Next up: Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium 9/11/16

[Sami84]

3 hours ago, RL Paulie said:

1 hour ago, AsianRice said:

My blood pressure has been pretty good ever since the off season; it is time for it to rise exponentially......

 

 

Celery seed and hawthorn berry helps with that  

[Filmstudy]

No game changes expectation for the season more than the opener.  No game this early should be "must win", but I feel this is a "must validate contention" game for the Ravens.  Ideally that would mean a lopsided win at home with one side of the ball showing up above expectation.

The game is no gimmee, but if they lose at home to a dinged up Bills team, it's a bad sign for the season to be sure.

[Maryland]

Seems like the Bills should be worse compared to last season. They lost Mario Williams, Karlos Williams, and Nigel Bradham (decent tackling OLB). They will start the year without Marcel Dareus due to suspension, their top-2 picks, Lawson and Ragland, are injured, and Kyle Williams is old/declining. Their only real addition is Zach Brown, which really only compensates for the loss of Bradham. So it seems like they lost players without really adding any major talent via FA or draft. 

[trevorsteadman]

I think this game will have a ton of emotion wearing purple. So many key contributers getting back on the field for the first time in games upon games. I think the emotion gives the Ravens a win. The only way I see Buffalo winning the game is if the Ravens are just outcoached and not prepared for the game. Pitta, Suggs, Smith Sr., Perriman, Forsett, Flacco.... Probably can go on.. 

[JoeyFlex5]

5 hours ago, Maryland said:

Seems like the Bills should be worse compared to last season. They lost Mario Williams, Karlos Williams, and Nigel Bradham (decent tackling OLB). They will start the year without Marcel Dareus due to suspension, their top-2 picks, Lawson and Ragland, are injured, and Kyle Williams is old/declining. Their only real addition is Zach Brown, which really only compensates for the loss of Bradham. So it seems like they lost players without really adding any major talent via FA or draft. 

The bills fans legitimately think losing Mario Williams is addition by subtraction. They're buying into the rex excuse  too much if they really think Mario Williams being unable to drop in coverage is the reason for their defense not being great.

[Purple_City39]

5 hours ago, Maryland said:

Seems like the Bills should be worse compared to last season. They lost Mario Williams, Karlos Williams, and Nigel Bradham (decent tackling OLB). They will start the year without Marcel Dareus due to suspension, their top-2 picks, Lawson and Ragland, are injured, and Kyle Williams is old/declining. Their only real addition is Zach Brown, which really only compensates for the loss of Bradham. So it seems like they lost players without really adding any major talent via FA or draft. 

I went to the Bills forum to see how their fans felt about the game.  Many expect a blowout in their favor.  A few think Baltimore is a bottom 5 team this year.  I expected biased optimism, as all fans do it, but I wasn't expecting sincere 20+ point win predictions

[OUravensfan]

6 minutes ago, Purple_City39 said:

I went to the Bills forum to see how their fans felt about the game.  Many expect a blowout in their favor.  A few think Baltimore is a bottom 5 team this year.  I expected biased optimism, as all fans do it, but I wasn't expecting sincere 20+ point win predictions

Tired of people thinking their team is better than ours. The Bills , I hope we end this madness on Sunday

[Maryland]

9 minutes ago, Purple_City39 said:

I went to the Bills forum to see how their fans felt about the game.  Many expect a blowout in their favor.  A few think Baltimore is a bottom 5 team this year.  I expected biased optimism, as all fans do it, but I wasn't expecting sincere 20+ point win predictions

I mean, I can get why fans are down on the Ravens after last year, but it's not like the Bills are on the upward swing toward being major playoff contenders. This should be, at worst, an even battle between two average to below-average teams.

[ludy51]

20 minutes ago, Purple_City39 said:

I went to the Bills forum to see how their fans felt about the game.  Many expect a blowout in their favor.  A few think Baltimore is a bottom 5 team this year.  I expected biased optimism, as all fans do it, but I wasn't expecting sincere 20+ point win predictions

They have done NO research on us. at all. They think since Doom is out, we'll have no pass rush on that side.

[trevorsteadman]

1 minute ago, ludy51 said:

They have done NO research on us. at all. They think since Doom is out, we'll have no pass rush on that side.

To be fair I can see why they think that because we are putting that side to a 2nd year guy and a rookie. Yes Za'Darius is showing promise but he did just come off of an injury. But I think as long as Suggs is on the field we will see some pass rush. I also liked seeing Mosley blitz up the middle the few times in the preseason he did he got pressure on several occassions. With no real threat at wide out behind Sammy Watkins I think a few cornerback blitzes can force Tyrod into some bad situations. 

[Sami84]

Just now, trevorsteadman said:

To be fair I can see why they think that because we are putting that side to a 2nd year guy and a rookie. Yes Za'Darius is showing promise but he did just come off of an injury. But I think as long as Suggs is on the field we will see some pass rush. I also liked seeing Mosley blitz up the middle the few times in the preseason he did he got pressure on several occassions. With no real threat at wide out behind Sammy Watkins I think a few cornerback blitzes can force Tyrod into some bad situations. 

 

woods is a solid reciever.no world beater...not that fast but hes alright..average. Clay is good but they lack depth at TE.

[trevorsteadman]

Just now, Sami84 said:

woods is a solid reciever.no world beater...not that fast but hes alright..average. Clay is good but they lack depth at TE.

Again no real threat. It is not like we are going against the Broncos who have Sanders and Thomas or the Jaguars with Robinson and Hurns. They have solid players but Jimmy Smith should be able to handle Watkins and everybody else should be fine in 1 on 1 coverage. Which means Pees should be able to be creative to get pressure.

[Filmstudy]

42 minutes ago, Purple_City39 said:

I went to the Bills forum to see how their fans felt about the game.  Many expect a blowout in their favor.  A few think Baltimore is a bottom 5 team this year.  I expected biased optimism, as all fans do it, but I wasn't expecting sincere 20+ point win predictions

I saw the same thing, and I just accept it.  

Bills fans give absolutely 0 credit (or even notice) to the fine rookie class the Ravens have.  In fact, the only mention of rookie "contributions" was to say the Ravens will start an all-rookie left side OL for the first time in forever, which Rex should be able to exploit (that may be true, but the Ravens have still upgraded those positions significantly)

2 things I expect to see when I go to opposing message boards:

1) An underappreciation for anything the opposition is doing.

2) A feeling that everything that happens during a game is a function of their team's players and not the opponent.

I don't know that we are that much different.

 

[rmcjacket23]

50 minutes ago, Purple_City39 said:

I went to the Bills forum to see how their fans felt about the game.  Many expect a blowout in their favor.  A few think Baltimore is a bottom 5 team this year.  I expected biased optimism, as all fans do it, but I wasn't expecting sincere 20+ point win predictions

I took a peak in there (something I rarely do). There's a handful of guys who think it will be a blowout, but I agree there's definitely some people who didn't spend the time to research their opponent (this fanbase is often guilty of that as well).

I will say... I'm surprised how many people thought Rex is a better HC than Harbaugh. That one is a head scratcher for certain.

[Sami84]

24 minutes ago, trevorsteadman said:

Again no real threat. It is not like we are going against the Broncos who have Sanders and Thomas or the Jaguars with Robinson and Hurns. They have solid players but Jimmy Smith should be able to handle Watkins and everybody else should be fine in 1 on 1 coverage. Which means Pees should be able to be creative to get pressure.

 

careful with that..if sammy watkins is 100% healthy he'll give jimmy nightmares...jimmy has to be totally on top of his game like he was in the first half of 2014 until he got hurt..

[trevorsteadman]

1 minute ago, Filmstudy said:

I saw the same thing, and I just accept it.  

Bills fans give absolutely 0 credit (or even notice) to the fine rookie class the Ravens have.  In fact, the only mention of rookie "contributions" was to say the Ravens will start an all-rookie left side OL for the first time in forever, which Rex should be able to exploit (that may be true, but the Ravens have still upgraded those positions significantly)

2 things I expect to see when I go to opposing message boards:

1) An underappreciation for anything the opposition is doing.

2) A feeling that everything that happens during a game is a function of their team's players and not the opponent.

I don't know that we are that much different.

 

I 100% agree every fan feels like their team is underrated. I think the defensive gameplan is to limit Watkins. I wouldn't be surprised if McCoy has a 100 yard rushing night. The running defense looked easily exploitable in preseason. Granted it was without Brandon Williams it still is a concern going into the game. Also will be interesting how we match up against Tyrod's legs. 

[Sami84]

3 minutes ago, trevorsteadman said:

I 100% agree every fan feels like their team is underrated. I think the defensive gameplan is to limit Watkins. I wouldn't be surprised if McCoy has a 100 yard rushing night. The running defense looked easily exploitable in preseason. Granted it was without Brandon Williams it still is a concern going into the game. Also will be interesting how we match up against Tyrod's legs. 

 

dont worry. carl davis won't be on the field...running d should be fine.

[JoeyFlex5]

3 minutes ago, Sami84 said:

careful with that..if sammy watkins is 100% healthy he'll give jimmy nightmares...jimmy has to be totally on top of his game like he was in the first half of 2014 until he got hurt..

Yeah I think Watkins is the exact kind of receiver that beats jimmy for 4 quarters. He's got good everything, speed, size, savvy, suddenness, hands, body control... He has potential to be one of the best in the league

[rmcjacket23]

12 minutes ago, Filmstudy said:

I saw the same thing, and I just accept it.  

Bills fans give absolutely 0 credit (or even notice) to the fine rookie class the Ravens have.  In fact, the only mention of rookie "contributions" was to say the Ravens will start an all-rookie left side OL for the first time in forever, which Rex should be able to exploit (that may be true, but the Ravens have still upgraded those positions significantly)

2 things I expect to see when I go to opposing message boards:

1) An underappreciation for anything the opposition is doing.

2) A feeling that everything that happens during a game is a function of their team's players and not the opponent.

I don't know that we are that much different.

 

The only other post that made me chuckle was how confident a lot of them are that they will be able to run the ball at will on our defense, and specifically, how some people think that Dumervil being out makes our run defense easy to run on. Don't quite get that one.

He's an under-rated run defender, but I don't worry about the run defense because he's out.

[Purple_City39]

48 minutes ago, ludy51 said:

They have done NO research on us. at all. They think since Doom is out, we'll have no pass rush on that side.

This is accurate.  One guy kept saying that with Dumervil out, they should now be able to run the ball better.  I thought maybe he was mistaken but he posted that same line of thinking in multiple threads.

[Inqui]

http://boards.buffalobills.com/showthread.php?530973-ESPN-John-Harbaugh-Ravens-would-ve-kept-Tyrod-Taylor-forever-if-given-choice

Even the Bills forum isn't immune to Flacco threads. O_O

[JoeyFlex5]

9 minutes ago, Inqui said:

http://boards.buffalobills.com/showthread.php?530973-ESPN-John-Harbaugh-Ravens-would-ve-kept-Tyrod-Taylor-forever-if-given-choice

Even the Bills forum isn't immune to Flacco threads. O_O

Oh my god novabillsfan makes me nauseous. He's another one who says our sb47 win was due to a great defense. 

If you say that then I'll assume you have only watched your team and literally stop watching football entirely the second your team is mathematically eliminated.

[trevorsteadman]

18 minutes ago, JoeyFlex5 said:

Oh my god novabillsfan makes me nauseous. He's another one who says our sb47 win was due to a great defense. 

If you say that then I'll assume you have only watched your team and literally stop watching football entirely the second your team is mathematically eliminated.

Flacco hasn't had a defense since 2011 lol

[ellicottraven]

As the game draws closer I go from a state of perpetual optimism to perpetual fear. I can't shake this erie feeling till we win this game. My concerns are simple. Will our defense be able to get the Bills off the field? If they have more offensive snaps than us, and the defense is tired catching up with both Tyrod and McCoy, we may lose this game. Not because we can't score, but because we won't have too many opportunities to do so. Flacco needs to take advantage of every opportunity he gets on offense and put points up and try to win the time of possession battle. To me the first team that scores 25 points wins this game. It is not going to be easy but its a winnable game.

[Sami84]

Just now, ellicottraven said:

As the game draws closer I go from a state of perpetual optimism to perpetual fear. I can't shake this erie feeling till we win this game. My concerns are simple. Will our defense be able to get the Bills off the field? If they have more offensive snaps than us, and the defense is tired catching up with both Tyrod and McCoy, we may lose this game. Not because we can't score, but because we won't have too many opportunities to do so. Flacco needs to take advantage of every opportunity he gets on offense and put points up and try to win the time of possession battle. To me the first team that scores 25 points wins this game. It is not going to be easy but its a winnable game.

 

if weddle makes a big play I'll feel much better. It would set the tone..

[Billsfan75]

2 hours ago, JoeyFlex5 said:

The bills fans legitimately think losing Mario Williams is addition by subtraction. They're buying into the rex excuse  too much if they really think Mario Williams being unable to drop in coverage is the reason for their defense not being great.

It is legitimate. Mario did not buy into Rex's scheme. He admittedly did not drop in coverage when the plays called for it. He was the 93rd rated pass rusher in the NFL. 93rd!?!! He had, I believe 16 or 18 tackles all season! There is film on him where he absolutely did not engage with the offensive tackle. Bills players called him out all year. More importantly, it was more symbolic that the Bills did not have the right players or the buy in necessary to Rex's 4-6, or 3-4 under, or 5-2, whatever you want to call it. This year Rex brought in Ed Reed and his brother to fix the communication and discipline issues. The defense appears to have bought all in, and although we lost Marcel to suspension and it it is a big factor, the Bills defense has gained some back in continuity what it lost in talent. Anyone who thinks chemistry and continuity is not a factor in football is fooling themselves. With this and Tyrod showing improvement, the Bills fans have something to latch onto no matter what the national media thinks. This will not be an easy game. The first team, although they didn't play much, dominated the line of scrimmage against the Colts and Giants on both sides of the ball. Good Luck on Sunday. May your team come out clean without any injuries.

Edited September 9, 2016 by Billsfan75

[Billsfan75]

2 hours ago, Purple_City39 said:

I went to the Bills forum to see how their fans felt about the game.  Many expect a blowout in their favor.  A few think Baltimore is a bottom 5 team this year.  I expected biased optimism, as all fans do it, but I wasn't expecting sincere 20+ point win predictions

No fair Bills fan believes they are going into your stadium and blowing out a Joe Flacco led team. If you go to a Predict the score thread and there are a hundred posts, of course some will predict that - some of it tongue in cheek, I'm sure. Personally, I think we are going to have trouble running the ball on your line. The big x-factor is how will Suggs look after the achilles? If Suggs struggles, that could be problematic with Elvis not playing. But we won't know until game time. You have a veteran defense, a great coach and the addition of Weddle scares me personally. I think the Bills can win any game because Watkins, McCoy and Clay are play makers, but if you get Tyrod pinned in the pocket like NE did, it won't make a difference.  And you have the horses to do that.

Edited September 9, 2016 by Billsfan75

[January J]

A big play from Orr will win us this game. Just a hunch.

[The Mom Gene]

1 hour ago, Inqui said:

http://boards.buffalobills.com/showthread.php?530973-ESPN-John-Harbaugh-Ravens-would-ve-kept-Tyrod-Taylor-forever-if-given-choice

Even the Bills forum isn't immune to Flacco threads. O_O

Bwa ha ha ha....  Good God, please help us.

[OUravensfan]

1 hour ago, JoeyFlex5 said:

Oh my god novabillsfan makes me nauseous. He's another one who says our sb47 win was due to a great defense. 

If you say that then I'll assume you have only watched your team and literally stop watching football entirely the second your team is mathematically eliminated.

You beat me to it:

 

'Trent Dilfer was a SB winning QB, and to an extent so was crippled Peyton Manning. The DEFENSE won those championships.'

 

Nothing makes me discredit an opinion more than those that can't understand why Flacco is different than Dilfer. People say Trent Dilfer and walk away like they proved a point and won the argument, I literally can't stand that line of thinking. Applicable to Manning, but not Flacco. I don't even feel like listing out my reasons but if I need to I will, for starters, 11 TDs > 3