maddenboy

Pretty much. The funny thing is, in hindsight, what we needed every draft was the best player we could find. The Bills have never been 1 or 2 players away from a championship during this stretch, so what they should have been doing all along is going with the BPA, and then a few years later you can fill "needs" around that nucleus of BPAs. The current way is so ass-backward.

Thanks for the replies. So then the next question becomes, why? Draft is obvious. We could have had Ngata, Orakpo, Gronkowski, etc. "Ralph is cheap" is probably only a small part. He did shell out for T.O. And being real about it, its hard to lure a top five Free Agent to play here. COACHING has to be a big part of it. Look at the teams that build from within. Last week when the Packers were on, they flashed a stat that 47 of the 53 players have never played for another team. That's about DEVELOPMENT at least as much as DRAFTING.

Lemme ax ya dis: There are 32 teams. There are probably 18 non-kicker positions on a football team. (qb, rb, wr, te, RT, LT, LG, RG, C, RDE, NT, LDE, WLB, SLB, ILB, CB, Safety) When was the last time the bills had an UN-arguable top 5 player at his position in the nfl? Dare I ask for 2 at the same time? Right now we have Freddie (injured). Kyle is not un-arguable, but I'd make the argument anyway. Moorman is past his prime, and a kicker. I know its bad drafts, but is it too much to ask? Nate Clements? Eric Moulds? Help me out here.

I would only consider it if I was guaranteed that they wouldnt blow the pick anyway. Otherwise, no. We're not just one player away from contending, so it wouldnt be worth it. And, Even with the wins, the defensive play has made FIRING EDWARDS inescapable anyway, so I get what i wanted anyway.

FYP.

So, basically you are saying . . . Its hard to win in the NFL? Are you sure that's your final answer?

i swear to god. I really want to read it. It looks interesting. But my eyes glaze over. And my mind says "its not worth the headache, dude. If he wanted me to read it, he would have mixed in a paragraph or 5." People who ask for Paragraphs aren't being jerks. We are asking for help. We come here to read and think, not to fall asleep.

Its odd to me, and also very refreshing, that a dose of realism has set in here at TBD. I read the first 3-4 posts, and I kept expecting to hear from the Sunshine posters who hijack every thread with "Oh you trolls are over-reacting, please leave so we can fill this place with Sunshine" But they never came. All of the posts (except for one on page 2) were from realists. Not cry-babys. Not suicidal pessimists. But realists. When you watch the product on the field, and when you compare it to other NFL teams, you cant feel much hope. We're not as soft as San Diego, but we lack fire. And we lack grown men who refuse to lose. Its like the team woke up, remembered that the Bills arent supposed to be good, and just relaxed. And remembered that there really isnt much talent here anyway. How much longer (in terms of years) am I supposed to take this ?

Playoffs. Duh. Is this a trick question??

You shoulda had him sign your hat !!! That would be awesome.

I totally disagree about firing Edwards mid-season. We need someone NOW. 1) to assess what we have on the roster, to prepare for the draft. 2) to light a fire under some asses. 3) its so very clear that edwards is in over his head, so why wait???? Fire him now. Go after Mangenius, or anybody who actually knows how to run a 3-4. Even if its a college coach. It cannot get worse. Maybe you elevate Wanny. I dont care, but do something.

We all have preferences for the draft. But the point of my post was whether we should blow our whole wad to fix one thing. We keep drafting band-aids to patch up leaks, and its not working.

A huge problem is that we dont DICTATE anything to anyone. On either side of the ball. We dont have a single unit that keeps opposing co-ordinators up at night. Or, a single player, for that matter, except maybe freddie and Kyle Williams. So I say, devote the next draft to ONE UNIT. Try your damnedest to make one unit that will strike fear in the other team. I say draft Linebackers 1, 2, 3. I dont care if they're inside or out (but I do need some pass rush). You can never ever have enough linebackers. We have about 1.5 of them total (Sheppard. Moats? Shawnie? Kelsay?). Improve that unit, and the D-line will have an easier time. And they'll be more motivated to do the grunt work for some really good guys behind them. I sure wouldnt want to bust my ass on the line, so that Andra Davis or Moats can be clean to do . . . nothing much. Improve that unit, and your dbs look better, due to the increased pressure, and increased 3rd and longs, and increased ability of linebackers to actually help in coverage. I know other units need work. But if you wanna run an excellent 3-4, you need about 7 linebackers. Just ask the Steelers.

A huge problem is that we dont DICTATE anything to anyone. On either side of the ball. We dont have a single unit that keeps opposing co-ordinators up at night. Or, a single player, for that matter, except maybe freddie and Kyle Williams. So I say, devote the next draft to ONE UNIT. Try your damnedest to make one unit that will strike fear in the other team. I say draft Linebackers 1, 2, 3. You can never ever have enough linebackers. We have about 1.5 of them. Improve that unit, and the D-line will have an easier time. And they'll be more motivated to do the grunt work for some really good guys behind them. I sure wouldnt want to bust my ass on the line, so that Andra Davis or Moats can be clean to do . . . nothing much. Improve that unit, and your dbs look better, due to the increased pressure, and increased 3rd and longs, and increased ability of linebackers to actually help in coverage. I know other units need work. But if you wanna run an excellent 3-4, you need about 7 linebackers. Just ask the Steelers.

Lemme stop you there. 1) Pat Williams. 2) Antoine Winfield.

I hope they win ONE game. Only one. Then the Colts would have a hammer-lock on the Luck thing. I'm not actively rooting for the Fish in any game or on any play. But if they do manage to win a game, I wont be disgusted. That's all I can do. I cannot ever root for them to do anything. Except Suck. But I dont want them to suck for Luck. I dont want them to actually get a benefit from sucking.

Tried that. But I dont want it on Youtube. And I dont want to sign up for some fake "free" service that will download things to my phone or send me spam. Just want a simple, clean mp3 that I can crank whenever we score.

Does anyone have the Bills Shout song on mp3? Please oh please.

strangely compelling. And I dont mind the Eminem style. Best thing about Eminem is that he never tries to sound black. He just tries to sound like Eminem. I loved the clips. They triggered the Bills Fan gene for sure. Lastly, I keep telling myself to move on, but I know i'ma listen again. Like I said, strangely compelling.

No shocking revelation here. But we dont have very good, playmaking linebackers. Our draft needs to be Pass-rushing OLB, OT, LB. Not necessarily in that order, but if this team wants to be serious, and not just an "any given Sunday" level team, the LB unit needs to be fixed. I'm curious to know (and too lazy to check) which good LBs will be free-agents this year. Since the Bills can now be considered (damn-near) a contender, we might be more attractive to free agents.

I so wish that either (a) Buddy and Chan were 10 years younger, or (b) we had Buddy and Chan 10 years ago. This duo is good together, and they can take a franchise a long way.

It was Charles Davis on NFL network. He said something like "I see him getting to where he's supposed to be but . . . I keep waiting for him to drop the hammer and he just doesnt seem to do it." Tried in vain to find a link, but its clear in my memory.

note to ASTROBOT: Regarding your 2012 draft chart, you might wanna factor in Buddy's statement that you have to draft a corner every year. At least one. (See 2nd paragraph). http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-2/Rookie-CBs-provide-much-needed-depth/a6c06d89-504c-422f-a381-4087e8c47dfc When I first read that, I thought it was stupid. But on further reflection, considering how many you need, how they play special teams, and that speed doesnt age well, I guess I can see it.

Lets be fair, Bills fans. Janikowski and Lechler are each in the top 3 at their positions, and the two of them together are, for sure, the best tandem in the league. But with the new kickoff rule, Janikowski's huge leg is minimized. And with the 100 yards in Penalties that the Raiders spot every team before kickoff, I'm not worried about the kicking game at all. Stop the run. Let Jason Campbell try to beat us, and we should be fine.

How else is he supposed to replace Madden if he doesnt have a special quarterback? One he'd love to come home to.