Rochesterfan

I think it had more to do with Jalen Hurts. I don’t think he wanted to bench Wentz and I don’t think he felt Hurts was the answer. I believe he was told to finally get Hurts some playing time and then he was ticked Hurts looked ok - He decided to play his guy Sudfield as a get back as soon as Hurts struggled. I think Hurts was thrust on him and it ticked him off enough that he pulled the stunt the last game.

Not surprising with the way the end of the season went down and the QB garbage in the last game. I thought this was where the Jets wanted to go if they got rid of Gase. I even thought that they may hold onto Gase one more season to line it up with Pederson, but this is 1A in my mind for the Jets. Look for Bienemy (Reid disciple) to get the Philly Job. They loved and miss Andy there.

I think it was great to choose 500 yards - let’s go sign Ben - he hit 500 yards in that great come back - uhhh - loss to Cleveland. I mean the effort he showed on that first high snap - man what a leader. The confidence his head coach had to punt near mid field on 4th and 1. We need Ben 🤢. 🤮

Teller was traded last year - unless the Jets traded Teller - Winters was not kept over Teller.

Actually decided to watch the Nick version with the Kids and it is not bad. A little crazy with the graphics, but I like Nate and Noah Eagle (Ian’s son) and the girl from All That has been not bad.

Yes either you watched a different game or don’t really understand how things work. So the fact the through 3 quarters when the game was within 1 score the Colts had run for 70 yards on 24 carries (or 2.9 yards per carry) you believe has no bearing at all. Once the Bills got up by 2 scores in the 4th quarter and shifted how the defense was playing - the Bills gave up 82 yards on 3 carries. The Colts got over 60% of their rushing yards on 3 rushes in the 4th quarter when down by 2 scores. So yes the overall numbers look bad, but through the first 3 quarters - no they were not getting run over at all.

I also believe that referee was really commenting about his feet being in bounds and he made the assumption it was caught. You see it all the time where one guy comes up and rules it a catch because from his angle he is looking for feet and where he goes out of bounds. The 2nd ref comes up because his focus is supposed to be on the ball and realizes he bobbled or dropped it and the call gets overturned. They also consult with other officials if needed and try to piece it together. Look I give them a ton of credit because they are trying to judge split seconds toe taps and fingertip grabs and decide the exact second they happen and they usually get the call right. On the Hilton play - the refs called it incomplete long before the TV team knew what was going on. That was less on the refs and more on the announcers. The refs got together and the one guy had clear visual that the ball landed on the ground next to the receiver and over ruled the other ref that could not see it because of the Bills defender.

The defense did not play well, but the fact is the defense held them below their season total for points and you can say the offense scares no one, but that was the #9 rated scoring offense in the league - averaging over 28 points per game - so it must have been pretty good - it obviously scared some teams as they won 11 games including beating the Packers and Titans. The fact remains - it was not Indy’s running game that hurt the Bills - their average per rush was below 3 and they were routinely stopped for very short gains when the Bills focused on the run game. Where the Bills struggled was in the short passing game and even that takes some looking at because the Indy TEs made a ton of contested catches right at the first down markers. It is not like guys were running open all game - they made some great catches that converted short and mid level 3rd downs - with a Bills player on their back or with a hand in there trying to knock the ball away. The Bills did have some major breakdowns - most notably once up 2 scores - they shifted the style they were playing and that led to some big runs and a couple of broken coverages, but they also forced the Colts to move down field in small increments most of the day and that lead to mistakes in the red zone that won the game for the Bills.

I agree - the way the Bills D-Line played was specifically done to limit the running game. The Bills rushed trying to contain the gaps to prevent runs and also rushed with an eye to screens - rather than trying to get a ton of pressure on Rivers. It was pretty obvious to most people exactly what the game plan was and it worked through the first 3 quarters. Don’t let them run and force Rivers to beat you all the way down the field. It lead to 10 Indy points and a 14 point deficit through 3 quarters in a game Rivers was nearly perfect.

See - this is going to be a narrative that just is not true and it is going to be stated numerous times no matter who we face next week. Let’s take a second and dive into the run defense in this game. Overall the Bills gave up 163 yards on 30 carries - yep looks like they got run all over. Now let’s take a second and look at the 4th quarter where the Bills were up multiple scores. The Bills went back to their Nickel off ball coverage that did not focus on the run game. They gave up 93 yards on 6 carries when not focused at all on the run. The first 3 quarters when they played with a focus on the run - they gave up 70 yards on 24 carries about 2.9 yards per carry. It was not like they ran all over us when the game was close. As a matter of fact in all drives that the Score was within 1 score either way - the Bills gave up a total of 78 yards on 26 carries. They also bowed up and stopped the Indy team from running on a goal line drive and on a 2pt conversion attempt from the 1. What this game tells me is the Bills when they want to focus on the running game they have the ability to contain the run with how they attack the line of scrimmage with their DL, LBs, and CBs. When they move to attack mode late in the game and up 2 scores - they lose lane discipline and the LBs are not quickly filling the gaps leaving lanes to run through - then they get gashed for big games. The 2 drives that the Bills were up 2 scores and ran a more attacking DLine style with LB and CB support dropping off for passing - they gave up 85 on 4 carries or about 50% of their rushing total on 2 drives where they were ready to let them run. Indy is a good team and Frank got the absolute best out of Rivers in that game, but it was Rivers making good reads and quick short accurate passes that kept them in this game not the running game. At least in my opinion

Again - not to give any life to our ability to be pissed off about things, but in both cases of Davis sideline catches - his going out of bounds stops the game clock and therefore the review comes almost immediately. There is no reason to wait because the clock is not moving. In the case of the Indy fumble - the clock is moving so the job of the replay team is not to stop it until the snap to ensure it gets stopped at the last possible point before the play to ensure they do not give the offense more time - in this case it appears to have been about 5-6 seconds of game time. Now how they get the call wrong is beyond me, but the timing makes sense based upon the clock. It is similar to the TB/WFT fumble that they get wrong and could not overturn.

Doc - with a running clock they never immediately review a play like that. The referees must wait until the ball is about to be snapped. Let’s think of this another way - if right at the conclusion of the fumble they decide to review with 34 seconds left rather than right at the Colts snap of the ball - it essentially would have given the Colts another free play in the game based upon the ruling. Look McD was very smart to call the timeout just to ensure because in the current system there is no way for him to be sure they are going to review, but there is also absolutely no proof that the Ref was not buzzed at the snap. Not everything needs to be a conspiracy- especially when the most logical and typical response mirrors what happened and mirrors the stated outcome. The NFL ended up not needing to “save face” on that play any more than the should of been fumble in TB yet the difference in timeouts was obvious - so there must be a reason why Buffalo got their timeout back and TB didn’t. It certainly does not scream to me that the NFL favors the Bills and therefore wanted to return the timeout versus Tom Brady’s team net getting their timeout back. The most logical explanation is the timing of the timeouts versus the timing of the replay buzz and that was the explanation given in both cases. The current NFL replay system stinks because of these reasons with a running clock - it is never fair to either team when the running clock gets stopped - so they try to do it is fairly as possible, but it leads to things like exactly what happened - a needless timeout and a potential play by Indy that gets stopped mid play because of review, but if they stop it earlier it gives free time to Indy to reset and get an extra play.

Exactly - the difference was TB did not get their timeout back because they stopped the clock well before the next snap on a running clock and therefore well before the replay team buzzed in to the ref and therefore the timeout stood. The Bills got their timeout back which suggests that it was simultaneous to the replay buzz.

Do you have any proof of this? The facts are - the replay booth on these types of plays with a running clock do not buzz down until immediately at the snap to prevent giving the offense a time advantage. Several of these plays happen where the ball is snapped and the ref blows the whistle stating he got the notification. 2nd - McD not being sure if they got the buzz used his available time out just before the ball was snapped and the referee clearly stated that he was buzzed at the same time and therefore the Bills were not charged a time out. 3rd - several hours later in the TB game - TB calls a time out right before the half to get the Refs to look at a fumble. He called it before the replay team buzzed down and therefore TB stopped the running clock. They decided to review the play and determined it was not a fumble and TB still lost the timeout because they stopped the clock. The announcers clearly stated if after the review - it was determined to be a fumble - TB would have gotten their timeout back, but because they called the timeout before the review was initiated with a running clock - if it was upheld TB lost the timeout. If you view that in the context of the Bills game - if McD called the timeout with a running clock like TB and it was not simultaneous to the ref getting buzzed - Buffalo would have been charged with the timeout just like TB, but the ref clearly states Buffalo was not charged the timeout because the replay team buzzed in at the same time. Therefore based upon the available facts @Simon is 100% correct. We have no way to know the exact moment the replay team buzzes in, but usually the offense snaps the ball and begins the play and the ref blows it dead when the clock is moving to ensure the offense does not gain a time advantage.

Yet - he was 5-0 in wild card games. This was a game he typically wins. Kudos to the Bill for finding a way to win.

Analytics is a tool you are correct, but since you do not know when it is going to work and when it isn’t - you either have to be all in or not. It is easy after the fact to second guess things, but the analytics should provide you with reasons. I had no issue with them going for it on 4th down - I believe that decision was made once they got inside the 5, but the 3rd down play was terrible and really should have changed their mind to the FG to build their lead. There was a chance for the Bills to score, but they should have taken the points when they lost yardage on 3rd down. Going for 2 was a bit mind blowing to me because it had little impact if they got it. It could have prevented a tie, but getting/failing on 2 pts. did not significantly increase their chances. In the end it balanced out with the successful try, but then that was critical. I thought Frank played an ultra conservative gameplan, but then made ultra aggressive decisions and that does not always go together. If you are going to play a run heavy, short passing attack to keep the clock moving and really limit possession- then you need to score when you have chances and he cost the team points that mattered in the end.

Nope - I believe the receiver ends up dropping the ball backwards out of bounds. The Ref signaled to start the game clock upon getting the ball ready for play. I think it was done perfectly and that was part of the delay in McD calling the timeout. He wanted it right before the snap to get as much time as possible off the clock. Well coached and well played - especially as he still had to be seething about the non fumble call.

The replay team is supposed to wait until the ball is about to be snapped. If they stop it earlier it benefits the offense like a free timeout. What we don’t see and can’t know is exactly when the buzz comes, but McD did it right to make sure.

I actually thought it was good that it was taking that long. I thought they were looking for the new spot and time. Just crazy they missed the call with every in booth Ref calling it obvious.

Duke was elevated in the event Beasley could not go. That was the only reason. Since he can go - Duke is inactive.

Duh - way to go out on a limb here Ian. This was about the most obvious statement there is.

I get the idea, but if Diggs and Beasley both start - Duke is inactive - I have to believe. You have Brown, McKittrick, Davis, and Roberts after Diggs and Beasley. I do not see them dressing 7 WRs. Duke is just in case Beasley can’t go. Then they can still dress 6 guys. This is what happened earlier in the sea un he was called up. He was inactive then also I believe. If Gilliam was not back then maybe you go with just Knox and Smith and use Duke as a TE style, but I just don’t really see that with the health of the roster.

I think there was a thread about this: Reed = McKittrick Lofton = Davis Beebe = Knox McKeller = Diggs Thurman = Moss I believe that was the title before it devolved about 30 times. LOL 😂

Look McD loves position flexibility- QB/DE perfect. Plus what a surprise for the Colts - Rivers getting dumped 3 times by JA. Perfection.

Come up with whatever you want as long as it rhymes - then we can all agree.