Archives for January 28, 2016

'Can’t you just see the multi-faceted, former Ohio State star lining up at his current position, wide receiver, as well as his former position, quarterback? Or in the backfield? Or in other packages that emerge from the creative mind of offensive coordinator Greg Roman?'

'And, heck yeah, Oakman would want to play for Rex Ryan.'

'The league held its fantasy-style draft Wednesday – broadcasting the event on ESPN2 (of course) – and Buffalo Bills teammates Richie Incognito, Eric Wood and Tyrod Taylor were all drafted to the team led by NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice.'

'Taylor, who has one year left on his contract, is in the process of putting the finishing touch on a surprisingly strong first season as an NFL starter with his selection, as an alternate, to the Pro Bowl. He and his representation undoubtedly want the Bills to get off the fence and demonstrate that they do, in fact, believe the best quarterback they have had in a long time is their franchise QB.'

'Why? This is a perfect storm for the left tackle. He plays a premium position, he's still young at 26 years old, there isn't much else available at all in free agency and the transition from college to the pros for rookie tackles has been particularly brutal the last few years. Buffalo can either pay up long term or pay up short term with the franchise tag. That number is expected to be north of $10 million. Last season's projected tag for offensive linemen was $12.9 million.'

'Despite the number of African-American players on the Bills roster and football’s popularity across demographic lines, Buffalo’s black media outlets say they get virtually no advertising or promotional business from the team despite reaching out to the franchise.'

'So when Kathryn Smith is covered in a celebratory fashion and these powerful women remain in the shadows, what does it say about how we really feel about women working in sports? Does it mean we want to feel like we are evolved, as if it is a badge of honour? Do we want to be first to favourite a tweet and re-post on Facebook in order to wave the flag of women’s rights as if to say, “Hey look at me, women’s inclusion is part of my personal brand!” Does it mean we want to fight so hard against the uneducated Kevin Kileys of the world that we unintentionally advocate the opposite just to spite him? What does it say about what we expect women to accomplish?'

'Spotrac has been fairly accurate on other extension-projections and value calculations. Before defensive tackle Marcell Dareus signed his new contract, it forecast the deal would be 6-years, $101.4 million, with an average annual value of $16.9 million. The actual numbers landed at 6-years, $96.5 million, with an average of just over $16 million.'

'“I know this much,” the Bills GM said. “He played better than I remember him playing when I used to scout him years past. That’s a testament to him, the work he put in, that year he was off, and buying in to just trying to be the best he can.”'

'The only exception to that assessment in Mobile this week might be North Dakota State’s Carson Wentz. Blessed with prototype size at 6-5 and 230 pounds, Wentz has all the physical tools and is forecast as a first-round pick. His task this week is to prove that he can hang with the power five conference talent at the FBS level after playing his entire college career in the FCS.'