mannc

If you assume Seattle is going to score a TD when they get the ball back, then you simply have to go for it to end the game. Otherwise, you’re counting on stopping the 2-point conversion or winning in overtime, both of which are far less likely than picking up 6 inches for the first. I’m pretty sure analytics says you go for it there, but it’s probably a close call.

Actually, it is by going for it that you give yourself two ways to win: (1) make the first down—game over, (2) keep the Seahawks from driving 95 yds for a TD—game over. I’d also be willing to bet that the odds of making the first down there aren’t much worse than missing the FG; the Vikings had been running it down their throats.

It was the right move

Vikings really missing Dalvin Cook...

Pretty gutsy game by Cousins. He was getting zero pass protection, and managed to hang in there and make a ton of plays to get the lead back. And Thelin really is a good receiver. Impossible to cover and catches everything.

No question about it.

No, NFL players don’t have the same right to health information privacy as the rest of us. If that were true, there could never be an NFL injury report, so clearly there has been some HIPAA waiver somewhere along the line. If teams can release information about a player’s progress in recovering from an injury, then why can’t they say if a player is sick from covid? And a player showing some symptoms does not mean he is seriously ill. I don’t want to go too far down this road, because the Board’s covid discussion rules are very unclear to me, but I was responding to a post about a player’s statement that the league’s covid policy is not really about player safety. My point in response is that there seems to be no evidence that any players have become seriously ill from the virus ( as opposed to just showing symptoms). You certainly pointed out some facts that suggest it’s possible, but I still expect there would be reports in the media if that were the case, notwithstanding Vrabel’s comment about a “wide range of symptoms”, which could mean anything.

Have any players actually gotten sick (as opposed to testing positive)? I’m not aware of any. So is that a game time decision? When is a player officially ruled out, or cleared to play? There has to be some deadline, right?

Not sure. But I’m assuming a lot of their guys will be ruled out, such as Simmons and Davis. What do you know about it?

Anyone see a line on this game? Looks like it’s off the board in Vegas. I’d think the Bills would be at least -8 with all the Titans who are unavailable...

Did you have to bring that up? I still get sick thinking about it.

Idiot announcers just cannot believe that teams are going to go for it on 4th and short, even though every team is doing it. “Unless they’re going to just try to draw them offside...”

If true, that would suck. What's the source for that information regarding Saturday broadcasts? I assume it has something to do with college football rights... FWIW, Ross Tucker is saying that if the Titans have to forfeit, the Bills players would lose their pay for that game (1/16 of their salaries). Ouch!

That would be perfect.

I don’t see how it would be possible to play on Titans on Monday unless the Chiefs game is moved back. I wonder if it could be played on Friday or Saturday....

That is the right question. The TV contracts are undoubtedly very complicated and we just don’t know the answer at this point. Nor do we know what rights the teams would have to claw back (or withhold) money from the players...

20th is about where I thought they were. Not great, but our opponents have put up a ton of yards and points in garbage time. And there appear to be no great defenses this year...

Well, bad teams like the Giants still try to build around RBs...and at any rate, the 90s Bills Offense was built around Jim Kelly, not Thurman Thomas.

Except the Chiefs won the Super Bowl...

Simms is my favorite NFL commentator. His pre-draft breakdowns have been exceptional, and he’s correctly predicted big success for a lot guys who were not as highly touted by other draft experts, Josh Allen being only one example.

Marino’s Dolphins were nowhere near as good as the Mahomes Chiefs. Nowhere near the weapons Mahomes has and their defense was bad. Those Steeler and Broncos teams weren’t great either. Elway had not yet hit his stride and had no one to throw to. I wasn’t referring to the NFC; obviously, those NFCE teams we lost to were the real deal, especially the Cowboys. The Cowboys, yes. I was mainly referring to the AFC competition, though.

The 1990’s Bills didn’t have to deal with a team like the Chiefs.

There is an element of unfairness to it, as you point out, but moving it to week 18 isn't a bad option. (The Bills do get the benefit of an extra bye week during the season.) There is a decent chance that the game won't mean anything in terms of the playoffs, in which case it can just be cancelled.

I'm not sure what McDermott said about that or why he said it. It's hard to imagine 13,000 fans in a 70,000 seat open-air stadium making enough noise for it to matter.

If you've ever been to a Bills-Dolphins game in Miami, you know that even at full capacity, there little to no home field advantage, at least from the crowd. I would imagine the same is true in J-ville.