Never NEVER Give-up

We don't get anything for Jabari Greer????

Admiral Sir Andrew Barton was quite famous. Following his death, an English writer wrote the following poem (which also became a folk ballad): Sir Andrew Barton As it befell in midsummer-time When birds sing sweetly on every tree, Our noble king, King Henry the Eighth, Over the river of Thames past he. He was no sooner over the river, Down in the forest to take the air, But eighty merchants of London city Came kneeling before King Henry there. "O ye are welcome, rich merchants, Good sailors, welcome unto me!" They swore by the rood they were sailors good But rich merchants they could not be. "To France nor Flanders dare we not pass, Nor Bordeaux voyage we dare not fare, And all for a false robber that lies on the seas, And robs us of our merchantsware." King Henry was stout, and he turned him about, And swore by the Lord that was mickle of might, "I thought he had not been in the world throughout That durst have wrought England such unright." But ever they sighed, and said, alas! Unto King Harry this answer again: "He is a proud Scot that will rob us all If we were twenty ships and he but one." The king looked over his left shoulder, Amongst his lords and barons so free: "Have I never lord in all my realm Will fetch yond traitor unto me?" "Yes, that dare I!" says my lord Charles Howard, Near to the king whereas he did stand; "If that Your Grace will give me leave, My self will be the only man." "Thou shalt have six hundred men," saith our king, "And choose them out of my realm so free; Besides mariners and boys, To guide the great ship on the sea." "I'll go speak with Sir Andrew," says Charles, my lord Howard; "Upon the sea, if he be there; I will bring him and his ship to shore, Or before my prince I will never come near." The first of all my lord did call, A noble gunner he was one; This man was three score years and ten, And Peter Simon was his name. "Peter," says he, "I must sail to the sea, To seek out an enemy; God be my speed! Before all others I have chosen thee; Of a hundred gunners thou'st be my head." "My lord," says he, "if you have chosen me Of a hundred gunners to be the head, Hang me at your main-mast tree If I miss my mark past three pence bread." The next of all my lord he did call, A noble bowman he was one; In Yorkshire was this gentleman born, And William Horsely was his name. "Horsely," says he, "I must sail to the sea, To seek out an enemy; God be my speed! Before all others I have chosen thee; Of a hundred bowmen thou'st be my head." "My lord," says he, "if you have chosen me Of a hundred bowmen to be the head, Hang me at your mainmast-tree If I miss my mark past twelve pence bread," With pikes, and guns, and bowmen bold, This noble Howard is gone to the sea On the day before midsummer-even, And out at Thames' mouth sailed they. They had not sailed days three Upon their journey they took in hand, But there they met with a noble ship, And stoutly made it both stay and stand. "Thou must tell me thy name," said Charles, my lord Howard, "Or who thou art, or from whence thou came, Yea, and where thy dwelling is, To whom and where thy ship does belong. "My name," says he, "is Henry Hunt, With a pure heart and a penitent mind; I and my ship they do belong Unto the Newcastle that stands upon Tyne." "Now thou must tell me, Harry Hunt, As thou hast sailed by day and by night, Hast thou not heard of a stout robber? Men calls him Sir Andrew Barton, knight." But ever he sighed, and said, Alas! Full well, my lord, I know that wight; He robbed me of my merchantsware, And I was his prisoner but yesternight. As I was sailing upon the sea, And a Bordeaux voyage as I did fare, He clasped me to his archboard, And robbed me of all my merchantsware. And I am a man both poor and bare And every man will have his owner of me, And I am bound towards London to fare, To complain to my prince Henry. "That shall not need," says my Lord Howard; "If thou canst let me this robber see, For every penny he hath taken thee from, Thou shalt be rewarded a shilling," quoth he. "Now God forefend," says Henry Hunt, "My lord, you should work so far amiss! God keep you out of that traitor's hands! For you wott full little what a man he is. "He is brass within, and steel without, And beams he bears in his topcastle strong; His ship hath ordinance clean round about; Beside, my lord, he is very well manned. "He hath a pinnace, is dearly dight, Saint Andrew's cross that is his guide; His pinnace bears nine score men and more, Besides fifteen cannons on every side. "If you were twenty ships, and he but one, Either in archboard or in hall, He would overcome you every one, And if his beams they do down fall." "This is cold comfort," says my Lord Howard, "To welcome a stranger thus to the sea; I'll bring him and his ship to shore, Or else into Scotland he shall carry me." "Then you must get a noble gunner, my lord, That can set well with his eye, And sink his pinnace into the sea, And soon then overcome he be. "And when that you have done this, If you chance Sir Andrew for to board, Let no man to his topcastle go; And I will give a glass, my lord, "And then you need to fear no Scot, Whether you sail by day or by night; And tomorrowe'en, by seven of the clock, You shall meet with Sir Andrew Barton, knight. "I was his prisoner but yester night, And he hath taken me sworn," quoth he; "I trust my Lord God will be forgive And if that oath then broken be." "You must lend me six pieces, my lord," quoth he, "Into my ship, to sail the sea, And tomorrow, by nine of the clock, Your Honor again then will I see." * * * * * And the hatch-board where Sir Andrew lay Is hatched with gold dearly dight: "Now by my faith," say Charles, my lord Howard, "Then yonder Scot is a worthy wight! "Take in your ancients and your standards, Yea that no man shall them see, And put me forth a white willow wand, As merchants use to sail the sea." "But they stirred neither top nor mast, But Sir Andrew they passed by: "What English are yonder," said Sir Andrew, "That can so little courtesy?" I have been admiral over the sea More than these years three; There is never an English dog, nor Portingall, Can pass this way without leave of me. "But now yonder peddlers, they are past, Which is no little grief to me: Fetch them back," says Sir Andrew Barton, "They shall all hang at my main-mast tree." With that the pinnace it shot off, That my Lord Howard might it well ken; It stroke down my lord's foremast, And killed fourteen of my lord his men. "Come hither, Simon!" says my Lord Howard, "Look that thy words be true thou said; I'll hang thee at my main-mast tree If thou miss thy mark past twelve pence bread." Simon was old, but his heart it was bold; He took down a piece, and laid it full low; He put in chain yards nine, Beside other great shot less and more. With that he let his gun-shot go; So well he settled it with his eye, The first sight that Sir Andrew saw, He see his pinnace sunk in the sea. When he saw his pinnace sunk, Lord! in his heart he was not well: "Cut my ropes, it is time to be gone! I'll go fetch yon peddlers back myself!" When my lord Howard saw Sir Andrew loose, Lord! in his heart that he was fain: "Strike on your drums! spread out your ancients! Sound out your trumpets! sound out amain!" "Fight on, my men!" says Sir Andrew Barton; "Weate, howsoever this gear will sway, It is my Lord Admiral of England Is come to seek me on the sea." Simon had a son; with shot of a gun-- Well Sir Andrew might it ken-- He shot it in at a privy pace, And killed sixty more of Sir Andrew's men. Harry Hunt came in at the other side, At at Sir Andrew he shot then; He drove down his foremast-tree, And killed eighty more of Sir Andrew's men. "I have done a good turn," says Harry Hunt; "Sir Andrew is not our king's friend; He hoped to have undone me yesternight, But I hope I have quit him well in the end." "Ever alas!" said Sir Andrew Barton, "What should a man either think or say? Yonder false thief is my strongest enemy, Who was my prisoner but yesterday." "Come hither to me, thou Gorden good, And be thou ready at my call, And I will give thee three hundred pound, If thou wilt let my beams down fall." With that he swarmed the main-mast tree, So did he it with might and main; Horsely, with a bearing arrow, Stroke the Gorden through the brain. And he fell into the hatches again, And sore of this wound that he did bleed; Then word went through Sir Andrew's men, That the Gordan he was dead. "Come hither to me, James Hambliton, Thou art my sister's son, I have no more; I will give thee six hundred pound If thou will let my beams down fall. With that he swarmed the main-mast tree, So did he it with might and main: Horseley, with another broad arrow, Strake the yeoman through the brain. That he fell down to the hatches again; Sore of his wound that he did bleed; Covetousness gets no gain, It is very true, as the Welshman said. But when he saw his sister's son slain, Lord! in his heart he was not well; "Go fetch me down my armor of proof, For I will to the topcastle myself. "Go fetch me down my armor of proof, For it is guilded with gold so clear: God be with my brother, John of Barton! Amongst the Portingalls he did it wear." But when he had his armor of proof, And on his body he had it on, Every man that looked at him Said, gun or arrow he needs fear none. "Come hither, Horsely!" says my lord Howard, "And look your shaft that it go right; Shoot a good shoot in the time of need, And for thy shooting thou'st be made a knight." "I'll do my best," says Horsely then, "Your Honor shall see before I go; If I should be hanged at your main-mast, I have in my ship but arrows two." But at Sir Andrew he shot then; He made sure to hit his mark; Under the spole of his right arm He smote Sir Andrew quite through the heart. Yet from the tree he would not start, But he clinged to it with might and main; Under the collar then of his jack, He stroke Sir Andrew through the brain. "Fight on, my men," says Sir Andrew Barton, "I am hurt, but I am not slain; I'll lay me down and bleed a while, And then I'll rise and fight again. Fight on my men," says Sir Andrew Barton, "These English dogs they bite so low; Fight on for Scotland and Saint Andrew Till you hear my whistle blow!" But when they could not hear his whistle blow, Says Harry Hunt, "I'll lay my head You my board yonder noble ship, my lord, For I know Sir Andrew he is dead." With that they boarded this noble ship, So did they it with might and main; And found eighteen score Scots alive, Beside the rest were maimed and slain. My lord Howard took sword in his hand, And smote off Sir Andrew's head; The Scots stood by and did weep and mourn, But never a word durst speak or say. He caused his body to be taken down, And over the hatch board cast into the sea, And about his middle three hundred crowns: "Wheresoever thou lands, it will bury thee." With his head they sailed into England again, With right good will, and force and main, And the day before New Year's even Into Thames' mouth they came again. My lord Howard wrote to King Henry's grace, With all the news he could him bring: "Such a New Year's gift I have brought to your Grace As never did subject to any king." "For merchandise and manhood, The like is not to be found; The sight of these would do you good, For you have not the like in your English ground." But when he heard tell that they were come, Full royally he welcomed them home; Sir Andrew's ship was the king's New Year's gift; A braver ship you never saw none. Now hath our king Sir Andrew's ship, Beset with pearls and precious stones; Now hath England two ships of war, Two ships of war, before but one. "Who helped to this?" says King Henry, "That I may reward him for his pain:" "Harry Hunt, and Peter Simon, William Horsely, and I the same." "Harry Hunt shall have his whistle and chain, And all his jewels, whatsoever they be, And other rich gifts that I will not name, For his good service he hath done me. "Horsely, right thou'st be a knight, Lands and livings thou shalt have store; Howard shall be Earl of Nottingham, And so was never Howard before. "Now, Peter Simon, thou art old; I will maintain thee and thy son; Thou shalt have five hundred pound all in gold For the good service that thou hast done." Then King Henry shifted his room; In came the Queen and ladies bright; Other errands they had none But to see Sir Andrew Barton, knight. But when they see his deadly face, His eyes were hollow in his head; "I would give a hundred pound," said King Henry, "The man were alive as he is dead! "Yet for the manful part that been played, Both here and beyond the sea, His men shall have half a crown a day To bring them to my brother, King Jamie."

What has Lynch done lately that merits his dismissal from the team? Nothing!! Yeah, the hit-and-run, the gun-pot thing and the most grevious-bringing-his-own-booze-into-bars has surpoassed the patience of some, perhaps many. But he hasn't done anything else that we've heard and he CAN be a monster to handle when running the ball. Also, if he plays to his potential (and there's no reason to believe he won't - he loves the game), he & Freddy give the Bills the best 1-2 tandem of RB's in the league (arguably). It cracks me up that some folks want to trade that away when we ALL know the NFL has become a 'two-back' per-team league. What do the Bills have to barter with, that other teams my like. DB's - that's why the Whitner rumors persist and make a lot of sense. What else? $-3 type linemen - maybe they can be traded for 3-4 type linemen or LBs? Just a thought. Anything else? Not really. On to the Draft!!

I agree - trade down here and get an extra pick or two. This guy saying RB shows he knows nothing about the Bills' needs ---> OT / DT / QB / OLB / ILB / Guard depth & WR. (in no particular order). If we stay & pick at 9, we will get a good player - one of the OT's, a QB OBD likes, McClain, etc., but we hase soooo many needs, I actually hope we trade down and get more picks. But our front office needs the accumen to pick good players.

In all the teeth gnashing and hand wringing over the weeks since Nix & Gailey announced they want to run a 3-4 defense, everyone seems to forget what else they said about their defensive plans. Yes they want to run the 3-4, but they realize they do not have all the pieces for it. They have some good defensive football players & they will play - they will be put in position to succeed. Sounds to me that we will be running a varient of the 3-4. By virtue of our personnel (and those that will be drafted too), our opponents won't really know what we are running against them - a true advantage. Regardless of what we run, there's no way Belechik and Brady can just waltz in a know they are playing the same old Bills Defense. The youngsters in Miami & NY will also have trouble playing a 3-4 hybrid. Remember what Gailey has said, time & again, it's so hard to play against the 3-4. So of course we want that to be our base, but then we'll also need to get creative to maximize the talents of the 11 guys they'll be putting on the field. It'll keep the opponents honest. And folks need to stop bashing the Bills - if you hate 'em so much, go root for someone else or take up NASCAR. Honest concern, apprehension and nervous jitters are understandable, but the nastiness that we saw last year against McKelvin & Whitner and some of the many nasty barbs aimed at anyone at OBD is crazy.

He must be a real jerk! Doing this with Incognito seems just like the Peters situation. I think Mark Gaughn is making an assumption about Wood, because Wood hasn't been that optimistic. Although he is targeting camp, he realizes it may take longer. I think the safer assumption is that he will miss this year and we should plan to be without him and keep Incognito. Perhaps not tendering any of these guys is a way of saving $$ and being able to offer them less at a later date - not sure -just a guess (& maybe a little hope)!!!

BillsGuy is right - we cannot whiff here. With guys like Bell on the roster, we can't afford a mistake here. Bills left tackle Demetrius Bell was dead last in PBP (Pass Blocking) rating. In eight games, ProFootballFocus.com charged Bell with five sacks, seven QB hits and 18 pressures. Bell also was one of the most penalized players in the NFL before an injury ended his season at Week 13.

Quick - send the study to Shanahan's wife & daughter!!!!!!

Build the infrastructure first. Start with the lines, then linebackers, we have decent receivers and backs and our D-secondary is very good. That leaves QB. If you take care of the infrastructure 1st, whomever plays QB will double the production of last years QBs - even if we use the same guys!

I'm not sold on the QB's in this draft and Clausen would be my 3rd-maybe 4th choice. The reasons evryone gives for picking him are the same reasons why I wouldn't. - Ran a Pro set - and still didn't help his team win - couldn't make those around him better - Well coached - and was only as good as we saw last year (see preceding line) I think he has maxed-out, he has been coached-up and is as good as he's going to get and AGAIN, he hasn't won games, don't even mention Bowl Games or Championships, and he hasn't made those around him better. In fact it was Golden Tate who made Clausen look somewhat appealing!

2-14 or 3-13 - OK then we get an awsome Draft Pick - LOCKER. But I think they are wrong and we are in the middle of the pack - as usual. Remember this is still a mediocre league. The "experts" only look at face value. As it was, Perry Fewell was 3-4 with no offense and a decimated roster. We are at least a 7-9 team next year - no where near #30 in the Power rankings. But if they want to slot us there great. I prefer being under the radar anyway. We are not so far away from winning as people think. Do we have problems . . let me count the ways. But so does everyone else. We need to shore-up the O-Line, that will enable whatever QB plays to play better, which means more points and wins. (Not to mention a good QB coach and OC that won't be going anywhere.) We already have good receivers and great RB's, especially if Lynch comes back with a chip on his shoulder. (Another off-season indiscretion and it's off to Cincy!!) On the Defense, we need some Key people - a DT and 2 LB's. Do-able in the draft. Again we are not so far away. Let the boys at OBD do their thing. Assess where we can improve in FA. What vets will return? Then address the missing pieces in the draft. Lastly, make a trade for a proven QB if possible - but for nothing more than a 3rd rounder. Our draft slot almost makes our 3rd rounder look like a late 2nd rounder. Lastly. Either I completely disagree with LaCanforta about the quality of the coaches or simply these guys are better because they are different. The old regime had to go. Remember, we won't be changing OC's a week before the opener. That alone makes this team better. Most if not all signs point to improvement. Or look at it this way . . . where are we getting worse? Worse than last year? I would say virtually nowhere (unless Schoebel hangs it up). So those dire predictions are the off-hand comments by experts about an irrevelent team. We s/b slotted bet 15-20. Better than #30, but still irrevelent. Any improvement from there will be a real feather in Gailey's / Nix's caps.

SalPal is wrong - Dead Wrong. As a Syracuse Alum with friends-in-common with Donovan, he is just interested in a good deal and he has no problem with WNY. The real question is who do the Bills want? McNabb, Vick or someone else. TYhis will work itself out - probably before the draft.

Couldn't agree more. What has me most excited is the fact THEY SEEM TO HAVE A PLAN. An actual PLAN!!!! Nix hiring a young & very well regarded Asst GM and watching Gailey hire his coaches, the strength coaches, looks wise to me. They are probably reviewing personnel and draft possibilities - the quiet (and agonizing) period for football junkies. I like Russ Brandon, but I never had confidence in his talent evaluation skills. Now we have some football guys with a plan. Leave 'em alone to build the plan, then work the plan. FA, trades? and the draft will be very interesting this year. It would be great to see all the folks who called Buddy the bafoon, eat their words and give him some credit for player moves and draft choices.

Why are we switching to a 3-4? Because it is a pain to defend and it allows us to put the best players on the field - maybe the D-line would be Stroud-Williams -Kelsey and the LBs Schobel, Mitchell Poz and Maybin? Who knows, but we won't need converted safeties playing LB (although Scott was decent). It will allow the coaches the flexibility to put different personnel groupings on the field and make it more difficult for our opponents to defend.

hmmmm. . . . sounds like a Philadelphia Eagle-kind-of-guy!!!! (see Jason Peters) Peppers only plays when HE wants to. Too infrequently. I'd pass on him.

Funny - they outbid the Bills for Lavurenes Coles (sp?) last year (3 yr deal if I recall correctly)

Gailey is a very good OC. Haley is a nut-job and was probably the problem in KC - not Gailey. I'd rather have Gailey as the OC to whomever we hire as HC - Billick, Frazier, Levy (oops)

AWESOME !!!!! Prefectly Done!!

As far as no GM would want the Bills job, I believe it was Tim Graham that reported that several GM candidate-types were miffed they didn't get to interview for the Bills job. If the Bills like Frazier, then there won't be a hire until the Vikes are out of the SB Tourney. So whay are people saying we need to hire someone right away? Funny how Casserly (who reportedly was one of the aforementioned GM candidate-types) was the ONLY one to report the Jim Harbaugh snub. Whenever any other journalist mentions Harbaugh, they report that he "reportedly" snubbed the Bills or they say that the Bills may be interested in him. There have been no other utterances of such certainty. Obviously there is a lack of confirmation here. I'm not too worried about this "story" (read fairy tale). Peter King says the Bills are doing exactly what they said they were going to do. It will be a long & thorough process. It has been and will continue to be. I like reading Jerry Sullivan, because he always gives you something to think about (that's his job). However, I rarely agree with him on the majority of his contentions and I gotta believe, based on his usual tone, that the guy is pretty miserable in his life . . . so a little pity for the guy as opposed to consternation. I like Buddy Nix. Strikes me as a thoughtful guy, a football guy - in the Polian-Butler mold. (Remember Terry Bledsoe and Stew Barber - they were jokes as GM!!!) I actually think Ralph may have done this one right. Lastly, anyone catch Felsers article in the Bflo Snooze on Sunday? His comparison to the Jets and how each organization has built their current rosters was sobering. Read it, he was dead on. The Jets are in the Championship game because they hit on their draft choices and FA pick-ups while we struck-out on most (almost all!!) since 2006!! Hopefully Buddy still has plans for Guy (the ax) and Modrak (scout). Perhaps he didn't want to go into the Senior Bowl with no help. Remember what Felser said . . . the Jets have like 20 scouts. The Bills 12 and 3 are emeritus (retired) - that says it all. (#'s approximated based on my recollection) Sorry I have no link on the Felser article. It is not in the online version of the Bflo News (yet?). It is in the print edition of the Sunday Paper.

Just seen a guy put a gun in a cab drivers face. Time to dip (about 11 hours ago from txt) AaronMaybin58 Aaron Maybin Instead of time to dip. . . or time to tweet, how about calling the cops?!?!?!?!?!?!?

What?!! Now we're not good enough for LA?!?!?! Just more disrespect for Buffalo!! (kidding)

This whole process cracks me up. The Bills contacted several people and are interested in talking to them about 1 of 32 jobs in the world and some of them are balking looking for something better? Perhaps the 33rd job! I hope they get left out in the cold. Yesterday's game demonstrated the parity in the league. The Bills aren't as bad as some think and if their record were reversed - wouldn't be as good as some would think. Anyone who passes can take a flying leap. I thought we were looking for MEN who want challenges, not pussies who need the table set for them with a HOF QB on the roster. If we had everything in place - we wouldn't need them! Show me the guy willing to take on the challenge - - preferably a GM 1st - who can then organize the scouting and coaching departments. No thanks to the wusses looking for all-stars, HOF'ers or warm weather. We need a tough SOB looking for a fight (can't help but picture Polian yelling at an agent and challenging him to get into a 3-point stance to settle their issues), pussies need not apply.

This is just not in character for the great Buffalo fans!!! We should organize, meet at Tops, buy a few dozen eggs, and launch an egg-citing assault on their homes. That's the Buffalo way!!!

True - a Bills win changes the discussion. Divisional games are usually tough - although the Bills haven't lived up to their end of the bargain lately. It's still pretty unlikely - but that's why they play the game. Would love to see them do it - arrogant Jets fans are nauseating.

Good signing - may be like Levitre, Wood & Bell - with us for years to come. Yes there is some pain and we don'ty have a seasoned vet in there - but we've been OK so far and the Bills want young, athletic guys who love the game . . . Runyon, Jones, Walker - do not fit those 3 criteria. Good Signing!!