What they’re saying about the BILLS, the AFC Playoff picture and MVP race w/ MIKE GIARDI

Summary

Buffalo Plus Podcast – Episode Summary

Episode: What They’re Saying About the BILLS, the AFC Playoff Picture and MVP Race w/ Mike Giardi
Date: January 4, 2025
Hosts: Mike Catalana, Jenna Cottrell, Dan Fetes
Guest: Mike Giardi (Boston Sports Journal)

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Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the state of the Buffalo Bills as the regular season ends, the shifting landscape of the AFC East, and the rapidly evolving NFL MVP race. Guest Mike Giardi brings his signature candid analysis on the decline of the Patriots, Buffalo’s new-found edge, and what sets the current Bills apart from past seasons. The conversation moves from sharp critique to insightful appreciation, balanced with the podcast’s usual camaraderie and long-running inside jokes.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Arrogance and Decline of the Patriots

• Patriots Ownership and Leadership:
  • Giardi criticizes Patriots’ leadership for arrogance and lack of introspection following the Brady/Belichick era.
  • Ownership’s ego and attachment to “their way” is seen as a major obstacle to real rebuilding.
  • “They continue to sort of approach it the same way and they don’t have the same players... their incredible business plan isn’t translating on the football field for the last four or five seasons.” (Giardi, 05:51)
• Coaching Missteps:
  • Critique of the decision to promote from within (Jerod Mayo and Eliot Wolf) instead of conducting wide searches like other franchises.
  • “They’re now five years into the rebuild... you just sort of let the program erode. And like I said, the roster is awful.” (Giardi, 10:44)
• Fan Discontent and Stadium Malaise:
  • Noted Patriots crowd exodus mid-game, “fire Mayo” chants, and a forecast that Bills fans could take over Gillette Stadium. (04:51)

2. State of the AFC East

• Dolphins and Jets:
  • Miami seen as having “reached a ceiling” with their current core and an “impulsive” owner.
  • Jets depicted as a “mess,” and Patriots as bottoming out.
  • “It doesn’t feel like any of these teams other than the Bills are headed in the right direction.” (Giardi, 04:40)

3. Buffalo Bills: Edge, Adaptation, and Physicality

• Attitude and Physical Edge:
  • Giardi loves the “edge” and physicality, especially on the Bills’ offensive line.
  • “We’re a bunch of badasses and we’re gonna smack you and we’re gonna keep smacking you and eventually you might not want to get up anymore.” (Giardi, 00:33 / 21:22)
• Coaching Flexibility:
  • Sean McDermott and Bobby Babich’s increasing willingness to adapt defensively, notably by employing more man coverage in key matchups (e.g., Kansas City).
  • Adapting away from “we do what we do” rigidity – a sign of McDermott’s growth.
  • “There was a stubbornness to him prior to that I think has sort of lessened this year and it’s a credit to him...” (Giardi, 24:59, 25:07)
• Organizational “Lightness” and Unity:
  • The team feels fresher, more unified, and looser after moving on from some veteran stalwarts.
  • “It’s a lightness for the whole organization. Everybody’s rowing in the same direction.” (Dan Fetes, 26:41)

4. The MVP Race: Allen, Lamar, and the “Narrative”

• Josh Allen's Case:
  • Similarity to Mahomes’ recent MVP years in “doing more with less.”
  • Allen elevated a roster that pundits expected to regress after losing Stefon Diggs.
  • “Khalil’s not the best receiver on too many playoff teams,” highlighting Allen’s supporting cast. (Giardi, 15:01)
• Lamar Jackson’s Candidacy:
  • Recognized as having a strong season, but with superior weapons compared to Allen.
• Media and Voting Bias:
  • Concerns voters might “just look at the numbers” without watching full games, hurting Allen’s chances.
  • “Sometimes these voters... just look at the numbers... and I can tell you like, that’s completely false.” (Giardi, 16:52)
• Other Candidates:
  • Saquon Barkley and Sam Darnold mentioned as dark horses, dependent on team narratives and late-season surges.
  • The “attention of a gnat” quality to MVP discussion—recency bias dominates. (Jenna Cottrell, 18:00)

5. Bills' Playoff Outlook and Psychological Hurdles

• Handling Playoff Pressure:
  • Discussion of how much the team's and fanbase's tension in big moments affects performance.
  • Recurring narrative about whether Allen “can get it done in the big game,” with Giardi reminding listeners of Allen's heroic effort against the Chiefs (“13 seconds” game).
  • “At some point, they gotta break through. Whether this is the group to do it, I don’t know. But... you can see it. They keep coming at you because they know they’re going to break you, and they did.” (Giardi, 28:22, 28:37)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Patriots’ Process:

  “It’s malpractice, quite frankly. For 20something years, you had Bill and... you had this program. And to finally get to the point where it had unraveled... and to say, ‘Oh, we’re not going to talk to anybody. We’re just going to promote Elliott Wolf from within and Jerod Mayo from within.’”
  — Mike Giardi (09:54)

• On Bills’ Identity Shift:

  “No matter what the league does, it’s still about being physical. And I think they’re one of the more physical teams in the league, at least offensively.”
  — Mike Giardi (21:22)

• On ESPN-Style Narrative Churn:

  “We always say on this channel that sometimes it’s like the attention of a gnat... the stats and what it will look like, that might have a more lasting impression because it is what just happened last.”
  — Jenna Cottrell (18:00)

• On Allen’s Supporting Cast:

  “Khalil’s not the best receiver on too many playoff teams.”
  — Mike Giardi (15:01)

• On Coach McDermott’s Growth:

  “There was a stubbornness to him prior to that I think has sort of lessened this year and it’s a credit to him...for him to embrace some different ways says a lot about him and his growth.”
  — Mike Giardi (24:59)

• On The Playoff Mental Game:

  “When something goes wrong, is there going to be that— is everybody going to tighten up a little bit? Not just the players. I think you guys can feel in the stadium sometimes, like, ‘Oh, no, we’re going to do this again.’ ... At some point, they gotta break through.”
  — Mike Giardi (28:22)

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Timestamps for Essential Segments

• Patriots’ Decline and Ownership Problems: 03:02 – 12:18
• State of the AFC East: 02:44 – 04:40
• Bills’ Edge & Physical Identity: 00:05, 20:03 – 22:12
• Bills’ Defensive and Coaching Adaptation: 22:12 – 25:07
• MVP Race Debate: 13:24 – 19:45
• Playoff Outlook & Pressure: 27:08 – 28:56
• Giardi’s Personal Anecdotes and Closer: 29:01 – 33:53

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Episode Tone and Chemistry

The episode is fast-paced and full of banter, marked by sharp jabs at Dan Fetes’ mustache, friendly ribbing, and inside jokes (“I was gonna call you something else, but I’m gonna keep it classy” – Giardi, 29:47). The hosts’ respect for Giardi’s experience is clear, but so is their shared passion for clear-eyed, sometimes brutally honest football discussion. There’s a consistent undercurrent of Bills optimism, barely held in check by the collective memory of heartbreak.

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Final Thoughts

This installment of Buffalo Plus encapsulates what makes the podcast a favorite for Bills fans—insight, authenticity, humor, and a willingness to tackle critical questions without sugarcoating reality. The team’s evolution, the drama of the AFC East, and the MVP debate are all illuminated by Giardi’s experience and the hosts’ own deep knowledge of the Bills.

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Transcript

[A]

In the time it takes you to actually board a flight from Group 8.

[B]

Now boarding Premier Altitude Elite club members.

[A]

You could have bought a Hyundai on Amazon. Visit HyundaiUSA.com or call 562-314-4603 for more details. Limited availability pickup through participating Hyundai dealer in select markets. I love the attitude. The Bills looked at the jets and they said, we can punk these guys, we can be physical with them and we're going to keep coming at them and we're going to keep punching them and we're going to push them after the whistle and we're going to do all these things and we don't think they want any part of it. And guess what? They were right. So there is this edge to the Bills too, where especially offensive line wise, we're a bunch of badasses and we're going to. We're going to. We're going to smack you and we're going to keep smacking you and eventually you might not want to get up anymore. And I love that because no matter what the league does, it's still about being physical. And I think they're one of the more physical teams in the league, at least offensively.

[B]

All right, welcome back to the Buffalo plus podcast, presented by Connors and Ferris. And we have our special guest with us, Mike Giardi. So great to see you. It's only been a couple weeks, but one of our favorite guests here on Buffalo Plus, Mike Catalana, Dan Fates. I am Jenna Cottrell. Please be sure to, like, comment, subscribe and share. We're going to talk about this Bills Patriots matchup. We're also going to talk about the league in general, where this Patriots team is going, and then a little bit about the playoffs as well.

[C]

Mike, I think you have almost as many appearances as we do on this.

[D]

Channel, certainly as much as Dan, because.

[C]

We all take time off, we all take our veteran rest days, Mike, whenever we need him, he is right at our beck and call. So I appreciate it as always, Mike.

[A]

Yeah, literally, I think he texted me 20 minutes before we're taking this. Great planning by Dan, as always. The mustache, apparently taking away brain cells. The mustache sucks, but it still sucks.

[C]

All the comments, oh my God.

[B]

And I love them for it.

[C]

And unfortunately, the last time when I the zoom or the streamyard link popped up, we weren't rolling yet. And the first words wasn't, hey, Dan, how are you? How's everything going? It was is that a mustache was the first thing. And I and I said, I go, I wish we were rolling for this classic.

[A]

I mean, Mike Giardi mazzle such a bad decision. I think it's three kids.

[C]

I got three kids.

[A]

At some point in your life, are you going to clean it up a little bit? I don't just mean the mustache, but just in general. Like, stop making some legit good decisions.

[D]

By the way, his go to char.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

His go to with everything is. But I have three kids. It's just going to be the case.

[A]

He's the only. He's the only man ever to have. He and his wife to have three kids. Yeah. I have a litter of children now.

[B]

A litter. That sounds about right. All right, let's talk a little bit about this game. But, Mike, I want to have you start.

[D]

Well, let's start with this. We just got to see Aaron Rodgers and the mess that is the Jets. We saw the Patriots competitive in that game, but you know where that's been headed. And I'm not sure what to make of the Dolphins. How long are the Bills going to own the AFC East? Can any of these teams get out of their own way?

[A]

It doesn't feel like that. Right. It feels like Miami might have like sort of reached a ceiling with the current collection of players that they have now and then. So what's the next step? You know, their owner is very impulsive. Is Mike McDaniel, who's done a decent job there, is all of a sudden he in trouble because maybe they don't make the playoffs this year and things didn't look so good without two in the starting lineup for those four games. And like, hey, you're an offensive coach. Can't you figure out some way to move the ball even though your quarterback is gone? I would have thought even a few weeks ago maybe that the Patriots had an opportunity to be the next team to sort of sort of climb back up. But after what I just witnessed on Saturday, like, I can't get that out of my brain. It's like literally infected my brain for the last 48 hours where it's incredible when you look at the Chargers. Dean Spanos, not exactly known as the greatest owner in pro sports, but they conducted a real GM search last year, a real head coaching search. They interviewed double digits both for coaches and for the general manager. Settled on Joe Ortiz, the general, to be the general manager came from the Baltimore program. Obviously they wanted Harbaugh, but they were ready to go to Vrabel if Harbaugh didn't take the gig. That's not a super talented football team. I mean, they're. They're solid, but that's not a great team. And they beat the pants off the Patriots. And it was, it was such a stark reminder of like, okay, you just handed over the job to a guy that was already in the building and head coach the same thing and like, not prepared for it, doesn't know how to run a program versus here's a culture builder and a program builder. So now, I don't know, feels like the Patriots are, you know, maybe they hit the reset button again. I don't know what's going to happen here over the next week or so, but, boy, it doesn't feel like any of these teams other than the Bills are headed in the right direction.

[C]

Going off of that, I guess. I do want to have one question. I know we talked about big picture here, but what can you expect? I guess, what do you expect to see in Foxborough come Sunday?

[A]

Well, first of all, the fan base is pretty angry, pissed off, whatever. There were the fire Mayo chants that happened in the second half of the game. I would say it was only half full to begin with. And by the third quarter, midway through the third quarter, 20%, 30% full, and now, you know, you're going to run it back in a game that doesn't matter at all for the Bills and, well, it doesn't really matter much for the Patriots other than whether or not they get the number one pick. I can't imagine they're going to be a lot of people there. In fact, if Buffalo fans want to come down, I have a feeling they could take over the stadium because I don't think there's going to be much resistance from Patriot fans with the way things are going.

[B]

I mean, when you look at the, the Patriots and how successful of a franchise obviously they've been in the past to now, where they're at, like in the next couple of years, what do you expect to see from New England? Do they keep Mayo? Do they go like, what do they do? Because it feels like this team is just spinning their wheels.

[A]

So to me, this all starts with ownership. And look, they wanted to be celebrated as, you know, the best owners in football. And when you go for a 20 year period where you're in eight or nine Super Bowls and you win six of them, you know that the ego builds and builds and builds and they've always felt like to me, as it's gone along, like they have the answers to the test. But they also had Tom Brady and Bill Belichick at their finest. And it turns out that maybe Brady, Belichick really kind of carried the whole thing for him and now they continue to sort of approach it the same way and they don't have the same players. And it turns out that their, you know, their incredible business plan isn't translating on the football field for the last four or five seasons. If they were smart, they would hit the hard reset and blow everybody out of the building and start over. And you have a quarterback and Drake May that you think is going to be a franchise quarterback. You have a couple pieces on defense, including Christian Gonzalez, and then you just say bring in somebody that knows how to build a program. Hey, fans, we've been screwing around here, pretending like we're not really rebuilding. No, we're rebuilding like just it. They own it, admit it. And then we're going to go out and play the kids and we're just going to. We're going to. We're going to take our bumps, but we're going to have someone that knows how to get this thing on the right track and we're going to let it go for three or four years. I just don't know whether their ego, ownership's ego.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And this is Robert Kraft's hand chosen guy that he picked on a retreat five years or six years ago in Israel, as he told the story. But that's going to be my next coach. I don't know that he blows them out after 11 months with a roster that quite frankly was in terrible shape. And have they really thought about it long and hard? They would have never pivoted to Mayo in the first place because it was just. It's an untenable situation for a guy with no experience.

[B]

I mean, I have a lot of family in Massachusetts and New England and there have been. They have been very upset at what this year has gone like. Do you. And I know a lot of fans are really upset and there's kind of that pressure mounting, but do you feel like that pressure does affect the craft? Do you feel like they feel that and would they make a move or do you think it's more. I do know what I'm doing and I'm going to figure this out. We're just going to continue ahead.

[A]

I think that they hear everything that gets said, they read everything that gets written. I think it impacts them. I think, as we well know, Robert has been on sort of a campaign to make the hall of Fame and keeps getting pushed off there. So I think all of this stuff affects him. But at the end of the day, to hire this coach that as Again, I say he handpicked and was grooming him to be the guy. Well, if you give him a roster like this, even again, even if he hasn't done a good job and none of, no parts of this team have gotten better as the year's gone on, can you turn around and say, like, we gave him a fair shake. We gave him a real chance. I think it's probably more likely that he says, all right, we have $117 million in cap space. We're going to end up with a top five pick, maybe the first pick in, in each round in the draft, and like, okay, this is it. You're going to get a second chance to do it, and if it goes poorly, then the loyalty is gone. But at least we gave you an opportunity. Whereas this was. Like I said, I think the smartest thing to have done here when you move on from Bill was to get someone who has experience in the league, a lot of experience, and had been a head coach before. Instead, you gave a bad roster to a guy with literally 5 years of positional coach experience and said, yeah, go ahead, run the football team. And, yeah, you don't have a, you don't have a Rolodex of guys that you want to hire on your staff. So we're going to do all the hiring for you and then think that they, this was going to work. It never was. I just don't know that we ever thought it would be 40 to 7 bad, you know, 17, which I was just pretty damning for them.

[C]

Mike.

[D]

I think the arrogant part that comes out to me is, yes, they've had a lot of success, but they hadn't had to hire a coach in two decades. When you get this opportunity, even if you end up with Mayo as your coach, it didn't feel like they said, I'm going to go grab a chief's assistant, talk to him. I'm going to get somebody out of the bill's office so I know what they're doing and tell people about it. You've covered this league a long time. You get that opportunity to at least get behind the curtain a little bit and find out more what everybody else is doing. When you haven't been in that game.

[A]

For two decades, Mike, it's crazy to me. It's, it's, it's malpractice, quite frankly. Like, you, for 20 something years, you had Bill and, and like, you had this program and it ran itself for a long, long time because you had a quarterback who agreed to sort of be a part of that program and get, you know, told that Johnny Foxborough could throw the ball better, wouldn't make that decision. And to finally get to the point where, okay, it had sort of unraveled for three or four years and to say, oh, we're not going to talk to anybody. We're just going to promote Elliott Wolf from within and Gerard Bale from within, like, so such a bad job. Like, I talk about the Chargers, they interviewed over 10 people to be the GM. They interviewed 13 or 14 people to be the head coach. Like, you're bringing in veterans, you're bringing in hot young assistants, you're bringing in special teams coaches wherever you can, and you're picking ideas from them, and you're figuring out the landscape of the league now versus what you had done with Bill. And quite frankly, what Bill had done the last few years wasn't working. So, like, you really needed to hit sort of a period of reflection and then just say, we got to talk to everybody and we got to start picking off ideas. And if this doesn't work, hey, you know what? Remember, remember in 2024 when we interviewed so and so from. From whatever, from the Ravens, like, yeah, he was really impressive. Like, maybe we made a mistake. Maybe he's the guy we should bring in. And now he's got two more years of experience somewhere else. Let's talk to him again and see if we still feel the same way. They didn't do any of that. So we're now, you know, they're now five years into the rebuild. It's been five years since Tom's gone. You had one playoff appearance during that time. You punted on the COVID season with Cam Newton. You know, after the one season with Mack, it went in the tank. I mean, you can go back and look at it and say Robert Kraft should have put him on notice the moment he hired Joe Judge and Matt Patricia to run the offense, but he did, and then he gave him another year. So you've just sort of let the program erode. And like I said, the roster is awful. This. I mean, you have the slowest receiving core in the National Football League. Your offensive line has been piecemeal all season long. I think 13 different combinations of starters through 17 weeks. Like, it's just. I mean, honestly, you couldn't do it much worse than this. And this is why I say not only at the bottom of the league in terms of record, but, like, if you just want to talk about, like, the overall health of what's happening and the overall vibe around the team, it's got to be as low as anybody's in the league. Wow, that's awesome. Look built in. So, like, we live there. You guys live there for a long time. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I want to think the arrogance here. They got so cocky about it that they never thought they would bottom out. And they've. I think when I was on with you two weeks ago, Dan, I'm like, I don't know that they've hit rock bottom yet. Maybe they hit rock bottom on Saturday. Although, then again, if they lose to Mitch Trubisky and a bunch of JVs on Sunday, maybe that'd be worse.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. I want to transition a little bit because I care about your health, Mike. We are good friends, and my heart started. I sensed that. I got a little worried because last time. Yeah, it was like 30 minutes of you just going off about the incompetence. So I do want to transition a little bit because for as much as we like to poke fun at one another, Mike, we are good friends. You are incredibly knowledgeable of covering the NFL for the last 20 plus years. Boston sports Journal right now, if you haven't already, make sure you follow along with him there. Kind of looking at the big picture, we're contractually obligated to ask and talk about it in every single video that we do. Who do you think is, well, deserving of the MVP award? Michael.

[A]

So I would say that was a long pause. Well, no, because I like, legitimately, you could make a case for all three of those quarterbacks.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Like, and. And. But I'm gonna take Burrow out because I don't think they're going to make the postseason or even if they do, whatever. You're a 500 football team. Lamar is probably playing. Not even probably. He's playing better than last year when he won last year. But I look at. I think I have to kind of include the whole thing. And I think we went back to the way people felt about the Bills in the spring, where the conversation was probably going to take a step back. You know, you trade digs. They got a piecemeal this thing together at wide receiver. Like, I just. I don't know, like 10 and 7. Would he be surprised if they go 9 and 8, barely squeak in the playoffs? Like, that sort of was the vibe. And instead, here they are having locked up the number two seed. And while, you know, last couple weeks, the numbers haven't been outlandish, we know the importance that he brings to the table. And to me, this is very Much like what Mahomes has done in Kansas City over the last few years as well, where it's okay, you got rid of your best receiver and the guy's still making it work with, with lesser pieces or lesser known pieces and sort of building them up. So I think Lamar's got Derrick Henry now, who's had an awesome year. He's got Zay Flowers, who's really good. Bateman was the first round pick. Mark Andrews is one of the best tight ends in football. On and on it goes. Burrow's got Higgins and Chase. They're awesome. What's Josh Khalil's the best player, his best receiver. Right. And that's. Yeah, Khalil's not the best receiver on too many playoff teams.

[D]

No, man, Mack Hollins has the most touchdown catches as a wide receiver. But what we always talk about this. I love Laar as a player. I, I don't understand the idea of you have to jump. People have to drag somebody down to elevate the other one. Because you could make the argument that he would, we won it last year exactly like you're saying the way, sort of the way Josh would win it this year, maybe with a lesser team around him and they won the football games. And I, I just look at that and say there's no reason to attack any of these other players. And some people, they, they approach it that way. I, I just think if I'm a voter, I'm looking at it and there is a narrative to these things. Right. There's another world where the narrative is Saquon Barkley because they haven't picked a running while.

[A]

How about Sam Darnold? Did anyone, did anyone expect they were going to be 14 and two and playing for the number one seed next weekend?

[D]

Right?

[A]

Nobody. I mean like he's had an awesome year. I don't think he's as good as the guys we just mentioned. But, but like, okay, no one told me that Minnesota was going to be in the running for number one seed. In fact, I think a lot of people thought they were a seven or eight win team this year. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And here they are in the last week of the season with a chance to have everything run through Minnesota. It's pretty impressive.

[D]

I got to tell you, when the Bills made that Diggs trade, they're getting the Vikings second round pick. And I remember we were thinking like, hey, they're going to start a rookie this year. That team may fall and instead they may end up with the number one seed in the nfc. So you're right. That's a guy that. That certainly would be in consideration.

[C]

Jordy, have you ever been an MVP voter?

[A]

No, I have not. They got.

[C]

Yeah, we gotta fix that. Then we'll start the campaign. We'll make T shirts on Buffalo Plus.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Well, I wanted to ask all the votes, like, off of that. Well, we like your vote, but do you think Josh will get the votes? Right now he is the favorite in terms of Vegas, but do you think that will actually come to fruition?

[A]

Well, so my concern here is again, I mentioned the last two weeks and the numbers not being, you know, sort of these crazy numbers, and Lamar's had to go through, you know, they've had some highly publicized games where he's gone nuts. And now this week, if Sean does what he did in the COVID year. Right. Was the COVID year where. Yeah. Where he played him for a half, and the year before, he played him for a quarter. Like, so what's, you know, you're going to look at the last three games and say, oh, he only threw for 460 yards. And I got to tell you, sometimes these voters, I don't think they watch everything. I think a lot of these guys just freaking. They look at the numbers. I mean, I listen to plenty of podcasts where I'm like, that guy clearly didn't watch. Didn't watch the game. I know he looked at. He looked at his spreadsheet of the EPA and the CPOE and all this other stuff. He's spitting all these numbers. And I was at the game, and I can tell you, like, that's completely false. But, okay, your nerd numbers tell you otherwise. So I do. I do worry about that, just in.

[B]

Terms of, like, numbers.

[A]

I think the momentum can kind of shift for stupid things like that. Like. Yeah, when it's mattered, he's been. He's done more with less.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And he should win.

[B]

But we all. We always say on this channel that sometimes it's like the attention of a gnat, where it's like, oh, shiny object, shiny object. And you're right. I think with Lamar having more nationally televised games like this, the stats and what it will look like that might have a more lasting impression because it is what just happened last.

[C]

Well, and I remember last year, like, the Bills were a bad team. 500 through the season. They fire Dorsey and Josh and the Bills go on this storming playoff run.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

They went five in a row to.

[C]

Get the two seed.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

And so I do sometimes think, obviously, like, the recency Bias is a factor of it. But I go last year, Josh played pretty lights out down the stretch and it was, yeah, two seed.

[D]

But I looked at that and thought, if I'm a voter, I'm making up my mind and trying not to be prisoner of the moment. And I'm saying Lamar and that team were better than anticipated. They were good all year long.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

And for most of that time, the Bills went into this week not even knowing if they were going to make the playoffs. Last year they needed help and they ended up with the two seeds. So I think people make up their mind. I don't think Lamar. Lamar is not going to play. Probably. Right. Well, I guess it depends if they know if the. If the Steelers win.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

Then I think they may still have to win.

[A]

But would it surprise you if there's. After this weekend if, if Philly decides, even though they shouldn't. But if they decide, you know what we're going to get Barkley the 101 yards we're going to get in the record and he goes off and he goes off for 150 in the first half. They're playing the Giants, so anything is possible. Right.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So boom. Would it surprise you if on the talking heads on Monday are like, I don't know why we're not talking about Saquon. A thousand percent best player changed the whole thing that, you know, the team's a totally different team. They might be the best team in the nfc, blah, blah, blah. Like it. It does week to week. It definitely changes.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Going off that too. We talk about like you have all this experience of covering pretty much the AFC east for several years. What has impressed you most about this Bill's team and how do you think they fair shape up heading into the postseason as compared to years past?

[A]

So I appreciate. And it was the Kansas City game that kind of sort of caught my attention a little bit with Sean and Bobby Babich, maybe depending on the influence there of the willingness to play, man, a lot more in that game than I think I'd ever seen Sean do. And I'm sure I could go back and find numbers where they did it a little bit more. But it was like instead of just being like, this is what we do and we're going to do it. Sean looked at Kansas City and Bobby looked at Kansas City and said they got one speed guy and worthy and we feel like we can be physical with him. So, like Kelsey doesn't run the same way. Like we can defend them differently. And it was, I think it surprised Kansas City. And so to me, it was just one of those little things where I'm like, oh, like even now you're still developing as a coach and sort of this is how we want to play, but if we have to tweak it, we'll tweak it. I think you've seen it points, even with the offense, like, early in the year, it's like feed, cook, and you're going to be more balanced. But there have been times where whatever, they don't feel like the run game is doing it the way they wanted to. And it's just like we have Josh.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

And I know sometimes you want to fight the urge to let Josh be Superman, but sometimes you got to let Superman, you know, he's got to do his thing and he's done that thing. So I just, I appreciate their willingness to bend a little bit more this year, be a little bit more flexible, and I love the attitude. I was just doing. I was just taping my podcast before this one and I'm on with the jets guy and he's like, the jets looked. The Bills looked at the jets and they said, we can punk these guys, we can be physical with them, and we're going to keep coming at them and we're going to keep punching them and we're going to push them after the whistle and we're going to do all these things and we don't think they want any part of it. And guess what? They were right. So there is this edge to the Bills too, where I think that's sort of been in play all year long. Like, we're especially offensive line wise, we're a bunch of badasses and we're gonna, we're gonna, we're gonna smack you and we're gonna keep smacking you, and eventually you might not want to get up anymore. Eventually, like, I'm going to get in your skin, I'm going to have you on the ground, I'm whispering something in your ear and you're not going to like it and you're going to do something dumb and there's a 15 yard penalty. Like, they, they, to me, they felt like they've had that vibe all year. And I love that because no matter what the league does, it's still about being physical. And I think they're one of the more physical teams in the league, at least offensively.

[C]

Yeah. Following up off of that, I feel like so many, for so long it's been Sean McDermott and he has always stayed in that Nickel defense with Taron Johnson. And at times he'd been like, well, why don't they put a third linebacker out there? Because they have struggled against the run these last few weeks. They have gone to. Since Milano's been back in those games, they've gone to three linebacker sets. Like, they've taken Taron off the field, which is a bold move to some respects, because Taryn's one of your best players on defense. But to your point, Mike, he doesn't feel so stuck in his ways. And whether that's Bobby's influence or McDermott maturing, learning and adapting as a coach, I. I've appreciated the ability because everybody goes, oh, they don't change. They just do the same thing. The Rams game, they tried everything. They blitzed, they sent linebackers, they sent corners. It just didn't work in that Rams game. But people can just watch, look at the end of the game and go, oh, defense stunk. It's like, well, they tried. They tried, Mike.

[A]

Yeah, you gotta. You got. You know this. You got. Having watched the league as long as you have, like, you can't just sit there. There are very few teams that can just say, this is. We do what we do. Like, I'll give you a great example of this. I don't know how he still has a job. It's a. It's a miracle. Gus Bradley. Yeah. They've been. He's been playing the same defense for 15, 20 years. It's over, man. It's been over. And then Indianapolis is like, well, why did this happen to us again this year? Well, let's. Let's just start with the fact that you think you can play cover three in this league the way it is now, that. And then you can just be in that at all times. Like, what are you. What are you doing?

[C]

What are we doing?

[A]

But there. But there are teams that do that. And you're like, God, yeah. Like, I know you're smarter than me, Gus Bradley, but, like, you're not that smart. So, like, do something different.

[D]

Any, Mike, Dan was talking about Sean McDermott, and I think a case could be made for Sean, coach of the year this year. I know he's not going to win it. I mean, he's just. But there's a lot of narratives about Sean, even in Buffalo, that people go, he hasn't won. Hasn't won big. They need to move on. They're not moving on from him. He's not going anywhere. They're winning the division again. I think he's adapted in that point about the offense. I think he's always pushed to be more physical as a team and the. I've always said that the offensive identity is, is obviously it's Josh, but you need to be able to do those things and become more physical and it permeates the whole team. Like the offensive line is more physical than it was before. And I think if you look at him, he looks like a guy who won't change. But I think this year we've even talked about it. He's. His personality has even changed this year. Dan was saying he smiled on the sidelines smiling yesterday. I know it's going to take him winning and winning big and getting to a Super bowl. But from the outside and you've been around this team. Do you think he's different now?

[A]

Yeah, because I. To the point. I think he's learning. I think he's learning and adapting as he goes along. Like, yeah, you did a great job building the program. But then it sort of. There was a little point there. You're like, yeah, and this year was supposed to be the step back year and for them to be back there and to do it in some different ways and for him to embrace some different ways says a lot about him and his growth and like, okay, like I'm not going to just keep running the same thing out there. Hoping that eventually in January and February it's going to work. Like, we have to be a little bit more adaptable. We have to be willing to sort of adjust on the flying. He's a smart enough guy to be able to do that. But I think there was a stubbornness to him prior to that I think has sort of lessened this year and it's a credit to him because I don't know that I, I don't want to say I don't know. They're not as talented as they've been. Correct. Yeah, they're certainly younger, especially defensively. You're, you know, to break up the secondary the way they did and granted those guys weren't the same at the end but like that's a lot of experience and communication and, and, and the way you built your team was sort of based on those two safeties in particular. And now you're stamar. It's Taylor. But like those guys get hurt and you're throwing different guys in there and you're still putting out a representative unit. Says a lot about him in the coaching job they've done. Yeah.

[D]

And I just to add to that, I do think that getting rid of those players. I say getting rid of, moving on from those players has freedom up. Like, it's almost like. Because the expectations dropped a little bit. And they. They did. They told us. Bean told us. You use the word transition year, like, that's what they were thinking and it's been better. But honestly, there's a confidence and a. I wouldn't say lightness, maybe. I'm trying to think of a word.

[C]

Freshness.

[D]

It's a lightness for the whole organization. It is. Everybody's rowing in the same direction and.

[C]

That Josh has got the wheel.

[B]

Yeah. And I. I want to. We have felt such a different vibe when we've been in the building and we've seen Josh play on another level. Thirteen wins, obviously, next week we'll see. I mean, but for this team, they've been really good in the regular season. What do you expect or what do you think about the playoff. Playoff outlook of this team?

[A]

I mean, so much of this, to me is going to be in part dealing with the pressure and the expectations, because even though this wasn't the year that anyone expected them to have coming in, now they're having it.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And now you're in a good position and you beat Kansas City, granted, in your own building. But, like, oh, you can do this, but can you handle that? And when something goes wrong, is there going to be that? Is everybody going to tighten up a little bit? And I don't just mean the players themselves. I think you guys can feel in the stadium sometimes, like, oh, no, we're going to do this again. Like, Josh is good. There's this group is too good. They, you know, we feel like we're on the cusp again. And I think it's. Can you get past that? Because there's going to be a moment at some point, whether it's in round one or whether it's in the AFC Championship game or, you know, if you get to the super bowl where you're going to be in a position where it's not easy, you're down, you're facing some adversity, and can you get yourself out of it, but also be smart about how you get yourself out of it. Like, and I think we've seen at times, like, sometimes Josh will then go into superman mode or creation mode. Maybe he makes a mistake. And Josh Allen, you can't get it done. The big game. And I always remember, remind people he drew four touchdown passes against the Chiefs in the 13 second game. Won them the game.

[D]

Yes, yes.

[A]

You know, like, so don't Tell me he can't win. He. He did. And they were. Unfortunately, they would have won the super bowl that year. They don't. And now you're still talking about that. So I think there is that. There is that pressure. Like, at some point, they got to break through. Yep.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, whether this is the group to do it, I don't know. But to the point of, like, feeling that freshness and that energy, I think you can see it. I think you could see it yesterday, even if it was. Was kind of rugged in parts in the first half. Like, they just keep. They keep coming. They keep coming. They keep coming at you because they know they're going to break you, and they did.

[C]

I appreciate your time as always, Mike. We all do. I do have one final question about the Patriots.

[A]

Yes.

[C]

Oh, do they plan on bringing any boom boxes when they walk out of the locker room on Sunday? Is that a thing in New England?

[A]

That is not a thing. That was awesome. Josh in the background, like, you just zero in them. Like, kind of like bemused, like, really? And Gangster's paradise, which we've been saying that really. I mean, that's in my wheelhouse. Like, I don't know that I can come up with some. Something new the kids listen to today, but. Yeah, that just seemed a little bit. A little bit much. Yeah, that was.

[D]

That's quite a thing to drag that down the hallway when you're 4 and 12, right?

[C]

Yeah. That's got over 2 million views. My tweets. That one did pretty well.

[A]

You're such a click.

[C]

He is Aaron Enigma Rogers.

[A]

I was gonna call you something else, but I'm gonna keep it class.

[C]

Well, that's awkward now because I was gonna give you a compliment again because so many comments come in. They love Buffalo plus our subscribers. And everybody loves when you come on because, honestly, you're one of us. Just talking. It's like talking to a friend. Your podcast plug, where you are, where people can find you when you're not making your 900th and 41st appearance on here. Where else can people find your work, Mike?

[A]

Yeah, so you can find me on all the socials at Mike Giardi. Boston Sports Journal is where I right now. And then I have the All32 podcast with my buddy Will Parkinson, who happens to be a Jets season ticket holder. So that's. That's amusing. And we're both going. Going through it for different reasons this year. I've watched a lot of bad football. So is he. It hurts him a little bit more than it Hurts me because I'm not, you know, I don't have personal investment in the team like that. But that can be found where all your podcasts are and of course on YouTube, where you can see this wonderful setup with the. Everything is fine still behind me.

[C]

Hey, football didn't fall this time.

[A]

No, it didn't. The, the. The Gilmore picture came down the other day. It fell down, but. And then I got, you know, I got the crew, the, the 17 crew. We all, all the, the family members, all the, all the men in our house who played football over the years. My father, my brother, and then my son all were number 17, so.

[D]

Nice.

[B]

That's awesome.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Wait, you played?

[A]

Yeah, Gus from back in. My dad named Gus from back in the 60s, played for Syracuse.

[B]

Really?

[A]

Yeah, Was on the same. Was on the same team with Jim Nance.

[D]

Wow.

[A]

Pretty good. My. That's funny. The random quick aside that no one really probably cares about, but my, My nephew, as we were down there from Christmas, found their game in 63 against Penn State. I think it was no UCLA on YouTube. Put it on the TV. You know, your kids with your technology. And my dad scored two touchdowns in the game. So it's kind of cool. It's kind of cool for the. Kind of cool for the nephews to see, you know, Gramps getting it done. Yeah.

[D]

Hey, Mike, I got a suggestion for you.

[A]

Shoot.

[D]

Just take a picture of Josh Allen, 17, put it in, say he's a cousin, and he could be another Giardi, right?

[A]

Yeah. I mean, we're about the same size, right? 240 something. I might be closer to 240 these days.

[B]

Little Photoshop action. No, Mike, we really. Do you want to say.

[C]

No, I was gonna say. Interrupting again. I saw Giardi's great stand up from 2004 if you want to watch the new Netflix, the Comeback.

[D]

Oh, yeah, the Red Sox.

[C]

Giardi is on there looking great in a dark suit with a purple dress shirt and a purple tie.

[B]

I didn't think the purple tie and I didn't think it was bad.

[C]

If he's gonna give me crap for my mustache, I'm gonna give him crap for that look.

[A]

I believe, first of all, you're colorblind because I believe it was like a maroon. Oh, is that the maroon one? And a crimson tie, and it was with a gray pinstripe suit. I, quite frankly, I looked really good. We like to be honest on this podcast, I looked really good. It was like 2:30 in the morning though, because all those games went until like crazy hours. And if you know me, once it gets to be like 11, 11:30, like, that's the clock strikes midnight, I turn back into a pumpkin. So I don't really know what I said or how I said it. I know I was. I think I was sweating at that point, like, yeah, whatever. Just get it done. Get it on there.

[D]

Hey, Mike, even if it wasn't Great, it was 20 years ago. That mustache is today.

[A]

I know. So. Right.

[D]

He's got nothing to say.

[A]

I couldn't even. I couldn't even work with him. Are you paying attention to what I'm saying? No, I'm just looking at your dumb mustache. Why? Your wife let you get out of the house with that thing.

[D]

And that's the open.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

I'm gonna get guilted into shaving this.

[B]

Well, we appreciate that much, Mike.

[C]

Takes me three and a half years.

[A]

Oh, my God.

[B]

Well, Mike, we want to take all of your time. Thank you so much for joining us here. Mike Jardy of Boston Sports Journal. We always appreciate the time. Please be sure to, like, comment, subscribe. Find Mike's podcast, all 32 podcasts. Check out all his work on the Boston Sports Journal. Be sure to follow him on Twitter, you know, all the handles, all that stuff. Thank you so much for joining us, Mike. We'll catch you next time here.

[A]

Love being on. We'll see you again soon.

[C]

You're the best, man.

[A]

Sounds good. See ya.