On the latest edition of Billieve: A Buffalo Bills Fan Podcast, host John Boccacino leads an engaging discussion on several important topics pertaining to the Buffalo Bills, including a breakdown of Sunday’s Super Bowl 53 match-up between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams.
Before offering up his thoughts on the Big Game, Boccacino discussed the news out of One Bills Drive that David Culley, who spent the past two seasons as Buffalo’s quarterbacks coach, was poached away from Buffalo and hired to serve as assistant head coach/receivers/passing coordinator with the Baltimore Ravens.
The move means prized rookie Josh Allen will have a new quarterbacks coach in 2019. Boccacino ran through a list of potential replacements, including Jordan Palmer, Allen’s private quarterback coach; Marty Mornhinweg, a former NFL head coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterback coach; Steve Sarkisian, a former offensive coordinator and quarterback coach; Jim Bob Cooter, a former offensive coordinator and quarterback coach with the Detroit Lions; and Alex Van Pelt, Buffalo’s former backup/starting quarterback who spent nine years with the Bills as an offensive coordinator and quarterback coach.
Speaking of former Buffalo coaches, Wade Phillips is one of six ex-Bills playing or coaching in Sunday’s Super Bowl, and the former Buffalo head coach, like nearly every Bills fan, is still bitter over missing out on potentially coaching Buffalo in Super Bowl 34. That year, in the Wild Card round against the Tennessee Titans, the Bills drove down for a 16-15 lead late after Steve Christie’s 41-yard field goal. But on the ensuing kickoff—in a play that ranks up there with the non-pass interference and non-helmet-to-helmet calls that benefited the Rams and incensed the New Orleans Saints in the recent NFC championship—the Titans shocked the Bills on the Music City Miracle, or as Phillips recently called it, “The Music City Mistake.”
The Titans would go on to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl, coming up one yard short of tying the game on the final play as the Rams won 23-16.
Boccacino then discussed the ex-Bills in Sunday’s game—cornerback Stephon Gilmore and wide receiver Chris Hogan for the Patriots, wide receiver Robert Woods, cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman, offensive line coach Aaron Kromer and Phillips for the Rams—before offering up his keys to the game.
Exactly 17 years to the day since the Patriots shocked the Rams and their Greatest Show on Turf in Super Bowl 37—a game that launched the dynasty that is Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and the Patriots—Boccacino expects Sunday’s game to be close throughout. If the Rams, led on defense by Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh, can get enough pressure on Brady and disrupt the Patriots’ precision passing attack—certainly have a chance at knocking off the 2.5-point favorite Patriots. However, unfortunately for Bills fans everywhere, Boccacino’s Super Bowl prediction has New England emerging with a 30-24 victory. Buffalo fans can only hope this prediction goes terribly wrong!
During the game, look for a powerful Super Bowl ad featuring former Buffalo quarterback AJ McCarron and former interim head coach Anthony Lynn.
Check out our podcast for thoughts on these topics and more on the latest Billieve: a Buffalo Bills Fan Podcast.
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