Gutted

[TheCockSportif]

10 hours ago, Simon said:

 

Last week we came up with a new word for it:

 

"Dabolish"

I'd like to dabolish this newly-found word.  🙂

[Don Otreply]

17 hours ago, McBean said:

hahahahahahahahahahaha

 

We barely beat new England’s practice squad 

 

You guys are funny

We are funny, great senses of humor in fact, tolerant too...

 

Go Bills!!!

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

15 hours ago, McBean said:

This Bills team are frauds who take after their lame duck HC who is terrible.

 

 

 

I normally enjoy your takes ... but    Don't take this wrong.   

 

I think you might need to take a break from football.   

 

 

[TigerJ]

Buffalo may not have an easy game left on the schedule with Miami getting better.  Maybe Denver, but that is an away game, which automatically makes it a bit harder.  They definitely have a gauntlet they need to run, and they do need to get much better if they want to get through it with more than a couple wins.

[Shaw66]

18 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

 

And it stops him doing the thing he does best. When he is rushing we look a lot better.

I woke up this morning thinking about Star Lotulelei.  For all the abuse he has gotten around here, I think his absence may be the single biggest reason we're seeing the defensive line struggle, and in particular the single biggest reason Oliver seems to have disappeared.   With a quality, grind-it-out 1-tech guy, the 3-tech guy beside gets better.  When you have that pair playing well in the middle, then you can afford to have your DEs play more in attack mode, rather than trying to shore up the middle.  

 

Maybe Phillips can still grow into that guy, but I doubt it.  Zimmer's play has been encouraging, but he probably isn't it either.  

 

Given Star's age, I expect we'll see Beane make some kind of move in the off-season to get a real 1-tech guy in.  

[26TrapDraw]

18 hours ago, ColoradoBills said:

 

w

This is hilarious to me. We've been losers for so long that we steal a win and that's all that matters. Real fans of our beloved Bills can see we are in deep shyt on Defense. We state concern and the response is we got the W.

That won't be the case in the playoffs if the D doesn't get its s#$@ together . There are those of us who would like to see the Bills win a f#$&ing playoff game... Jesus.

[GunnerBill]

20 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

I woke up this morning thinking about Star Lotulelei.  For all the abuse he has gotten around here, I think his absence may be the single biggest reason we're seeing the defensive line struggle, and in particular the single biggest reason Oliver seems to have disappeared.   With a quality, grind-it-out 1-tech guy, the 3-tech guy beside gets better.  When you have that pair playing well in the middle, then you can afford to have your DEs play more in attack mode, rather than trying to shore up the middle.  

 

Maybe Phillips can still grow into that guy, but I doubt it.  Zimmer's play has been encouraging, but he probably isn't it either.  

 

Given Star's age, I expect we'll see Beane make some kind of move in the off-season to get a real 1-tech guy in.  

 

Oliver has far from disappeared. He has been one of our best defensive players the past two games - except for when they ask him to play as the 1tech because they have nobody else.  When they let him rush he is disrupting the pocket frequently.

[Shaw66]

3 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

Oliver has far from disappeared. He has been one of our best defensive players the past two games - except for when they ask him to play as the 1tech because they have nobody else.  When they let him rush he is disrupting the pocket frequently.

That's a fair comment.  I mentioned him in my Review.   Disappeared isn't exactly right.  

 

I still think my point is correct, and I think that if Star were on the field, Oliver would be a major disruptive force.   As it is, I think Oliver's talent is being dedicated to stopping the Bills from being steam-rollered.  

[GunnerBill]

2 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

That's a fair comment.  I mentioned him in my Review.   Disappeared isn't exactly right.  

 

I still think my point is correct, and I think that if Star were on the field, Oliver would be a major disruptive force.   As it is, I think Oliver's talent is being dedicated to stopping the Bills from being steam-rollered.  

 

Yea any snap where they are playing him at 1 tech is a waste of his talents at 3 tech.

 

The Bills are missing Star but that isn't because Star is great.... he is not he is a decent starting level NFL 1 tech. The problem is the drop off to the next supposed 1 tech on our roster has been huge. Phillips is getting absolutely bullied.

[Shaw66]

Just now, GunnerBill said:

 

Yea any snap where they are playing him at 1 tech is a waste of his talents at 3 tech.

 

The Bills are missing Star but that isn't because Star is great.... he is not he is a decent starting level NFL 1 tech. The problem is the drop off to the next supposed 1 tech on our roster has been huge. Phillips is getting absolutely bullied.

That's well said.  I wasn't trying to say that Star's a, well, star.  Just that his impact on the game wasn't appreciated last season, and we're seeing it this season.  People within the Bills organization defended Star last year, saying he had the impact the Bills wanted and needed in the middle.  There's no glamor in playing that position well - the only glamor is if you happen to be a total stud at that position.  Star wasn't the total stud; he's just a guy who can play the position in a solid, non-glamorous way. 

 

You're right.  The relative weakness of Phillips and Zimmer in that spot is the real problem.  Not Star's greatness.  Last spring Beane should have shored up the position better, and once Star opted out, Beane should have gotten someone better into the building.  Maybe there was no one to be had - I don't know. 

[thebandit27]

31 minutes ago, BeefCurtns said:

This is hilarious to me. We've been losers for so long that we steal a win and that's all that matters. Real fans of our beloved Bills can see we are in deep shyt on Defense. We state concern and the response is we got the W.

That won't be the case in the playoffs if the D doesn't get its s#$@ together . There are those of us who would like to see the Bills win a f#$&ing playoff game... Jesus.

So wait, “real fans” don’t accept wins; “real fans” demand that wins happen in certain ways and with specific emphases?

 

Thats...interesting.

[GunnerBill]

21 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

That's well said.  I wasn't trying to say that Star's a, well, star.  Just that his impact on the game wasn't appreciated last season, and we're seeing it this season.  People within the Bills organization defended Star last year, saying he had the impact the Bills wanted and needed in the middle.  There's no glamor in playing that position well - the only glamor is if you happen to be a total stud at that position.  Star wasn't the total stud; he's just a guy who can play the position in a solid, non-glamorous way. 

 

You're right.  The relative weakness of Phillips and Zimmer in that spot is the real problem.  Not Star's greatness.  Last spring Beane should have shored up the position better, and once Star opted out, Beane should have gotten someone better into the building.  Maybe there was no one to be had - I don't know. 

 

I did say in the summer (and I took some heat for it) that I thought they were depending a lot on Harry coming off an injury on the basis of 4 good games at the start of 2019. It was always a big gamble for me.

Edited November 2, 2020 by GunnerBill

[26TrapDraw]

1 minute ago, thebandit27 said:

So wait, “real fans” don’t accept wins; “real fans” demand that wins happen in certain ways and with specific emphases?

 

Thats...interesting.

Bandit I get that a win is a win is a win. Keep stacking them. I am not only a die hard Bills fan I am also a fan of football and I see a defense that couldn't stop a pop warner offense. That's the concern. I'm sure I'm not alone in that sentiment .

[Niagara Bill]

46 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

I woke up this morning thinking about Star Lotulelei.  For all the abuse he has gotten around here, I think his absence may be the single biggest reason we're seeing the defensive line struggle, and in particular the single biggest reason Oliver seems to have disappeared.   With a quality, grind-it-out 1-tech guy, the 3-tech guy beside gets better.  When you have that pair playing well in the middle, then you can afford to have your DEs play more in attack mode, rather than trying to shore up the middle.  

 

Maybe Phillips can still grow into that guy, but I doubt it.  Zimmer's play has been encouraging, but he probably isn't it either.  

 

Given Star's age, I expect we'll see Beane make some kind of move in the off-season to get a real 1-tech guy in.  

I agree with your comments on Star, but after watching Bears last night ( and they lost), I now know how bad our linebackers are. Their backers are powerful, fast and dominant. At this point we have an injured Milano, an over hyped young ML. and nothing more. 

[Shaw66]

4 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

I did say in the summer (and I took some hat for it) that I thought they were depending a lot on Harry coming off an injury on the basis of 4 good games at the start of 2019. It was always a big gamble for me.

Yeah, I've learned to listen more to your take on things.  Seriously.  

 

And it wasn't even about coming off injury.  It's whether he's physically and psychologically suited for the position.  It requires extreme dedication to the game, without any real glory. 

 

Last Thursday night, some interior lineman made a good play that Fox highlighted in a replay.   Talking about what it takes to fight like that against really big men, play after play, Troy Aikman said something like "that's a life that I truly don't understand."   I thought that was remarkable.   Here was a guy who played that game for 20 years, side by side with and dependent on the success of those linemen, and Aikman was saying that he truly didn't understand what it would be like to battle like that, over and over.   It was beyond a compliment; Aikman was in awe of the toughness and will power of those guys. 

 

I'm not Phillips has what it takes and, as you say, it was a big risk to assume that he did, and it was a bigger risk after Star sat out.  

[billsfan89]

3 hours ago, Gordio said:

 

 

Your ridiculous.  They are 6-2 with what we could all agree was loaded front half of the schedule & they just put a nail in the coffin of the team that has won the division 11 years in a row and has tormented us for the past 2 decades.  If you can't be happy about the Bills situation this morning my guess is there is no pleasing you.  A wise old man once told me "90% of the fun is enjoying the journey to get to your destination."  There is a lot of truth to that statement as I remember Bills super bowl runs, and the funnest times were watching that team grow and continue to take steps to where they wanted to go.  Go rewatch the 89 Monday night game against the Broncos.  They loss the game but I remember Dierdorf mentioned at the top of the game he has never seen a city so excited about the future of this team and mentioned a few times about the electricity in the stadium that night.  What an ignorant Debbie downer post, bit I don't expect anything less from you.

 

If I told you in 2012 that the Bills would make the playoffs 2 out of 3 years and be 6-2 with a very good QB and a solid semblance of talent around the roster these fans would have taken that in a heartbeat. I get the frustrations with the run defense and the close games against mediocre to bad teams. But good teams in the NFL beat bad and mid-level teams. The Bills are a good team, maybe not a great team but a good one. This year is about Josh's development and trying to get the defense to be decent enough to give Josh a chance. 

[Shaw66]

4 minutes ago, Niagara Bill said:

I agree with your comments on Star, but after watching Bears last night ( and they lost), I now know how bad our linebackers are. Their backers are powerful, fast and dominant. At this point we have an injured Milano, an over hyped young ML. and nothing more. 

True.   I thought about that a little watching that game.   But you have to think about what the scheme is the Bills are trying to play. 

 

Somebody dumping on Edmunds posted the replay of Newton's fumble and complained about how Edmunds let himself get taken out of the play.  When you watch the replay, you see that Edmunds is being driven downfield by two blockers, at least one of whom is a lineman, and I think the other was too.  Linebackers make plays in the running game by staying clean and running freely to the ball.  That happens only when their defensive lineman occupy the offensive line.   When the Pats can afford to get two offensive linemen downfield to block Edmunds, your defensive lineman have to make plays (which, it turns out, Zimmer did).

 

Put another way, if Milano and Edmunds were playing behind Mack and Nicks, the Bills defense would be crushing it.  And, as I said, I think it all starts with a guy who can play the 1-tech and absorb blockers.  Then Oliver is better, and the DEs are better, too.  

[GunnerBill]

4 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

True.   I thought about that a little watching that game.   But you have to think about what the scheme is the Bills are trying to play. 

 

Somebody dumping on Edmunds posted the replay of Newton's fumble and complained about how Edmunds let himself get taken out of the play.  When you watch the replay, you see that Edmunds is being driven downfield by two blockers, at least one of whom is a lineman, and I think the other was too.  Linebackers make plays in the running game by staying clean and running freely to the ball.  That happens only when their defensive lineman occupy the offensive line.   When the Pats can afford to get two offensive linemen downfield to block Edmunds, your defensive lineman have to make plays (which, it turns out, Zimmer did).

 

Put another way, if Milano and Edmunds were playing behind Mack and Nicks, the Bills defense would be crushing it.  And, as I said, I think it all starts with a guy who can play the 1-tech and absorb blockers.  Then Oliver is better, and the DEs are better, too.  

 

It was a lineman and Burkhead. I thought it was two linemen initially as well. But you are absolutely right Phillips got manhandled on that play which was why two blockers were running straight at Tremaine. Edmunds was not great again last night but to put that play at his door is not fair IMO. And as you say it ended up the play that won us the game haha.

[billsfan89]

4 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

It was a lineman and Burkhead. I thought it was two linemen initially as well. But you are absolutely right Phillips got manhandled on that play which was why two blockers were running straight at Tremaine. Edmunds was not great again last night but to put that play at his door is not fair IMO. And as you say it ended up the play that won us the game haha.

 

I do feel bad for Edumonds, no true one tech and he is hurt. I think he has some issues but I don't think he is a bad player. In fact I think he can be rather good if he had a one tech to keep linemen off of him and got coached up some more. I still hold out hope for him. In 2019 when the team was getting run on due to issues with the DT position (sound familiar) Edumonds was the B word boy of this board and then suddenly when Lugiet was signed and Star turned it on Edumonds played like a dam near all pro. 

[thebandit27]

33 minutes ago, BeefCurtns said:

Bandit I get that a win is a win is a win. Keep stacking them. I am not only a die hard Bills fan I am also a fan of football and I see a defense that couldn't stop a pop warner offense. That's the concern. I'm sure I'm not alone in that sentiment .

No doubt my friend.

 

I view it a bit differently. Pile up wins while you continue to work on ways to optimize your defense. I don’t think anyone is fooling themselves into believing that the D will become dominant, but it’s entirely plausible that they’ll figure out ways to limit what each opponent does best just enough to give themselves a fighting chance each week.

 

So I tend to approach it with the attitude that you keep putting check marks in the W by any means, and do your best to improve the lagging areas.