Dick_Cheney

Honestly pretty incredible to be named a head coach, let alone the Patriots head coach, after only having coached in any capacity for 5 years.

Actually somehow didn’t realize the current stadium is below ground. Good to know.

I don't think there's really such thing as a cold weather team or a significant cold weather home field advantage anymore. I'd love to have the kind of team that's able to dominate in that sort of weather anyways, because if they can do that then when conditions are perfect things should really be impressive. I also don't think that building a team for this kind of weather is a thing that would or should happen. How many guys come into the league every year who have never even seen snow? Weather in Buffalo is ripe for these sort of conditions for maybe the last third of the season, and that's the time where every single win is critical. And then of course the playoffs and home field advantage. I get the historical aspect of it and the "purity" of freezing cold games out in the snow, but the reality is that the game has evolved in such a way that those sort of conditions can cripple a team. The Bills have dealt with enough adversity over the years, I'd personally prefer crappy weather wasn't one more thing to have to plan for and fight against. Truly hoping that the design of the new stadium lives up to its expectations in how it is supposed to minimize the impact of strong wind.

Yeah not looking great. I know he said immediately after the game he'd be good to go, but I haven't seen anything conlusively saying how it's looking for him.

This seriously sucks.

The Steelers are ranked around 25th in nearly every offensive stat ranking for this season. The only category where they don't rank near the bottom as best as I can see is Average Rushing Yards per Game (118 yards, 13th). The Bills in that category rank 7th with 130 yards per game. The Bills are also obviously in the top 5 in almost every other offensive stat category. The Steelers have the 17th ranked passing defense, and the 19th ranked rushing defense. Keep in mind, those stats also include TJ Watt, who won't be playing. The Bills have the 7th ranked passing defense, and the 15th ranked rushing defense. On paper, even in garbage conditions, it's really difficult to see the Steelers going above and beyond their usual performances on both sides of the ball, especially with a young quarterback and their star defensive player out.

This isn't a gripe thread. You might want to work on your reading comprehension.

Lol okay man.

Pretty much exactly what I was thinking when I made the thread. Thank you for thinking and responding like a rational human being.

Not sure what this means. It's mostly just a curiosity since all those questions and more were being asked 6 weeks ago or so, and yes we've won the division again and gone on a run, but the bar is and has been set higher than that for a few years now. Like I said, I don't expect it to happen, but if we suffer a shocking loss all those questions will be being asked once again. They might still be to some extent even if we don't lose. I didn't intend this thread to be anything along the lines of thinking the Bills would lose or that we're anything other than a highly impressive and very dangerous team right now. I expect us to make it to at least the AFCCG. That is where the expectation is and should be. So sure, it's maybe premature, but if something goes wrong before that point, these questions are gonna be back front and center.

Did Sean McDermott write this? Kinda sounds like you need to take a little bit of a step back from things. Chill out man. I totally expect the Bills to win. I've acknowledged what this team has accomplished in numerous, probably repetitive posts over the last several weeks. It's a valid question to consider if we are shockingly upset. Also worth remembering that nothing we say or do here on a message board has any impact whatsoever on anything involving this team. Nobody here is undermining anything this team has accomplished at all.

It looks like hardly anyone is giving the Steelers any shot at beating us, which is understandable and likely accurate. However, we have suffered humiliating losses to far lesser teams way too many times before. Anything is possible and Tomlin is going to have his team as prepared as is possible. That said, if the Steelers were to somehow knock us out, what happens to this team going forward? Is McD safe because of his performance over the last 6 games? Do assistant coaches get the axe? Is Brady the really the answer? Which players do we finally move on from?

He's pretty much the best QB in the league when it comes to throwing with strong wind. Of course I'd prefer the wind to not be that big of a factor, but the silver lining is that Rudolph will be throwing in it as well.

Damn I was really hoping after Douglas saying he was good to go that would indeed be the case.

This play was absolutely infuriating. One of those plays that there's just no rational explanation as to why it was missed. Just straight up seems like a ref seeing it and being like "***** it, not calling it."

Weather is very possibly a significant factor.

The back to back aspect of it all absolutely blew my mind. He seriously stepped up.

This is true and I don't disagree mostly. Considering the circumstances and the weather Buffalo is likely to get in the foreseeable future, there isn't any other QB I would want to have for my team more than I would want Allen. But nevertheless I'd prefer him playing in an ideal environment as much as possible. So who knows. The Great Lakes didn't even freeze this year so maybe we'll be looking at much more mild weather than years past. And yes, both teams do have to deal with the elements equally. I'd be less concerned about it if I was a little more confident in our ground game, but you are correct. There have been several recent examples where we finally exhibited a bully type attitude and drove down their throats. Here's hoping we see more of that this coming weekend.

I am a bit worried about this and hope that the wind doesn't end up being that bad. Josh is Josh but given the choice to see him play in the elements vs a perfect weather controlled environment, I'll take the latter every time. A lot of people don't like to admit it, but there's really isn't such a thing as a cold weather team anymore. Our home field advantage is mostly negated when conditions get really bad, particularly against teams who are better build for power running than we are. Josh does seem to handle high wind better than a lot of other QBs, so that's definitely a bonus, but I'm not sure some of the amazing throws that were made last night would be made in the kind of conditions we might be looking at. I love outdoor football and I love the history of the Bills in the snow and the cold, but the reality is that those variables hurt us more than they help us. I very much hope that the design of the new stadium mitigates the weather factor like we have been told it will, otherwise situations like this will undoubtedly cost us late season wins in the future, and the dome conversation will become even more of a sore issue than it already is. I personally wish this team was playing in a dome with grass and Allen himself was on the architectural design board. At least we brought up Lenny to replace Murray. Watching him get significant carries in a nasty weather game would not be good for my health.

We are 10 point favorites against the Steelers.

Thrilled we got the win. Really cool to see the players who are always getting ripped to shreds step up to save the day. You can’t ask for much more than that. (Other than fewer interceptions)

Pretty much the stuff of dreams to be honest. People written off as bums playing the part of hero. Really special.

Wow I’m shaking. What a gutsy win. Great job of shaking off that first half. Really impressed.

The redemption of Rapp.