offde-fence

Brett is just a man - a football professional, who's spent his adult life doing one thing, and that has consumed his time almost completely. Considering the media attention, the hall of fame assumptions, the money, the advertisements, etc., it's no surprise he finds himself twiddling his thumbs when it comes time to retire. I'm a working man - in a machine shop - and if someone told me today that I could retire, I'd jump for joy and never look back; but, that's because I make my meager living doing something I despise. If I had the money Brett has and could just not work, there's a million things I would do. He doesn't need hobbies - he could just travel for years, or spend time with his family. So, it must be the attention. He must miss all the attention, or, he really truly misses the game. Either way, it isn't surprising to me that it is what it is with him. That being said, I've got nothing against him, and if he were to go to the Vikings, I'd be interested to see what would happen, considering their great D. It wouldn't surprise me if they didn't win the SB, though, because he is older, and there are a lot of good teams at the top in the NFC, especially the eagles and giants, and the Vikings still don't have great recievers.

I don't consider it a loser mentality or thought process. Football is a lot of things - brains, muscle, teamwork, passion, etc. If a few of our important competitors want to talk it up to the point where they will be blinded, in a sense, by intensity and feel the need to go out and smash each other up, then, the consequences might be that those teams could injure themselves, or, have slumps on other weeks. I'd like to see the Bills go out and impose their plan on their opponents. However, if they are being overlooked, or under-prepared for to begin the season, then I'm fine with that. We have a young team that could use a few early wins to increase their confidence - by the end of the year everyone will be playing hard for the playoffs. I'm just saying let them take as much out of each other as possible. If we were to make it to the playoffs, and superbowl, we'll have plenty of tough games where teams are doing everything possible to stop us. But, like the rams did in their first SB year, to start off fast and surprise teams - that might be good. I'd rather see it that way than to have Rex Ryan firing up his squad to blast Trent Edwards - and to see him attacked all game long with the intent of hurting him. Sure, Ideally we would want to play the best competiton every week. We'd want all our opponents at their best - like the SB champs often see. But, realistically, I'd rather see some success first, and then have a target on us. I guess, to be honest, it comes down to thinking that we might benefit from some breaks, whereas, if we had every team gunning for us, with our schedule, we could get beat up and lose confidence. I'd rather be considered one of the best before we have to face the best week in and out. Not my attitude personally, only my perception of the strenght of our team right now. I'd rather have a team that didn't have so many question marks and say, we'll take on the best every week. But, as I said, a little success first.

That is one of our 2 biggest question marks this season, I'd say, other than the O-line... and if we can't stop the run, we will lose, especially if we make the playoffs. But, we did make an addition that was not mentioned - a new defensive line coach. McCargo might be turning a corner this year if he can stay healthy. Even if that isn't the case, this coach might add enough in new techniques to take a group of average linemen and turn them into above average. Sanders was the D-coordinator for Green Bay, so, I'd imagine narrowing down his duties to just the D-line will allow him to have a bit of success. Look at what McNally did with Peters. If Sanders can do that with one guy, and lift a few others to a new level, then we could be decent. We'll have to wait and see. I can't imagine the Bills F.O. overlooked their poor play against the run, so, they must have a plan of some kind in place to improve there.

I love the idea of trying something "new", and I think we have the personel to do the no huddle. RB is very important, because they are often used as recievers out of the backfield, taking advantage of linebackers covering them - and we've got three good ones at catching and running after the catch. Also, Edwards does seem to shine when he's in the hurry up. I've mentioned it before, but with a two back, three wide reciever formation, we could make some noise. One thing I don't like is all the press coverage, because we've got some good defensive coordinators in our division, and some good defenses. They'll have strategies planned. It's another wait and see, to find out if we can impose our will on a defense regardless of what they are trying to do.

As I understood it, the F.O. saw Levitre starting next to Walker, because they're both technicians, and Wood would go better alongside Butler, because they're both more of the bruising type. They thought the chemistry and communication would be best achieved that way - which would make the opening line - Walker, Levitre, Hangartner, Wood, and Butler. That's fine by me. I also thought it interesting to see Bell as the backup LG, because we'll certainly see him play in the starting line-up this year if that is the case, and we'll be able to see how he responds to meaningful game situations. Sometimes players really bring their game to another level when they're thrown in - like Peters did.

You can't blame coaches for not intercepting the ball. You can blame them for not calling plays that lead to pressure...yet, our defense was banged up a lot, and Fewell couldn't stop the run - not his fault. Our players couldn't stop the run, so, the safeties had to play the run a lot more, which, I think, gave them hesitation. And, there was no pressure from the DE's, which our scheme needs to be successful. I'd say players were the factor for that. With our scheme, if our front four can stop the run and pressure the QB, then, with the speed everywhere else, we'll be picking off passes left and right. To that end, we'll have to see how they perform this year. I still think stopping the run is going to be the biggest test. As for Lindell, I believe he took a special off-season training with some pro sports facility before the 2007 season, which attributed to his great year. He must have felt like it was going to stay with him last year without having to go through that again. Hopefully he'll put some extra work in this year.

I've read a number of articles recently about New York Jets new coach, and specifically his outspoken ambitions. He's been provoking both Miami and New England, and those two teams have spoken back. There seems to be a lot of heat brewing between the Jets and those two teams. As for me, I couldn't be happier. The Jets defense will be nasty this year - even if they aren't in the top ten, they'll be hard hitting and nasty, because their coach won't let them be otherwise. And, the Dolphins have a coach with the same mentality. And, if the Jets get anywhere near rough with Brady, you can bet the N.E. defense will do all it can to pay back. So, it's looking like all the emotion and physical play is going to be especially expended on those games. Let them beat each other up! I know the players will say that each game is important, but, I also know that players will play much more intense when there are personal feelings and pride on the line, and if the whole teams are pumped, then they'll be playing really tough against each other. And, I also believe that teams tend to slump a little after playing really emotional, tough games like that. Bills fans could really benifit from this, because the Bills have been left out of the mix, for the most part. I bet New England's coach is worrying more about the Bills than the Jets, but as for the other two, I could see the players looking past Buffalo - at least the first game.

The success of our offense will hinge on the O-line throughout the year. If it plays to perfection, and we can run the ball good and have protection to pass, then the question will be on our O.C.'s shoulders - can he put together game plans that will allow our offense to succeed - against some very tough defenses. We've got a nasty schedule against defenses - just in our division alone! It could be the case, at the end of the year, where we might be saying, "If only we played in a different division". I hope it all falls into place, because I believe we have the talent to be top five. Again, our statistics might be skewed because of our division. Looking at who Arizona will be playing, it might be hard to compare us with other teams just based on schedule. If we can put up 24 points a game, that should be good enough to go 4-2 in our division, if not better. I think we averaged about 21 points a game last year, so 24 shouldn't be too hard.

I was just reading a post which included a lot of comments from old school Bills fans, who've seen them play through the seventies and eighties. I got to thinking that Ralph, when looking over the entire history of his franchise, has seen success in the beginning - when they won the back to back championships and their entire defense was voted into the probowl, and then a few seasons before the run in the nineties, and then that four year stretch. So, he's got an overview of fifty years or so, where his team has gone from terrible to elite, but in spans of like ten years. Now, we're coming up on another peak, in terms of years without success, and considering his age, he should be looking to cap off his life's work with a SB victory. If that happened, I wonder, would that affect our chances of keeping the Bills in Buffalo? I'm not sure about what would be involved when he dies, but it's going to happen with the next decade, you'd think. It just seems like it'd be a lot harder to move a team coming off great success, than one that has been average. So, does that at all have an affect on things?

Anything over five would be good for the group, I'd say. Considering we're hoping for somewhere near 25 between all the recievers, and maybe 3-5 for the RB's, that'd end up over 30 - which would be great.

What I mean by that is this: some people come on here and say, "The Bills are still mediocre.", while others say, "the Bills are in position to go far", and then there are so many opinions about how they'll fare in the division, etc. I was just thinking that it'd be cool to have a post where we predicted how they'd actually turn out - how good or bad - and at a few certain statistics. So, if they finished 1st in the division, then one could argue that all the people posting that they aren't ready to compete with NE, or Miami, would have their own predictions to look back on. Basically, it would be a way to see how much one's opinion corresponds with how things actually end up. I'll come up with the specifics if people here seem to want to do it.

I was reading a post the other day in which someone said the facts didn't match his opinion, and that he'd have to admit he was wrong. That got me to thinking, that each of us who read and post here follow the Bills more than just about anyone in the country. If we spend that much time reading and talking about them, shouldn't we know more about them than anyone? And yet, there are so many conflicting opinions. There's a difference between how we see things on the outside, and how the NFL actually works on the inside. There's the marketing, and the continual filling of the seats, regardless of past performance. And, we're fans. So, I was thinking that maybe someone should start a thread that would put together a few areas where we could predict how the Bills line up at the end of the year. Something like: Within Division - Offense Rank, Defensive Rank, Overall Rank 1-4, and then, maybe, overall record. That would give us 4 different statistics to predict, and would cover most of what we talk about here. And, when the season is at a close, we could look back and see how accurate, how informed and objective we are when discussing the team. With so many different points of view, and such a drastic range of optimism to pessimism, it'd be interesting to see which bloggers are more apt to see things as they are, and which are just stuck on an opinion. So, does anyone else think this is worth while? Maybe it's already been done? Maybe there'd be a better format?

Five most important positions if you're a GM? If I were to be handed a team as the GM, and told "you've got 3yrs to build a contender", then I'd start right off on the lines. I'd get the biggest and most able DT's, and a couple good pressure DE's. I'd put together the toughest, nastiest O-line I could find. In fact, I'd bring in a crazy amount of candidates on both lines, and narrow it down through the off season. If you could come out of year one with two solid lines to build on, everything after that becomes easier. After that, I'd take the best available men to fill the remaining positions for the next few years, stressing QB and RB. My top five: DT, OT, OG, DE, QB

Are the coaches good enough? Thus far, no. April is the exception, who has proven himself enough to be considered a given. Fewell has done good with little talent, but he has yet to put together a squad that is excellent. Schonert was in his first year. I think we should take a wait and see approach with him. He's got desire, and he wants to have a prolific offense - as opposed to just grinding out the clock. Jauron has never been a winner as a H.C., but, his teams have never been talented. Chicago saw him lead them to a 13-3 record, which was overachieving, I thought. He's had enough time here, though, to say that this year is the time to put up or shut up. We can't demand a SB victory out of any coach, but we can demand that by now the team is focused, doesn't make a lot of mistakes, knows their respective schemes, and goes out every week and plays tough. We've got to look like a team to be reckoned with, or he'll be out the door. That's my opinion, but I think if we don't make it to the playoffs, he's gone. Whatever record that takes, is what we'll need. And, above all else, we'll need to look like a good team. If we don't, or are unpredictable - some weeks good, some not so good, and blow it quick in the playoffs, I don't see them bringing back anyone. And, if we're stinking it up big time, I could see us having a new coach at the bye.

Sure, he'd be great to have, but the Bills have more pressing needs - if they were thinking of spending big money on a guy, I'd think it'd be on a position where we didn't just draft our assumed starters for the next five or six years. LT comes to mind. DT, OLB, too. There are four or five roster spots on our team that could use an influx of talent more, now, than at Guard. That's my opinion, but wouldn't you rather see us go after Henderson for four to five million a year? What about Levi Jones? Pisa - although he wasn't as huge a name, and wouldn't have been as important a position, would've made more sense, considering our apparent lack of depth there. I'd much rather see a solid LT, who, when added to mix, would make the two rookie G's look a lot more stable, swinging Walker back to RT, and having Butler as possible backup for RT, G, and Chambers backup for Tackle positions. That would make me feel much better. Granted, Waters would be a rock, and he'd be great to have regardless, I just think factoring money and needs, the $$$ would be better spent elsewhere.

Josh Reed seemed to come through for us in big situations a lot of times last year. He does know where the markers are and he gets us first downs, and he can run after the catch. When lined up outside, he's not in his natural position and doesn't succeed as he does in the slot. He is what he is - not perfect - but, good at blocking, good at making first down catches, and consistent. Until a reciever on our team shows he's capable of more, on a consistent basis, then I think it'd be absurd for us to let him go. He doesn't have a monster contract. And, even if one of the rookies proved equal to the task, I'd still like Josh around for injury purposes, or four wide sets. We haven't got so deep in one season to be thinking like this. And, if we let him go today, my guess is he'd have four or five teams looking to pick him up, and that article about how the Bills let go of their better talent would be more relevant than it might otherwise have been.

Whatever the reason, the Bills are basically becoming a farm team for the rest of the league. That's a good one. Well, I'd say it goes both ways. He didn't mention players we got rid of and gained in so doing: McGahee comes to mind. There're probably more. In the instances he mentioned, I would've done the same thing on those occasions except Crowell, Pat Williams, and Winfield. I'd also keep Roscoe around until I could be certain - through game experience - that he's not a better weapon on offense than we see him as in his past limited role. On a whole, it looks to me like there is a certain culture a H.C. or G.M. brings to a team, that includes winning and losing, and building strong rosters. If a player is on a team that year in and out brings in upgrades at various positions, so that every players security is based on achievement through competition, then there isn't a lot of room for holding out, because they know they can be replaced; and, if that team is consistently good, the overall talent on a team can make one player seem better than he is, on account of the talent around him. Such teams, I think, while they remain strong, can keep players around a lot easier on account of the players knowing their value to other teams is higher for them being where they are. On the Bills, good talent can go overlooked, and a guy who is exceptional can look at the management and feel he holds a superior position, because they've got no one to take his place. So, it's either pay me, or pay the consequences. In that scenerio, the player wins because the team will lose talent, but the player stands the chance to go to a better team and maybe win a SB, or gain much more name recognition - and then there's post season pay. So, a team that builds good rosters and plays good consistently has less to lose from these type situations. That's how I see it. Next year we can look at the Patriots and see how they deal with their many up and coming contract situations. Do they continue to find a way to be solid?

Losing the game will not mean the end of the season. But, IMO, if it's a loss, then it better be a close game, one that the Patriots had to fight hard for. If they look like they're confident in their ability to beat the Patriots, and play that way, go punch for punch, and lose by a score at the end, then they could rebound. Anything could happen, and I don't pretend to know how things will unfold, but it looks to me like the Bills need to appear strong enough in game one to play with the big boys. A win would do a lot for them. A bad loss could have the reverse consequences. I don't think they're good enough, or confident enough yet to overcome a bunch of losses early. I think they need a fast start to the season, at least be in the hunt when their bye comes around, or we could see a new coach mid season.

I think it benefits the Bills to play the Patriots their first game, although at home would've been best. The Patriots are one of the very best teams at preparing for opponents. Remember that quote from a Patriots player who said they devised an entirely different game plan for the Bills every time they played them? I'd rather not give them any hints as to how we're planning on looking either side of the ball. And, although Brady is generally good under pressure, I doubt he'll be at his best his first game back, with (hopefully) a bunch of Bills chasing him down wanting to put the hurt on him. He probably will have his injury in the back of his mind, and if he gets hit hard a few times, he might get jumpy. So, those are two big factors that play in the Bills favor, that might not be there later in the season. I'm looking for the Bills to pull an upset there, or at least make it close. That does have significance for the Bills as a team, too. They are all riding on this year, as opposed to the last three, where they could chalk things up to learning, and growing. They've learned, grown, and made key additions, and are banking on winning this year, or they'll be starting from scratch next year with new coaches and probably a bunch of new players. So, to start off this crucial year looking like they are deserving of the playoffs, looking like they are a team to take serious, is important. If they go out and the O-line looks terrible, and we can't stop Brady and Co., then it could get into the minds of the team, and they might have that in the back of their heads - that they can't get it done against good teams. They have to wonder a bit about how good their coach is. So, all things considered, I'd say it has a good deal of importance, more mentally and emotionally. We've got to play good, and we have some advantages.

I didn't mean to sound as if I was making excuses for T.O., or his past behavior. I'm just saying that everyone would have problems if they had the media in their face all the time. Yes, T.O. wants it. Which is why he should have advisors, because he doesn't appear to see the long term ramifications of what he says, or how what he says can be interpreted. I do think he'll be good here this year, and I think the Bills could use a little accountability, and some passion. It could go either way, I just happen to believe it will be something that works.

I agreeeeee... the team has lacked something over the past decade or so - passion. My take is this: accountability and passion are separate, almost opposites. Being accountable is not wanting to mess up, and knowing when you do, you'll be ripped for it - or, you'll learn from it and not do it again. It's having the mindset that each person is responsible for winning and losing, and if you lost, you'd better figure out why and not do it the same way again. On the other hand, being passionate is about winning, playing to be The Best, not just good, but Great. A passionate player is not concerned with mistakes; he's flooring it on every play, trying to make something happen. Often times, passionate players make mistakes more than quiet, professional types. Think Ray Lewis v.s. Drew Bledsoe. Drew always said the right things, and was seldom seen emotional. Ray, on the other hand, is in everyone's face, blowing things up. We need to see a lot more Intensity out of our squad. They've got to want it more than anyone else - because, if they don't, they aren't going to get it. They aren't that good. But, if they had that fire, that passion, they could do anything - and that is why we tune in week in and out, and the off-season. Dick Jauron isn't going to give it to them. They need to get it themselves. And, in that regard, I, too, believe T.O. will pay dividends.

Everyone in the NFL admits T.O. has a good work ethic - he wouldn't do what he's done without one - and that he wants to win. He's played in some big cities, with a lot of media coverage. Intelligent people know what media is all about: they get paid to stir things up. If there's nothing going on, they'll find something. If any of us allowed media into our homes and home life, or work life, and had reporters asking our wifes or co-workers questions about us - there'd be trouble in just about every case. People aren't meant to live real life in front of millions of people - it just doesn't work. I'll bet there is drama still in Dallas this year, and Philly. There has to be or the media doesn't get paid. All I'm saying is that to live in the open like that, people have to have a ready-to-deliver answer for things that is P.C., which is why politicians have so many helpers - people telling them what to say to create the right image. Maybe that is why T.O. has his female entourage. Anyway, he's human, and when asked about personal things, he can be honest or P.C. - and the honest route will cause trouble sometimes, which would happen with anyone. I'm betting he takes the P.C. route this year, and says all the right things, which will sound Phony. There it is, though. It sounds phony, or sometimes it creates problems. I, for one, though, am glad he's here, and I think Buffalo could be a good place for him for more than just a year. And, I, too, give props to the F.O. this year. Maybe too little too late - let's hope not.

I have that same fear, too, about our D-linemen getting to the QB. Although, in "non-contact" setting, how much can an O-lineman do? We'll see.

Just read on PFT that Simeon Rice wants back in, and that he says he'd be the best DE in the league if someone would give him a chance. Damn!!! I so much wish the Bills would sign him. He'd take a small salary - he said it wasn't about the money - but that he just wants to show the world he can still be dominant! He's a Tampa 2 DE, and a great one! Think of the skills he could pass on to Maybin. I'm guessing most of the readers here will say, pass. I say, he's got nothing to gain by coming back old and out of shape and unable to compete. He knows what it takes to be at a very high level. If he says he's got it, then I would think someone would work him out at least. What do we have to lose?

I hear you all, but, our defense, as bad as it was at times last year, kept us in some games. It was our offense that hindered our advancement. Despite the changes made on the O-line, I believe it will be a better running line, especially in short yardage situations. Our success this year depends on three things - other than the myriad number of givens - 1. O-line 2. D-line 3. Trent Edwards. If our O-line gives us something like Kurt Warner had last year in pass protection, Trent should have enough time to get the ball out. If it gives us a good run game, he should be even that much better off. And, if our D. can stop the run, then we'll be much, much improved over last year. Unfortunately, it looks like the last one will be the hardest to manage, because we've done nothing to change that - unless our new D-line coach can turn the group around; maybe McCargo can become a game changer? I'd be willing to bet our offense finally gets out of the gutter this year; we simply have too many weapons for it not to. There is enough to hope for, enough positives, to tune in and take a wait and see approach.