Rochesterfan

Both the Bills and Cards kicked to the Endzone with the wind - that seemed to be the plan of just about every team. Neither the Bills or Cards kicked to the endzone against the wind - neither kicker could get the ball there with the wind. The Cards did not make the decision to kick to the endzone into the wind. They had 1 kickoff in the first Quarter that was a long return and then tried squibing to start the 3rd quarter and left it short of the landing zone and the Bills got the ball at the 40 - they knew they could not get the ball to the endzone in that direction. If the wind had allowed - both teams would have put every kick into the endzone, but the wind did not allow. It is also difficult to know exactly what Arizona was blocking - up to the return for TD - they only had 1 return for 25 yards with the kick in the first quarter - where the player was tackled short of the 30. The rest there was no return and therefore the up guys really never got to move. The 2nd kick was muffed and never returned - downed inside the 5. The TD return had a major block in the back right where the returner was going and 3 Bills with a chance to tackle him - it seems like they were pretty prepared for what the cards were doing - the players on the field failed the coach.

It is harder - just look at the 6 kick-offs that went in that direction and the impact of the wind. Arizona #1 - Prater kicked deep - could only get the ball to the 2 and we had a 53 yard return. Arizona #2 - Prater tried a squib and it hit short of the zone and the Bills got it at the 20. Bills #1 - Deep kick to the 4 - return to the 29. Bills #2 - Deep Kick to the 4 - muff Bills #3 - Deep Kick to the 4 - TD return with a huge block in the back right at the point of contact and 2 Bills sliding off the runner and a third guy going O’le. Bills #4 - Tried to squib, but kick goes OB. The wind made it impossible going in that direction to get any kick to the end zone. The Ball was getting held up and pushed short and if you tried to keep it short - the wind was pushing it hard toward the sideline where Bass’s kick went. Squibs and low line drives are even harder now because it must go to the landing zone and if it is low enough an up man can knock it down short of the landing zone - so you have many fewer paths to try and squib the ball through. Shaw - I don’t think this is correct - they pretty much knew exactly where he could reach going that direction into the wind. The previous 2 kicks were identical and both landed at exactly the 4 - exactly the same as the returned kick. They had covered well on the first and the second was muffed. Even the TD return was well covered. They had a guy right at the point get blocked right in the back and pushed past the returner and then the 2nd wave had 2 guys wrap up and slide off and a 3rd guy sort of O’le out of the way. I think the pregame plan was to kick all to the endzone, but neither kicker could get the ball there with the wind. The Bills felt good about their coverage and some bad play by a few guys and an uncalled penalty created the TD.

Neither Kicker going that direction could reach the end zone the entire game. Bass reached the 4 twice going that direction and Prater got 1 to the 2, but also had one short of the landing zone. As every kick going the other way was through the end zone - pretty sure that is what they wanted, but both teams realized early that was not possible. Therefore both teams were trying some different things that didn’t really work for either team.

That is True - it is also statistically likely that the same is true of any replacement coach as 0% of people coaching the Bills have won a Super Bowl. It is statistically more likely for every coach hired that they will be fired rather than winning the Super Bowl as only like 35 coaches have ever won and the number of coaches in the history of the NFL is significant.

He had to change the title because he was 100% wrong.

You should be immediately banned for making crap up. This is completely false and easily proven with 30 seconds of research. Let’s start with John Madden and the Raiders. 1st Superbowl 1976 - his 8th season with Oakland. Do you know him - got an entire video game franchise named after him. How about Bill Cower? Started in 1992 in Pittsburgh - won his first Super Bowl in 2005 - so 13 years in Pittsburgh before his first Super Bowl. That message must have been super stale. Then you have a coach like Tom Landry that won his first Super Bowl and first championship in year 12. Not all of them were SB years, but he never won a NFL championship before the merger either. So that is 3 guys that break the thread. Then there are all of the coaches mentioned that coached for way more than 7 years on multiple teams before finding the magic to win one. Is it common - No, but it has happened multiple times already in the history of the NFL. 🤦‍♂️🤷‍♂️

These are the statements I just don’t get. I can understand the signing because if Trubisky is hurt - you want a veteran ready on the PS to elevate for a game or two. The truth is though - Mike White has little to no upside and he is not young or really a gamer. White is over 29 and a half years old - he is only about 100 days (1/3 of a year) younger than Mitch. He is over a year and a half older than Josh. He is not young - and his game stats are terrible overall. His completion %, TD/Int ratio, QB rating are all significantly worse than Mitch’s. If people are complaining about Mitch being bad - White is worse. I have no issue with the signing because I understand what the Bills are looking for and you are both correct we need Josh to roll and he has knowledge of our division. I just don’t think we should have any reason to try and justify the signing because White is not young or a player with upside - he is a middling low level QB that can carry a clipboard and throw a helmet on in a dire situation.

And what is the 49ers record versus the Chiefs since 2019 both regular season and playoffs. Oh they are 0-3 and lost twice in the Super Bowl - yes so much better than the Bills. Wish we were that much better like the 49ers. The Bengals do have 1 playoff win and a loss and 0 Superbowls and multiple years of missing the playoffs because of losses to teams like Cleveland every year. The Ravens are a staggering 1-3 versus the Chiefs and 0-1 in the playoffs giving up 30 of 39 pass attempts, a TD, and no turnovers. Please facts matter, but so does context - the other teams have slowed them down slightly, but they also do not pose the offensive threat of the Bills. You don’t think that maybe Reid and Mahomes have a bit more juice going against Josh Allen and play things a bit more open rather than a team like SF that they think they can hold to the teens. I think the Bills defense has shown themselves to be able to do certain things very well - even in the playoffs, but there are match-ups that are not good for the style of defense the Bills play. Kansas City is a perfect example of that. A QB that can make reads noutside of the play when they buy time is hard for many defensive schemes, but it has opened the Bills up badly.

I think for some players it is that there are others above them and they were easy cuts to identify and no they will not be making the PS. Sometimes you make these moves to sneak a guy through as teams can’t act on the waived guys until people clear waivers on final cutdown day - so sometimes these guys get hidden early on while teams are still focusing on their roster. Sometimes it is proximity- these guys were around and the Bills talked to the player and the agent allowing them to be amongst the first - there may be other guys that they just have not gotten to talk to everyone and will get to them tomorrow. Beane has stated he likes to meet with each player and answer questions and give feedback - so my guess is it is not a quick in and out and he gets to guys as he gets to them.

White sucks, has done less in his career, and is less than 1/2 a year younger than Mitch. He has no upside at all. People love to throw out how this back-up QB or that back-up QB looks especially in Pre-season, but the truth is how they play is a very small part of what a back-up QB does and unfortunately is the part the fans see - making us poor judges of back-up QBs historically. Back-up QBs have to be sounding boards between the starter and the OC helping to identify and keep communication open. The Back-up QB also works a lot on the sidelines during games to help the QB recognize packages and keep the starter calm and under control. This is why you really want someone that is “friendly” with the starter - that opens up communication and allows the best dialogue. Back-up QBs also work closely with the OC and the starter to diagnose film during the week as part of install of game plans and players with more experience are much better at this. If he helps install and recognizes coverages - he is better at communicating that info from the OC to the starter and pointing out those things during the game. His overall ability to win games comes in much lower because the real expectations are if you have to play him you are looking for 50% win percentage and usually a huge change to game plan - so I would rather see the Bills keep a guy that is comfortable with Josh and can help him during the week and on Sundays. Would we love Mitch to play better - of course, but if he is doing the other things right that we as fans don’t see, but helps Josh be better on Sunday - then I would rather have him on the team.

That is complete BS. The 49ers are 0-2 versus KC and have been blown out much worse than the Bills have by the Chiefs. They are dominant in the NFC right now, but it has been a much easier road. The Bengals get dominated by Cleveland much worse than we get dominated by KC or Cincinnati. It is a terrible matchup for them and they have also missed the playoffs multiple times since 2020. The Ravens struggle against Pittsburgh and have been man handled multiple times in the playoffs including by Buffalo and KC whom they have not beat. There is 1 dominant team in KC right now and everyone else is hoping they get knocked out so the path gets easier. The Bills have not stopped them, but the Bills have kept up with them scoring wise throughout. KC is less aggressive versus other teams like Baltimore, Cincinnati, and SF as they have not scored the way the Bills do against them, but all of them have lost to KC in the playoffs just like Buffalo and only Cincinnati with a lucky OT win beat KC whereas the Bills lost on possession 1 in OT and did not get a chance to match.

People think that happens all the time, but it doesn’t anymore with the QB cost. Just look at this off season: Justin Fields 1st round pick - traded for a 6th Sam Howell - break even 5th round pick - traded for 3rd and 5th, but gave back lower 4th and 6th Kenny Pickett 1st round pick - traded for a 3rd and 2 7ths, but had to included a 4th Mac Jones 1st round pick - Traded for a 6th Sam Howell basically cost Washington a 4th, 5th, and 6th to get a 3rd and a 5th. What does still work is trading your very, old and breaking down elite QB to get picks like Russell Wilson to the Broncos, or Rodgers to the Jets, or even Matt Ryan to Indy for a 3rd or Watson to the Browns, So it is no longer near as profitable to draft and trade as you are wasting the short window where QBs are cheap and the only way it works is if your starter is hurt and the young guy plays a lot and then it seems you are much better off trading the older Elite QB away than the young QB. If you want to grab a 5th rounder great, but just don’t expect much from them and expect a more breakeven return than we saw 20 years ago with Cassel.

He was also terrible in the UFL from percentage wise and missed enough that he was worse than Bass anyway. He is not an NFL level kicker and most likely will be worse than Bass in the NFL.

Not really a surprise. The original case was thrown out without merit and this one should never of been allowed. They got it back on appeal and now it was tossed again. The entire thing is 2 groups of lawyers making money on a stupid system - just watch the plaintiffs try to run it around again to a group that favors them. Stupid waste of time and money.

I am not sure I understand this. You are upset because the Bills have clearly set up a process whereby as a club member you are given a chance to get comparable seats (and that is all they are selling at the moment) - You then tell that Rep that is selling specific areas for now that you are not interested. Then you get upset that they move you to a different rep that doesn’t know what you want and you have to explain it again. What exactly are you looking for? Why was this a surprise to you? I am really just trying to understand the expectations that you had in this process. The team has made it pretty clear that they are moving section by section and offering specific packages. You have a choice to look at the various sections they have available or pass and move in later for different sections, but those will be sold later - most likely by a different set of reps. Maybe I am missing something - it sounds like you are not interested in a comparable seat - are you looking for something cheaper or in a different section that is not yet available or where you hoping to get seats in a section being sold for a cheaper price. I just feel like there is a massive part of this story that is missing and it feeds the misunderstanding of the process. Several of us have had a perfectly fine experience going through the process and managing the expectations and several have even stepped back with a no and a request for an upcoming section that may be cheaper and have been accommodated. I just see things posted that I feel have additional information that would make it understandable and maybe we can see your side and the Bills side. I did not have an annoying process other than I wish things would have gone quicker - it met my expectations based upon what I had read here and what I had been told. They did not have nor provide information for areas that are not for sale yet. I would appreciate a better understanding to see why your experience was so different than mine. Thanks in advance.

IDK how overall true it is. The NFL had an agreement in place with the XFL and the Rock to test certain things before coming to the NFL - so I am not sure how that agreement transferred to the UFL and how much the NFL really cares as long as the UFL stays a podunk league with little to no attention - I just don’t think the NFL cares about it and that goes for both players and coaches. I also do not think they see it as a pseudo farm team, but just another minor place to pick up some preseason roster fillers - similar to the arena league in years gone by. As for a college player - if I am on the bench - I am 99 out of a hundred using the transfer window and staying in college over the UFL at this point. The combined spring leagues last year with 2x the players saw several guys get try-out and I think only 2 made active rosters. A few made practice squads, but if you compare that to the college draft and UDFA rate - it is still significantly lower. This year we may see a few additional kickers make NFL rosters - especially as they have experience with the new kick-off rules, but I still think the number of position players that make actual NFL rosters will be very low compared to other avenues. There is also the pay scale - which the UFL actually lowered compared to the XFL with the lack of competition - it was especially noticeable with QBs and the terrible QB play in the UFL. Players actually have a much better chance to make more money with a limited licensing deal in college than the up to $5500 a week in the UFL for 10 games potentially - where you still have to find living accommodations and some meals - with a small stipend. There may be a few guys that get kicked out of college and need a second chance, but until the UFL can expand and actually get some talent - those types of stories will be limited. I honestly think the biggest problem with the UFL is actually the same thing that keeps it afloat. The UFL exists because the TV networks want the product. Fox, NBC, ABC, and ESPN basically fund the league which is the only reason they have survived, but only provide enough to ensure it is able to function. The league itself had less than adequate attendance at games and unless the numbers go up - the networks are not going to have a bidding war over a product they own - so financially they are in a limbo - surviving on what they are given, but unable to financially grow significantly so they will struggle to compete with college ball for players that are in good standing. If the UFL was independent of the networks - they could force a bidding war and maybe make some money to really grow, but they could not afford the production costs as that has doomed other leagues and needed the networks to survive the early years.

It was discussed at the time of the event - everything that happened was occurred before Matt became a part of the league and the NFL was not allowed to punish him for conduct prior to becoming an NFL player. If he was convicted after becoming an NFL player they could enact punishment based on the findings, but the NFL was not able to put him on the restricted list for college issues. This goes back to the Reggie Bush days when the league looked at punishing him and Pete Carroll for transgressions at USC and the NFLPA argued they could not punish them because they were not part of the NFL. Therefore there were no options for the Bills in that regard based upon the reports. Would the contract have been onerous- I don’t know, but as the Bills had no option to place him on any list what do you suggest they do. - should the Bills have kept him on the 53 man roster and not dressed him? That was 1 option and can you imagine the distraction with questions every week that would cause. The other option was to cut him - which based upon allowing him to focus on the trial and not being a distraction was the obvious choice. I just do not understand what you wanted them to do. The Bills were screwed with either choice because they could not trot him out to punt with the allegations hanging over him. Keeping him on the 53 man roster and not playing him for nearly 2 years also was not an option as spots are precious and fans already complain about the fringe guys that the Bills cut (see every WR/RB cut after a decent preseason against 5th stringers). Now imagine you are cutting an additional player to keep a punter that is not going to play - it just is not worth it. Unfortunately based upon the options available the Bills took the one that covered their butt the best, freed Matt to focus on what he needed to, and created the least questions, distractions, and problems for the team.

I think you were roasted because “administrative leave” is not a thing. The Bills could not do what you suggested as it is not an option. The only leave would be if the NFL put him on leave and the NFL was not allowed to do that because the transgression occurred in college not the NFL. Therefore - the Bills had very limited options. Cut him, Keep him on the roster, or work with the player and the NFLPA to get him on a reserved non-football list - which based upon the timing would have blocked him out for the season and would have left the NFL money on the table in the lawsuit. In the end he sat out the 2 years while the various lawsuits fell away and without the NFL contract in place there was not a lot of money for the others lawyer to go after. The understanding at the time was the Bills (Beane) talked with the player and the agent about the options they had - either cutting him or getting the player to step away so they could use the Reserve list and keep him away for the year. The agreement between the sides was for him to go away and handle the lawsuits and keep the other lawyers from using his contract as a bargaining chip. The problem with your suggestion is that there is nothing like what you suggested that the Bills could do. They explored options and talked with the NFL, the player and his agent, and the NFLPA and had limited options of either keeping him on the roster or cutting him. Really a no brainer at that point with that team.

We will see, but I totally disagree with this take. Matt was great at punting the ball in college, but they were low, long, and returnable - especially a potential problem in the NFL. Maybe even more importantly - he struggled mightily with high short punts - for example punting from near Mid-field where good teams like the Bills and Chiefs tend to punt from - lots of touchbacks and he showed little touch. Lastly in no world should a good team like the Bills or Chiefs need/want a weapon at punter. He is on the Chiefs because he is CHEAP - if he is good - that is a bonus, but if they are punting enough that he is a weapon - that is a very bad sign. If he is also punting and getting an average like in college - that is also a bad sign for the Chiefs as it means the offense is not moving the ball. We will see, but my greatest hope is that he has a career year punting for the Chiefs. I hope against all hope he leads the league in number of punts, etc. because if your punter is your best weapon - your offense sucks - so please Matt - punt 150+ times this year and I will be happy.

So - I am going to agree with many others. Based upon your descriptions of the grades - I had to grade him as an A. There is really no other choice as he has easily shown himself to be a top 10 and typically a top 5 GM in this league. Based upon a standard grading curve - I would typically give him an upper B level - somewhere in the mid/upper 80s on a 100 point scale. He checks the right boxes for me - he drafts well (maybe not always what we want and sometimes over values or undervalues positions), he brings in adequate FAs and ensures the Bills consistently have quality depth to cover their issues, he brings in high quality staff to surround himself and seems to let them grow and learn so there is a constant pipeline of talented staff, and most importantly he speaks well and is not afraid to be real - he goes on things like Pat McAfee show and provides excellent talking points and is not afraid to spill a bit of behinds the scene info. Could you have a better GM - yep there are a couple out there - maybe 2 or 3 that are better on both draft and FA combined (some are better at 1 or the other) and even then they all have “wart” picks and get bailed out. To me he is a perfect “Buffalo” man and although you may be able to find better - there is significantly more likelihood that you will do worse - see the majority of teams in the NFL and the Bills for 17 years as they flail time after time.

Yeah - no kidding, but you stated that he had won 2 SB with Ben and that was incorrect. He did not win 2. So the first point was to correct the stuff you got wrong. If you had gotten your facts correct - I wouldn’t have had to even post, but you could not even count to 1 correctly. Of course every Bills fan wants a SB, but what defines a great HC. What makes Tomlin great and McDermott a flop - because as I look at the 2 they are very similar overall. McDermott has won a higher % of regular season games by a small margin 0.644 to 0.633 for their careers. McDermott has won at a better clip in the playoffs for their career - 0.455 to 0.440. Tomlin is praised as a defense coach who has won with both Offense and Defense in an Offensive heavy NFL yet the Bills are consistently top 5 in the NFL in both Offense (points and yards) and Defense (points and yards) - so obviously McDermott is also balanced. The difference is the 1 SB that Tomlin won in 2008 with a team that Bill Cower had won a SB with only a few years before - and that is a huge difference, but it is not like he has repeated that success since. In fact it has been 7 years - this will be year 8 - since he has even won a playoff game. Even legendary coaches like Andy Reid - now considered one of the best of all time - was on par with McDermott in his coaching stint in Philadelphia. McDermott has a better regular season win % than Reid in Philly (0.640 to 0.583). Reid had a slightly better win % in the playoffs (0.526 to 0.455). Neither had won a SB during that stint. Reid then goes to KC and wins at about the same clip as McDermott for his first 5 years and goes 1 - 4 in the playoffs so less of a post season win % than McDermott. Finally in his 7th year in KC and 21st year coaching overall he wins a SB and suddenly that propels them to a couple of more. So yes we want a SB win and yes we want a coach to lead us there, but if it was easy to do - Tomlin in 17 years would have more than 1 and it would not have taken Reid 21 years to figure it out. It takes great coaching, great players, lots of luck, lots of health, lots of depth, and sometimes it takes a bit of fate having someone knock out a team that beats you - like when both KC and Pittsburgh won - neither had to go through NE who had knocked them out during other playoff runs.

1st Tomlin has only 1 SB win not 2. 2nd Tomlin won in a year NE got beat by someone else. It would be no different than if Miami had knocked KC out - it opens up a path that was unavailable prior. 3rd - Yes the Bills are just as good as Pittsburgh - which is why the Bills have 1 of the 2 best records in the entire NFL over the McDermott/Josh time and the best point differential. McDermott is every bit as good as Tomlin over the last little bit. Mike Tomlin is a superb coach that in 17 years has won 1 SB and has an overall 8-10 record in the playoffs. He won the SB in a year the dynasty team was knocked out by another team and they had a bye as a #2 seed to rest - both advantages/luxuries the Bills have not had. Sean McDermott in 7 years has a better career regular season record (.640 to .633) and a better career playoff win % (.455 to .440) and has not benefited from the #2 team getting a bye as Tomlin did and has not had their arch nemesis knocked out early yet. I think Pittsburgh was smart to stick with Tomlin just as the Bills are smart to stick with McDermott. As long as the Josh and the players support McDermott and play and win for him - the Bills are in a great situation.

I think it shows what a Sabres atmosphere could be like if they were good again. It used to rock like that when the Sabres went to the finals - the lack of any kind of winning has killed the vibe. Bandits games are amazing. Being in Rochester - I enjoy the Knighthawks, but love the Bandits. I am so thrilled for Banditland. Congrats Buffalo 🦬!!! That was amazing - I rewound that play like 10 times during the broadcast - just unbelievable.

The KC trade - they got pick 95 for their later 4th round pick.

After the trades - they have 2 2nds, a 3rd, and a 4th - plus a bunch of 5ths - 7ths.