Inigo Montoya

Two young star QBs. Only one ticket to the Super Bowl. A little extra curricular activity from Josh, Mongo, and Dawkins to get some bad blood brewing. The next 10 years are going to be great. Go Bills!!!

I love those statistics. I think those stats tell the Josh Allen story better than any other you could come up with. It has been amazing to watch him getting better week to week since he was drafted.

I agree, The WRs definitely have helped Josh this year. No argument. I just think Josh has taken that next step and is playing QB better in every facet of the game and would still be playing at a high level without Diggs. I don't think his numbers would be as good without Diggs. I think we probably agree more than we disagree on this one. Just more a matter of degrees. 🍻

I just disagree that the WR corps is responsible for Allen playing so much better this year. Has the WR corps helped Allen? Of course it has, but that is not the first, second, or third reason reason he is playing at an elite level. I am going to list a series of improvements Josh has made and you tell me which ones Diggs, Beasley, Brown and Davis can take credit for; A. No more Hero Ball. B. Changing into the right play at the line of scrimmage. C. Adjusting protection at the line of scrimmage. D. Looking off safeties and pump faking DBs to get the WR open. E. Developing touch on his throws, not every throw is a 100 mph rope now. F. Amazing pocket awareness, shifting and moving in the pocket to keep plays alive G. Not running as soon as pressure arrives but keeping his eyes down field and throwing strikes. H. Dramatic improvement on throws when on the run to his left and right. I. Went from near worst completion percentage when blitzed to the best. Just my 2 cents. 🍻

I thought there was zero chance he would sit for this game because of the concussion. I always thought his turf toe was going to be the bigger issue. That's a tough injury for a QB. Hard to run, hard to throw if you can't push off on your foot.

What do you mean? This hire checks off the Fat Twin diversity box.

Three points to the posts above. I don't think the standard to say Josh is better than Mahomes is that Josh has to beat Mahomes and win a Super Bowl and League MVP. Football is still a team sport and if the Josh plays lights out this weekend but the Bills still lose because Singletary fumbles on the goal line or the DB's give up another last second Hail Mary, is that on Josh Allen? I can look at both Mahomes and Allen play, and evaluate their skill sets and how they bring it in crunch time and compare the two QBs abilities and make a judgement about who is better. I do agree that Josh needs to be consistent and continue to play at a high level next year and beyond. No argument from me on that one. I don't think the WR corps is the reason Josh is in the MVP conversation this year. Josh has become a better QB by busting his butt during the off season. Yes, Diggs is amazing and he has helped Josh, but show me all the circus catches from Diggs this year on bad balls that Josh threw. I can't think of many. Josh is reading defenses better, adjusting protection better, and making better throws all over the field. He is manipulating DBs with pump fakes and effectively looking them off coverage. He isn't playing Hero Ball anymore. His pocket awareness has improved and he is moving in the pocket and keeping plays alive and not running at the first sign of pressure. All of these things are a result of Josh Allen working on his craft. Diggs, Beasley, Brown, and Gabe are fantastic, but they are not the reason Josh is throwing the ball better.

I wish I could give this more than one emoji. I laughed out loud...

Using my advanced technology to track the football (my eyeballs) the ball boinked off the upright and came back out to the front of the goal posts into the end zone. Not sure where this new "technology" is coming from. My guess is it's from Justin Tucker's mother.

I have been there for all of them except the first. I was in the middle of the desert on the Iraqi border for the first Super Bowl loss and didn't even know who had won until 24 hours after it was all over. I assure you I have all the scars of a long suffering Bills' fan. We buried my father two years ago in his favorite Bills sweatshirt. My whole family has paid its dues. I'm not "already rationalizing" anything here. I want the Bills to win it all this year and I'll be disappointed if they don't, but that won't take away from the fact that this season has been amazing. It's been one of the only bright spots in a terrible year and I'm grateful to the entire Bills organization for that. I'm not going to consider the season a failure if they don't win it all. Year 3 of the Josh Allen Experiment has been wildly successful in my opinion. I know some here are living in a box that says "Only open when the Bills win the Super Bowl". I think that's a tough place to be. I don't live in that box. We're all different though, we all have our different perspectives as fans. I don't begrudge anyone theirs. Go Bills. 🍻

Couldn't agree more. I'm not anxious this week at all. It's not because I think the Bills are going to win, I think it's a coin toss. I feel confident that either way the Bills are going to make a good accounting of themselves. I don't think Josh is going to find the moment too big for him, and I think he is going to play fantastic. I think this is going to be a game that is decided by an odd bounce of the ball one way or another. Win or lose I'm happy with this season. I'm confident in saying, if not this year, next year. That's a hell of a place for me to be after 20 years of beatings as a Bills fan. It's pretty nice. Nice thread OP.

Really nice analysis, SCBills, I hadn’t looked at it that way before. I think you summed it up perfectly.

Hey MJS, You're right, I didn't even mention the arm talent that Josh has that Lamar doesn't. 😃 I would take issue with your last line though. Their position was that Lamar would be be as good of a passing QB as Josh if he had a #1 WR like Diggs on the roster. I don't think that is a position that they can possible defend. 🍻

Mike Greenberg; "The difference between Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson is Stefon Diggs" I'm not here to throw stones at Greeny, he's one of my favorite ESPN hosts. Dan Orvlovsky, Ryan Clark, and Rex Ryan were on the segment this morning too and all of them agreed with that sentiment. I think Rex will say anything to get some attention but I respect Orvlovsky's and Ryan Clark's football knowledge. Throwing those qualifiers out there, I think the take that Jackson would be throwing the ball like Allen this year if he had Diggs is crazy. Putting Diggs on any team in the NFL, no matter who the QB is, will instantly improve their passing game. I think that's a given. Diggs is unquestionably a top 3 WR in the NFL. I think that Josh's game has improved with Diggs on the team and having Diggs on the field creates a ripple effect where now the defense's #2 DB is on John Brown, and it's harder to focus on Beasley in the slot and he can kill you over the middle and move the sticks. That's 100% true, Diggs does all that for a team. But Diggs is not responsible for the incredible leap in accuracy that Josh Allen has made over the last three years. Show me the highlights of all the circus catches that Diggs has made this year because Allen threw a bad ball and Diggs bailed him out.... maybe one or two all season long? Diggs is almost impossible to cover and gets open on every play, but Josh is just as good at putting the ball on the money, on time, and where only Diggs can get it. Does Diggs help Allen adjust protection schemes presnap? Does Diggs help Allen change out of plays at the line of scrimmage to take advantage of what the defense is showing him? Did Diggs get Allen to stop playing Hero Ball and stop making crucial turnovers in key moments? Is Diggs responsible for Allen's improved pocket awareness and the way he just shifts around the pocket when the pass rush is on allowing him to make his amazing off schedule plays? Is Diggs the reason Allen spent all off season during a pandemic working with a private QB coach completely revamping his throwing motion? Admittedly, I don't know what Lamar Jackson does during his off season, but as a pretty locked in NFL fan I haven't heard about him doing anything similar to what Josh does during the off season. When Lamar and Josh came into the NFL they were both incredible athletes who could run the ball and were iffy in the pass game. I would even say that Lamar was a better passer than Josh year one. Since that time what has happened? Both Lamar and Josh are still fantastic running QBs, but now Josh has worked his tail off to become an elite passer. He hasn't just gotten better, he has become elite as a passer. The numbers bear that out. Allen had the highest pocket completion percentage in the entire NFL this season and he seems even more dangerous when he is out of the pocket throwing the ball. The simple truth of the matter is that Allen has evolved each year as a passer and Lamar has not. It's intellectually lazy to look at Josh's progression and say that Diggs is the only reason Josh is a better overall QB than Lamar, or that Lamar would throw the ball like Josh if only he had a true #1 WR. I like Greeney, RC, and Orvlovsly, but I think they got caught giving a "hot take" on the fly without really taking the time to think about it first. Josh Allen is a better passing QB than Lamar Jackson and its not because of Stefon Diggs.

Watson played some incredible football this season after losing Deandre Hopkins. I think he deserves to be in the conversation. They didn't win many games this season but that wasn't on Watson. He played lights out all year. Mahomes Rodgers Allen Watson

Check out Bills Reddit. That's not how it is. People wishing Lamar a speedy recovery with their donations. It's a classy move. Wouldn't expect anything else from our great fanbase.

Just made my donation.

Al Michaels said Allen's increase in completion percentage was because he has been checking it down this year. I don't even know where to start on that one....

If Ben falls on that fumble at the 2 yard line on the opening play instead of acting like it was a hand grenade, the game is completely different. He is the leader of that team and he sets the tone on the field. His desire to win that game, or lack of desire, was clear for all to see. That same attitude permeates through a locker room and when the Steelers finally had to play some tough games late in the year they imploded. I watched Josh Allen step into the middle of a rugby scrum, grab a lose ball, fight through the pile of bodies towards the first down marker, and throw a defensive back three yards in the process just get a 1st down a couple of Thanksgivings ago. He wasn't fighting for a loose ball on the goal line in a playoff game. He was just trying to get a 1st down in a regular season game. That's leadership. Ben is clearly done and that team will be done as long as he is the QB. I'm sure Tomlin sees that too. I'd be shocked if Ben is back next year.

LOL! I'm still not sure if that was a designed call or just Josh being Josh. I wouldn't mind seeing more of that play as long as it works the same way. 🙃

I think one of the big problems with the Bills' option running game is that Josh almost never gives the ball up. Not much of a mystery who to defend for a Ravens' LB if you know Josh keeps it almost every time. What needs to happen when we go with those run options is that Josh HAS to hand the ball off unless he has a huge opening to exploit. I'm sure this tendency has been scouted by the Ravens and they are likely to ignore the RB. That is something that we can exploit by giving the ball to Singletary or Williams.

I watched Aaron Rodgers and the Packers dominate the Titans through the air, and Henry do nothing on the ground, in Lambeau Field on a snowy, frigid night Week 16 this season. Davante Adams carved up the DBs that night on the slippery turf. Bad weather can cut both ways. I'm not worried about the offense, Josh is going to be Josh, Diggs is going to be Diggs. I think the entire game is going to come down to one simple factor, will the Bills' defense tackle well. If they are bouncing off people and not wrapping up, we are going to lose. If they tackle clean we are going to win.

Hey JGMcD2, I've heard that before but I'm not sure I buy it. I think that is what agents tell their clients because they get a percentage of the contract, so they want to maximize it for their own selfish reasons. One QB taking less isn't going to reset the QB market, especially if Josh lets it be known he took less deliberately. The biggest beneficiaries of Josh taking less will be the other guys in the Bills locker room. It will leave more money for their contracts. They know if he takes up a huge chunk of the yearly Cap then there is less to go around for the other players on the roster.

Maybe I'm naïve, but I'm hoping that Josh Allen is that rare individual who may take less than fair market value to keep a winning roster around him. What practical difference is there between having $300 million and 400 million in the bank at the end of your career? Even if something happens and he only gets one big contract, injury, etc.. he will still walk away from the game in his early 30's with a nine figure bank account. If the end result of maximizing your salary is spending your entire career on a good team instead of a great team, and making the playoffs a lot but never winning a Super Bowl, is that a good trade? I won't begrudge Josh for maximizing his deal when the time comes, but he seems like someone who will look at the big picture and not just the dollar signs. We should know in about a year.

There did seem to be a big jump in the offense's performance once Daboll moved off the sidelines and into the coaches boxes last year. If Daboll becomes a head coach it will be back down to the sidelines again. That could impact his ability to execute an offense if he is going to be the play caller. It will definitely be an adjustment for him. He seems to call a better game with that bird'e eye view of the field and defense.