WEBVTT - The Sean McDermott Show - Week 1

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<v Speaker 1>Finding the way, finding away every week, have a fo

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<v Speaker 1>no overthinks. All right, go play football. We'll play some football.

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<v Speaker 1>Exciting time to be a Buffalo building detent of the

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<v Speaker 1>Buffalo Builds. Welcome everybody into our first episode of twenty

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<v Speaker 1>twenty one and the Sean McDermott Show, presented by Connors

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<v Speaker 1>and Farrish, your workers comp attorneys. Sean, it's great to

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<v Speaker 1>see if thanks as always for joining us. With a

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<v Speaker 1>success you guys had last year followed by a great offseason,

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<v Speaker 1>the city's buzzing with football fever, tons of bills, fans

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<v Speaker 1>are excited to be back here on Sunday's tailgating, and

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<v Speaker 1>others can't wait to resume the traditions like watching at

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<v Speaker 1>home with family and friends. What are you most excited

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<v Speaker 1>for this season? Well, I'm excited to see our team play.

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<v Speaker 1>We've worked hard this this camp, the guys have worked

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<v Speaker 1>hard in the offseason. I'm also excited to see the

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<v Speaker 1>fans again in our stadium. It's been a long time

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<v Speaker 1>coming and it feels like forever ago that they were

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<v Speaker 1>in our stadium, and we're just hoping that all the

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<v Speaker 1>work that we've put in, all the work the players

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<v Speaker 1>have put in, and that everyone's really put in, it

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<v Speaker 1>pays off. Starting the Sunday. He made it to the

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<v Speaker 1>AFC Championship Game. Last year, you capped off a fantastic

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<v Speaker 1>season where you matched a franchise best thirteen wins, You

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<v Speaker 1>went six and oz in the division for the first

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<v Speaker 1>time in franchise history, and had the highest scoring offense

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<v Speaker 1>in franchise history. If you had such a prolific year,

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<v Speaker 1>what are your expectations for this year and how do

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<v Speaker 1>you balance those expectations with the expectations all of us

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<v Speaker 1>are putting on you. Well, I think you try and

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<v Speaker 1>keep it simple as simple as you can, and certainly

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<v Speaker 1>appreciate all the expectations, all the support that said that

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<v Speaker 1>we got. We gotta do us. We gotta be the

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<v Speaker 1>Buffalo Bills and do the things that have gotten us

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<v Speaker 1>to this point, and in some ways also start over.

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<v Speaker 1>It's a new season every year. Every year. We got

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<v Speaker 1>to take it one game at a time, and we

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<v Speaker 1>plan to do that this week. Well, you can't talk

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<v Speaker 1>about expectations without talking about your quarterback, Josh. He set

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<v Speaker 1>franchise records in virtually every category last year. Then he

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<v Speaker 1>signed a six year contract extension in the offseason's going

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<v Speaker 1>to keep him in Buffalo through the twenty twenty eighth season.

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<v Speaker 1>Statistically speaking, it's hard to see how much he could improve.

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<v Speaker 1>So what's the next step for Josh Allen. Well, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>we're first and foremost. I think it's great that Terry

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<v Speaker 1>and Kim Pegoula have allowed Brandon and myself to do

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<v Speaker 1>that with Josh. Obviously, you know, those players in particular

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<v Speaker 1>that position are hard to find, and when you've got one,

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<v Speaker 1>you've got to make sure you invest in the right

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<v Speaker 1>way and you have him in the organization for a

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<v Speaker 1>long time. And that's what the Pagoulas allowed us to do.

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<v Speaker 1>And Josh is just a fine young man, a special

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<v Speaker 1>person on and off the field, and a great teammate.

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<v Speaker 1>And I think that's really what he showed us over

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<v Speaker 1>the years. And yet he's so hungry to improve, and

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<v Speaker 1>that goes back to his family, the great support he has,

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<v Speaker 1>and the support he has of his teammates, and I

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<v Speaker 1>think that really the sky's the limit he's got. He's

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<v Speaker 1>just got to continue to be Josh Allen, take it

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<v Speaker 1>one game at a time, do his part, not trying

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<v Speaker 1>to do too much, and he'll be just fine. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>and for the first time in your tenure, you've got

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<v Speaker 1>almost every one of your key players returning for the

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<v Speaker 1>twenty twenty one season. You must be thinking you did

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<v Speaker 1>something right, whether it was resigning a guy like Matt

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<v Speaker 1>Milano that you drafted and developed, or bringing back key

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<v Speaker 1>pieces in your offensive line like Feliciano Daryl Williams. He

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<v Speaker 1>also had guys like Isaiah Mackenzie, Levi Wallace who wanted

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<v Speaker 1>to stay here to finish what they started. How much

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<v Speaker 1>do you think your culture that you've built here helped

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<v Speaker 1>you and Brandon and the front office retain all these

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<v Speaker 1>key guys. Yeah, that's you hit a great point, and

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<v Speaker 1>that's been one of the biggest goals since we've came

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<v Speaker 1>here five years ago now, was to build a culture.

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<v Speaker 1>Steve to your point of that's transformational rather than transactional.

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<v Speaker 1>That that's the nature of the NFL. It's transactional, but

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<v Speaker 1>we're trying to make it as transformational as we can

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<v Speaker 1>and make Buffalo a destination for people whereby they can

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<v Speaker 1>come to Buffalo and become the best version of themselves

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<v Speaker 1>that they've ever been on the field or off the

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<v Speaker 1>field for that matter. And I think you're seeing players

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<v Speaker 1>start to circle Buffalo on their list of places that

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<v Speaker 1>they want to be. And I think the culture speaks

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<v Speaker 1>for itself. You watch our players and how much fun

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<v Speaker 1>they have during the games, how close they are on

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<v Speaker 1>and off the field, and that's just fun to watch,

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<v Speaker 1>fun to be a part of it. Yeah, while in

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<v Speaker 1>the draft you focused on your d line in the

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<v Speaker 1>draft of the top couple of picks, you also added

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<v Speaker 1>pieces to almost every position group on your roster this

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<v Speaker 1>last offseason. Regardless of the success you had last year,

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<v Speaker 1>you always talk about that growth mindset and getting better

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<v Speaker 1>every day. With that in mind, which position group are

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<v Speaker 1>you expecting to make the biggest improvement from last season? Well,

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<v Speaker 1>I would hope we'd improve as an overall team. That said,

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<v Speaker 1>I know Brandon did a phenomenal job of allocating resources

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<v Speaker 1>to the defensive line position group this offseason, in particular

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<v Speaker 1>in the draft. In order to do that, we had

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<v Speaker 1>to make key moves. Brandon had to make key moves

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<v Speaker 1>to solidify other positions prior to the draft, and I think,

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<v Speaker 1>as you mentioned, resigning some of our players and that's

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<v Speaker 1>that's big. It It sends the right message to our

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<v Speaker 1>locker room that we try and resign our own, we

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<v Speaker 1>try and grow our own and that's important for continuity

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<v Speaker 1>as well as consistency. So the defensive line is a

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<v Speaker 1>group that we were very intentional about this offseason and

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<v Speaker 1>we look forward to watching them grow through the course

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<v Speaker 1>of the year. Force here. Thanks, coach. We're gonna catch

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<v Speaker 1>up with you later in the show to get your

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<v Speaker 1>final thoughts on the Steelers game this Sunday. The game

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<v Speaker 1>plan is presented by Energy Marketing, the official energy supplier

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<v Speaker 1>to the Buffalo Bills. Game preview is presented by Independent Health.

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<v Speaker 1>You deserve the red shirt treatment, Mattie glab here this

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<v Speaker 1>week's game preview. The Bills begin their twenty twenty one

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<v Speaker 1>season with the home opener against the Steelers. Buffalo's coming

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<v Speaker 1>off of a season where they made it to the

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<v Speaker 1>AFC Championship Game, whereas the Steelers are off of one

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<v Speaker 1>where they lost their last five out of six games,

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<v Speaker 1>including a playoff game. The Steeler's quarterback Ben Roethlisberger returns

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<v Speaker 1>for his eighteenth season, but this year he has a

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<v Speaker 1>new offensive coordinator in Matt Canada. We will see if

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<v Speaker 1>he can revamp an offense that was ranked twenty fourth

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<v Speaker 1>overall last year, averaging three hundred and thirty four point

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<v Speaker 1>six yards per game and ranked last in terms of rushing,

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<v Speaker 1>averaging only eighty four point four rushing yards per game.

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<v Speaker 1>Pittsburgh addressed the run game in the draft by selecting

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<v Speaker 1>former Alabama running back naj Harris with the twenty fourth

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<v Speaker 1>overall pick. On defense, the Steelers want to return to

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<v Speaker 1>last year's form, where they led the league with fifty

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<v Speaker 1>six sacks and ranked third, allowing an average of only

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<v Speaker 1>three hundred and five point eight yards per game. Buffalo

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<v Speaker 1>returns twenty one of twenty two starters from last year,

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<v Speaker 1>and that continuity is one reason why many believe this

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<v Speaker 1>team could have a special season. Another reason is because

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<v Speaker 1>of quarterback Josh Allen's leap and improvement from twenty nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>to twenty twenty. He quarterbacked an offense that ranked second

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<v Speaker 1>last season. If we're doing thirty one point three points

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<v Speaker 1>per game, Alan also shattered several single season records in

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<v Speaker 1>his third year, and we'll look to put a similar

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<v Speaker 1>season together with his familiar weapons. The Steelers leave the

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<v Speaker 1>series all time against the Bills with sixteen wins and

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<v Speaker 1>eleven losses. That's this week's game. Preview, Steve back to you.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks as always, Mattie, Coach, we talked about expectations surrounding

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<v Speaker 1>your team this season. I was hammering you with that

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<v Speaker 1>word early in the show. The fans are excited. I'm

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<v Speaker 1>sure your players are too. So what has been your

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<v Speaker 1>message to your team to start this season? Get them

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<v Speaker 1>off on the right foot. Yeah, we're going to be excited.

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<v Speaker 1>I know the players are excited. They're listen, they're out

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<v Speaker 1>in the community like I am, and you can just

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<v Speaker 1>feel the electricity in the air. The support that we

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<v Speaker 1>have is second to none around the NFL. That being said,

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<v Speaker 1>we've got to put a great week of practice in place,

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<v Speaker 1>and we've got to focus one day at a time,

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<v Speaker 1>get into our process, kind of our internal focus, and

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<v Speaker 1>make sure that we're ready to go. This is going

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<v Speaker 1>to be a tough football game with a good opponent,

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<v Speaker 1>well coached, and an AFC contender. We've got to prepare

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<v Speaker 1>that way and respect every piece of our preparation so

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<v Speaker 1>that we're ready to go. You said it, Coach. You've

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<v Speaker 1>got the Steelers rolling into Buffalo for the second time

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<v Speaker 1>in two seasons. Last year you knocked him off on

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<v Speaker 1>a Sunday night football in a game that really had

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<v Speaker 1>some say in what the playoff race was going to

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<v Speaker 1>look like. How can you learn from the success or

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<v Speaker 1>can you learn from the success you had against them

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<v Speaker 1>last year and build on it for this year's matchup. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>they have continuity on their side as well, So some

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<v Speaker 1>of that, you know, leads to awareness of them knowing us,

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<v Speaker 1>us knowing them a little bit, and we're gonna have

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<v Speaker 1>to do our best to have ourselves ready to go

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<v Speaker 1>and really focus on our fundamentals and usually what wins

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<v Speaker 1>games and taking care of the football. So it'll be

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<v Speaker 1>a good game. It's going to be a tough, hard

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<v Speaker 1>nosed game in a game that's going to come down

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<v Speaker 1>to who takes care of the football. You said it, coach.

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<v Speaker 1>There's some continuity on both sides, but there's also some faces,

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<v Speaker 1>some new faces in this game. Big Ban is going

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<v Speaker 1>to be there, All the return receivers are going to

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<v Speaker 1>be back this year, but the Steaters have added a

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<v Speaker 1>new offensive weapon with their first round pick, running back

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<v Speaker 1>Naja Harris. How do you prepare to face a rookie

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<v Speaker 1>who you know is going to be a prominent player

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<v Speaker 1>in their offense, but you really haven't seen him playing

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<v Speaker 1>in a regular season game yet well. In addition to Naja,

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<v Speaker 1>they also added Fairmouth at tight end from Penn State,

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<v Speaker 1>who's an elite player at a young age, and so

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<v Speaker 1>they already had weapons. You mentioned Ben in the receiving

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<v Speaker 1>corps in addition to Ibrawn the other tight end they have.

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<v Speaker 1>They're well stocked on offense and across the board on defense.

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<v Speaker 1>They've been a good defense for years in Pittsburgh, and

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<v Speaker 1>I think they're special teams unit. They do a great

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<v Speaker 1>job of keeping enough linebackers on their roster through the

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<v Speaker 1>three four defense. Again, a good football team and a

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<v Speaker 1>well balanced football team and a well coached team. Thanks coach,

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<v Speaker 1>good luck this week against Pittsburg. We're gonna be back

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<v Speaker 1>next week to recap your game against the Steelers and

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<v Speaker 1>preview the week two matchup against the Dolphins. Thanks everybody

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<v Speaker 1>at home for watching. The Sean McDermott Show presented by

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<v Speaker 1>Connors and Ferris. We'll see you next week. Can until then,

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<v Speaker 1>Go Bills. Final Thoughts is presented by Toyota, the official

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<v Speaker 1>vehicle of the Buffalo Bills. Let's Go Places. The Sean

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<v Speaker 1>McDermott Show is presented by Connors and Farris, your workers'

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<v Speaker 1>comp attorneys. By Independent Health You deserve the rich sher

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<v Speaker 1>treatment by Toyota, the official vehicle of the Buffalo Bills,

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<v Speaker 1>Let's Go Places, by Kalida, official healthcare system of the

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<v Speaker 1>Buffalo Bills, and by ECMC. ECMC bringing hope and healing

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<v Speaker 1>to Western New York