(hypothetical) Alabama vs. Bills spread

[dorquemada]

2 minutes ago, BisonMan said:

To quote myself from this same topic several weeks back...

 

This is a joke. Today, there are a total of about 53 players from Alabama across all rosters in the NFL:

 

http://www.espn.com/nfl/college

 

This is taking into account all players from every year still young enough to play in the league. This likely spans upwards of 10-12 years of Alabama players. Take a look at that list and tell me how many STARTERS in the NFL are there. Sure, there are some solid players and a few stars but you couldn't field an entire starting roster with that list. Every RB on that list is an NFL backup but they dominated in college. The sole QB on that list was cut by the Bills because he couldn't beat out Peterman (AJ McCarron).

 

It's easy to claim that every player on a current college roster is going to be a superstar or that their QB is a "generation talent". The reality is that across time, this is obviously not true. Also, looking at drafts of NFL teams, players drafted beyond the 3rd round rarely make the starting lineup. Across an entire draft only around 30-35 players end up as starters in the NFL. There is no chance the starters from a single college team could field an NFL caliber starting lineup.

 

Every NFL team would crush the best college team in the country. The only way they don’t cover the spread is if the Bills decide to sit everyone they can to prevent injuries once they were up by 30+ points. Even then they couldn’t help but continue to run up the score.

 

My 2 cents.

 

the funniest thing about your post is the bills scoring 30+ points.  I'm not sure they could do that against an empty field

[Misterbluesky]

2 hours ago, Kirby Jackson said:

Just saw this and thought it warranted a thread.

 

 

Bills or Bulls?

[Rochesterfan]

1 hour ago, GETTOTHE50 said:

could Nick Saban be a better NFL HC than McD?

 

does he take last years Bills to the playoffs?

 

I think thats a more interesting question. 

 

 

 

Based on the job Saban did in Miami - I would say no - he is not a better NFL HC than McDermott - they will have nearly identical records after 2 years, but McDermott has a playoff game to his credit.

[Irv]

12 minutes ago, mannc said:

That's the number of players drafted in one year; it's not the number of players on the roster (or starters) who were eventually drafted because it doesn't include underclassmen who did not come out or who were not draft eligible.  There's every chance that there are 30 guys on the Alabama roster right now who will be drafted (although not in one year) and as many as 12 who will be day-one or day-two picks.  There's not as much of a talent gap as you think there is.  Robert Foster made the Bills 53-man roster and did not even start for the Tide last year (although he certainly got playing time). 

 

Don't we draft new guys every year too?  It's not like our roster is static. 

Edited November 8, 2018 by Irv

[mannc]

Just now, Irv said:

 

Don't we draft new guys every year too? 

I don't understand your point.

[BringBackOrton]

41 minutes ago, Chuck Wagon said:

Not going to lie, it really makes me angry the Bills are the laughing stock of the league.  The Raiders have completely quit 8 games into Gruden's tenure.  Eli looks near as bad as Peterman and that's with Odell.  The Cardinals would be winless if it weren't for the 49ers, who would be winless after Jimmy G. went down if it wasn't for the Raiders.  The Lions look like they've quit, same with the Browns.  

Eli looks so much better than Peterman it’s absurd.

[mannc]

6 minutes ago, BisonMan said:

To quote myself from this same topic several weeks back...

 

This is a joke. Today, there are a total of about 53 players from Alabama across all rosters in the NFL:

 

http://www.espn.com/nfl/college

 

This is taking into account all players from every year still young enough to play in the league. This likely spans upwards of 10-12 years of Alabama players. Take a look at that list and tell me how many STARTERS in the NFL are there. Sure, there are some solid players and a few stars but you couldn't field an entire starting roster with that list. Every RB on that list is an NFL backup but they dominated in college. The sole QB on that list was cut by the Bills because he couldn't beat out Peterman (AJ McCarron).

 

It's easy to claim that every player on a current college roster is going to be a superstar or that their QB is a "generation talent". The reality is that across time, this is obviously not true. Also, looking at drafts of NFL teams, players drafted beyond the 3rd round rarely make the starting lineup. Across an entire draft only around 30-35 players end up as starters in the NFL. There is no chance the starters from a single college team could field an NFL caliber starting lineup.

 

Every NFL team would crush the best college team in the country. The only way they don’t cover the spread is if the Bills decide to sit everyone they can to prevent injuries once they were up by 30+ points. Even then they couldn’t help but continue to run up the score.

 

My 2 cents.

The vast majority of those 53 players were drafted in the past three or four years and that list is littered with NFL stars; I think it supports the idea that there's not a huge talent gap between the Tide and low-end NFL teams.  I would also argue that this might be the most talented Alabama team ever.  I mean, they just skunked undefeated LSU in the Bayou, 29-0.  And they have a bona fide NFL QB, which previous Alabama teams have lacked.  

[LSHMEAB]

11 minutes ago, DCOrange said:

I think Buffalo probably wins, but I just don't think a 28.5 point spread is realistic. IMO, Quinnen Williams and Raekwon Davis would feast on Teller/Bodine/Miller and the pieces that Buffalo has on offense just aren't talented enough to hang 30 on Alabama IMO, which is basically what they'd need to beat the spread. I'm sure the defense would shut Alabama down for the most part; I just don't think the offense is talented enough to hold up their end.

One of their DTs might end up being the #1 pick this year and the other is likely going to be a top 10 pick lol

The more I consider their DL vs the Bills OL, the more I think 28.5 is about right.

[Irv]

8 minutes ago, mannc said:

I don't understand your point.

 

Well let's say that Alabama has 8 guys who can stick on an NFL roster in each of the four classes Freshman - Senior for a total 32.  That's reasonable correct?  That's still less than we have now plus, all of their guys are rookies and many of our guys have tons of experience. I just don't think you can compare the two.  

 

Also - what about experience and strength and coaching?  Saban was an NFL coach.  I don't recall him lofting the Lombardi overhead.  15-17 career NFL coaching record

Edited November 8, 2018 by Irv

[dorquemada]

5 minutes ago, mannc said:

The vast majority of those 53 players were drafted in the past three or four years and that list is littered with NFL stars; I think it supports the idea that there's not a huge talent gap between the Tide and low-end NFL teams.  I would also argue that this might be the most talented Alabama team ever.  I mean, they just skunked undefeated LSU in the Bayou, 29-0.  And they have a bona fide NFL QB, which previous Alabama teams have lacked.  

 

if only the bills had a bona fide NFL qb on their roster

4 minutes ago, Irv said:

 

 

Also - what about experience and strength and coaching?  Saban was an NFL coach.  I don't recall him lofting the Lombardi overhead.  15-17 career NFL coaching record

 

For Saban to have success he has to have near complete control.  He didn't have anything like that in Miami..  He calls at the shots in Alabama though and is the best recruiter they've ever had

[Lurker]

1 hour ago, Kirby Jackson said:

I guess for me, it’s more about the 28.5. If I were betting this game, I’d be betting Bama. The game would be something like 30-10 IMO. Alabama isn’t some college team that has some NFL players. They probably have 20-30 guys on that roster now that will be in the NFL and 15 or so guys that will be drafted in the 1st 2 days. Now, some of them are young but elite talents like Jeudy, Harris and Tua will make a few plays (even against our strong defense). Their OL has multiple guys that would start on our OL now (Williams and Pierschbacher). Their defense has a few stars as well (specifically Quinnen Williams). The Bills would do some scoring but I don’t see them winning by 29 or more.

 

Men against boys, you've got to pick the men, IMO.   

 

Even with all the day 1-2 draft choices Alabama has on their roster, the bulk of their team will never see an NFL game from anywhere but the stands.   Look at the two UDFAs the Bills signed from Alabama this year.   One couldn't catch a cold at the NFL level and the other just came off the practice squad and will likely be last on the team's depth chart at his position, assuming he's even activated on game day.    

 

There's more to the NFL game than physical talent.   There's the experience, savvy and ability to adjust to different schemes that's light years ahead of the college game.    I'd bet on the Bills to beat that spread...

[dorquemada]

9 minutes ago, Lurker said:

 

Men against boys, you've got to pick the men, IMO.   

 

Even with all the day 1-2 draft choices Alabama has on their roster, the bulk of their team will never see an NFL game from anywhere but the stands.   Look at the two UDFAs the Bills signed from Alabama this year.   One couldn't catch a cold at the NFL level and the other just came off the practice squad and will likely be last on the team's depth chart at his position, assuming he's even activated on game day.    

 

There's more to the NFL game than physical talent.   There's the experience, savvy and ability to adjust to different schemes that's light years ahead of the college game.    I'd bet on the Bills to beat that spread...

 

just FYI, Robert Foster rarely saw the field at Alabama.  That was purely a Dabol's Choice.  Mark my words though, Levi Wallace will be a success here.  He's been the underdog his whole life but works harder than anybody and has the desire to succeed that's so rare on the Bills roster

[row_33]

the week leading up to the game they can hit the weight room and show the strength of NFL vets against college children

 

 

Jeff Rutledge and Richard Todd were the last 2 Bama QBs to do much of anything in the NFL

 

 

[billspro]

53 minutes ago, BisonMan said:

To quote myself from this same topic several weeks back...

 

This is a joke. Today, there are a total of about 53 players from Alabama across all rosters in the NFL:

 

http://www.espn.com/nfl/college

 

This is taking into account all players from every year still young enough to play in the league. This likely spans upwards of 10-12 years of Alabama players. Take a look at that list and tell me how many STARTERS in the NFL are there. Sure, there are some solid players and a few stars but you couldn't field an entire starting roster with that list. Every RB on that list is an NFL backup but they dominated in college. The sole QB on that list was cut by the Bills because he couldn't beat out Peterman (AJ McCarron).

 

It's easy to claim that every player on a current college roster is going to be a superstar or that their QB is a "generation talent". The reality is that across time, this is obviously not true. Also, looking at drafts of NFL teams, players drafted beyond the 3rd round rarely make the starting lineup. Across an entire draft only around 30-35 players end up as starters in the NFL. There is no chance the starters from a single college team could field an NFL caliber starting lineup.

 

Every NFL team would crush the best college team in the country. The only way they don’t cover the spread is if the Bills decide to sit everyone they can to prevent injuries once they were up by 30+ points. Even then they couldn’t help but continue to run up the score.

 

My 2 cents.

 

It doesn’t need to be a starting caliber NFL roster to lose by more than 4TDs

44 minutes ago, LSHMEAB said:

The more I consider their DL vs the Bills OL, the more I think 28.5 is about right.

 

Thats the big thing is we don’t have an NFL oline and Alabama does have an NFL dline.

1 hour ago, Alphadawg7 said:

 

Im not dreaming...we would easily run on that team, and McCoy would blow past the second level with ease for big gains while Ivory would slam it down their throat.  

 

Lol we have not ran well on anyone this year. They usually have 4+ first rounders (over 2 or 3 drafts) in their front 7.

[The Senator]

I would take ‘bama -28.5

 

Yes, the Bills are that bad.

Edited November 8, 2018 by The Senator

[Kirby Jackson]

2 hours ago, mannc said:

Yeah, I think a lot of people underestimate just how much NFL-caliber talent a team like Alabama has.  There are far more guys on Alabama who will be drafted in the first round than there are former first round picks on the Bills.  Pretty much every starter will at least get a shot in the NFL.  Hell, Robert Foster made the Bills’ 53 this year and he didn’t even start for the Tide last year.  And then there is Alabama’s QB play and coaching, both of which are superior to the Bills’.

That’s well said. People in Buffalo, in general, don’t watch a lot of college football. There are 5 or 6 guys on Alabama (minimum) that would start on the Bills now. Tua is as good of a QB prospect as I can remember.

 

So many here assume “the Bills would trash them”  but guys on this Alabama team will be starting all over the NFL in the next 3 years. They aren’t going to be magically better a year from now. Tre White went from a really good SEC CB to a really good NFL CB in a year. He didn’t get way better in 8 months. He was largely the same player just now in an NFL uniform instead of an LSU uniform. The gap between the top college talent and bottom NFL talent is WAY smaller than its ever been. The NFL middle class is no longer around. You have top guys and guys on rookie contracts. Don’t underestimate that.

1 hour ago, Misterbluesky said:

Bills or Bulls?

Bills (but good question)

56 minutes ago, Lurker said:

 

Men against boys, you've got to pick the men, IMO.   

 

Even with all the day 1-2 draft choices Alabama has on their roster, the bulk of their team will never see an NFL game from anywhere but the stands.   Look at the two UDFAs the Bills signed from Alabama this year.   One couldn't catch a cold at the NFL level and the other just came off the practice squad and will likely be last on the team's depth chart at his position, assuming he's even activated on game day.    

 

There's more to the NFL game than physical talent.   There's the experience, savvy and ability to adjust to different schemes that's light years ahead of the college game.    I'd bet on the Bills to beat that spread...

You are missing the irony here. The guy that the Bills had on their opening day roster was a backup at Alabama. You are WAY underestimating the talent level. There are, without question, more 1st round picks on that Alabam roster than on the Bills.

 

I’d encourage anyone that hasn’t watched Alabama to watch them before commenting. They shouldn’t be looked at as “a nice college team.” They may be the greatest college team ever (and that’s not hyperbole). They are right there with 1995 Nebraska and 2001 Miami imo.

Edited November 8, 2018 by Kirby Jackson

[GunnerBill]

The way the Bills played week 1 and the first half of week 2 when they were not an NFL standard team by a long chalk I'd have taken Alabama if I am getting 28.5 points. 

[dorquemada]

1 minute ago, GunnerBill said:

The way the Bills played week 1 and the first half of week 2 when they were not an NFL standard team by a long chalk I'd have taken Alabama if I am getting 28.5 points. 

 

For the last few weeks, the bills have been getting worse by big gulps.  The posters here who are in awe of their prowess must be watching some other team and confusing them for the bills

[Kirby Jackson]

2 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

The way the Bills played week 1 and the first half of week 2 when they were not an NFL standard team by a long chalk I'd have taken Alabama if I am getting 28.5 points. 

You watch a lot of football. Would you agree that there are (potentially) 5 guys on Alabama’s offense that could start on the Bills now? 

- Tua

- Jeudy

- Williams

- Ruggs

- Pierschbacher

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

3 hours ago, Soda Popinski said:

It's really not even close to debatable.   

 

...would be worth its weight in gold to hear Saban whine and moan..................