dave mcbride

Agree 100 percent, and Dawkins got his arms outside on the takedown.

He started two games last year and the Browns won both: https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/202201090cle.htm (102.1 rating; only one sack taken) https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/202110210cle.htm (90.3 rating; only one sack taken vs. a good Denver defense that still had Von Miller) I agree that he generally sucks, physical talent wise, but he can get you to .500 over a four game stretch if the defense doesn't give up a ton of points.

You have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20609599/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20609599/

Prometheus is actually pretty amazing once you realize that Scott succeeded in actually making Lovecraft’s “At the Mountains of Madness,” his most epic novella (and longest). When Guillermo del Toro, who had been trying to make a version of Mountains for a decade, saw Prometheus, he essentially said it destroyed his great dream: https://www.indiewire.com/2012/05/guillermo-del-toro-says-prometheus-has-killed-at-the-mountains-of-madness-because-they-both-have-the-same-final-twist-252233/amp/. The funniest thing about the critics’ reactions to Prometheus is that many said it was pro-Christianity — which is hilarious if you know about Mountains (and Scott followed that storyline very closely). Anyway, while I fully understand why many don’t see it as a great movie (with the caveat that many don’t actually understand it because of a lack of familiarity with the source material), it is one of *my* favorite sci-fi movies of all time. Worth watching again after reading Mountains. Agreed about the Giger designs in Jodorowsky’s aborted Dune movie. I actually think the third Alien movie (the prison planet one) is excellent and highly underrated, particularly the director’s cut version. I thought Alien: Covenant was pretty bad, however. Very disappointing.

To be fair, the Yankees have only won seven titles since the first Super Bowl took place. That's still a lot.

Mills is better than people think. He played well down the stretch.

If the Bills don't draft a CB very early I'm going to lose my mind. It's a gaping hole.

So you’re not addressing my point. I actually watched almost all of those games, and he unquestionably got better as he aged. By shedding all that weight, he became quicker too.

See above. 1996 and 1997 were his most dominant seasons according to advanced stats. It's not even really all that close, especially re: 1996 (he was DPOY of the year that season and simply unblockable). He was a far more complete player from 1995-1997 and in much better shape. Don't measure his productivity just by the sack numbers.

Not according to advanced stats. His 1996 season was one of the greatest ever by a defensive end. He was far more complete a player that season than in 1990, when he was just a sack machine but pretty so-so vs. the run. He had a ridiculous number of pressures in 1996 -- setting the NFL record, IIRC.

Maybe worth mentioning that Bruce Smith's two best seasons occurred when he was 33 and 34 (1996 and 1997)?

Where he can become the best version of himself!

4.5 sacks in two Super Bowls. He also had 2.5 sacks and a pick of Brady (plus 4 qb hits) in that epic 2015 AFC championship game that Denver won.

For those old enough to remember, Buddy Nix settled on Dareus after missing out on the player he really wanted, Von Miller.

Just sayin' ...

I have a hunch he’ll be gone long before 25. I don’t think ACL tears scare teams like they used to, and the upside is just so high with him. I could be wrong …

I'm not complaining, and regardless of mitigating factors holding opponents to a 65.3 rating is pretty amazing.

It's not just the schedule; it's also that the Bills played in nine lousy-weather games.

These are good takes, and I mostly agree, especially re who they hoped he would be vs who he is. But I also see a lot of QBs making bad decisions and avoiding the middle of the field vs the Bills pass D. He's pretty much always sitting in the middle there. I have heard at least one opposing coach say that he's a real problem in pass D, and you of all people know that pass D is more important than run D (not that the latter is unimportant; it is). As for the completion rate, yeah, but a lot of dumpoffs to RBs go his way. As I mentioned earlier, Mixon caught 87.5 percent of the passes thrown his way, and while he's at the high end for RBs, RBs in general tend to catch balls at a high rate. It skews passer rating vs LBs, who let those passes happen and then rally to tackle. But he needs to be making 2-4 picks per season to be sure and breaking up more than the 4 passes he broke up this year (as opposed to 12 in 2018 and 9 in 2019). He's not doing that. You'll probably laugh at this, but one skill he does have is running and chasing guys who've made short catches. He's very good at rallying to the tackle in open space (no need to shed blockers out there) because he's a punishing tackler and very fast for his position. He also only has to react and not read. Hence there will be catches against the Bills pass D, but he's good at preventing them from becoming bigger plays. That doesn't make him elite, of course, but it is an attribute that's probably more important on the point-prevention front than many give the team credit for. He had his best missed tackle rate ever this season - 8.5 percent, which is pretty solid for the LB position. Re: math, you're missing my point. The passes that aren't thrown his way because he's doing something good out there will never reflect on the rating against him. My point is that teams this past season struggled massively vs the Bills pass D, and he's a core part of it in the mid-range areas. QBs get confused and make bad decisions, and it happened a lot this season. (I'm not saying he's all-world at pass defending, so please don't make it sound as if I am!) Bottom line: he may get better, although I think he'll never be great. He also knows how to function in the system pretty well, and things can ALWAYS get worse -- the grass isn't always greener. Interestingly enough, the LB I really wanted in that draft (after the QB, of course) was Roquan Smith. Man, is he good: https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/SmitRo07.htm. This past season, opposing QBs throwing has way had an extremely low 76.8 percent rating vs him (LBs tend to have surrender very high passer ratings as a general rule) and he only missed 3.6 percent of his tackles. He is a difference maker. Doesn't force a ton of turnovers, though.

A squib was not the best idea. A short kick to the 5 -- a kick that Bass has executed many times -- was the way to go. It literally forces a return, and if the return gets to the 25 or so, that's 5 seconds off the clock (I timed subsequent returns in the other playoff games that got about 20 yards). Sure, you run the risk of a huge return, but that happens in about 1 out of every 50-75 returns. I'll take my chances. There is a very strong chance that a squib takes no time off the clock at all. And it could go out of bounds.

This is an interesting conversation. My view on Edmunds is that he doesn't make a ton of big plays -- he's no Kuechly, although Kuechly was probably the best NFL LB of the past 15 years -- but what we don't see is how he messes up passing games for opponents. Passes are completed against him for sure, but a lot of passes don't come his way because of his range and ability to execute mid-range middle-of-the-field coverage. Opposing teams had a staggeringly low 65.3 passer rating vs. the Bills this season. That's unheard of in this day and age. Yeah, I know they played backups and a bunch of bad weather games, but still. My point is that the passes and lanes that are taken away by a rangy LB with a massive wingspan have helped the Bills attain their truly lofty status in pass defense. The issue for Edmunds -- and for the Bills in general -- is simply the Chiefs. They have the system, the speed guys, the QB, and--most importantly--the game changing TE who has a mind-meld with the elite QB on option routes to break down and expose the Bills scheme. No other team does. So much of what people are reacting to w/regard to Edmunds are those two playoff games vs. KC. I'd argue that the real problem was not having a true game-wrecking, sack-finishing d-lineman or two. We get pressure, sure, but we don't get sacks like the Chargers do or Tampa did vs. KC last year. Plays get extended, and vs. our matchup zone, KC's elite receivers will eventually get open and the QB will hit them. I'd argue that we should try and maintain our proven ability to hold opposing teams to a passer rating of below 70. Edmunds is a key part of that pass defense. That is a incredible stat and should win a ton of games for you. With regard to upholding that, Edmunds isn't the problem; the lack of a finishing d-lineman and one more high level corner are the issues at present. Anyway, when it comes to Edmunds, I feel like a lot of people don't look at the bigger context of our scheme. Moreover, if you're watching it on tv, it's very hard to see what he does in coverage schemes.

re: Perine (previous running play): https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2022/02/16/zac-taylor-says-he-got-third-down-call-in-late-so-it-was-his-decision-to-leave-samaje-perine-in/

I like to think Ramsey simply choked--just liked he choked vs Tampa/Mike Evans (although he was saved by the bell in the form of TB going cover zero on LA's last possession). They did have the short pass option to Burrow's right. It's just that the Bengal's joke of an o-lineman was beaten so quickly and so badly that Burrow had no chance.

Cincy DID go for the jugular twice and hit those plays, and on that final play where Donald made the big pressure that forced the incompletion, Ramsey had fallen down and Chase was WIDE open--and I mean WIDE open--for a TD. I'm mot really speaking to your point here, but if a Bengals o-lineman did the unlikely and actually blocked Donald even a little, Ramsey might have gone down as one of the biggest goats in SB history--"trash," as it were. That would have been hilarious, and I would have loved it. It's also why I think Donald should have been the MVP, although I can't complain too much about Kupp getting it.

You must have loved those Bears/NE and SF-Broncos Super Bowls in the 1980s (the blowout era). The Bears/NE game even had Up With People doing the halftime show!