Allen needs to mentally overpower Mahomes

[Bob Jones]

5 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

Josh has all the tools.  Josh's punishing physical style already has won him the admiration of his teammates.  They love him for that, and they'll follow him anywhere.  However, he needs to show the mental power, the mastery of the game.  He has to execute with discipline, something that Mahomes is great at.   Patrick just never seems to make the wrong throw.   His judgment is excellent.   Josh is still growing into that.  

You are 100% spot on. I pretty much have said this very same thing for months now about JA, in many different threads in this forum. And most of the time, most people would Roll Eyes, Red X, Laugh, Thumbs Down, or Puke at me.

 

The reality is that a lot of Bills fans have blinders on, and think that JA can do no wrong, and anybody who dares question that narrative gets blasted.

[Shaw66]

1 minute ago, Bob Jones said:

You are 100% spot on. I pretty much have said this very same thing for months now about JA, in many different threads in this forum. And most of the time, most people would Roll Eyes, Red X, Laugh, Thumbs Down, or Puke at me.

 

The reality is that a lot of Bills fans have blinders on, and think that JA can do no wrong, and anybody who dares question that narrative gets blasted.

Agreed.  I think he made real progress this season, starting out almost forcing the checkdown.  But by the end of the season, he seemed really comfortable, making solid decisions, good throws, and still having the freedom and smarts to run when it was time to run.   I think we'll see an even better Josh next season. 

[GoBills808]

1 minute ago, Bob Jones said:

You are 100% spot on. I pretty much have said this very same thing for months now about JA, in many different threads in this forum. And most of the time, most people would Roll Eyes, Red X, Laugh, Thumbs Down, or Puke at me.

 

The reality is that a lot of Bills fans have blinders on, and think that JA can do no wrong, and anybody who dares question that narrative gets blasted.

We literally just watched Mahomes throw a horrific pick in his own half to swing momentum

 

the Chiefs however are actually able to play complementary football and his defense forced a punt after holding the Niners to -1 yards on a three and out

[appoo]

This is against an elite defense and Kalil Shakir as his best WR and literally no deep threat on the field. 

 

Josh doesn't need to do anything more than he's already doing. It's the rest of the team that needs to get better. 

 

I'm not far from concluding that Josh is a better QB than Mahomes

[SaulGoodman]

41 minutes ago, GoBills808 said:

We literally just watched Mahomes throw a horrific pick in his own half to swing momentum

 

the Chiefs however are actually able to play complementary football and his defense forced a punt after holding the Niners to -1 yards on a three and out

 

That's Mahomes' only INT in his last 7 playoff games. 

[TheCockSportif]

Just throwing this out there, but JA17 isn't the problem.  Best QB I've seen with this team in the 45+ years that I've been following them.  Yeah, he's ***** at times, but Kelly was also majorly ***** at times.  JA17 is a stud.

 

It's the coach.  Maybe he learns while he has a viable QB.  Or maybe he does not.  Here's to a productive 2024-2025 season.

 

[90sBills]

51 minutes ago, Bob Jones said:

You are 100% spot on. I pretty much have said this very same thing for months now about JA, in many different threads in this forum. And most of the time, most people would Roll Eyes, Red X, Laugh, Thumbs Down, or Puke at me.

 

The reality is that a lot of Bills fans have blinders on, and think that JA can do no wrong, and anybody who dares question that narrative gets blasted.

It’s going to be hard to keep those blinders on as each season pass without a championship.

[CincyBillsFan]

19 minutes ago, appoo said:

This is against an elite defense and Kalil Shakir as his best WR and literally no deep threat on the field. 

 

Josh doesn't need to do anything more than he's already doing. It's the rest of the team that needs to get better. 

 

I'm not far from concluding that Josh is a better QB than Mahomes

AMEN! 

 

 

 

 

6 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

I know others in this thread have said, "Josh is great and he's not the reason the Bills haven't won," and I get that idea.   However, the supremely good quarterbacks raise the level of all the players around them.   We're seeing Mahomes, and we saw Brady.  Peyton had it, too.   I don't think Rodgers had it, and I think Allen currently is like Rodgers.  Rodgers has amazing talent, and sometimes his amazing talent wins games for his team.  But Rodgers didn't have his team behind him in the same way that Mahomes and Brady do/did.  Rodgers demands that his teammates follow him; Mahomes brings his teammates along with him. 

 

Allen does elevate the players around him and that is exactly what he did with guys like Beasley, Brown, Sanders, McKennzie, Foster and others.  The fact is all the great QB's out there such as Mahomes & Burrow elevate those around them.  The difference between them and Allen is how far they must elevate those players to get to the Super Bowl.  Burrow in 2021 had to elevate his WR group a lot less then Allen did in 2022 & 2023 and Mahomes this season had to elevate his coaching staff a lot less then Allen did in 2021.  Does anyone think that Spags & Reid blow that lead with 13 seconds left if the situation had been reversed and Mahomes had just threw that TD?  I don't.

[GoBills808]

28 minutes ago, SaulGoodman said:

 

That's Mahomes' only INT in his last 7 playoff games. 

yes correct, Mahomes is outstanding in the playoffs

[transplantbillsfan]

Josh friggin carried the Bills on his back against the Chiefs.

 

While the Bills receivers couldn't catch the ball, Chiefs receivers like MVS who had been notorious during the season for dropping passes were actually catching them.

 

The Chiefs ran 47 plays total.

 

Josh Allen himself accounted for 51 plays for the Bills with 39 passes and 12 rushes.

 

Allen had more yards than Mahomes and more TDs than Mahomes.

 

It's really not Allen who has to fix anything.  The team needs to get a better WR corps and Bass needs to get out of his own head.

 

Patrick Mahomes is the best QB in the NFL.  Josh Allen is the 2nd best QB (and player) in the NFL.

 

And that's it.  I think those 2 players are in a class of their own.  And if the ball bounces for Buffalo a little better in the upcoming seasons, even that narrative might change.

 

 

[blacklabel]

Josh didn't blow it in 13 seconds. 

 

Josh didn't miss a 44 yard FG. 

 

He's given his team chances to win/tie these last two playoff meetings against the Chiefs. It's not his fault his defense and kicker took a big dump right on the 50. 

[Don Otreply]

Yes! Josh should be using the Vulcan mind meld on Mahomes at every opportunity…, 

2 hours ago, Bob Jones said:

You are 100% spot on. I pretty much have said this very same thing for months now about JA, in many different threads in this forum. And most of the time, most people would Roll Eyes, Red X, Laugh, Thumbs Down, or Puke at me.

 

The reality is that a lot of Bills fans have blinders on, and think that JA can do no wrong, and anybody who dares question that narrative gets blasted.

Yup, Allen is our biggest asset, and our biggest problem, 

[Shaw66]

1 hour ago, CincyBillsFan said:

 

 

 

Allen does elevate the players around him and that is exactly what he did with guys like Beasley, Brown, Sanders, McKennzie, Foster and others.  The fact is all the great QB's out there such as Mahomes & Burrow elevate those around them.  The difference between them and Allen is how far they must elevate those players to get to the Super Bowl.  Burrow in 2021 had to elevate his WR group a lot less then Allen did in 2022 & 2023 and Mahomes this season had to elevate his coaching staff a lot less then Allen did in 2021.  Does anyone think that Spags & Reid blow that lead with 13 seconds left if the situation had been reversed and Mahomes had just threw that TD?  I don't.

Thanks.   Excellent points.   Excellent. 

 

I wasn't really talking about some kind of statistical improvement.  I agree, in a physical sense, Josh elevates the performance of his teammates.  I was thinking more about his ability to instill confidence in his players, to have a such a complete understanding of what's happening on the field that he raises THEIR level of understanding of their job.  That's the magic that Kelce and Mahomes have - they are literally playing the game at a level higher everyone else.   Allen and Diggs were close to that but haven't gotten there.  Allen and Kincaid showed some flashes last season and may be special.  And it's not just the receivers.  Mahomes is thinking along with the center,  and through the center with the oline.  I think it's one reason Creed transitioned so easily - Mahomes raised Creed's level of understanding.  

 

What we see in Mahomes is total package - arm, athleticism, brains, leadership.  That's where I think Allen has to go, and I think he's well on his way.  

[BigDingus]

I don't think mental fortitude is an issue when it comes to the Chiefs.

 

Josh definitely has moments throughout the regular season that show he lets the pressure get to him, but against the Chiefs he's always game. But as much as the media & fans want to make it a QB v QB conversation, there's a million other factors outside of Allen's control that can derail our Super Bowl chances.

 

I believe if we had a mostly healthy defense, the Bills beat the Chiefs in the divisional round this year 100%. This entire season, the Chiefs lost EVERY game where the opponent put up 21 or more points in regulation.... until the divisional round. That's because their offense was just "pretty good," instead of elite, and if you could overcome their defense, you win.

 

Unfortunately our patchwork defense made their offense look elite again... Not forcing a single punt until 2 mins left in the game. Sure, they got a stop at the end & lucked out with a fumble in the end-zone, but otherwise the Chiefs offense had it so easy, they averaged over 0.5 points per offensive play!

 

We were at home, had a 15 minute ToP advantage, ran 30 more plays, had zero turnovers, and still lost. Who knows... maybe the game plan would've looked a lot different if the coaching staff had any confidence the defense could get stops. Maybe we would've passed a lot more, maybe not.

 

Either way, Josh's mental hurdle is controlling the turnovers & being smarter during the regular season. Come playoff time, he's USUALLY more composed. I know the ultimate goal is a Super Bowl win, but look at how difficult it is for many QBs to even win a playoff game. Josh has won at least 1 every year for 4 straight seasons.

 

 

[boyst]

I've been keeping up with this thread and haven't shared it yet but every time I open it I am reminded of...

 

 

[T master]

Where's O B 1 when we need him ? Some Jedi mind control classes would definitely help Josh in this pursuit of the ultimate goal .

 

May the force be with you Josh !! 

[Fleezoid]

 

[Success]

On 2/14/2024 at 12:13 PM, The 9 Isles said:

It’s not Mahomes it’s KC and the way that team is structured. 
 

Offensive genius as HC that isn’t going anywhere and his system is stable and will not need to be changed due to a coordinator being poached. 
 

DC that is in firm control and has been in place since 2019 and has just been extended and won’t be going anywhere. 
 

A GM that has masterfully created a roster to complement the HC and the QB year after year even with salary cap constraints. 
 

Mahomes is great but he would not have the same level of success without the supporting cast of not only players but coaches and executives they have amassed there. 
 

I believe Allen would thrive on that team but I think Mahomes would have a much harder time succeeding with Buffalo the way JA has.
 

Not to say he wouldn’t be great but I think it would be a bigger challenge considering his style of play vs Allen’s. 
 

Josh can be Mahomes but not so sure Mahomes could be Allen. 
 

Just my thoughts. 

 

NFL narratives have always been QB-centric, but that's gotten even more pronounced.

 

I hear Pats fans say that Mahomes can never be GOAT, because Brady beat him both times head-to-head.  One of those was Dee Ford being Offside, and one was a game where Mahomes was missing 2 key O-linemen and was playing a world class defense.

 

And it's the same w/ Allen.  He carried the team a few weeks ago against KC - but it felt like all of the coverage afterward was his decision to play "hero ball" and go for Shakir in the EZ (which was the right decision).  And it was all "Mahomes bested Allen, again."

 

I agree w/ you.  I don't think Mahomes could carry some of the Bills teams Josh has had quite the same way.  

 

[boater]

On 2/12/2024 at 11:26 PM, Thrivefourfive said:

In whatever place these freakozoid athletes get to mentally, Allen has no choice but to get there with them. Jordan has it, Tiger has it, Nicklaus had it, Brady and Montana had it. I’m sure Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio had it. Recently, all three Tennis greats have it.

In today's related news....

 

Caitlin Clark has it.  She broke the NCAA point record yesterday. Her shot hit nothing but net.

 

Edited February 17 by boater

[NastyNateSoldiers]

On 2/13/2024 at 6:26 AM, Thrivefourfive said:

In whatever place these freakozoid athletes get to mentally, Allen has no choice but to get there with them. Jordan has it, Tiger has it, Nicklaus had it, Brady and Montana had it. I’m sure Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio had it. Recently, all three Tennis greats have it. 
 

It’s all upstairs. There are ways we can tell that a great one has the instinct for winning championships. It’s how they talk, what they say, what they believe is happening, and how they lead the situation to reach the top — total belief in yourself to be the reason your team wins championships. 
 

Athletes are insanely confident individuals. Even proven competent pros think they’re the very best at what they do, when they’re clearly not, usually because of physical limitations. 
 

Allen has the physical talent to be in the historical sports best-of-the-best group, so he’ll have to find that mental place that gets him there. His, focus, concentration, and determination needs improvement. 

Allen needs his master Yoda! 😂