Have the Bills Put the League on Notice?
The Buffalo Bills beat the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday, in a statement game that might have made a lot of noise for them. Buffalo went on the road to defeat the downtrodden Chiefs with an impressive performance on both sides of the ball. Bills QB Josh Allen led the way throwing for 315 yards and 3 touchdowns. While it’s not surprising that the Buffalo defense played a great game – number one unit in the league – but they did it against the Chiefs offense. It was the statement game that might’ve made many teams around the league.
The question that really remains is how do the Bills compare to other top teams in the league right now? Out of all the AFC division leaders (Los Angeles Chargers, Baltimore Ravens, Tennessee Titans and the Bills), Buffalo certainly has the most talented offense, as well as the best defense. However, when comparing them to some of the elite NFC teams, things get quite a bit murkey. Can Buffalo keep up with the high scoring attack of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or Los Angeles Rams? Comparing the Bills to their NFC competition, could bring about Super Bowl talk, but at this very moment, those talks should not be too far-fetched. The schedule is going to get a little bit tougher for the Bills but they have shown the world they are built for whoever they come across.
Jon Gruden Resignation
Jon Gruden is no longer the Oakland Raiders head coach! This comes in the wake of his recent scandal in which he sent an email with racist terminology, aimed at NFLPA president Demaurice Smith. In the email, Gruden referred to Smith as “rubber lips” and compared them to the size of Michelin tires. The story did not stop there, as ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported that there were additional emails sent by Gruden, that contained racist, homophobic and sexist language within them, mostly in exchanges with former Washington Football Team president Bruce Allen. Those emails were posted by the New York Times and revealed Gruden’s disdain for numerous things, including women referees and also referring to Commissioner Roger Goodell as a faggot. During the Monday Night Football broadcast, the news broke that Gruden resigned after meeting with Raiders owner Mark Davis, who reportedly were sent some of the emails.
There are so many places to begin with hearing this type of news. The Raiders looked like they were making some real progress for the first time under Gruden. Oakland signed him to a 10 year deal, hoping he would bring them to the same glory that he did when he had his first stint as head coach. Considering that, it’s hard to think Gruden would be gone, until you introduce this multitude of an external factor. Times are changing with companies, especially with the NFL. They’re not trying to be outwardly associated with these types of ideals. While the league has been thriving in recent years, they will admit themselves that they’re tired of taking the PR hit on racial issues that they have had. If this was just one email, then it would probably be a done situation by now. However, this is 7 years worth of offensive language, which is a lot harder to defend and explain how it’s out of his character. The crazy thing is, these emails were discovered through the NFL’s investigation into the Washington Football Team for complaints pf having a toxic culture – which this doesn’t their case at all – so it’s possible more could be revealed. As of right now, this is one version of Chucky we won’t be seeing during Halloween.
Shoutouts/Shutouts
Shout out to Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, who posted a career- high 442 yards passing in Monday Night’s win against the Indianapolis Colts. In addition to that, he there for 4 touchdowns, which helped Baltimore overcome a 22-3 deficit late in the 3rd quarter and win the game in overtime, 31-25. The passing yards was also a single game record for the Baltimore Ravens.
Shut out to the Indianapolis Colts who blew that 22-3 deficit an took that overtime loss. While Colts QB Carson Wentz did throw for 402 yards, it was not enough to keep his team from falling to 1-4.
Most of the games this weekend look lopsided on paper. The best game for Week 6 could be between the Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans. Bills are still on the road in another prime time matchup, this time against a Titans team that have been dealing with injuries in their receiving group. Buffalo just might take this win, but Tennessee is going to give them a fight. But until then…I’ll holla.
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