One of my Buffalo friends said after the Cincinnati game that he would never attend another game if EJ Manuel was the starting quarterback for the Bills. I'm not yet willing to go that far but, for the 16th overall pick now in his third year in the league, there is some basic element of what good quarterbacks have that he just doesn't. The trifecta in the second quarter yesterday in London which consisted of a sack and fumble returned for a touchdown, followed by a pick six and then by another awful interception which led to another score. I like what I've seen from Tyrod Taylor for the most part so far but the quarterback position remains unsettled, as it has been for most of the years since Jim Kelly retired after the 1996 season. Taylor could be good but may be injured too much; Manuel is running out of time to elevate his game; Matt Cassel is gone; Josh Johnson is the third quarterback in the depth chart. Do they look for a quarterback in the first round once again and hope to finally get it right?
As for the rest of the game, despite coming back to take the lead in the 4th quarter, the game was lost, for me at least, on those three plays from the quarterback. I watched the game on my laptop/turbo-stick at the cottage and right after the trifecta, I logged off and went for a bike ride. Saw the end of the game afterward but I almost wish I hadn't.
I guess the biggest question I have after 7 games, because EJ has really never given us any reason to think that he will figure out how to be an NFL quarterback, is why the defence has taken a step back this year under defensive guru Rex Ryan and his long-time co-ordinator, Dennis Thurmond. Way fewer sacks yes, but its the vulnerability to the run which surprises me more than anything. They've given up 6,7 or 8 yard runs on first down so many times this year and its really hard to get defensive stops on 2nd and 3rd down if you're doing that. Injuries at key skilled positions certainly don't help but the team just looks kind of weak coming out of this game. Up next: after the much-needed bye week, on November 8th, the Miami Dolphins come to Orchard Park for the annual squish the fish game.
So, we put on a good election last Monday, I thought. No controversy, no involvement from the GG. no ambiguous mandate - at least in our "first past the post" system where winning between 38 and 40% of the vote converts to 100% of the legislative power for the "winning"party. Stephen Harper's transformation of Canada is now over but we've got some undoing to do now. Looks like they've decided where to start:
I've waited a long time to say this and I know that I only have a one-in-five chance anyway but I just can't wait to see if I get one of the "long" census forms next year which are almost certain to be back by popular demand. I'm assuming that, in addition to the usual detailed demographic research questions, the new long form will be even longer with the addition of a special series of questions about evidence-based decision making and the perils of using ideology instead.
Monday, 26 October 2015
Monday, 19 October 2015
Bengals 34, Bills 21
It was not a very good weekend for the professional sports teams I root for. The Leafs apparently won a hockey game in Columbus, Ohio on Friday night but, other than that, the loss column filled up as the Jays dropped 2 games to the Royals in the ALCS and the Bills slipped to 3-3 with a loss to the Bengals in Orchard Park. En route to London right after the game, the team has to feel that it has under-achieved through the first 6 weeks. And the injuries at key positions continue to pile up. Assuming that the Bills can handle the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley on Sunday morning, that would leave them at 4-3 entering their bye week. Is there really hope that they can make a run for the playoffs through the season's last 9 games? It doesn't seem likely.
If the Blue Jays are going to win the ALCS, they will clinch in in Missouri as the best they can hope for is a 3-2 series lead after the 3 games in Toronto which start tonight. Games 4 and 5 are 4pm starts as the US networks obviously prefer to have the Mets/Cubs series in prime time, Tonight is a big night for TV watching and many viewers across the country will be working their remotes switching back and forth between the election seat count and the ball game. I like their chances with Stroman tonight.
I almost cancelled my Globe and Mail subscription in June of last year when, to the surprise of many, it endorsed Tim Hudak and his "Progressive" Conservative Party a few days before the provincial election, only to see the Liberals win a majority. The Globe's endorsement this time around is a bit of a mystery as it says that the Conservative Party deserves to continue governing but without Stephen Harper. The party is somehow our best option, claims the Globe, but the Prime Minister has to go and all will be fine. But the Conservative Party, as it now exists, is Stephen Harper and what another incarnation of it might look like after he's gone is hard to say, if not hard to imagine. I'll keep reading the Globe but I do wonder what value there is in endorsing an option which not only isn't on offer but that doesn't even exist. In fairness, the editorial urged the party to return to its roots - its progressive roots and not its Reform roots - by being "fiscally conservative, economically liberal and socially progressive". In other words, a return to kind of values the party held under the likes of Diefenbaker, Stanfield, Clark and Mulroney. There was a good reason why the word "progressive" was dropped when the Reform Party hijacked the PC party and drove it into the right wing ditch. The Globe and Mail may want the party to return to its real roots but it will take more than just a new leader.
Robyn Doolittle tweeted the photo of Harper with the Fords from the weekend and reminded us that it was a photo of the Prime Minister of Canada two days before a federal election. The decision to try to leverage the Ford brand (presumably to rally the base) in the final day or two of the campaign almost seems fitting and, as this is one of his final photo opps as Prime Minister, sort of looks good on him I guess. He's been a mean-spirited and divisive leader. Whatever we get tonight, I'm confident that most of us will feel better about it and that will be a good start.
If the Blue Jays are going to win the ALCS, they will clinch in in Missouri as the best they can hope for is a 3-2 series lead after the 3 games in Toronto which start tonight. Games 4 and 5 are 4pm starts as the US networks obviously prefer to have the Mets/Cubs series in prime time, Tonight is a big night for TV watching and many viewers across the country will be working their remotes switching back and forth between the election seat count and the ball game. I like their chances with Stroman tonight.
I almost cancelled my Globe and Mail subscription in June of last year when, to the surprise of many, it endorsed Tim Hudak and his "Progressive" Conservative Party a few days before the provincial election, only to see the Liberals win a majority. The Globe's endorsement this time around is a bit of a mystery as it says that the Conservative Party deserves to continue governing but without Stephen Harper. The party is somehow our best option, claims the Globe, but the Prime Minister has to go and all will be fine. But the Conservative Party, as it now exists, is Stephen Harper and what another incarnation of it might look like after he's gone is hard to say, if not hard to imagine. I'll keep reading the Globe but I do wonder what value there is in endorsing an option which not only isn't on offer but that doesn't even exist. In fairness, the editorial urged the party to return to its roots - its progressive roots and not its Reform roots - by being "fiscally conservative, economically liberal and socially progressive". In other words, a return to kind of values the party held under the likes of Diefenbaker, Stanfield, Clark and Mulroney. There was a good reason why the word "progressive" was dropped when the Reform Party hijacked the PC party and drove it into the right wing ditch. The Globe and Mail may want the party to return to its real roots but it will take more than just a new leader.
Robyn Doolittle tweeted the photo of Harper with the Fords from the weekend and reminded us that it was a photo of the Prime Minister of Canada two days before a federal election. The decision to try to leverage the Ford brand (presumably to rally the base) in the final day or two of the campaign almost seems fitting and, as this is one of his final photo opps as Prime Minister, sort of looks good on him I guess. He's been a mean-spirited and divisive leader. Whatever we get tonight, I'm confident that most of us will feel better about it and that will be a good start.
Monday, 12 October 2015
Bills 14, Titans 13
The Blue Jays didn't need the three runs from Troy Tulowitski's 6th inning blast to win last night's third game of the ALDS in Arlington, Texas but the team and the player need his bat if they want to win the next two games and go on to the ALCS and perhaps the World Series. The Jays were beneficiaries of a brilliantly pitched game by Marco Estrada and, with an effective bullpen performance, were able to put the pressure back on the Rangers who will not want to have a game 5 in Toronto on Wednesday. R. A. Dickey gets the call tonight with one of either Price or Stroman set to go in the deciding game. Price warmed up in the bullpen and looked as if he was about to enter the game before Osuna finally got up to come in for the 9th. I have a feeling that Marcus Stroman will get the call if there is a game 5 with David Price perhaps pitching out of the bullpen where he almost certainly will not earn the first playoff win of his career. Or another loss. Game time today is 4pm and, on this traffic-laden Thanksgiving Day, I will need to plan carefully as to the timing of my departure from Muskoka and the route I'll take - being sure than I'm back by 4pm - and then come up with a plan on where to watch the game in Toronto.
As for the Bills, I couldn't help but think of the most famous one of Dick Jauron's lines (and there certainly weren't many to choose from) which was "It's hard to win in the NFL". Both the Bills and the Titans can attest to that after yesterday's frustrating and relatively poorly played affair in Nashville. This year's Titans are considered by most observers to be a team in the bottom third of the league and the Bills, well, they're probably in the middle third with aspirations of climbing into the top third. Buffalo's offense was pathetic through the first half but, thanks to a few key plays by Tyrod Taylor and Chris Hogan, were able to generate just enough offense to come home with a road win. Taylor made some brilliant scrambling plays to extend drives but he needs to do a better job of protecting himself or we are sure to see the third incarnation of EJ Manuel before too long. The Bills earned only one turnover yesterday and it was on the last meaningful play before they moved into victory formation. All wins in the NFL are hard, for sure, and road wins are even harder. Just ask the Seahawks who blew a big lead yesterday and let the Bengals pick up their 5th win of the season. Cincinnati travels to Orchard Park on Sunday and the Bills will look to move to 4-2 before heading to London the following week.
With a week to go in the federal election campaign, it still seems to be up for grabs. The parties' strategies, as seen in the latest round of TV ads, is interesting with Harper now reminding us that the election really isn't about him and Trudeau asking us to choose hope over fear and to dismiss the Harper claim that he is the only one capable of managing the economy. I think that the Liberals have good momentum now which they can build on over the next 7 days. I'm not really sure that I want a Liberal government but, like two thirds of us, I need to see the current regime, and its shameful neo-conservative ways, thrown out. Last year, the Conservatives ran an ad which claimed that Canadian values are Conservative values. It wasn't true then and it certainly isn't true now.
As for the Bills, I couldn't help but think of the most famous one of Dick Jauron's lines (and there certainly weren't many to choose from) which was "It's hard to win in the NFL". Both the Bills and the Titans can attest to that after yesterday's frustrating and relatively poorly played affair in Nashville. This year's Titans are considered by most observers to be a team in the bottom third of the league and the Bills, well, they're probably in the middle third with aspirations of climbing into the top third. Buffalo's offense was pathetic through the first half but, thanks to a few key plays by Tyrod Taylor and Chris Hogan, were able to generate just enough offense to come home with a road win. Taylor made some brilliant scrambling plays to extend drives but he needs to do a better job of protecting himself or we are sure to see the third incarnation of EJ Manuel before too long. The Bills earned only one turnover yesterday and it was on the last meaningful play before they moved into victory formation. All wins in the NFL are hard, for sure, and road wins are even harder. Just ask the Seahawks who blew a big lead yesterday and let the Bengals pick up their 5th win of the season. Cincinnati travels to Orchard Park on Sunday and the Bills will look to move to 4-2 before heading to London the following week.
With a week to go in the federal election campaign, it still seems to be up for grabs. The parties' strategies, as seen in the latest round of TV ads, is interesting with Harper now reminding us that the election really isn't about him and Trudeau asking us to choose hope over fear and to dismiss the Harper claim that he is the only one capable of managing the economy. I think that the Liberals have good momentum now which they can build on over the next 7 days. I'm not really sure that I want a Liberal government but, like two thirds of us, I need to see the current regime, and its shameful neo-conservative ways, thrown out. Last year, the Conservatives ran an ad which claimed that Canadian values are Conservative values. It wasn't true then and it certainly isn't true now.
Sunday, 4 October 2015
Giants 24, Bills 10
When Marv Levy coached the Bills, I loved his references to historical events in his cerebral descriptions of football games. "We've liberated Berlin but we haven't won the war yet", he said in a post-game press conference in December of 1990, as the Bills came to within a game of clinching home field through the AFC playoffs. They would earn that home field advantage the following week and go on to lose Superbowl XXV to the NY Giants 20-19. Marv knew a lot about football - and obviously still does as he is now 90 - and had a unique the ability to boil the game down to its highly quotable basics. One of the things I heard him say more than once was that to win games in the NFL, a team need only be able to do simple things well: run the ball and stop the run. These were the two things, as it tuned out, that the Bills were unable to do much at all yesterday against the 2015 Giants in Orchard Park.
The pre-game crew on WGR were suggesting that the game's most glaring mis-match would be the Bills front 7 against the Giants offensive line and running backs. The Giants would have trouble establishing the run against Buffalo's fearsome defensive line and Manning would have to win the game for them. What won the Giants the game was their running game, especially on first down, and their run defense. Just like Marv used to say.
So, after 4 weeks, are the Bills a good team? Are the Giants a good team? Both are 2-2 but this morning, one is feeling much better than the other. The Bengals, Packers, Panthers, Falcons and Broncos are all 4-0 with the Patriots having an early bye this week at 3-0. Will they all make the playoffs? Probably not but its still very hard to tell who's actually good and could contend at the end of the season. I thought the Bills were good after pasting the Dolphins last week then I watched the Dolphins look horrible again against the Jets yesterday, making the Bills win last week seem considerably less impressive. After yesterday's game, it certainly looks like the Giants are good but maybe they'll fall back next week. One thing is clear: the Packers are good.
So, the Bills travel to Nashville next week, scene of their most recent playoff game in January, 2000 which will forever be remembered as the Music City Miracle. Rob Johnson, where are you now? You had that game won and then it slipped away on what I firmly maintain was a forward pass which was ruled to be a legal "lateral" on a kick-off return. I realize I'm referencing a lot of Bills history in this post; its the influence of Marv Levy.
Also, the Bills lost the game yesterday largely because of 17 freakin penalties which cost them 135 yards and two called-back touchdowns. I like how Rex defended his team and said he was still proud of their effort but he will have to address the ongoing issue of discipline if his team is going to find a way to be good this season. Imparting a commitment to individual personal conduct with every player on his team, including temper control and finding a balance between playing with passion and playing within the rules, is a critical part of any football coach's responsibility. Even more important than conducting entertaining press conferences.
The pre-game crew on WGR were suggesting that the game's most glaring mis-match would be the Bills front 7 against the Giants offensive line and running backs. The Giants would have trouble establishing the run against Buffalo's fearsome defensive line and Manning would have to win the game for them. What won the Giants the game was their running game, especially on first down, and their run defense. Just like Marv used to say.
So, after 4 weeks, are the Bills a good team? Are the Giants a good team? Both are 2-2 but this morning, one is feeling much better than the other. The Bengals, Packers, Panthers, Falcons and Broncos are all 4-0 with the Patriots having an early bye this week at 3-0. Will they all make the playoffs? Probably not but its still very hard to tell who's actually good and could contend at the end of the season. I thought the Bills were good after pasting the Dolphins last week then I watched the Dolphins look horrible again against the Jets yesterday, making the Bills win last week seem considerably less impressive. After yesterday's game, it certainly looks like the Giants are good but maybe they'll fall back next week. One thing is clear: the Packers are good.
So, the Bills travel to Nashville next week, scene of their most recent playoff game in January, 2000 which will forever be remembered as the Music City Miracle. Rob Johnson, where are you now? You had that game won and then it slipped away on what I firmly maintain was a forward pass which was ruled to be a legal "lateral" on a kick-off return. I realize I'm referencing a lot of Bills history in this post; its the influence of Marv Levy.
Also, the Bills lost the game yesterday largely because of 17 freakin penalties which cost them 135 yards and two called-back touchdowns. I like how Rex defended his team and said he was still proud of their effort but he will have to address the ongoing issue of discipline if his team is going to find a way to be good this season. Imparting a commitment to individual personal conduct with every player on his team, including temper control and finding a balance between playing with passion and playing within the rules, is a critical part of any football coach's responsibility. Even more important than conducting entertaining press conferences.
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