The elephant in the room

[swiper]

Re: The elephant in the room

There are some positives that can be drawn from yesterday.

The Bills completely dominated the game, with primarily backups in the entire secondary, and half of the O-line. Yes, they lost, which is all that matters, but if you sit back and look at it, they really should not have even been in this game.

Josh took the team on his back, playing with backup TEs and WRs, and handled just about every blitz they threw at him. Yes, he missed that easy TD at the end, and I'm not making excuses for him, but I'm pretty sure he couldn't feel his throwing hand at that point because he smashed it on a facemask the play before.

Rousseau is an absolute beast.

Let's hope they can get healthy, and learn from this loss. The training staff especially. I've never seen so many guys go down with cramps. Why wasn't the entire team given IV fluids before the game? I don't understand.

Agreed. And again, as we all sit in our A/C or cool Buffalo climate, yesterday's heat on the players cannot be blamed enough for some of the play at the end of the game. I think the game action these back-ups saw in this game will prepare these back-ups for later in the season. I think later this year all of us are going to be glad that these back-ups got these game reps.

[Historian]

Re: The elephant in the room

Champions make plays when the game is on the line.

It's easier to turn a pick six when you're already up by 27...quite a bit different when down by four and the play could be the difference between winning and losing.

This team has a lot of winners that are capable of making plays, but if they truly want to be champions they need to make those plays when the game is on the line.

Agree wholeheartedly.

This is the second ****ty game by Allen.

Last week he recovered in the second half, this week it was more of the same.

It wasn't the replacements that lost this game....it was the starters.

[Historian]

Re: The elephant in the room

Yesterday after the game, my son said this game reminded him of last year's Jag game....no matter what the Bills did, it wasn't enough. (Footsteps Falco called it quicksand in the movie)

I agree with him.

Every year, the Bills have a clunker of a game like that, and they lose despite being favored to win, and being a better team.

I get that we've lost some close ones, and hopefully that trend begins to reverse as the season wears on, but what I think is even more disturbing, is the clunker game.

That's where the Bills play down to the level of the competition, and trust me, they have been doing it for decades.

McDermott and Company have somehow gotten this team to quit ****ting the bed when in the national spotlight, MNF, Thanksgiving Day, etc.

They now need to instill a killer instinct when playing lesser teams.

Yes its only one game....we weren't going to win all 17, yadda yadda, I'll concede that.

But if you're favored to be the presumptive World Champion in the eyes of the 'experts'....you win this game.

Period.

Come hell or high water or heat.

Because you just dug yourself an early hole, and the schedule gets no lighter until November.

And in January, we may in all likelihood looking back on this game the same way we looked at last year's Jag game: The difference between a second round playoff exit, and a Super Bowl.

[Mike13]

Re: The elephant in the room

Umm. No.

The NFL needs some schedule makers with brains. This game should have been a night game from the get go.

Going by that logic the Dolphins shouldn't play in Buffalo during Winter

[cookie G]

Re: The elephant in the room

Yeah, this is pretty conclusive. Add in that Allen threw for 400 yards and it looks like monstrous dominant win.

The injuries are ridiculous though and they should have been prepared for the heat. It's not like we haven't played there before.

At the same time, I still have my doubts about McDermott stepping up past building a culture with players supplied in plenty by Beane. And Frazier seems generic. The game day coaching is not real imaginative, creative or dynamic, it just relies on Allen as Typ0 said.

I don't know, this game just played out real improbable. Might be just a chaotic mess of circumstantial incidents.

All things considered, I'm just going to walk away from it and hope we get some players back with some motivation next week.

As for as preparing for the heat, there is only so much you can do when the heat index gets upwards of 100 degrees. Living for several decades in a climate where a heat index of 100 degree or more is common, there are a few things to keep in mind:

-If, as reported, the difference in temps between sidelines was 15 degrees, due to the stadium shading, that is a massive difference. You almost hit a wall with the HI of 100 or more. 90s is bad, but over 100 can be intolerable. This really can't be stressed enough. You go outside and you can feel the 10 degree difference. This is especially true when doing any type of outdoor activity;

-They did the right thing by hydrating immediately after the Titans game. You can't hydrate overnight;

-In terms of acclimation, it takes a week or 2 to acclimate to heat that high, if you can ever be acclimated to it. Some can't. This also can't be stressed enough. You can't show up there on...A Tuesday and expect to be acclimated by Sunday;

-High schools here aren't even allowed to practice outdoors when the HI is 100 or more, because the risk of heat exhaustion is too great. Even then, you still see a high school player or 2 dying of heat exhaustion each year;

-standing outside in heat that bad is one thing, moving in it is another, even if it is something as simple as walking. Take some 300+ plus lb. guys trying to push other 300+ lb plus guys around, or WRs basically running wind sprints for 90 minutes, guys WILL go down. This is especially true when the other guys were in a shaded area that is 10-15 degrees cooler;

-Here, we are given high heat tolerance tips, almost ad naseum every summer. When you listen to them, staying hydrated, wearing light, loose clothing and limiting outdoor activity, you understand that you can only do so much. Heat is by far the highest weather related killer. Higher than floods, hurricanes and tornadoes;

-I guess what they could have/should have done was to bring some Official Buffalo Bills pop up gazebos to provide shade on the sideline. It might have helped. Of course, the NFL could have scheduled the game in Buffalo in Sept. and in Miami in Dec. But that would make too much sense.

idk..I didn't have many expectations after the injuries accumulated in the defensive backfield. And yeah, it hurts losing another close game, realizing how even one miscue would have won the game. On the other hand, Damn, that was a valiant effort.

[Forward_Lateral]

Re: The elephant in the room

Agree wholeheartedly.

This is the second ****ty game by Allen.

Last week he recovered in the second half, this week it was more of the same.

It wasn't the replacements that lost this game....it was the starters.

I really don't see how you could possibly say Allen played poorly. He missed one throw at the end. He had zero time and had to get rid of the ball 80% of the time he dropped back.

We pissed and moaned when he wasn't patient and didn't "take what was given". Now that he's doing it, we are going to complain about it? I thought he played very well, just made one horrible throw at the end. He shouldn't have even been in that position. If Dorsey didn't have his head up his ass, they would've run the ball straight ahead instead of pissing around down there.

[notacon]

Re: The elephant in the room

Nobody is a champion until they actually win one, and yes that includes Josh.

Fair enough.....but it’s still a ‘glass half empty’ mindset. I have 100% opposite ‘glass is half full’ stance.

What is very apparent is that this site has WAY too many sore losers. Every time the Bills lose, no matter how, the knee jerk reaction is to **** on the team.

And the toxicity of too many sore losers is very, very disappointing for a site that champions “BillsZone.com - Buffalo Bills Fan Zone”. This site is not a “fan” zone after any loss.

The Bills lost. It will not be the last time they will lose this year. No one wins a championship in September.


Here is much more realistic and measured response to this heartbreaking loss, filled with missed opportunities and the Bills beating themselves much more than the Fins beating a Bills team. A ghost of a team at that.


Here is the reality that the Bills team was not present in steamy Miami...

"Micah Hyde – S – Inured reserve
Jordan Poyer – S – Inactive
Ed Oliver – DT – Inactive
Jordan Phillips – DT – Inactive
Mitch Morse – C – Inactive
Dane Jackson – CB – Inactive
Jake Kumerow – WR – Left game in 1^st Q – Did not return
Christian Benford – CB – Left game in 2^nd Q – Returned to special teams only
Spencer Brown – RT – Left game in 2^nd Q – Dis not return
Dawson Knox – TW – Left game in 3^rd Q – Missed 11 straight plays
Isiah McKenzie – WR – Left game in 3^rd Q – Missed 11 straight plays
Ryan Bates – RG – Left game in 4^th Q – Dis not return
Greg Van Roten – C – Left game in 4^th Q – Dis not return

The group accounts for nearly 25 percent of the team’s active roster, but it doesn’t even account for all the different players that they had to keep rotating due to the heat. Wide receiver Stefon Diggs looked especially exhausted, was cramping up and had to keep taking plays off to regenerate. The running back rotation likely would have favored Devin Singletary far more had the heat not been unbearable. And with three in-game injuries to the offensive line, the Bills had to go through the final 22 snaps of the game without a single backup available. They were also down to an undrafted rookie practice squad cornerback in Ja’Marcus Ingram, who took 55 percent of the team’s defensive snaps. It was the perfect storm of pre-game and in-game injuries. I don’t think we’ll see anything quite like what unfolded on Sunday, and it had a legitimate impact on the game, but somehow, the Bills still almost won.

While the injuries, Allen and some of the missed opportunities will be what everyone talks about, you have to give a lot of credit to a handful of players that helped the Bills stay afloat through the ridiculous heat. Left tackle Dion Dawkins and left guard Rodger Saffold played every single snap — all 93 of them — while the other six active offensive lineman had time on the sidelines. Wide receiver Gabe Davis, who came into the game with an ankle injury, wound up playing 96 percent of the snaps due to injuries. That was likely not the plan for him coming off an injury, but he stepped up when the team needed him. On defense, the Bills basically boiled down their defensive tackle rotation to DaQuan Jones (75 percent) and Tim Settle (66). Jones is their biggest defensive tackle, but they needed him, and Settle came in recovering from a calf injury. The Bills will have to hope some reinforcements and cooler temperatures are on the way for Baltimore.

And final thoughts....

“Although the Bills faced an uphill battle in many different ways, their overall performance was impressive despite losing the game. They were their own worst enemy at times, and very well could have flipped this game enough to claim a 3-0 record. But, whether it’s due to self-inflicted errors, the injuries up and down the roster or a combination of the two, the Bills get to learn a valuable lesson from this one. Their season is not derailed, and they aren’t ceding the AFC East to the Dolphins despite the temporary setback. And though it is a slight concern that they haven’t won a one-score game since Week 8 in 2020, I don’t think this specific outcome against the Dolphins is indicative of an organizational flaw to win close games.


What this game indicates more is that this Bills team nearly pulled off a game that, on paper, should have had no business winning. The Dolphins are a talented team and one that will likely contend for the playoffs this season. But the Bills, despite all of their injuries and errors, were a few yards from stealing a win on the road, on a short week and in unbearable heat. It’s a weird thing to be impressed by a loss, but that’s exactly what Sunday represented. It all comes back to Allen, who gave the Bills a gargantuan effort. He is the best quarterback in the league right now and nearly delivered a win that fans would have talked about for a long time. Most of the injuries will heal and they won’t be this injured forever, but if Allen keeps this level of play up, the Bills can beat any team, regardless of the situation.”


These observations (written by a profession writer who expresses my extremely similar reaction in a way that I cannot replicate....so....better to just use the better writing skills) are not meant as “excuses”.

This is simply REALITY of the situation. And come week #15 on December 17th or 18th (game time is TBD and will undoubtedly be a featured nationally televised game) when the Dolphins visit Buffalo, I expect the Bills to avenge this loss and have either wrapped up the AFC East crown by that time or will do so on that day.

[notacon]

Re: The elephant in the room

As for as preparing for the heat, there is only so much you can do when the heat index gets upwards of 100 degrees. Living for several decades in a climate where a heat index of 100 degree or more is common, there are a few things to keep in mind:

-If, as reported, the difference in temps between sidelines was 15 degrees, due to the stadium shading, that is a massive difference. You almost hit a wall with the HI of 100 or more. 90s is bad, but over 100 can be intolerable. This really can't be stressed enough. You go outside and you can feel the 10 degree difference. This is especially true when doing any type of outdoor activity;

-They did the right thing by hydrating immediately after the Titans game. You can't hydrate overnight;

-In terms of acclimation, it takes a week or 2 to acclimate to heat that high, if you can ever be acclimated to it. Some can't. This also can't be stressed enough. You can't show up there on...A Tuesday and expect to be acclimated by Sunday;

-High schools here aren't even allowed to practice outdoors when the HI is 100 or more, because the risk of heat exhaustion is too great. Even then, you still see a high school player or 2 dying of heat exhaustion each year;

-standing outside in heat that bad is one thing, moving in it is another, even if it is something as simple as walking. Take some 300+ plus lb. guys trying to push other 300+ lb plus guys around, or WRs basically running wind sprints for 90 minutes, guys WILL go down. This is especially true when the other guys were in a shaded area that is 10-15 degrees cooler;

-Here, we are given high heat tolerance tips, almost ad naseum every summer. When you listen to them, staying hydrated, wearing light, loose clothing and limiting outdoor activity, you understand that you can only do so much. Heat is by far the highest weather related killer. Higher than floods, hurricanes and tornadoes;

-I guess what they could have/should have done was to bring some Official Buffalo Bills pop up gazebos to provide shade on the sideline. It might have helped. Of course, the NFL could have scheduled the game in Buffalo in Sept. and in Miami in Dec. But that would make too much sense.

idk..I didn't have many expectations after the injuries accumulated in the defensive backfield. And yeah, it hurts losing another close game, realizing how even one miscue would have won the game. On the other hand, Damn, that was a valiant effort.

Excelent post. I was thinking exactly the same observations concerning the disparity in the sidelines.

It is dangerous to be standing on the Bills side of the field in those conditions without the added stress of playing a professional football game.

The conditions....89 degrees with over 70% humidity resulting in heat index over 100 degrees....is exactly why I hate Florida’s climate and get sick most of the time I was forced to go there because of work.

Difficult to breath....dizziness....nausea....racing pulse....just by STANDING in the direct sun under those conditions is quite common.

And the home field advantage of Buffalo during the winter is not equal to the dangerous conditions in Miami yesterday.

Football is not a sport that is meant to be played in those conditions. It’s meant to be played in northern fall weather....60 degrees is the ideal.

More importantly, playing in the cold, like is usual in Buffalo in December is nothing even close to as difficult and dangerous as the heat and humidity.

[Forward_Lateral]

Re: The elephant in the room

The Bills held Tyreek Hill to 2 catches on 33 yards. They held Waddle to 3 catches on 60 yards, besides that 45 yard mishap.

They were playing with 4 guys who had combined to start 3 NFL games before this. By the end of the game, there were down to a dude off of the practice squad out there.

Those two WRs went off for about a bazillion yards vs Baltimore last week.

Am I the only one who sees a bit of encouragement out of that? Or no

[YardRat]

Re: The elephant in the room

We've been hearing...and repeating...the mantras for a few seasons now.

"We beat ourselves."
"We left a lot out there today."
"We've all got plays we'd like back."
"We didn't play up to expectations and that starts with me."
"I'm proud of how we battled today, even though we lost."
"We'll learn from this and be better next time."

It's getting old with the rationalizations. And they don't get better next time, if it's a single-digit game they lose.

Make a ****ing play that helps win the game and quit putting yourself in a position to have to make excuses. THAT'S the next step this team has to make, and they seem to be having a lot of trouble getting over that hurdle.

We know they can do it. I'm starting to wonder if they know they can too.

[notacon]

Re: The elephant in the room

We've been hearing...and repeating...the mantras for a few seasons now.

"We beat ourselves."
"We left a lot out there today."
"We've all got plays we'd like back."
"We didn't play up to expectations and that starts with me."
"I'm proud of how we battled today, even though we lost."
"We'll learn from this and be better next time."

It's getting old with the rationalizations. And they don't get better next time, if it's a single-digit game they lose.

Make a ****ing play that helps win the game and quit putting yourself in a position to have to make excuses. THAT'S the next step this team has to make, and they seem to be having a lot of trouble getting over that hurdle.

We know they can do it. I'm starting to wonder if they know they can too.

Yep. Sore loser mentally.

[notacon]

Re: The elephant in the room

The Bills held Tyreek Hill to 2 catches on 33 yards. They held Waddle to 3 catches on 60 yards, besides that 45 yard mishap.

They were playing with 4 guys who had combined to start 3 NFL games before this. By the end of the game, there were down to a dude off of the practice squad out there.

Those two WRs went off for about a bazillion yards vs Baltimore last week.

Am I the only one who sees a bit of encouragement out of that? Or no

And they did that with one rookie CB (Elam) who was not even named the starter for the first two game....only two NFL games experience

The other CB (Benford), another rookie who missed more than half of the game.....also with just two NFL game experience.

The CB who took his place is the rawest of rookies....undrafted practice squad player....Ja’Marcus Ingram....zero NFL game experience, and barely had any pre-season experience played 56% of the defensive snaps.

Two safeties taking the place of two of the best safeties in the NFL....Jaquan Johnson, who is mostly a special teams player with little regular season experience at S because the Bills have two of the best safeties in the NFL. The other, Damar Hamlin, who is only a second year player with zero NFL starts....and only 50 defensive snaps all 2021.

On the D-line, practice squad players, Bryant and Prince Emili who was brought back to the PS after being cut on Sept 14th....had to be signed to the active roster because of limitation on how many players can be elevated from the PS....played, respectively 28% and 16% of the snaps.

The only defensive position that was not decimated by injuries and heat were Edmunds and Milano....both payed 100% of the snaps and did so with solid games, with Milano let a winning pick six slip through his fingers.

So, yeah, I (and any other realistic person) sees a HUGE but of encouragement out of that!!

[kscdogbillsfan1221]

Re: The elephant in the room

And they did that with one rookie CB (Elam) who was not even named the starter for the first two game....only two NFL games experience

The other CB (Benford), another rookie who missed more than half of the game.....also with just two NFL game experience.

The CB who took his place is the rawest of rookies....undrafted practice squad player....Ja’Marcus Ingram....zero NFL game experience, and barely had any pre-season experience played 56% of the defensive snaps.

Two safeties taking the place of two of the best safeties in the NFL....Jaquan Johnson, who is mostly a special teams player with little regular season experience at S because the Bills have two of the best safeties in the NFL. The other, Damar Hamlin, who is only a second year player with zero NFL starts....and only 50 defensive snaps all 2021.

On the D-line, practice squad players, Bryant and Prince Emili who was brought back to the PS after being cut on Sept 14th....had to be signed to the active roster because of limitation on how many players can be elevated from the PS....played, respectively 28% and 16% of the snaps.

The only defensive position that was not decimated by injuries and heat were Edmunds and Milano....both payed 100% of the snaps and did so with solid games, with Milano let a winning pick six slip through his fingers.

So, yeah, I (and any other realistic person) sees a HUGE but of encouragement out of that!!

I do agree that the second stringers and practice squad players for the most part played quite admirably


It’s funny, that the game could have been won if not the miscues of the STARTERS, not the other guys

allen skipping a fourth down pass
milano dropping a pick six
bass missing a relative chip shot
McKenzie not getting out of bounds.

All these mishaps were by the regulars

[Mace]

Re: The elephant in the room

As for as preparing for the heat, there is only so much you can do when the heat index gets upwards of 100 degrees. Living for several decades in a climate where a heat index of 100 degree or more is common, there are a few things to keep in mind:

-If, as reported, the difference in temps between sidelines was 15 degrees, due to the stadium shading, that is a massive difference. You almost hit a wall with the HI of 100 or more. 90s is bad, but over 100 can be intolerable. This really can't be stressed enough. You go outside and you can feel the 10 degree difference. This is especially true when doing any type of outdoor activity;

-They did the right thing by hydrating immediately after the Titans game. You can't hydrate overnight;

-In terms of acclimation, it takes a week or 2 to acclimate to heat that high, if you can ever be acclimated to it. Some can't. This also can't be stressed enough. You can't show up there on...A Tuesday and expect to be acclimated by Sunday;

-High schools here aren't even allowed to practice outdoors when the HI is 100 or more, because the risk of heat exhaustion is too great. Even then, you still see a high school player or 2 dying of heat exhaustion each year;

-standing outside in heat that bad is one thing, moving in it is another, even if it is something as simple as walking. Take some 300+ plus lb. guys trying to push other 300+ lb plus guys around, or WRs basically running wind sprints for 90 minutes, guys WILL go down. This is especially true when the other guys were in a shaded area that is 10-15 degrees cooler;

-Here, we are given high heat tolerance tips, almost ad naseum every summer. When you listen to them, staying hydrated, wearing light, loose clothing and limiting outdoor activity, you understand that you can only do so much. Heat is by far the highest weather related killer. Higher than floods, hurricanes and tornadoes;

-I guess what they could have/should have done was to bring some Official Buffalo Bills pop up gazebos to provide shade on the sideline. It might have helped. Of course, the NFL could have scheduled the game in Buffalo in Sept. and in Miami in Dec. But that would make too much sense.

idk..I didn't have many expectations after the injuries accumulated in the defensive backfield. And yeah, it hurts losing another close game, realizing how even one miscue would have won the game. On the other hand, Damn, that was a valiant effort.

I understand what you're saying, see, I'm a 60 year old dude carrying too much beer weight who works at a marina without shade. Don't buy that "cool breezes off the water" thing, sometimes the water just acts like a mirror. I spend most of my days walking one end to another carrying equipment. We soak rags in an iced cooler and wear them, sometimes you need a bottle of water to walk across a parking lot. I've had days where I've drank 5 bottles of water and 3 big gatorades without needing to go to the bathroom halfway through my shift. I get it. And I'm still not playing football.

But this is not a new thing for the Bills or professional football, or Miami opponents. They were not prepared.

It was indeed a valiant effort by a skeleton crew. I see this game as entirely abnormal, and can't fit it into the pattern of close losses, though I recognize the pattern of close losses.

Sure the heat was a huge factor, so was the skeleton crew, so was Miami keeping their heads on straight, and we still almost won.

This game was not catastrophic in terms of long view, it was a situational mess. But the training staff doesn't get a flyer. We have played there yearly for decades.

[notacon]

Re: The elephant in the room

I do agree that the second stringers and practice squad players for the most part played quite admirably


It’s funny, that the game could have been won if not the miscues of the STARTERS, not the other guys

allen skipping a fourth down pass
milano dropping a pick six
bass missing a relative chip shot
McKenzie not getting out of bounds.

All these mishaps were by the regulars

Don’t forget....


Allen fumbling the ball deep in our own territory virtually handing a TD to the Fins.
Messing up a simple snap exchange to spike the ball at the end of the first half.