corta765

I've seen a lot of people fretting about the Bills schedule coming up and more difficult opponents, but I think there is one thing that will determine the Bills chances against these teams then anything else. Straight up its how good their defense is or isnt. Buffalo has shown that the offense can move the ball and score points against most teams, but the Bills struggled when greatly this year against top defenses like NE, BAL, PIT, even the Jets truthfully. I really don't doubt that the defense will keep every game as close as possible for the offense, but as Brandon Beane said they gotta score more. So what does 2020 hold based off last years defensive rankings. Using yards per game as the main measurement the Bills schedule breaks down like this: Games against top 10 defense: 7 games (NE 2x, NYJ 2x, PIT, SF, & LAC) Games against defenses 11-21: 5 games (DEN, LAR, OAK/VEG, TEN, & KC) Games against bottom defenses 22-32: 4 games (ARZ, MIA & SEA) On paper that looks pretty formidable lets see how it compared to the 2019 year: Games against top 10 defense: 8 games (NE 2x, NYJ 2x, BAL, PIT, DAL, & PHI) Games against defenses 11-21: 2 games (DEN & TEN) Games against bottom defenses 22-32: 6 games (MIA 2x, CIN, WAS, NYG, & CLE) Judging by defensive rankings Buffalo will be for a tough ride this year. Taking into account that some teams will move up and others down the big area that will probably determine the Bills playoffs chances lie with those middle defenses which are playoff teams the Bills will absolutely be battling against.The Bills collected 5 wins last year against those teams with bottom ranking defenses and will have less to chew on this year. Obviously much can change, but generally defensive rankings do not see the drastic swings by tons of teams the way record can change. What will be interesting is with the potential extra playoff spot being added this year (depending on the CBA negotiations) these teams with middle ranked defenses games will take on even greater importance to the Bills this season. We all know the offense needs to do more and this only validates that this will present a tougher test for the team in 2019-20. What is your thoughts?

I'll be truthfully honest here. I was so mad they picked Allen not Rosen that I left my brother in laws draft party within 20 minutes. I was team Rosen all day and Allen I was against big time. Truthfully I didn't truly become team Allen until the Miami game when Clay dropped the ball. I liked what he showed against MIN that was encouraging and the JAX game at least showed some heart and passion. But for me it all changed against Miami because he was the best player on the field for either team and couldn't be stopped. With better talent they would've won or just a TE who wasn't a moron. Anyway that game proved to me he could carry the team at QB something you have to be able to do if your gonna be the guy. I'm not sure what his ceiling is but he will be around for a while and win a lot which is good enough for me.

What's awesome about the Bills wanting to draw from Rochester is the fact they probably will move training camp as soon as the contract expires smh

Yea it's tough because one of the best things the NFL did for fan interest was eliminating the blackout rule. It's weird to think just a decade ago that still happened frequently and it was a really archaic rule. I can't wait to tell my son that we use to not be able to watch the Bills because we didn't sell 500 tickets haha But yea Amy Trask former president of the Raiders tweeted back and forth with me and her thoughts were if you move the games the least the NFL should do is refund all travel and game costs assuming you can prove the cost with receipt as a way to say to the fans we get our move hurt your experience. She is huge about fan experience and the fact the NFL needs to do more for the fans who actually go. What you brought up about traveling and days off is my great fear if this comes true given how regularly the Bills do play on MNF which is at least once per season most of the time. Not being able to go to PIT was gut wrenching and in a sense it took away from watching them clinch knowing we should've been there. On the plus side we got our money back!

If the game was in Sept or Oct. Ravens game had tickets on secondary market for $30, not exactly our best showing.

This would fundamentally be one of the worst most unfan friendly moves they could make. My wife and I had to cancel PIT because of the switch to night time with the way our travel worked, but at least that was just a time difference. Switching the day when thousands of fans come from out of town and plan financial decisions around that would be as awful idea as they come. I get the NFL is hellbent on TV, but stadiums look awful when fans are not there. At some point they need to focus some efforts on the people ya know actually going to the games and not the TV side. The better idea I heard was having MNF with more double headers or two games so you could swap for the better matchup. I should also add the NFL wouldn't have this issue if they didn't schedule teams so repetitively ensuring that a bad season by the Giants Jets Eagles Bears etc.. insert major market will result in less people watching. The fact the Jets got soo many night games was hilariously bad last year, but I sadly expect the same again.

my point is politicians use this as something to boast about regardless of the statistics that show it has no positive impact economically. you can guarantee someone would say they helped keep the bills here if a new stadium was made downtown

Thank you for posting this to show the two of these things are not mutually exclusive. From a pure watching standpoint the Ralph is like you fine no issues. But your in the largest entertainment league in the world where they do anything to make money ... and Buffalo has people jumping through tables lol. That isn't a shot just a point that compared to literally the rest of the league were still in 1995 by revenue standards. The Pegulas are really hard to read because for as much as they talk renovation and a Buffalo fit, I have this gut feeling they would LOVE to be downtown with the rest of their investment. The Byron Brown has already said he wants the team back downtown. Truthfully its a really hard egg to figure out if they do go downtown because you need to somehow keep the cost within reason, have the ability for a good amount of safe tailgating, while also having more family options pre game, with ok access in and out, and a facility that is able to be used more regularly....YIKES lol Many NFL teams practice in one spot but play elsewhere. Carolina are building like a 100 million practice facility that is actually just in South Carolina no where near the stadium. If a stadium was downtown I don't doubt they keep everything else in Orchard Park. My solution to the old stadium is to make it a high end ampitheater/park mix which the area desperately needs. As for reno vs. new I think the one crucial piece is how much the city of Buffalo wants to get the team downtown. The mayor could absolutely use that as another piece of showing the Buffalo revival and that's a lot of money that comes downtown pre and post game etc.. It'll be interesting

GB renovated theirs for 540 mil CHI built a new stadium on top of Solider NOLA is doing renovation for over a billion KC also did massive Reno for like 500 mil

This type of stuff is tiresome and pathetic. Newsflash despite the Bills having their best record in two decades the Ravens game had tickets available for $30 a seat. The biggest game against the best team in the NFL was for $30. Certain Bills fans love to brag about "the elements' "being tough" etc.. well truth is the support for those games isn't there. What was another big game in 2017 at home against the Dolphins in December wasn't even a sellout despite having a decent shot at the playoffs. Snowbowl which I was at in 2017 wasn't close to a sellout in another game with playoff implications. This isn't a generational thing, older folks, families, many fans in general would prefer a stadium where they can go without risk of getting sick or having their fan experience be one of freezing the whole game. The world has evolved many people don't view entertainment as being in those conditions for hours on end. If they did it should be impossible to get tickets to the Ravens or Colts or Phins. There is a reason why the early season games are far more expensive regularly. It is an entertainment business first and foremost and the NFL for years has been looking for the Bills to expand their revenue streams. If that comes at the expense of not being out doors and not being able to jump drunkenly through tables on fire during a tailgate while allowing a wider audience to come more regularly it won't even be a question of what direction they pick. The Bills are an Alamo of sorts in terms of the sport and that isn't a good thing if you care about their long term viability in the league.

Ah my bad but yea add another 5-6 hours at least with the UK not including customs and the other stuff. I just don't see any advantage to any player going abroad like that.

Agreed. A flight to London from NYC is 5-6 hrs. By comparison you can reach any city in the US from NYC in less then 4 hrs direct. If your a free agent small markets like Buffalo aren't too bad because you are still close to live wherever you want and its a quick flight. Your effectively adding 5-6 hrs before you even hit the US just to get back home. That's going to be a huge determent before you even touch the tax structure, marketing, weird hours, lack of US exposure etc.. I think the NFL is playing a dangerous game right now. As is fans have unrest after the botched Charger move which looks worse by the minute and the Rams leaving a market that wanted to host them where now St. Louis could care less about the NFL. Even with that people still flock to games, every team/fanbase has the belief this could be there year, and currently every game matters with the season. The owners true goal is 18 games with a 16 team playoff field. You do that and it will kill everything you have in my eyes outside of your diehard markets like GB BUF PIT CLE and your major markets like NYC DAL CHI and even so I still think they would all hurt. Yep. To me its a forgone conclusion JAX is gone the league is just waiting for the situation in JAX to deteriorate to the point its easy to justify either moving the team completely or getting what they at least want which is 4 games London 4 games Jax. I think if the league had their way Buffalo would be sharing 2 games with Toronto regardless of the disaster it was due to the market size.

St. Louis and Baltimore were actually considered ahead of them in 1993 and Jax was the least likely. BUT my guess would be behind the scenes it became known both of those markets were going to try and get teams to move or favorites so the NFL frontlined Jax to get them to the front of the line.

From what I have read from guys like Peter King from NBC the NFL has a huge appetite to see this happen given the market penetration. I do not disagree at all that the logistics are a nightmare, as a player I would refuse to play in London given the tax disadvantage alone, and the laundry list of other reasons are quite long including game times. BUT this is the NFL and they are trying to force a 17 game schedule despite the players universally not wanting it and injury issues like CTE saying that 16 games is a problem as is that needs to be address. I just think it setups a really easy situation for the league and Jags to say "hey the fans stopped coming the way we want whereas London really is buying into this" and then making the move. My greater fear is that regardless of a 17 game schedule which it sounds like the extra game is a neutral site international game, they force every franchise to align with a foreign city and mimic what the jags have been doing. If the money is great enough I could absolutely see that happening.

To me it is the possible death knell to the Jags in Jax. As is I could see a lot of Jags fans saying why bother when you take 1/4 of our home games away from us and if fan support dries up (which might be the goal) it is easier to justify moving to London for good.

Thought the same exact thing. What a surprise the two games which the opposing fans will sellout the stadium you don't move. That speaks volumes to their issues selling tickets.

The 2017 season should kind of be the forever end to making projections about how tough a schedule is. I remember going into that season looking at trips to Atlanta & KC thinking we were toast and also feeling the Raiders would beat us at home and possibly the Broncos. They won all of those games and lucked into a playoff berth over a much more credible team like the Chargers. The schedule itself also softened and by the end what looked scary turned into manageable. We really don't know what is in store given how much football can change. There is absolutely credence to the QB's they face in 2020 will be a stiffer test led by Mahomes & Wilson, but do you honestly fear Brady or Big Ben whose numbers are way worse on the road a year after surgery as much prior. Of course you respect what they have done, but truthfully Kyler and Lock scare me more then either of those guys because they are young talented and unknown. The division is the gateway to the playoffs though and I agree that's going to be your best route. To me it all comes down to going 6-2 at home. I don't care how you do it, but going 6-2 gives you a lot of leash on the road to go even 3-5 and still have a decent look at the post season. Buffalo will have to take down at least one of Seattle or Kansas City to do this plus split PIT and NE at home to do this but I have faith. This last season I was actually disappointed that the Bills couldn't pull off a win against NE PHI or BAL as they had previously won at least 1 or 2 of those games in the previous two seasons where they weren't the favorite. Those games are mammoth when the playoff race is tight. In general I see a 9-7 10-6 season on paper with the Bills taking a tight AFCE. That really should be the expectation nothing less, the talent is set at the big places and its time for Josh to keep his ascent.

The only reason I think Buffalo gets three primetime games out of the gate is due to all of the West Coast road trips. Putting the Bills against the 49ers Raiders Broncos or Cardinals all are pretty easy MNF games and it keeps Buffalo out of the 4:00 pm window a little more. I think Buffalo gets a SNF at home which will be against SEA or KC or LAR and a TNF game on the road against the Jets.

Why the heck do people like you even post honestly? Some people do care and find this interesting, it plays a role in who the Bills may play which I am hoping is a Bradyless NE week 1. But regardless your literally posting to be negative for zero reason then that when others do have some form of a care. Yea like @Buffalo03 said if you win the title you get the big night at home to open. Generally it is a major advantage to whoever hosts since they've been doing it. What really stinks is because labor day is so late opening night is going to be much farther back this year with the Bills not playing week 1 until at least Sunday Sept 13th.

They are at Baltimore not home unfortunately

With the Chiefs winning the Super Bowl they will host the first game of the 2020-21 season on Thursday Night Football. Last year was an oddity with it being the NFL's 100th season so the Patriots got booted to Sunday Night Football as the NFL prioritized the Packers against the Bears as the first game of the year. But with the NFL's brightest star and a SB title the Chiefs should be hosting the opener. With that said it will be interesting to see who as the Chiefs host a lot of big profile teams. I had thought that the Bills may finally host the Patriots week 1 at home as they are not in the Super Bowl, but with the Chiefs winning the title I could easily see the Patriots going to KC for the opener. The Texans are also a top contender given the playoff game they just had. I think much depends on where Brady ends up. It has been rumored that Brady may go to the Chargers or Raiders also who could easily become a top attraction for opening night. My guess is right now the Chiefs will face Texans, but it will be quite interesting who the Chiefs face as much of the Bills schedule faces KC.

I agree with your premise although I wouldn't say the league wants 32 Dallas or NE's. I do think the NFL wants all teams exploring and utilizing as many avenues as possible to increase revenue and in the case of Buffalo there is much left on the table right now. The Raiders moved to Vegas and created new lanes of money. Vegas won't be a top grossing franchise but they increased their lanes. Buffalo fans need to face the fact the lanes will have to increase at some point and at least the Pegula's seem smart enough to not force something dumb like PSL's and will consider renovations over a new stadium. But it will cost more regardless and the NFL will want more options for families because they produce more revenue then singular fans. So basically I pay 5k for a PSL but lets say it then guranatees 5 years of season tickets at $1500 for a pair with no price increase? Is that what your saying

PSL's have only had moderate success and by success I mean not been an utter disaster in Cleveland and Pittsburgh. But the cost was far more modest compared to the newer stadiums where your paying ridiculous amounts for the right to actually buy your seats. My idea if they want some sort of fan investment would be a ticket tax instead. Lets say your wanted to raise 75 million for the stadium over 15 years. Spread that cost over the 15 years and it works out to about 5 million needed per season. The Bills have around 71,000 seats-ish and over 8 regular season games it breaks down to about $9 extra per ticket. Again not great fans are paying more, but it is far more logical and would face less opposition as opposed to PSL which would never fly. If you include pre season games in this equation which season tickets holders have to pay for and the STH base is around 50k you could cut the tax a little lower to $7 per ticket. Again this is just an idea on better ways to generate revenue in no way am I endorsing this

I never had one guy that really was above the rest. But these three really burned me: Donte Whitner- Below average SAF who wouldn't stop running his mouth after he left buffalo about the area Paul Pouslozny- Incredibly overrated player who racked up tackles 8 yards downfield, never understood the hype and in general never liked his play Chris Hogan- Overrated and dropped the ball soo many times when it mattered. Of course went to NE and then never heard the end of him Ryan Lindell- Any big kick needed the guy missed. If it was a kick that meant nothing he could make it from 60 yards, but pressure came and he blew

That's where I am at. The Bills could win 100 straight SB's and it will never completely change that some players will view the area as cold snowy not NYC etc.. Whatever don't care, their doing a good job building the team as such regardless of this.