I guess the Bills could have won yesterday's game in Cincinnati if they had made a play or two here or there but they didn't play well enough to have deserved to win. Without the benefit of three Bengal turnovers, the Bills would have been lost more decisively than they did and if they had somehow managed to pull it out, the headlines in this morning's papers would have referred them as having stolen a win etc.
The Bengals gave a good effort on both sides of the ball with their defense holding LeSean McCoy to 63 hard-earned yards and Andy Dalton looked confident and poised throughout the game with his only bone-headed throw - a pass to the endzone late in the fourth quarter which could have easily been intercepted but wasn't - not costing him at all. The three turnovers the Bengals gave up were mostly of the unlucky variety with two Bills interceptions coming on tipped balls and another coming on a punched out ball after a long gain. The Bengals got off to a terrible start this season but yesterday they looked like a competent and talented team.
US Vice-President Mike Pence decided to upstage a tribute to Payton Manning yesterday in Indianapolis by leaving the stadium after 23 San Francisco 49ers players kneeled during the national anthem. Pence took to Twitter afterwards explaining that he and the President "would not dignify any event that disrespects our soldiers, our flag or our national anthem". As SI's Peter King wrote on Sunday (as a special piece ahead of his weekly Monday Morning Quarterback column), this was an orchestrated strategy by Pence as he knew that at least some players would kneel during the anthem and he also knew that he would then leave the stadium, making that the story of the day in Indianapolis instead of what it was intended to be - a well-deserved tribute given to Manning who was inducted on to the Colts Ring of Honour for his incredible career in a Colts uniform. King's point is that Pence knew that he would become the headline and he deliberately and intentionally proceeded to insert himself into the situation, presumably at the urging of or on orders from the President. One of Indiana's most beloved sports figures deserved his special day yesterday without it being overshadowed by the Trump administration's wedge politics. As King said in his column, "Mike Pence will have to live with himself for that."
I think that I am now leaning towards wanting the national anthem dropped from professional sporting events. Do we really need to hear it every time? Ok, maybe we can still have it for the Superbowl but having it before every game is ridiculous. The NBA has moved the anthem up so far that it takes place a full 15 or 20 minutes before tip-off with the stands mostly empty. The pre-game ritual before an NBA game is now fully focused on a loud and inspirational music video for the home team and its fans which takes place just before the presentation of the home starting line-up and only a couple of minutes before the game starts. It feels like the anthem is now played at NBA games because its required and not because fans want it or care at all about it.
I am not suggesting that the anthem be dropped to remove the opportunity for players to express their political views but rather so that those who practice right-wing wedge politics will have their opportunity taken away. Trump has seized the chance to energize his uncouth base and try to damage the NFL for not taking action against those players who passively demonstrate dissent by choosing to kneel during the anthem. Lets deny him that stage and let a football game be just that and nothing more. NFL players will still have plenty of media coverage if they want to be political and I hope that they will use it to share their views. We need to stop the distracting and destructive fallout from the whole national anthem business. I would bet that Roger Goodell agrees but I am sure that he will continue to simply hope that the problem goes away.
The Bills enter their bye week after five games which is probably earlier than they would have liked but still comes at a time when they can rest and try to get Charles Clay and Jordan Matthews back in the line-up for two games against the Bucs and Raiders to close out the month of October.
Commentary on the Buffalo Bills, politics and whatever else is on my mind
Monday, 9 October 2017
Monday, 2 October 2017
Bills 23, Falcons 17
On fourth down, with less then a minute to go, Matt Ryan's pass misses receiver Taylor Gabriel but Bills rookie cornerback Tre'Davious White is flagged for pass interference, giving the Falcons a first down at the Bills three yard line. After the Bills spend their three time-outs, the Falcons score a touchdown with 48 seconds left, make the extra point, stop the Bills on fourth down on the ensuing series and win the game 24-23. Except there was no pass interference called and the Bills left Atlanta with what Jerry Sullivan of the Buffalo News called the team's biggest road win since 2011.
I generally like the idea of video review for challenges, turnovers and scoring plays. They do take time and they break the natural flow of the game but they usually get the call right. There were two reviews yesterday which I was convinced would go against the Bills but didn't. The first resulted in a Bills touchdown after what was ruled a fumble by Matt Ryan. I've seen plenty of theses kind of plays where, if the quarterback's hand is moving forward - and especially if that forward motion propels the ball forward in any way - the ruling is almost always an incomplete pass. The ruling yesterday must have been that Ryan had already lost control of the ball (which he had as it was clearly knocked out of his hand well before it began to move forward) before batting it forward like a desperate volleyball player using the third hit to get the ball over the net. Ruling: the call on the field stands: touchdown Buffalo.
The second replay review was on a Micah Hyde interception of another Ryan pass where Hyde appeared to trap the tip of the ball on the ground simultaneous with his hands grasping its sides. The ground can not be used to help make a catch - or at least that's what I was convinced would be the ruling - but the play which was initially ruled to be an interception was not overturned on review and the Bills had secured their third turnover of the game. A third replay review went against the Bills who had recovered a fumble after what was initially ruled to be an interception and was then correctly ruled an incomplete pass as the receiver never controlled the ball. Two for three on replay reviews. Had they lost either of the two which they won, the Bills would likely be 2-2 this morning.
It never ceases to amaze me how much the fortunes of NFL football teams can change from season to season (with the obvious exception of the Cleveland Browns who seem permanently mired in oblivion no matter how many times they change general managers and coaches or how many high draft picks they get year after year). After installing a new coaching staff and trading two of their top players in Sammy Watkins and Ronald Darby in the pre-season, this season looked like an rebuilding year for the Bills with a stockpile of draft picks coming in 2018 and 2019. But, after four games, the Bills look to me like they actually are good team right now. The Falcons came as close to winning the Superbowl last year as a team can come without actually winning it and they were 3-0 before losing to the Bills yesterday. Buffalo's only loss was to the Panthers who won in New England yesterday and they have also beaten the Jets who are a surprising 2-2 and Denver who won against the Raiders yesterday to improve to 3-1.
I sense that it won't be long before I receive an email from the Bills asking me for a deposit on tickets to a home playoff game, something that Bills fans have not witnessed since Jim Kelly's final game in December, 1996. A home playoff game is only possible for teams who win their division (with the extremely remote but mathematically possible exception of a fifth seeded wildcard team playing a conference championship game at home against the sixth seed). With the Patriots at 2-2, the Bills find themselves in first place in the AFC East at 3-1, a position they have not occupied this late in the season in nine years. Yes, I am projecting far too much at the one quarter mark of the season but I am feeling optimistic right now with my desire for important winter-time football in Orchard Park seeming a bit less like a wild fantasy than it did a month ago. There's still plenty of time for the team to come back to earth with a schedule which still includes a trip to Kansas City and two games against the Patriots. But the schedule looks quite manageable otherwise and I see no reason to think that the team can't stay competitive at least through November.
Up next is a trip to Cincinnati this Sunday before the bye week. The Bengals throttled the Browns in Cleveland yesterday for their first win of the season. Their anemic offence has looked much better the past two weeks after firing their offensive coordinator after following a week two loss.
I generally like the idea of video review for challenges, turnovers and scoring plays. They do take time and they break the natural flow of the game but they usually get the call right. There were two reviews yesterday which I was convinced would go against the Bills but didn't. The first resulted in a Bills touchdown after what was ruled a fumble by Matt Ryan. I've seen plenty of theses kind of plays where, if the quarterback's hand is moving forward - and especially if that forward motion propels the ball forward in any way - the ruling is almost always an incomplete pass. The ruling yesterday must have been that Ryan had already lost control of the ball (which he had as it was clearly knocked out of his hand well before it began to move forward) before batting it forward like a desperate volleyball player using the third hit to get the ball over the net. Ruling: the call on the field stands: touchdown Buffalo.
The second replay review was on a Micah Hyde interception of another Ryan pass where Hyde appeared to trap the tip of the ball on the ground simultaneous with his hands grasping its sides. The ground can not be used to help make a catch - or at least that's what I was convinced would be the ruling - but the play which was initially ruled to be an interception was not overturned on review and the Bills had secured their third turnover of the game. A third replay review went against the Bills who had recovered a fumble after what was initially ruled to be an interception and was then correctly ruled an incomplete pass as the receiver never controlled the ball. Two for three on replay reviews. Had they lost either of the two which they won, the Bills would likely be 2-2 this morning.
It never ceases to amaze me how much the fortunes of NFL football teams can change from season to season (with the obvious exception of the Cleveland Browns who seem permanently mired in oblivion no matter how many times they change general managers and coaches or how many high draft picks they get year after year). After installing a new coaching staff and trading two of their top players in Sammy Watkins and Ronald Darby in the pre-season, this season looked like an rebuilding year for the Bills with a stockpile of draft picks coming in 2018 and 2019. But, after four games, the Bills look to me like they actually are good team right now. The Falcons came as close to winning the Superbowl last year as a team can come without actually winning it and they were 3-0 before losing to the Bills yesterday. Buffalo's only loss was to the Panthers who won in New England yesterday and they have also beaten the Jets who are a surprising 2-2 and Denver who won against the Raiders yesterday to improve to 3-1.
I sense that it won't be long before I receive an email from the Bills asking me for a deposit on tickets to a home playoff game, something that Bills fans have not witnessed since Jim Kelly's final game in December, 1996. A home playoff game is only possible for teams who win their division (with the extremely remote but mathematically possible exception of a fifth seeded wildcard team playing a conference championship game at home against the sixth seed). With the Patriots at 2-2, the Bills find themselves in first place in the AFC East at 3-1, a position they have not occupied this late in the season in nine years. Yes, I am projecting far too much at the one quarter mark of the season but I am feeling optimistic right now with my desire for important winter-time football in Orchard Park seeming a bit less like a wild fantasy than it did a month ago. There's still plenty of time for the team to come back to earth with a schedule which still includes a trip to Kansas City and two games against the Patriots. But the schedule looks quite manageable otherwise and I see no reason to think that the team can't stay competitive at least through November.
Up next is a trip to Cincinnati this Sunday before the bye week. The Bengals throttled the Browns in Cleveland yesterday for their first win of the season. Their anemic offence has looked much better the past two weeks after firing their offensive coordinator after following a week two loss.
Monday, 25 September 2017
Bills 26, Broncos 16
Tyrod Taylor says that he and Von Miller are friends. Maybe in the heat of the moment - with the temperature hovering close to 90 degrees and the Bills holding on to a seven point lead late in the fourth quarter of yesterday's game in Orchard Park - Miller decided to set aside their friendship by offering his hand to help Taylor from the ground after a hard hit and then pulling it away just as Taylor reached for it. Perhaps it was just an incident of competitive ribbing between friends or maybe it was the manifestation of Miller's frustration that a game in which his team was clearly favoured to win was slipping away. But Miller was called for unsportsmanlike conduct which gave the Bills a new set of downs and then a field goal which put them up by 10 points with just over three minutes to go.
I was surprised that the call was made. Not because it wasn't unsportsmanlike conduct - because it was - but because I have never seen such an act in a football game and I wondered if the officials had seen it before either. The CBS broadcast team of Spero Dedes and Adam Archuleta obviously hadn't seen it called before either as Archuleta seemed stumped by the call, wondering why Miller's clean hit on Taylor was called: "it was a textbook shoulder to the chest hit", Archuleta declared, looking for a reason for the call. Sure, I've seen a player turn away from an opponent on the ground and not help him up after a play - I mean you don't have to help your opponent up after every play. But what Miller did was actually taunting in a slightly different form than it's usually seen and taunting is regularly called as unsportsmanlike conduct in NFL games. It was a devastating penalty for the Broncos and one from which they would not recover.
The Bills will likely find themselves climbing a few rungs in the NFL Power Rankings later this week after a solid performance against what was considered to be a clearly superior team in the Broncos. It was another outstanding defensive effort which in the end was too much for Broncos quarterback Trevor Siemian, the Northwestern product in his third NFL season. Siemian made two awful plays in the second half which resulted in crucial interceptions and, along with a highly questionable fake punt play which the Bills stopped, cost his team the game. Kudos to the offence are also deserved: With the Broncos outstanding front seven shutting down the Bills running game, Tyrod Taylor was able to move the ball in the air, showing impressive touch on a couple of key passes in the second half and LeSean McCoy set aside his frustrations and was able to find his way to two key fourth quarter first downs which kept drives alive and kept the Broncos offence off the field. For the Bills, it was big win indeed.
I really am reluctant to wade into anything related to Donald Trump on this blog but since his recent statements were aimed directly at the NFL and prompted such a strong reaction, here's where I am on it: I have never understood Trump's strategy and I'm even more mystified by it this morning. I wonder if he is ever able to predict the response to his words and actions or if he practices any semblance of game theory in how he plays out issues he decides to tackle. Regardless of what I might think of him, his policies or his personal style, his success in politics can not be denied. Despite what seemed like insurmountable flaws, he won last year's election so while his strategy on any number of issues so often looks to be self-destructive, he somehow endures. Until he is impeached or indicted, his strategy works - like it or not. His recent statements have unified most of the NFL's players, many of its team owners and some of its fans. But, for sure, not all of its fans. If his goal was to divide NFL fans by making them choose sides, he surely succeeded. Did he foresee the on-field response yesterday with most players kneeling, locking arms in solidarity or skipping the national anthem altogether? Who knows? And who knows what, if any, his larger strategy with this issue really is. If he thought that Colin Kaepernick was a lone wolf who has been appropriately ostracized by the NFL for fighting an unpopular solo battle, he is obviously wrong. How or even if this forms part of any coordinated political game plan on his part is entirely unknown to me.
Things don't get easier for the Bills in week four with a trip to Atlanta to face the Falcons and their high powered offence.
I was surprised that the call was made. Not because it wasn't unsportsmanlike conduct - because it was - but because I have never seen such an act in a football game and I wondered if the officials had seen it before either. The CBS broadcast team of Spero Dedes and Adam Archuleta obviously hadn't seen it called before either as Archuleta seemed stumped by the call, wondering why Miller's clean hit on Taylor was called: "it was a textbook shoulder to the chest hit", Archuleta declared, looking for a reason for the call. Sure, I've seen a player turn away from an opponent on the ground and not help him up after a play - I mean you don't have to help your opponent up after every play. But what Miller did was actually taunting in a slightly different form than it's usually seen and taunting is regularly called as unsportsmanlike conduct in NFL games. It was a devastating penalty for the Broncos and one from which they would not recover.
The Bills will likely find themselves climbing a few rungs in the NFL Power Rankings later this week after a solid performance against what was considered to be a clearly superior team in the Broncos. It was another outstanding defensive effort which in the end was too much for Broncos quarterback Trevor Siemian, the Northwestern product in his third NFL season. Siemian made two awful plays in the second half which resulted in crucial interceptions and, along with a highly questionable fake punt play which the Bills stopped, cost his team the game. Kudos to the offence are also deserved: With the Broncos outstanding front seven shutting down the Bills running game, Tyrod Taylor was able to move the ball in the air, showing impressive touch on a couple of key passes in the second half and LeSean McCoy set aside his frustrations and was able to find his way to two key fourth quarter first downs which kept drives alive and kept the Broncos offence off the field. For the Bills, it was big win indeed.
I really am reluctant to wade into anything related to Donald Trump on this blog but since his recent statements were aimed directly at the NFL and prompted such a strong reaction, here's where I am on it: I have never understood Trump's strategy and I'm even more mystified by it this morning. I wonder if he is ever able to predict the response to his words and actions or if he practices any semblance of game theory in how he plays out issues he decides to tackle. Regardless of what I might think of him, his policies or his personal style, his success in politics can not be denied. Despite what seemed like insurmountable flaws, he won last year's election so while his strategy on any number of issues so often looks to be self-destructive, he somehow endures. Until he is impeached or indicted, his strategy works - like it or not. His recent statements have unified most of the NFL's players, many of its team owners and some of its fans. But, for sure, not all of its fans. If his goal was to divide NFL fans by making them choose sides, he surely succeeded. Did he foresee the on-field response yesterday with most players kneeling, locking arms in solidarity or skipping the national anthem altogether? Who knows? And who knows what, if any, his larger strategy with this issue really is. If he thought that Colin Kaepernick was a lone wolf who has been appropriately ostracized by the NFL for fighting an unpopular solo battle, he is obviously wrong. How or even if this forms part of any coordinated political game plan on his part is entirely unknown to me.
Things don't get easier for the Bills in week four with a trip to Atlanta to face the Falcons and their high powered offence.
Monday, 18 September 2017
Panthers 9, Bills 3
It was a perfectly scripted ending for Sean McDermott. Returning to Charlotte after six years as the Panthers Defensive Coordinator, the Bills new head coach lead his team through a grinding defensive battle and a last-minute win on a spectacular catch by rookie wideout Kay Jones who lept high in the air at the goal line, grabbed Tyrod Taylor's pass and rolled untouched into the endzone. Bills upset the heavily favoured Panthers 10-9.
Except Jones couldn't make the catch and the Bills have now fallen from first place in the AFC East. It was a fun ride for the one week it lasted. The silver lining was obviously the defence which kept Cam Newton out of the endzone for four quarters. Holding a team to 9 points should and almost always is enough to win in the NFL but the Bills weakness on the offensive side of the ball was glaring. The Panthers game planned very well for LeSean McCoy who was unable to move the ball on the ground at all. The passing game wasn't able to step up until later in the second half and, although they almost pulled it out, the Bills didn't come close to the endzone either except on their final play.
This was a frustrating game to watch as a Bills fan but for NFL fans without a rooting interest, it must have been excruciating. A defensive battle with only four field goals isn't going to do much for the league's sagging ratings, especially on a day without many close games to switch to in the 1pm line-up.
Comparing yesterday's Bills game to Saturday's Toronto Argonaut victory over the Edmonton Eskimos is a little like comparing apples to kiwi fruit but I'll give it a go anyway. Played before a gathering of just over 13,000 at BMO Field (which, laughably, is one of the biggest home crowds the Argos have drawn this season in a stadium with a football capacity of about 33,000), the home side beat the favoured Eskimos 34-26 in a game which featured 46 first downs and more than 800 yards of offence. I watched most of the second half with my dad, a life-long Argonaut fan who hasn't been to a game since 1978. The CFL still generates surprisingly decent national television ratings despite high levels of apathy in Canada's largest city. Regardless of its many challenges, the CFL's on-field product is almost always entertaining and Saturday's game was a great example of that.
The CFL made news last week by announcing an end to padded practices with contact during the regular season. The league obviously knew which coaches would support the move and which ones likely wouldn't as BC Lions head coach Wally Buono said that it was about time for such a move and Eskimos head coach Jason Maas questioned the decision and said that he learned of it only through the media. The only valid criticism I've heard of the decision is from junior and high school football coaches in Canada who worry that the pressure from parents to match the policy in their own leagues may develop a cohort of younger players who have not learned how to make or receive a proper football hit until they find themselves in game situations. This may lead to more injuries in the end, not less, they say. We'll see. If the policy serves to slow the decline in participation rates among young athletes, then it probably makes sense. I doubt that it will really give parents any more comfort when they decide which sports to sign their children up for.
The Bills have a tough test upcoming in week 3 as the Denver Broncos, coming off an impressive win against Dallas yesterday, come to Orchard Park. Then the team has two road games and a bye week before their next home game on October 22nd.
Except Jones couldn't make the catch and the Bills have now fallen from first place in the AFC East. It was a fun ride for the one week it lasted. The silver lining was obviously the defence which kept Cam Newton out of the endzone for four quarters. Holding a team to 9 points should and almost always is enough to win in the NFL but the Bills weakness on the offensive side of the ball was glaring. The Panthers game planned very well for LeSean McCoy who was unable to move the ball on the ground at all. The passing game wasn't able to step up until later in the second half and, although they almost pulled it out, the Bills didn't come close to the endzone either except on their final play.
This was a frustrating game to watch as a Bills fan but for NFL fans without a rooting interest, it must have been excruciating. A defensive battle with only four field goals isn't going to do much for the league's sagging ratings, especially on a day without many close games to switch to in the 1pm line-up.
Comparing yesterday's Bills game to Saturday's Toronto Argonaut victory over the Edmonton Eskimos is a little like comparing apples to kiwi fruit but I'll give it a go anyway. Played before a gathering of just over 13,000 at BMO Field (which, laughably, is one of the biggest home crowds the Argos have drawn this season in a stadium with a football capacity of about 33,000), the home side beat the favoured Eskimos 34-26 in a game which featured 46 first downs and more than 800 yards of offence. I watched most of the second half with my dad, a life-long Argonaut fan who hasn't been to a game since 1978. The CFL still generates surprisingly decent national television ratings despite high levels of apathy in Canada's largest city. Regardless of its many challenges, the CFL's on-field product is almost always entertaining and Saturday's game was a great example of that.
The CFL made news last week by announcing an end to padded practices with contact during the regular season. The league obviously knew which coaches would support the move and which ones likely wouldn't as BC Lions head coach Wally Buono said that it was about time for such a move and Eskimos head coach Jason Maas questioned the decision and said that he learned of it only through the media. The only valid criticism I've heard of the decision is from junior and high school football coaches in Canada who worry that the pressure from parents to match the policy in their own leagues may develop a cohort of younger players who have not learned how to make or receive a proper football hit until they find themselves in game situations. This may lead to more injuries in the end, not less, they say. We'll see. If the policy serves to slow the decline in participation rates among young athletes, then it probably makes sense. I doubt that it will really give parents any more comfort when they decide which sports to sign their children up for.
The Bills have a tough test upcoming in week 3 as the Denver Broncos, coming off an impressive win against Dallas yesterday, come to Orchard Park. Then the team has two road games and a bye week before their next home game on October 22nd.
Tuesday, 12 September 2017
Bills 21, Jets 12
The headline in the Chicago Tribune, which reads "Hurricane Irma Delays NFL's TV Ratings", probably portends more bad news for the NFL in the form of another season of declining fan interest which will manifest itself in lower television viewership, smaller in-stadium crowds and the corresponding list of excuses from the league office. The fact that the offices where NFL television ratings are compiled and reported is - or was - in Tampa, which was evacuated ahead of the storm, will only delay the inevitable.
Last year it was the election. This year, NFL spin doctors suggest, it's the weather. Ratings for The Weather Network are way up as some football fans (even those in areas not impacted by the hurricanes) apparently are now more interested in the weather than in whatever the NFL has to offer for their viewing pleasure. What will the league offer up as an explanation for the ratings drop once the hurricane season is over? Will there be another major news story which they can claim has drawn attention away from their product? Anything, I guess, to not address the fundamental issue of declining participation in junior football programs and the alarming number of high schools across America (and Canada too) which have scrapped their football programs due to player/student safety concerns.
The New England Patriots have won the Superbowl in two of the past three seasons (the 2014 and 2016 seasons). The winner of the big game from the previous year earns the right to host the league's opening regular season game on the Thursday night of Week 1, three days before the rest of the teams open their schedules. On that opening Thursday in 2015, the Patriots game was watched by an average audience of 27.4 million viewers. Two years later, average viewership for last week's game dropped to 21.8 million. A year ago, the Denver Broncos (the 2015 Superbowl winner) opening Thursday home game drew an average of 25.2 million. See a pattern here? Make no mistake: the NFL is still a ratings juggernaut and no other sports league or television program even comes close to the numbers that the NFL can draw but the downward trajectory is clear and I am confident is saying that the Golden Age of Football is now behind us. Sure, I'll still watch on television and I'll still make the pilgrimage to Orchard Park once or twice each season (or more if the Bills are competitive in December) but I am less confident now that I will still be doing so 20 or 30 years from now than I would have been five years ago.
But the Bills won in Week 1 and I still feel good about that. I like the attitude and demeanor of the new head coach Sean McDermott. I like the defence, the offensive line and the running game. I remain concerned about the quarterback and the lack of big play receivers which the team will need to get back into games where they fall behind. Like they probably will in next week's trip to Carolina.
I saw only a bit of the Jets game as I was focused mainly on rebuilding our pump house after we replaced our entire water system this summer at the cottage. I watched part of the Patriots game on Thursday night and I was pleased to see the Chiefs dominate in the 4th quarter and hand them a home loss. With the Dolphins idle due to the hurricane, the Bills find themselves alone in first place in the AFC East. This will likely only be a week-long phenomenon but I like the look of the standings in the newspaper right now.
If the Bills can pull out a road win in Week 2, then prospects for the 2017 season will definitely seem brighter in what still feels like a rebuilding year. We are rebuilding our pump house and the Bills are rebuilding for the future. I am confident that our pump house will last 30 years or more. The NFL will still be around in 30 years too but it could like quite different that it does now.
Last year it was the election. This year, NFL spin doctors suggest, it's the weather. Ratings for The Weather Network are way up as some football fans (even those in areas not impacted by the hurricanes) apparently are now more interested in the weather than in whatever the NFL has to offer for their viewing pleasure. What will the league offer up as an explanation for the ratings drop once the hurricane season is over? Will there be another major news story which they can claim has drawn attention away from their product? Anything, I guess, to not address the fundamental issue of declining participation in junior football programs and the alarming number of high schools across America (and Canada too) which have scrapped their football programs due to player/student safety concerns.
The New England Patriots have won the Superbowl in two of the past three seasons (the 2014 and 2016 seasons). The winner of the big game from the previous year earns the right to host the league's opening regular season game on the Thursday night of Week 1, three days before the rest of the teams open their schedules. On that opening Thursday in 2015, the Patriots game was watched by an average audience of 27.4 million viewers. Two years later, average viewership for last week's game dropped to 21.8 million. A year ago, the Denver Broncos (the 2015 Superbowl winner) opening Thursday home game drew an average of 25.2 million. See a pattern here? Make no mistake: the NFL is still a ratings juggernaut and no other sports league or television program even comes close to the numbers that the NFL can draw but the downward trajectory is clear and I am confident is saying that the Golden Age of Football is now behind us. Sure, I'll still watch on television and I'll still make the pilgrimage to Orchard Park once or twice each season (or more if the Bills are competitive in December) but I am less confident now that I will still be doing so 20 or 30 years from now than I would have been five years ago.
But the Bills won in Week 1 and I still feel good about that. I like the attitude and demeanor of the new head coach Sean McDermott. I like the defence, the offensive line and the running game. I remain concerned about the quarterback and the lack of big play receivers which the team will need to get back into games where they fall behind. Like they probably will in next week's trip to Carolina.
I saw only a bit of the Jets game as I was focused mainly on rebuilding our pump house after we replaced our entire water system this summer at the cottage. I watched part of the Patriots game on Thursday night and I was pleased to see the Chiefs dominate in the 4th quarter and hand them a home loss. With the Dolphins idle due to the hurricane, the Bills find themselves alone in first place in the AFC East. This will likely only be a week-long phenomenon but I like the look of the standings in the newspaper right now.
If the Bills can pull out a road win in Week 2, then prospects for the 2017 season will definitely seem brighter in what still feels like a rebuilding year. We are rebuilding our pump house and the Bills are rebuilding for the future. I am confident that our pump house will last 30 years or more. The NFL will still be around in 30 years too but it could like quite different that it does now.
Monday, 2 January 2017
Jets 30, Bills 10
I don't see Terry Pegula - or Kim for that matter, as they exist as a team - as a sports team owner like a Harold Ballard or even a Ralph Wilson with the bottom line as the primary objective, only paying attention to competitive success in order to help with the bottom line. I have no way of knowing this for sure but it seems that the Pegulas want to do right by the long-suffering football fans of Western New York, Eastern Pennsylvania and Southern Ontario. I just don't think they have surrounded themselves with the right people to help them do it - at least not yet. As a Leaf fan, I pay very little attention to the Buffalo Sabres but if we can look to them as an example of Pegula ownership over the somewhat longer term, Bills fans are in for more disappointments ahead.
Rex Ryan wasn't fired the day after the Miami game presumably because it was Christmas Day so the Pegulas waited until Tuesday the 27th to show him and his brother the door. They also installed Anthony Lynn as interim head coach and told him that Tyrod Taylor wouldn't play in the final game of the season against the Jets on account of a provision in his contract which would have made the Bills liable for Taylor's $27.5 million notional salary for next season had he suffered an in-game injury which would have prevented him from passing his team physical in March. Such is the world of NFL contracts and these are the kinds of decisions they can lead to.
As first glance, it all went bad quite quickly after the team lost in overtime to the playoff bound Dolphins but the season's end was really the second half collapse in Oakland after leading in that game 24-9. In retrospect, beating Cleveland a couple of weeks later only lessened their draft position. Yesterday's loss improved it but it looks like Doug Whaley will be calling the shots on the 2017 draft once again, in addition to heading up the search for a new head coach. The Buffalo media seems to think that they will give the job to Anthony Lynn who, until this past September, had advanced only as far as running backs coach before being named the team's offensive coordinator. In fairness to Lynn, the Bills have featured the league's number one running attack over the past two years and the team's offence showed considerable improvement overall after he took over as coordinator. If he is the successful candidate, Anthony Lynn will be the first permanent (rather than interim) black head coach in Bills history. At this point, I honestly can't think of anyone else who would be better suited to the Bills top job, at least among those who would consider taking it.
The NFL playoffs begin on the weekend with four games. The Dophins are in tough as they travel to Pittsburgh to face Le'Veon Bell and Ben Roethlisberger in the cold. The other AFC game sees the Houston Texans playing host to Oakland, a team whose hopes appear to have been dashed by not one but two quarterback injuries. In the NFC, the Seahwaks play Detroit in the Pacific Northwest and the Giants travel to the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field to face the red hot Packers. All four games could be interesting and, for Bills fans, they come without the stress of having a clear rooting interest. I am thankful for that.
Rex Ryan wasn't fired the day after the Miami game presumably because it was Christmas Day so the Pegulas waited until Tuesday the 27th to show him and his brother the door. They also installed Anthony Lynn as interim head coach and told him that Tyrod Taylor wouldn't play in the final game of the season against the Jets on account of a provision in his contract which would have made the Bills liable for Taylor's $27.5 million notional salary for next season had he suffered an in-game injury which would have prevented him from passing his team physical in March. Such is the world of NFL contracts and these are the kinds of decisions they can lead to.
As first glance, it all went bad quite quickly after the team lost in overtime to the playoff bound Dolphins but the season's end was really the second half collapse in Oakland after leading in that game 24-9. In retrospect, beating Cleveland a couple of weeks later only lessened their draft position. Yesterday's loss improved it but it looks like Doug Whaley will be calling the shots on the 2017 draft once again, in addition to heading up the search for a new head coach. The Buffalo media seems to think that they will give the job to Anthony Lynn who, until this past September, had advanced only as far as running backs coach before being named the team's offensive coordinator. In fairness to Lynn, the Bills have featured the league's number one running attack over the past two years and the team's offence showed considerable improvement overall after he took over as coordinator. If he is the successful candidate, Anthony Lynn will be the first permanent (rather than interim) black head coach in Bills history. At this point, I honestly can't think of anyone else who would be better suited to the Bills top job, at least among those who would consider taking it.
The NFL playoffs begin on the weekend with four games. The Dophins are in tough as they travel to Pittsburgh to face Le'Veon Bell and Ben Roethlisberger in the cold. The other AFC game sees the Houston Texans playing host to Oakland, a team whose hopes appear to have been dashed by not one but two quarterback injuries. In the NFC, the Seahwaks play Detroit in the Pacific Northwest and the Giants travel to the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field to face the red hot Packers. All four games could be interesting and, for Bills fans, they come without the stress of having a clear rooting interest. I am thankful for that.
Tuesday, 27 December 2016
Dolphins 34, Bills 31 (OT)
I've never been big on questioning coaching decisions. Why does he play that defenceman on power plays? Why didn't he take that pitcher out after the last inning? Why are they running the ball on third down and seven? I just assume that coaches in professional sports know far more than me about the factors they need to to consider when making the decisions they make - and they obviously do. But questioning coaching decisions in the prerogative of fans and especially those who pay their hard-earned after tax money to buy tickets to games. I just don't happen to do it very much. But I certainly did it once on Christmas Eve.
With four minutes remaining in the overtime period of Saturday's game in Orchard Park with the Bills facing a fourth down and three, Rex Ryan decided to punt the ball. Had the game been a 10-10 defensive struggle, his hope that his defence would get a stop and get the ball back with enough time to score in a game they had to win to stay alive might have been realistic. But this was a 31-31 game where both offences were running in high gear for the whole game - including Buffalo's which set a single game offensive production record with 589 yards from scrimmage. Ryan's post-game claim that "any coach in America would have done the same thing" seemed almost delusional. It is true that if they had gone for the first down on that fourth and three and not made it, the game would have been over. Punting the ball away at that point simply ended the Bills remote playoff chances in a slow and painful way until they allowed Jay Ajayi to rumble for 60 yards against 10 defenders to set up the game winning field goal. Ryan is the head coach and the decision was his to make, he made it and they lost game. That's sports. I guess the real thing I questioned was his claim that he thought that his defence had a better shot at a three and out than his offence did at picking up three yards after posting almost 600 in the game up to that point. Had he chosen to try for the first down and had they not made it, fans would have questioned that decision too. I would like to think that I would not have been among them.
So, the Bills are out of the playoffs for the 17th consecutive season. If they beat the Jets next week, they will finish 8-8 and Rex's record over two seasons will be a yawn inducing 16-16. I think he will be back next year but the real question at this point will be what they do with their quarterback Tyrod Taylor. In a league where contracts are not guaranteed, there are many options. The team has the right, under a contract extension signed during training camp, to retain Taylor in 2017 but at a steep price of $27.5 million. If they decide that they want to go in a different direction (current third stringer Cardale Jones, through free agency or through the draft), then they will just cut him and he's a free agent. If they want to retain him but not at $27.5 million, they could try to re-negotiate the deal or they choose a more creative path which would involve cutting him, letting him see the options available to him in free agency and, assuming that he isn't offered $27.5 million by another team (which seems unlikely), they could themselves sign him as a free agent at a salary more in line with his performance this season. His performance was solid in some respects but his throwing accuracy is still below average for an NFL quarterback and most observers agree that he is not worth $27.5 million to the Bills or to any other team. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo will be a free agent this off-season.
The Dolphins have now officially made the playoffs as all six AFC teams have been determined going into week 17. In the NFC, the game next Sunday night at Ford Field between Detroit and Green Bay will determine the winner of the NFC North which comes with a home playoff game. The other important game involves Washington which can claim a wildcard spot with a win over the Giants who have nothing to play for. The AFC West could still be won by the Chiefs if they can beat the Chargers and if the Raiders, who suffered a devastating loss of their star quarterback Derek Carr, lose to the Broncos.
With four minutes remaining in the overtime period of Saturday's game in Orchard Park with the Bills facing a fourth down and three, Rex Ryan decided to punt the ball. Had the game been a 10-10 defensive struggle, his hope that his defence would get a stop and get the ball back with enough time to score in a game they had to win to stay alive might have been realistic. But this was a 31-31 game where both offences were running in high gear for the whole game - including Buffalo's which set a single game offensive production record with 589 yards from scrimmage. Ryan's post-game claim that "any coach in America would have done the same thing" seemed almost delusional. It is true that if they had gone for the first down on that fourth and three and not made it, the game would have been over. Punting the ball away at that point simply ended the Bills remote playoff chances in a slow and painful way until they allowed Jay Ajayi to rumble for 60 yards against 10 defenders to set up the game winning field goal. Ryan is the head coach and the decision was his to make, he made it and they lost game. That's sports. I guess the real thing I questioned was his claim that he thought that his defence had a better shot at a three and out than his offence did at picking up three yards after posting almost 600 in the game up to that point. Had he chosen to try for the first down and had they not made it, fans would have questioned that decision too. I would like to think that I would not have been among them.
So, the Bills are out of the playoffs for the 17th consecutive season. If they beat the Jets next week, they will finish 8-8 and Rex's record over two seasons will be a yawn inducing 16-16. I think he will be back next year but the real question at this point will be what they do with their quarterback Tyrod Taylor. In a league where contracts are not guaranteed, there are many options. The team has the right, under a contract extension signed during training camp, to retain Taylor in 2017 but at a steep price of $27.5 million. If they decide that they want to go in a different direction (current third stringer Cardale Jones, through free agency or through the draft), then they will just cut him and he's a free agent. If they want to retain him but not at $27.5 million, they could try to re-negotiate the deal or they choose a more creative path which would involve cutting him, letting him see the options available to him in free agency and, assuming that he isn't offered $27.5 million by another team (which seems unlikely), they could themselves sign him as a free agent at a salary more in line with his performance this season. His performance was solid in some respects but his throwing accuracy is still below average for an NFL quarterback and most observers agree that he is not worth $27.5 million to the Bills or to any other team. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo will be a free agent this off-season.
The Dolphins have now officially made the playoffs as all six AFC teams have been determined going into week 17. In the NFC, the game next Sunday night at Ford Field between Detroit and Green Bay will determine the winner of the NFC North which comes with a home playoff game. The other important game involves Washington which can claim a wildcard spot with a win over the Giants who have nothing to play for. The AFC West could still be won by the Chiefs if they can beat the Chargers and if the Raiders, who suffered a devastating loss of their star quarterback Derek Carr, lose to the Broncos.
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