GroveDiesel
Footballguy
The Bills have a 2 game lead in the AFC East. The last time that was the case was 1995...over the Colts!
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2021 Buffalo Bills - Same as it ever was*** (5 Viewers)
- Thread starter GroveDiesel
- Start date
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
I agree with all of you guys. I'm loving what I'm seeing lately, but cautiously optimistic... Matt Ryan, Carson Wentz, Derek Carr, Nick Foles,and others have flashed for a year or so. He doesn't have to keep up this blistering pace, but I want to see good play into next year before I am 100% in. I'm about 70% now.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
So the Bills are 4-0, appear to be legit good, and appear to have a franchise QB for the first time in forever and:
a) the NFL season suddenly seems in doubt and
b) the NFL seems intent on forcing them to play against the lone super-spreader team in the NFL
Seems about right.
a) the NFL season suddenly seems in doubt and
b) the NFL seems intent on forcing them to play against the lone super-spreader team in the NFL
Seems about right.
IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
The bolded part is key. If this season implodes, the Bills will be back next year and the year after that and the year after that for the foreseeable future.
Imagine being Tennessee and starting off 3-0 with smoke and mirrors behind Ryan Tannehill. This is their big shot, and they're screwing it up for themselves with their own stupidity.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
The Bills have a real chance to make a statement over the next 7 days. If they can beat the Titans and Chiefs (both possible), then they can solidify themselves in the playoff and legit contender hunt and give themselves early advantages in trying to earn the bye.
Not having Milano or White is going to be rough though. I doubt they’ll have Milano back for KC, I’m hopeful they’ll have White back by then because it might get ugly if they don’t have him against that offense. Not having Milano would be bad enough.
Not having Milano or White is going to be rough though. I doubt they’ll have Milano back for KC, I’m hopeful they’ll have White back by then because it might get ugly if they don’t have him against that offense. Not having Milano would be bad enough.
shadrap
Footballguy
I like your scenario but you know the Bills won't make it that easy on themselves.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
Totally 
but what if Tre White isn’t actually hurt? He almost opted out of the season due to Covid out of a desire to protect his family. Now they’re suddenly having to play a super spreader team and the NFL is showing very little actual concern for player health. What if White went to the Bills and told them he didn’t want to play, and rather than punish him, the Bills are faking an injury to honor his wishes and keep him out of the game? Or maybe he’s just straight up faking it without Buffalo’s blessing.
I don’t actually think it’s the case, but honestly, even if it is I wouldn’t even blame him.
but what if Tre White isn’t actually hurt? He almost opted out of the season due to Covid out of a desire to protect his family. Now they’re suddenly having to play a super spreader team and the NFL is showing very little actual concern for player health. What if White went to the Bills and told them he didn’t want to play, and rather than punish him, the Bills are faking an injury to honor his wishes and keep him out of the game? Or maybe he’s just straight up faking it without Buffalo’s blessing.I don’t actually think it’s the case, but honestly, even if it is I wouldn’t even blame him.
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
I hadn't really thought about it, but that's totally plausible. And, I wouldn't blame him (or any other player) one bit if they didn't want to play Tennessee right now.Totally
I don’t actually think it’s the case, but honestly, even if it is I wouldn’t even blame him.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
Apparently I wasn’t the only one that occurred to and I should have followed up on this. His SO (not sure if she’s his girlfriend or wife at this point), tweeted out a statement expressing anger/disappointment at the idea that he would be faking an injury. I’ll take them at their word. I like White. He’s a smart, fun dude. I could see why they would feel disrespected by that thought but I’m not sure that most people meant it to be disrespectful. More just angry at the
situation the Bills are in.In fact, Goodell came out today and said something about it not being about punishing anyone, it’s about keeping people safe. In other words, after talking so tough last week, they’re going to let the Titans walk completely.
IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
Tre has never shown that he's anything other than a high-character guy and a solid competitor. If he says he has an injured back, I'm going to assume he has an injured back. It's not as if that's implausible or anything. 
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
Oh, I agree with that. But I also wouldn't fault him, or lose any respect if he simply didn't want to take the field with the Titans for health concerns. I don't know the details, so I don't know what would happen if he simply said he wanted to sit out this week. I assume he'd lose a game check, but not sure. So... If he was faking an injury just to get out of this game, I don't think there's really any shame in that.Tre has never shown that he's anything other than a high-character guy and a solid competitor. If he says he has an injured back, I'm going to assume he has an injured back. It's not as if that's implausible or anything.
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
Anyone feel like this is anything other than a take-care-of-business game that should go the Bills' way, barring crazy plays, turn overs, key penalties, etc.?
The Duff Man
Footballguy
I am worried about this one. Titans are going to come out on fire.
I had the same thought about White and now Spain also. It sucks this whole week was spent thinking about COVID instead of using this fantastic Bills team to escape from this craziness.
IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
Before the season started, I had the Bills starting 4-0 and taking our first loss here. (Edit: Bottom of page 192 -- this has been a slow-moving thread now that we don't have much to complain about!) And we have a ton of talent sitting on the bench tonight. So it's not like I'm arguing in favor of looking past the Titans.
Having said that, the Bills are a better team so far than I expected, the Titans are not as good as I expected so far, and we're catching Tennessee at a weird time when they've barely had a chance to practice in the past couple of weeks. If this game were played thousands of times, I'd expect the Bills to win most of the time. The 3.5 point spread seems about right to me.
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GroveDiesel
Footballguy
I don’t know guys, the Titans run the ball well and have an excellent tight end along with AJ Brown back. Bills are without both of their starting CBS and their key linebacker. The Titans could really tear up the Bills defense.
On offense, John Brown is out and the Titans front 7 really gets after the QB. The Titans haven’t practiced much, but they have lots of rest as well.
I’d say this is a 50/50 game and with it being at Tennessee I think they have the advantage.
On offense, John Brown is out and the Titans front 7 really gets after the QB. The Titans haven’t practiced much, but they have lots of rest as well.
I’d say this is a 50/50 game and with it being at Tennessee I think they have the advantage.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
They're a well-rested, well-coached, undefeated team. The Bills should absolutely not take them lightly.
The Duff Man
Footballguy
Soooo... who are the CBs or LBs they should target in trade talks?
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
They have too many holes to fill on defense for a trade to make a big difference IMO. And while CB and LB are probably needs, their front 4 has not got the job done. When was the last time you even heard Ed Oliver’s name mentioned? He’s not making a difference against the run or pass. As much of a disappointment as I think Edmunds is right now, Oliver is probably an even bigger one.
Mr. Peterson
Footballguy
What aggravates me most about this is there are key players for the Titans that shouldn’t have even been in this game. AJ Brown and Lewan are two that if we played on Sunday like we should have, wouldn’t have been cleared. But the NFL made exceptions for the Titans and postponed the game allowing them to get healthier than they should have been. Which is BS knowing that the Titans are completely responsible for all this. Shoot, there was talks that the Titans should be forced to forfeit this game due to them F’ing this all up.
So why are the Bills getting punished for then Titans mistakes?
So why are the Bills getting punished for then Titans mistakes?
Judge Smails
Footballguy
That is a terrible take. How about show up, don’t throw picks, don’t fumble, pretend that you have a scrambling quarterback on your own team you can use to prepare the D for?
Mr. Peterson
Footballguy
It’s a terrible take if I was a player on the Buffalo Bills. But I’m not. I’m just a fan.
Judge Smails
Footballguy
Sorry. Bitter as that collapse resulted in -4 for the Bills D and I get a tie in my game. That was painful to watch
IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
None of this stuff should have mattered. The bottom line is that we weren't prepared for this game and played like we just wanted to get back on the bus and get home in time for Matlock. The passing game was out of synch, the running game was practically nonexistent aside from a few short yardage conversions by Yeldon, the defense was embarrassing, and we even managed a ST turnover. Literally the only two players who can honestly say that they played pretty well last night are Yeldon -- who was kind of fortunate to make the roster -- and Bojo. When you have to go to your punter for bright spots, you know it was a bad night.
Several other teams have essentially had their bye weeks taken away from them. Our closest rival in the division lost their best offensive and defensive players for at least a game or two. Our "punishment" was playing a team that was missing a bunch of guys and no practice opportunity. That's on us for not taking care of business.
ConstruxBoy
Kate's Daddy
I thought Beasley played well.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
I said it a week or two ago, not sure if it's in here or in one of the game threads - low-key, the Bills biggest defensive issue right now is the D-line. I don't care what team you are, you lose your top 2 CBs and best LB to injury, you're gonna struggle, 100%. But the D-line is intact. They lost 3 big-impact D-linemen in the offseason - Phillips, Lawson, and Star - and their replacements have not been up to par.
I assume the Bills went into this season expecting some sort of exponential growth from Oliver and Harrison Phillips, and to a lesser extent Darryl Johnson and AJ Epenesa. None of that has materialized. Butler and Jefferson are essentially JAGs. Hughes, Addison, and Murphy are all serviceable players who look past-their-primes out there. None of these linemen are so bad that they should be out of the league, but none of them are really particularly great.
For as much as you and I ##### about Edmunds, and he's not been developing as a player - the D-line isn't giving him much help.
IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
I agree 100%. The defensive line was supposed to be a strength of this team, and instead it's a massive liability. We can't generate anything resembling pressure on the QB -- it doesn't matter who's playing LB or DB under those circumstances.
There's a lot of luck involved in turnovers, but it's probably worth noting that the Bills are not generating many turnovers (only 6 so far, 4 of which are fumbles). The lack of pass rush surely has something to do with that.
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GroveDiesel
Footballguy
Yeah, it’s a problem when your middle linebacker that can’t shed blockers constantly has blockers on him because the defensive line isn’t doing their job.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
So Joe Buscaglia mentioned on the Buffalo Beat podcast that Mike Rodak brought up a question about Beane’s inability to bring in defensive talent. And you know what, he’s right. Beane hasn’t brought in a single difference maker via FA, draft, or trade on defense. Edmunds and Oliver are still both more question mark and potential than proven and everyone else has been average to below average. Hughes, Milano, White, Hyde and Poyer are the only difference maker type guys on defense and they were all brought in before Beane got to Buffalo. That’s a little concerning...
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
I don't know - is this really true?
Jordan Phillips was a big impact player. Star Lotulelei clearly was as well, though perhaps not immediately visible until this season. I'm gonna give him some credit on Levi Wallace too - to turn an undrafted player into a solid-yet-unspectacular starting CB.
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
ESPN just reported that the Bills are in the running (one of three teams) for Bell. I'm all for it.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
Agreed. I think they have the locker room and team chemistry to make it work. Especially since it would likely be a 1 year deal. If it’s more than a 1 year deal, I think I’d be out.
He’d be a great fit for what they’re doing and what they need.
I still think he ends up in KC though.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
In addition to being a fun team to watch, this team has a lot of interesting characters on the roster. It's a welcome change from the days when the roster was comprised of 90% guys who just wanted to cash a paycheck.
Deamon
Footballguy
How many touches per game would he get here and what would be the split with singletary? (in your opinion)
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
IMO, he'd quickly (a week or two) step into #1 RB, and Singletary would be the backup in lines with a typical backfield with a defined #1 and #2. This is coming from a Singletary fan/FF-owner.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
Latest update makes is sound like Bell isn’t heading to Buffalo, but I agree with Griggs that he would be the #1 and get 60%+ of touches.
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
And, Bell signs with the Chiefs. The rich get richer. Oh well...
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Not really particularly looking forward to this evening. I just don't see any way the Bills D will be able to make enough plays for the Bills to win this game. I don't think this team is at a point where they are consistently able to beat elite teams. I won't be terribly upset if they lose, but I'll be pretty concerned if they look as unprepared as they did last week against Tennessee.
The weather is pretty terrible right now - mid-high 40s and it's been raining all morning. Looks like it's supposed to stay this way, including the rain, throughout the game. Considering how poorly the Bills have been running the ball, I can't think it bodes well.
Chiefs 38-24
The weather is pretty terrible right now - mid-high 40s and it's been raining all morning. Looks like it's supposed to stay this way, including the rain, throughout the game. Considering how poorly the Bills have been running the ball, I can't think it bodes well.
Chiefs 38-24
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IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
Yeah, tonight's game is the one that I'm most confident about losing. The Seattle game will be tough too, but this one is tougher. Right now, the Bills are essentially a slightly lesser version of the Chiefs. Both teams have very good offenses led by an entertaining passing attack, but KC's is a little better than ours. Both teams have highly suspect defenses, but ours is a little worse than KC's. It's not as if this game is unwinnable or anything, but I think Kansas City is very clearly the better team even if the gap is much smaller than it was last season.
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
Yeah, call me easily blown by the wind of recent results, but I think the Bills lose this by 20. Mahomes carves teams up when he’s not pressured which is bad for the Bills since Mahomes hasn’t been sacked yet this year and the Bills are virtually unable to generate pressure outside of Jerry Hughes. No way Milano is 100% which means Kelce is a bigger threat and if Taron Johnson covers Hill it will be ugly.
ChiefD
Footballguy
I think you guys are wrong. I don't like this matchup for the Chiefs at all. Probably for the same reason you guys don't like the matchup. 
This stretch for the Chiefs reminds me of last year when we lost to the Colts and Texans back to back. Something was just off with that team at that time, and the Chiefs are kind of in that same rut.
This game should be close all the way through, but I can totally see a scenario where if one of these teams comes out desperate and pissed after both losing last week - THAT team will get the win.
At this point it could be either team. But I see both teams playing with their hair on fire to try and wipe that losing taste out of their mouths. If I had to pick right now I think the Bills win in a close one.
This stretch for the Chiefs reminds me of last year when we lost to the Colts and Texans back to back. Something was just off with that team at that time, and the Chiefs are kind of in that same rut.
This game should be close all the way through, but I can totally see a scenario where if one of these teams comes out desperate and pissed after both losing last week - THAT team will get the win.
At this point it could be either team. But I see both teams playing with their hair on fire to try and wipe that losing taste out of their mouths. If I had to pick right now I think the Bills win in a close one.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Yeah this is what I'm thinking too. I won't go so far as to say a 20-point loss, because I think last week's offensive output was a bit of a fluke due to turnovers, but this defense has been carved-up by pretty much every QB they've faced other than Sam Darnold.....and Mahomes is better than all of em. Add in the defensive injuries and stir it all up. Not pretty.
I expect the offense to show up and take care of the ball much better than last week, but I expect this to be a shootout, and the Chiefs are just simply a better, more consistent offense.
IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
Strangely, the Bills are choosing this week to shake up their DL. Harrison and Murphy will apparently be inactive tonight. Not that those guys have been world-beaters or anything, but I don't see that benching them solves the no-pass-rush problem.
https://twitter.com/TomPelissero/status/1318242095094812673
IvanKaramazov
Footballguy
I greatly prefer your analysis of this game to mine!I think you guys are wrong. I don't like this matchup for the Chiefs at all. Probably for the same reason you guys don't like the matchup.
This stretch for the Chiefs reminds me of last year when we lost to the Colts and Texans back to back. Something was just off with that team at that time, and the Chiefs are kind of in that same rut.
This game should be close all the way through, but I can totally see a scenario where if one of these teams comes out desperate and pissed after both losing last week - THAT team will get the win.
At this point it could be either team. But I see both teams playing with their hair on fire to try and wipe that losing taste out of their mouths. If I had to pick right now I think the Bills win in a close one.
Super King
Footballguy
I have to go to a work party at CBW at 4. This was all scheduled before we knew the game was going to be on Monday. This could be the greatest work party ever? Or worst ever....
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
Chiefs 34-24
Garbage time TD for Buffalo to make it look closer than the butt whooping it is.
Grigs Allmoon
Footballguy
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Community Beer Works. One of the better craft beer breweries in the city, they have a nice spot on the west side.What's CBW? (I've been out of state way too long...)
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Just like last year - they're pretenders until proven otherwise.
