Richard Noggin

This. He began last season in the booth, then came down to help the rookie. At least, that's my memory of it, too. Maybe fearlessness includes not holding the QB's hand on the sideline on game day?

I've read only a few people here eager to see what Ryan Bates can offer in a backup/swing/platoon role. That surprises me after Beane's August move to grab him in a trade (must have liked him during the draft process), and his (admittedly limited) performance against the Titans to close out that game in relief. Here's some literature about the acquisition and how Bates was viewed as a promising under-the-radar lineman coming out of Penn State with position flex and above average athleticism: https://wgr550.radio.com/articles/news/bills-acquire-offensive-lineman-ryan-bates-trade-eagles#:~:targetText=The Buffalo Bills made a,for defensive end Eli Harold.&targetText=Back in May%2C Daniel Jeremiah,Undrafted All-Star Team.” Rookie is likely to get some snaps this Sunday. I'm interested in how he holds up.

Matt Milano's dad tonight, sitting across from the LB, after I mentioned the rookie QB getting his first start: "Gotta pressure the hell out of him!" That seems to be the consensus gameplan amongst fans.

I go to 2-4 games each season, with VERY different groups. My 67-year old mother, a rabid, lifelong fan, will only go early in the season when the weather is warm. My youthful 28-year old friends, who attend in enthusiastic waves of 15-20 degenerates, attend more as the weather declines and the tickets get more affordable. My own best friends, just past 40 now, tend to go in December almost exclusively. In fact a group of 30-something CNYers, who like but don't desperately LOVE the Bills, make the annual drive in each December for a taste of the Bills fan spectacle. They're huge supporters of crazy Buffalo fans more so than the team itself. And what better setting for Bills fans to show their devotion than late-season games in bad weather with far-fetched playoff implications? Much of this of course is informed by decades of mid-season collapses and near-freezing rain games against other AFC mediocrities like the Jags, Dolphins, Browns, Bengals, etc. The fans have competed more competently than the team many years. A dome changes so much about the region's NFL culture. Whether that's a good or a bad thing can be debated by others. I just know that Bills fans getting after it outdoors in late November and December despite hostile weather and poor on-field results seems to transcend the numbing corporate/entertainment reality of the modern NFL. It's a throwback to earlier times (and I'm not one for nostalgia).

He appeared to be coming on strong (you know, flashing on tape) in the game or two before his injury, for sure. Your arguable claim might be a bit overstated, however... Either way, his loss has been felt. True 1-technique guy who was coming on in a rotational role...and now the team is increasingly trying their 3-techs there to plug the leak that's been exposed. Bills are most definitely NOT a physically dominating front-7 on defense. They rely on the secondary to set the tone, and slow down/limit opposing offenses just enough to help them get home. Hope it works well moving forward.

Screamed myself hoarse while the Bills were on defense, despite the quiet, disinterested Canadian fans seated around me. (No offense to Canadians in general.)

Unbelievably egregious missed call both on the field, and then again on the challenge. Truly baffling.

That's what she said.

No one mentioning his bicep-flex (and point to his own bicep) during the Tre White dust-up? One of the douchier things I've seen on a field.

You said "high" hehe

My own strain of BBFS was exclusively passed down along the maternal line. Toss in a Sicilian-Catholic gift for fatalism and martyrdom, and you've got some serious Sunday Suffering.

Wait...am I allowed to NOT "take" the results if I don't like them?

Smart: thick book like that can protect against impact. 'bout all it's good for AM I RIGHT!?

Projection is a thing.

Yeah but his last sentence is funny.

Who. The. Eff. Cares. Superbowl halftime shows are for people who lack...everything.

One mustn't deny the potential for the Bills offense to be shut down by New England. Allen still has some stinkers in him at this stage of his career, and the 2019 Patriots defense might be Belichick's best overall since his Giants days. I expect at least a quarter or two in which the Bills cannot move the ball or get out of their own way. Can they adjust to what the Pats are doing? Can the defense keep the Pats close enough while the offense struggles? Difficult to predict the Bills offense performing better against the Patriots than they have against three inferior opponents (with respect to points, primarily). Would be delighted to be proven very wrong.

I sure do hope Daboll has been sandbagging and trying not to put too much on film...because his playcalling definitely gets dumb with 3rd quarter leads.

Not sure if Allen is ready to go spread against Belichick, which means diagnosing the various pressure packages and quickly finding his hots. I expect New England to send delayed blitzes and some zone blitzes, and to often mix in no-blitzes where the d-linemen simply hold their lanes and read the QB. They want Allen holding the ball and getting nervous; trying to read downfield traffic as the D closes in. Gilmore will follow around Smoke Brown, while their LBs and safeties will try to hammer Beasley at every opportunity. We've seen it before. Can the Bills break out of that design? Can they make the Patriots back off?

Probably, but I genuinely felt good about that game going in. We'd already bottomed out, and had shown signs of steadying the ship. And we caught Minnesota dealing with the sudden Everson Griffen situation. It just seemed like an upset in the making. Not sure the Bengals are similarly poised to catch the Bills off guard this week. But then again, Dalton kind of owns us.

Since the first trade this offseason, I've been thinking (and saying to friends) that AB no longer has the will to play professional football. He's been publicly BEGGING to be released or suspended or otherwise shelved. Felt at first like a diva NFL vet circumventing training camp. Feels now more like a misogynistic thirty-something millionaire head case finally coming unglued.

This is the narrative that upsets my already tenuous equilibrium: a privileged, cheating, protected athlete receiving additional, informal, untraceable protections beyond the scope of league-wide rules. The Tuck Rule was retroactively created to justify Brady's horribly botched AFC Championship fumble ruling. The silly below-the-knee restriction for QB protection was enacted following Brady's only major injury. He is allowed to turf the ball--and therefore avoid negative outcomes/real-world consequences--without penalty any time the called play is effectively disrupted by the defense. No other professional, proficient, otherwise precise NFL QB enjoys such freedoms, to suddenly be bad enough at throwing a football that it bounces roughly five yards from the feet of a nearby receiver when the pass rushers are closing in. One needs not venture beyond the football field to find the ammunition necessary for a proper, justified Brady-bashing. He is Dan Marino x10.

So wait...I skipped a bunch of pages. Where/how/what/wait a minute/I mean I just don't get it! I think I genuinely want to learn from you, like intern for you in a very serious way. Except that you're coming off as a completely humorless shell of an internet conceit. Either way, I have much to learn from you. Don't hold back. (How have I never seen you around before? Baffling.)

Convenient. When your owner, coach, QB, and various players over the years are proven cheats or criminals: claim indifference.

The operative question becomes: does this unusual feeling meet with doubts and cynicism at its outer reaches? For me? No. I'm fine enjoying the ride and analyzing what I see each week WITHOUT taking that toxic ride to self-preservation town. I was in 7th-10th grades for the Bills Superbowl debacles, and we were a devout family. But I've experienced enough in my 41 years (I know fans like you, Shaw, have seen much more) to know that none of this matters if it ain't fun. And I'm having fun this year. Who's with me?