Schedule comments and early predictions thread

[OpIv37]

The good: We don't play the Pats after their bye, we only have one or two big road trips (Denver and Arizona), the division rivalry in Toronto will be nice, NE will probably have clinched by week 17 so we MAY be able to finally beat them.

The bad: early bye (week 6), no division games until week 8- between the bye and a road stretch, there's a one-month period with no home games, Monday night game against Cleveland.

Early predictions:
Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W- Seattle has been down and it's a long road trip
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars L- good D and we can't beat mobile QB's
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W- Oakland sucks
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W- St. Louis sucks
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals L- "trap" game going into the bye
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L- LT, enough said.
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS L- we can't win night games
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs L- Arrowhead is a tough place to play
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO W- SF sucks
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS L- we can't win under pressure, and there will be a lot of publicity around the Toronto game.
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets L- Jets will have vastly improved by this point of the season
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L- this is a tough one to pick but we haven't fared well against Denver recently.
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L- although this could be a W assuming NE has everything clinched and isn't going undefeated again.

6-10, 7-9 if we get lucky and NE has nothing to play for week 17. We might be able to steal wins against Denver and Arizona, but I'm not holding my breath.

[clumping platelets]

:negrep:

[Dr. Lecter]

I predict 0-16. This upcoming year AND next year.

**** it.

[Mr. Miyagi]

Not only we don't get the Pats after their bye, we catch them the week after their epic battle with Indy at their new dome, and then catch them again at the last week of the season when they're probably sitting their starters.

Cool.

[bigbub2352]

I am suppossed to go to St Louis sept 28th

i am get married on sept 20th ****

[raphael120]

I feel the same way, we have a rough schedule and I see the games playing out that way too. I think the Jets won't be as easy to push around and the games that we "should" win because the other teams suck, and not on the merit of the Bills should win because they're so much better, have diminished to Miami, SF, St. Louis, and Oakland.

Jauron, you better coach your ass off because if there isn't a total turn around in the losing culture of the Bills, youre done, and a lot of fans will be done with the Bills on the heels of the whole Toronto fiasco.

[Mr. Miyagi]

6-10, 7-9 if we get lucky and NE has nothing to play for week 17. We might be able to steal wins against Denver and Arizona, but I'm not holding my breath.
Ah. This is the good ol' negative nancy Op that we all grew to love.

Welcome back bro! :bf1:

[OpIv37]

I am suppossed to go to St Louis sept 28th

i am get married on sept 20th ****

take your honeymoon in St. Louis. It's probably a pretty good place to go for it

"Look honey- there's the arch. Ok, we've seen everything- back to the hotel room!"

[OpIv37]

Ah. This is the good ol' negative nancy Op that we all grew to love.

Welcome back bro! :bf1:

it's a short stay- I start a new job on Monday so I'm in cruise control for the rest of this week.

but hey- that's my opinion and I posted the reasons why. It's out there for debate and discussion. At least you offered a comment, unlike Lecter and clump who just criticized without contributing.

[patmoran2006]

LOL, OP.

We can just book us for 6-9 wins for the next half-decade

[madness]

Splitting with the Fish AND the Jets? Absolutely no way.

[BlackMetalNinja]

I predict 0-16. This upcoming year AND next year.

**** it.

That way you CAN'T be dissapointed... brilliant thinking sir!

[OpIv37]

Splitting with the Fish AND the Jets? Absolutely no way.

the Jets have improved a lot over last year.

I would have given us both against the Fish if the second one wasn't so high-profile. This team cannot win under pressure (see Denver, Dallas, Cleveland, NE night game from last year).

[justasportsfan]

the division rivalry in Toronto will be nice, .
I can hear the chants already.

DEFENSE ! EH? DEFENSE ! EH?

[DraftBoy]

I got us at 10-6;

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars W
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS L
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs W
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO L
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets W
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L

[OpIv37]

I got us at 10-6;

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars W
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS L
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs W
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO L
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets W
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L

We're good enough to beat the Cardinals on paper, but that's also a trap game (non conference game on the road before the bye- see Pittsburgh last year).

The biggest issue I have with this: you think we're going to win in Jacksonville AND in KC? No way. And 5-0 at the bye? Not a chance.

[FlyingDutchman]

Great, now we're not gonna hear the end of how screwed we are from OP until November when he admits he was wrong again.

[justasportsfan]

This team cannot win under pressure.
but the fins can? Don't think so.

I say we sweep the fins and at least split the jets but won't count out a sweep either.

[justasportsfan]

We're good enough to beat the Cardinals on paper, but that's also a trap game (non conference game on the road before the bye- see Pittsburgh last year).

The biggest issue I have with this: you think we're going to win in Jacksonville AND in KC? No way. And 5-0 at the bye? Not a chance.


If paper is important to you, the fins aren't good enough to beat us at Miami either, I doubt they can beat us at TO.

[patmoran2006]

I got us at 10-6;

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars W
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS L
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs W
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO L
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets W
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L
you got us winning AT Jacksonville?? based on what?

and we did we become a great road team? Ariz and Rams are no walk in the park. And the Jets will be improved this year, big time.

[madness]

In a 16 game season, there's no such thing as a trap game. EVERY game is a must win.

[OpIv37]

Great, now we're not gonna hear the end of how screwed we are from OP until November when he admits he was wrong again.

last year I said we'd be lucky to get back to 7-9. Yeah, I got some games wrong along the way and I wasn't 100% right about everything, but I was right with the record.

[OpIv37]

In a 16 game season, there's no such thing as a trap game. EVERY game is a must win.

I agree that every game is a must win, but that doesn't mean there's no such thing as a trap game. It's easier to get motivated for some games than for others- players are human and it's almost impossible to get up the same level of emotion for Arizona on the road before a bye as it is for say, the Patriots at home. The history, rivalry and fan support just isn't there.

[FlyingDutchman]

last year I said we'd be lucky to get back to 7-9. Yeah, I got some games wrong along the way and I wasn't 100% right about everything, but I was right with the record.

You said we'd be LUCKY to get to 7-9 and now youre claiming you predicted the record? You set the bar waaaaaay lower than 7-9. You never gave this team a shot.

[Tatonka]

i love people who are really sure about their season predictions..

7-9 we are lucky.. lol

novel concept.. but why dont we draft and sign about 10 more guys.. see what happens in camp and preseason.. see if any other FAs are signed and what happens with injuries on our team and other teams.. THEN try and figure out what might happen.

we were the unluckiest team in the league last year and still went 7-9.

i think OP predicted 4-12.. so that means if he is sure we should be 6-10 ... that means we really should be about 10-6 in my book.

[Dr. Lecter]

it's a short stay- I start a new job on Monday so I'm in cruise control for the rest of this week.

but hey- that's my opinion and I posted the reasons why. It's out there for debate and discussion. At least you offered a comment, unlike Lecter and clump who just criticized without contributing.

The team was 7-9 last year with 15+ injuries, a rookie QB, and a defense that was worse than this year's defense should be (it is no guarentee). The team will get players like Poz, Simpson, Denney and others back from injury, replaced Tripplett with Stroud and Ellison with Mitchell.

They had a rookie QB and rookie RB who should both improve.

And you think they will be a worse team this year??

And you accuse of me of not using any logic or common sense?

[justasportsfan]

maybe we should bump up OP's threads/posts from last year :snicker:

[DraftBoy]

We're good enough to beat the Cardinals on paper, but that's also a trap game (non conference game on the road before the bye- see Pittsburgh last year).

The biggest issue I have with this: you think we're going to win in Jacksonville AND in KC? No way. And 5-0 at the bye? Not a chance.

Trap game yes but Arizona does not have QB who is capable of beating us and I think our offense will run all over their D.

Jacksonville is the toughest call. Them losing Stroud will hurt there D and there wont be a Wilford to save their butts this time around. Really that one could go either way. There is no way KC beats us imo. Yea Arrowhead is a tough place to play but they dont have a decent team at all.

[superbills]

I got us at 10-6;

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars W
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS L
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs W
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO L
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets W
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L

Hmmm. I agree with the record, but I would swap the Jacksonville and San Fran games. Jacksonville is always a tough game and I think we take San Fran at home.

[DraftBoy]

you got us winning AT Jacksonville?? based on what?

and we did we become a great road team? Ariz and Rams are no walk in the park. And the Jets will be improved this year, big time.


Did you seriously just say that? 2nd worst team in all of football this year and they will be magically better?

Jets still have no QB, same with Arizona. I explained my jags pick in the post above.

[OpIv37]

You said we'd be LUCKY to get to 7-9 and now youre claiming you predicted the record? You set the bar waaaaaay lower than 7-9. You never gave this team a shot.

and with all the injuries we were lucky to get to 7-9- a lot of people even said Jauron had the team playing above their level, both here and in the national sports media. With all the injuries and with 4 games against the awful Jets and Dolphins, you don't think we were lucky to get to 7-9?

Seriously, you come on here and talk like I was wrong about everything and that's simply not true. I certainly wasn't 100% right, but I was right about a lot of things including the record. You like to make my track record sound a lot worse than it is simply because you don't like what I have to say. I don't like it either, but given the limited amount of information we have at the moment, it makes the most sense.

I said it was an early prediction and I may change it before the season starts based on the draft, trades, major injuries for us or our opponent in preseason, how we look in preseason, etc. But as of today, this is what makes the most sense.

[TacklingDummy]

Until the Bills show that they are good, I have to think pessimistic.

4-12

Split with Jets/Fins, wins vs. Oak/SF

[OpIv37]

The team was 7-9 last year with 15+ injuries, a rookie QB, and a defense that was worse than this year's defense should be (it is no guarentee). The team will get players like Poz, Simpson, Denney and others back from injury, replaced Tripplett with Stroud and Ellison with Mitchell.

They had a rookie QB and rookie RB who should both improve.

And you think they will be a worse team this year??

And you accuse of me of not using any logic or common sense?

You're assuming the competition between this year and last year is equal- it isn't always about us.

And you're assuming the improvement from the QB and the RB will be enough to help us win. We were the 30th ranked offense last year, and we're counting on improvement from 2 players to make us better. Trust me- it's possible for them to improve and still suck- that's how bad we were on offense last year.

The D is definitely better but it's going to be the same as last year- they're going to wear down over the course of the game. Bend but don't break always breaks, especially when the O can't score.

[Historian]

9-7

[FlyingDutchman]

and with all the injuries we were lucky to get to 7-9- a lot of people even said Jauron had the team playing above their level, both here and in the national sports media. With all the injuries and with 4 games against the awful Jets and Dolphins, you don't think we were lucky to get to 7-9?


Dude, it goes both ways. Remember Denver and Dallas? I agree, we beat cupcakes, but at least we won the games we were supposed to. Then we almost won some games we werent supposed to. What makes you think we cant turn the corner and win some big ones now?

[OpIv37]

i love people who are really sure about their season predictions..

7-9 we are lucky.. lol

novel concept.. but why dont we draft and sign about 10 more guys.. see what happens in camp and preseason.. see if any other FAs are signed and what happens with injuries on our team and other teams.. THEN try and figure out what might happen.

we were the unluckiest team in the league last year and still went 7-9.

i think OP predicted 4-12.. so that means if he is sure we should be 6-10 ... that means we really should be about 10-6 in my book.

don't know where you got 4-12 from- I predicted 6-10, 7-9 if NE has nothing to play for in the last game.

And I said it was an early prediction- a lot can change. But seriously, who do you think we are going to get in this draft that is going to put us over the top and change some of those W's to L's? You're talking about a handful of rookies and can't expect them to come in and dominate.

As far as FA's- all the "impact" players are signed. Anyone else we sign will be depth or camp fodder.

[OpIv37]

Dude, it goes both ways. Remember Denver and Dallas? I agree, we beat cupcakes, but at least we won the games we were supposed to. Then we almost won some games we werent supposed to. What makes you think we cant turn the corner and win some big ones now?

mostly the lack of additions to the O. I think the D is significantly better, S/T is roughly equal, but the O is still going to struggle and put our D on the spot. I just don't think one year of improvement from Lynch and Edwards will be enough improvement to the O to make us competitive.

Also this team has yet to prove they can win under pressure, and there will certainly be pressure for the Cleveland and Toronto games.

[Mr. Miyagi]

You guys are all completely wrong.

We're going 19-0 this year.

Yes, let's make it a "You heard it here first" prediction.

[Patrick76777]

Who knows? 1000 things can happen between now and then.

[mysticsoto]

You're assuming the competition between this year and last year is equal- it isn't always about us.


Uhhh...not sure why you mentioned this as this bit works against you. Last year we had a tough schedule. This year, it is orders of magnitude easier!!!

[OpIv37]

Uhhh...not sure why you mentioned this as this bit works against you. Last year we had a tough schedule. This year, it is orders of magnitude easier!!!

in theory, yes... but not necessarily. The Jets are vastly improved. I'd rather play the NFCW than the NFCE but we still have the Chargers, Jacksonville and Cleveland in the non-division schedule. And two games against NE. That's not exactly a cakewalk.

[Dr. Lecter]

You're assuming the competition between this year and last year is equal- it isn't always about us.

And you're assuming the improvement from the QB and the RB will be enough to help us win. We were the 30th ranked offense last year, and we're counting on improvement from 2 players to make us better. Trust me- it's possible for them to improve and still suck- that's how bad we were on offense last year.

The D is definitely better but it's going to be the same as last year- they're going to wear down over the course of the game. Bend but don't break always breaks, especially when the O can't score.

You're right, the schedule is easier this year!!!!

And I agree it is possible for the offense to improve but still suck - but it still improvement.

And yes the defense will be better, but even if it wears down it will have allowed fewer points before wearing down.

Anyway you cut it, logic dictates the team should have a better record than last year.

[mysticsoto]

mostly the lack of additions to the O. I think the D is significantly better, S/T is roughly equal, but the O is still going to struggle and put our D on the spot. I just don't think one year of improvement from Lynch and Edwards will be enough improvement to the O to make us competitive.

Also this team has yet to prove they can win under pressure, and there will certainly be pressure for the Cleveland and Toronto games.

With the draft, the O will improve by default with a better WR and TE than what we had last year. Also, our Oline is intact and together for the 2nd year (how long ago has it been since our Oline have some consistency with all their personnel)?

S/T is not roughly equal. We did lose a bit. We lost Aiken, Coy Wire, Haggan and Stamer who were excellent STers. We do have new guys stepping up, but we shouldn't assume it is automatic.

[justasportsfan]

in theory, yes... but not necessarily. The Jets are vastly improved. I'd rather play the NFCW than the NFCE but we still have the Chargers, Jacksonville and Cleveland in the non-division schedule. And two games against NE. That's not exactly a cakewalk.
our injured D that swept them last year has also vastly improved on paper.

[OpIv37]

With the draft, the O will improve by default with a better WR and TE than what we had last year. Also, our Oline is intact and together for the 2nd year (how long ago has it been since our Oline have some consistency with all their personnel)?

S/T is not roughly equal. We did lose a bit. We lost Aiken, Coy Wire, Haggan and Stamer who were excellent STers. We do have new guys stepping up, but we shouldn't assume it is automatic.

Wendling replaces Aiken as the gunner- he's better at it. Wire was overrated as an STer- he usually just jumped on the pile AFTER the tackle was made. Haggan and Stamer- well, they're certainly not irreplaceable.

[Dr. Lecter]

The one part of the team that has gotten worse and Op is defending it.

Homer.

[Pinkerton Security]

9-7: I feel this is a fair assessment, with some games we might win being losses, and vice versa

Week 1: Seattle - W Seattle is on the way down
Week 2: @ Jacksonville- L Too solid
Week 3: Oakland - W Too crappy to lose to
Week 4: @ St. Louis - W They are legitimately worse than us
Week 5: @ Arizona - L They are also worse than us, but we lose
Week 6: Bye
Week 7: San Diego - L Simple enough
Week 8: @ Miami - W Simple enough
Week 9: NY Jets - W Clemens sucks
Week 10: @ NE - L Eh
Week 11: Mon Cleveland - W Huge game, fans are wild, we win
Week 12: @KC - L Big letdown after Monday night win
Week 13: SF - W Bounce back to win
Week 14: Toronto (Miami) - W Sweep!
Week 15: @ Jets - L They are improving
Week 16: @Denver - L Heartbreaking loss
Week 17: NE - W End our streak of losses against their scrubs

[trapezeus]

i offer 13-3. i see the bills going 4-1 til the bye. i think the AFC east stays weak, and i will continue to bank on the Pats having to falter because their time is up.

Call me mad, call me stupid, but you can certainly call it a prediction.

[justasportsfan]

i offer 13-3. i see the bills going 4-1 til the bye. i think the AFC east stays weak, and i will continue to bank on the Pats having to falter because their time is up.

Call me mad, call me stupid, but you can certainly call it a prediction.
thats a homer post especially with no significant improvements offensively so far.

[DraftBoy]

i offer 13-3. i see the bills going 4-1 til the bye. i think the AFC east stays weak, and i will continue to bank on the Pats having to falter because their time is up.

Call me mad, call me stupid, but you can certainly call it a prediction.

3 loses being? Jax, NE (x2)?

[Dr. Lecter]

i offer 13-3. i see the bills going 4-1 til the bye. i think the AFC east stays weak, and i will continue to bank on the Pats having to falter because their time is up.

Call me mad, call me stupid, but you can certainly call it a prediction.

You are mad and stupid.

[justasportsfan]

You are mad and stupid.

[mysticsoto]

The one part of the team that has gotten worse and Op is defending it.

Homer.
I know...it's very odd, that ST is the only part of the team that may be worse, and yet he's defending it. Yet, the O will not improve with a *real* #2 WR and a *real* TE gotten from the draft. Lynch will not improve with a real FB to block for him rather than a hybrid/TE blocker. The Oline will not improve after having a year to gel and work together (and let's not forget Peters got hurt at the end of last season - and that made a big difference). On the D we're getting Poz and Ko/Wilson back from injury - substantial upgrades despite DiG playing very decent. Lastly, we've got Stroud and Mitchell to upgrade two important positions in our Defense.

And somehow, the best he can see after 15+ injuries and one of the toughest schedules last year...is that we "may" equal our record??? :crazy:

Negative Nancy is one thing...but this is more like out of touch with reality!

[DrGraves]

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W (1st game, we'll be jacked up)
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars L (demolish our crappy Off.)
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W (they blow)
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams L (long trip, s. jackson owns)
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals L (sneak out a road win)
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS W (close grind it out win)
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W (miami is ready to go 0-16)
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS L (trap game, looking ahead to NE)
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L (not yet)
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS W(revenge, mnf home)
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs L (arrowhead)
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO W (home against trash)
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W (toronto fans will save us)
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets W (split with jets)
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos W (revenge from last year)
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L (at home against backups like that year against pittsburgh to miss playoffs again)



9-7, miss playoffs again, bills fans want to kill themselves, ralph sells team at end of season, 2009 we can root for the toronto maple syrup's, eh!

don't take predictions seriously, this is based off of nothing.

[OpIv37]

I know...it's very odd, that ST is the only part of the team that may be worse, and yet he's defending it. Yet, the O will not improve with a *real* #2 WR and a *real* TE gotten from the draft. Lynch will not improve with a real FB to block for him rather than a hybrid/TE blocker. The Oline will not improve after having a year to gel and work together (and let's not forget Peters got hurt at the end of last season - and that made a big difference). On the D we're getting Poz and Ko/Wilson back from injury - substantial upgrades despite DiG playing very decent. Lastly, we've got Stroud and Mitchell to upgrade two important positions in our Defense.

And somehow, the best he can see after 15+ injuries and one of the toughest schedules last year...is that we "may" equal our record??? :crazy:

Negative Nancy is one thing...but this is more like out of touch with reality!

I see.... so last year you said we were supposed to get better from rookie improvement, yet this year we're supposed to expect two rookies to come in and be ready to be lynchpins on the offense? You're assuming we'll get players in those positions and you're assuming they'll be good enough to contribute immediately. Those are some hefty assumptions.

you're also forgetting that our offense can improve and still suck- we were that bad last year. We need a TON of improvement, and all we have is a year of experience and maybe some draft picks. That's just not realistic.

The D will be better, but it won't matter if the O can't score or keep them off the field. See 2003 and 2004, and the end of last season.

[madness]

One thing is for certain, our run defense is going to get tested straight out the door.

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W (Turk comes out swinging but defense forgets about JJ signing and goes into prevent until 4th qrtr when they realize they were already in prevent and switch to normal D.)

Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars L (Jags only got better and prove it by beating Buffalo in made up throwbacks.)

TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W (Raiders get better by installing smoke & mirrors at stadium.)

Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W (Rams solidify QB pos. by signing T. Green to backup fragile Bulger.)

Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W (trap game. After getting beat @ Jets, Cards prepare for next two weeks against the Cowgirls and forget about having to play the Bills.)

BYE 10/12 BYE BYE L (Bills slack on off week only to get surprised)

Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L (LT is immortal AND wears a cool visor. Take that Chuck Norris.)

Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W (Tough call until we see who they draft in the 1st round this year.)

Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W (Jets get better by going a la Redskins but up the sting factor on T. Jones by using him even less after signing PB fullback.)

Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L (Pats find it easier to steal radio freq. then tape hand signals. Hello, real time cheating!)

Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS W (Trap game! Browns don't prepare given Bills primtime record.)

Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs W (Trap game! Chiefs rely on stadium for easy win but forget C is out of bounds in parking lot when snapping the ball to Arrowhead.)

Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO W (Smith can't raise arm but punches Nolan in his hat just to prove he's tough.)

Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W (Phins bench all WR's to get Ginn back on the field.)

Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets L (Clemons and Pennington duke it out on the sidelines while Jones sneaks up to center and passes for 275 while rushing for 75. Jones apologizes to himself for audibling out of most running plays.)

Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L (With Denver up 10, Shanny calls a timeout left @ .01 to freeze the Bills walk back to the bus.)

Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L (Brady takes charge of stolen D feed on sideline to give wrong info to backup so he look that much more manlier then him. Ends up getting distracted looking for his man purse and backup pulls greatest NE comeback ever.)


Don't bother arguing cuz I'm right and you're wrong. Suck it losers! I'm out.

[mysticsoto]

I see.... so last year you said we were supposed to get better from rookie improvement, yet this year we're supposed to expect two rookies to come in and be ready to be lynchpins on the offense? You're assuming we'll get players in those positions and you're assuming they'll be good enough to contribute immediately. Those are some hefty assumptions.

you're also forgetting that our offense can improve and still suck- we were that bad last year. We need a TON of improvement, and all we have is a year of experience and maybe some draft picks. That's just not realistic.

The D will be better, but it won't matter if the O can't score or keep them off the field. See 2003 and 2004, and the end of last season.

Regardless of whether our O still sucks...improvement is improvement. So if we went 7-9 last year on a tough schedule and this year we improve our D and have a lighter schedule...and don't have 15+ injuries...and have a viable #2 WR (vs what we had last year which was zilch) as well as a TE that even in worst case - let's say it just equals what we had last year...how do you figure we still end up with the same win/losses???

[OpIv37]

Regardless of whether our O still sucks...improvement is improvement. So if we went 7-9 last year on a tough schedule and this year we improve our D and have a lighter schedule...and don't have 15+ injuries...and have a viable #2 WR (vs what we had last year which was zilch) as well as a TE that even in worst case - let's say it just equals what we had last year...how do you figure we still end up with the same win/losses???

how do you figure the improvement will lead to wins? We didn't improve the offense at all- it's just a year of experience. I think it's just going to lead to "less bad" losses- we'll still lose but with better offensive statistics.

And get off the whole injuries thing-we didn't have any significant injuries on offense.

[mayotm]

how do you figure the improvement will lead to wins? We didn't improve the offense at all- it's just a year of experience. I think it's just going to lead to "less bad" losses- we'll still lose but with better offensive statistics.

And get off the whole injuries thing-we didn't have any significant injuries on offense.Right or wrong, many of us are banking on improved QB play to translate to wins.

[trapezeus]

thats a homer post especially with no significant improvements offensively so far.

of course its a homer post. everyone is posting from 5-11 to 9-7. Might as well spice it up and put a different take on things.

Plus every year there are 2-3 (cowboys, steelers) teams that go way above and beyond the call of duty and 2-3 teams who crap the bed worse then they should have (eagles, ravens).

Maybe we get our chance and the pats fall. of course, i say this every year, and nothing happens, and we rue the days that we let the games in the first 4 weeks get away from us. And we have a mediocre middle and a let down final 3 games. maybe we'll get away from all that this year.

[OpIv37]

Right or wrong, many of us are banking on improved QB play to translate to wins.

that's what concerns me. No doubt QB play was one of the biggest holes- ok, THE biggest hole last year- and improved play would lead to wins. I just don't see Edwards making enough of a leap in 1 year to make a huge difference, especially with our craptacular receivers.

[PromoTheRobot]

in theory, yes... but not necessarily. The Jets are vastly improved. I'd rather play the NFCW than the NFCE but we still have the Chargers, Jacksonville and Cleveland in the non-division schedule. And two games against NE. That's not exactly a cakewalk.
The Jets "vastly improve" every year...and they still stink. Same for Miami. This is one of the most favorable Bills schedules in ages. I say 11-5., and that Pats game will be flexed because of playoff implications.

PTR

[OpIv37]

The Jets "vastly improve" every year...and they still stink. Same for Miami. This is one of the most favorable Bills schedules in ages. I say 11-5., and that Pats game will be flexed because of playoff implications.

PTR

there's a chance the jets won't gel and it will be more of the same, but on paper they're much better and that's all we have to go on right now.

[Dr. Lecter]

there's a chance the jets won't gel and it will be more of the same, but on paper they're much better and that's all we have to go on right now.

How are they much better on paper?

You are willing to hold the Bills back due to ??? at QB and WR, but are you giving the Jets a pass? They still have noodle-arm and Clemens.

[OpIv37]

How are they much better on paper?

You are willing to hold the Bills back due to ??? at QB and WR, but are you giving the Jets a pass? They still have noodle-arm and Clemens.

true but their D got better, their running game got better and their WR's are better than ours, plus they have a hell of an OL to at least give those guys a chance.

Our OL did fine pass blocking last year and neither JP nor Edwards did anything with it. We still have no receivers. We still have no TE. We still have no depth on the OL.

Did you forget just how bad this offense was last year? Do you really think 1 year of improvement and a new OC is all it takes? You can't be serious. The offense was anemic last year and it's going to take more than experience to make it better. We need more talent and we simply didn't get it.

[Dr. Lecter]

I did not say the offense was fixed. But it should be better. And remember, 3 more points a game would have been huge last year.

BTW, the Jets running backs still suck as bad as the Bils WRs and their WRs are not the greatest once you get past Coles.

[LifetimeBillsFan]

This is my take.

It is a very preliminary analysis based on the schedule and entirely predicated on the Bills staying reasonably healthy as a team and its young players making reasonable progress in their development as NFL players. Injuries at key positions or the failure of Trent Edwards to continue to develop at the QB position would, obviously, have an impact on how I would assess the possible outcome of these games and the team's record for the season.

Week 1: Seattle (Toss Up/W)--tough swing game against good team, home field and long trip for 'Hawks=upset if Bills are ready

Week 2: @ Jacksonville (L)--Jags not that much better than Bills, but tough swing game on road

Week 3: Oakland (W)--Raiders have tough D, but still have problems and long trip give Bills edge

Week 4: @ St. Louis (W)--Rams have good offense and dome, but Bills are better enough overall to win a close game

Week 5: @ Arizona (Toss Up/L)--Bills should win, but long trip could make for a loss

Week 6: Bye

Week 7: San Diego (Toss Up/W)--Upset Special coming off bye week, Bills play SD well at home

Week 8: @ Miami (W)--Miami will be better but still not strong enough even at home

Week 9: NY Jets (W)--Jets always play Bills tough, but home field gives Buffalo the edge here

Week 10: @ NE (L)--Bills will be better prepared for this game, but can't see them winning it

Week 11: Mon Cleveland (Toss Up/W)--no blizzard this time and MNF excitement carries Bills to win

Week 12: @KC (W)--tough to win at Arrowhead, but KC aging at key positions, questions at QB=H.Edwards demise and Bills win

Week 13: SF (W)--young team with lots of questions and tough trip make for Bills win at home

Week 14: (Toronto) Miami (W)--this could be tough, but Toronto fans do their best to make the Bills feel at home and Bills wear Miami down to win

Week 15: @ Jets (Toss Up/L)--Bills have slight edge in talent, but Jets are improved and play them tough, especially at home

Week 16: @Denver (Toss Up/L)--Unless Denver collapses, they are too close in talent and too tough at home to lose this one, but it should be close

Week 17: NE (Toss Up/L)--Could be the biggest game of the season for Bills with playoffs riding on outcome (if Bills lose to SD) and The Ralph rockin'--Bills could win if Pats are resting their starters or lose if Pats are playing for another 16-0 season or are motivated


Breakdown by divisions:

Division games: 3-3 or 4-2--swing games: @ NY Jets; home vs NE
AFCW games: 3-1 or 2-2--swing games: @ Denver; home vs SD closer than expected
NFCW games: 3-1 or 4-0--swing games: home vs Seattle; @ Arizona
2nd place finishers: 1-1 or 0-2--swing game: Cleveland, The Ralph will be rocking for MNF
------------------ Will Produce: 10-6; with breaks going for 11-5, with breaks going against 9-7


Breakdown by Quality:

Games against Clearly Better Teams (3): vs SD, @ NE, vs NE-- 0-3 or 1-2: two home games, plus the fact that NE may be resting starters for last tilt increases the chances of an upset

Games against Somewhat Better Teams (3): vs Seattle, @ Jax, vs Cleveland on MNF-- 2-1 or 1-2: home "dogs" do well on MNF and Browns aren't that much better than Bills

(Generally a decent team can count on winning at least one game that it should not win during a season. While Cleveland may be a better team than the Bills, the MNF factor evens the talent disparity out, at worse, making this a pick-'em game. Result: record vs better teams ranges from 1-5 to 3-3, predicted: 1-4)

Games against Comparable Teams (3): vs NY Jets, @ NY Jets, @ Denver-- 2-1 or 1-2: Jets may not be quite comparable if their QB woes persist, but division rival that is traditionally tough on Bills could win at home and Denver is tough to beat at home unless they collapse

Games against Somewhat Weaker Teams (1): @ Arizona-- 0-1 or 1-0: being on the road, this could be a trap game against a team with a good offense, but poor defense

(All four of these games are winnable, but with three of them being on the road, wins in all four games cannot be counted on, especially with tough trips to Arizona early and Denver late in the season. The Bills could go 4-0 or 1-3 in these games, but should go no worse than 2-2 or 3-1.)

Games against Weaker Teams (6): vs Oak, @ St.Louis, @ Miami, @ KC, San Fran, vs Miami (in Toronto)-- 5-1 or 6-0: no team in the NFL is a "push-over", but all of these teams have more problems and further to go to be competitive than the Bills, so the Bills should be able to beat all of them. But, just as NFL teams will win a game that they shouldn't win during the course of a season, more often than not they will also lose a game that they shouldn't lose as well.

(The one thing that Dick Jauron has done pretty well as Bills HC has been to get his teams to win the games that they were supposed to win--the loss to Detroit two years ago being the exception. While Oakland should have a good defense, St.Louis a good offense, SF and Miami a better all-around team, and KC is always tough at Arrowhead, all of these teams have serious weaknesses or less overall talent than the Bills. While it would be asking a lot of the Bills to repeat last season's feat of beating all of the teams that it was supposed to beat, the Bills should be able to avoid upsets in virtually all, if not all of these games. The Bills could go 6-0 in these games, but more likely will slip once and go 5-1.)

1-4 + 3-1 + 1-0 + 5-1 = 10-6
2-3 + 2-2 + 0-1 + 6-0 = 10-6
1-4 + 2-2 + 0-1 + 5-1 = 8-8
2-3 + 3-1 + 1-0 + 6-0 = 12-4

-----------------------Most Likely To Produce 10-6, +/- 2 games


My Prediction Based On Schedule And Teams Right Now: 10-6

As I see it, if the Bills stay healthy and get some breaks, they could go 11-5. Or, if they have another rash of injuries and Trent Edwards fails to progress in his second year, they could do as poorly as 8-8. But, with the favorable schedule that they have, if they are able to stay pretty much healthy all season and Edwards is able to build on his rookie season, they should be able to win enough games to finish 10-6 and be in the hunt for a playoff berth.

To do that, however, it is imperitive that they stay healthy--they cannot afford to lose any key starters for an extended period of time. Also, Edwards, Lynch, Posluzny and McCargo must step up their games to the next level in their development, their offensive line must continue to show the improvement that they made as last season progressed, and their rookies must begin to make important contributions by mid-season. And, finally, they must begin to learn how to win some of the close games that they have been in a position to win against equal or better teams over the course of the last two seasons.

All of these things are not only possible, but reasonable to expect from the team.

That they have managed to get to 7-9 with the personnel losses, injuries and untested youth that they have had to deal with (not to mention Everett's injury and the adverse weather conditions last season), there is no reason to expect that the team will not continue to progress, at least incrementally, this season, especially with the additions that they have made thus far on defense this offseason.

A one-to-two game improvement over last season would be expected, just based on a return to health and a completely healthy season from the players that they had last season. And a similar improvement could be expected given the relative ease of their schedule this season. Progress in the development of their young QB, RB and MLB, plus a new OC and the additions that they have and will make in the offseason should add another win to their total.

All of which, in my view, again adds up to a 10-6 record...with the potential to go 11-5 should they get some unanticipated breaks and additional unexpected development from their personnel. At worse, barring a rash of crippling injuries at key positions, they should finish no less than 8-8.

[Tatonka]

As far as FA's- all the "impact" players are signed. Anyone else we sign will be depth or camp fodder.

oh, i forgot your crystal ball told you that no vets that would be an upgrade will be cut after the draft.

and the fact that you want to take credit for saying "they will be lucky to get to 7-9" is a complete joke.

you say you said 6-10, but im too lazy to see if you're full of it. and if someone told you we would have a rookie qb and rb starting, along with 15 guys on IR, you would have said 6-10?

[OpIv37]

oh, i forgot your crystal ball told you that no vets that would be an upgrade will be cut after the draft.

and the fact that you want to take credit for saying "they will be lucky to get to 7-9" is a complete joke.

you say you said 6-10, but im too lazy to see if you're full of it. and if someone told you we would have a rookie qb and rb starting, along with 15 guys on IR, you would have said 6-10?

does it matter? I was much closer than most people, but you and FlyingDutchman and other people don't want to give me any credit because you don't like my attitude, which is immature and ridiculous.

and what makes you think that anyone who's cut after the draft will be of any use to this team whatsoever? We've tried using other teams' trash to upgrade our team- it doesn't work (Tripplett, Bowen, P. Price, Andre Davis, Robert Royal, Bennie Anderson, Tutan Reyes, need I continue?).

Suddenly other teams' rejects are going to make us so much better? Please,

I said it was an early prediction- it's based on how things look now. That could change, but if you're expecting significant change, you need a dose of realism.

[Tatonka]

do you have a link to your record prediction?

[djjimkelly]

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS L
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars L
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS L
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals L
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS L
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs W
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO W
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS L
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets L
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L


5-11 maybe 6-10 if we lucky in a game or 2 thats my predicition that could change barring some major roster move or 2.

or if DICK gets hit by a bus and we forced to hire someone from outside the organization

[mysticsoto]

how do you figure the improvement will lead to wins? We didn't improve the offense at all- it's just a year of experience. I think it's just going to lead to "less bad" losses- we'll still lose but with better offensive statistics.

And get off the whole injuries thing-we didn't have any significant injuries on offense.
The offense is a moving target. The draft is meant to improve it and a top WR and top TE will indeed improve it. We didn't have significant injuries on offense...but how many rookie QBs light it up in their 1st year??? Let's see Brett Favre was terrible at 1st, Carson Palmer took a bit, Drew Brees was almost axed...the list goes on...

But I notice you are not dwelling much on the defense. Last year you were constantly *****ing about McCargo not showing anything and that he was injury prone and not likely to be a factor. He played all year and played well, AND, more importantly, now he has help on the inside with our FA acquisition. You went overboard *****ing about DiGiorgio, well now Poz will be back. Ellison is also now moved to backup with Mitchell's acquisition from the Giants. As I recall, we lost enough LBs at one point where we were forced to sign new ones and it literally became our weakest position! Anyway, with Wilson and also Ko eventually returning to play Safety, that position becomes improved also. So now you can't ***** about the defense and you have to switch to the offense to let your usual irrationalities surface.

Again, you can't explain yourself out rationally. The offense, at worst, is the same as last year (which I don't think will be the case), but the defense has improved substantially and the schedule is easier. So please explain how you find it likely that we will mimic our win/loss ratio of last year...

Oh, and don't forget that we lost 2 games last year by last minute field goals. Those could have easily gone the other way with less injuries and a better defense that we will have this year! So "less bad losses", as you mention above, are basically wins for those 2 games!!!

[YardRat]

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars L
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams L
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS W
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs L
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO W
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets L
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS W

9-7. Two games better than last year, and maybe good enough for a wild card.<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

[FlyingDutchman]

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars L
TBA TBA OAKLAND RAIDERS W
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS L
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs W
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO W
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets L
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos W
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L

10-6<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

[OpIv37]

The offense is a moving target. The draft is meant to improve it and a top WR and top TE will indeed improve it. We didn't have significant injuries on offense...but how many rookie QBs light it up in their 1st year??? Let's see Brett Favre was terrible at 1st, Carson Palmer took a bit, Drew Brees was almost axed...the list goes on...

But I notice you are not dwelling much on the defense. Last year you were constantly *****ing about McCargo not showing anything and that he was injury prone and not likely to be a factor. He played all year and played well, AND, more importantly, now he has help on the inside with our FA acquisition. You went overboard *****ing about DiGiorgio, well now Poz will be back. Ellison is also now moved to backup with Mitchell's acquisition from the Giants. As I recall, we lost enough LBs at one point where we were forced to sign new ones and it literally became our weakest position! Anyway, with Wilson and also Ko eventually returning to play Safety, that position becomes improved also. So now you can't ***** about the defense and you have to switch to the offense to let your usual irrationalities surface.

Again, you can't explain yourself out rationally. The offense, at worst, is the same as last year (which I don't think will be the case), but the defense has improved substantially and the schedule is easier. So please explain how you find it likely that we will mimic our win/loss ratio of last year...

Oh, and don't forget that we lost 2 games last year by last minute field goals. Those could have easily gone the other way with less injuries and a better defense that we will have this year! So "less bad losses", as you mention above, are basically wins for those 2 games!!!

What's there to dwell on with the D? I was wrong about McCargo- I've already said that- and the D added some key players. I said the D was better weeks ago.

and I've already explained it. Have you WATCHED the games the last few years? The D eventually breaks down because the O can't keep them off the field. The improvement will help, but not if they're on the field 40 minutes a game again. In the end, the O isn't going to be good enough to score and the D is going to break down like they did last year. Talent doesn't equal infinite stamina. It's that simple.

[PromoTheRobot]

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars L
Sun. 9/21 OAKLAND RAIDERS W
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams W
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS L
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS W
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs L
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS W
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets W
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS W

11-5 Wild Card

[mysticsoto]

What's there to dwell on with the D? I was wrong about McCargo- I've already said that- and the D added some key players. I said the D was better weeks ago.

and I've already explained it. Have you WATCHED the games the last few years? The D eventually breaks down because the O can't keep them off the field. The improvement will help, but not if they're on the field 40 minutes a game again. In the end, the O isn't going to be good enough to score and the D is going to break down like they did last year. Talent doesn't equal infinite stamina. It's that simple.

I'm not going to get into an "I told you so" type discussion. It'd just be nice for you to realize that you shouldn't talk in such an absolute way about how supposedly bad the team will be. Especially since you have been proven wrong several times!

By the way, ever hear of turnovers...which is what our D is designed to do??? I think it is ludicrous for you to think that an improved D won't matter or won't make a difference. The Ravens had a poor offense and still went to the superbowl. Before you make comments, I'm not equating our D to theirs. All I'm saying is that one facet of the team that is really good can make a difference. And again, we have an easier schedule that you are discounting also. Would you rather play the Rams, SF or KC ? Or would you rather play Dallas and the Giants?

[OpIv37]

I'm not going to get into an "I told you so" type discussion. It'd just be nice for you to realize that you shouldn't talk in such an absolute way about how supposedly bad the team will be. Especially since you have been proven wrong several times!

By the way, ever hear of turnovers...which is what our D is designed to do??? I think it is ludicrous for you to think that an improved D won't matter or won't make a difference. The Ravens had a poor offense and still went to the superbowl. Before you make comments, I'm not equating our D to theirs. All I'm saying is that one facet of the team that is really good can make a difference. And again, we have an easier schedule that you are discounting also. Would you rather play the Rams, SF or KC ? Or would you rather play Dallas and the Giants?

they were designed to create turnovers but so far they haven't. And when they created 6 of them against Dallas, WE STILL LOST. The D will eventually break down without offensive help. Did you watch the games in 2003 and 2004? Great D- horrible O- got us nowhere.

Yes, the schedule is easier this year, but not that much easier.

[TigerJ]

the Jets have improved a lot over last year.

I would have given us both against the Fish if the second one wasn't so high-profile. This team cannot win under pressure (see Denver, Dallas, Cleveland, NE night game from last year).Buffalo was exceedingly young last season. They experienced all kinds of adversity with all the injuries. If the games versus Denver, Dallas, Cleveland and NE are only about revealing character, then you may be correct. The other possibility is that the younger players were being tempered by the adversity they faced and it will make them a tougher team this season.

I learned last summer about a civil war division in which my ancestor served, the 154th "Hardtack" division. In their first two actions, the second being Gettysburg, they were crushed, sustaining heavy losses. The survivors tightened up, learned how to fight and were a factor in a number of later Union victories, including Sherman's march to the sea. One might have concluded on the basis of their first two battles that they were weak and couldn't deal with the pressure. Army divisions can change, however, and so can football teams.

[TigerJ]

I see 3 or 4 games that it would be tough for Buffalo to win barring a miracle: NE twice, SD, and maybe Jacksonville because it's early in the season. I think everything else is winnable. That doesn't mean I'm predicting 12-4. I expect that a lapse in concentration will cost the Bills two or three games, and we'll end up in the 10-6 or 9-7 range.

[mysticsoto]

they were designed to create turnovers but so far they haven't. And when they created 6 of them against Dallas, WE STILL LOST. The D will eventually break down without offensive help. Did you watch the games in 2003 and 2004? Great D- horrible O- got us nowhere.

Yes, the schedule is easier this year, but not that much easier.

Yes, they have. Even last year, with all the injuries, they created turnovers. The Dallas game...we barely lost - and that was with a worse D than we will have now. And Dallas was a top team!!!

The D of 2003/2004 was different than the one we have now. That one was designed to prevent the run. This one is designed to create turnovers and even with all the injuries last year, they did so regardless. People need to keep in mind not just how many sacks are done, but also the hurries that force interceptions AND incompletions. Our Dline was not great and did not get many sacks last year, but the hurries were still there. Hopefully with Stroud and Spencer in the new rotation, some of those hurries turn into sacks also.

By the way, did you know that we committed 21 turnovers for the entire season which ties for a franchise low? Did you know that we only had 78 penalties which is also a new franchise low? I know you only like to look and emphasize the negative - but there is alot of positive aspects emerging from this improving team.

[OpIv37]

Yes, they have. Even last year, with all the injuries, they created turnovers. The Dallas game...we barely lost - and that was with a worse D than we will have now. And Dallas was a top team!!!

The D of 2003/2004 was different than the one we have now. That one was designed to prevent the run. This one is designed to create turnovers and even with all the injuries last year, they did so regardless. People need to keep in mind not just how many sacks are done, but also the hurries that force interceptions AND incompletions. Our Dline was not great and did not get many sacks last year, but the hurries were still there. Hopefully with Stroud and Spencer in the new rotation, some of those hurries turn into sacks also.

By the way, did you know that we committed 21 turnovers for the entire season which ties for a franchise low? Did you know that we only had 78 penalties which is also a new franchise low? I know you only like to look and emphasize the negative - but there is alot of positive aspects emerging from this improving team.

Buffalo was tied for 14th with 30 takeaways last year. That's nothing spectacular- its middle of the pack. And even with that, the offense did NOTHING. Yes, penalties and avoiding turnovers are great, but they don't win games on their own. They still need offensive production- where are we going to get it? How are we going to keep the D rested enough to create turnovers?

I don't know where you get this "I only want to look at the negative" crap because I said the D was better- numerous times over the last several weeks. I said losing Fairchild was addition by subraction. But on the whole, we still have no additional offensive production, and that was the biggest missing piece. We still don't have a red zone target. We still don't have a #2 WR or a decent TE. We still have a very inexperienced QB. We still have no depth on the OL.

[Dr. Lecter]

I don't think any team has much depth on the O-line.

I think the point is this:

Last year, with a (in theory) more difficult schedule, 15 injuries, a rookie QB, a rookie RB, and a defense that was worse (especially agaisnt the run) the team went 7-9.

With the improvements the team made on defense, the removal of Fairchild, the return from injury of key players and an easier schedule there should be imrpovement.

Now, does the team still have holes? YES!!!! Without a doubt! But should the team be better? YES!!!!!!!

Their record should not be worse than last year. Will they be 16-0? Nope. 12-4? Highly unlikely. 10-6? Quite possible.

[Dr. Lecter]

I don't know where you get this "I only want to look at the negative" crap because I said the D was better- numerous times over the last several weeks. I said losing Fairchild was addition by subraction. But on the whole, we still have no additional offensive production, and that was the biggest missing piece. We still don't have a red zone target. We still don't have a #2 WR or a decent TE. We still have a very inexperienced QB. We still have no depth on the OL.

Because, despite those improvements, you think the team will be worse than last year.

You list a number of improvements, not significant areas that got weaker, admit to a somewhat easier schedule, and you still have the team getting worse.

[justasportsfan]

What's there to dwell on with the D? I was wrong about McCargo- I've already said that- and the D added some key players. I said the D was better weeks ago.

and I've already explained it. Have you WATCHED the games the last few years? The D eventually breaks down because the O can't keep them off the field. The improvement will help, but not if they're on the field 40 minutes a game again. In the end, the O isn't going to be good enough to score and the D is going to break down like they did last year. Talent doesn't equal infinite stamina. It's that simple.
While I could possibly see us splitting with the jets your reasoning is all screwed up.

Youre telling us how our D breaks down in the past ? Have you seen the jets and fins in recent past? You're telling us that the team we swept is better on paper and yet forgetting that our D that swept them just got better on paper defensively too.

You say our D can't play under pressure.The fins D hasn't done squat against our crappy O and D (which is now healthy with added proven FA's.)in recent past too. They fins haven't proven anything yet we'll split with them?

Supposedly we also got better Offensively by getting rid of Fairchild. You're also saying the jets may take time to ge (add the fins )l, well our OL has played together for a year now so our running game could be beter on paper as well.

Your reasoning is full of contradictions. You're back to "everyones improved but the bills" .
on paper they got better but so did we.

[OpIv37]

Because, despite those improvements, you think the team will be worse than last year.

You list a number of improvements, not significant areas that got weaker, admit to a somewhat easier schedule, and you still have the team getting worse.

because they still lack a key piece. The season isn't going to play out exactly like it did last year. You're assuming that a better D is enough to put us over the top. You're assuming that the schedule is so much worse- trust me, after the way teams like the Jets and the Ravens tanked, our schedule wasn't nearly as hard as it appeared to be at the start of the year. You're forgetting that we have two high-profile games with a team that has yet to prove it can win high profile games.

You seem to think that easier schedule plus better D automatically equals 3 more wins. It's not that simple- you're not accounting for our other flaws, improvements by our opponents, the circumstances surrounding the games, etc.

[mysticsoto]

Buffalo was tied for 14th with 30 takeaways last year. That's nothing spectacular- its middle of the pack. And even with that, the offense did NOTHING. Yes, penalties and avoiding turnovers are great, but they don't win games on their own. They still need offensive production- where are we going to get it? How are we going to keep the D rested enough to create turnovers?

I don't know where you get this "I only want to look at the negative" crap because I said the D was better- numerous times over the last several weeks. I said losing Fairchild was addition by subraction. But on the whole, we still have no additional offensive production, and that was the biggest missing piece. We still don't have a red zone target. We still don't have a #2 WR or a decent TE. We still have a very inexperienced QB. We still have no depth on the OL.

So we were tied for 14th with a D that wasn't great and that was massively hit by injuries. Now we get starters back AND new, great acquisitions...do you still think we will be tied for 14th???

You say the D is better but give us the same win/lose as last year. That pretty much means you are discounting their effect on the season. Not only that, but our easier schedule is dismissed also. Yet you can't offer any explanation as to how those two things will have a net effect of 0 on our wins this year - except to say that our O hasn't improved. Well we haven't had any major losses either. We have no #2 WR or decent TE? The season hasn't started yet. The draft will fill in those holes as the top priority. And yes, we do have depth on the OL. Murphy and Whittle have returned form injuries. They are not probowlers like Peters but certainly serviceable and better than what we had before. And yes, we have an inexperienced QB, but guess what? He will be more experienced this year than he was last year!!!

I still can't see any rational substantiation to your claim. It's b'cse of the O that we won't improve? We have the same O and it hasn't regressed. In fact with a better #2 WR, TE and an Off Coord who doesn't make stupid calls like calling a reverse on a field with 6 inches of snow on the ground...yeah, I think the O will be alot better!!!

[OpIv37]

So we were tied for 14th with a D that wasn't great and that was massively hit by injuries. Now we get starters back AND new, great acquisitions...do you still think we will be tied for 14th???

You say the D is better but give us the same win/lose as last year. That pretty much means you are discounting their effect on the season. Not only that, but our easier schedule is dismissed also. Yet you can't offer any explanation as to how those two things will have a net effect of 0 on our wins this year - except to say that our O hasn't improved. Well we haven't had any major losses either. We have no #2 WR or decent TE? The season hasn't started yet. The draft will fill in those holes as the top priority. And yes, we do have depth on the OL. Murphy and Whittle have returned form injuries. They are not probowlers like Peters but certainly serviceable and better than what we had before. And yes, we have an inexperienced QB, but guess what? He will be more experienced this year than he was last year!!!

I still can't see any rational substantiation to your claim. It's b'cse of the O that we won't improve? We have the same O and it hasn't regressed. In fact with a better #2 WR, TE and an Off Coord who doesn't make stupid calls like calling a reverse on a field with 6 inches of snow on the ground...yeah, I think the O will be alot better!!!

the D was decent last year- especially at the end- and it didn't matter because the O sucked. Same thing will happen this year. The D can't win games on their own- they get a turnover and 3 plays later they're back on the field. The Dallas game proved that we can get 6 turnovers-two for TD's- and still lose.

You're counting on production from a rookie WR and TE that we don't even have yet. Do you have any idea how ridiculous that sounds?

As far as Trent's experience- did you happen to forget the 3 game losing streak at the end of last season? Going by your experience argument, he should have been better at the end of last year than when he first took over the starting job, and he really wasn't. I'm sure he'll improve over the course of the season, but to expect him to come out and immediately look a lot better on week 1 than he did at the end of last season is just not realistic.

[Dr. Lecter]

because they still lack a key piece. The season isn't going to play out exactly like it did last year. You're assuming that a better D is enough to put us over the top. You're assuming that the schedule is so much worse- trust me, after the way teams like the Jets and the Ravens tanked, our schedule wasn't nearly as hard as it appeared to be at the start of the year. You're forgetting that we have two high-profile games with a team that has yet to prove it can win high profile games.

You seem to think that easier schedule plus better D automatically equals 3 more wins. It's not that simple- you're not accounting for our other flaws, improvements by our opponents, the circumstances surrounding the games, etc.

Of course it won't play out like it did last year. It could play out worse for the Bills. Or it could play out better for the Bills! That is possible as well.

And I am not just assuming the schedule is easier - you have admitted it is. How much easier is unknown, but it should be easier. And yes, the team has 2 high-profile games. Last year it had 3. So that part of the schedule is also better for the Bills!!!!!

And you are assuming the improvements equate to one fewer win. You are assuming all of the opponents have improved and none have gotten worse or stayed the same. You are assuming the game circumstances will always be worse for the Bills. You assume the Jets and Ravens will be greatly improved and are ignoring other teams weaknesses.

I am acknowledging flaws. Of course these flaws existed last year and the team still won 7 games. With the same flaws (TE, WR, etc) you keep bringing up. If they could win 7 games with those flaws, why not more this year when other areas have been fixed? (And this assumes that the draft does not improve WR or TE at all)

Look at it this way: If the Bills improved defense equates to 3 less poitns per game for the opponent and the slightly improved offesne scores one more point a game, the Bills have a net increase of 4 points per game.

How big would have that been last year???

[OpIv37]

Of course it won't play out like it did last year. It could play out worse for the Bills. Or it could play out better for the Bills! That is possible as well.

And I am not just assuming the schedule is easier - you have admitted it is. How much easier is unknown, but it should be easier. And yes, the team has 2 high-profile games. Last year it had 3. So that part of the schedule is also better for the Bills!!!!!

And you are assuming the improvements equate to one fewer win. You are assuming all of the opponents have improved and none have gotten worse or stayed the same. You are assuming the game circumstances will always be worse for the Bills. You assume the Jets and Ravens will be greatly improved and are ignoring other teams weaknesses.

I am acknowledging flaws. Of course these flaws existed last year and the team still won 7 games. With the same flaws (TE, WR, etc) you keep bringing up. If they could win 7 games with those flaws, why not more this year when other areas have been fixed? (And this assumes that the draft does not improve WR or TE at all)

Look at it this way: If the Bills improved defense equates to 3 less poitns per game for the opponent and the slightly improved offesne scores one more point a game, the Bills have a net increase of 4 points per game.

How big would have that been last year???

I still don't see us going anywhere unless we can pull some offensive production out of our ass.

[mysticsoto]

the D was decent last year- especially at the end- and it didn't matter because the O sucked. Same thing will happen this year. The D can't win games on their own- they get a turnover and 3 plays later they're back on the field. The Dallas game proved that we can get 6 turnovers-two for TD's- and still lose.

You're counting on production from a rookie WR and TE that we don't even have yet. Do you have any idea how ridiculous that sounds?

As far as Trent's experience- did you happen to forget the 3 game losing streak at the end of last season? Going by your experience argument, he should have been better at the end of last year than when he first took over the starting job, and he really wasn't. I'm sure he'll improve over the course of the season, but to expect him to come out and immediately look a lot better on week 1 than he did at the end of last season is just not realistic.

I'm counting on production from a WR and TE only as much as to say *ANYTHING* that we get in the 1st-3rd rds for those two positions will be an upgrade to what we had last year!!!

The Dallas game also proved something else that you don't acknowledge...that we can play with a top caliber team and be competitive - even last year.

C'mon Op...if you are going to list our 3 ending losses as proof that Trent's experience wasn't better, you better be able to back it up.

Cleveland? I already stated the horrible calls on that unusual snow heavy game by Fairchild. Our receivers did a terrible job and I'd have to blame our OC and WR coach for that. They did not know how to adjust to the conditions and the Browns adjusted much better. But those conditions were unusual. No TDs were given up by either team.

Giants? They had an awesome defense that won them the superbowl and beat the Patriots. I see no shame in losing to them.

Philly? - Jason Peters was out this game. Chambers as his replacement was horrible. Having your pro-bowl caliber LT out certainly makes a difference. Lee Evans also left the game with an injury. Considering we really didn't have a #2 WR...what do you think would happen if our #1 was taken out??? Royal was the high man in that game with 31 yards. Nuff said...

[OpIv37]

I'm counting on production from a WR and TE only as much as to say *ANYTHING* that we get in the 1st-3rd rds for those two positions will be an upgrade to what we had last year!!!

The Dallas game also proved something else that you don't acknowledge...that we can play with a top caliber team and be competitive - even last year.

C'mon Op...if you are going to list our 3 ending losses as proof that Trent's experience wasn't better, you better be able to back it up.

Cleveland? I already stated the horrible calls on that unusual snow heavy game by Fairchild. Our receivers did a terrible job and I'd have to blame our OC and WR coach for that. They did not know how to adjust to the conditions and the Browns adjusted much better. But those conditions were unusual. No TDs were given up by either team.

Giants? They had an awesome defense that won them the superbowl and beat the Patriots. I see no shame in losing to them.

Philly? - Jason Peters was out this game. Chambers as his replacement was horrible. Having your pro-bowl caliber LT out certainly makes a difference. Lee Evans also left the game with an injury. Considering we really didn't have a #2 WR...what do you think would happen if our #1 was taken out??? Royal was the high man in that game with 31 yards. Nuff said...

What? Dallas was the only top tier team that we were competitive with- and they still won the game. We were easily beaten by the Giants, NE twice, Pittsburgh- you can't take the 1 example where we were competitive and ignore the 4 where we weren't. We're still leagues below the top-tier teams. And I'm really sick of the snow excuse for Cleveland- first, we're a team from BUFFALO so weather should never be an excuse. Second, Cleveland had to play in the SAME conditions and did a better job of it than we did.

[justasportsfan]

I didn't know OP had me on ignore :ill:

[Dr. Lecter]

I didn't know OP had me on ignore :ill:

I think everyboy has you on ignore.

[justasportsfan]

I think everyboy has you on ignore.
Aha! But you don't and that's all that matters. :up:

BTW, tell him I was right and he was wrong. He owes me 10,000 from a bet I won at the end of the season. :snicker:

[OpIv37]

I didn't know OP had me on ignore :ill:

ha- I don't. But my subscription ran out and I sometimes miss stuff without the "Who Quoted Me" feature.

[mysticsoto]

What? Dallas was the only top tier team that we were competitive with- and they still won the game. We were easily beaten by the Giants, NE twice, Pittsburgh- you can't take the 1 example where we were competitive and ignore the 4 where we weren't. We're still leagues below the top-tier teams. And I'm really sick of the snow excuse for Cleveland- first, we're a team from BUFFALO so weather should never be an excuse. Second, Cleveland had to play in the SAME conditions and did a better job of it than we did.

We played the two top teams that went to the superbowl 3 times and lost each time to them accounting for 1/3 of our losses. Gee...what a surprise.

You're sick of the snow excuse for Cleveland as much as I'm sick of your excuses. If anything is mentioned about who we beat last year, you dump in with quick excuses...but you can use the "nfl parity" excuse for why we won't be able to beat SF, Rams, etc... this year. We may be from Buffalo, but many of these young and inexperienced players that we have on our team are not - and it showed.

We lost to Denver and Dallas by 1 pt in the last seconds and the season could have easily been 9-7, it was that close...but you would have just found something else to criticize regardless.

This is a waste of time. Between now and TC you will criticize and jump to conclusions on every single detail - much like you did last year when you thought JP was hurt and that the season was done before it had even started. At the end of the year, I will bump this thread back up so you can eat crow again, and yet again, admit that you were wrong on something.

[justasportsfan]

ha- I don't. But my subscription ran out and I sometimes miss stuff without the "Who Quoted Me" feature.


Aha! You WERE WRONG.... Dr. Letcer.

[djjimkelly]

I still don't see us going anywhere unless we can pull some offensive production out of our ass.


dont worry OP according to most all we need is turk and trent they will magically change it all

[FlyingDutchman]

does it matter? I was much closer than most people, but you and FlyingDutchman and other people don't want to give me any credit because you don't like my attitude, which is immature and ridiculous.


I dont give you credit, bc youve put your foot in your mouth a hundred times and still think you know everything and have it all figured out. You challenge anyone who has a different opinion and will beat your opinion on them constantly in an effort to change their mind. Youre right, your attitude is what stops you from getting credit. Youve gotten better as of late, but your narrow mindedness and arrogance in many posts is what is immature and rediculous, not the people pointing it out. I havent come at you in a looooong time though, so I dont know how I got dragged into this.

[justasportsfan]

I have no need to blast OP's posts anymore. I've been replaced by....everyone . :sadwalk:


:idea: Maybe I should start a JP vs. Trent thread .

[Dr. Lecter]

dont worry OP according to most all we need is turk and trent they will magically change it all

Actually nobody said that!

[ScottLawrence]

Sun. 9/7 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS W
Sun. 9/14 @ Jacksonville Jaguars L
Sun. 9/21 OAKLAND RAIDERS W
Sun. 9/28 @ St. Louis Rams L
Sun. 10/5 @ Arizona Cardinals W
BYE 10/12 BYE BYE
Sun. 10/19 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS W
Sun. 10/26 @ Miami Dolphins W
Sun. 11/2 NEW YORK JETS W
Sun. 11/9 @ New England Patriots L
Mon. 11/17 CLEVELAND BROWNS W
Sun. 11/23 @ Kansas City Chiefs W
Sun. 11/30 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS W
Sun. 12/7 MIAMI DOLPHINS W
Sun. 12/14 @ New York Jets L
Sun. 12/21 @ Denver Broncos L
Sun. 12/28 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS W

11-5.

[djjimkelly]

Actually nobody said that!


have u been reading this board for the last 3 months?

i beg to differ

[hydro]

have u been reading this board for the last 3 months?

i beg to differ
Your bias is frying your brain. You will only find a few people on here touting Edwards the real deal. Everyone else is just backing our starter.