That Aud Smell

What a gift. Enjoying these, with some sense of guilty pleasure.

'course he is! Ol' Sugar Packets himself.

Correct. There will be additional waves. And additional shutdowns, I presume.

Yeah - there's no way for the U.S. to replicate what China's (apparently) done. (I say "apparently," as it appears they're fudging some of their numbers. But in all events it appears they've had incredible success with containment.) We can't do what they did because we are a free society founded on individualism; they are an un-free society founded on commitment to the collective. On the other hand, we can't even do what Germany's been doing thus far, which is testing ~200,000 people a day. Germany is having fantastic success against the virus. It's all about testing, but the U.S. has been so slow to get that in gear.

What seems lost in the debate here is that the most immediate (arguably the only real) concern is avoiding situations in which the health care system is overwhelmed. Avoiding situations where people are simply left to die on gurneys in the hallway, whether that’s a hospital hallway or a hallway at the Javitz Center, etc. Everything that governments do in the near-term - whether containment or mitigation - must be done with the avoidance of spikes as the goal. Everything else is going to have to be secondary, the economy included. And there’s no discounting how serious the harms are to the economy — from the very wealthy on down to the career waitress at your local fine dining institution (say, Oliver’s). But we just can’t, can’t navigate into scenarios in which people are literally dying in the streets from this thing. If we are guided by Fauci and people like him, we should mostly be able to avoid such outcomes. ... If.

Proverbial gun to the head, I'd wager on 8-8.

The talk of the Bills being AFC East favourites is more than a little thrilling, but maybe also premature. Outside of their divisional opponents, their home games are against the Chiefs, Seahawks, Chargers, Rams, and Steelers. I know that much can and will change, but that right there looks like tough sledding to me. They also get the Titans and 49ers on the road. (And the Cardinals, who maybe will be (really?) good?) I love the optimism, but I am braced for a slight regression based on quality of opponents. Do the expanded playoff rules kick in next season?

Ha. I’d still have rather seen PSE float those folks with some sort of stipends. Fo sho.

That’s not quite how it works. I think @Eleven is implying that termination - while it seems harsh - may place the workers in a better position with NYS DOL’s unemployment division. And in that regard, NYS DOL invoices employers for the UI benefits paid out.

In the event it hasn’t been linked.

Also, Gordon sorta stinks and/or is washed.

Interesting. Y’all may be right. Probably are! Perhaps he’s earned the right to take another stab at franchise QB, if necessary.

^ I’m just comparing apples to apples. The Jets franchise has most recently reversed course and actually apologized for previously waiting on cancellations. Why haven’t the Pegulas done the same? I’m asking. And I’m not outraged. Just chewing the fat; hating on some rich people.

1. Why should anyone be patient with them? Least of all the people who are losing those wages. They've said they'll compensate the workers once games are canceled. Not good enough, imo. 2. Seems different. Dozens of other pro sports franchises are acting as though pro sports are, in fact, different. So, the Pegulas are increasingly out of step with their peer organ-eye-zay-shuns. Also, Colleen runs the show now.

What in the actual funk is going on with the Pegulas.

I hear what you're saying. And with the expanded playoff field, I reckon GMs and coaches will have an easier time hanging onto their positions. I just think that if Allen detonates as a bust, the chances of Beane ultimately surviving that are slim. "Ultimately" is the key there -- Beane could get time beyond cutting ties with Allen (if it came to that (pray not!!)); I don't think it would be much, though.

There are no guarantees on how this shakes out (take, for example, the very real and open questions about Josh Allen as the QB1), but I will say this: Beane has proven himself to be a sharp ass motherfunkster. He's been really smart about how and when he builds. And even for all of that, if he and his team were wrong about Allen, then there'll likely be no saving him. That's generally how it is in the NFL, of course.

Bills signed a special teams ace / backup LB today (formerly with Pittsburgh). I'm more amused than I should be that he (1) looks like McDermott's brother and (2) looks like Trent Murphy's cousin.

Interesting. As for the NFC South being a bit light on competition, you've got the Saints and Falcons, yeah? I know the Falcons have been down, but they should (?) be good again? And the Saints should still be good? Or nah. Similar reasoning: Why would he go to the Chargers and have to contend with Mahomes?

Brady to Tampa would be nothing less than bizarre. Who's coaching there now? I mean - if he goes there, it's gotta be about what happened with Manning when he went to the Broncos, yeah? Where the veteran QB comes in and tells the team what they're running as an offence.

I really like the trade for Diggs for all of the reasons noted above. Accumulate assets, and then strike big. Smart asset management. Nothing in guaranteed, but it’s as smart a move as one could hope for. Now: To get Allen to hit on deep balls at a respectable clip.

To my surprise, I am sort of grateful to the NFL for some unimportant (but interesting) news to distract from the other major awfulness out there.

Holy Jesus, Bill O'Brien. The guy has an absolute stud and monster at QB. He's risked ending Watson's career early with dubious play calling and porous protection schemes/personnel. And now he's traded away Watson's #1 weapon, and taken the short end of the stick in so doing.