hondo in seattle

Kelly is an offensive innovator. He's more than just an uptempo spread guy. He's a thinker who matches scheme to talent. But his lack of NFL experience does cause worry. Can he work with older, pro players? Can he build and manage a playoff caliber staff? Can he dissect NFL offenses and defenses as well as, say, Bill Belichick? Does he know how to assess NFL talent? Will he and the front office acquire enough talent to win? I expect Kelly will succeed in the end. But if he doesn't start winning within the first couple years, he'll run back to the NCAA. Good article about Kelly here: http://special.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/sports/17159053-41/story.csp Marrone's NFL experience makes him as good a candidate, in my mind, as Kelly.

What does Steven A. Smith actually know about football? Then again, I can't say I loved the pick when EJ's name was called out. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it.

I'm getting sentimental as I grow older. Almost had tears in my eyes. Great story. Moats has his head on straight: "I was so honored to meet him because he risks his life each day to keep us safe. He’s always served the country (with 21 years in the U.S. Navy) and the community. It was really emotional and felt really good to know that a small step of kindness meant that much to him... People think that it’s such an honor to meet us football players, but the real honor is meeting them." http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-1/Moats-sends-healing-text-message/9c443889-22d3-44c4-9e3a-97498a35e0a8

I get your point but I don't agree. How do we know what Kolb is if we don't give him some meaningful snaps? Despite his years in the league, he's effectively an NFL sophomore when you look at his playing time. Some people used to be high on Kolb. Philly once upon a time seemed to see him as a franchise quarterback but he's never lived up to his potential due to injuries and bad luck. I just don't know yet who's ceiling is higher: Kolb's or EJ's. I haven't seen enough of EJ or Kolb yet to make that judgment. Apparently, Marrone hasn't yet either and I suspect he knows a little more about these QBs than either of us. My guess is that EJ will win the starting job. The fact that he doesn't start against the Vikes will have zero negative impact on the course of his career here. If anything, it might be good for him. The players watch this stuff carefully. When EJ lines up under center against the Pats on opening day, his teammates will know he earned the right to be there. Knowing that, they'll support him more and rally around him.

I also live near Seattle and watched a few games with the Bills Backers at Jillian's near South Lake Union last year. I didn't get the email though it doesn't much matter. I wonder if it's normal for them to solicit ticket sales like this? A sign of desperation? I'm kind of envious that all the Seahawks games are sold out. Back in the 90s, the Bills pulled in fantastic attendance figures.

I agree 100%. Finding out what Kolb can do is not a bad thing. If EJ is going to be the starter, let him earn the spot in a fair competition where Kolb had his shots. If we go to the playoffs this year, I don't care if it's EJ, Kolb or Tuel that takes us there.

Not to be cynical, but maybe Pettine brought him in to help instill his scheme & philosophy with the other LBs, knowing Westerman has the knowledge - but not the skills - to play this defense. In the end, Westerman gets cut.

I posted the link to Herm's comments about EJ yesterday in the Kolb thread, though maybe it deserved it's own. I guess I'm weak-minded because I feel better when the professionals agree with my opinion that EJ's looking pretty good. http://forums.twobillsdrive.com/topic/160179-does-anybody-else-think-that-kolb-could-be-a-surprise-cut/page__st__100

Obviously, anyone bidding on the Bills will consider operating income, debt service, and the long term prospects of the region. That latter worries me regardless of the current debt, revenue or anything else. We really have to hope someone local buys the team who will generate enough profit to justify their heart's longing to keep the team in Buffalo. My hope is that there's already a plan in place and the Wilson estate does not resort to open bidding or makes staying in WNY a requirement. In such a scenario, the sales price will end up making sense and allow the owner some positive cash flow. If the Wilson estate entertains bidders from around the country, you're right, the business case for staying in Buffalo isn't very strong.

I have about the same number of posts as you so let me say it: Tuel should be the st..................... I just can't do it. I really can't. At least not yet. I'm going to go out on a limb here and make the big assumption that Marrone and Hackett know more about Tuel's abilities than the posters advocating for him. Most of us fans have seen him play one half of preseason NFL ball. Hell, I've seen Rob Johnson, Trent Edwards and J.P. Losman play good entire regular season games. That doesn't mean any of them deserve to be Buffalo Bills starters. Until Marrone proves himself incompetent as a talent evaluator and head coach, I'll be content with his decision. If Tuel eventually proves to the coaching staff that he gives the team the best chance of winning, I won't care. I just want to win. One half of preseason ball against scrubs is nice but proves nothing. UDFAs like Tuel and journeymen like Kolb have low success rates. Even 1st rounders like EJ have a fairly low success rate. I don't care which one beats the odds as long as one of them does. I think its great both rooks did well against the Colts. That may mean we have one good QB.

Herm Edwards thinks EJ is ready for the starting job. "All indications tell me right now - the way he played in that first preseason game - he should be the starter." Herm was effusive in his praise of EJ. http://espn.go.com/v...=espnapi_public Does that make Kolb - and his NFL experience - expendable?

When EJ was drafted, I really expected Kolb to be the starter on opening day even though I appreciated EJ's potential. Now, however, for all the obvious reasons, I think Kolb will under center against the Pats. It's still very early in preseason but EJ is developing nicely so far.

Okay, San Jose, you've mentioned this twice and nobody seems to be biting so I will. You are right. To play two rookies in the first preseason game and have them combine for 35-44 and 319 yards is impressive. It's only preseason but that's partly the point, I think. Preseason games, especially inaugural preseason games, can be chaotic and especially difficult for rookies. Marrone, Hackett, et al did a really nice jobs preparing these kids.

I agree that the Bills will not go into the season with two rookie QBs on the roster and no one else. But that doesn't mean Kolb doesn't get cut. As we get closer and closer to the regular season, we'll see known QBs become unemployed. If Kolb continues to struggle, he could get cut in favor of another experienced QB. I don't think this is likely because Kolb knows Bills offense and Hackett has a particularly philosophy and scheme he's trying to implement. He may rather stick with the guy who understands his system than try to break in someone new just weeks before the opener (even if this guy is destined to be a back up).

Wow, I almost feel guilty starting a thread about a B/R article. My apologies. Never again. I just thought the B/R article was a good conversation starter, not substantive, insightful journalism. My own QB thoughts are these... 1st round QBs have maybe a 40%or 50% success rate. FA retreads like Kolb and Jackson have a lower yet success rate. UDFA's like Tuel very rarely become franchise quarterbacks. Given the odds, the failure of any of these guys can't be counted as a disappointment.

The Bleacher Report lists Kevin Kolb as one of the biggest training camp disappointments so far this year. When the Bills signed Kolb, he was both a hedge against the Bills being unable to land a talented quarterback in the draft and a veteran insurance policy in case they did. When the Bills drafted EJ Manuel, perhaps the least polished of the top quarterback prospects this season, it looked like the starting job was Kolb's to lose. In camp, though, Kolb has struggled to play like the veteran he is. According to Joe Buscaglia of WGR 550, Kolb struggled with blitz recognition and pickup in the fourth day of camp—exactly the kind of thing a veteran should be able to do better than a rookie. bleacherreport.com/articles/1732406-the-biggest-nfl-training-camp-disappointments-so-far/page/6 The point might be moot, however, as Peter King lists EJ as one the best training camp surprises so far (or however he phrased it).

Yep... and if I had to pick a group I most wanted to watch it would be the receiving corps. Lot of intriguing new faces.

I wanted to keep TJax, too. We only have one experienced QB on the roster and he's so injury prone, it's hard to guess how long he'll be able to suit up. We might end up playing games with a rookie starter and a rookie backup talking things over with him on the sideline. Then again, Jackson's departure means more reps for EJ (and Tuel) and EJ seems to be doing well with his reps.

And an above average receiving corps. But the ship named Gailey has sailed away and I'm glad. Whatever strengths he had as an OC were ruined by his weakness as a Head Coach. He failed to find a good DC and failed to build a winning culture. But, yeah, as the acting OC he did pretty well with the limited talent he had to work with.

We sucked last year. We have a new Head Coach who is not a proven commodity. Even when he was a good OC with the Saints, he was working under an offensive mastermind. Our DC is also unproven for similar reasons. We haven't named a starting QB yet but either choice is unproven in the NFL. I understand why the preseason power polls rank us near the bottom. But let's dream... What if Pettine is as great as his resume (Top Five in the NFL every year as a DC)? What if Marrone turns out to be the winner his supporters say he will be? What if Hackett, his protege, turns out to be an offensive wunderkind? What if EJ lives up to his potential and our high hopes? So, while I get the polls, I find more reason to hope this year than I have in a looong time. Marrone, Pettine, Hackett, and EJ all might be a lot better than the guys we had in those key positions last year.

Looking at that list, I have to agree that Fred is a Top Ten RB - IF he returns to his previous form and doesn't perform like last year. I'm hoping he does.

Sadly, yes we did.

CJ averaged 6.0 yards per carry last season but 3.6 yards came after contact. That was second best in the league, behind only AP. So was our line good? Or did CJ make them look good? The year before, Freddy also a great YAC metric and also made the line look good. The stats tell an ambivalent story. Fitz got rid of the ball very quickly and therefore didn't get sacked a lot. CJ got lots of yards after contact. And, as kobe888 points out, we didn't always see a lot of push in short yardage situation. While I'm optimistic that Marrone will find a way to move the ball, I think the folks with concerns about the line - especially after Levitre's departure - have a rational argument.

And Fitz had the 4th (tied) fastest time to throw, holding on to the ball less than a 1/10th of a second more than Brady. In other words, the data supports the argument that our line didn't have to hold their blocks for very long on passing plays.

I think Gailey designed his dink and dunk offense to hide both Fitz's and the O Line's deficiencies. Fitz couldn't throw deep and the line - a couple years ago - couldn't keep defenders out of the pocket for very long. It made sense to run short, quick routes. I think the O Line was matured since then. And hopefully it will mature some more with a Head Coach who was a former lineman and line coach. Some of the statistics indicate we had an exceptionally good line last year. But Spiller can do a lot with a very small hole. Freddy was hobbled last year but used to be among the league leaders in Yards After Contact. And Fitz rarely held onto the ball for very long so he didn't get sacked a lot. In other words, I think the QB and RBs helped make the line look good. We'll see.