shoretalk

I sooooo agree with you! I am tired of the Lee Evans' bashers especially when they have nothing to go by. Last season there were games when the ball was thrown to him only one or two times. It seemed that especially with Fitz that it was all about getting the ball to TO if the ball was going to be thrown more than 5 yards in the air. Of course there was the Jauron theory of offense that encouraged the short dump passes, which are not the strenght of any premium receiver such as Evans. Coach Dick had great scehmes to throw the ball 5 yards on third down when it was third and 7 or 8. And, of course there are the questions as to whether any QB other than JL could throw the ball more than 10 yards in the air and wether the line could block long enough to get a decent long pass in the air. Lee Evans would defnitely be the #1 receiver on most NFL teams ... nowthe mystery is who will be getting the most playing time with him on the Bills. My current bet amongst these GOOD young players is Steve Johnson followed by Hardy with Easely coming on strong. Gailey said he'd keep FIVE receivers today. So #1 - Evans #2 - Johnson #3 - Hardy #4 - Easley and #5 Roscoe. I can see Naaman on PS. But keeping only five means that the battle should intensify and maybe a dAvid Nelson or one of the other guys can slip in. From the coaches comment I am betting he is going to keep 3 or maybe even 4 TE's (Nelson, Stupar, Matthews, and Shouman). GO BILLS!!

Always always check the MADDEN ratings!!! So, let's see ... our offensive philosophy the last couple of years is to throw 5 yard passes when we need 8 yards to get a first down and never ever think about downfield because then you might be trying to win the game rather than playing not to lose. The Fantasy ratings just like Madden are only as good as the prior year's performance, which many times is dictated not by the player but by the offensive coaching staff's play calling. There is no way Evans could have been ranked any higher beccause under Dick's strategy there were games when Evans wasn't even looked at because down field passes were not part of the game plan. I can recall several games where commentators asked each other why the Bills didn't look to Evans who was open ... of course we can blame the QB's too if they were making the decisions on the primary receivers and the O-Line for not giving the protection. In my FL this year, I would be happy if Evans ends up as one of my wide-outs.

Just read all of the posts ... you will get a sense of the author's maturity and respect for other people's opinions. The players seem to get into the stadium being up on our feets shouting and singing SHOUT but frankly the song is for the fans ... young and old ... it is not the players choice ... But, to resolve this I suggest we check the MADDEN ratings ... haha ...

Based on what we have seen so far from OTA's, etc. it appears that Steve Johnson is at the top of the pecking order for #2. I had been hoping that Hardy would come around but in the Lee Evans interview he hinted that not all the players are on top of the playbook ... could this be Hardy or does Hardy still have lingering injuries that are impacting him. I love seeing what Naaman is doing. Here are my five #1 - Evans #2 - Johnson #3 - Easley #4 - Parrish (used in special situations) #5 - Hardy #6 - Huggins PS - Roosevelt In putting this list together I realized that I am happy with the wide outs we have right now. They may be young but there is a lot of potential especially when you think about how potent our running game can be.

It has been a long long time since this team has had a Head Coach who is both dedicated to winning and willing to put his own neck on the line (by calling the O plays this year). When you add a GM who is not swayed by the opinions of the pundits or fans who just want their popular picks or the cuts of other teams ... then you have someone who is intent on creating a winning franchise. It's easy to whine about Maybe, McCargo, and one or two others but if you combine Gailey's winning approach (players will be ready mentally and physically) with the basic corps of players we have then there is room for optimism. Truthfully, in the NFL there is not a big difference between the top 25 teams and that is why so few teams return to the playoffs in concescutive years. The Bills have a secondary that other teams would love to have both for its talent and its depth. SAFETIES - Byrd and Wilson plus Scott and Whitner. Then in reserve we have Corto and Cary Harris. DB's - McGee, McKelvin, Florence followed by Lankster, Corner, Youboty, and Sargeant plus a couple of rookies. Our running backs can match up with anyone's Jackson, Spiller, and The Beast (I think we keep him now.). Kicking game/special teams - Moorman and Lindell plus one of the better ST coaches in the league. Receivers and TE's - Ok, this is open to criticism but due to Coach Dick's years here we won't know for sure what we have until game time but I think this is a strength area compared to other teams with Evans, Johnson, Hardy, Parrish, and Easely giving us a good group of young wide outs all with upsides ahead of them. If we use him and every indication is that Gailey plans to, Nelson can be a threat at TE to pick up some yards for us. OG - Wood and Levitre have the talent and the attitude to be a force in the middle for years to come. Obviously we are not strong at OT but all of us Monday Morning quarterbacks may be wrong about Bell and/or Meredith. This new coaching regime seems to have the same high expectations for Bell as the one did. Time will tell. DL - Although it might not be the envy of the league, I feel pretty good about our DL. Kyle Williams is just a great player with a motor to match. Troupp and Williams should do a good job in the middle. Stroud has come back with less weight and an attitude (is it a contract year? haha), I really like Dwan Edwards and Carrington plus Spencer Johnson has had some good reports from the OTA's about pass break up's, etc. ILB - I never have understood the POZ bashing because he has improved with each passing game. Very few players are stars as rookies or second year players. Andra David and Mitchell complete a decent middle with Moats and other rookies tossed in. OLB - Ok, so Maybin is already getting fewer rep's (I had hoped that this would be a great position for him but oh well.). I know we are counting on Kelsay at the one end so there is a big question mark (And, I happen to be a Kelsay fan.). Coleman (I think he is going to be special), Ellis, Nic Harris and Ellison could make a mark on the outside. QB - The Final great mystery ... Will it be TE who opened the season not that long ago with 5 victories and on defeats or will he succumb to all that Coach Dick taught him? Can Brohm be the QB with confidence and throwing abilities who wow'd the nation at Louisville? Does Fitz have the ability to really throw the ball on a regular basis more than 10 yards down field without the ball going way off course? And, Finally does Levi have it in him to come out as a rookie and be another late round draft pick in the Eastern division who becomes a winner? Gailey proved he could take a Thigpen and make him special ... hopefully he will do the same with one of our QB's. So I am optimistic ... I can see our secondary doing some really great stuff with ball hawks like Byrd and Wilson back there. We can only be better against the run than we have been ... so that means we might get the ball back m to our offense quicker. The offense has a coach out to win .. a Jackson, Spiller and Lynch who can run with the best of them and by their running will open up the passing game to one degree or another. GO BILLS!

a And, now it becomes clear that you are one of the new generation of fans who come to the games not to enjoy the experience but to scream curses from the stands that ruin the atmosphere for those of us who want to bring our children for a fun-family-tradition building experience. Sure, let's lose tradition and scream obscenities because that is a way to modernize the game experience. Can't have any songs everyone can sing with - what the heck let's not allow any songs at all or choose something that most in the stadium and in Bills' Backers' clubs around the world can't sing or dance to. It truly is a sad reflection on our world when you even feel the need to repeatedly curse out those who disagree with you here on this board. When things don't go your way or you hear another point of view are those the only words you can come up with as you stamp your feet, turn all red, and throw things? "Shout" is a connection amongst Bills' fans worldwide. It is easy to sing/shout with and for those of us with some standards of decency, we'd rather connect with an energizing song than shout four letter curses at the ref's, the other team or the Bills just to impress those around us with our extensive vocabulary of obscenities.

so let's see who the training camp cuts are ... At this point, he has not taken the roster spot of any draft pick or highly rated rookie free agent. he has been a serviceable player on our defense the last couple of years. I agree that he will probably be amongst the cuts but that is for the coaches not for board speculation but he is a good open field tackler and special teams may be his place on the team. However, McCargo will really have to be a changed person to escape the first round of camp cuts.

Let me see ... here is a song that gets every Bills' "fan (notice the word fan)" up on our feet when the team scores and unifies the stadium ... a song when we hear it at weddings or other events reminds us of the glory years of the team ... a song that never is associated with the negatives of the past 10 years ... a song other teams' fans that I am friends with with they had something similar to use in celebration with their fellow fans. We don't need a parody ... this is a song of celebration! And, if I remember right .. we went to Four Super Bowls with that song ... and the playoffs ... not sure what world you are living in if you look back on the last 25 years as years of failure. The only team that has ever gone to four consecutive Super Bowls and the only team that ever will go to four consecutive Super Bowls celebrated every field goal, touchdown, and safety with SHOUT! Even in these losing seasons there has been something special about going to Bills' games that is wrapped up in tradition, fun, occasional celebration, and music (all the music pre-game) that is unique ... if you really don't like a fun atmosphere and would prefer to sit back and curse the team ... not join with fellow fans in having a good time ... then perhaps you should just sit at home and turn the sound down. In my office here in NJ I have a small Buffalo Bills' football that has three background "music' tracks. One is 'LET's GO BUFFALO' but the one people who visit my office and pick it up and play it enjoy hearing and listen to over and over again is THE BILLS MAKE ME WANT TO SHOUT. Not a single person has ever said 'that's stupid' or 'you've got to be kidding me the fans sing to that?' but they do say how cool it must be to be in a stadium where everyone is up on their feet singing and dancing to the song after a score. Some tell me that they remember seeing a Bills game where it happened and wondered what the fans were dancing to. There are some things in life worth saving and savoring ... THE BILLS MAKE ME WANT TO SHOUT is one of them ... Those who want no music ... or who want to get rid of this tradition make me sick and I feel sorry for you that you somehow do not like to be part of the celebrations that have been a Bills' Nation Tradition for years and now has been passed down to a new generation of fans.

How high does Madden rate him?? Who are you kidding??? And, I thought we already had a winner for the worst post of June!

I think the defense is going to be so pumped up to start the year and willing to take some chances as this Bills' team is about winning football games! Our #2 pick that this board moaned and groaned about last year before the season started should have been Rookie of the Year but he is an opportunist who will get more chances for big plays. So, watch for that early interception that is brought back all the way ... and after that score Spiller, Evans, Nelson, and Hardy (ok, I am not totally convinced with Hardy and can easily slip Easley's name here) will see the end zone ... a new year of possibilities!

That's right ... let's pick up every single veteran player that hits the pre-pre-season waiver wires because they have to be better than every single player on a team that played almost .500 football under a coach who didn't try to win. One third of the NFL was worse than the Buffalo Bills last year ... so we must have at least one or maybe two players who can compete ... but then again those waived guys might rank high on the MADDEN SCALE ...

Why don't we throw in a few more players and draft picks ... McNeil is not 100% healthy and I am not sure how MADDEN rates him ... Frankly, I am liking everything that the Buddy front office has done so far ... and I am pretty sure they aren't about to trade multiple players and a draft pick for one guy.

The middle of our line has two bulls at guard and a very intelligent center calling the line plays. There is hope in Bills' land ... at least until we see them in real action. But, Levitre and Wood are both the real thing ... two hard nosed guys who are smart and love to play. This line could very well jell into something special ... Got to love WOOD ... he just wants to play ... no whining ... no excuses ... just hit the field!

AGREE .... The players want the best of all worlds ... well set up a rookie salary structure for the first four years in the league. Then, position by position create base salaries that can be increased by playing on winning teams and individual accomplishments. If they want to be self employed contractors let them take on their own health care costs, pensions, etc.. All of us are hurting ... frankly we need to see some price controls on tickets with reductions matching the reductions in the cap. Maybe we are the ones who should strike but we never ever will ...

Here in New Jersey, the home of the NEW JERSEY JETS (the Bills are NY State's only NFL franchise), people are being laid off left and right ... many people including myself have been required to accept no pay raise or to take a pay cut. Yet, NFL players continue to demand laughable salaries. We are not that far away from the day when no one can afford to purchase tickets ... where advertisers will balk at paying commercial rates, and where NFL owners will be stuck with their highly paid non caring players. We have to remember that most of these publicity contracts are not guaranteed unlike Major League Baseball so more than likely he will never see his $100 million but Odoms and Winfield received obscene salaries from the 49ers and Vikings yet we survived. No player needs that kind of money even thought Jason Peters reminded us he needed to feed his family and therefore he would not accept what the Bills were offering him ... ahh Jason one of the flood gate Eagles ... he can still run block though. If the NFL maintains the "cap" which Washington, Dallas, the Jets and Giants seem to violate regularly, and TV/game-day revenue sharing then it will still be safe for small market teams. If I were a Jets' fan ... I'd sure be screaming NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO and as a taxpayer I sure have no problem requiring multi-millionaires to pay more in taxes then those of us struggling to pay for the basics. Oh wait, the NJ governor just vetoed a tax on millionaires after he cut services and benefits to the disabled and poor ... and to think people like that! GO BILLS!!! Sign em long and sign em early Buddy!

Well ... I keep praying for the preseason to really arrive!! I cannot believe ... well, wait a second, yes I can ... that someone would think we are now going back to the scrapheap to pick up another quarterback when none of the four we have has seen real action under our new regime. Thigpen is not our answer and will not ever be in a Bills' uniform unless disaster hits us again and all four of our current QB's get injured in preseason, which is highly unlikely since the previous "strength and conditioning" group is long gone. As for our QB choices for this season ... Gailey brings opportunity for each in a way that they haven't experienced. 1. Edwards - When we went 5-0 before the Arizona game we had crowned him as something special. After his concussion it was clear that he fell under the 'keep it safe' philosophy of Jauron. The never look for the deep routes was part of Coach Dick's plan to 'not try to lose a game' and we will soon discover whether the dump off's were Edwards or Jauron's way of doing things. The ball is in Edwards' court to show that he can be that QB we all loved. As for his wobble ... all of them throw wobblers and having watched McNabb down here in Jersey for years I can tell you that his passes wobbled and were underthrown but still got the job done. 2. Brohm - Yes, I am one of those who was impressed by him in college and wondered why he didn't succeed at GB but everyone needs to get their facts straigh about "Green Bay not wanting him" because they matched the Bills' offer in an attempt to keep him but Brohm picked Buffalo. All reviews seem to indicate that his issue has been confidence but that he has the arm and smarts to play QB. If Gailey could turn Thigpen into something special then there is a chance that he can do the same for Brohm who has benefited from being in all of the camps! 3. Fitz - Ok, if Fitz had been born with a good or great arm then he'd be a superstud QB!! This guy has the leadership qualities that everyone wants plus the guts to try to get what is not being given to him. His arm will never be close to Edwards' or Brohm's but in Gailey system of using the run to win and with our RB's ... a QB like Fitz just might be able to be a winner. 4. Levi - What a totally ridiculous comment that he is a blocking dummy ... to me that might qualify as the most inane posting of the month (it's probably from someone who saw Brown get his butt kicked by Ohio State ... haha or who has checked out his Madden ratings). Late round draft picks have been known to become quality pro QB's ... I won't name them all but I think we all know one or two. It's pretty clear that this is not going to be his year to compete for the starting job but then again ... he is smart, has leadership qualities, and a decent arm ... we might be surprised. I can't wait for the real camp to get started ... and to see our new BILLS in action trying to win rather than doing whatever to try not to lose sort of .... GO BILLS

Promo - RIGHT ON! You forgot to state the obvious that unless Madden rates a player highly they will definitely fall on their face during the season (And, no member of the Buffalo Bills is ever rated high enough to meet the well established standards of some on this board who while claiming to be a Bills' fan also point out that not a single member if the team (rookie or established player) has any place in the NFL. To answer the question, Nelson will be here and if healthy has the potential to be above average (he surprisingly dropped to the 4th round after some said he might be a 2nd round pick plus we forget he was a rookie in the 'Play to Not Lose' offense of Coach Dick. Matthews is not going anywhere because he is a proven blocker who fits our new run to win offense and he played for Coach Chan in college. I think we keep just one more and it should be an interesting battle.

I am not shouting his praises but truthfully there is not one member of the Buffalo sports media who knows how to work a story and break news. All of them whether they are at GR-Let's take a poll, The News, WECK, NF Gazette, Olean Whatever, or the TV stations ... all of them sit back and either use the same sources Chris Brown uses or they just give their opinion. Wouldn't you think one of the papers or stations would send someone to Texas to talk with Schobel or dig into the story? Same with the Lynch non-sense. What about the status of CJ's signing ... what is his agent thinking? Oh well, I will give a listen to this guy ... just to get a Bills fix.

You are so right! One of the strengths of the NFL is the season ... why not add a game every night of the week ... let's start in July ... let's add another 6 teams to the playoffs ... see if football can end before hockey ... I agree that we do not have to pay for the preseason practice games. Let the teams scrimmage like we used to with the Browns every year and cut out two of those "games." Adding two more games just means there is a greater chance of us seeing back-ups playing before the season is over.

This heading is very misleading ... there is a difference between most popular and which quarterback we think will be starting come September. I agree that Levi has to be the most popular because he is a rookie who has not screwed up anything ... then Brohm for almost the same reason (I do not understand those who hate this guy who has never really done anything good or bad in a Bills' jersey yet), followed by Fitz and then Trent. But if you are asking who will be starting in September ... my money is on Trent even though I'd like to see Brohm come through!

Well is he the 3rd best or is Joique Bell? Taking a look at the records that Bell set in college ... and his positive attitude that is not wrapped up in roughing up people ... Bell finished his Wayne State career with 6,728 yards with 88 touchdowns along with 79 catches for 918 yards and eight touchdowns… totaled 8,055 all-purpose yards and 576 points placing him ninth and fifth in NCAA history in any division. We are obvioulsy a better team with Lynch being in BEAST mode and running forward rather than from side to side but if Lynch maintains his attitude well then he just might be the #4 back. But, he's in camp ... let's see what training camp brings us ... and maybe he'll be down at Pike's Market sooner rather than later.

Big time kudo's to the front office!!! For once the Bills are ahead of the pack in bringing in the draft picks. Now the challenge is to see whether the Bills and CJ can be the first of the first rounders signed starting the avalanche for the other teams. Some team has to be first and why not the Bills? As for Easely, I am on board with the rest of you who think this kid is something special and not just a one year wonder. Looking at his consistent play at CT does not lead to comparisons with our other "one year wonders." Although I wish his comments in Brown's article would have included that he can't wait to go across the middle because it appears that our new offense will find receivers running many different routes designed to move the ball, score points, and win games rather than carefully protect the team from losing, which was the old philosophy around One Bills Drive. GO BILLS

You got to check his MADDEN ... no way he's a bust ... MADDEN has him rated over BIG BEN ... this kid is going to pass for 4000 + and have a rating of 130 ... I just know it ... Remember it's not how you play ... it's how MADDEN ranks you!

Can we please link all the inferior postings together ... it seems like two links about Brohm started at the very same moment ... and the truth is we don't know and he has not stood out in the camps so far. I will admit ... I have been a fan of Brohm the college player and would love to see him become something special but to believe "an ESPN insider" is a strong indicator that you would buy this beautiful former swamp land in Williamsville off of Cayuga Drive where homes have been built.

Troy did not play Ohio State last year ... 2009 LEVI BROWN STATS DATE OPP RESULT CMP ATT YDS CMP% LNG TD INT RAT ATT YDS AVG LNG TD 9/3 @Bowling Green L 31-14 28 44 263 63.6 25 1 2 112.25 3 -12 -4.0 5 0 9/12 @Florida L 56-6 8 24 66 33.3 24 0 1 48.10 6 -12 -2.0 11 0 9/19 UAB W 27-14 24 32 413 75.0 67 2 1 197.79 2 -10 -5.0 0 0 9/26 @Ark State W 30-27 33 46 355 71.7 29 2 0 150.91 3 15 5.0 9 0 10/6 Middle Tenn W 31-7 18 30 191 60.0 52 1 0 124.48 6 -3 -0.5 4 0 10/17 @FIU W 42-33 28 37 391 75.7 45 3 0 191.20 7 -11 -1.6 3 0 10/24 North Texas W 50-26 27 44 469 61.4 58 1 0 158.40 5 7 1.4 6 1 10/31 Louisiana-Mon W 42-21 28 41 378 68.3 41 4 0 177.94 2 -1 -0.5 5 0 11/7 @Western Ky W 40-20 20 33 251 60.6 25 1 0 134.50 3 41 13.7 37 0 11/14 @Arkansas L 56-20 29 50 321 58.0 30 1 3 106.53 3 9 3.0 9 0 11/21 Florida Atlantic W 47-21 27 36 477 75.0 70 3 1 208.24 2 13 6.5 14 0 11/28 @Louisiana-Lafayette W 48-31 293 64.5 67 3 1 169.40 4 -17 -4.3 3 0 2009 Postseason Game Log Passing Rushing BOWL OPP RESULT CMP ATT YDS CMP% LNG TD INT RAT ATT YDS AVG LNG TD GMAC BOWL Central Michigan L 44-41 31 56 386 55.4 48 1 0 119.15 8 -12 -1.5 4 0 And, he did not play Ohio State in 2008 Levi's 2008 statistics 09/13 ALC W 65-0 107.0 6 10 56 5.6 17 0 0 1 2 -5 -2.5 0 0 09/27 @OKST L 24-55 133.6 2 2 8 4.0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 10/18 FIU W 33-23 163.8 18 28 253 9.0 86 0 2 1 7 0 0.0 6 0 10/25 @NTEX W 45-17 158.9 40 50 391 7.8 43 0 2 0 6 14 2.3 7 0 11/01 @LAMO L 30-31 137.4 23 36 221 6.1 29 1 3 0 3 27 9.0 13 0 11/08 WKU W 17-7 129.6 30 46 298 6.5 58 1 2 1 5 12 2.4 9 0 11/15 @LSU L 31-40 90.5 34 72 316 4.4 35 1 2 1 2 -2 -1.0 1 0 11/22 LALA W 48-3 70.5 7 16 51 3.2 17 0 0 1 2 -1 -0.5 9 0 12/06 ARST W 35-9 174.4 15 23 181 7.9 29 0 3 0 1 -1 -1.0 0 0 12/21 USM L 27-30 118.0 26 43 255 5.9 33 0 1 4 5 -27 -5.4 8 0 Totals: 201 326 2030 5.5 86 3 15 9 33 17 0.3 13 0 Jamie Hampton was the Troy quarterback in the 2008 game that saw Troy routed by Ohio State. Levi did not make an appearance in that game. So, once again if you are going to be a basher ... get your players right and know what you are talking about. Remember always check Madden first ... because Madden knows all!