CincyBillsFan

It's just that the Pats bring out so much frustration in this fan base. What if instead of NE we lost on the road in the exact same way to SF, GB or NO today? I bet we would feel a whole lot different. This year it's about winning that first playoff game in over 20 years. Next year it will about burying the Pats and winning the division.

That's fair. I'm optimistic by nature and I've seen enough to be confident that he is the guy. But sure, we won't know for another 2 - 3 years.

That's exactly what some of these folks seem to be saying. It's like a small fraction of the Bills fan base has the football equivalent of ADD and wants a new QB every couple of seasons. They have NO patience and their expectations are whacked out. Allen has scored 29 TD's to 13 TO's. This is very solid and next year we should expect something in the neighborhood of 40 TD's & 10 TO's. We are 3 - 2 against the "good" defenses in the last 5 games. Last I looked that's a winning record. What I'm happy about is that overall Allen has played well against these top D's. That first NE game was a potential harbinger of doom for Allen. What if that's how almost every one of his games against top flight defenses looked? But it wasn't. Allen has improved and as long as he keeps improving he is the guy.

Allen & the Bills O have played 5 top 10 defenses in a row. Three of these D's are top 5. Three of the 5 games were on the road. And while Allen hasn't lit things up he has played very solidly. He's scored 9 TD's and had only 3 TO's. The Bills record after these 5 games is 3 - 2. Allen has shown significant improvement this season. With more help on the O and continued improvement next year he will IMO be a top 5 - 10 QB in the NFL.

And the answer to your question is a resounding NO. A weaker coaching staff would have given in to the fans desires and put more into the game plan today. But this is exactly what you would expect from the Bills if they truly believe in their process. Virgil's first few points clearly showed that the Bills were not going to show their cards in this game and they didn't. The objective of this coaching staff is to do everything in their power to win that first playoff game. And today that's exactly what they did. Yes it's frustrating but THIS YEAR it's about that playoff game in 2 weeks. NEXT YEAR, it will be all about knocking the pats off their thrown.

I might expect Drew Brees or Payton Manning to hit his 4th receiver on that type of play under those circumstances but we have to have realistic expectations of our 2nd year project QB.

I give him a B+/A-. His 2 deep throws may have put the deep ball accuracy problem to rest and his runs, including another amazing 4th down QB sneak that had no business being converted, showed that this guy is real close to being a dominating QB. He drove us into position to send the game to OT and just couldn't get the ball into the end zone. Of course he was playing one of the top 3 D's in the NFL. It's not putting down the current players to say we need 3 more pieces to push this offense up to the top level: a RT; another RB and a big/physical WR. With a WR loaded draft and about $90,000,000 in CAP money we should be able to get all 3 with enough money left over to lock up the folks we need to lock up.

Knox wasn't wide open, particularly on the pass near the end of the game. Had Allen played like he did today back in the first game the Bills would have beaten the Pats by 2 scores. How you can be all over 2BD throwing shade on Allen is beyond me.

I actually agree with you on this. Given that the game didn't mean anything to us that was the place to take a real gamble. It will be interesting to see how the Bills handle the Jets next week. The most important things are to stay healthy and not give anything away. But it would be nice to get to 11 wins.

Here's my take on today's game: Relax, we lost the equivalent of an exhibition game. There, I said it. This was an exhibition game for the Bills no matter how much we fans wanted them to beat Brady and Pats. So stop yelling at Daboll & the play calling and the D's lackluster play. Look at how the Bills played from another perspective: * The Bills are not going to show their playoff opponents their latest blocking schemes for the zero coverage blitzes. * The Bills are not going to show their opponents their latest blocking schemes for their running game. * The Bills are going to run on 1st down a whole lot because that's NOT what they're going to do in 2 weeks in the playoff game. * The D is not going to show their playoff opponents all their latest coverage schemes & blitz packages. * What we got today was a vanilla offense & defense - just like you get in the last exhibition game. It would have been coaching malpractice for McD & company to expose their current thinking in a meaningless game when we are in a playoff game in 2 weeks. The fact is that in GAMES THAT MATTERED against Baltimore & Pittsburgh the defense played their hearts out. Are you surprised that tonight, while playing a vanilla scheme, they were off their game? I'm not. After the last two games this D was due for a let down. All in all I'm happy with how the Bills played. They almost stole the game from a NE team that desperately needed to win. In the 4 games against top competition the Bills are 2 - 2 and could have won every one of those games. This team is close, very close. As for Allen's detractors, he played well tonight with a limited game plan and limited play makers. If you can't see it then you don't know how to watch football. And why is no one talking about the fact that Allen hit on TWO perfectly thrown long passes? If this is the new norm, then folks better watch out next year after we get done adding a few more pieces to the O.

I will be interested in what the "experts" on "22" say about that to. IMO that was a tough pass to complete. Folks claiming Knox was wide open don't understand how defenses stake out coverage's in the end zone.

I call BS on this. The O had a great TD drive right before half to swing momentum in the Bills favor. Then midway through the 3rd quarter the O hits a huge play that puts them up 17 - 13. The D's struggles today were entirely on the defense. Bad tackling and a lack of energy right from get go were the problems.

I agree. After forcing the fumble on the 1st drive our D gave up a 7:30, 75 yard TD drive. The offense then moved the ball for 2 first downs and stalled at midfield. The Bills then punted the ball to the Pats 1 yard line. The Pats the went on an 8:30, 80 yard FG drive. So after forcing the fumble and well before they should have been tired, the D gave up 2 drives that chewed up 16 minutes of the game and scored 10 points. Our D started off playing poorly and I would submit that the D's poor performance contributed to the Offenses 1st half struggles as they were unable to get into a rhythm with the D unable to get NE off the field.

The overwhelming percent of fans do appreciate him LanderPoke. But I get how frustrating it is to read some of these DUMB comments about Allen here. We're lucky that we finally have our franchise QB. Allen is someone you can build an offense around. That a tiny minority of numbskulls don't see this is on them.

What a load of rat feces. It's obvious that this offense is a year away from being good. Allen is clearly our franchise QB and once we surround him with above average weapons this will be a productive offense. As for winning with Allen at QB? Are you kidding me. It takes a special type of ignorance to say that when the Bills are having their best season in 20 years and have already locked up a playoff spot. We ARE winning with Allen at QB. That's difficult to do when you can't get a team off he field and they have close to 40 minutes of TOP.

Well, there is something to be said about overthrowing your WR on those deep passes.

And the offense missed a FG and turned over the ball on downs at the NE 4 yard line. The Bills could have easily scored 20 points in that game at a time when the Bill's O wasn't playing as well as it is now and the Pats D was playing better. This IS a winnable game for the Bills. The reason we're all so nervous is that we can't know the mentality of each team going in. Without doubt this is a much bigger game for NE then it is for Buffalo as they desperately need that 1st round bye and the Bills have basically locked up their playoff position. So how does it go? I haven't a clue. I could see a lethargic Bills team getting hammered by the Pats. I can also see a relaxed Bills team laying the wood to NE.

My point was that Wilson runs mostly as a second option on a play and Allen is starting to follow this pattern. That is the "style" I was referring to. In contrast Jackson runs mostly by design. The Ravens blocking schemes and pass routes are set up to enable Jackson to run if that's what he chooses to do. Wilson and Allen mostly run when their pass protection breaks down or the D-line is undisciplined in their pass rush and leaves wide open run lanes.

But that's not the same thing as what you're saying. I'm one of those convinced that Jackson would not do as well as Allen in the Buffalo offensive system with the Bills current group of players. To be fair it's an almost impossible question to answer because the Ravens are running such a unique offense. But when you look at Jackson's passing game, which is primarily short & intermediate throws to his TE's in the middle of the field with an occasional over the top throw, you see the classic passing success you get against teams geared up to stop a dangerous running game. When Jackson throws to the sideline his accuracy drops significantly. Jackson's reads are complex but do not focus solely on the passing options. He reads the run first to decide whether he keeps the ball or hands it off to the RB. If neither is open he progresses to making a pass read which usually involves a RB or TE on a shallow cross across the middle. He is not often asked to read the entire field in the Ravens passing attack. In most conventional spread offenses he would be asked to read the field and get the ball to the open spot.

What about Russel Wilson? He plays in a completely different offense then Jackson does. If anything Wilson's use of the run, even as a young player, is far closer to Allen's style then Jackson's. Do you actually watch the Ravens play offense? It is a truly unique platform in what they ask their QB to do. Oh and for the record, Wilson is a prime example of how a smart QB runs. Allen needs to learn from what Wilson does.

I don't care how smart you think Jackson is at running with the football if he keeps running iti as much as he does he will take big hits. Just ask Micheal Vick. This is the NFL.

Are you really sure Jackson will be a perennial top 10 guy? The proof will be next year when defenses have had a chance to catch up with him. Cam Newton had a Jackson like year when Carolina went 15 - 1 and lost the Super Bowl. But defenses caught up and while Newton remained a very good QB he didn't dominate the league again. That may be Jackson's future. We just don't know. As for Allen being a franchise guy? We don't know yet but I like the signs so far. It will take 4 - 5 years before we know for sure. But right now I'm cautiously optimistic that Allen is the guy.

Be a pocket passer that throws effectively to the outside. Jackson's success at throwing the ball when he drops back into the pocket is a direct result of the Ravens rushing game plan that makes the play action pass deadly. It's a brilliant design and works great for Jackson & the Ravens talent base. But the Ravens offense is very different then Buffalo's.

The question is more nuanced then you make it out to be. Unless I was getting the Ravens O-line, their TE's and RB and of course Greg Roman to design & call plays there is no way in hell I'm trading Allen for Jackson. And I'm not being a homer in saying that nor am I questioning that Jackson is an MVP worthy player this season. IMO if you put Jackson in the Bills offense and asked him to do what we ask Allen to do Jackson would NOT do it as well.

And that's why this coaching staff is very good. Knowing your limitations is probably more important then knowing your strengths!