Punch

The only way they would claim Merriman is if he were open to committing to Buffalo longterm--- the only way the Bills would be interested in him committing to Buffalo longterm is if over the course of the next 9 weeks he proved he can still be an effective player. That's too many "ifs" for most teams, especially with so many young players needing reps in 2010. I don't see Merriman open to being a Bill beyond this year and I don't expect the Bills to claim him, at the very least for that particular reason--- but I do expect Bills fans and Stadium Wall posters to excoriate Buddy, Chan, & company for not "Gitin'R'Dun'd". They need effective players that want to be here, if Shawne Merriman fits that description, so be it. If not, so be it--- then move on.

At 0-7, why would they care if he remains in the division or not for the remainder of 2010? Claiming him this year has no effect on where he'll land in 2011 and beyond.

Interesting comment from Yahoo's Jason Cole regarding Randy Moss: The real intrigue revolves around Buffalo general manager Buddy Nix, who spent years working for John Butler and was with Butler and San Diego in December 2002 when the Chargers were first among five teams to claim cornerback Deion Sanders. That move kept Sanders from clearing waivers, coming out of retirement and joining the Oakland Raiders on their way to the Super Bowl that season. “I don’t think Buddy is going to do it, it’s kind of a risk,” one AFC team exec said. “But it would be really interesting if he did.” I'm not sure what value there is for the Bills in blocking Moss from playing elsewhere, though, nor just what measure of influence the late John Butler has had on Nix's managerial style. He also speculates that Moss may sit the rest of the season if claimed by the Bills or Panthers, and also notes (as other analysts such as Tim Graham) it makes little sense for Chan Gailey to be interested in him, anyhow.

If the Bills wanted to cut one of these Milk Duds they could do so at anytime. Claiming Moss specifically is obviously not a prerequisite for cutting one of the useless husks still on the roster.

It's definitely a possibility that Carimi could be available at the top of the 2nd round, alhough I think come draft time he'll go somewhere in the mid 1st. But I'd love to get Luck and Carimi, even if it meant trading up somewhat. Then again, the defense could use some help. According to the DraftTek simulation, the Bills got Luck in the 1st, Cameron Heyward in the 2nd, and Nate Solder in the 3rd---- there is no way at all possible that could happen, but I'd absolutely plotz if that went down.

Actually, yes they have.

I don't know what you were thinking when you made this idiotic post. This isn't Madden '11 where you can just plug in a guy with a 94 rating and not worry about any off-field repercussions. Let's break this down: -First, Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots, a team thin at wide receiver, decided it best to ship out their most explosive player--- because they felt it would actually improve their team. Hard to argue now that they stand at 6-1, the NFL's best record. -The Minnesota Vikings, a desperate team with injury issues at wide receiver, a team slowly watching both their division title hopes and even their playoff aspirations dwindling to near nothing, a team that already sacrificed a 3rd round draft pick in exchange for Moss---- decided after 3 weeks that Moss could not help their team! -Randy Moss characteristically gave up on a catchable ball that would have easily been a TD (which indirectly led to Brett Favre being knocked out of the game on the next play), then gave the most bizarre post game press conference since Dennis Green told the world that Dick Jauron's Chicago Bears "were who we thought they were". Brad Childress has reportedly now lost the team and the Vikings season has gone up in flames. And you're saying this gentleman will help an 0-7 Buffalo Bills team in full rebuilding mode? Help them do what, exactly? Randy Moss is 33 years old, likely does not want to play in Buffalo, and even if he did, is he playing here beyond 2010? Is he still going to be effective whenever the team around him is a genuine contender? And if so, what has he shown in 2010 that he will contribute aside from on-field apathy and major off-field headaches???? In 2010, Stevie Johnson has more receptions, more yards, more touchdowns, and monumentally fewer headaches than Randy Moss---- not to mention he's 9 years younger and has proven he'd run through a brick wall to help this team. WTF else do you want, exactly? I'll hang up and listen.

From Tuesday's early edition of the Buffalo News: * * * Here's what Gailey had to say when asked whether the Bills would have any interest in receiver Randy Moss, who was waived Monday by the Minnesota Vikings: "Hey, we evaluate everything every day, but I don't know if that would be a fit or not. I'm sure [General Manager] Buddy [Nix] and I will talk about it. We talk about 'em all."

How many rookie NCAA DEs (Gibson was a DE in college not a LB) are the Bills going to transition to OLB in one season? Why is the only possible explanation for the Bills to not claim him that they were "asleep at the wheel" and "not paying attention"? Do the Bills need to sign every single player that is put on waivers? Have they not established that they are constantly tinkering with the roster by cutting, trading, and signing multiple players nearly every week? For the record, Doug Whaley did not work for the Steelers when the 2nd Coming of LT, All-Pro Hall of Fame NFL veteran linebacker Thaddeus Gibson was drafted. It's possible he scouted him last year, but he was hired by the Bills in early February. I would have liked the Bills to claim Gibson, but the fact that they did not means absolutely nothing. Just like Joique Bell being plucked off the practice squad by Philadelphia. Boy, he sure has ripped up the league since he joined the Eagles! What a senile old coot that Nix is! If only that skinflint Ralph would spend money on caffeinated coffee and alarm clocks!

I understand how the priority system works but I mistakenly thought all of the week's games needed to be played before the process was finalized. I remembered the claim deadline for Trent was a Tuesday... but he was also released that same Tuesday and not the Monday before. Anyway, I was hoping the Bills would claim him, but a I said earlier, he's a "tweener" like Moats and Coleman. It's odd that Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (a terrific reporter) had speculated that the Bills might put in a claim because of Doug Whaley, considering Gibson was drafted in 2010 when Whaley was already working for Buffalo. I suppose it's possible he had done scouting work on Gibson during the 2009 NCAA season prior to leaving the Steelers.

I may be wrong, but at this point I believe that only means the 49ers have put in a claim for him. As far as I understand, all the week's games must be played until the final decision is made, and the deadline for other teams to also put in a claim is Tuesday at 4pm.

What a great idea! It's not like we have talented young receivers that could use 9 more weeks of playing to develop, nor would it be at all inappropriate to add the biggest quitter in the NFL to a team who's only positive notoriety is in playing hard and not quitting despite being winless! We could certainly sell a few more shirts.

He certainly made a fool of himself in the postgame press conference. If he isn't committed to the Vikings then there's no way they should keep him on their roster. I highly doubt the Patriots will put in a claim, no matter how much he misses them.

Now hopefully they actually claim him! He's another "tweener" (he was a DE in college) but he's definitely an intriguing prospect. We'll know for sure by tomorrow at 4pm or so.

Actually, there's a strange quirk in the waiver wire order rules: the previous years' standings are only used in determining proper waiver claim order prior to completion of the 3rd week of the current season. I recalled this Florio article about Trent Edwards' release where it was clarified by NFL spokesman Greg Aiello: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/09/28/clearing-the-air-on-the-waiver-order-for-trent-edwards/ So, at this point, it will be determined by the 2010 standings and the Bills will have first priority.

Quick, is anyone going to rush out and calculate Fitz's passer rating dating back to Week 17 of 2009?

Does Fitz have small hands? A lot of his bad throws appear to just slip out of his grip.

Did Kelsay just get "Pennington'ed", Eddie Robinson style, by Cassell?

It "must of" been.

That's all true--- Aaron Maybin fit the exact description for quick, undersized D-linemen coveted by Dick Jauron's Tampa 2 defense.

You're implying the Bills were considering it--- I would've fired him and I'm sure 99% of those at TSW would as well. But whatever was said on ESPN was speculation about what they should do and has no bearing on what the Bills were discussing behind the scenes.

Amongst whom... fans? If you're privy to the backroom deliberations at One Bills Drive then you probably have access to other information, such as whether Jauron or Modrak are primarily responsible for drafting Maybin. Why start a poll, then? Maybin was a terrible draft pick. Nix and company have publicly stated they will not make draft picks of that inexperienced and overhyped ilk. Until they do, I'll go with other TSW posters with actuall knowledge of the process and believe Dick Jauron had the final say about taking Maybin.

http://www.wgr550.com/Whitner-Outlines-Bills--Struggles-with-TE-s/8455908 "Both Jairus Byrd and Demetrius Bell returned to practice after missing on Wednesday."

Kelly's Bills were a much much better team than Marino's Dolphins, it wasn't merely the Kelly vs. Marino matchup that decided those games (although I'd still take Kelly over Marino anyday). I'd wager that whether or not Jimbo was better than Dan was considered secondarily to the overall strength of the teams for which they played, not to mention the gaudy statistics Marino had. It's strange that both Jim Kelly & Thurman Thomas are left out of the Top 100---- Thomas was certainly a better RB and all-around NFL player than Tony Dorsett who has already appeared on the list.

That's a pretty interesting bit of analysis--- also interesting to note that Trent Edwards arguably possessed only 2 of the traits in the top 2 lists: Accuracy, Ability to hit receivers in perfect stride.