Can't we all just agree...this team does NOT

[Pyrite Gal]

it has been a long time since this team had the talent & coaching needed to compete in this league...How many posts focus on the OL, the WRs, the RBs, the QBs, the DL, the DBs, the LBs...

 

 

821973[/snapback]

 

I disagree in general because my sense is that the talent level across the NFL is narrow enough that individual players differ in performance (sometimes significantly) based on changes on issues of motivation caused by contract and other mental issues rather than their raw level of physical talent.

 

This is most easily seen for the Bills in terms of cases like Bennie Anderson who has the talent to perform well eenough for the Ravens to gey a big contract and then seemed to simply lose his motivation to apply his talent for the Bills once he got the big bucks.

 

If your point is one of a simple talent assessment then I think you are wrong, if your point is one of whether the Bills are motivating players well enough so that their talent shows, your post does not seem to go into detail in this area to demonstrate this point.

 

On the flipside, I think Clements had and likely has the talent which got him a pro Bowl berth, but I think he seems to be a player who tries to hard to make big plays to get a big contract and again I do not think his talent level has simply dropped, but that better motivation and coachin and potentially a change in his contract status may well improve his performance.

 

Likewise you seen to discount the role of chemistry and leadership in allowing players of the same talent level to achieve better results. Do you think that the NE team which went 0-2 under Bledsoe suddenly developed more talent to become an SB winner under Brady's guidance. It is an extreme case but this extreme case shows how relatively pedestrian talent can actually achieve good results based first on them becoming a true TEAM as they sucked it up to support the young Brady and then as Brady developed into a player who makes players around him better their output improved.

 

Lest you attempt to believe that this extreme but true case was a one time event. How do you explain the talent level difference between the Bills that beat the Pats 31-0 in a game within the 7 year window you put into play compared to a Pats team that beat the Bills 31-0 in the final game.

 

Claiming that this performance is all based on talent and ignoring homefield advantage, motivation and Kevin Killdrive's then well documented and predictable play calling is simply not the case.

 

Specifically regarding this season, you do not see as far as I can tell you effectively rebutting the argument that tennesseeboy makes that talent level does not explain the pretty good Bills early season performance versus their dismal performance in the last 3 games.

 

In general the cliche of any given Sunday despite the talent level of teams obviously not changing a great deal has been shown time and again to be a cliche because it is true. The assertion that the issue here is pure talent seems overblown at best and simply facile at worst.