Red

Don't forget the Buccaneers with Hugh Culverhouse. As soon as Culverhouse passed away, and new ownership took over, the Bucs were in the playoffs and Super Bowl champions. In that case, as in the case with Arizona, it is clear that the owner was/ is the one who short changes the franchise. In Oakland, more and more reports surface on the fading mental functions of Al Davis. Its unfortunate, but the NFL should step in and help someone close to Davis ease him into stepping down and allowing somebody else to run the team business with little interference from Davis. I don't know what the case is with Ralph. He certainly doesn't skimp on players salaries (Owens, Parrish, Kelsay, Evans), but hires on the cheap with coaches, coordinators, and front office staff and scouts. Having read Brian Billick's book, and now understanding that coaches and management salaries come directly out of Ralph's profits, and compounded with the fact that Buffalo is a small market club, I can understand why those decisions are made. Does that mean that Ralph is cheap? I don't think so. Nor do I think it fair to claim him to be a meddling owner along with Bidwell, Davis, Snyder, Jones, etc. But for him to fill his front office with "yes men" like Brandon, and to fail to pull the plug on Modrak and Guy and hire a real GM like Bill Polian, AJ Smith, etc (all former Bills guys, ironically), all out of supposed fear of what Tom Donahoe did to his trust during his reign of terror, is what is truly holding this team back. Buddy Nix is back with the Bills, and this coming draft should see some of his influence now that he will have 1 full year with the club. But he only scouts the SEC. He was with the Bills when they were going to all of the Super Bowls. He left with the late John Butler and AJ Smith in the exodus to San Diego, and helped turn them into a powerhouse. Perhaps Nix could fill Modrak's shoes? Whatever the solution, I believe that the Bills futility will continue until Ralph fills the front office with a proven GM, and a professional scout who knows what he is doing.

Living here in the DC area, this was reaffirmed on Monday as it was stated on the local Redskins sports radio show that Shanahan turned it down for a second time. Gave me some hope that maybe he would be available for the Bills.

I can't believe that they felt content to stand pat and do nothing with the roster. KC has a linebacker it was looking to move. The Rams had a LT. Now they will probably cut Parrish and get nothing in return. Way to go Brandon, and Guy.

They're all on 'roids!

yeah, being a former resident of LA, that populace could care less about professional football.

Dude, they are ALL on some sort of juice. The only ones who make news are the ones who get caught.

To answer your question, Rusty Jones was last seen with the Chicago Bears. I would love to see him back. Injuries seemed alot less complicated and long when he was here. But again, the sheer volume and differing types of anabolic drugs players are on these days surely is leading to alot of these injuries; so whether or not a new strength coach would help or not remains to be seen. But I also remember that there were only 2 teams in the 90's who led the league in innovation when it came to training and conditioning: those 2 were the Denver Broncos and the Buffalo Bills. For the longest time, they were the only 2 teams that made use of the "bod pod" to measure body fat percentage of players. Rusty Jones sure ran a great strength program and having him back would be amazing. Only problem is that I believe he is from Chicago.

I don't know what Banta-Cain's salary is, but he has got to be an upgrade over the 35 year old dude they just signed last week, no? I honestly don't know enough about the Chiefs LB, but if he has just been bad because he is in KC then he may be worth a shot considering our injuries. I seem to remember the chiefs being short on WR's too...hmmm...Owens and Parrish should be made available. Get Johnson and Banta-Cain, and let the best players play. No position should be a given on this Bills team.

I am incredibly skeptical about retread head coaches and any coordinator becoming a 1st time head coach with the Bills at this point. There simply has been too much failure by gambling on cheaper coaching just so that Ralph can half @$$ the front office so that he can pocket some more cash. In good news...living here in DC, on the local sports radio today it was reported that Shanahan once again turned down the Redskins offer to be the head coach. Hope springs eternal...

It certainly would appear that way. When Fouts (maybe it was him) were feigning concern when McGee and Whitner were out, I shrugged and thought we have a few more than capable guys to step up. Wilson played a whole season (and did a pretty good job when he was in there), Youboty has been pressing for playing time the past 2 years before injuries cut short his attempts, and Reggie Corner is a solid CB that could probably be starting on 1/2 the teams in the league. Real solid depth. There's one thing Jauron did right.

He looks like a good addition thus far. Granted, it was only 1 game, but it was his first start in the NFL, on the road, in a hostile environment. To come away with no penalties and I did focus on him a bit during the game, and he seems really like a solid player. Certainly an upgrade over Scott and Chambers. I would love to see the Bills get some fierce talent and competition on the O Line, for a change. Watching yesterday, I was wondering what the Bills would do with Butler if Meredith continues to play solid for the team. Butler himself is a solid player, and it was terrible to lose him for the season. But I'm happy with the guy so far. Which begs the question: I am certainly one for calling for the heads of Modrak and Guy. But why is it, that those 2 guys seem to be horrible with free agents and high draft picks, but often strike gold with undrafted players or practice squad players? Meredith being one. But Peters, Greer, Moorman, and Fred Jackson all strike me as impressive finds. Ashlee Palmer may be another one. It's almost as if the Bills should trade away picks 1-5 for proven players, and continue to draft in rounds 6 and 7 while signing undrafted guys aplenty and raiding others practice squads. It's a paradox.

That, my friend, is exactly what I am saying. Edwards under center this season (with the exception of the Pats game), and the offense seems flat. Dull. Dead. Unemotional. Same story when Bledsoe and Losman were under center. Now, for the past 4 games this year same story, different QB. I don't think it takes a rocket scientist to know that Edwards- along with most NFL QB's these days- are thrown too quickly into the fire. Let us recall, that Trent came from an abysmal college team at Stanford that had absolutely no offensive line. Despite this, there was enough flash of talent that not only NFL legend Bill Walsh but also Marv saw something that warranted more. Giving proper grooming, I believe Edwards does possess the skills needed to become a very successful QB. Now, do the Bills have the time to devote to his development? And is he capable of developing further in this system and under this coaching staff? Arizona really knocked him around last year, and concussions are no joke. He has not been the same QB that started last season 4-0 since the knockout. And now he has another one. He appears skittish in the pocket. When he was put in in place of Losman, he exuded poise and leadership. He made smart, accurate decisions with the ball and was not only a checkdown QB. He possessed that pocket presence all great QB's have. That all appears shattered now. Fitz is not the answer. But this might be a situation where Edwards needs to take a step back in order to take two steps forward.

I posted this thread earlier yesterday at halftime.

I sincerely hope Fitz starts. I want to see what he can do with a full week of practice in him.

I agree with trading Parrish and Owens. I have always liked Garcia, but don't know if he would help. Let's put it this way: if Edwards is going to be out for a long period of time (6+ games), then I would bring in Garcia to eventually take the reins from Fitz. But if Modrak and Guy are still with the team next year, it won't matter how many picks they have. Now, my big fear is that with a win, the team may overlook the need to sack Modrak and Guy, and they may actually believe that things are working.

Dude, Royal was and is a waste of a paycheck. He is the poster boy of the Marv Levy/ John Guy guide to free agents. He is right up there with Dockery, Walker, and Triplett. Now, if you want to cry about free agents leaving cry about London Fletcher, Antione Winfield, and Pat Williams. Those guys are durable, pro-bowlers who are still ripping it up.

Houston is pretty competitive. If the Bills that played against the Pats show up, we could be on a 6 game winning streak. If the Bills that lost to Cleveland show up, let's just say I hope that we don't choose a QB with the 1st overall pick next year.

YEah, way too early to throw in the towel. Don't forget, he held out and missed training camp. All of that valuable learning and conditioning time.

Very good point. I was watching the new RT- Meredith alot, too. He does not seem too shabby. It was a relief to finally get to 3rd and short and not have a bonehead penalty.

yeah, this was a win against a divisional opponent, wasn't it? This makes the Bills, what...1-8 in the last 2 years against their divisional opponents?

Agreed. After the offensive calls again went safe and they decided to let the final seconds run out to trot Lindell out onto the field to miss the winning field goal in regulation, I told my wife here we go again. The Jets allowed the Bills to hang in there. Nobody should win after 6 turnovers. But Sanchez has been getting way too much credit for a rookie. Well, that, and he has no receivers. There are too many dark clouds to be truly happy. This is the same team, after all, that a week earlier lost a similar contest to the Cleveland Browns 6-3. The defense did give up over 200 yards rushing. Not exactly championship material. The running game also seemed often inept, and one dimensional in its play-calling. Jauron's decision to keep passing when Jenkins left the game was also too passive. To let the clock run down and kick a field goal on 2nd down, when they should have tried atleast 1 more play to get closer...I felt another Jauron safe game analogy coming with another loss. The offensive line seemed to play better after Trent left the game. Atleast in pass protection. But it is only 1 game. Could this be a turning point in the Bills season? I would hope so. Maybe they can have the polar opposite of last year where they started out 5-1 but ended up 7-9. Maybe this year they start out 1-4, but end up 9-7 or 10-6. Only time will tell. More than likely though, the decimated defense will continue to take a beating, the special teams will continue their spectacular and unforeseen collapse, and the offensive players will continue to need seeing eye dogs to help them get a sniff of the end zone. Hopefully after that, Modrak, Guy, and Jauron will be gone and a real GM will be here. Ah, then we can start anew...

C'mon, man! Go back to Tampa, New Orleans, and Cleveland. Even today he overthrew his deep balls. Edwards has been tentative in all of his decisions, hence the moniker 'Captain Checkdown'. He is not seeing the field properly. Whether that is due to lingering effects of an injury (he is not the same QB post-concussion), or lack of confidence in the O-line, or whatever...his execution is clearly not there. He is slow in his deep reads, and too quick to dump it off. Now, again I must stress that if this coaching staff feels that Fitzpatrick is #2, then he obviously is not starter material. It is hard to say that he did better; as the differences were subtle. If he came in and threw for 400 yards and 4 touchdowns, it would be easier. But he hit Evans and Owens and Reed with enough diversity to probably be the best receiving game of the year. I can't back it up with stats, and Fitz is not the answer, but it was nice to finally see the receivers become part of the game. And that HAS been lacking with TE at QB thus far.

Though I may not be over with Edwards, I do think he needs some more time to mature and learn. I thought he was thrown into the fire too early in his development because of circumstances beyond his control (JP sucked) and the nature of the NFL game today. And I am far from a Fitzpatrick fan. But he was throwing to his receivers. I don't know the official stats, but I seem to think that Owens equalled his season production thus far with receptions. Now if he could just catch more of 'em... Edwards just does not seem to be reading the defense properly and making proper decisions on the field.

He looked alot better and decisive than Trentative. Dare I say it, the offense even seemed to have a little more cohesiveness to it (the same way it used to when Trent came in to spell JP). That is a very general statement, ofcourse...as the running game could have used some help. But the passing game and the receivers seemed to come more alive with Fitz. Except for Owens. What is his problem with catching a ball? The other, and perhaps most important factor, which Fouts mentioned during the broadcast, was that Fitz did not have the benefit of a full week of prep with the first team offense. I hardly think we have a controversy- as the team could clearly use an improvement over both of them at this point- but a win is a win.

I agree. It would appear that Evans switched the ball and then outstretched his original catching arm to brace himself for the impending collision with the ground. Certainly, a professional receiver with his skills can do two things at the same time.