thurst44

And oddly won in a style that's reverse-Bills (i.e. heartbreaking for the other team -- and here's to you, mr. denkinger)

You mean other than Spiller's 6.2 yards per carry between the tackles last year? Honestly, I do think there's a lot to criticize about the game-calling this week, but the use of Spiller/Jackson is not one of them. They were right to use FJ often, yet to keep trying with Spiller b/c he has proven his ability to break a big run at any moment -- the exact sort of giant play which can spark a team. To my inexpert eyes, it seemed like something was off in the exchanges between EJ & CJ, but it's also very likely Spiller simply had a bad game. If that's the case, one of the heartening things to come out of a blah loss is that Jackson looks to still be a force with which to be reckoned and one of the best back-ups/2-punches in the league, and when both are playing at top of their game it will be hard for other teams to stop.

Personally, I don't think it's a question of heart...both FJ & CJ seem to have passion and motor to spare. I'm more worried that something seemed out-of-sync/broken with CJ...the handoffs from EJ to CJ seemed awkward and it felt like one or the other was telegraphing every run. But then, I'm not an expert and could be seeing something not there. Hopefully CJ just had a bad game. Honestly, I liked the way Marrone/Hackett mixed FJ in as a counterpoint, and continued to try to get the big play from CJ. CJ just wasn't making it work.

Actually, if you're following trends, recently more Pats-Bills games have been within a TD than a blowout.

Ridley & Vereen over Spiller & Fred Jackson? Really? So Cordy Glenn, Eric Wood, and Kraig Urbik are not "real offensive linemen"??! And I'd love to see you tell Dareus he doesn't play with toughness. Really, the dude had one bad stretch after his fifth or so close relative died in tragedy.

Hopkins got hurt, he didn't fail. He may still play for the Bills for a decade. Hardly 0 for 2. Let's not count our roosters as dead before they hatch...

Hogan has been quite good as a gunner. That's my reason for wanting to keep him. I'd love them to keep 7, frankly, like that year George Wilson made the team as a WR.

While part of me kinda agrees, one could also argue that a celebrity doing a good deed in the light will encourage others to do the same. Also, if a kid sees SJ13 doing this, it sets the notion of community as a value. This particular act of kindness sort of cements the idea that Stevie is part of the Buffalo community. This is one of the things that makes Buffalo a special NFL market...the fact that you might go out about the city and interact with the players. I had dozens of encounters with Bills in my 7 years in the city...in my last 15 years in NYC, the closest I had to even seeing a Jet or a Giant was when I saw either Tiki or Ronde Barber coming from that credit card commercial they did a few years back.

Overreacting and reacting are not the same. Oh, and watch out for the sky...it is falling! (actually, i'm visiting buffalo and this storm does kind of feel like the sky is falling...damn!)

Thank you! He not only got a win against NE, but did so with Beanie Wells as his RB. Not to rip into Wells, but he's no CJ Spiller, nor even Freddie. And the Bills defense looks like it could be set for a breakout season. Look, I still want EJ to start, but this whole hue and cry that Kolb is horrible and can't win in the NFL is ridiculous. He started 4-0 last year with a team that went 1-10 without him, whether they won because of him or in spite of him. Has he proven himself? No. Did I want him in the off-season? Hell no. Am I sad that we won't see any more of EJ in the pre-season? Yes. However, let's have some perspective...it is not impossible, based on prior evidence, to believe that a team can win with CJ, this defense and special teams, even with (gasp!) Kevin Kolb as the QB. I'm rooting for EJ to be QB on Game 1, but if it is Kolb, hopefully he finds the spark. I also am both bemused and slightly fed up that the Bills are looking great in pre-season, and last I checked there were three threads up top blasting specific players. Yes, our team has been miserable for a long time, yes, they've started 5-2 twice recently and collapsed, but if we can't at least try to enjoy it when things are looking positive, what's the point? At least Jerry Sullivan has an excuse.

To be fair, he looked like an absolute beast on special teams, always swarming the ball carrier (and we were constantly stopping their returners before they got back to the 20)

Yes, you can extrapolate...how many times have they won only 3 games...are you even watching the game? Or just whining about it? There's been a lot of good signs in this game, to temper some of the questions arising. Brooks alone has been a study in extremes!

What people might be missing here: just b/c CJ is getting a lot of carries, does not mean that FJ will be forgotten. I agree that CJ should clearly be the featured back, and get more touches than last year (and I hated the awkward "let's put one, then the other, in on various drives"), hopefully Freddie will still be on the field at least 50% of the time, either blocking, or making it so that teams can't focus on CJ. One of the reasons I feel Spiller is poised to have a historic season, is that he has Freddie backing him up/blocking for him/adding a counterbalance.

Yes...that is why they signed a QB who went 4-0 with a mediocre-at-best team last year. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Kolb fan, and am an advocate of EJ starting on Day 1, by any means, but he's probably not particularly better or worse than Fitz. Chances are this team will not be as bad as many here think they will...most likely they will be mediocre as always (but more fun to watch)...there's a chance with CJ, Freddie, a good DC, and all that speed, they could be the surprise team...

There's reasons...Don't know the OP's situation, but we're having ours on Saturday, because that's the one time all 11 (one's a husband/wife team) of us can be available for a long period of time (and more importantly, the most of us can be in the same place eating & drinking & making silly, nerdy references for hours). During a lunch earlier this off-season, I stupidly and successfully convinced my less-postive-than-me Bills fan friend who was downplaying the signif of CJ ("team shouldn't draft RBs", "dime-a-dozen"...that kind of thing) that he was a special player...now, he's drafting right before me...d'oh! In any case, we're 7-4 Bills fans, so doubt he was dropping to 6 in any case. Frankly, CJ has so much upside, and there's so few sure thing RBs this season, he's a great pick at almost any position (and i bet he goes #1 in many drafts)

Or, maybe, just maybe, Mario is resting a small injury a week BEFORE the first pre-season game. Funny thing, everybody called him out on the arm, yet once he got surgery, he played up to expectations (if you were paying attention). And leave it to Sully to stir the pot days after the nonsensical, pointless hubbub had died down. MMD, you and Jerry Sullivan and your shared negativity are about as useful as the non-Glengarry leads.

Don't you mean Kelly vs. Rob Johnson? {running away}

8th in fewest sacks allowed and 2nd in rushing yards is NOT "average at best"...and that was with multiple injuries and turnover

But he does have the GlenGarry leads, and those are GOLD!

Other than the fact he is not Roscoe Parrish 2.0...but if you want to make a lazy argument...

I'm not seeing anywhere where he's been injured during his career where he scored 35 TDs. Welker's the same size, and while he's not been immune to injury, he's played enough to push 10000 yds. He's not Roscoe Parrish. Look, he's not even my first choice, but I'm just getting tired of these facile arguments based on attributes and not performance or facts.

Wow, thanks...you expressed perfectly what I've been stumbling over in convos with fellow-Bills-fan friends -- my issues with this whole mentality of a team having to take a QB in first round if they need one. Nicely done!

If I'm part of the angry mob, I apologize (we've given the term "angry mob" a bad name)...draft day is a giddy-happy day in my book! On that note, a friendly prod to the OP to re-try this thread...loved the idea of it and its positive light!

Austin is NOT Parrish...check their college records and scout profiles. And, you know what, don't paint me into a corner where I have to defend the Patriots and Welker as NOT cheaters! Part of my point is that Austin will not need Brady...plus check out Welker's stats with Cassel at the helm...not too shabby. Damn, you made me defend that guy. Jerk!

Ok, can't argue with that logic...paint 5'9" Wes Welker blue and he still will retire near or beyond 10000 receiving yards in the NFL. I still contend Austin could be fascinating in this offense with CJ, SJ and TJ (and don't rule out Freddie as a well-above average 2nd back). Jordan=slightly better Maybin? Maybe, but while I know draft experts can be lockstepping idiots at times, when Maybin was picked at 11, he was widely considered a stretch and an awful pick -- if the Bills got Jordan at 8, he'd be considered one of the major steals of the draft. Agreed. As a friend of mine put it (paraphrasing), if they draft Nassib at #8, he won't like it, but he'll get behind it, b/c what else are we gonna do as fans?