Gray Beard

So I'm watching the pre-game nonsense. The picture quality fades in and out, probably because my internet router isn't the best. The sound and video seem to be out of synch. I will be multi-tasking Surfing the internet on another computer, playing with the dog, eating, reading the paper, watching Sunday morning news shows... Not a good football game experience.

Whaley and Ryan are NOT going to say, "Now that we have to start EJ, we sure wish we had kept Cassel." I don't feel that they think that, I'm just sayin'...

Easley is on the bubble for me. This week he will likely get an opportunity to catch a few passes since most of the other receivers are injured. Will he be up for the challenge? I've never understood the use of a roster spot for a guy whose only job is to be a ST gunner. Tasker was a WR who was also a ST specialist. When he got the chance to get into the game as a WR, he caught some passes and moved the chains. This is your chance Easley.

the lightning bolt sticking out of the buffalo's/bison's head looks pretty stupid. and what happened to the time-honored tradition of showing the bison's junk?

I wonder if Harvin is thinking that this team is not as good as he once thought, so he is limiting the likelihood of injury since this team is imploding with injuries, people grumbling about the defensive scheme, quarterback questions, etc. Maybe it's too soon for so much doubt, but when playing hurt the uncertainty could get amplified.

Good idea. I never understood why they got rid of him. Carpenter is nursing an injury, so limit him to field goals and extra points. Don't abuse him with kickoffs. And that whole Cundiff thing seemed like some sort of ill conceived mind game.

I like this topic... A few years ago, Chan was the OC (more or less) and the offense worked pretty well with a lot of screens and sweeps. Other than fumbles and interceptions (cough cough, Fitz) most people seemed happy. At the same time Wannstedt was the DC, and everyone was mad because of the vanilla, no blitz schemes. Then Marrone and/or Hackett were the OC, and everyone was mad because of the vanilla and predictable play calling. At the same time, Pettine and then Schwartz were DCs, and everyone liked it because they coached for aggressive plays. Then along came Rex and Roman. Everybody was excited because they were highly regarded with defensive and offensive schemes, respectively. Unfortunately, their schemes have turned out to be predictable, not very innovative, and downright confusing for the players. It seems as though the Bills can't seem to get quality coaching on both O and D at the same time. And as fans, we see it and don't understand how it can keep happening. And don't give me garbage about "it would all be fixed with a franchise QB." Brady, Manning, Rogers , etc. would all fail with the horrible coaching that the BIlls have had for the past 15+ years.

That comment is just brutal.. I'm still laughing.

Who was the guy wearing #8 on the sidelines during the Bengals game? He looked like he could have been some sort of emergency QB.

This Yahoo nonsense ticks me off. I have a laptop computer and a large screen TV. My TV does not have any way to get Yahoo unless I do some sort of Rube Goldberg setup to get HDMI out of my computer. I really don't want to do that. It would be so much better if they would show it on regular TV like they did with the previous London game. And I checked my cable guide, and I verified that the Syracuse channels are not showing it on Sunday morning.

This is the part that I think is interesting. Mario has been pretty quiet since coming to Buffalo. The fact that he said some things out of frustration after the Bengals game is significant. Mario has been around a while, and he has a lot of experience. If he thinks the current defensive schemes really aren't as clever as Rex seems to think they are, I would take that seriously. Perhaps Mario is unwilling to adapt, or perhaps Rex is on the cutting edge of defensive schemes and other people are having trouble keeping up. Whatever the situation, I hope Rex, Mario, and the rest of the defense get on the same page quickly.

I literally laughed out loud at this. My wife and dog are looking at me funny.

Corey Graham came to play. Unless somebody can point out where and when he blew his assignment, I thought he was one of the best players out there today. Of course it speaks volumes when a DB is making so many of the tackles.

i consistently saw Mario (and Lawson to a lesser extent) get pushed several yards behind the QB. No bullrush. No spin moves. Just let them move you behind the QB without a fuss. It was weird.

I think it is time to change your screen name. It worked for Chan, now let's see if your magic can work for Rex.

I agree with the OP except for a slight disagreement with your prognostication. No way this team beats the Jets. Not twice, not even once. I will state here and now that I never was a fan of Rex being hired. I also doubt that TT would have made a significant difference today over EJ. I was never a big fan of Sammy Watkins. He's good, but not great. People said that he "plays bigger than he is" which may have been true in college, but in the NFL, size and speed take on different meanings.

silly thread title. i guess you could ask that is some sort of rhetorical or hypothetical or sarcastic sense. yes, coaching matters, and it is a huge reason why the Bills are playing so badly. How can the defense be among the leaders in sacks one year, to having almost no sacks the next? How can the offense not exploit seam routes, rubs and quick throws? How can the defense have no answer to these tactics? I think there has been a paradigm shift that favors the quick passing game, possibly due to rule changes to protect against late hits, hi-low blocks, etc., along with the way penalties are being enforced, and this coaching staff hasn't caught on.

you forgot offensive line. so i voted other.

^this And with a little more game time without Marrone breathing down his neck, EJ might have some room to improve. I think he is a perfectly adequate back-up. For now.

EJ's first half this week was better than TT's for the past few weeks. Maybe the new strategy should be EJ plays the first half, TT plays the second half.

Since I am ALWAYS wrong whenever I try to predict anything... Bills - 16 Bungles - 27 I will blame it on the O-line when the Bills offense is unable to get anything going.

I hope Bill gets well soon. He seems like a great guy. I consider his posts to be among the best. I start looking for his post as soon as each game is over. A Bills game isn't complete without his Thoughts.

Yes, yes, and yes

Rex has a personality that he shows the fans and the media. Is this the same personality that he shows the players? Are the players mirroring Rex's personality, or do we just think they are?