[How does a potential lockout change your draft strategy?]

I haven't seen this posted and was wondering if others had thought this through.

 

If there is an extended lockout, and drafted players are barred from ANY contact from the clubs, does this change the overall draft strategy? Specifically, doesn't this mean that quarterbacks should be avoided like the plague? They would have no exposure to the minicamps, OTAs etc. With a limited preseason their worth will be almost zero for the first year. What other positions would be so affected?

 

So, do you go heavy on positions that don't require a lot of film study and reps? And what positions would those be?

 

Or, do you live with the fact that as rookies, a QB (and other identified positions) are not going to help anyway, regardless of the lockout?

[3 Mocks]

Personally, I am hoping for Newton in the first, and then address either O line or D line in the second, but then remain heavy on the D side for the remainder of the picks. That is why didn't vote for C. Ingram in the second is another luxury pick we cant afford.

 

But I could be VERY happy with A.

[Trade down in the 2011 draft and....]

Stephen Paea would be great if we were still a 4-3 team. He's not big enough to play NT.

 

 

I don't know a lot about the kid. But he's a solid 305 lbs and I did see him bench 225 lbs 49 times. And I believe that is a combine record. Put another 20 lbs on him and I think he's "big enough." He's certianly strong enough.

[All Newton all the time]

I am of the "grab a franchise quarterback" camp. The only way we get out of the cellar is with a franchise qb. I like Fitz, but he will forever lead us to a .500 record. IMHO we can always grab a quality "____" (Fill in the blank with DL, OLB, ILB, LT, RT, etc, etc) in ANY draft. But at 3, if Nix/Chan believe Cam is the man, then I'm all in. If we still suck in 5 years, then no worries, we'll have the #3 pick again. It'll be like groundhog day.

 

 

 

 

I dont pin the actions of his scumbag father on him. That's on his father for trying to pimp out his son. Cam was trying to play football either way. If we're going to start holding kids responsible for their parent's behavior, that's a whole other discussion, and a ridiculous one at that.

 

 

This is the one thing that worries me though. Wont we have to deal with the father during contract negotiations? Is this the red flag we SHOULD be worried about?

[Two Years Ago Christmas Eve...]

C'est la vie. You can root for whatever team you want. Just don't expect much sympathy from die-hard Bills fans when you gloat about jumping ship to a franchise on the rise. But riddle me this, Batman: if and/or when Green Bay wins the big one, will you have gained a deep sense of satisfaction? Was that fandom earned through years of heartache and devotion? Do you deserve the right to say "That right there, THAT'S my team"?

 

It's not a mortal sin and again, it's your life. But every time I watch the Bills all I beg for is "just one time". Just one time let it be magical for this town, this team. And by God, when they do finally have that one shining moment I'll be crying my eyes out and basking in the afterglow, and it'll be because I rooted for that damn miserable team from the day I was born.

 

So take your satisfaction where you can get it. But for some of us, being a Bills fan isn't just about liking red, white, and blue laundry.

 

 

+1

 

4H is a football fan. Fine. Whatever. Although why he posts here is a mystery. Are we to congratulate you on your divinely inspired wisdom? Or should I now feel sorry myself that I didn't switch allegiances years ago.

 

Me, I'm a Buffalo Bills fan. There have been times I have wanted to divorce the Bills. (It usually happens no later than 4pm on Sundays.) But come Tuesday, I come crawling back. I cannot help it. I was born and raised in Buffalo. My earliest memories of the team were the 2 - 12 variety. Yeah, I am that old. No other team gives me the emotional swings like my Bills. I cannot care about another team. When Arizona for example, lost in the Super Bowl, I went on with my life. Yet, I still cannot watch the Bills Super Bowl highlights. I still hiss at the TV whenever I see Jimmy Johnson. I also hate the Dallas teams in the NHL, NBA, and Soccer. (OK, I don't hate the soccer team. They deserve each other.) When Norwood's kick went wide... I was literally hiding in another room. My wife had to break the news to me. She had that same look on her face when she told me my dog died.

 

And should the Bills lose today (or any other day), I'll probably boo the screen, and pout for the remainder of the day. On Monday, I'll continue to rant against the football gods for their unjust curse against my Bills. Come Tuesday, I'll start to plan my upcoming Sunday around the Bills game.

 

This is my addiction. I can't change. It now -- in part -- defines me.

[Former Bills not sticking with new teams]

Just a quick list of former Bills that didn't make the final cut

 

Derek Fine (TE) Hou

Sam Aiken (WR) NE

Josh Reed (WR) SD

JP Losman (QB) Sea

 

Not a big list. But then we haven't exactly been stockpiling talent either over the years.

[Chan Gailey admonishes a group of fans]

Last time I checked, booing and heckling is as old as sports. Bills players have been booed and heckled by Bills fans since the 60's. Jack Kemp was booed and had beer cans and whiskey bottles thrown at him. Joe Feguson was booed. Jim Kelly was booed and heckled by Bills fans many times. All three of those guys were better than Trent Edwards any day of the week. Should the "kids" have heckled TE? Who cares? Should Gailey have said something? Who cares? Non-issue. Besides, anything autographed by Trent Edwards is pretty worthless anyway.

 

Couple thoughts.

First, it was a free night practice with a limited number of tickets available. These night 'events' are set to maximize the number of people - who have regular jobs - can see the Bills practice. I don't get the whole "I paid money so I can say what I want" argument. If you paid to go to a game and want to boo. Well OK. The two are completely different in my mind. But take a free ticket from some other fan so you can heckle.... seems selfish to me.

 

Second, if you really think "I can say what I want" then I guess the same rule should apply for the coach -- or any other adult -- to tell you to shut up. I would think it would detract from my experience of watching a practice if the guy next to me was imposing his freedom of speech over my freedom to watch a scrimmage without being subjected to boorish behavior.

 

Finally. Congrats to Chan. A great way to build team unity.

 

But, I could be wrong.

[Today's Chris Brown Article]

After reading the article, I couldn't help but think that I WANT these guys to succeed. Wood, from last year, falls into the same category. I can root for these guys. They aren't thugs. Are we seeing a change in attitude being from the new guys? It seems like this was very much on the mind of Nix, et al.

 

Hey, we may suck next year, but these are guys I can BILL_Lieve in.

[Things I don't want to hear from Buddy]

Clichés I don't want to hear:

 

"He's got all the tools." What tools? Black and Decker?, Ryobi?, John Deere?... what? We're playing football, not building a tree house.

 

"He's a high motor guy" Translation: He runs around like a caffeinated squirrel, and occasionally falls into an opposing player.

 

"He comes to play" This one always leaves me scratching my head. Ummm, that's his job. Glad we didn't draft the guy who 'came to watch'. (that's MY job by the way)

 

"He's a high character guy" I should not make light of this one but I can't help it. I know a lot of 'high character' guys. As best I can tell, they're mostly about 5'10" and anywhere from 150 to 250 lbs. Great guys. Guys you want dating your sister. But I've played ball with these guys. They suck.

 

What did I miss?

[It's the offensive line and defensive front, not the quarterback]

Yeah, I think this is the way to go: build the foundation now.

 

It may not make the Bills a Superbowl team this year, but it will begin the process of moving us in that direction.

 

To me, the rest is secondary now; we should get a receiver, maybe a tight end, and the rest should go to the offensive line and the defensive front 7.

 

We will have two young lines, starting to build depth as well, and, then, in the next few years we could get our skill positions in order. But with better lines, the entire team should begin to look better soon.

 

Build the base--and then get the rest. Because we all know that without great lines, we will never have a great team.

 

 

The problem with that scenario is that you have a perennial decent team: say between 7-9 and maybe 10-6. Given that record, when are we going to get a franchise QB? We'll always be drafting in the 15-20 range. You'll have to be extremely lucky for a franchise QB that late. (Green Bay looks to be very lucky, but then again what pick was JP?) We may have that opportunity now.

 

If not now? When? IMHO when you suck, swing for the fences. QB first, then the lines. And I still think you can upgrade both our lines with second and third round picks. But I don't want the 3rd or 4th best Left Tackle, or even 3rd best DL with the #9 pick.

 

And please, if we're not going to pick a QB with the first pick, please don't take one in the second. I could live with an O-line, D-line combo in round 1 and 2. But I don't want a project QB with the second pick. That's another mediocre QB at best. And we're still stuck in the 7 to 10 range. Never a threat to go deep into the playoffs.

[I'm sold on who the Bills Draft at #9]

It seems to me that the questions about Clausen aren't about his mechanics or his knowledge of the game, it's about his intangibles. Can he play well with others? Cocky is good for a QB but too cocky is not. The 2011 draft is supposed to be QB rich and I say give TE one more chance and then draft a QB in 2011 or pick up a project with high upside (Dan LeFevour) in this draft. If TE fails and the new kid looks like he needs a lot of time then take a QB next year and use the 2010 draft pick for development and a possible trade later. JMO

 

 

The problem is you don't know your position in NEXT years draft. Clausen is generally regarded as the second (in some cases the first) rated QB in THIS years draft. I think we're lucky. He could fall to us at #9 as Washington, Seattle and Cleveland all made relatively expensive cap moves to bolster their QB position. I don't think those moves pay off in the long run. For next years draft, add Oakland in the mix as another team in need of their next franchise QB.

 

Now, for next years draft class, are we SURE the top QBs will continue to progress? In any case, suppose they do. Are we sure that we will have a top three pick to get our franchise QB? God I hope not.

 

Clausen is no sure thing. But if he's there at 9, it's worth the risk.

[I'm sold on who the Bills Draft at #9]

You have to ask where are we best served. With a top 10 Quarterback and a top 20-25 Left Tackle, OR a top 10 LT and a top 20-25 QB. I'll go with top 10 QB. That guy on his own can squeak out an extra win or two a year. To do it right we'll sit Clausen for a half year, then let him get his reps behind a O line that's starting to jell with that rookie top 20-25 LT. Yup we'll suck next year too. But then we'll get a top 15 pick and focus on the defense. Then we'll in the mix for a playoff spot.

 

That said, I just want a draft where I don't yell, " What the ....... " and feel the need to throw things at the TV and then have to take a angry nap. If they draft a RB or DB, I'll need to go TV shopping again, probably in my pajamas.