starrymessenger

ok...and he is only 5'11" and he is 33 years old...but he is solid in run defence and in coverage. He is a good veteran who can still play. Even very good teams can use players like that. Certainly we can use him. Coaches have enough on their plates right now. Once he is up to speed at least they won't have to worry about him screwing up. He will certainly help our young backers learn the pro game.

They just signed a good veteran OLB - Chris Draft. This guy can play and makes no mistakes. Neither he nor Todd Johnson (who is a little slow but is a sure tackler who takes good angles-unlike Ko) would have been cut loose by the Rams if that team had any chance of doing anything this year. Draft was jobbed and a cap casualty. He is a solid player, no guff.

Jets should be dominant on defence - not at all sure about their offence though. Game might boil down to which defence forces the most turnovers.

Very true, in my view, for all these reasons. I give us a 30% chance. Not great but worth tuning in.

I remember seeing Trent standing on the sidelines before the MNF game against Cleveland last year. This was after the Arizona game (when he got clocked by AW) and the San Diego game (in which he played well enough to beat a talented if underachieving team). His look and body language reminded me of a person who was experiencing a sinking feeling where what is sinking is that person's level of self confidence. I recognize the clinically observable characteristics of this syndrome because I had been victimized by it myself, as well as seeing it in others. He actually looked completely psyched out. I thought my impression just had to be mistaken because I had never noticed this in TE before. But much (though not all) of what we have seen since then regretably confirms the analysis and conclusion. This is why I know that there is something wrong in Trent's head. I don't know if it started with the hit in Arizona or whether it was there all along. What I do know is that even a person who has all the skills needed to play the position will never be a good NFL quarterback unless he also has supreme (even irrational) confidence in himself. That is in large part what "it" is, and Trent very unfortunately seems not to have it. I hope I am wrong and that he proves me wrong, but that is where I land for now.

With all the (negative) emotion going around, this is a rare and accurate assessment of Mr. Wilson and his dilemma(s).

Ellis Lankster

As ridiculous as his comments are, why shouldn't Ryan call out Trent. Nothing to lose. Doesn't take much to completely psyche Trent out. Ryan is probably really thinking of last year's Bills-Browns game rather than the Raiders game..

A frightening proposition but you may well be right.

I also saw him knock the snot out of some running backs this preseason.

I remember Andy Reid during a playoff game last year when his kicker, I guess Akers, missed an easy field goal. As he made his way to the sidelines Akers, head down & tail between his legs, went for the end of the bench farthest from where Reid was standing. Not so fast. Reid walked down the sidelines towards him saying things that were I suspect very uncomplimentary. Could'nt hear the words but I got a good look at his face. I have never seen a face so full of hate. It was a thing of beauty. Why? Because thats football, and thats just the way its supposed to be. Call it a game if you like, but it is also a hypercompetitive field of human endeavour where the dream is nothing less than greatness. Then I thought of Dick, standing on the sidelines looking like he does'nt know where he is, or even that he should be somewhere.

Right. I look at TO on Sundays sitting on the bench after another three and out. He looks exactly like a powderkeg with a lit fuse. I wish he would blow. But, as you say, he can't. Just another perspective on the twilight zone we inhabit as Bills fans.

Prediction: Ashlee Palmer will start for the rest of the year, even after Poz returns.

Disagree. Not the same player since hes off the roids.

Well... er...actually I see where you are coming from. Marvin probably ran better patterns than Lee does and at the end of the day Lee's stats are clearly not what they should be. Still I'd love to see what Lee could do in the right scheme and with someone who could deliver the ball as well as Peyton can or JK could. I really feel his development is held back. And I think he is a true competitor, like Randy Moss and TO, and therefore its a shame. Guys like that really get down when things are bad with no sign of improvement. An disillusioned unmotivated Moss was garbage in Oakland. Some professional football people thought and said he was done and yet the same player was even then maybe the best ever after Jerry Rice (no offence to TO).

Then why is neither of them happy?

Not for mine. Marvin Harrison is not a big guy and he did'nt make his HOF career in the middle of the field or going for jump balls. And Evans is not just a "better variant" of Peerless Price. Evans has in fact never had a QB who could get him the ball in stride. The fact that all JP could do is crank it up and let her fly does'nt mean he was a good passer, even if Lee was able to run under a few of those. And by the way Jake falling apart has made Steve Smith look like something less than the receiver we all know him to be. Unfortunately we have never seen (and may never see) just how good Lee can be.

With very few exceptions (for example Adrian Peterson, Patrick Willis) no one should annoint rookies as premier players three or four games into their careers. But neither can you disregard the importance of the draft in building championship teams, and all that that brings with it. Michael Oher thought he was the best offensive tackle in the draft and while that in itself means nothing add to it the fact that he is playing with a huge chip on his shoulders and feels he has something to prove and that suggests to me that he has the physchological attributes you love to see in a young player. Also the Ravens did not hesitate and I have a lot of time for that FO when it comes to the draft. I don't want to get into the JP controversy. That question is not one that I am comfortable with simply because I don't have all of the material facts, and the technical football knowledge, needed to come to a reliable conclusion. For what its worth I think JP is indeed a very superior talent, from what I've seen in Philly this year he has been good especially in run blocking, and especially downfield. Last year he was very inconsistent, and at times looked bad, but he could still also look great from time to time, which was frustrating because only a very talented player can ever do those things at all. Its clear from his presser when his signing was announced, as well as from interviews he did afterwards that he was concerned about meeting expectations, which of course are very high in Philly, but not because he doubted his ability but only to caution people that he would be going up against some of the best pass rushing DEs in the game and to remind them that no one is 100% unbeatable, including him. He also said that if he got beat he would get right back up and in the guy's face. In other words he would get better. All of this makes sense to me and connotes a positive attitude. I think only time will tell whether he is a selfish lazy bum with a lousy attitude or a great left tackle. For what its worth (probably not much) I think more probably the latter than the former.

But the undead can live forever (or at least for another three years). Seriously, I respect the man for his evident human qualities but unfortunately these do not qualify him to be a NFL HC.

I think I just wet myself laughing.

Exactly. A great OL in the making. Even if a healthy Bell could have nailed down the LT spot, Oher can (and is) playing RT for the Ravens too. Oher is a nasty young man who is incented to play with attitude and by all accounts is doing a great job. As for a pass rushing DE, they should never have let Cam Wake leave town. I understand that they were system/compatibility issues involved in his decision but extra bucks would have likely resolved this. Anyway, as a 3-4 linebacker CW is not (yet) great in space or dropping back into coverage. But I watched him for two years in BC and believe me he will eat QBs all day long, which is what we needed him to do. He will certainly not dominate the NFL as he did the CFL, but you know what, he stands a good chance of being a dominant pass rusher nevertheless. The Fins have found themselves a younger Jason Taylor. Nothing against A. Maybin. I think he is a great kid, probably not too small to play DE, needs to get stronger and develop inside moves, as everyone knows. Just saying that the scenario I would have preferred would have gotten us to a better place much faster.

Fins could quite possibly beat Jets this week. That is because they are a much beter team than their record currently indicates. Disagree about Sanchez. Sure he will make some rookie mistakes. IMO he will also quickly develop into a very good starting QB.

Yeah we all stick up for the underdog overachiever.

No kidding. What an embarassment. The organization owes TO an apology. Its pretty easy to get him the ball at least once. Sure its a team sport and not about individual stats, but was'nt Brett Favre happy to beat Dan Marino's record? Great players naturally take pride in their achievements. Just shows what a total jerk Trent is and how clueless the organization is these days.

Agreed. The periodic suggestions that he is another Welker or Santana Moss waiting to be discovered are completely ridiculous. Wes Welker is absolutely tough as nails, breaks tackles, runs great routes, finds the open zones. SM is not just fast, he knows how to run patterns (one mistake and the DB is dead meat) position his body in space, etc... It makes no sense to compare a gadget player/punt returner with great receivers. Nothing against RP. Its not his fault he is not someone else.