Perspective: It's been 1-game since AFC Loss

[Ethan in Cleveland]

33 minutes ago, Jobot said:

 

I 100% agree and feel that next year is the year that we see an unstoppable force in Buffalo. We've got so much talent on the squad right now.. but it's young talent that needs to improve throughout this season.

I know it is silly and it is only 1 week but it feels like Bills 1989.  So much pent up anticipation and pressure to perform.  I give McD crap all the time but honesty this is one of his strongest traits as a HC. He usually does a good job in keeping the team focused.  Case in point the run they went on after the Hopkins miracle TD catch.  

[Jobot]

39 minutes ago, FilthyBeast said:

 

I still think the whole the 'run it back' idea is what will ultimately lead to this teams downfall and why they may flounder this year and be nothing more than a WC or one and done playoff team even if they win the division.

 

Obviously TB did it because they won a SB and have the GOAT on their roster.

 

The Chiefs who made the SB and throttled the Bills decided it wasn't enough to 'run in back' as did many other playoff teams from last year.

 

With all that said, I think what we saw yesterday and in the AFCCG is this teams floor which isn't good enough to win against other good teams 9 out of 10 times. I feel we'll see their ceiling soon but don't be surprised if this team as a whole does regress because they simply aren't as good as most fans think and when you have multlple glaring holes like we do you aren't a legit SB contender.

 

What I always go back to is the steady and consistent improvement from McDermott going back to his first day on the job. It would be betting against everything that we have already watched, to think that the Bills suddenly plateau.

[Jobot]

37 minutes ago, Nextmanup said:

For some reason, Bills fans don't want to talk about Josh Allen's terrible performance yesterday.

 

It all comes down to the QB, on all teams, in all games, every weekend.

 

It's not that hard to figure out.

 

If Josh plays like he did a few seasons ago, we'll be a fringe wildcard team.

 

If he plays consistently like he did last year, we'll be a force to reckon with with and have a deep playoff push again.

 

Keep your eye on Josh.  Who is he?  We keep finding out 1 week at a time.  

 

 

 

I think what we saw is consistent with what happened all playoffs last season.. Top D-lines that can stuff the run easily and generate pressure with their front four alone, is a problem for the Bills, not just Josh. They NEED to figure out the counter to these types of opponents.

 

Now if Allen had this game against a mediocre D-line/opponent.. then you'd see more alarms sounding from Allen's play.

[hondo in seattle]

3 hours ago, Jobot said:

There was so much hype surrounding this Bills squad going into week-1, and for good reason. But let's not forget that this is the same roster that lost in the AFC game, just ONE game ago. So expecting a massive improvement week-1.. is just not realistic. Last year when the Bills beat the Steelers, they were playing their best football of the season, and firing on all cylinders. Yesterday, they were rusty, sloppy, and not at their best.. and still realistically should have won that game. So take comfort in the fact that  McDermott has steadily made improvements from day-1 that he arrived  at OBD. This team will continue to improve, and come playoffs, be at their new ceiling of play, which hopefully is good enough to win a Super Bowl.

 

That makes it a two game losing streak.

 

Just saying.

[Jobot]

22 minutes ago, hondo in seattle said:

 

That makes it a two game losing streak.

 

Just saying.

 

Yes it does, in hindsight it's an obvious example of consistent performance against Top D-Line opponents. The point is, this team didn't have the answer to this type of opponent last year, and still doesn't because it's the same cast of players. It's going to take a lot of work by the coaching staff and players to figure this out. Thankfully, the McDermott track record of being able to improve year over year, week over week, gives me confidence that they'll solve this in time for playoffs.

[Dr. K]

2 hours ago, FilthyBeast said:

 

I've noticed this as well, especially from some of the homer bloggers/local media who are all blaming Daboll, McD, oline, etc but no mention of Allen.

 

The bottom line is that one game doesn't make a season, but in this one game Allen looked like pre 2020 Allen which is not a good thing. And if he doesn't come out have a great statistical game against the Dolphins (win or lose) you better believe it will be time to start questioning the big contract extension which personally I felt was premature if anything because I wanted to see Allen repeat 2020 especially in full NFL stadiums with fans again.

 

Allen was flat out horrible yesterday and you don't get a pass when your worth a quarter of a billion dollars especially with wildly overthrown passes to wide open players.

Aaron Rodgers yesterday:   

 

15/28, 133 yards, 0 TD, 2 Int, Passer Rating of 36.8

 

I would not draw conclusions from one game. 

[FilthyBeast]

6 minutes ago, Dr. K said:

Aaron Rodgers yesterday:   

 

15/28, 133 yards, 0 TD, 2 Int, Passer Rating of 36.8

 

I would not draw conclusions from one game. 

 

Again, this was a home game for Allen and the Bills which I feel is not getting enough attention.

 

Had this game been in Pitt I would have walked away feeling much better knowing that road clunkers happen especially against a team that appears to still be playoff caliber.

 

But it was on our field and elite SB teams and QB's find a way to win even when the opposing team throws their best haymakers at you (i.e. Browns/Chiefs).

 

Sure the final margin was 7 points, but the Steelers came into the Bills house and destroyed the oline (without blitzing) and made Allen look terrible in the process. Against a team like the Chiefs that doesn't have a work in progress offense and QB past his prime we lose by 14-17+ points easy.

[Dr. K]

14 minutes ago, FilthyBeast said:

 

Again, this was a home game for Allen and the Bills which I feel is not getting enough attention.

 

Had this game been in Pitt I would have walked away feeling much better knowing that road clunkers happen especially against a team that appears to still be playoff caliber.

 

But it was on our field and elite SB teams and QB's find a way to win even when the opposing team throws their best haymakers at you (i.e. Browns/Chiefs).

 

Sure the final margin was 7 points, but the Steelers came into the Bills house and destroyed the oline (without blitzing) and made Allen look terrible in the process. Against a team like the Chiefs that doesn't have a work in progress offense and QB past his prime we lose by 14-17+ points easy.

If elite QBs find a way to win, does that mean Rodgers is not elite? The Packers were playing the Saints on a neutral field after the Saints could not even practice in their own facility, starting a QB (Winston) who warmed the bench last season.

 

Even elite QBs crap the bed sometimes. 

 

Yes, Allen had a poor game, and the Bills offense as a whole was out of synch. The o-line got beaten up. Against this same Steeler team (which was 10-1 at the time) last year, Allen played an excellent game. I don't think yesterday's result  tells us anything dispositive about Allen or the Bills.

Edited September 13, 2021 by Dr. K

[TPS]

5 hours ago, Jobot said:

There was so much hype surrounding this Bills squad going into week-1, and for good reason. But let's not forget that this is the same roster that lost in the AFC game, just ONE game ago. So expecting a massive improvement week-1.. is just not realistic. Last year when the Bills beat the Steelers, they were playing their best football of the season, and firing on all cylinders. Yesterday, they were rusty, sloppy, and not at their best.. and still realistically should have won that game. So take comfort in the fact that  McDermott has steadily made improvements from day-1 that he arrived  at OBD. This team will continue to improve, and come playoffs, be at their new ceiling of play, which hopefully is good enough to win a Super Bowl.

Yeah, they may look back on this game similar to the loss to Arizona last year.

[without a drought]

2 hours ago, hondo in seattle said:

 

That makes it a two game losing streak.

 

Just saying.

Yep, haven't won a game in 8 months either