Like a lot of you, sometimes I take a moment to just wonder how it is that life has gone by so quickly. It seems like just yesterday I was a kid growing up in Cheektowaga, playing high school sports and dominating in Tecmo Bowl with Bo Jackson.
It’s been over 30 years since then. A lot has happened.
Some of you reading this weren’t even born yet. Some of you can remember exactly the same thing, whether it was 30 years ago, 40, 50 or even longer. The days seem long, but the years are pretty darn short. Time flies.
We forget a lot of things that happen, but we remember the milestones - the big events, both good and bad. Our first boyfriend or girlfriend, when they broke up with us, maybe getting married, and having kids. Loved ones passing away. We remember tragedy and triumph in our lives.
Having kids is when it really ramps up, especially the good stuff. When they’re born, their first day of school, losing that first tooth, Christmas mornings when they see all the gifts from Santa Claus. All of the cool things that happen along the way.
Then, in the blink of an eye, they’re in high school, they’re in their 20s or 30s, buying a house, and starting a family of their own.
I’m projecting on my part personally here because my son, Max, just turned seven-years-old last week. It’s already been a quick seven years. I’m wondering where the time went.
It’s just natural. There’s nothing wrong with it.
But how many times have we said to ourselves, about a lot of things in life, “I wish I could go back to that time? I wish I could remember that feeling?”
That’s because we often don’t savor those moments enough. We celebrate the milestones and the accomplishments, then too often turn our attention immediately towards what’s next. We move onto the next moment, even before it’s happened. Then it does, and we do it all over again.
The 2020 Buffalo Bills are in the midst of some amazing milestones and accomplishments.
Let me give you a few, both as a team end individuals:
- Last night, Stefon Diggs tied the franchise record with 100 catches in a season, set by Eric Moulds 18 years ago. On his next grab, he will break it, and he’s going to shatter that record when it’s all said and done this year.
- Josh Allen just surpassed Hall of Famer Jim Kelly‘s single-season touchdown mark. He now has 35 total touchdowns, passing, rushing, and even one receiving. That’s pretty incredible only 13 games into the season.
- After last night’s game, Allen is now fifth on the team’s single-season yards passing list, and he keeps climbing every week.
- The Bills are 10-3. The first time they’ve had at least 10 wins through the first 13 games since 1991. That’s 29 years ago.
Going into the weekend, the Bills needed five separate things to happen to clinch a playoff berth. Four of them happened. The fifth? Still to come.
If the Cleveland Browns win Monday night against the Baltimore Ravens, the Bills are in. They’ll eventually be in the playoffs either way, whether that gets sealed on Monday or not.
The more important benchmark is winning the AFC East. That happens with a win over the Denver Broncos on Saturday.
No other teams need to lose, nothing else needs to happen. That’s it. If the Bills beat the Broncos on Saturday, they win the AFC East for the first time in a quarter century.
We are all really excited about what happened Sunday night. A 26-15 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, a gold standard organization with a future Hall of Fame quarterback and six Lombardi Trophies.
But now, naturally, our attention is going to turn to Saturday. That’s when the real milestone can be achieved.
This team’s stated since the offseason has been to win a playoff game. The way to do that? Have one at home. The way to do that? Win the division.
While we await that game only five days from now, let’s not let the week pass by without taking time to appreciate what’s going on. Savor this week.
Yes, think about what can happen on Saturday and how cool it will be if it does. But, don’t let it be just about looking towards the next milestone. We don’t even know if they’re going to win. It’s certainly not a guarantee.
I am usually the guy to tell you how excited I am for the next game and what lies ahead. I don’t want to do that yet this week.
I want all of us to appreciate where this team is, the ride they’ve been taking us on, and the great feeling of joy we all have on a Monday after that big Sunday night win. 2020 has been a rough year, but the Bills have made it a lot less rough for a lot of us.
Saturday is huge. There’s no doubt. It’s that barrier the Bills haven’t been able to break for 25 years. It’s a culmination of what we’ve been witnessing for the last four seasons, including this one.
It will get here, and hopefully we will all be celebrating late Saturday night. But let’s not force this one to come too fast. Let’s enjoy where we are for a few days, because this is the good stuff we want to feel.
Follow me on Twitter: @SalSports
