Geno Smith's Arm

We have a couple DB's injured right now. One of them a promising rookie.

Is it fair to expect them to go from the worst defense to the next Steel Curtain in one off-season? They are headed in the right direction, and I'm sure that they know they need a real pass rush specialist. They tried with Maybin (not living in the past, but if he had been even 3/4 the player the expected the defense would be where it needs to be), didn't pan out. The Merriman acquisition was gravy, and I think he is doing just "alright" but isn't the answer. They need an impact player on the outside.

You're out of your mind. Yes, the Eagles are invincible.

I agree. I should have made my point clearer. There is a big shift happening in the league this year, and not all the teams can be judged by last years record. I think there is more parity now, with the only team clearly ahead at this point being the Packers. The Bills have to keep improving and learning about themselves. All the teams will better as the season progresses, and the Bills have to stay ahead on the learning curve. I believe they will. The same could be said about the Pats loss to the Bills. Do you think the Pats are a good team? Let's see how they respond this coming week in a home game...

I didn't think they were going to go 16-0. But "we" aren't. Next week we play a home game against a team that just lost to the 49ers.

??? They are 3-1 and you are calling them a "complete letdown of a team".

It was a letdown game. They will be fine.

He is doing everything he needs to do and will get better with more experience. I think he can be as good as Drew Brees (even better), and is certainly good enough to win a Super Bowl. The best thing about him is that he has shown he can play well at critical moments and not blow it. He is better than Tony Romo (I think Jerry Jones would give Fitz a truckload of gold to play for Dallas!). Keep improving the talent around him. and he can lead the Bills to the Promised Land.

I agree that the Bengals game could sneak up on the Bills, but I think there are guys that haven't contributed much yet that are still anxious to make a contribution. I think the bar has been raised, and some guys still need to justify their position. This should keep them hungry. I think the Bills defense is better than they have shown. The Raiders are so run heavy that it demanded the defense play a particular style, and the same against the Pats except towards the pass instead. I think a pass rush will make an appearance this week. I think Giants are overrated. They may have a bit better defense than the Bills have faced, but The Giants suck. Philly is erratic and it's a home game. I think the Bills will win 2 of the next 3. The big difference in the line play (aside from more experience, Wood at center is big) is that the skill players are good enough (and Fitz knows the offense well enough) to be AGGRESSIVE. He may not be Peyton Manning, but Fitz is reading the defense at the line of scrimmage almost perfectly! They will go downfield without hesitation and it puts lots of pressure on the defense. I expect there may be a few teams that the Bills won't matchup well against this year, but MOST of the defenses won't shut them down. I expect the scoring to level off, but the most impressive thing about the offense is that they don't blow it when the pressure is on. I have thought since before the season that the Bills schedule is LIGHT. I predicted that they would split games against the Jets and Pats. The NFC East is not what it once was.

This response is actually what I have been asking for! A reasoned viewpoint that actually takes a stance. Not "I'll tell you after they make the playoffs"... "BBB" has accepted the bet! I admire his spirit! I think Fitz might miss a game or something, but of course anything can happen. I think he gets the ball out quick enough that teams will start to back off the rush and place more emphasis on coverage, which will challenge Fitz's accuracy and patience. Of course, I expect him to still chew them up though!

They get 10 wins, I win the bet. Anything less I lose. $150.00 We have some time to work this out. I will likely be in Buffalo at New Years (I have been every other year). We can work it out, no? I will stay in touch. Thanks for taking the challenge. I have often thought the way you are, like "How much is a Bills win worth to me? If I bet against them I will always be happy with the outcome!"

I can't afford 500.00 but $150.00 is good. I like your spirit. I live in LA, so that complicates things. I think there is a way to handle it with Paypal though. I know that they handle Craigslist transactions and I think they can hold payments. I will look into it more.

I apologize for that, but you didn't quote me in your response, and based on the sequence of the posts it could be interpreted that you were extending the thought of the post above yours. Also, just by mentioning Edwards injuries you were comparing them. I wouldn't call a game every now and then a real history of being injured. So you are ready to wager on the Bills reaching 10 victories? How much? $100.00 ?

No, you did compare them (Trent was never good. It wasn't the concussion. You obviously invested a lot of faith in him and don't want to admit that he blew. Fitz is way better and has already proven it). And you seemed to want to remind me that Fitz could easily end up injured, but that's a GIVEN. We ALL know that. Tom Brady could end up injured too, but no one goes around saying that "we can't tell how good they are this year, I'm not buying in because he might get injured". Plus, Fitz doesn't have a history of injury or something.

Go to the archives, he was ALWAYS Capt. Checkdown. Trentative. His Yards Per Pass average was ALWAYS way too low, and EVERYBODY knew it.

Ugh. That's not my point. The point is that many people here are hemming and hawing about the team, when they could just give a real opinion. Do you !@#$ing think they are the real thing or not? "I don't know" isn't an opinion. "I will tell you after they make the playoffs" is worse. Half the people are posting "why are you asking if they are better? They are obviously better", and others are saying "there no possible way to know". People criticize the team all off season, yet now they suddenly have no real opinion

Aside from the 2008 comparison, the question is really, "Do you think this team is a real playoff contender or not?" I believe they are. Howie Long went out on a limb and said, "The Bills are for real" and he actually has (at least a little bit) to lose. Plenty of "sports analysts have come out "yay or nay" on the Bills. It isn't too much to ask that question of the posters of this board."It's too early to tell" after an offseason of complaining about the teams direction is a cop out. You're a compelling poster, and I'm on the edge of my seat for your hindsight analysis. Thank you for your time.

That's a cop out. And not even clever, so you don't need that smug emoticon. How about a wager then? Apply your football knowledge and decide if it's worthwhile. Again, anyone can say, "we'll see". I'm claiming that my football insight tells me they are better, and I'm confident they will prove it. I'm not celebrating anything.

Yeah, I think we all know that a QB can get injured and it can ruin a team's season. It really doesn't need to be discussed, it's a given. But TE was never ANYWHERE NEAR what Fitz is doing. He never threw the !@#$ing ball more than ten yards deep. A criticism of the defense I could understand, but TE is not comparable to Fitz. If you can't see the difference in the performances of the 2 teams and the 2 QB's you're !@#$ing blind. I'm ready to wager.... I searched the archives but couldn't find any posts by me, but I saw plenty criticizing the rinky dink passing game of TE. Been watching for 31 years. This team reminds me way more of 1988 than 2008.

You're out of your mind. Get some help. Fitz's season is already way beyond anything TE ever did. Have you been watching the games? He is moving the offense all over the field. No team has ever scored touchdowns on every 2nd half possession. With TE I was celebrating 1st downs! I NEVER thought he was the answer, and he NEVER was. I'm not gonna bother arguing about TE. Again, get some help.

I don't think ANY of these numbers are what to look at to see if they are better, or to convince me they are a better team! It's not in the numbers, it's in watching them play. It's clear that Fitz is a way better QB than TE is, was, or ever could have been. Even if they had LOST one of these games. I don't believe that is going to change. I can see they are better coached, better strategically, and most importantly, INSPIRED. I don't believe that is going to change. I'm not some polly-anna fan "yay, my Bills, I love'em" That's like my mom or grandma. "Look at'em go!" "Our boys are winners!" No. I'm watching the games and can tell that they play fearlessly on offense and put lots of pressure on defenses. This offense, unlike any Bills offense since Jim Kelly, dictates the game to the defense. I don't believe that is going to change, even when they play some of the best defenses. I can also tell that they have improved at crucial positions on the defense. The linebackers are way better. I don't believe that is going to change. I also believe that one new guy on the D-line (Dareus) can exponentially improve the play of the guys around him. With him paired up with K Williams, this defense made a big leap, even if the numbers might not show it. I believe after a few more weeks it will be more apparent (the teams they played had very specialized strengths that skewed the stats). These are some of the reasons that I KNOW they are better.

Thanks. People, what do your football instincts tell you? If you have watched football for years, you should have something more to offer than "oh, we'll see. I have seen other teams fall apart." That's not really an opinion. To say "there's no way to know" NOW, after an offseason of critiquing every move by the organization sure seems like a cop out.

I don't think it is either, but there are people on this board comparing them to the 2008 team. Have you been reading this forum? All year long we exchange opinions and analysis. "Chan blows", "draft sucked", "no business drafting that guy", "tell me what Chan has REALLY done to improve this team", "DJ had them at 9-7" etc. Or "They aren't better until they win more than last year". No,they are better NOW, and I'm ready to put my money where my mouth is.

Bump.

The difference is that this team is way better. First off this team came back from 21 down to beat the Patriots. This team has many different players and coaches, and has shown explosiveness on offense going back to last season. In 2008 I NEVER bought in. Some here are too beaten down to recognize the difference between these Bills teams. They feel they have acquired wisdom that allows them to "keep things in perspective". I'm not impressed by guys that can look back in hindsight to proclaim "this is a good team" at the end of the year. Plenty of guys seemed to "know" that "Fitz isn't a franchise QB", "they are going nowhere with this O-line" etc, BEFORE the season started.. How about showing some foresight and some real insight into NFL football by going out on a limb and assessing the Bills future? I'm willing to wager that these Bills will win 10 games, any takers?