idea is to move the camp next year, talks either are underway, or will be soon, and they could probably buy their way out of the remaining years of the contract at SJF. Basically, her quote reassures nothing after this year. That doesn't mean they WILL move, but it doesn't mean they WON'T either.

Yeah. I had actually just posted a comment about her involvement with the "non-football" aspects of the team a day or two before Russ was fired. I never opened that "Is Kim qualified?" thread, because I'm sure it was a terrible take.

Why would she? It's a contract. There's going to be a price negotiation. Saying that they would renew gives SJF more leverage.

Got ya; that's not incorrect. I think perhaps some people are just reading into the weather thing a bit too much. There are several factors that the Bills looked at when choosing their QB. That's one of them, but certainly not at the top of the priority list. It certainly helps to have a strong arm, especially in Buffalo, as opposed to a "Fitz" arm. But in the end, all that matters is wins. Much of that will depend on if Allen can improve certain aspects of his game, but I think it will have much more to do with how well the team around him is constructed. I believe the Bills are in a pretty good position to be able to build the team properly over the next couple of years, talent and cap wise, so hopefully Allen comes into his own by then. That should open a nice sized window for them to truly compete.

I don't understand why people are misinterpreting that. You don't need a big arm QB to play in the cold. But you do need one to play in windy conditions. Buffalo is probably bottom 3-5 in the NFL when it comes to windy conditions, and add in the fact that the field level is below ground and in a bit of a wind tunnel. And yeah, it can get pretty chilly for some games. The fact that Allen has played plenty of games in those temps doesn't hurt. Who knows, maybe a guy like Rosen would "freeze up" in those cold games. Not the biggest of factors, so don't think into too much, but it's not like it's a bad thing.

The issue with Rosen isn't the wealthy background (although there's some concern with that). The issue is the various people that have had direct interactions with him during his time at UCLA that pretty much all believe he's a bit too cocky and/or conceded. Perhaps that is a reflection of growing up a certain way, but it's the common thoughts of several people that "created" that "stigma". Many of the people that he played with came from poor, underpriveledged backgrounds, and fought for everything they had, leading to their personalities to be different than a guy like Josh Rosen. Usually, if a person acts and carries themselves a certain way, they don't know that it's "wrong", or perceived as "douche", until someone says as much. When multiple people share the same opinion (and not people in the media), there's probably more truth to it than not. And in a professional football locker room, that is certainly a major issue.