Category: Bills

Wild weather scene at Buffalo Bills’ Highmark Stadium

The weather in Western New York is frightening

Anyone questioning the decision to postpone Sunday’s Pittsburgh Steelers-Buffalo Bills game until Monday needs to get a look at the video the AFC East champs tweeted.

Winds whipping, snow blowing and visibility near impossible.

Bills-Steelers wild-card game moved from Sunday to Monday due to freezing weather

The Bills-Steelers wild-card game has been moved from Sunday to Monday due to significant winter weather in the Buffalo area.

The wild-card game between the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers that was originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. EST on Sunday has been moved to 4:30 p.m. EST on Monday due to a severe winter weather storm expected to hit the Buffalo area through the weekend.

From WIVB.com:

Near-whiteout conditions are expected in Orchard Park on Sunday, with high winds, frigid wind chills and blowing lake-effect snow all in play. States of Emergency in Western New York as well as Erie County are currently active as a result of the storm.

“It’s all part of our critical efforts to keep New Yorkers, motorists and fans safe from this wildly unpredictable storm,” Governor Kathy Hochul said Friday.

Hochul said that she consulted with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell about the decision, who “shares our concern that safety should be the top priority.”

The NFL issued a statement on Saturday.

Due to public safety concerns in light of the ongoing weather emergency in western New York, Sunday’s Steelers-Bills game has been rescheduled to Monday at 4:30 p.m. ET and will be televised by CBS.

The decision to move the game to Monday was made in consultation with New York Governor Kathy Hochul in the best interest of public safety, and with the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers, as the region prepares for the storm.

Last season, the Bills had to play a home game against the Cleveland Browns in Detroit due to significant winter weather.

Bills offering $20 an hour for people to shovel snow

The Buffalo Bills are looking for some hardy folks to shovel snow at Highmark Stadium

The Buffalo Bills are looking for help. Not as in football players for when they face the Pittsburgh Steelers in an AFC Wild Card Game on Sunday.

People who are willing to help out and shovel snow to the tune of $20 an hour with complimentary food, drinks and breaks.

Here is what the Bills posted on social media:

Shovelers can shovel snow throughout the night on Saturday into Sunday morning if needed. The rate of pay is $20 per hour. Complimentary food and breaks will be provided throughout the shifts in a comfortable warm area. Those interested in shoveling must have proper photo identification (driver’s license, state ID) to work.

Prospective snow shovelers are asked to dress appropriately for the weather (gloves, scarves, hats, coats, etc.) and to bring their own shovels, if possible, (shovels will be provided if you do not have one).

Shovelers may enter and park in Lot 6 off Abbott Road just north of the Team Store and proceed to the Jani-King office trailer at the bottom of the steps to register for work. All shovelers are encouraged to click the link below to pre-register, save time, and ensure all information is accurate.

The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell: Previewing Super Wild-Card Weekend

In this week’s “Xs and Os,” Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar preview Super Wild-Card Weekend with tape study and advanced metrics.

It’s time for Super Wild-Card Weekend! Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup, and Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire and the USA Today Sports Media Group, are here to get you ready for the most interesting matchups that could decide who advances to the divisional round.

Browns at Texans: Will the Browns defense under Jim Schwartz have answers for C.J. Stroud’s excellence against single-high coverage? Nobody plays more of it than Schwartz’s guys.

Dolphins at Chiefs: It’ll be very cold at Arrowhead Stadium, which puts the focus on the run game. Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel has all kinds of wrinkles in his rushing attack, and we discuss a new one with rookie De’Von Achane.

Steelers at Bills: Can the Steelers counter the Bills’ improving defense with shot plays from Mason Rudolph? And what does T.J. Watt’s injury mean for Josh Allen?

Packers at Cowboys: Everyone’s talking about Jordan Love and Dak Prescott here, but watch out for Green Bay’s run game with Aaron Jones as the lead dog.

Rams at Lions: Similarly, while everyone’s talking about the Matthew Stafford-Jared Goff “Revenge Game,” don’t sleep on these two great rushing attacks. Kyren Williams has changed Sean McVay’s run schemes to great effect.

Eagles at Buccaneers: Bucs head coach Todd Bowles is the Greg Maddux of blitzers — he’ll throw everything at you with a little spin at the end. How will Jalen Hurts react, when he’s struggled against pressure most of this season? Also, Baker Mayfield and his receivers could feast on Philly’s misbegotten pass defense.

In this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” the guys get into all of it.

You can watch this week’s “Xs and Os,” previewing every game in the wild-card slate, right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

4-Down Territory: Most, least serious wild-card teams, Secret Superstars, new coaches

In this week’s “4-Down Territory,” the guys get into most and least serious wild-card teams, Secret Superstars, and new head coaches they’d like to see.

Now that the 2023 NFL regular season is over, and it’s Super Wild-Card Weekend, it’s time once again for Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire, and Kyle Madson of Niners Wire, to come to the table with their own unique brand of analysis in “4-Down Territory.”

This week, the guys have some serious questions to answer:

  1. Which wild-card team should be taken most seriously for a Super Bowl run?
  2. Which wild-card team should be taken least seriously?
  3. Who’s your Secret Superstar for the wild-card round?
  4. Which assistant coach would you most like to get a vacant head coaching job?

You can watch this week’s “4-Down Territory” right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to the “4-Down Territory” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

2024 NFL playoff power rankings: Ravens rule the roost, but who else is near the top?

Now that we know who the 14 playoff teams will be in the playoffs, here is how they stack up against one another

The NFL field of teams has been cut from 32 to 14, and we now know who all 14 playoff teams are. How do they stack up against one another? Here are the NFL playoff power rankings ahead of wild-card weekend.

2024 NFL Mock Draft: End-of-season quarterback decisions lead to surprising picks

How many NFL teams will stick with their current quarterbacks? A high number could make for an interesting first round of the 2024 draft.

Now that the 2023 NFL regular season is over, every team turns its attention to the draft — even those teams that are part of the postseason. Area scouts will start to move to the home facility to interact with scouting directors and general managers, and with the scouting combine less than two months away, it’s time to start putting your big boards together.

This applies especially to those teams with crucial quarterback decisions to make. For the purposes of this mock draft, we’ll assume that the Chicago Bears are sticking with Justin Fields, the Arizona Cardinals are committed to Kyler Murray, the Tennessee Titans think they have a future franchise quarterback in Will Levis, and the New York Jets think that eventually, Aaron Rodgers will stop shooting his mouth off long enough to play quarterback in 2024.

Conversely, the Washington Commanders, New England Patriots, New York Giants, and Atlanta Falcons will avail themselves of the best draftable quarterbacks possible in the interest of turning things around.

So, four quarterbacks go in the first round here, with more teams looking to build around the guys they’ve already got. That makes for one notable omission (Oregon’s Bo Nix), and a whole bunch of talented prospects at other positions pushing themselves up the boards.

The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell: Previewing Week 18’s biggest NFL matchups

In this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” the guys preview the final week of the regular season with tape and metrics.

It’s time for Week 18 of the 2023 NFL campaign — the final week of the regular season — and Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup, and Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire and the USA Today Sports Media Group, are here to get you ready for the most important games, playoff scenarios, and interesting matchups:

Kansas City Chiefs-Los Angeles Chargers — Why the Chiefs wouldn’t even be a playoff team without Steve Spagnuolo, and how Kansas City’s defense got four sacks in five plays against the Bengals on Cincinnati’s final drive.

Philadelphia Eagles-New York Giants — The Eagles had best fix their leaky run defense before the playoffs, and the Giants could be a stern test in that regard.

Houston Texans- Indianapolis Colts — C.J. Stroud is back for the Texans, and he’ll face a Colts defense with a lot of underrated players. The winner takes the AFC South.

Los Angeles Rams-San Francisco 49ers — The 49ers have wrapped up the NFC’s one-seed, so they won’t play many of their starters, but it’s time to recognize a Rams defense defined by two rookies, and more underrated players.

Buffalo Bills-Miami Dolphins — Two up-and-down teams are fighting for control of the AFC East, and it could come down to which unit figures itself out: Buffalo’s offense, or Miami’s defense.

Chicago Bears-Green Bay Packers — The Bears won’t make the playoffs, but they have a fascinating decision to make about Justin Fields’ future. Meanwhile, Packers quarterback Jordan Love has been as good as anyone at his position in the second half of the season.

You can watch this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar” right here:

You can also listen and subscribe to the “Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

Rasul Douglas, Bills tormenting Bailey Zappe, Patriots

The Bills were feasting on Bailey Zappe passes

The Buffalo Bills were making Bailey Zappe look horrendous in the first half on Sunday at Highlmark Stadium.

The Patriots had four turnovers, three on interceptions of passes thrown by Zappe.

Rasul Douglas had two picks, including one that was returned 40 yards for a TD that made it 20-7.

The Cleveland Browns could win the AFC’s one-seed in the playoffs

After their Thursday night win over the Jets, the Browns actually have a chance to become the AFC’s one-seed through the playoffs.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.

After their 37-20 win over the New York Jets on Thursday night, the 11-5 Cleveland Browns not only clinched their second playoff berth since 2020 (the team had not made the playoffs before that since 2002), but they have an actual shot at the AFC’s one-seed.

Which means that the AFC playoffs might go through Cleveland.

Here’s how it needs to go.

So. If the Browns beat the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, January 7, and the Baltimore Ravens lose to the Miami Dolphins and the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Dolphins lose to the Buffalo Bills? Yeah. The Dawg Pound will be home base.

As Chase Daniel said, this is wild. The Browns currently have a league-high 26% of their salary cap on injured reserve, they’ve turned Joe Flacco into Kurt Warner, and the guys they were without due to injury against the Jets was… well, remarkable.

If Kevin Stefanski doesn’t win Coach of the Year, there should be an immediate recount.