technobot

I understand the desire to draft and develop a guy (or guys) they like, and have him on the cheap for 4-5 years. Sounds reasonable to me. However, I have to agree with the people saying go for it. Unless we know for sure he is a locker room problem (and I don't see evidence he is) then this is an opportunity to add an elite player to the offense which can only help Allen. Having Diggs as the #1 also makes Brown and Beasley better. I see all the buzz that the draft is loaded with WR talent and I'll defer to the experts. But as stated by others, the draft is still a crapshoot. The guy we get in the first round? We *HOPE* he becomes a Stefon Diggs. To add a talent like this, who has several years left on a reasonable contract (and who will be an absolute bargain this year)... I don't think you can pass it up unless it becomes a bidding war. It would also prevent New England from landing him. I do believe this has leaked to get the interest started early, like intentionally listing a house under its value. For all our sake it's fortunate I'm not the GM of the Bills but assuming he's not a headcase/has an undisclosed injury, I'd offer a 1st round plus. Crazy as it sounds, but my logic is stated above: we'd be good and extremely lucky if whomever we picked in the first becomes as good or better than Diggs. In a dream world where this happens, I still hope they get that big body, redzone nightmare project later in the draft.

Allen will get all the love if he can improve his deep ball accuracy. The kid is a playmaker missing a big part of the game to make him a complete weapon. I think we all agree he's never going to be Mr Hyper Accurate; I don't think he needs to. Between his arm, hitting the deep ball, and his running, his ceiling is high indeed. Getting him a "catch anything in his vicinity" type would help immensely (sorry for the Captain Obvious observation since that type of receiver helps any quarterback) but Allen moreso. It was a little shocking watching him miss so many earlier in the year; it's frustrating as well since many of those throws are probably touchdowns. There's no guarantees but if Jordan Palmer is right (let's face it his job is to say everything is going to be AWESOME), then Allen makes a quantum leap this year and those misses/near misses become touchdowns or at least easy red zone opportunities. He could finish in the 30+ TD passes range, along with whatever he runs for; this puts him in Lamar Jackson territory. If that happens (big if) it will be amusing to watch the analysts trip over themselves to correct their takes. Or in the case of Football Outsiders: to come up with increasingly outrageous reasons why it's all a mirage and Josh is still a scrub.

Some guys just have *it* in big moments. Oliver had a great game against Dallas on (American) Thanksgiving in front of a national audience, and he does the same thing here on the first Sunday night game in 12 years. Tre White is another star who seems to have a cheat mode switch in hype games. It's way early and it might be variance but (hopefully) this bodes well for the future.

I was telling the wife that I'm sour but at least it's because my expectations are higher. Hanging in there against a premier team isn't enough, I need the W. I feel they're on the right track.

It's interesting to see what other fans, specifically Carolina fans, might think about our head coach/GM combo: https://www.carolinahuddle.com/boards/topic/160812-sean-mcdermott-brandon-beane/

Sorry, it's a terrible loss and I hope you're doing OK.

The Athletic: 10. Buffalo Bills (9-3; Last week: 10) If most of the country wasn’t paying attention to the Bills’ playoff potential, it certainly is now. That’s what beating the Cowboys on Thanksgiving will do. The Bills have a tough stretch coming up (Ravens, Steelers and Patriots in the next three weeks) as they try to catch New England in the AFC East, but the fact we’re even talking about that as a possibility is huge for Buffalo.

The greatest coach, let alone defensive coach, in NFL history couldn't wait to offer Gilmore a giant contract. What happened since comes as no surprise.

Nice post, OP. We've seen good defense during the stretch of mediocrity, and while it's still early, I don't think we've seen a defense like this. The Pats game really stood out to me. We've seen the movie a million times before in years past, the defense plays heroically for the most part all game and by the last third of the fourth quarter, the big runs by the opponent start. It's obvious our defense is gassed and they can't keep up anymore. It didn't happen this year. The defense shut down the Pats again, got the ball back for the offense, and we just couldn't close the deal. But the defense came through and stayed strong until the end. Watching the end of yesterday's game, it felt like there were a couple blips leading to big plays and a touchdown, but the defense was so stout all game. There was no surprise when the D shut the door on TEN yet again. Gunner made a good point about turnovers; we haven't even had a bunch. We're just playing strong defense throughout the game, and adjusting where necessary. Barring another nightmare Bills collapse, we're witnessing something new (a truly elite/dominant defense) and it can actually get better (we start getting more turnovers). This kind of recipe (shutdown defense with a ball control offense and reliable special teams) is still very tightrope, with little room for error. Some years, you get none of the breaks and finish 7-9/6-10 despite having a historical defense. But other years, the schedule/sequence of league injuries COMPLETELY goes your way, and out of nowhere a team goes 13-3. This could be that year for them. Not saying it will happen but heading into the bye, I'm loving my Bills.

Thanks for the synopsis. This regime knows how to identify, draft and develop defense. It's a shame about Horrible Harry, it looks like he was a breakout candidate this year. I hope he comes back stronger than ever next year. What's exciting is that this defense should be even better next year... take that, NFL! We will have a (hopefully) healthy H Phillips, E Oliver Year Two and Edmunds becoming elite. No guarantees but the future seems bright(er).

This to me will be the true marker of whether this is a new era or same old Bills. We've seen quick starts before only to be let down as the Bills lose to the Bengals or some other mediocre/trash team. They should beat the Dolphins twice and the Jets again for that matter, but until it happens I'm still a little nervous. To be a great team they need to be able to consistently beat good teams, but to be a good team they need to take care of business in the games "they should win". Still a far way from being able to say "they've arrived" but a sweep/near sweep of the trash would be a great start.

Dang... usually will have this edited but you caught me. I still edited it.

Agree with the "will miss Kelso" sentiment, I liked him and loved hearing stories about the glory days. His frothing at the mouth last year, exhorting the Bills to clear the benches was legendary. But I would also like an offensive player's take; will be interesting to hear Wood's (possibly) critique/analyze our current line and QB's progression. Wood is a "modern" player and will (hopefully) share some insight about the current regime considering he was at ground zero for "PROCESS: YEAR ONE". And Beane/McDermott obviously liked him enough to give him an extension almost immediately, bizarre non-retirement retirement press conference notwithstanding.

Rest well, Pancho. My thoughts go out to your family. You went too soon.

I'm optimistic, but until they actually do it, no need to crown their ass (Dennis Green). Sports analysis, like most internet commentary (whatever the topic) is a lemming stampede. "This post on Facebook has 1000 thumbs up, I should up it too!" If the Bills are ever great again (please God, make this happen) I have no doubt the talking heads will be tripping over each other to talk about how good the Bills are and how they were the ones to call it first (mostly liars).

I'll admit I wasn't enamoured with the pick at the time but I've learned to trust this FO and if they were sold on him, great. It was a future looking move considering both Shady and Gore are most certainly gone next year, so if they really think Singletary can become a stud I'll really love this move next year. Kudos for being proactive instead of scrambling next year.

Nice post, OP, and I agree (unscientifically) with most if not all your assessments. I thought our #2 defensive ranking was overblown. I saw the defense frequently being gashed up the middle on runs. I saw especially competent offenses (Patriots) have their way with us. We showed well in the second game but eventually, like always, they wore us down and ran away with it. However I feel the defense is close; would love to see a monster 3-tech DL or another stud edge rusher, although I believe the interior lineman is the greater need. This isn't to say the defense was trash; it's difficult to diagnose because the offense was incompetent for the first half of the season, blips (@Vikings) notwithstanding. I think the defense is better by default because the offense (hopefully) is much better, same with special teams as you pointed out. Being better than the 2018 Bills' Offensive Line/Special Teams is a low bar to hurdle, I will jump the gun here and say "mission accomplished". The Peterman thing will always be a head scratcher and a source of concern regarding McDermott, however I've come to accept that he must the world's greatest teammate and is a positive presence in the QB room. I'm not being sarcastic when I say this, he had other teams at least look at him (Raiders still have him, and Lions took a flyer). It says alot about AJ McCarron; he must not have been helpful to the other QBs at all, I think Beane had a quote (paraphrasing) "he was not who we expected". The homer optimism I have every year genuinely feels different this year. With what I believe are two fairly successful drafts under the regime's belt, I'm really looking forward to part 3.

I did once way back in 2005, after the Bills got torched by the Chargers. It started well, I was calling out the Bills for being soft, carrying over from the previous year (getting rolled by Pittsburgh in Buffalo on the final game of the season in a game Buffalo needed and Pittsburgh didn't). This got me worked up, frothing at the mouth angry. I then called out Nate Clements for wanting big money as a UFA in the offseason. He wanted premium shutdown corner money after he got lit up by Eric Parker? HOW DARE HE??? They cut me off at this point.

On top of keeping the Bills in Buffalo, I'm grateful that we have an owner who will (gladly) spend on his team/toy. Also, if he and Kim find the right people (which I think they have) he's willing to get out of the way.

I don't think talk of 11 or even 12 wins is crazy. Likely? Probably not, but they're building themselves in the Carolina mold with a twist. What I mean is they want to play tight defense with complementary special teams and a synergistic offense (control the clock). If alot of things break for them, they could win 12 or 13 games. They could also lose the same amount, even with better play than last year and a better roster, but just be snake-bitten. 9-10 wins sound reasonable with some improvement from the core, upgrades from the new additions in FA and draft, and some (lots of) luck. I'm excited to watch because there's hope although it could go awry in a hurry. If their key pieces, specifically Allen and Edmunds, take a big step, then it could be the beginning of a dominant team. Lots of ifs, but looking forward to the draft and season!

Definitely up there in my Pantheon of Drought Bills. The near universal feedback of him being a great teammate has to be true, right? Easy guy to cheer for no matter how frustrating it was to watch him at times. Was sad to see him go because at the time I think all he wanted was a chance to be the starter. If he lost the job in TC, he just doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would sulk or poison the locker room/try to sabotage the starting QB. In retrospect, I pin much of his failings on having not much to work with outside of Stevie Johnson/Fred Jackson. Do I think he's even in the second tier for starters? Probably not, but it does make you wonder how he would have fared on a good team with a decent O-line, a stout defense, and quality receivers. But agree with the sentiment he's probably best suited as a backup, and the results are expected if you start a typical backup for most of the year.

Late-comer to NFL fanaticism over here. I will blame my father, who is an immigrant. We would watch hockey together, and in late public school I started watching some football with him. When asked who his favourite player was, he answered "Jim Kelly". I would ask a ton of questions because the game was totally confusing to me. He would get annoyed, and it turned out it was because he didn't understand the game either! My best friend in high school broke the game and rules down for me. I've always supported the local heroes, and although Canadian, Buffalo was as close as Toronto and thus became "my team". I will say this... getting to the Bills "late" (i.e. mid 80's) I watched them become good, then dominant. As a neophyte sports fan, I thought they would be good forever, and they would obviously end the Super Bowl curse sooner rather than later. Nothing prepared me for the drought...

Exemplary work ethic, and he's already a leader. Great attitude; he's very positive and has swagger without being a cocky prick. There's no fear of any idiocy from him during the offseason, he's too busy working on his game and building chemistry with his teammates. For some reason he strikes me as the type that is furious with all the "Josh Allen is trash and will never amount to anything with his atrocious, unfixable accuracy issues". Like smashing objects every night angry, we just never hear about it. Where Mayfield wears it like a shirt, Allen doesn't but I really believe it's there and it burns. Not that this kid needs any extra motivation, he's clearly a self-starter. None of this guarantees anything, but he's easy to root for even if he wasn't the QB of my favourite team. Get it done starting this year, Josh, you've got some talent around you now.

I'm cautiously optimistic, but I agree things seem different. I'm thrilled with how free agency started for the Bills, but won't delude myself into thinking they've stacked pro-bowlers across the board. However, Allen has been given enough pieces to (hopefully) succeed. I don't expect him to turn into Jim Kelly or Ben Roethlisberger this year, but I do expect progress. If there's substantial progress, I think many of us will be (pleasantly) surprised with the results, but for me, that is not the expectation.

Agree with sign/trade for/draft an edge rusher. Let's see how Edmunds develops this year, hopefully both he and Allen take a big leap. You would hope that Edmunds' floor is as an edge rusher, and that we will see hints of ceiling starting this year. But don't give up yet, IMO.