Week 9 thread - We’re on to Cincinnati

[Gregg]

20 minutes ago, newcam2012 said:

You are entitled to your opinion. I vastly disagree with your take. I feel that you are settling for goodness but not greatness. That's not my mentality. As a fan with an elite QB, I want the Bills to at least win an AFC championship game, make a SB appearance, and win the SB. I don't think this is an unrealistic goal. The Bills have failed to do the above repeatedly. I cannot accept the KC rational as an excuse. That's just unacceptable as a fan. 

 

As time passes it becomes more clear that McD isn't the guy to led this team past KC or Cincinnati. In fact teams like the Jags, Balt, and Miami may have overtaken the Bills. At the very least the gap has drastically closed. Not sure how any Bills fans can see it any other way. 

 

No doubt Bills football has been much better to watch. The playoff run has been great. However, I suggest that this shouldn't clout your judgement on McD and the goal of the team. The goal for years now hasn't been just make the playoffs.

 

I strongly disagree that it isn't McD fault. He absolutely blew the best chance the team had to make a SB appearance in 13 seconds. How you discredit that and can't see that is baffling. Then the following year his team was unprepared to play the Bengals. Despite all the circumstances it's the coaches responsibility to have his team ready. It's the coaches responsibility to have a great game plan. It's the coaches responsibility to make solid in game adjustments. We saw none of this. Zero! Zilch! Nada! How you discredit, dismiss, and fail to see this is baffling. This fan is tired of watching a head coach squander opportunities to advance this team to a SB. It's clear as day this coach has repeatedly failed.

 

This year is shaping up to be even a bigger failure because a playoff birth is in serious doubt. I suspect you will defend McD and say something like McD has been great.  Look at the six years of playoff appearances. Sure beats the past. That fails very short here...

 

It's time for change and we will see why on Sunday night. 

 

 

 

Let's say the season does head south. If Pegula were to make a change (I don't think he will) would it be a house cleaning with Beane and McDermott or just McDermott with Beane getting the chance to hire his 1st Bills HC. What kind of change do you think happens if Pegula does in fact make one.

[newcam2012]

29 minutes ago, Gregg said:

 

Let's say the season does head south. If Pegula were to make a change (I don't think he will) would it be a house cleaning with Beane and McDermott or just McDermott with Beane getting the chance to hire his 1st Bills HC. What kind of change do you think happens if Pegula does in fact make one.

I'm not sure. I suppose it depends on who is available. It's really beyond my level of expertise. Others here probably can answer this question. I just know as a fan the McD era has run it's course. 

40 minutes ago, Chaos said:

I am not a strong supporter of McDermott, but don’t think this game against the Bengals proves things one way or another.  if the Bills win a blowout victory Sunday, and go on to bow out early in the playoffs, the win will be meaningless. Conversely, if the Bills lose in a blowout loss and the Bills eventually go on to win the AFC championship game, the loss will be meaningless.  

I think the Bills miss the playoffs if they lose this game. Of course on paper that's not true. Being 5-4 with their schedule and their AFC losses makes it an extremely difficult task. If course, we fans won't give up hope. Realistically, it's a pretty big dagger in the playoffs hopes. 

Edited November 1, 2023 by newcam2012

[first_and_ten]

I was kind of shocked that the spread was only 1.5 for the Bengals. Am I missing something?

[Boatdrinks]

28 minutes ago, Gregg said:

 

Let's say the season does head south. If Pegula were to make a change (I don't think he will) would it be a house cleaning with Beane and McDermott or just McDermott with Beane getting the chance to hire his 1st Bills HC. What kind of change do you think happens if Pegula does in fact make one.

Jmo of course , but if a change were made ( it’s a huge if ) I don’t think Beane would be shown the door. I don’t think TPegs does this unless the rest of the season is a complete disaster. I mean , they’re 5-3 and a game back in the division. If they finish under .500 you may see a change. 

[Boatdrinks]

7 minutes ago, first_and_ten said:

I was kind of shocked that the spread was only 1.5 for the Bengals. Am I missing something?

Maybe. The Bills are 5-3, have Josh Allen at QB and have a + 86 point differential. CIN is at home ( usu good for a point and a half ) and are 4-3. They have a point differential of - 13. This line seems about right. Maybe it goes to -2 or something. 

[Generic_Bills_Fan]

8 minutes ago, first_and_ten said:

I was kind of shocked that the spread was only 1.5 for the Bengals. Am I missing something?

I don’t think non bills fans/ the handicappers are as high on the bengals as bills fans are.  Yea they have started slow before but their team has a lot more obvious deficiencies this season than in past years.

 

who knows what’ll happen but I think we’re being a bit too reactionary about their most recent win leading up to the game.  
 

not that this means much of anything but the bills have a massive edge in espns fpi vs the bengals.  Can’t say I’ve ever seen a betting underdog viewed so favorably by that metric before 

Edited November 1, 2023 by Generic_Bills_Fan

[first_and_ten]

6 minutes ago, Boatdrinks said:

Maybe. The Bills are 5-3, have Josh Allen at QB and have a + 86 point differential. CIN is at home ( usu good for a point and a half ) and are 4-3. They have a point differential of - 13. This line seems about right. Maybe it goes to -2 or something. 

 

Some on ESPN are saying Cincinnati is now the best team in the AFC. The point differential is because of their bad start. I know some of us Bills fans can be pessimistic at times 😒 

[Big Turk]

Imagine being "afraid" of any team with Josh Allen as your QB.  Give me a break.

[HereComesTheReignAgain]

39 minutes ago, newcam2012 said:

I'm not sure. I suppose it depends on who is available. It's really beyond my level of expertise. Others here probably can answer this question. I just know as a fan the McD era has run it's course. 

I think the Bills miss the playoffs if they lose this game. Of course on paper that's not true. Being 5-4 with their schedule and their AFC losses makes it an extremely difficult task. If course, we fans won't give up hope. Realistically, it's a pretty big dagger in the playoffs hopes. 

That has never stopped you from offering your opinion before.

[Beck Water]

8 minutes ago, Generic_Bills_Fan said:

I don’t think non bills fans/ the handicappers are as high on the bengals as bills fans are.  Yea they have started slow before but their team has a lot more obvious deficiencies this season than in past years.

 

who knows what’ll happen but I think we’re being a bit too reactionary about their most recent win leading up to the game.  
 

not that this means much of anything but the bills have a massive edge in espns fpi vs the bengals.  Can’t say I’ve ever seen a betting underdog viewed so favorably by that metric before 

 

It kind of reminds me of October 2021.  The Bills had been beaten in KC the previous season (with Josh's L arm in a shoulder brace) and then in the AFCCG.

We went into KC and, dare I use the word, dominated them.  We got out to an early lead by scoring a TD after KC was held to a FG, and we never let go of it.

Then we took them down to the wireiest of wires in the Division round - they had so little left they looked bad vs. the Bengals.

 

Before that game, many - maybe most - fans had us penciled in as a loss.

 

Oh...and that game was payed without Milano.   LB were Edmunds and Klein.

 

I don't know what will happen in Cincy.  Hopefully, the Bills will come out hungry and fierce, ready to prove that last year's playoff game was a fluke.  But, they could come out shell-shocked and suffering from PTSD after the inevitable Damar Hamlin reprise the media will force down our throats.  And, it could be we simply don't have the hosses on defense any more nor the match between players and scheme on offense.

[Gregg]

14 minutes ago, first_and_ten said:

 

Some on ESPN are saying Cincinnati is now the best team in the AFC. The point differential is because of their bad start. I know some of us Bills fans can be pessimistic at times 😒 

 

I still think they will have a tough time getting by the Ravens. The Ravens matchup very well with them and they already beat them in Cincinnati.

[Boatdrinks]

8 minutes ago, first_and_ten said:

 

Some on ESPN are saying Cincinnati is now the best team in the AFC. The point differential is because of their bad start. I know some of us Bills fans can be pessimistic at times 😒 

First mistake : listening to anyone on ESPN. It’s hot take city these days , not reasoned football talk. I suppose their bad start - of which they’ve made a habit - can be excused away ? It’s funny , any time possible reasons are given for the Bills issues they are called excuses. The negativity and fatalism on this board is something to behold. Must be some sort of defense mechanism. Anyway, the line is not .. well, out of line . It sounds about right for two NFL teams in their current situations. Folks need to put their BBFS aside for a moment when looking at these things. 

[billieve420]

Will be interesting to see how the Bills handle Cincy this go around. Seems like we struggle against physical teams. Would like to see a dominant performance from the offense this week from start to finish.

[first_and_ten]

10 minutes ago, Gregg said:

 

I still think they will have a tough time getting by the Ravens. The Ravens matchup very well with them and they already beat them in Cincinnati.

 

I totally agree. You could make a strong argument that they should have beaten them last year in the wild card game. 

[proudDAD]

I think Buffalo wins this game. Cincinnati played a mentally depleted team in the playoffs. We had already lost that game even b4 kickoff. Not this time! 

[Big Turk]

15 minutes ago, billieve420 said:

Will be interesting to see how the Bills handle Cincy this go around. Seems like we struggle against physical teams. Would like to see a dominant performance from the offense this week from start to finish.

 

Would like to see them stay up-tempo to reduce the number of exotic blitz looks Cincy can dial up and make things easier on the offense in terms of reads and forcing them to stay in personnel groupings they like.

[SCBills]

55 minutes ago, first_and_ten said:

I was kind of shocked that the spread was only 1.5 for the Bengals. Am I missing something?

 

Bengals looked great against SF, but SF is also looking rough lately.  Cousins torched them the week prior, without Justin Jefferson. 

 

They also should've lost to Seattle the week before that if Geno Smith wasn't out there looking like an abject dumpster fire anytime they got inside the Bengals red zone. 

[Big Turk]

12 minutes ago, first_and_ten said:

 

I totally agree. You could make a strong argument that they should have beaten them last year in the wild card game. 

 

We match up very well with the Ravens. McD basically wrote the book on how to slow down Jackson..

Edited November 1, 2023 by Big Turk

[first_and_ten]

4 minutes ago, SCBills said:

 

Bengals looked great against SF, but SF is also looking rough lately.  Cousins torched them the week prior, without Justin Jefferson. 

 

They also should've lost to Seattle the week before that if Geno Smith wasn't out there looking like an abject dumpster fire anytime they got inside the Bengals red zone. 

 

I agree with what you said, but the Bills have looked out of sorts ever since that London trip. 

[newcam2012]

1 hour ago, Boatdrinks said:

Maybe. The Bills are 5-3, have Josh Allen at QB and have a + 86 point differential. CIN is at home ( usu good for a point and a half ) and are 4-3. They have a point differential of - 13. This line seems about right. Maybe it goes to -2 or something. 

Incorrect. Home field advantage is usually 2.5 to 3 points advantage. 

 

I think the line should be Bengals -4.