Punch

I like Manningham, but at 5'11" 178 lbs he's not quite the big physical receiver that can make plays and "get open even when he's not open", right?

I don't think so based on timeframe, but nothing official. It lends credence to an imminent signing, IMHO.

http://blogs.buffalobills.com/2012/03/14/mario-update/

Chris Brown has confirmed this. And also confirmed that Mario had a physical this morning, which is SOP for visiting FAs.

He did get in trouble for tweeting some sensitive Bills related info in the past and his twitter account did in fact temporarily disappear after that. The tweet was implied to be related to Bills ownership, and honestly, there was some news but it wasn't quite as big as expected. He's very close to his Uncle Jim, but it's possible he merely found out that Mario is still in town and would be visiting OBD this morning, not necessarily that a signing is imminent. I'm pretty optimistic, though.

FWIW, Jim Kelly's nephew tweeted this a few moments ago: @chadkelly12 Wow just found out something pretty impressive, looks like the Bills will be very good next year! I cant wait to watch the new team!

It links directly to Jason LaCanfora's NFL.com blog: http://blogs.nfl.com/2012/03/13/bears-expected-to-come-hard-after-mario-williams/ His specific quotes sound like pure speculation; that if the Bears are indeed his first visit they may not let him leave without a contract. Nothing concrete at all: The Bears could be the first team Williams visits, and it might be the only team. Its believed Chicago will go hard after him.

Remember, Tom Donahoe had Jeff Posey signed at 12:01am, way back when.

Interesting comments posted this morning in Chris Brown's blog at BB.com--- includes quotes from Buddy Nix regarding players actively recruiting FA: I think its a bigger part than anybody believes, said Bills GM Buddy Nix. They expect to hear the same thing from me and front office people when theyre in here because its like recruiting in college. Back when I was recruiting in college I always told the prospects all coaches are going to tell you basically the same thing. Theyre going to tell you what you want to hear. Theyre selling. Talk to the players when you go out with them at night or youre with them in the dressing room and theyll tell you the truth. For the most part thats what the Bills do during the free agency period. They encourage free agents to talk to the players on their roster. When these free agents come in here they listen, Nix said. They know somebody on every team and theyve normally got close buddies on every team. If those players say, You cant trust that guy. Hell lie to you, or he wont do that. Theyll tell him. They dont care. Theyd like to have them on their team, but theyre also not going to lie to their friends. I think youve got to treat everybody fair and have a good atmosphere in the building and that can translate to getting those guys to come. http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-2/Players-big-part-of-free-agent-recruiting/195cbc41-c17f-4874-8f05-078e0167768d

The article specifically refers to "Buffalo Bills All-Pro linebacker Shawne Merriman" and includes direct quotes from him as he is one of the many investors owed money by Laettner. The subject line says "OT" because the main story is about Laettner, a WNYer, and despite Merriman's involvement it is not nominally about Merriman. "OT" means Off-Topic, which is often used by message board posters to identify topics that fall outside the designated subjects associated with a particular message board. Although this article involves both a renowned professional athlete from WNY and a current Buffalo Bill I felt it should be distinguished from the usual topics regarding the upcoming draft, pending free agents, and Buddy Nix's naptimes. Thank you for your response and please enjoy the rest of my football blog. End sarcasm and Go BILLS!

Interesting story with multiple ties to WNY athletes: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/christian-laettner-owes-30-million-unpaid-loans-sports-215427065.html

I'm not questioning why bounties in the NFL are a story--- I'm wondering if Coy Wire is contradicting his original story in less than a week, to the point where he is denying Gregg Williams ever condoned or encouraged bounties of any kind, to draw attention to his forthcoming book. Did he not specifically state that there were monetary rewards for such hits in Tim Graham's original piece? And now he's backing off of that claim? If he now insists Gregg Williams was not involved then why did he come forward in the first place? I didn't click on the click in the OP, I only noted it is directed from ESPN.com. I'm not trying to deny the Associated Press it's credit. This is what I'm getting at.

It's called: "Change Your Mind: 10 Unconventional Secrets to Retrain Your Brain" It was referred to in Tim Graham's Buffalo News article a few days ago, in which he explicitly contradicts what is reported in the above ESPN article concerning whether or not Gregg Williams was involved in the bounty rewards: http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/bills-nfl/article747663.ece

If Greg Williams wasn't responsible for the bounties--- according to him, only the players were--- then why is he bringing this up now at all? Coy Wire has a book coming out--- that's all this is about.

Interesting opinion from Tim Graham: Tim Graham ByTimGraham Tim Graham I'm not reporting Polian is returning to Buffalo, folks. Read carefully. ... Just two guys talking, but source is wise. 1 hour ago Favorite Retweet Reply Tim Graham ByTimGraham Tim Graham Had interesting talk with NFL source. Began chat thinking Polian return to Bills absurd. Then we talked ourselves into believing possible. 1 hour ago

He was released by Dallas earlier in the season then signed by Washington for a few weeks, then released again. We had the highest priority waiver claim and he was awarded to us 2 weeks ago.

That's certainly a bold assessment. At what point did you come to that conclusion?

I blame Rayner for that Stevie drop.

Threads like this are ridiculous. I can't imagine anyone that backed Fitz in the past will have had his or her opinion changed by today's performance. It's nothing we haven't seen before and it's not even particularly alarming considering the circumstances (injuries, gameplan, the Cowboys ran out to a big lead, Fitz' limitations).

He will definitely draw attention.

I agree on all counts. The handoff to Turner was so slow developing that the play never had a chance unless the Falcons O-line completely blew the Saints off the line... and they didn't even come close.

What was the result in the Bills-Cowboys game that followed Mark Miller's commentary in that video? I'd like it to go a slightly different way this time thank you very much!

This response by Chris Brown is dead on in regards to Maybin. His pass rushing skills are not leading to sacks, it's his hustle in not giving up on a play that has--- in obvious passing situations and usually late in games. He's still getting pushed wide by the LT on every play or pancaked. The Jets are devastated by injuries on the outside and desperate for an OLB-- if not for that he'd still be in street clothes. I don't hate the guy, but he's no better today than he was in training camp. For a guy that claims to be team first and unselfish it does still grate at me a bit that he held out his entire rookie training camp (which arguably stunted his pro development) and seemingly spent more time promoting himself through rap videos than developing football technique and learning how to properly maintain the mass on his frame.

While it's true that Fred, Stevie and Fitz were brought in pre-Nix--- Buddy, Chan, Whaley, Moody, etc. all work hand in hand on talent evaluation, and those 3 players were never given a chance to be unquestioned fulltime starters until Nix/Gailey. Guys like Chandler, Urbik, Pears, Barnett, Merriman, Dwan Edwards, etc. were brought in by Nix, not to mention the numerous draft picks that have become major contributors. And of course, he hired the perfect coach for this team. If Nix isn't a candidate for Exec. of the Year (all of the above wasn't necessarily accomplished in one year, of course) then I don't know what type of executive can possibly be considered eligible. He's done a hell of a job thus far, and there's still work to be done. Not bad in such a short time.

Aaron Maybin has become the Tim Tebow of pass rushing.