WhitewalkerInPhilly
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Posts posted by WhitewalkerInPhilly
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You know, while I have to say that the Deadspin people should definitely be looking into getting a good lawyer on retainer I have to say it's kind of nice to get a quick peek in at how things are going.
It confirms that Nix feels the same way about the QB situation as many of us do: There is no immediate clear cut answer at this point as to who will be starting (at least until the draft), Fitz is not making backup money and is causing serious cap problems and if he's not going to negotiate the best plan would be to simply bite the bullet and cut him.
To me it also is comforting that Nix feels safe about our O-line, even with Levitre departing. Considering the number of people who have been screaming "Take a tackle at 8 overall and move Glenn to guard" it makes me feel better about that situation. Overall, I don't think Buddy looks any worse than he did already.
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Meh, I'd be ok with this. Last year I was shocked when Florence got the cut and not McGee, for what I assume was a salary related issue. I'm ok with him doing what McGee did last year for less money than McGee.
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Dear God...so, the 49ers, who already had the talent to be a Superbowl team, get Boldin for a 6th round pick and STILL have 14 PICKS! The Ravens are losing a lot of players to free agency, while the niners are looking strong with young talent. I'm glad we don't have to play them this year.
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I think we're paying him waaaaaaay too much. OK, he's a great returner, but this is an awfully big leap of faith for his coverage skills.
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Read this article breaking down Pettine's formations and you'll have a better idea of what the D will look like:
http://www.buffalobi...pettine-part-2/
Like the author of the article, I don't see Mario really playing OLB. He's pegged as a DE even in a 3 man front.
I think Mario will get moved around considering the amount of fronts Pettine uses, but unless there is a bona fide 3-4 DE acquired or Troup pans out as NT and Dareus slides over, Mario will be spending the majority of the time with his hand in the dirt.
One thing's for sure: they NEED LBs!
Exactly. There has been a trend to make the DE mode than just a line occupier, like how JJ Watt is being used in Houston. I can see a three man front of Williams-Dareus-Williams.
Wade Phillips is a master of the 3-4 defense. Pettine is still a young pup learning the tricks...
Yes, all the time as being a coach for the Ravens and DC for the Jets leaves him completely unprepared for running a 3-4 defense...wait, I can't tell if you were being sarcastic or not.
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Also, after thinking for a moment, I can see Scott fitting in well into 46 formation. I've rambled on about it before, but it essentially has the OLB and one ILB in a 3-4 system rush the line while keeping one ILB and the SS in at run support. It seems to fit Pettine's desire to bring pressure, and fully utilizes his tweener nature.
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Okay, this seals it for me.
I think Pettine's goal is to architect an EXTREMELY DB heavy defense. I think we should expect to see 5-7 DB's on the field 90% of the time, so he can disguise blitzes and coverages with a ton of little guys running around the backfield.
Any one else getting this sense???
Very much so.He was talking about running a nickel as a base, and that as the league keeps getting pass happy we need to use more DB's. In the Jets greatest triumph under Rex Ryan (knocking NE out of the playoffs) the entire strategy was using a ton of DB's creatively. We'll see how free agency goes, but I would be intrigued to see a system running 5-7 DBs that mix up packages to bring in the SS to act as linebacker for run defense or on blitzes.
I really want to see what Pettine can do!
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Considering the McIntyre is talking about shopping around, this makes a certain sense. He was underused before, and with Chandler out at TE for a while, so if we're creative we can use him effectively.
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He's lost a step. Living in Philly and watching a bunch of the games, I can tell that he's slowed down and not nearly at his best, and not worth the money he was getting paid. Could we get him dirt cheap? Maybe. He's on the wrong side of 30 in the speed position coming off one of his worst years ever. Probably not a long term solution, but it would end the "we have no one opposite Gilmore" problem for a year.
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Well, let's all take a deep breath and remember that it's only a mock, and Kiper...well, he's not the most accurate.
That said, Glenn was a phenomenal steal at LT. He did a bang up job as a rookie, and with a full offseason of prep, plus a HC whose background is with the O-line, Zebrie Sanders coming off IR and one of the deepest lineman drafts in decent memory.
Do I think that we'll make a run for QB? Maybe, but the two areas where I have no fear for the bills is at RB and the O-line.
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Well damn, I'm going to need a new name...
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While I think we can all debate who is the best choice for each spot, I think everyone posting here an agree on a certain mentality: it's not so important that we pick up a big name during the offseason. I would much rather get 3-4 mid range acquisitions and plug the obvious problems at ILB and WR in advance. If we decide to let Levitre go, we can fill that spot during the draft.
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Albert Breer listed his top 85 free agents. I was unaware that Keller was available before this.
http://www.nfl.com/n...-best-available
Dustin Keller is in Tier 2 which likely would mean he will not demand absolute top dollar. He has always been a huge matchup problem when he played the Bills, I've felt. My brother actually went to Purdue as well which is where Keller played and you could tell he was an absolute physical beast in college. I know there have been some concerns about Chandler and his health so this would be a good insurance policy. Also, if Chandler was fully healthy we would have dual threat tight ends which I think is great to have for any QB. Get it done buddy!
I'm behind it. He's a good 2nd tier talent, and we can pay him as such. We need depth at TE, even if we supplement in the draft.
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Eh, I don't think we was worth the cost. I would much rather us get someone else at WR or possible snag Keller from the Jets and try to run a lot of 2 TE
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Of course they want him. Whether or nor Baltimore is willing to let him go after losing Ray Lewis is another story altogether. While an excellent player, he's going to get overpaid by whoever wants him the most. I would be happy to have him, but he's going to cost a bundle.
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I would be ok with it under a very specific set of circumstances:
1) The Bills aren't willing to trade up to ensure they get Geno Smith
2) Geno Smith isn't available at pick #8 (I don't trust Barkley)
3) We decide that the money that it would take to keep on Levitre would be better served by getting 3-4 new free agents in that will immediate gaps at SS, WR and LB
4) Whoever is brought in is an absolute stud in the trenches and would be an immediate starter
5) we take a QB at the first possible opportunity in round 2
This is the only set of conditions where this would seem acceptable, considering the gaping holes we have everywhere else.
Other than that, we have a lot of probe
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I would argue that Dareus has had his peak performance while he was our nose tackle when he subbed for Williams. But really, we'll see.
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I concur with the growing consensus that trading our 1st round pick to the niners is a good idea. For fun, I started working out where I would people in different schemes and I don't know about all the doom and gloom that people have been tracking.
First of all, we haven't hit free agency yet. Personally, I'm hoping for Pace at LB and Landry at SS from the Jets, who already know how Pettine's system works. Landry should get paid, and Pace should have a low base, high incentive short term contract since there are only a few more good years. Moore would likely be a relatively affordable renewal for DE/OLB
Second, there's Pettine's system to take into account. Pettine has talked about a hybrid 3-4, 4-3 and more recently utilizing a "nickel base", and considering his background this is sounding like a 3-3-5 system, where players are highly interchangeable around the field. Anderson was utilized as a hybrid DE/OLB for the Pats, and Moore would fit into that as well I believe. Another aspect is that Pettine likes his DE's not only to set an edge, but to attack the quarterback, like he did with Ngnata with the Ravens, and like JJ Watt is used by the Texans. Suddenly the front seven looks like this
NT: Kyle Williams/Marcell Dareus/Troup
DE: Marcell Dareus, Mario Williams, Alex Carrington
OLB: Mark Anderson/Kyle Moore/Nigel Bradham
ILB: Moats, Sheppard, Morrison
Ok, the ILB corps leave much to be desired, but Minter and Teo would be decent second round pick improvements, followed up by a 4th rounder to help with depth
That leaves the secondary. A lot of people have suggested that Aaron Williams be moved to safety due to his athleticism and physicality but getting beat in 1 on 1. While he isn't the best fit for SS, I do think he could do well as a NB if that indeed is going to be a base (or very common subpackage). I am somewhat worried about our #2 CB, but it looks like McKelvin is our guy for now (ugh) but there is still time for Rodgers and Brooks to take that away from him.
I am still holding out hope for landing Landry, since he would make for a great 1-2 safety punch with Byrd (who we say we are going to franchise) as that open up room for use in the 46 formation. I did a post about that before, but the 46 is a variation of the 3-4 where there there are actually 4 down linemen, with the NT directly on center, the weakside DE (Mario) is in charge of quarterback rushing and breaking up reverses/counter plays, and the SS comes down to act like a linebacker, which would be a perfect fit for the athletic Landry.
Am I sitting with a big old pitcher of Kool-Aid as I write this? Yes, with an extra bottle of bourbon but that's beside the point. While things aren't good, we can shuffle our players to minimize the loss of the old, dead weight players and we have the cap space to keep the ones we like, draw in some new ones in FA, and few choice picks in the draft can get us into fighting form (if not elite status) fairly quickly.
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I'd do it in half-a-heartbeat...Especially in this Draft...It's pretty widely thought that there is little difference in grade from 1-50 or so...I think this is definitely the Draft to trade down...Especially if Geno Smith is gone by #8...
I agree. This is a good year to trade down, as once Geno Smith is gone I can't really think of anyone on the draft boards who'd I'd say "YOU HAVE TO TAKE HIM AT #8 FOR CHAMPIONSHIP!!!" While getting Geno Smith to drop to #8 would be like winning the lottery, it also has the odds of winning the lottery and I don't like Barkely enough to take him at #8. It also seems that the Bills feel the same way, as they have made commitments to keep both Fitz and TJax. If you don't feel like anyone is special enough to stay away from those two, getting two more second round picks and their first for our first (and maybe 4th or 5th round) would give us the 31st, 34th, 41st and 61st picks. All those second round gems we keep debating over could be ours.
Of course I have serious doubts that Nix would go for it.
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Folks reading too much into the tea leaves. Does anyone believe he'd be going to Buffalo to get his a$$ kicked to the curb?
I actually think it would likely be the reverse of him being let go. Marrone mentioned in the pre-combine that he puts a lot of stock in face to face interactions, so this speaks to the staff wanting to see what he can do.
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Ask me after FA and the draft and Ill let you know.
My gut is this team will be a hell of a lot better because the defense will you know, play defense
I hope so (re: the defense) because I kept looking at our lineup last year and thinking "with all the talent here, they can't possibly be this bad". I just hope that Pettine knows what to do with an extremely talented D-line, Byrd and Gilmore.
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Oh come on? What are the chances that there are homosexuals in a group of incredible buff men who are constantly slamming their bodies against each other, taking each other to the ground and slap each other on the ass for a job well done.
Wait...
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I'm curious, is anyone else getting a vibe that Marrone might be looking at this season and thinking "Well, there's no way we're going to win so let's get rid of the dead wood." ?
I mean, as much as I want the Bills to win, and win now, we're talking about a brand new coach who is inheriting a team which tried to put all its eggs in one basket and broke them. From the moves that we've seen so far, I keep thinking that A) Marrone thinks that he knows a great crop of UFA's who he can work with, or castoffs who are going to play beyond their potential or B) our problems are too severe and too numerous to make a winning team with the players here and we need a purging fire and at least two drafts to get back on track.
While I want A, I keep feeling like B is more likely. Since Marrone has taken over, we've released McGee, Barnett, and Wilson. We aren't going to bring back the decent, but not exceptional, Jones and Nelson. Ryan Fitzpatrick has not been cut and Tarvaris Jackson has been retained meaning there is no clear cut starter at QB. The upcoming QB selection in the draft does not contain any one QB who seems to be a silver bullet, and the most qualified one (Geno Smith) will likely be taken before the Bills get a chance. There are gaping holes at LB and WR, our CB corps are incredibly inexperienced and our starting TE will likely not be available to play until week 8. The cost of holding both Levitre and Byrd is going to break the bank.
Among the cuts we've seen are the players who are in decline and will probably never see the field two seasons from now. We would need every pick we take to become a starter in order to fill all the gaps. I'm still drinking the Kool-Aid, but I need to know if I should mix some whiskey in first...
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worrying about this right now is a waste of time. I am confident that by the time they have a full roster and start minicamps, the schemes and playbooks will be pretty well set. Then they will run through everything and see what works well and what doesn't. They put lots of crap in the playbook that never gets used in games. Relax. Let's save the angst and anger for the draft when they pass up on the 5th round linebacker that is a sure fire hall of famer.
I wouldn't say that I'm worried. In fact, I'm happy, since it seems that Marrone has been taking an extended look at the talent he has, and the talent that he might be able to obtain in free agency and the draft, and is making plans. Is everything going to be used? Probably not, but I'm happy that he is trying to get stuff down.
Eternal optimism...until the season begins. Then the pessimism starts.
DeadSpin - Convo Between Nix and Tampa GM
in The Stadium Wall Archives
Posted
That is, admittedly, me reading into it. But again: last year, and even now THIS year, you have draft "experts" talking about how Glenn would be a perfect fit at guard instead of Tackle where he is now. If Buddy's designs were indeed to move Glenn to that position, then he would not be "set at tackle" because his starting Left Tackle would be elsewhere and we would be in the exact same situation as last year.
Might I be wrong? Yes. Might Nix consider Levitre's departure so serious that he couldn't even CONSIDER someone else on the roster. Also yes. But it certainly would affect the odds if I was going to bet against the Bills taking an OL player in FA or high in the draft.