2019 Over Under NFL Win TotalS: NFC

By Steve

In our continuing 2019 NFL season preview here our my picks for over/under win totals for the NFC.

2019 Nation Media Bills Predictions

Win total predictions:

Arizona Cardinals
5.5

Kyler might prove me wrong but six wins seems like too many.
Under

Atlanta Falcons
8.5
Can a hangover last two years? Yup
Under

Carolina Panthers
8
A push is tempting here but why the hell is Cam Newton so damn polarizing?
Over

Chicago Bears
9.5
Mitchy is decent but the defense carried this team. Is that transferable from year to year?
Over

Dallas Cowboys
9
This team has talent but no leaders. The division isnt that tough
Over

Detroit Lions
6.5
The Belichick coaching tree must be made of Emerald Ash. Woof.
Under

Green Bay Packers
9.5
Getting rid of tubs Mccarthey should goose this number but a rookie coach trying to coach a persnickity legend? Could be trouble
Under

L A Rams
10.5
Teams typically struggle after losing the Super Bowl and Goff just got overpaid. But there is just something so dreamy about McVeay
Over

Minnesota Vikings
9.5
This team is as sad as the Bills with more tecent devastating losses. Im not banking on Cousins to win 10+
Gotta go under

New Orleans Saints
10.5
Is there a such thing as too much of a chip on your shoulder. I could see a play from last January haunting these dudes for a while still
Under

New York Giants
6
Does Manning last six games?
Push

Philadelphia Eagles
10.5
Again the division is pretty weak and the Eagles are well run.
Over

San Francisco 49ers
8.5
Most puzzlingly high number yet. What the hell has Garap won? Or jr Shanny for that matter?
Under

Seattle Seahawks
8.5
Out of these two West teams id much rather wager on a proven QB and coach.
Over

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
6.5
Addition by subtraction again by cutting Koetter but Rapeis Winston is still a bum and Arians seems like just another geriatric going to Florida to die.
Under

Washington Redskins
6.5
Do these people have a redeeming quality?
Under

2019 Buffalo Bills Preview: National Media Predictions

By Steve

Here is a compilation of national media predictions for the 2019 Buffalo Bills.

538 - ELO 
Odds the Bills make the playoffs, 30%. Odds the Bills win the division, 15%.
(This forecast is based on 100,000 simulations of the season)

Buffalo News
Vic Carucci 9-7
Predicts Josh Allen will throw 18 TDs
Mark Gaughan 9-7
Predicts Allen throws 22 TDs
Jay Skurski 10-6
Predicts Allen throws 23 TDs
Milt Northrop 7-9
Jason Wolf 7-9

PFT
None of their 6 writers has the Bills making the playoffs "20. Bills (No. 21): Either the Jets or the Bills will contend for an AFC wild-card spot; on Sunday, one of them gets a leg up in their head-to-head competition"

Las Vegas has the Bills at +325 to make the playoffs.

Pete Prisco
Bills ranked 20th "They will be feisty all season long, but they are a year away. I think Josh Allen makes big strides."

ESPN Sim
Bills 8-8
Odds to make the playoffs 20.3%
Power ranking: 26
Beasley will have 100 catches
Easiest schedule in the NFL the first 2 months

Colin Cowherd 7-9

SI
6-10

USA Today
8-8

Why Your Team Sucks, the Bills Breakdown

By Steve

A yearly tradition like none other. The annual Deadspin Your Team Sucks Buffalo Bills blog by Drew Magary. Here is the breakdown, with, of course, a picture I submitted if a guy sitting in front of puke being consoled by a security guy:

The most hurtful Buffalo jab:
"Watching the Bills every year is like bearing witness to an isolated tribe living in the Aleutian island chain, where kids trek to school in snowshoes and their parents swill paint thinner while carving tally marks into a nearby wooden plank with a bowie knife to count down the days until it’s time to reconvene with the Lord. The Bills are a portrait of despair. I don’t even like thinking about them. I was in coma for two weeks last winter and the nicest thing about it was that I never once thought of the Bills. Now I’m alive again and just the IDEA of the Bills still existing makes me yearn to be eaten by a frost bear and sent back into the great blackness, where all is quiet and Cole Beasley doesn’t exist"

Damn dude, ouch.

The most truthful quip:
"Fans will set dildos on fire in celebration if Josh Allen rises to the skill level of a lesser McCown brother."

At this point if Joshy Poo breaks 55% completion fanboys will erect a statue.

Things I even forgot happened:
"Tyrel Dodson has been charged with punching his girlfriend in the face when she had the nerve to tell him he was too drunk to go out to a restaurant. "

I googled this dude 3 times to verify he was actually in the team.

Best theme throughout:
"Fuck Sean McDermott’s phony, psalm-spewing, flag-humping, troop-sniffing, Ron Howard-looking ass. All of his ginger mean mugs and aggressive clapping do not impress Bill Belichick."
Making fun of McDermott is easy and not done nearly enough by our own.

Oddest part:
The email from the chicken finger sub guy. Really, you cant get chicken finger subs in most cities?

Best reader submition (besides mine):
From Travis "I literally couldn’t think of a single thing I hated or liked about this team. I almost forgot they even played last year. Wait... did they?"

Another, another great read.

2019 Bills Camp Preview: Top 5 Questionmarks

By Steve

With players reporting this week we continue with our training camp preview. Here is part 1 continuity and positivity. And now the top 5 questions heading in to St John Fisher

1. Will Lesean McCoy make the team?
The running back room is filled to the brim. From dudes that are old enough to be my dad (Frank Gore) to decent free agents (TJ Yeldon) to rookies (Devin Singletary) and everyone else (Murphy, Wade, Perry) [not to mention the beloved fullback]. McCoy was horrid last year. Hes old, usually banged up, overpaid and some how still the Bills only star. I have an open mind with McCoy. I like him but this is a zero sum game. He either looks like he belongs in camp or he wont be on the roster in September.
I'd guess he stays and has a decent bounce back year.

2. Does Tyree Jackson make the team?
The Bills have 3 quarterbacks on the roster. Allen the obvious starter and Matt Barkley the able backup. After yet another early retirement (thankfully and mercifully Derek Anderson called it a career [again]) this only leaves local product Jackson as the 3rd stringer. He was uneven (to be kind) his final year at UB and went undrafted for a reason. He needs mucho coaching before he could ever see an NFL field. He has the raw skills but will he be worth keeping on the roster?
No, practice squad it will be.

3. Will Robert Foster get playing time in John Brown's shadow?

Is it just me or are Robert Foster and John Brown the same player? Brown at 5'11 178 is a bit smaller than the 6'2 196 Foster but both are outside burns and unlikely to make a name for themselves over the middle. Moreover, with $11.7 million gauranteed Brown isn't going any where. Will Foster force his way onto the field and build on a promising 2018?
I have little faith in Brown but McDerr is going to giving him every opportunity to keep Foster at bay.

4. Who the hell is the starting tight end?
Tyler Kroft is hurt as per usual, Lee Smith got paid to block for some reason and I had to google Croom's first name. The two rookies Knox and Sweeney will have steep learning curves and thats about it. Dawson better be awesome in Rochester or I'm going to be watch Iowa highlights hoping for UDFA Nate Becker to produce a miracle.

5. Ed Oliver?
The likelihood of a defensive tackle making a huge difference on a team is rare. Kyle Williams was pretty good but always overrated because he was a white 5th rounder 14 years ago. The run defense was never that good with him and he only pressued the QB spuratically. Oliver was a consensus top 10 pick for a reason.
He will probably be a very good player for a long time but my expectations for year one are low.

2019 Buffalo Bills Training Camp Preview: Continuity

By Steve

Football is back! Kinda. Sorta. Alright, training camp is back. Wait, the Bills are returning the the same coach, GM, quarterback AND offensive coordinator? Has that happened since the mid 90s?

Whether you like Seany McDermott, Brandon Beane, Brian Daboll and Joshy poo Allen or not it is undeniable that the stability at all those spots has to be a positive right? Maybe continuity is overrated if you have a great QB or coach (cough cheatriots) but when you dont have hall of famers the continuity has to be more of a plus than a minus.

Allen cant afford to take a step back or learn a completely new offense, especially with his clear and obvious deficiencies. So keeping Daboll makes sense for Allen's progression even if the offense was beyond abysmal last year.

The long term success of this coach, team and franchise rests squarely on Joshy poo's shoulder so if he doesn't improve then none of these dudes have a chance. But, did McDerr at least contemplate a change at O.C.? Doubtful.

Surprisingly, I cant find much to be overly negative about regarding the teams offseason. The draft wasnt horrible, free agency had some positives to it and nothing horrible went wrong. No arrests, freak injuries or embarrassing stories have been reported. For this franchise thats about as good as it gets.

Am I predicting the playoffs and a serious run at the division and (gulp) actual success? Not a chance, at least not yet.

More training camp preview to come.

Buffalo Bills Lines for the Entire 2019 Season

By Steve

Here are the Buffalo Bills lines for the entire 2019 NFL season per CG Technology:

Week 1
Bills +3.5 @ NY Jets

Week 2
Bills +3 @ NY Giants

Week 3
Bills -4 v Bengals

Week 4
Bills +6.5 v Patriots

Week 5
Bills +5 @ Titans

Week 6
Bye

Week 7
Bills -3.5 v Dolphins

Week 8
Bills +3 v Eagles

Week 9
Bills -3.5 v Redskins

Week 10
Bills +7 @ Browns

Week 11
Bills +2.5 @ Dolphins

Week 12
Bills -3 v Broncos

Week 13 thanksgiving
Bills +7.5 @ Cowboys

Week 14
Bills +1 v Ravens

Week 15
Bills +7 @ Steelers

Week 16
Bills +13 @ Patriots

Week 17
Bills -2.5 v Jets

The Bills are favored in 5 games next season and none on the road. The most they are favored by is 4 and the biggest dawg is at NE getting 13 points.
Ouch

Sabres Hire Soccer Coach: Meh

By Steve

The last two coaching hires seem like they could work and so it goes. It doesnt seem like anyone is laughing that the Buffalo Sabres hired a 59 year old guy that was running a soccer team in Europe the last several years. At least he coached in the league before (5 years ago in a truncated lockout season in Edmonton).

Who cares. Coaches in the NHL barely make a difference and this franchise is a disaster or worse. Id rather they hired Lon Krueger than Ralph but oh well.