Brand J

So would the mistakes.

I’m sorry, what?

Oh yeah, Lamar’s year was pretty good, I even said he played phenomenal at times, but there were other QBs with better stats and probably other players who were more valuable, so that’s what I was getting at when I said he didn’t have to put up “great” numbers. If his defense wasn’t as strong and they had to rely on him to do more, they likely lose more games and the more he loses, the further that MVP trophy gets away from him.

Well let’s play the same game with the Bills, shall we. Look at this… Buffalo 48 Dolphins 20 Buffalo 31 Cowboys 10 Welp, that’s it. No other big wins against playoff contenders. No other double digit smack downs. Your “average margin of victory was 13 points” was inflated by these two games. The Ravens had more double digit wins and more dominate performances against playoff teams. Why is this so hard to understand? Take off the homer glasses, the Bills were fortunate to eek out a few of those wins against playoff contenders.

Or as Lamar proved by his win tonight, the stats don’t even have to be “great,” just don’t be perceived to have cost your team multiple games.

I didn’t say Lamar was more deserving of the MVP than Josh Allen, I said the award wasn’t given to Lamar simply because he was Black like you all believed and then pointed out the reasons for why he won. The Bills were “the best team in the NFL” for about one week, after they beat the Dolphins early in the year. The Ravens were by far the most consistent and dominate and beat the crap out of top contenders. That’s really not debatable.

Lamar didn’t play against the Steelers in the final regular season game, so he was 6-2. But check this out… Ravens 25 Texans 9 Ravens 28 Browns 3 Ravens 38 Lions 6 Ravens 33 49ers 19 Ravens 56 Dolphins 19 Optics matter. Of their 13 regular seasons wins, 9 were by double digits. Of the eight teams in NFL history that had 9 wins by double digits or more, all had made the Super Bowl and only one of those didn’t win. The Lamar led Ravens bludgeoned teams and that’s why he’s MVP of the regular season, because he played phenomenal at times. It wasn’t because “let’s give the award to him because he’s Black.” I’m surprised so many of you agreed with that take.

Guess I’ll be one of the few who strongly disagrees with this take. The Ravens were the model of consistency all year, they bludgeoned other top teams in the league. Lamar played phenomenal at times, he was captain of “the best team in the league.” If Josh’s Bills beat up on contender after contender like the Ravens and Josh also had the low turnover output Lamar had (ie didn’t cost his team games), there’s no doubt Josh would’ve been in the MVP discussion all year long and the likely winner. When the Dolphins were hot early, Hill and Tua were heavily discussed. Before the 49ers hit their lull, Brock Purdy and McCaffrey were heavily discussed. Nowadays they seem to award the MVP to a player on the perceived best team rather than the player who was most impactful league wide. Race has nothing to do with it.

“Bodymore, Murdaland” The Wire was a great series, all but season 2. That one was a dud.

Like Elam? Cody Ford? Dawson Knox? Tremaine Edmunds? Just messing with you. No GM gets home run picks on every trade up. I’d rather he trade down and accumulate capital in the early rounds.

McCaffrey’s probably not dropping those passes that went off of Cook’s hands. Cook needs to hit the jugs machine in the offseason. I’d say he also needs to do the hand/eye coordination drills Knox did, but Knox is still dropping gimmes, so maybe those are a waste of time.

I always thought Curry would pursue basketball over football. The money’s better, less to spread around. EDIT: Just watched the video @KDIGGZ posted. I know there have been numerous McDonald All Americans who have flamed out in college, but Curry’s free fall as the number one recruit in the nation was pretty hard to fathom. He went to UNC and became a dud. Maybe too many focuses at once.

I’d have to lean towards “yes.” If it was a matter of simply being fortunate enough to play with two future hall of famers, we could point to his supporting cast. Last year and this year tells me it’s Mahomes. He likely would’ve thrived in whatever situation - as long as his OL was at least adequate. Stafford was always a good player, but comparing his rosters in Detroit with the one he had in the SB, there’s no comparison. I think Stafford would’ve had just as much success as Goff in Detroit this year if we switched the QBs, because that Detroit roster is much better now than the ones he had to work with.

Oh yeah, never did I say every SB win was due to Brady, of course it wasn’t. But the Pats don’t make it to all those SBs if it wasn’t for Brady. His influence on the regular season and the playoffs was greater than his HC and that’s the point. Coaches can only do so much, it’s up to the players to execute and more often than not, Brady made the plays that needed to be made when he needed to make them. And his supporting cast also helped.

Reason being he was athletically underwhelming, kept getting rotated out with Drew Henson at Michigan, and most importantly, it’s impossible to measure intangibles. It was a missed evaluation from all 32 clubs, but you can’t blame the teams. Tom Brady was an exception, no one saw his success coming. Mahomes had his own set of reasons for not being the #1 QB taken in the draft, but when the coach/QB discussion comes up, I’d say 70-75% of a coach’s success depends on his QB. It’s not the other way around, nor is it 50/50. Belichick, though a great defensive mind, would be nowhere near GOAT debate if Brady hadn’t lucked into his lap at pick 199 AND if Mo Lewis hadn’t ended Bledsoe’s tenure in NE.

Tom Brady was simply a game manager when he first took the field, true, but as a Patriots fan, I’m sure you remember the quote where your offensive coordinator said “once Tom got in the game, the offense was just different. It was like a well oiled machine.” Brady hardly made mistakes, he didn’t do things to beat the team, he kept his side of the ball clean and moving, which is all you could ask from him at that point. The argument was that Belichick has never had a QB who was even “above average” and I asked what about Drew Bledsoe? Two different QBs, yet two vastly different results.

Drew Bledsoe? Belichick went 5-11 with him in 2000, 0-2 in 2001. Tom Brady stepped in and went 14-3 his first year, same roster Bledsoe (and Belichick) had to work with. Unless you believe Drew Bledsoe wasn’t an above average QB…

I don’t think any team is giving up a first rounder for an expensive 30 year old WR coming off a down year. If there’s such a team gullible enough to make that sort of deal, Beane would jump at it IMO.

Do you think you’ll be in Buffalo next year? ”Well, yeah, I’m under contract. Unless you know something I don’t…” Bills knew what they were getting in Diggs when they sent a 1st, two 4ths and a 6th to MIN. I’m actually a little surprised the Vikings got that much considering another high profile WR had been traded just before him and it wasn’t for a 1st. Name escapes me, thinking it was Hopkins? Also didn’t have to sign him to a 4 year $96M extension when a two year money raise would’ve sufficed given his age. Bills made their own bed.

We’d be in a much better spot today, no doubt. Also have to believe Jefferson wouldn’t completely disappear in the playoffs when corners are allowed to be more physical. No one saw the sort of success that was ahead for Jefferson or he would’ve been the first receiver off the board. That was a missed evaluation by everyone but the Vikings. The draft is a crapshoot, doesn’t make sense to trade up for any position that isn’t the face of your franchise. And even that’s a huge risk (hello, Carolina). Trade down if anything, accumulate capital in the early rounds.

I did, but disputed the “sure thing” support for a trade up. Agreed with your second point.

True, so why reduce the number of chances you have on potentially hitting on very good to great players at other positions? We’re not talking about trading up for a QB here. It’s a WR.

Too bad that even the “he’s as sure as a sure thing ever was” didn’t even turn out “sure” in the end. No such thing. The draft is a crapshoot, if the Bills burn capital moving up and miss on the pick, the franchise will be set behind KC even more. If they hit on the pick, great, but now other areas that could’ve had young, cost controlled talent will suffer. Best approach has always been to accumulate picks in the “money” rounds, we just don’t do it often enough.

Diggs’s disappearing act in the playoffs is no different from every single member of the defensive line. I don’t understand it really.

For someone who “can’t tell you what the future holds,” despite the fact he’s firmly under contract the next four years, to me it sounds like he got word the team may want to do something with his contract that doesn’t benefit him. Pay cut request?