Success

Yeah - I actually felt that way in real time. I don't expect good or great QB's to be "mistake free." The mark of the really good ones is that they have a short memory, and move past their mistakes to keep playing well & taking chances. Allen led a drive for the game-tying FG, then for the game winning FG. On the latter, the ref took away what would have been a decent chance for Haushka with a phantom call. If that call isn't made & the kick is, the entire narrative about Allen & the Bills is completely different. The negative story after the game would have been how Watson had his chance in OT and blew it.

I lost track of Rush, but 2112 was part of my formative experience as a music fan. It's hard to forget the 1st time I heard it - it stood out from everything else, completely. Recently, I saw a doc on them, and they were talking about the making of that record. It was really a "last shot" kind of record w/ their label - they weren't catching fire, and it was a final chance. Their manager kept promising that it would be an accessible record with "hits," and instead, they went into the studio & stayed true to their own vision, even though they knew it wasn't commercial. That takes incredible courage artistically. And, of course, the rest is history. The built their own niche in that world, and an incredibly loyal following. Goes without saying that Peart was a legend. He influenced so many.

I certainly have no issue w/ that. NFL careers can be very short - the next contract could be any players last, and what they make has to last them a lifetime. I really hope we keep Shaq. He was all over the place this year, and really came into his own. I feel like he was in on so many big plays. A key cog in this D.

Where does anyone get that he missed “90% of his deep throws?”

You haven’t seen the “plays that leave your TV” team-by-team rankings?

It’s tough. He makes that block, and every thread today is about our game this weekend. But that’s the playoffs. So many games turn on a play. The last 3 times the Saints lost. KC being 6 inches offside last year. The Pats go undefeated if not for 3-4 crazy close plays on Eli’s last drive in 2007.

If science made huge advances, and we were suddenly able to live for thousands of years - kind of like Elrond in Lord of the Rings - and the Pats went 0-16 every year while I lived to, say, 5,014 years old - it still wouldn’t be enough for me.

Texans were cocky - Hopkins saying he didn’t respect Tre, Watson with his someone had to be great line, Watt being Watt. Chiefs all all the way. Would love to see Reid get the monkey off his back too.

Easy - Brady. It’s that horrible fan base that I can’t stand.

Allen made about 5-6 plays in that game that I don't think any QB in our history could have made. He also had some real headscratchers. On balance, I'll sign up for that every time. It's just fun to watch, and if he can turn those 5-6 plays into a dozen or so, we might have something.

The Beane regime hasn't missed on a 1st rounder yet. Can't wait to see who we add to the roster. These mocks never pan out past the top 3-4 picks, but I like some of the players they're seeing here...

It didn't last long - but that sideline reporter getting interrupted, and then seeing the Bills celebrate in the EZ and the TV score going up to 19, was definitely the most exciting playoff moment I've experienced since the '90's.

How about 30-7? Heck, maybe even 30-8 if NE makes a last run to the playoffs as a WC....

The "Allen fans" thing is something that has always been. "Apologist" has sometimes been used instead of "fan." It's been true of every QB since Kelly. Until a QB wins the Lombardi here, they will NOT get the benefit of the doubt. Which is fine, of course - it goes w/ the territory. But I think a lot of our fans forget the context of what the expectations for a 2nd year guy in his 1st playoff game should be.

I agree on the play. It was a comically bad PLAY. That stretches out to an entire half? A half in which he made a couple of plays that probably 5 current QB's can make? Nah.

"His fans"? You're not a fan of the Bills quarterback? Comically bad is extreme, imo. He made some huge mistakes - so did Drew Brees. But he also overcame them. He led us to the tying score & what should have been the winning score. That's really about all I can ask, especially at this stage of his career.

I don't disagree - it probably sounded that way by my comment, but I wasn't trying to put in on the defense. I was just saying that I wouldn't have characterized what happened in that game as Allen not rising to the challenge. For a young guy, I actually loved how he got past the "meltdown" couple of minutes, and still found ways to get us in scoring position. There wasn't a huge amount of scoring all weekend. I think only 1 team got past 20. Allen really had us in position to get 22 (that call on Ford will haunt me for awhile). I agree that he needs to do more, but think he will. We'll probably look back on this game as a valuable one in his learning curve - I have a hunch that it will really fuel him this offseason.

He's almost a 1, imo. If we do get someone who most would agree is a true #1, it would be pretty incredible, since I'd put Brown near the top of the #2 list around the league. Then, w/ Beasley as a 3, and Knox having a year under his belt...this offense could be really exciting. Imagine having an offense that scores in the 20's or 30's every game, if the defense stays as good as it was this past year. This could really be a top team in the league.

Pats fans are over the top about this. #7 on the way! Hope they re-sign him for 3 years. He was the monster in the closet for me for a long time, but I'd love to see the Bills play the guy who was out there the past couple of weeks twice a season. He's not going to get any better at this point. He's going the Peyton Manning route (but without the kind of D that can win him a SB).

I've gotta take a little exception to the idea that Josh didn't rise to the challenge. He drove the offense down for the game-tying FG, and then for the game winner, which the refs took away w/ a genuinely bad call. If the D can stop 3rd & 18, or sack a QB with 2 guys coming in at full speed, I'd bet a fair amount that Allen would have driven them again & won that game. It's what he did all season.

The national media & internet seem mostly focused on the lateral. To hear the context of most of the comments at this point, you would think that play cost the Bills the game. We didn't even lose the ball; it was a 1st down. Bad judgment, sure, and definitely a play that I can see people talking about. But there wasn't one mistake at the end (the grounding, the sack, or the lateral) that cost the Bills the game. Reason #582 why I can't stand officials that take the game away from the players. Without that purely phantom call on Ford, I think there is a great chance Hausch makes it - and then, the narrative is that Allen is like the great ones because he has a short memory & great ability to overcome his mistakes & come out w/ the win.

He's average. BB the coach bails out BB the GM more often than not. I think he outsmarts himself in the draft. He loves trading down & loading up on later round picks. Which ultimately means that he's replacing great players w/ middlin' players, and hoping for the big "hit" like Brady in the 6th all those years ago.

Brown’s awesome. No player is perfect all the time.

That's a really good write-up, on both the playoff game & regular season. I'm also still hurting. It was right there for the taking, and we had a puncher's chance against every team the rest of the way. It would be a lot of fun to be playing this weekend. I tend to think "choke" is a little strong, but get the characterization. Houston has a bunch of gamers on their team, too - they seized momentum and hung onto it, which is easier to do at home. I thought the Bills fought back, and if that stupid call isn't made on Ford, we're probably talking about how resilient they were and how they took Houston's best and still gutted it out. Obviously, all that remains is optimism for the future, and this time it's grounded in something real. We have a good brain trust now, who I have no doubt will make the moves needed to put this team over the top. And you can count me as one of those who is bullish on Allen. I love his attitude and fierce determination to learn & grow from his mistakes. I think the silver lining of this loss - and the way we lost - is that it will fuel him to be even better.

I hear ya - who knows how he'll turn out. But he was definitely better than expected this past year, and looked excellent at times. I just remember the insane ridicule Gettleman got when they made that pick, and how the "experts" everywhere said he should have taken Haskins. Haskins may still turn out to be very good, but unless people spend their lives watching film, they don't know anything close to what people in the draft room know. Sports fandom & punditry has become rife with ill-informed hot takes and immediate judgments.