billsfan89

This is crushing because unless the Browns are willing to trade down from 1 or the Giants from 2 this team will likely not land a top QB and will have to settle for a QB that falls to 12 or 22. The Colts were always going to be the spot for a trade up and now that spot is going to pick a QB. My hope is that the Browns take Barkley at number 1 and the Giants sell their pick off to build the roster around Eli Manning for the next 2-3 years trying to get one last run out of him. 12, 22, 53, 65, 96, and a pick next year would be a kings ransom that would allow the Giants to more easily rebuild around Eli and set a foundation for years to come. But if the Giants want a QB they simply can't pass up the opportunity to draft one.

Russell Wilson doesn't work that great in the pocket (Although, he is a lot better out of the pocket now) he runs to throw and runs to churn out yards and first downs. He scrambles a lot which affords his WR's the chance to make plays down the field. Granted Wilson is an exception to the rule but I think that saying running is a running backs function ignores the idea of a QB who can pass out of the pocket and run. Give me Cam Newton, prime Eagles Michael Vick, and to a lesser extent Andrew Luck as my QB any day of the week. All three players can do the standard pocket passing but all 3 were able to work effectively with their legs and do great things keeping plays alive and adding yards and first downs with running plays. I would take that additional level of dynamic playmaking any day of the week provided that such a QB also plays out of the pocket well. Tyrod never played out of the pocket well which just crushed his ability to function well in any offense not completely designed around him (Much like Seattle redesigned their offense around Russell Wilson.) McD didn't see a future with Tyrod and they got good value for him in a trade. But my main point in the original post is that going off of McCarron's body of work conservative QB play is likely to continue.

My main point is that some fans are delusional in thinking that McCarron is going to be a gunslinger QB who throws for 300 yards a game. Now could that happen? Yes anything is possible but expecting that to happen isn't logical based off of the evidence of his college and pro career thus far. A lot of the complaints about Tyrod (Doesn't throw the ball downfield enough, too conservative, and checks down on 3rd and long) always existed with every single Bills QB since I have been following this message board and other message boards about football and the Bills. JP Losman throws deep but hardly hits and can't work the intermediate area of the field, Trent Edwards was captain check down, Fitz could only throw short, EJ way too conservative, and Tyrod as we all know. Bledsoe towards the end suffered from can't get the ball downfield and too conservative the last 2 years, I wasn't monitoring the internet during the Flutie and Rob Johnson eras but I bet a lot here were saying a lot of the same about those two QB's. This teams QB issues didn't start with Tyrod. Hell Tyrod was the best Bills QB for a 3 year stretch since Jim Kelley arguably (I think Flutie being the only reasonable QB you could argue.) Now that's not praising Tyrod all that much that's more knocking on the lack of quality QB's that the team has had the past 22 years since Kelly retired. To hammer home the point, I expect AJ to be a game manager and a lot of the checkdowns and turnover averse play to continue. McCarron has played that way since college and I don't expect that to change. Now you can win with that type of QB since low turnovers and a QB That can make a few plays here or there is a winning formula but come September if AJ is starting I would wager that you would hear echos of the same complaints that have plagued Bills QB's for the past 22 years.

Tyrod wasn't functioning well in the pocket, the system that McD wants to implement is one where a QB functions as a pocket pass. I don't think McD viewed Tyrod's mobility as a negative but they weren't going to build a system around his best asset if Tyrod just wasn't able to work effectively in the pocket. But I think that just because McCarron will function better in the pocket doesn't mean that all of these issues at QB are fixed. I think that McD and Beane feel as though McCarron is a better fit for the system they plan to run. But just because a QB might be a better fit to run the offensive scheme you plan to implement doesn't guarantee results. McCarron might work better out of the pocket but he likely isn't going to generate the same plays with his legs and who knows how aggressive the offense will be? McD is a conservative coach, in general, why wouldn't his offense be risk averse?

I think the team can be successful with a game manager QB. Provided the defense fixes a couple of issues (2 new starting linebackers, a nickel CB, and possible issues with the pass rush if Hughes and Lorax get old and Shaq can't hack it.) And if the team doesn't trade up for a QB (If they take a QB at 12 they have 22, 53, 56, 65, and 96) there certainly exists plenty of draft capital to address various defensive and offensive issues. But I think that Tyrod at times was a game manager and people hated him for it. Complaints of general conservative play, checkdowns on 3rd and long, rushing attempts short of 1st downs on third down, and not "getting the ball downfield enough" will continue with McCaron. But this team did win with Tyrod who wasn't the most aggressive QB. Tyrod has a winning record the last three seasons not being the best QB but one that makes a few plays here or there and not turning the ball over. Of course a strong ground game and decent to good defense helps but there is no reason to think that the team can't have a decent defense again and Shady has 1 more good season. But I am more knocking the idea that McCarron will be this gunslinger or that because he isn't Tyrod all the QB issues go away.

My point was that his career in college and so far in the pros has been that of a risk-averse QB. Now there are some fans that think that McCarron is going to be this big time gunslinger which given the profile of McCarron isn't likely. Hell given the nature of McD as a coach (very conservative football turnover averse) I don't know why people's expectations of McCarron being anything different than a conservative game manager exist. I honestly think that a lot of the same complaints people had about Tyrod (never throws downfield checks down on third and long) will exist about McCarron.

Wilson was a smart and shrewd businessman when it came to the AFL, he actually helped run the league more like owners today where year to year losses weren't the biggest deal as long as the league sustained growth and more importantly took market share from the NFL. Ralph pushed the overall health of the league as his goal was more important than making money right away. His goal of establishing a merger with the NFL was very clear in my mind. I don't know why that after he got the merger he pretty much stopped running the team in such a macro manner and pretty much ran it as though if one season where he lost money would ruin him. It was kind of odd with the way he helped run the AFL. But I guess he figured that once he had gotten to the NFL the team needed to be fiscally solvent to remain in the league.

It actually makes sense what OJ is saying about Ralph. Sports owners from the early days of the major professional leagues ran the teams like a business because the team was the major source of income and the teams could rarely lose money and maintain operation. Ralph being in a smaller market and coming from that mentality probably did run the team like a business. It wasn't until bigger TV and radio deals emerged that teams were sold to people who made millions and eventually billions in other businesses and basically those owners basically ran those teams like toys devoid of year to year losses for the most part. Modern ownership groups are 1-2 billionaires and a bunch of millionaire minority investors who run the teams as a long-term investment (Where the value of the team when sold again is where the money is made not the year to year operations) or once again it is a billionaire who cashed out on another business and is now having fun. Older sports owners cared about the bottom line, they had to make money that year, a loss revenue wise meant that the owner's personal finances could be in jeopardy. Ralph seemingly was cut from that grain of sports ownership.

AJ is a notoriously conservative QB, he was known as a game manager in Alabama and is his limited starts in Cincy he played pretty conservative. I don't know why people expect McCarron to be a gunslinger when that isn't his reputation at all? So unless this team drafts a rookie high and he comes in and performs light a stud I would expect conservative QB play to continue.

Good for him to go to his hometown team. But honestly, I don't find this to be a player that isn't replaceable fairly easily.

It is ideal that a QB be a "Big Brother" type to a rookie QB. But these professional athletes are so competitive and ego driven that it is hard to get them to be a mentor type. Unless you have a lower end starting caliber QB at the very back end of his career (and he knows it) odds are that any QB worth his salt is going to see a rookie as a threat more so than as a little brother. The purpose of a "Bridge QB" is multi-folded 1- It allows the team to have a starting caliber option in case a college rookie isn't ready for various reasons, 2- It offers a rookie a high caliber professional to look at and see how it gets done, 3- It sets a standard for a rookie QB to go out and beat.

If there aren't huge rushing holes right in the middle of our defense often in the coming season I think that this signing will have accomplished what it set out to do. This signing is a bit too right for my blood but it is exactly what the doctor ordered in terms of need on defense and it is a player the coaching staff knows and trusts. If you are going to overpay at least do it on the right kind of player that fits one of your biggest defensive needs. Star's job is to clog the middle, eat double teams while holding the line, and to disrupt the interior of the line of scrimmage. If he can do that at a high level the Bills rushing defense will be heavily improved from last season esp after the Dareus trade.

I would like to see the team take a chance on Martavis Bryant via trade, cheap contract on the last year of his deal. If the Steelers would be willing to part with him for a 5th or 6th rounder that would fill a big need affordably. BUT I don't think that the Steelers are currently shopping him so I doubt that happens. I wouldn't mind Jordan Matthews back on a 1 year deal, not sure what actual speedsters are out on the market.

Fill 2 of those holes going into the draft and I think this team has a good chance to trade up for a QB and have enough left over picks wise to fill another need or two. There are going to be holes on almost every NFL roster, every team is also going to have depth issues too, it is the nature of the salary cap era. But minimize a need or two going into the draft and I think you are fine.

It's the old negging technique. Don't act that interested in the product so that the cost goes down. I don't think it will work necessarily but it is the appropriate move.

The market for WR has been very hot, still a few decent players left though. Possible starting caliber WR's - Terrelle Pryor, Jordan Matthews, Mike Wallace, Michael Crabtree Other notable players on the market- Eric Decker, Bruce Ellington, Brice Butler, Kendall Wright, Jeremy Maclin, Markus Wheaton Only other trade candidate I think is out there would be Martavis Bryant who I would love to see the Bills pick up as I don't think he has a big cap number and he likely wouldn't cost much draft pick wise.

I think it is a pretty big overpay but at least if we are overpaying for a player it is exactly the type of player that this team needs and a player the coaches know. For everyone saying that we should have signed Poe instead ignores the fact that he signed for 9 million per year (Only 1 million less) and who knows how much it would have taken to get him to Buffalo. Also, Star and Poe are similar players both in style of play and quality of play. I think Poe is a little better and given the choice of Poe for 1 million cheaper or Star I would rather have Poe. But that isn't the choice the Bills had to make. The Bills had to make the choice between what Star was willing to take to come here and what other DT's like Poe were willing to take. Who honestly knows who would have been cheaper in that scenario? I was hoping that Star's number would come in around 7 million maybe 8 at the most. But McD wants the guy and he is a good player, it is a manageable deal to get out of after year 2 and super easy after year 3.

QB's throw the draft value chart overboard. Even if the Bills traded Lawson or Hughes with Tampa to slide up to pick 7 it will take way more than 7 and 22 to get up to number 3 or 2. RGIII cost the Skins a 2nd rounder plus 2 future firsts to go from 6 to 2. That's way out of line with the draft value chart. Goff cost the Rams pick 15, 2 second round picks, a third-round pick, and a 1st and 3rd in the draft the year after. Wentz cost the Eagles pick 13, a 3rd and 4th round pick, the year after 1st rounder and the year after 2nd rounder. Trading up isn't about matching up points on a chart when it comes to QB's. QB is the most valuable position in the sport and if you want to trade up to get one it is going to cost you more because you aren't bidding against a draft value chart you are bidding against what other teams are offering. And if Rosen goes 1st overall and Barkley goes 2nd you bet the Colts are going to get a ton of teams like Denver, The Jets, and Arizona offering big packages of picks to try and land that spot. The Bills can offer more in this draft than any other those teams and offer the same future picks. The Bills are in a good position to get their QB but it won't be cheap.

I suspect that they are working on bringing in at least one more LB in free agency, probably also draft one too. Bills have enough cap space to make 1-2 more significant moves happen.

I think the Bills have room for 1-2 decent signings. They can't go crazy but if there is a starting caliber player available for 3-6 million per they can go out and get them easily. I think the market is still alive with good players who can come in and start, I would love to see the Bills sign 1-2 more starting caliber players. Plug in WR or a guard on the offensive side of the ball and go after a nickel corner or linebacker on defense. The Bills aren't going to plug all their needs in free agency but 1-2 more filled really opens up the draft.

Seems like they have a little more space for a decent mid-level signing.

A huge overpay for sure but not tragic.

Because once you name a QB the starter you can never go back on it Not surprising for the Browns. I think they go QB at pick 1, the Giants take Barkley, the Colts trade down (hopefully with Bills) for Mayfield, and then the Browns set up another draft trading down to a team desperate for Allen (I don't think they take a haul but I bet they hope they trade down with Arizona for a 2nd (probably a swap of a 2nd for a mid rounder) and a first next year. They then set themselves up with another primo pick in next years draft.

Indy at 3 is the trade up. I think the Browns go Rosen and the Giants take Barkley. Indy trades down from 3 to a team that wants Mayfield. I think then at 4 the Browns trade down for a team looking at Allen or they take the best defensive player out on the market.

NFL free agency moves fast but it is only day 2 of the official signing period. There are still plenty of teams with plenty of cap space that need corners and LB's. So I wouldn't say that the market has dried up just yet on these players. But if by next Wednesday these players are still out on the market then clearly the market has passed them up. Gaines I think will be fine I suspect by Monday he is signed. Brown could go either way. I wouldn't mind seeing Brown back on an affordable deal. But Gaines back on a modest deal would be great. The less holes going into the draft the better.