JohnC

On this issue you and I are in accord. What I don't want to see is what happened with the Colts. They had the first pick in the draft a few years ago and took one of the highest rated qb prospects in decade or longer. What the organization then did bordered on criminal negligence and stupidity. For years they avoided addressing the OL, and during that interlude their prized qb kept getting pummeled and battered. It got to the point where his career was in jeopardy due to the accumulated punishment. What did the new regime do after the incompetent prior regime (GM) was fired? It made a determined effort to upgrade the OL. Their first pick (I believe the 7th pick in the draft) was a guard, Nelson from Notre Dame. He is going to be a perennial all-star. The next thing the coaching staff did under Reich was design an offense where initially quick passes were accentuated in order to protect the qb. From there the OC added to the repertoire to utilize the splendid talents of the qb. The point is the strategy revolved around putting their qb in the best situation to succeed. I'm aware that because the Bills made a decision to absorb their dramatic cap hit in one year so they couldn't do much to address the manifest deficiencies on the offensive side of the ball. Now, they are in a good position having a full complement of draft picks and a large cap amount to work with to address their dire needs on offense. Although our HC has a defensive background it is the offense that needs the most attention.

The lack of secondary scoring is becoming evident. Mittlestadt seems to be fading. Is this youngster fatiguing because he has never played so many games in such a short time span? Other than Okposo or maybe Sheary I don't know who is going to put it into the net. What's also noticeable is that Pomminstein away from the Jack line has been neutralized. The only other option to compensate for the impotence of the secondary lines is for our defesemen to be more aggressive on offense.

The issue was indirectly brought up when it was pointed out that his stores are closed on Sunday so his products wouldn't be sold at a NFL stadium on that day.

You are aware that you are the first to bring up the religious issue. Give yourself a demerit. Were talking chickens here not which side of the church aisle you kneel in.

I couldn't activate the link. Could someone give me a summary of the article? Is Pilut active for this game? I didn't see his name mentioned in the expected defensive pairings? I'm miffed by the reported exclusion.

I agree with you that the left and right tackle profile has changed along with the qb protecting rules of the NFL. If Williams was drafted should he be placed on the right side? I don't care. Bring in talent and then let the coaches sort it out as to who should play where. The advantage of drafting Jonah Williams is that he is capable of playing any position along the line. Having a RT being able to play LT or any of the guard positions is a versatility that should be prized. The primary issue for me relates to the question of what do you do to put your young qb in the best position to succeed. If you want to increase his chances to succeed then buttress the OL. He will not only be better protected but that upgrade will also enhance his play-action passing ability with a good running game. If I were given the choice between substantially upgrading the receiver unit or the OL unit I would without hesitation choose the OL because that upgrade reverberates throughout the offense.

Do you know what the average earning is for a Domino Pizza or McDonald or Subway franchise owner? I know there is a wide variation for stores but do you have a knowledge of the average earning?

The owner is resolute in his conviction not to be open on Sundays. They operate in Atlanta's Mercede Benz Stadium but are closed on Sundays. https://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2017/8/16/16156300/falcons-stadium-chick-fil-a-closed-sunday

Next year Tage, Middelstadt, Pilut, Guhle, Nylander and Ullmark should be much better from a physical and experience standpoint. If you add in Dahlin who is in a super category by himself then the internal improvement from our own stable of players should put us in a good position for the near future. You add in these developing players to what is already here with Eichel, Reinhart and hopefully Skinner then the trajectory should be upwards. .In addition, the Sabres will have three first round picks in the next draft which is considered to be a loaded draft. Botterill is smartly piecing things together so that the critical mass of talent will soon some come together and allow us to become a cup vying team. Great work by the GM.

I agree with the gist of what you are saying but to a more limited extent. This team is struggling with secondary scoring. Even if he is on a third line it doesn't have to necessarily be a checking line such as the Larsson and Gergonsons line. He can be on a line with Tage or Rodriques or others where there will be more scoring opportunities. In addition, with his passing skills he could also be used on a second PP unit. With respect to his solid plus/minus numbers I have no problems with a player being on the plus side because his line is scoring more. That's not something I will lament; it's something that I would celebrate.

That was my point that if spots open up because of injuries or trades that they are next in line to move up the ranks. With respect to Nylander over the past year he has dedicated himself to be a more complete (responsible) player. He is a +10 player which indicates that he is working to round out his game. An argument can be made that in training camp he played well enough to earn a roster spot. But it was thought that getting more time in the minors was the best approach to take with respect to his development. What was learned from the streak is that this team continued to play hard even when they were behind. Last year, it was evident that when they got behind they got deflated and dispirited and didn't have the belief that they could come back. Not this year! More talent and a better mind-set make a difference.

I'm looking at this season from a different standpoint than accumulated points. There is no doubt that Botterill brought in talent to bolster the roster and make this team competitive, even against the elite teams. What I'm focusing on are the young guys. Dahlin is in a special category by himself so I'm not worried about him as much as I am excited about him. Who I'm closely watching are players such as Mittelstadt, Tage, Ullmark and for now Pilut. I'm also following how Guhle and Nylander are doing in Rochester. I wouldn't be surprised if both of them were brought up sometime this year. The fun part of following this team is watching these young guys develop and as time goes by become core players for a seriously contending team. Not that long ago I stated that I felt Buffalo was still a notch below the elite teams such as Tampa, Toronto and Nashville. I got skewered for an opinion that is to me obviously so. But if you put things in perspective this team has made a quantum leap forward in a short period of time with the pipeline nearly ready to add even more talent. Overall, I'm excited about our current situation and our near future prospects.

The irony is that in three of those four last games Buffalo probably played better than they did during the win streak. In the Toronto game I thought overall that they played better than they did.

I don't want to come off as a scold or an obnoxious "I told you so" haranguing pest. My complaint with your assessment of Allen is not so much about Allen as it is with assessing qb prospects in general. Most often your views on the other positions are sound. But I just found your position on Allen to be uncharacteristically far off. As I stated before all the four teams that were expending a lot of effort and resources in scouting qbs rated Josh as a high end first round value. Your third round ranking of Allen was clearly an outlier position. You took a similar stance with Mahomes while KC and Reid held a much different view of him. The issue that I'm addressing is that maybe you are too rigorous in evaluating the fundamental skills of the raw college players instead of giving more weight to the pro potential of the raw talents of the qb prospects. You didn't seem to do that with Allen or Mahomes while many others in the scouting profession seemed to do it. What I'm trying to do is cajole you into reassessing how you evaluate qb prospects. Sometimes being steadfast for the sake of being steadfast puts you in a room behind a locked door. I'm trying to encourage you to slightly open the door and see what else is out there. Just gently offering an option. .

Be careful where you wear a pink hat. In some areas it can get you harassed; and in other areas it can get you embraced.

I'm relating my response to how you rated Allen in the draft as a third round talent. That is the source of our divergence. All the franchises that were seriously vying for a qb in the last draft had him ranked in the first round. You steadfastly held to your third round evaluation. My view is that he is playing as a first round prospect who is going through the typical rookie struggles while clearly demonstrating at least intermittently that he is very likely be a franchise qb.

Since there is a conflicting view of you between the north and south does that make you a pink neck? Think positive. Just consider it a less harsh view of either side of Mason Dixie line.

Some people look at a complicated narrative and reduce it to the lowest common denominator so it will match their already harsh and distorted view. This simplification doesn't account for the big picture that includes pluses and minuses with the pluses overwhelming the minuses. As you pointed out Urban made some glaring mistakes regarding his staff. They were not made for nefarious reasons but out of mistaken loyalty. Just because someone is not an angel doesn't mean that the person is a devil. For some people black and white is easier to deal with than proportion and nuance when judging someone. That's a shame.

Both Josh and Edmunds are playing positions that are more difficult for a rookie to play than the slot corner position. It's like comparing someone trying to learn Chinese compared to someone trying to learn how to stack fruit at the grocery store. Of course the fruit stacker is going to be more accomplished at his job than the person trying to be a linguist. Just because Allen has outmatched your draft ranking with his performance that shouldn't be a reason for you to so begrudgingly and reluctantly acknowledge how he has performed. And it was to be expected that the 20 yr old Edmunds was going to play inconsistently in his rookie year. Overall, despite his inconsistency he has demonstrated that he is going to be a superb and instrumental player for us in the not too distant future. .

Do you call them that before or after they call you a red neck slut?

I was referring to the the corporate chaps who attend the home games compared to the rank and file who drive up to Buffalo. The first group is more proper while the other group is less proper. I forgot to ask you if you were affected by the earthquakes? I hope everything was okay in your area.

Pickett's last charge would have been named Knight's last charge.

The corporate fans wearing suits attending games are less likely to get rowdy. The expense account crowd are into proper decorum

If you start advocating for building a north wall you will be banned to the PPP.

Careful, you are outnumbered. If they fight like the Leafs play on offense you will be swarmed with a fusillade of shots.