Gabe Northern

They are gong to make him "win the job" to regain his confidence and win back the locker room. But he is the starter, let there be no doubt about that. Also agree about short, quick passes playing to his strength.

I'm sorry but this is crazy talk. We don't have a true NT on the roster, we don't a 3-4 outside linebacker on the roster, and out defensive coordinator was about to be fired as a linebackers coach in Miami. Maybe our draft class is a home run and the defense is competitivein 2011 but this talk of dominance is lunacy. Let's just hope Carrington looks like the real deal and Troup proves he can play the nose at the NFL. That would be encouraging and realistic.

among the jets seeking to get paid is David Harris. How nice would it have been to stay in our 2nd round slot in 2007 and draft him AND also keep our 3rd rounder? Would have gotten a better player than Poz and another pick. One of the more underrated gaffes of the Modrak era.

Will the Texans give up a 4th rounder? They kind of have us over a barrel in negotiations.

That's what Dick Jauron/Perry Fewell brought to the table. Force teams to make long drives. Don't make mental mistakes. Don't surrender big plays in the pass game. People on this board love to hate Jauron while citing the fruits of his philosophy when trying to make the case that the team isn't so bad. He led bad rosters to 7-9 finishes. That's what his brand of football delivers. The fact that he couples that with some mind-numblingly stupid game management and decisions and you can convince yourself that 5 different decisions and we'd be 11-5 and in the playoffs.

1. Agreed about secondary. Excited about seeing what these guys can do in a more aggressive system. 2. You underestimate the impact of the change of scheme. It will not just have an impact on performance, it will fundamentally change the way the defense approaches the game. Many of the stats you cite were a function of the defense we ran. 3. We look good at DE, potentially horrible at NT. I don't see the influx of talent at LB, given my belief that Davis was signed to replace Mitchell, that Kelsay will not cut it at OLB, and that the other "new talent" is 6th round former DEs. 4. The pass rush is unlikely to develop this year unless Maybin can go from non-factor to 10 sack guy in the span of one year. Who else could even realistically be penciled in for 6 sacks?

When Aaron Schobel is the best player of the decade, your team does not make the playoffs. Would be a great second or third best player on defense, but did not provide the leadership in the locker room, practice field to make the team better. I thought he was so overrated at times I talked myself into thinking he sucked. Then I'd rewatch the games on tivo and realize he was constantly making plays. His pass rushing was obviously well regarded, but he made so many hustle tackles downfield in the run game and had so many forced fumbles (the Jets game in 2008 comes to mind as a particularly great strip) that I think his every down play was underappreciated. At the end of the day, he was a very solid player, but hardly the difference-maker you'd expect given his 10-12-14 sack seasons. The numbers made him seem more than he really was. If he was so good how come you never see any of your buddies in #94 jerseys at the games?

Amazing how quickly Eric Moulds' career expired. Dude got injured in 2003 and could not get any separation thereafter. He was incredible that year. Had it all.

He's turned down the chance to be a leader at every opportunity and now he's pulling this crap? He's had a solid career, but when your best players are people like him you don't qualify for the playoffs.

I think it's quite possible that we go backwards just because of the new defense. Aaron Schobel might not be coming back and George Edwards could be the worst coordinator we've had in decades. I also believe Dick Jauron's style of playing not to lose makes this team seem more competitive last year than it really was. Some of those 6 wins (Jets) involved just sticking around long enough for the other team to fold. I do think there is reason for optimism on the offensive side because of Gailey, but 5-11 or worse is VERY much in play this year. I think people should be ready for that.

At the very least, Trent haters should better account of the OL and offensive system.

I laugh at the suggestion that Trent failed to look down field on plays where had time. He faces straight up jailbreaks on 3 plays and people want to know why he looks for the quick dump off on the other 2 where protection held up. The guy sucked last year and lost all of his confidence but the blame has to go to the front office which blew up the offensive line and the coaching staff which went with a down field slow developing passing attack. Keep the 2008 line together - including Dockery who was overpaid but could have provided depth and allowed Wood to play center - and focus on quick passes and Trent's disasterous 2009 would not have happened.

that 4 to 1 attempt to sack ratio is absolutely mindboggling. He was sacked once every 5 times he dropped back to pass. Trent haters are really off the mark if they'd rather have 8 yard losses on sacks instead of 5 yard gains on dumpoffs.

He won't have to show much to beat out Kawicka Mitchell and his $3 million salary. Can't wait to hear them defend the salary dump as getting younger at the position.

People forget Ashton was probably our best defender for the brief period in 2008 prior to the foot injury. He's a much better tackler than Corner or Florence and seems versatile enough to play safety. He could definitely have a break out season in a more aggressive defense that uses him off of the corner.

How are you going to react when Kawicka Mitchell gets cut because the team won't pay $3 million for veteran depth? Does a "true fan" suck it up and believe the nonsense that the move was motivated by a desire to get "younger at the position"? Or does a true fan hold the organization accountable?

Donte Whitner definitely received extra scrutiny because he was taken #8 overall. But he has not just underperformed relative to his draft status...he has underperformed PERIOD. He does not perform as well in his role as an undrafted free agent who was converted from wide receiver. Isn't that a pretty strong indictment of his play?

That Mitchell would be cut was plain as day as soon as Davis was signed. This team does not pay veterans for depth. Think about the decision to cut Langston Walker rather than pay him $3 M as a back up...now the team is going to pay the same coin to Mitchell as a second stringer? Come on. http://forums.twobillsdrive.com/index.php?...aded&start=

You are perpetuating a myth. Stop it. The Bills only appeared to be competitive because Dick Jauron played not to lose. He fielded a fast, undersized defense that would not give up the big play and keep the team in the game through a bend but don't break zone philosophy. This is why the games were close and generally resulted in a 4th quarter breakout for our opponents as our tired, undersized defense finally broke. "Jauron ball" is all about losing gracefully, I am sick of people going negative on Jauron and all he stands for, but then turning around and using the fact that games were close to make the case that our team ain't so bad.

better move is to keep him on the roster as a healthy scratch all year. That is the sort of vindictiveness that gets players and agents' attention.

comments like this are asinine. There is a logical basis for thinking the offense might be decent this year. Chan knows how to make lemonade from lemons and there is obvious depth at RB and exciting potential at key playmaking positions. If you want to have fantasies about finishing top 15 in yards and points, go ahead. It's not so unreasonable. What "haters" don't apprecate is when fans embrace the FO's nonsensical moves destined to fail and then attribute their gullibility to being a "true fan". There's legitimate optimism and then there's baseless optimism. Go ahead and try to figure out which is which.

Why do people think Maybin is well-suited for 3-4 OLB? Because he sucked as 4-3 DE. Honestly. There's no reason to believe he'll work out there. He hasn't played in space and is notoriously slow at picking up schemes and concepts. It's just that he was so undersized and overmatched at DE that he almost HAS to be better at a different position. The same logic would apply if they moved him to Tight End. "The biggest beneficiary of this move should be Aaron Maybin. His 6'4" frame and speed seems much better suited for tight end." WAY too early to write this guy off, but let's just calm down and see what we get out of him this year.

Agreed. Trent likes em too. Loved the 66 yard play to Fred Jackson in 2007 Redskins game and all of the work to Josh Reed in early 2008. Glad we made the strategic decision last offseason to decimate our offensive line and then follow that up with a strategic focus on slow-developing downfield pass plays. "Trent needs to stay in there and take those hits. On those two plays that weren't total jailbreaks with DEs running free, there were guys open, but Trent checked it down. What a kitty"

Defending Fowler based on Minny's record is the same as looking at Carolina's 2008 rushing yardage as evidence Geoff Hangartner was a good signing. I understand your point about hindsight bias, but you need to appreciate all those occasions when the Bills' moves don't make sense at the time and then -- lo and friggin' behold -- don't end up working out.

My prediction is Lynch gets 200 carries in 2010.