uncle flap

Is this a trick question? How can it not be Revis?

:lol:

More here: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/darrelle-revis-laughs-notion-stevie-johnson-ll-line-week-1-ny-jets-cornerback-number-article-1.1150069 Some Bulletin Board Material? IMO, not really, but the fact that Revis and Ryan are saying anything about it means it's on their mind. I'll grant that SJ does't necessarily "own" Revis, but he certainly fares much better against him than other top wideouts. I believe in letting one's on-field play do the talking, but it would be kind of interesting if SJ shot back with a dig. Anyone think he might?

From the article (emphasis mine):

At best, that would've been a decent team a few years ago. Even the bottom-feeders of the NFL have one or two guys that need to be accounted for and on this team there isn't even one. I don't think this team would win a single game if they suited up together this year. Re: the Bills, the only upgrade might be Jake Sott over Urbik. Branch and Ochocinco might be better than any one of of the BIlls #2 WR-by-committee guys, but I'd rather roll with the guys who have been in the system and are trending upward. IMO, Branch and Ocho don't have much if, if anything, left in the tank. If the Bills do sign another WR, I'd rather go with another young guy with upside (Tori Gurley), or someone like Gaffney who while not stellar by any means, is at least a reliable depth player and can fill the role til they (hopefully) draft someone next year. Same with the LBs. For whatever they may be lacking, I don't think plugging in any of those guys on the list would be that significant of an upgrade and I'd like to see Sheppard and Moats continue to develop. Plus, I believe Bradham will eventually wind up as an above-average starter. I don't know too much about Alphonso Smith, but word is he's solid and the Bills are currently pretty thin at CB, so maybe he gets a look.

Last time this was discussed I don't think anyone agreed with me, but I'm all for white/white away and blue/blue home. I did read that blue pants would be added but don't remember if they said anything re: when and with what they'd be worn

Well, maybe, I'd have to see it again. Those were my thoughts while watching the game. It's inconsequential either way. Even if I'm wrong and Smith did let up and the safety had the angle, I wouldn't blame him if in fact he didn't want to get his head taken off by the safety trying to track down an overthrown ball in a preseason game. I don't have the preseason replay so if anyone else wants to chime in, feel free. Back to the main point, I don't believe for a second Smith's job is in jeopardy. I can understand if someone doesn't like the wildcat for whatever reasons, and I can understand if someone doesn't think Smith is a good player. But there is absolutely not one shred of evidence that points to Smith's job being in jeopardy and there are about a million reasons why he should be and will be kept.

They did but watch the play again and you'll see that they were wrong. The ball was WAY overthrown. Zero chance for BS even if he had laid out. And to say he was scared of a hit from the safety? BS was already PAST the safety and would've scored had TT been able to drop the ball into a HUGE gap in coverage. I should say BS would've been past the safety with the ball if TT put it in the right spot bc the safety wouldn't have had the angle

:lol:

Sorry to nitpick, but no, it's not 59 drops. I just would hate to have that become the next oft-repeated stat that is either flat-out wrong or taken out of context. I know that you're not saying he sucks based on that misinterpretation of stats, but others surely might. Here's a good article re: drop rates: http://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2012/01/17/drop-rate-2011-which-receivers-are-dropping-the-ball/ Notice that SJ is not in the top 20. Someone posted it recently but I thought it applies here too. To put targets vs completions in context, Roddy White had 179 targets last year to his 100 receptions, which is pretty much on par with SJ.

Also- let me know if anyone is interested in joining an online franchise. I'm usually in a few and one is probably already filled but another might have some spots.

ps3 flapezoid I CANT BELIEVE THEY TOOK OUT THE FANTASY DRAFT FOR ONLINE FRANCHISES. WHAT A RIP. TBH, the game kinda sucks. For all the hype about the infinity engine, the tackling and hitting look worse than last year- more variety in the animations, but most don't seem realistic. I'm sure I'll grow to like it more over time, but my initial reaction is disappointment. Probably more so because they took out my favorite part of the game. Big Cat- SJ played in a couple of our leagues the year before last. He is pretty much unstoppable on offense so your only shot is to win a shootout. IIRC he only lost twice and the most of the guys in these leagues can really play. As far as I know he only plays on xbox now, so it was fun while it lasted. He is such a cool down to earth dude tho, I was really impressed. We got connected via twitter and then scheduled games thru DMs and email. He took it seriously which I didnt totally expect since, you know, he's a celebrity and you wouldn't think he would care all that much about fans he doesn't know personally.

That's our tailgate in the video!

I wasn't trying to call you out or anything; It's a good question especially considering what Lindell said. However, I think he is selling himself short. Remember what happened when he was injured last year? Where were all those guys who are as good as he is? There are a lot of guys who have the physical tools to play the position, but I think on top of that special combination of strength and skill, an NFL kicker needs to have nerves of steel. Even more so, they need to be pretty damn consistent. Anyway, I think in the near future (unless in the unlikely case kickoffs are abolished altogether), kickers wont get a sniff at a roster unless they can do both. As it stands now, It boils down to a cost/benefit analysis between a fringe roster spot vs field goal consistency vs touchback consistency. The Bills seem content on keeping both Potter and Lindell and I imagine Potter will prove to be more valuable than the guy who would fill that final roster spot. To use the OP's premise: Yes, I'd rather have Potter than Ruvell Martin.

85% isn't 100%, which seems to be what Potter can deliver. And I realize this isn't a perfect analogy, but one could use that same logic to say, "Well, I know playing Quarterback is tough, but there just has to be 32 guys on the planet than can do it." Plus, as already mentioned, teeing off (literally) vs accurately placing a kick that is being held by someone else who might not have the greatest consistency holding (many variables- the snap, the weather, etc.) while having to kick over a line of oncoming defenders are completely different beasts.

This is the correct answer.

His name is actually Marc Miller, and he can be found here. Thanks go to Barry Zuckerkorn for the find.

I'm in the other TBD league but I'll join this one too. Is there a tentative date/time set for the draft? Also, is the entry fee being collected via PayPal or what?

I guess I've waited long enough, so here goes nothin'! QB: Ryan Fitzpatrick Vince Young Brad Smith RB: Fred Jackson CJ Spiller Tashard Choice FB: Corey McIntyre Dorin Dickerson TE: Scott Chandler Lee Smith WR: Steve Johnson TJ Graham David Nelson Donald Jones Marcus Easley OT: Cordy Glenn Chris Hairston Erik Pears Zebrie Sanders OG: Andy Levitre Kraig Urbik Chad Rinehart C: Eric Wood Colin Brown DE: Mario Williams Mark Anderson Shawne Merriman Chris Kelsay DT: Marcell Dareus Kyle Williams Dwan Edwards Spencer Johnson Alex Carrington LB: Kelvin Sheppard Nick Barnett Arthur Moats Kirk Morrison Nigel Bradham Bryan Scott Tank Carder CB: Stephon Gilmore Aaron Williams Leodis McKelvin Ron Brooks Justin Rogers Terrence McGee* S: George Wilson Jairus Byrd Da’Norris Searcy ST: Rian Lindell John Potter Brian Moorman Garrison Sanborn *McGee is the wild card here. I think if he is headed to the IR or cutsville, he might just retire. It gets really interesting if McGee doesn't make it. I could see Troup, McKillop, Hagan, or a FS not already on the team taking that spot. I don't think any of the safeties currently on the roster make it over any of these previously mentioned players. I know what Nix said, but I think he meant exactly what he said: they'd like to add a fourth safety, not that they are going to add a fourth safety just to add a fourth safety. So those are the guys on the outside looking in, IMO (Troup, McKillop, Hagan and [unsigned safety]). The guys on the inside looking out would be: McIntyre, Carrington, Carder, and Easley. I currently have him making the team, but the shocker cut could be Donald Jones. If both Easley and Hagan pick it up between now and final cuts, DoJo could be looking for a job elsewhere. I don't see that happening at all, but I had to put something controversial

Good point I didn't really consider that! Here's two interesting articles relevant to this discussion: http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles/1289844-how-lardarius-webb-got-50-million-an-agents-guide-to-nfl-contract-negotiation http://mobile.buffalorumblings.com/2012/7/25/3186701/buffalo-bills-kraig-urbik-changes-agents-dave-dunn Sorry for no hyperlinks I'm on my phone

You're correct about the arguments, but you are missing something. Most, if not all, agents worth a salt are going to work to get top dollar for their client (which of course means a higher commission). So, regardless of what the Bills want to do, an agent isn't going to just roll over because the Bills make a decent offer. Even if Levitre or whomever actually wants to stay with the Bills, the agent is going to do his job and try to maximize the dollar amount on the contract. The best way to do that is drag out negotiations until the last minute in order to gain the leverage you already mentioned. The risk in dragging out the contract negotiations is that the player gets hurt or underperforms during the negotiation period. But the same can be said about re-signing a player early as well. I think we are all best served by letting the pros do their job and not debating the merit of when Levitre and others should re-sign. There simply isn't a right answer and all the examples people have cited have are unique to the makeup of the teams, their cap situation, and the players themselves. Everyone agrees that they should re-sign these guys, and I don't believe there is any harm in waiting. Once the season is rolling, the FO will have more time to negotiate. As previously mentioned, RIGHT NOW there is far too much going on to worry about re-signing guys that are under contract. Let them get the 53 man roster and the practice squad settled first, huh? I'm not going to worry until Free Agency rolls around next spring if we don't have these guys locked up yet.

I agree there is a lack of explosive playmakers. To bring the thread back to TJ, I think he can become a receiver that will have DCs adjusting their game plan. If Graham and Easley can take that next step in becoming better route runners, I think both can cause problems for opposing defenses. Graham already has the potential to either grab one over the top, or beat his man on a quick out/hitch/bubble screen and be off to the races. If he can become even slightly more well rounded, I think he'll have a solid career. So far, it seems for every catch he's snagged over the middle, he's been out of position on another. Easley's size and speed are unteachable, so if he too can become more consistent with the playbook and route running, he can certainly do some damage as well. He's got pretty good hands, and I'd like to seem him run with the 1s some more. If a guy like Hagan really is that much better with the playbook and running routes, so be it, but I'm not ready to give up on Easley yet. Graham seems further along than Easley, but I still think it's too soon to cut ties with Easley since that prototypical size/speed combination doesn't come around that often. The other guys we've mentioned I think are pretty much in the "What you see is what you get" category. Nelson and Chandler are average to solid starters, and I don't see Jones and the rest of receivers making any huge strides in getting much better, but time will tell.

If I'm the GM, barring any serious injuries, acquisitions, or off-the-field stuff, I've got: Stevie Nelson Graham Easley Jones and that's it for WR. I hate to see Roosevelt go, and even though Hagan has had a pretty good camp, neither have been consistently good enough to push any of the above guys out, IMO. Jones is the bubble guy for me. The best things he's got going for him is his knowledge of the offense and his dedication as a downfield blocker. I believe Easley has much more raw talent than Jones (key word: raw), and with a little more experience, he can make a name for himself as a solid option in an offense that spreads the ball around. 5 pure WRs would seem low for many/most teams, but consider the other viable receiving threats: FJ, CJ, Chandler, Brad Smith and Dorin Dickerson (assuming DD sticks). Each of those guys can and have lined up outside and/or in the slot. So, in this scenario, the Bills have 10 guys than can serve the purpose of a WR, even if that isn't their primary role, or how they line up on the field. Last year, IIRC, the Bills motioned a player out of the backfield to a receiver spot on the line more often than any other team. The question in my mind is, would you rather have a 6th or 7th pure WR, or an additional player at another position? I can see the Bills keeping 6, even if I wouldn't. If they do, I think Hagan gets the nod. Of course, there's still time for players to make more of a case for themselves. Remember, if there is some unlikely rash of injuries to the WRs, the roster can be adjusted during the season. It's likely a few of the fringe guys will be available or on the practice squad if it comes down to it. That said, I think I'm going to have to sit down and try my hand at a full 53 man roster and see if I don't change my own mind.

What an incendiary article!

The argument is that a coach doesn't want to risk injury to his primary backup. By definition, in the Wildcat/Option, the guy taking the snap is going to be the ball carrier quite a bit, and therefore more likely to be injured. So, most coaches don't want to risk injuring the guy who would act as the QB in the primary offense, if the starter were to go down. Some might think that the above scenario isn't likely to happen (two QBs injured), but it might, and if it does, you're doubly screwed. If Brad Smith gets hurt running the Wildcat, not nearly as big a deal, you just scrap the Wildcat package. Before anyone says, "But VY ran the option all the time in college," remember who he was playing against. Also, as mentioned before, scrambling when the defense is playing the pass is not the same as a designed run in the WIldcat. It's more likely on a scramble that VY can slide or get out of bounds. In any case, I don't really know how much merit the injury argument has, but that is the answer to the above question as far as I know. Now if Thigpen proved to be the better primary backup, and one were to argue that VY should be kept as the 3rd QB, that is a different story. It seems that Chan has his mind made up about Smith though, so there you have it. I imagine the answer is that whether or not you think BS is particularly good at anything, he has some experience in a lot of shoes. VY has only played QB, so maybe the Bills don't want to limit themselves in that regard.