I may just be a huge homer... BUT...

[Yasgur's Farm]

I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Players growing... Team gelling... Smart coaching.

1) Coaching improvements alone could bring the Bills to 8 and 8.
2) Player growth could add another win or 2 over the course of the year.
3) Team gelling could bring us another win or 2 along the way.

Bottom line... I expect nothing worse than 8 and 8.
If we're lucky with no injuries... who knows... maybe 10 to even 12 wins is not entirely out of the question.

I think we'll compete pretty well in the opener vs. NE.

[patmoran2006]

You are 100% right..

You are a huge homer (BUt I like the optimism)
10-12 wins makes me think you may need to sit down on a leather couch with a professional though.

[SquishDaFish]

I say def 8 wins and hopefully more.

[Drive 4 Five]

Hey anything can happen. Anything. This team undoubtedly is much improved overall from coaching to player development. I am especially impressed with our young QB and best of all, the entire team seems to have improved from each preseason game culminating in an impressive performance by the starters last evening which is great to see.

I have to say, I am starting to get pretty excited. Not to excited though. Not excited like how Pat gets when ICE fills him like a jelly donut. But pretty excited. Still, ten wins is definitely stretching it.

[YardRat]

I'm psyched for the season to start...anything can happen when they strap up the chinstrap on Sunday's for real.

[Richard Gozinya]

It's the NFL, and anything could happen. If JP suddenly turns all pro and Whitner is Ed Reed reborn, who knows. Playoffs? The AFC East is pretty weak this year.

I can picture 4-12 just as easily, though.

[jmb1099]

I have to say, I am starting to get pretty excited. Not to excited though. Not excited like how Pat gets when ICE fills him like a jelly donut. But pretty excited. Still, ten wins is definitely stretching it.[/QUOTE]
:shocked:

[RoanokeVABillsFan]

I like your thinking but even though I want them to do this well I have to believe because of so many young people and the new schemes I think we'll see gradual signs of it clicking and next year is the year we really take off again. We have a good core group but still need a little more work along the lines to go over the top. But we will definitely be more competetive than last year and we'll be able to see promising signs vs. what the heck was that call about...

[BillsFever21]

10-12 wins? Yep, you are a huge homer.

[HHURRICANE]

8 wins!!! 7 minimum, 9 maximum!!

[patmoran2006]

Hey anything can happen. Anything. This team undoubtedly is much improved overall from coaching to player development. I am especially impressed with our young QB and best of all, the entire team seems to have improved from each preseason game culminating in an impressive performance by the starters last evening which is great to see.

I have to say, I am starting to get pretty excited. Not to excited though. Not excited like how Pat gets when ICE fills him like a jelly donut. But pretty excited. Still, ten wins is definitely stretching it.

hahaha

[patmoran2006]

i dont WANT 7-8 wins.. All that means is we are MEDIOCRE like always, and we'll get a middle round draft pick.

If we aint gonna contend to the playoffs, Ihope we go like 3-13 so we can get a franchise quality DE or OT in the draft.

For the record, even though I think we're gonna blow record-wise, I absolutey LOVE the way Marv is shaping this team up.. Its a two season process, and its VERY OBVIOUS< at least to me, what he's doing.. and I like it.. I like it a lot.

But they dont win more than 4 games this year.

[BuffaloBillsStampede]

Thats real good hoping for your team to win 3 games Pat. Give me a break. I think 8 wins is very possible and will show major improvement, and we may be back in the same boat in the offseason that we were two years ago when people said we could make the playoffs next season.

[djjimkelly]

i dont WANT 7-8 wins.. All that means is we are MEDIOCRE like always, and we'll get a middle round draft pick.

If we aint gonna contend to the playoffs, Ihope we go like 3-13 so we can get a franchise quality DE or OT in the draft.

For the record, even though I think we're gonna blow record-wise, I absolutey LOVE the way Marv is shaping this team up.. Its a two season process, and its VERY OBVIOUS< at least to me, what he's doing.. and I like it.. I like it a lot.

But they dont win more than 4 games this year.

while i agree with u 7-8 wins is the worst record u could have for drafting purposes i think thats the type of record this team needs exactly. my reasons are simple. breed a winning attitude on the team 7-8 wins with a few wins vs team that people wouldnt think we have a chance is exactly what would kick start the franchise into believeing internally players specifically that this can and will be a a 10+ win team. i think that is next year if losman becomes what alot of us think he can be. also we would need to improve o line next offseason too for this to happen.

[X-Era]

I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Players growing... Team gelling... Smart coaching.

1) Coaching improvements alone could bring the Bills to 8 and 8.
2) Player growth could add another win or 2 over the course of the year.
3) Team gelling could bring us another win or 2 along the way.

Bottom line... I expect nothing worse than 8 and 8.
If we're lucky with no injuries... who knows... maybe 10 to even 12 wins is not entirely out of the question.

I think we'll compete pretty well in the opener vs. NE.

Dont get me wrong, we all would love to see that. But, we have a new offense, a new defense, a young QB, a young #1 WR. Theres too much working against us. Its not a matter of these things being a definite detractor. Its more like a bowl full of pluses and minuses. We dont know which ones will rise to the top.

I am cautiously optimistic to be honest. I have seen enough good things from JP such as the long ball to have hopes for a wide open, productive offense that puts the defense on its heels. But, the real bullets havent flown yet. It could be that once teams start game planning against JP, the defense will just look foreign and he will start to hiccup.

On D, we have only faced vanilla O's so far. How will they react to schemed offenses?

Now, there are things working in our favor. I honestly believe that Lee Evans can beat ANYBODY deep. With JP at the helm, we know we can throw deep. Lees adjustment to his long ball for the TD tells me that the circle around Evans where he can make the grab is pretty damn big. Thats a good thing for a young QB. Add in a deep threat like Peerless and we could have some serious threats to score at any time.

Willis finally showed me his college days ability in the Detroit game. I think he is finally back to what he once was. His speed and tackle breaking looks really good so far. If he translates this to become a Marshall Faulk type then we are in for a pleasant suprise.

Royal has shown that he can be open short and make some YAC for us.

Fairchilds O is most likely a wide open O like the Rams ran. Guys like Bulger and Warner looked prolific in it. We may have LOTS of success under it.

On D, we have speed that we may have NEVER had before. That means we are likely to be around the ball. Now, if you fast but not strong, you can be an all world DT getting to your blocks and then getting stuck there. I want to see moves and strength to go with the speed. If Brady, for example, gets 4 or 5 seconds when he throws, we are toast. But they are starting a rookie RT (O'Callaghan). The Pats game will be telling. Can we get sustained pressure? Our starting secondary got burnt by both Cinnci and Carolina. We have the speed but we need to play top flight coverage. Im a bit worried about our coverage.

Overall, theres lots to be excited about. I look at us as a team that is headed upward. How fast? who knows. I feel we have to go through some tough games and tough learning, how many? Who knows. I think a 6 and 10 record is likely. But, I can see tangible reasons to go 8 and 8 or even sneak into the playoffs with a wildcard. We have the talent and the proper balance between true passing attack and strong running. We have a fast D with talented players. Will it all come together or will it just look like a pile of puzzle pieces?

Lets start praying for gelling and strong leadership on this team. I feel like we are finally on to something great but we need to be forcefully patient.

GO BILLS!!!!!!!