Beck Water

I can get behind that advice!

You understand the difference between a DA's decision to not press charges, and a civil suit, yes? The one has a standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt" and the other "more likely than not". I was empaneled for jury selection for a civil suit and the lawyer for the plaintiff made a huge deal out of "a hair's difference" being the standard. The civil trial is scheduled for October, the young woman's lawyer has made a huge deal out of the DA being selective in what evidence was discussed in their meeting - as is appropriate, given that the purpose is for the DA to explain why there is "reasonable doubt" in the evidence. He's made a point that they won't "be intimidated into dropping their case", and Araiza has made a point that he isn't interested in settling, even for a relatively minor amount of money. Why wouldn't teams be leary of signing a rookie punter who is scheduled to have the potentially huge distraction (and PR problem) of a civil trial start 1/3 of the way through the season? I don't think it's "most", but there were several good veteran punters available after roster cutdowns last season because 3 or 4 teams had 2 punters in camp. Really? Who did the Bills have in prior to last year's preseason? I know they had Araiza and Haack in camp in 2022, but who besides Haack did they have in 2021? Who did they have besides Bojo in 2019 and 2020?

The phrase I used was "hard hitting questions", not "personal stuff". I pointed out that you don't catch Pat McAfee asking Aaron Rodgers uncomfortable questions. "Yo! Why did you buy a $28 million dollar estate with Danica Patrick only to ditch her 6 months later for a woman a decade younger who plays teenagers professionally? Were you cheating on Patrick with Woodley? Doesn't happen. Do you understand the difference between a hard hitting or uncomfortable question and a personal question? Because the examples you give - love of golf, golf game, F1 fandom - are personal, but they're not hard-hitting. Until you make clear that you understand the distinction, calling it "disingenuous" has little meaning to me. Oh, bull####. I bet there's stuff in your family(if not yourself) which is personal, but comfortable to share or discuss in public - what sports you like and why, what books you like and why, movies, video games - and also stuff you would not care to discuss - without knowing you, can't make an educated guess at what specifically, but abstractly: the ancestry DNA test showing actual paternity of sister's second child, stepfather's DUI arrest, BIL's psychiatric diagnosis, the reasons for being fired from one's second job would all be potential examples affecting some people. But, if you think it's hypocritical to be happy to talk about your opinion of various books or movies, your golf game, your taste in clothes - but NOT about a potentially emotionally wrenching end to a 7 year relationship, rumors painting you as a bit of a cad, or your personal health decisions re: a vaccination that became politically wrought - be my guest.

The good news is that the Bills have a good athletic training staff and sports medicine staff. The bad news is that they rely on said staff to project how players will be able to come back from injuries, and sometimes they're wrong. Every new OL coach likes to bring in "his guys" who can player-coach the room and help cultivate respect for the coach's message. These guys aren't necessarily the greatest talent as players. I can't bring myself to name who was Juan Castillo's "guy". Jon Feliciano was Bobby Johnson's "guy". Rodger Saffold was Kromer's "guy".

That's truly an impressive "receipt" file. Well done!

By contractual agreement with the NFLPA, the NFL can NOT discipline a player for actions that took place before he was drafted or signed. That includes putting him on the Commissioner's Exempt List. Said list and its use are durn falutin' vague, but the league seems to be trending towards using it only for players who have been arrested or who face criminal charges, vs. players who are facing a civil suit or players who are being investigated (but have not been arrested or charged) for a possible crime. The "loophole" isn't for based on accrued seasons or rookie status. The distinction is between actions that take place after the player is drafted/signed vs. before the player is drafted/signed.

I don't think he "underperformed except for week 1". Von Miller specifically called out Phillips after several games for the pressure up the middle that let Miller do his thing. I do think the Bills expected Phillips to behave with more sense on the field and not pull his hamstring and tear up his shoulder chasing around the backfield like a nickel corner. Then you're going to fundamentally always have a problem with a roster built to support McDermott's defense, because McDermott believes in DL rotation as a fundamental underpinning of his D.

I don't have any sources, but I'd point out that McDermott has previously not been shy about either firing, or moving on from, coaches whose efforts left him dissatisfied. Rico Dennison -> bye Felicia. Juan Castillo -> bye Felicia. Others have been allowed to "save face" by "leaving to pursue another opportunity" in a parallel role (Heath Farwell), or, if their contract was up, just thanked for their services (Chad Hall). So it's entirely believable to me that if McDermott wanted Frazier gone, he would not be as concerned about "saving his face" with this "step back from coaching" move. Frazier would be told to seek a position elsewhere right after the season, or outright fired. I can't call the names to mind, but IIRC several highly successful coaches stated that the best thing a fired HC could do was to take a year off to reflect vs immediately stepping into another role. These weren't the words used, but the precept that "when you're up to your ass in alligators, it's hard to remember that you came to clear the swamp" applies - if you're full-go into the grind of the NFL season, it's hard to take time to reflect on how you're doing things, gather information on how other organizations and coaches do things, and put together a cogent plan for an improved strategy. It may be that Frazier honestly decided he needed to step back from the swamp and reflect on better strategies for clearing it, free of daily responsibilities for alligator wrangling.

I think it's possible that the change Frazier didn't like was prioritization of talent acquisition for defense. Frazier probably came out of the team's post-season analysis knowing that the team's off-season priority was going to be to add talent on offensive skill possitions and OL (which, by and large, is how the off season played out). That meant that the Bills were going to move on from Edmunds and not take a big swing to replace him with a comparable defensive talent. That means it's fairly likely that our defense will take a step back. For a coach who apparently badly wants another shot as a HC, having a defense that drops from #1 or #2 to maybe #15 or 16 could be seen as lowering his potential value as a HC. And yes, it's also possible that McDermott wanted changes in how the defense prepares and is called that left Frazier feeling like he might be relegated to a figurehead role at times, which would also lower perception of his value.

I think this might be reading into the tea leaves a bit much. Leslie Frazier is taking a leave from the Bills so he has no team affiliation at present. We really don't know what his contract status is - there were rumors his contract with the Bills was over, but @john wawrow who is typically very reliable, said that is not true. Bottom line, I didn't think it was likely that Frazier would be back, but I'm not sure this memo tells us any more or less than we knew before. Fifth possible outcome: the Bills either underperform or make another early playoff exit, and "Management decides to make a change" in the coaching and FO, which would see Frazier out the door along with the rest of them.

Whippersnapper.

To be fair, Bernard was asked to start a game and play for Milano and he 1) really looked lost 2) when he got to the right place at the right time, he got trucked and dragged 5 yds downfield. He looked slow and lacking in physicality. So that's a bit more than "some spot duty". Prior to that game, he'd seen a couple quarters of play. After that, he saw a lot of ST snaps but nothing on D. To be clear, I think the Bills concluded from that game that Bernard was "not ready for prime time". Now none of the above means I personally believe the book on him is written, because players can improve a lot from their 1st to their 2nd year and if a player is still learning the defense and thinking instead of being able to read-and-react, it's gonna slow him down. But there was a bit more of Bernard than "spot duty".

This is a really good point. Back in 2012, the Bills drafted a LB named Tank Carder in the 5th round. There was a fair amount of excitement about him because he was making plays in the preseason, breaking up passes and making some picks. Chan Gailey was asked about him and said, somewhat laconically and sounding un-excited, that he "continued to stand out on film" or something like that. The Bills released him at the cutdown to the 53 man roster, and a lot of fans were in disbelief - how could those stupid coaches cut a player who was all over the field making plays? Elementary, my dear fans, it's because he wasn't where he was supposed to be, doing what he was supposed to be doing, and there were many offensive plays that were succeeding, under the radar to the fans, because he wasn't carrying out his actual assignment.

I have no idea how the joint strength and stability to play a non-contact sport like golf maps onto a timeline for developing the joint strength and stability needed to make it through a football season. I don't think you do either

Well, first of all, weekly podcasts with a media figure are "feel good" pieces. No athlete is going to do them with a guy who asks them hard-hitting questions. If you listen to Josh Allen's segment on Kyle Brandt's basement, it's often uncomfortably fawning on the part of Brandt. Pretty sure the athlete or his PR team submit lists of questions or topics that are off-limits. The sports talk guy doesn't "play ball"? Neither will the athlete; these are extra media appearances beyond what the NFL requires. So weekly podcasts with sports talk guys are NOT going to go there. Catch Pat McAfee asking Aaron Rodgers uncomfortable questions. Doesn't happen. Second, being a public figure does not mean the public is entitled to know every aspect of the guy's life. The Bills, under McDermott, seem to be doing an excellent job of training their players to handle the media. Consider how Josh Allen neatly side-stepped questions about his personal health choices or his grandmother's cause of death. Josh just said "I'm going to keep that in-house" and that was that. Jordan Poyer same - led a press conference with a statement that he wasn't going to take questions on the "panini" and just responded to any attempts with "do you have any football questions? I'm here to answer any of your football questions". If reporters want to know about stuff like that, they can do what reporters used to do when looking for a story - hit the streets and look for sources. All the stuff that's supposed to have happened, must be someone who actually saw or heard something with their own little eyeballs. And Josh speaking on the topic would NOT put rumors to rest, people who want to believe gossip would just say he's not telling the truth or he's covering stuff up. I think it was pretty clear from Brittany's friend's "now accepting husband applications" post at their Fresno Derby celebration, and also from Josh's solo appearance at the Derby, that they're split up.

You're kidding, right? Kidding, or trolling

'Cuz he's a troll from a nest of trolls, best ignored. This board conveniently has a feature for that.....

WHAT IS THE BRAND OF THAT SPRAY? I'm asking because of our own squirrel-tooth story. We do a Christmas lights in our yard every year, where we spiral lights up two trees that flank our walkway and then swag lights between the trees. We've done one or another variant of this every year for a couple decades. About 5 years ago, the squirrels decided to chomp through the strands spiraling up one tree. We replaced it, only to have "Chewy" do it again. We went through about 5 brands of squirrel repellant from big box and garden stores. Chomp. Some worked for a week, but as they wore off...CHOMP Finally I read that the "hair of a predator" might deter them. We have this 45 lb critter who donates a bag of white fur every time she's brushed. So, we took a strand of lights and stuffed tufts of white hair in between every twist. That did it. Lights stayed lit. Bonus, since the fur is white, it looks like some kind of planned Christmas decor during the day.

Oh, OK, I am SO wrong on this. Apparently the guy next to Eric Wood is Josh Reed Channel 4 Sports Director Josh Reed, and his appearance (not his fashion choices, his decision to be at what seems to be Eric Wood's home and to pose with Josh Allen and Brandon Beane) is controversial: https://buffalonews.com/news/local/alan-pergament-kentucky-derby-photos-of-wivbs-josh-reed-with-josh-allen-brandon-beane-raise/article_f01f66ae-f0be-11ed-8337-678b5c798b5d.html#tracking-source=mp-in-article

There's an ebook someone pointed me towards years ago when I lost a dog to cancer. The author has edited it over the years, but in the original version he quotes someone who explains "for many people, the death of a pet can be harder than the death of a family member. this is because many of us have complex and ambiguous relationships with our families, but straightforward and loving relationships with our pets" Sorry about your loss

Absolutely, and not just our children's medical care but our family's as well!

So the results seem to be, about 10% of ya don't buy from places where bargaining is reasonably common (Marketplace, Craig's List, Yard sales, etc). Adjusting for those who do, about 60% bargain and 40% don't. I think that's about right - it's partly a matter of upbringing/cultural background. I come from a family of bargainers, originally from necessity. Those who don't bargain, mostly don't have a problem with those who bargain (or try) - just say "firm" or "that's really the price I want". But, there are some who don't bargain, and who feel very strongly that it's bad manners (rude, entitled etc). Personally, I don't get it - all very well if you don't want to bargain, but if you know there are cultures/backgrounds where bargaining is common, how does it help a sale to get offended? But, I know it's out there now, so it won't take me aback if I run into it again.

I'm not crying, you're crying! My kid played CYC ball. One of her teammates was obviously in pain in her hips during their final game. Her mom said the doctor said it was "growing pains". Well it wasn't "growing pains", it was Ewings and it was in her hip and inoperable by the time they found it. She has a memorial in that church now. If you have health and your kids have health, you have everything. Everything.

Suggest that he write them ASAP requesting a certified copy of his transcript - check it carefully for errors when he receives it - and asking who will take over student records for them.

I thought he looked a little slow - he did mention that he was rusty What impressed me is how smooth he seemed, like @Buffalo_Stampede said no wasted movement. And the hands looke nice.