Alphadawg7

Wow, had not heard about that. Crazy

Well he's gonna be 5 years older now too though and gone through some big injuries. I am skeptical, but hey guys like Rich Gannon, Testaverde, etc have had a big late career resurgences, even putting up the best years of their careers. Im sure Elway knows a lot more about QBs than me too haha, but I still remain skeptical this moves the needle much for them in a division with Mahomes and Rivers still. I think Elway is hurting the team long term by trying to be just good enough to kind of compete now, but facing a major uphill battle to get buy the Chiefs in their own division and also contend with rising AFC teams that include the Colts, Browms, Texans, and even us to be honest. They are going to end up behind the curve with an old roster while these younger ascending rosters have a big head start on them.

Yes that is it. To show this better and address your scenario, lets pretend your work suddenly started requiring you all to start each day off with the playing of the National Anthem in your office and also required you to stand for it. If you had personal reasons that made you uncomfortable standing for it and elected to sit and they fired you for that, you would win a BIG wrongful termination law suit. It would be a slam dunk, just like if Kap could prove collusion it was going to be a slam dunk and massive pay day. Which is why the NFL likely chose to settle if they felt that Kaps team had a strong enough chance to prove it. Im guessing there is some smoking gun in emails, thats typically where people screw up the most in terms of putting damning information down...that and text messages. They can not require you to perform any actions through the playing of the song just like they cant force you into prayer or any acts of religion. And the playing of the national anthem is a political moment, albeit positive and celebratory moment most people enjoy and want to be a part of. So to force an individual to participate in that moment or face termination (or in this case blocked from employment) will be a form of discrimination in the court of law. He was absolutely black listed IMO...if not, there is 0% chance the NFL settles as now the assumption is that there was collusion and NFL paid to make it go away before being exposed. Settling equals guilt in the court of public opinion, and thats the court the NFL is most afraid of. NFL didnt back down from their golden boy Brady or Zeke last year...they aren't settling just to be more convenient. They settled because they felt they couldn't win or there was enough of a chance of a loss to not risk it.

Yeah, always sickened me. I do believe in second chances, reform, etc. But that was a pretty extreme case of murder and torture for pleasure and entertainment. Had it just been the dog fighting, fine I get that a little more as it’s a cultural thing from how he was raised. But the murder and torture was just sooooo sick and something I never thought he would recover from.

Simple answer: Discrimination in any workplace is illegal. And colluding to keep him out of the league for his political beliefs is a form of discrimination.

Yeah he is a guy who spends millions (before the protests ever started too, not just after) and dedicated time and work to a number of charities and social causes. Yet people, including here, still want to believe he’s a monster and also judge his character based on their opinion of him as a QB and the fact he protested in a way they didn’t like. Meanwhile a true monster in Vick never received remotely close to the kind of hate Kap gets. One is a violent murderer for pleasure of defenseless animals and the other fights for social issues and charitable causes. Society has some serious priority issues.

He had 16 TDS to 4 INT in his last partial season. Teams records are not for a single player to shoulder. That 49ers team was the fastest dismantling of a very good team in NFL history. Several guys in their prime (and the teams best players) retired or got suspended. Several others were lost including most the talent on offense, etc. So, to put the record on a Kap is ridiculous, that team had literally the worst roster in the NFL, worse than even the one we or Arizona fielded this season. And your opinion of him of a QB is fine, but not how a settlement would be evaluated. He had a massive contract, made a SB, was in his prime, and bad QBs still make lots of money in the NFL. He is going to get quite a large settlement and I seriously doubt it’s less than $50m to him because it’s going to be lost wages, future lost wages, and damages.

Thats fair too. And not trying to poo poo all over Flacco, anyone who can get to the NFL, win a SB, and get paid deserves lots of respect and credit. My issue is more with Elway, who because he won a SB in 2015 with Elite D and terrible pass attack with the ghost of Peyton and dud Osweiler, keeps trying to bandaid the QB spot and replicate that. But his D is no where near what that D was, and I think he’s doubling down on the same mistake last year where he elected not to draft a QB and instead sign a journeyman QB who had one solid PARTIAL season on his resume. I mean Flacco and Keenan’s numbers are almost identical, and while I do believe Flacco to be a better QB, how much better is questionable, especially at this stage of Flacco’s career. Who knows, maybe Flacco ups his game with a new start and makes Elway look good. Im deforest not shocked he did this, Denver was one of the two teams I thought would trade for Flacco based on Elways track record.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2820996-colin-kaepernick-eric-reid-settle-grievances-with-nfl-in-collusion-case No details will be made available, gag order on both sides. But obviously was some kind of financial settlement from the NFL. Im guessing it could be in the $50M range or bigger based on what QB's make in the NFL, his last contract, how long he was out to the league and damages consideration. Which really isnt that much money to the NFL in the first place to make this go away and not go to a trial they have a good shot at losing. Be interesting to see what happens rest of offseason if Kap gets any interest now. Couple teams would make sense as either a stop gap or backup like Was, Jax, Mia, Balt, Seattle, potentially Oakland if the trade Carr and draft Murray. Although I still think not that likely he gets much attention as it will still be seen as potential big distraction. If he is a backup, distraction goes away quickly, no one will care much about a guy on the bench. But as a stop gap starter, his play will be overly analyzed every week and it will be a media circus following him if he struggles while starting.

1 - Don’t have a million holes. 2 - Free Agency is going to fill several key holes 3 - We have a ton of cap room and 10 draft picks. Conclusion: We have plenty of ammunition to address needs, which includes a Punter. So all options are on the table...Free Agency, Draft, and UDFA rookie for a punter. Punters are important, if there is a top filght rookie available 6th or 7th round and we had not yet addressed it in Free Agency, then absolutely yes you can use a low round pick on any kicker. This idea some have that you can’t is foolish. If you can get one of the best college players at a kicking position in the draft over someone like 60th best prospect at some other position that has a high bust chance, you take the better player and get that kicker who could be substantially more valuable than what ever other position we could have drafted. And we need a Punter, so I expect one to be picked up somewhere, and with extra later round picks, I think it’s quite possible we could draft one and should if there is one they really like.

Ok, let’s calm down a bit on connecting dots that likely aren’t there. Kapernick has NOT declined a job in the NFL. The article says he hopes to play again in the NFL. Just because someone doesn’t want to play for the AAF unless heavily incentivized does not mean he has some min salary requirement to take an NFL job. And there is no evidence at all that he really declined AAF unless paid $20m, just a random report where we see random reports every day in all sports that have little substance to them. But, Kap is gonna continue to unfairly get villafied because people want to find more reasons to never like him. Kap is getting black balled, it’s not even up for debate. He is better than at least 2/3rds the QBs on NFL rosters right now, but can’t even get a workout and it has nothing to do with salary requirements.

Fair point and reply People do that too, although that was at least McD

You said "if we wanted him, we should have drafted him" over Sammy. There is no "we" in this organization that was part of the "we" of that organization. Not sure there is even a player on this roster that was on the team before that draft right now. Whats the point of saying that statement? Has literally no merit to whether THIS organization would have interest in getting Allen and Elite weapon like OBJ. Thats not me having a tendency to read too much into anything, thats me reacting to what you literally just said. And people on this board blame Beane for all kinds of things that happened before he got here that have nothing to do with him, so its not even out of the ordinary for this board.

How could Beane draft OBJ over Watkins when that was 3 years before he joined the Bills? Lmao How many more things before Beanes tenure here are people going to pin on him? Bad enough people blame him for Woods and Mahomes, both things that were before he was a Bill. Now Sammy over OBJ? Haha

It’s not crazy and I said during the season I thought there was a small chance OBJ could be traded this offseason. And if he is made available, good chance Beane at least calls to find out price IMO. I would prefer Brown over OBJ though. Brown is more reliable and mentally stable. But like I said above, if he really is available I would expect Beane would at least check on what Giants want for him. Rumors going around that Bell is going to Raiders and they are gonna trade for OBJ too. But rumors are just rumors

Well the team has a deal it can easily get out of if they think he isnt worth keeping, so thats good. But I think he will be here next year and play a bigger role too. I dont know he gets to double digit sacks or not, but I think he can be a valuable player either way. He didn't blow anyone away this year, but like you said, sometimes it takes a bit to recover mentally from big injuries, plus he got banged up some this year too. He did however makes some nice plays here and there, so he has potential. People wanted to dump Shaq last offseason and then he really proved his worth this year. I think Trent could do that next year himself.

I agree, and do think the trade down is legit possibility.. However, I am quite skeptical that Beane will sit tight on 10 picks. 9 picks is still quite the rookie load, as we only would be given up one of our 4ths to do so. Its not like we are losing a 3rd since we are essentially making that pick earlier in the 2nd round to get a premium player. For me, the 2nd round is RICH with some exciting prospects. I just have a feeling one way or the other we will be making 3 selections in the first 2 rounds. Either via trade down, or possible trade up. Beane is aggressive in getting guys he covets and I think there could be some "go get em" guys in the 2nd where Beane will be motivated to have more than one pick that round. For example, lets say we stay at 9 but draft either OL or DL there. Then enter the 2nd round where there may be multiple guys on the board they covet like Fant, Risner, several different WR's, Ximines, etc. I very much could see Beane making a move to get another player there having those 2 fourth round picks in place. AND: If we DO trade down and get that extra 2nd from Washington (or someone else), I can STILL see Beane moving up into the 2nd for a THIRD player. We would have at least 11 picks at that point, and not impossible Beane picks another 4th or 5th up in the trade down too (hes a witch). So using some of the later round ammo to move around the draft is very much in play and could see him moving a 3rd and a 4th to get back into the 2nd for a third player...or maybe packing up some of the additional picks to get an additional pick in the 3rd. Right now, Beane is sitting in a GREAT spot...plenty of cap room to shore up needs in FA and also having 10 picks, plus the #9 slot that may be a coveted trade up spot in a draft deep in areas we could use help on. So this is a great place to load up in the 2nd round in my opinion and he has a lot of opportunity to gain extra picks in 2nd and 3rd rounds.

Yeah for sure, definitely not saying throw in the towel on Zay. Just saying I see him staring down the barrel of an uphill climb right now. He has yet to establish himself as excelling in any area of his job, this is a make or break offseason for him I believe simply due to a numbers crunch. Reality is we are likely signing a quality WR in FA then drafting one. Already thats those 2 relevant guys, plus Foster (who is already ahead of Zay) and then Duke and Zay. And its not out of the question for them to add even one more WR to the mix via FA or Draft. The only way Zays job isnt in jeopardy is if we only bring in one more WR, likely via draft, into the mix with Foster, Zay and Duke. Then he is probably a front runner to play in the slot. But I find that not very likely and the most likely scenario is a FA and a high drafted rookie. I have nothing against Zay, was excited when we drafted him, but he has been quite disappointing so far and I expect there will be stiff competition along side him this offseason. If I am Zay I am paying close attention to both how many WR's they bring in and to WHO they are. For instance, if we sign Humphries, I think Zays days are numbered.

I do love the Duke signing though and of course the Foster signing. He has some serious potential. I know he has to prove it in the NFL, but this kid always had a ton of talent, was just off field stuff that landed him in CFL and he certainly seems to have learned from his mistakes and turned a corner. He has Brandon Marshall or Dez Bryant type game to him. Now he has to show he can keep it going in the NFL, but I am very bullish on this signing. I have said several times in other threads I am not convinced Zay will be any higher than 4th on depth chart come week 1, and could be lower or even not on the roster anymore. Foster already passed him, I think Duke has the potential to do so too, and I am sure we will sign a FA still and draft one, both of which will be higher on the depth chart than Zay. His best shot is to out play Duke, but right now, I like Duke in that battle if I was to bet on it.

I dont see room on the roster for someone like Garcon UNLESS they are going to cut/trade Zay or Duke. We will likely only carry 6 WRs with the 6th guy being more for ST like McKenzie or signing someone like Patterson. Foster, Duke, and Zay already make up 3 of the other 5. I doubt Garcon and a rookie WR is all they would do to address the WR position this year. There is no way we won't be drafting a WR in first 3 rounds, and could take one in the first. With or without Garcon, I would expect they still try and sign a better FA WR too. With only 5 spots to fill (6th being for the ST guy) I just cant see where Garcon gets a roster spot. I would put this as very low odds of happening as a result.

Huh? I have no idea what this response has to do with what you responded to. Are you sure you hit reply on the right comment?

This is what I would do: First: Shore up OL in Free agency, sign 3 key guys. Second: Sign Humphries, WR in FA too to give us a Kupp/Edelman type slot weapon for Allen. Also sign Cordalle Patterson as WR and gadget player depth, but mostly to substantially upgrade our return game. Third: Trade down with Washington to #15 (I know its hard to mock trade downs, but I think there is a lot of potential for this to be a reality) and pick up their 2nd. Draft: #15 - Hockenson, TE. #40 - (Top WR available) - Butler, WR #46 (from Was) - Oshane Ximines, EDGE From there on, draft a RB like Love or Henderson in the 3rd or 4th round too. Boom. What we accomplish is: Allen gets an established and reliable slot weapon in the mold of Kupp/Edelman Allen gets a bonafide Kelce like weapon in Hockenson We add a high level WR prospect along side either Foster or maybe even Duke (I think he has a legit shot to compete for a starting spot here where Foster may be more the big play guy). Still have Zay and Patterson rounding out the WR room at 5 and 6 (yes, if we have Humphries, Butler, Foster, and Duke, I think Zay falls to 5th on depth chart as a rotational player in that group) We get an under the radar stud EDGE rushing prospect (small school) who is a big time leader on the field too We add some youthful explosion that can catch and run in our RB room. And our OL was shored up through established vets to make an immediate improvement to Allens protection and our Run Game. And most importantly...a deep playoff run in 2019! FOOTNOTE: We can STILL do this without a trade down with Washington. To pick up that extra 2nd round pick, we could trade our 3rd and one of our 4ths to get back into the 2nd round to get someone like Ximines still (or obviously a player they covet). I do not think Beane intends to make 10 draft choices and I certainly think a trade up at some point is even more likely if we do make a trade down and end up with 11 or 12 draft choices. #Alpha4GM #GoBills

Lets be real though...he came in midseason not knowing the system or playbook on a team that already had Star and Kyle along with rookie Horrible Harry. Wasnt like he was suddenly going to start of either Kyle or Star, especially not having a full offseason and regular season with the team and playbook. So still playing one third of the snaps under those conditions is actually impressive. He quickly carved his way into the rotation as a midseason arrival. Why do people expect he was going to play more than that under those circumstances? This is where once again "stats" do not tell the whole story without the context. And I dont say that to advocate for say $10m a year, I say that specifically about your criticism of the 1/3 snaps without applying the context to that part of the information.

Beane has been excellent as our GM, I for the life of me can not figure out why people cant see it. Cracks me up at all the people who were pissing and moaning about the offense last year as if THAT offense WAS the rebuild lol. There is a massive difference in FIELDING a team and BUILDING a team. Last year we had to field an offense still while we dealt with the one season cap situation we HAD to go through in order to clean up the cap. Yet people still slam him without factoring the facts and logic of the situation. Makes me laugh ever harder when people blame things like Robert Woods not being here and KC/Mahomes trade on Beane when he was an employee of the Carolina Panthers when those things happened too. Cleaned out our cap situation a year faster than he said it would take when hired. Managed to get a 2nd round pick and a player who helped us break the 17 year playoff drought for oft injured and over paid Sammy Watkins (and I really like Sammy, but facts are facts). Got Browns to give us a premium pick, first pick in 3rd round, in a deep draft for a QB no one here thought would fetch more than a 6th. Wasnt afraid to make a midseason trade to try and get some WR help in KB because we were in an unexpected playoff run. And it helped us make the playoffs as we dont win the SnowBowl game without him. Managed to trade up THREE times in the first round last year to get TWO players and DID NOT give up ANY future FIRST round picks, or any future picks at all. I dont know thats ever been done before. Found the QB of our offense of the future and the QB of our defense of the future with those trades. Had a great first draft finding great value behind those picks at other positions. Found a diamond in the rough in Foster after the draft and wasnt afraid to cut dead weight at WR midseason to make room for him to get on the field. Managed to acquire even more draft assets (10 total) this year despite all the trading around last year. Still managed to field the #2 defense in the NFL DESPITE the big offensive challenges first half of the season making life really hard on the D. And there is more than this...but what's the point. People are still going to B***h that KB didn't ultimately workout despite that he did help us break a 17 year streak. People are still going to whine about the offense not being good last year or the OL not being good despite we had a rookie QB who missed time, we had 2 OL with Pro Bowl resumes retire after trading our under performing LT to get into position to get Allen, etc etc. Beane is doing a great job SO FAR...he now has to show his building skills. He is a master of building a foundation and cleaning up a bad situation getting more value than people expect for assets we are sending out. This is the year now that the real rebuild starts around that rock solid foundation they have established. He will ultimately be judged on the success of that, but so far, there is a LOT to love about him in my book. Oh...and we broke our 17 year drought under his watch along with McD, who is another young star coach in this league who has been coaching his a** off here getting the most out of this roster.

I do not disagree with you on that...I think if he shines at the combine he will be the first WR taken or at least one of the first 2. However there are some who believe he will fall to the 2nd (I do not agree), so I put his name there anyway because until the combine and workouts, we dont really know what kind of order the WRs can go. Its crowded at the top with at least 7 guys who have the potential to be the first couple WR's taken and the combine and workouts will start making the pecking order a little more predictable I expect.