hondo in seattle

Many, many years ago my mom tended to believe in the big dumb jock theory - that the guys who played football professionally just weren't bright enough to do anything better. Jack Kemp be damned! Here's yet another example showing how diverse football players can be - and how many succeed off the gridiron.

Haven't we been talking about this very topic for several months now? Does it really need a new thread? In any case, I'll play... We won 9 games last year. I think the addition of Rex, Roman, Percy, Shady, Clay, Incognito, etc ought to give us at least 1 more win which puts us on the cusp.

Thanks for the summary. Rex's answer about the LeBron remark was pretty good.

This is just wild speculation. There are stories out of Florida State that EJ was only asked to scan half the field. Having a problem going quickly through progressions - if true - is not the same as saying the guy can't grasp a complicated NFL offense. By all accounts, EJ is a playbook junkie. I seriously doubt Marrone took plays out of the playbook because EJ couldn't grasp the offense. If there was a problem with players grasping and executing the offense, my hunch it was because (as we've heard) the coaches weren't always aligned.

No harm, no foul.

Now that I have a date, I booked my plane tickets.

I have an unopened box of Kelly Krunch. Sadly, I recently discovered that my Flutie Flakes have disappeared. My step-children, having grown up on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines, apparently don't appreciate the sacrosanct nature of Bills memorabilia. It's a mystery beyond the comprehension of the uninitiated. Obviously, I'm failing as a step-dad.

I haven't been this positive about the Bills organization in a long time... Brandon isn't involved in football decisions any more and does what he does best. In fact, he's very good at the marketing/business side of football as far as I can tell. We have billionaire owners who are passionate about the team, about the city, and about restoring the Bills to glory. I believe our Big Three coaches (HC, OC, DC) are all capable guys. Jeff Littman isn't the CFO anymore. Whaley has done a brilliant job building this roster. Yep, we all know QB is the exception - so far. But let's remember something. Two HOF coaches (Bill Walsh, Marv Levy) though TE was going to be a good one. Nobody bats 1.000 on QBs and I'm not sure any good QBs have been available since Whaley starting calling the shots.

It's way too early this season to assess any of our QBs yet. I do think, however, that you can evaluate a QB when he's practicing against a good D. While the completion percentage might be lower than you want, you can still visually judge ball placement, progressions, timing, footwork, mechanics, and so on.

WAY TOO EARLY to say anyone is beating out anyone.

I can't bet against you because (1) I love the optimism, and (2) I can't bet against my Bills. But with all the uncertainty at QB and OL, I wouldn't make a similar bet. To get to 11-5 or better, all the offensive linemen have to live up to our hopes and one of the QBs needs to step up and play better than he has before. It's possible. But probable? I don't know.

Yep, I get that point of view. But the rigors of an NFL season are hard on an old QB. I remember when George Blanda was too old to start at QB and backed up Lamonica in Oakland. Blanda played well in spot duty because his arm was fresh. Brady hasn't reached that time in his career where he is no longer a capable starter. But he has, I think, reached a point where a little rest could be a good thing for him.

Even though Brady's statistics were solid last year, there are signs he's getting old. He doesn't seem to throw deep balls with the same authority and precision as when he was younger. Last season the Pats started 2-2. This season, with Garoppolo under center, I can easily see them matching that. One of their games is against the Jags. With Belichick as coach, I'm guessing they'll find a way to pick up at least one other "W" during the Garofalo stretch. So Brady will get to rest his aging arm for four weeks and when he returns, the Pats won't be in a bad place. At Brady's age, that layoff has got to make a positive difference. I'm glad Brady was suspended because there needs to be consequences for cheating. I'm just not sure how much it will help us in the long run. (My apologies if this line of thinking has been offered elsewhere).

I doubt if Shady will become one of my favorite players. But he's not one of the NFL's bad boys either. I would prefer to like and respect the players I cheer on but I know young football players are never paragons of enlightened virtue. So I'll be screaming like crazy when Shady runs 40 yards past the Pats defenders into the endzone.

Roman is kind of a lose-lose. If he's great, we lose him. If he's bad, we keep him.

Biscuit, I don't mind the opinions. I, for one, like Peter King and he injects opinion into his pieces. Facts by themselves can be dull. Opinions add drama and context. The opinions can help transform the dry facts into a compelling story. Sully, though, goes too far, though, and seems to relish (1) being the contrarian, and (2) being negative. And while Peter King will give you new facts you didn't know, Jerry rarely provides new information. I rarely learn anything from Jerry and his whiny criticisms are just annoying. The BN should bring back Milt Northrop.

Yolo, I agree with you. The comment was both funny and true. Still if I'm MC, TT or EJ, my feelings were probably a little hurt and maybe - just maybe - it creates a little more self-doubt which isn't a good thing. If I'm Simms, however, I'm probably encouraged that the HC doesn't have a glowing opinion of the competition.

I hear the Pegulas are hanging four signs that say "Super Bowl Finalist" at our practice facility.

I won't wish misfortune on another human being but my first thought was about Sully, too. I hope TyDunne is cast from a different mold.

My first thoughts when we signed him: (1) camp arm (2) Rex likes the way he runs the scout team. Curious to hear Rex the other day saying we may have LeBrons other places but we don't have a LeBron at QB. It's always nice to have a coach who believes in you!

Forgetting the options, a "successful" season to me is simply making the playoffs, even if we lose in the first round. We really need to end the drought. And any team that makes the playoffs is relevant. I want the Bills to be relevant again.

Taking chances with personnel means signing guys and kicking the tires. I think the Bills have done that. "Taking chances" doesn't mean signing Brad Smith and letting him start just to take a chance. They evaluated him in practice and saw that he wasn't very good. So he didn't play except for WC. Coaches start their best 11 on offense and their best 11 on defense. When it's debatable if someone is one of the best or not, yep, he should be given a chance on the field. But Brad Smith was never in the running for a starting role. He made it plain on the practice field that he didn't deserve to be a starter. If some guy is too slow, weak or unskilled during practice, he's not suddenly gonna become a different guy on Sunday. We shouldn't insert the lame into the starting lineup just to take a chance and try something different.

I don't care how our triplets are ranked now. I care how they're ranked at the end of the season. We don't even know who are QB will be. Sammy is just a sophomore and will be playing with a new starting quarterback. Shady has never run in a Bills uniform before and Roman has never coordinated a Bills O before. It's all a bunch of questions.

From Syracuse Post Standard: Kouandjio has been taking reps with the first team at right tackle, and the coaching staff seems to like what they've seen. He's transformed his body since his rookie season and has cleaned up some of his technique. The 2014 second-round pick didn't play at all as a rookie, so if the new coaching staff can get something out of him, that will be a big win. Of course, Roman is hesitant to get too excited. "With him, putting the pads on and seeing how that projects, that's the final test," Roman said. "That's the final exam." http://www.syracuse.com/buffalo-bills/index.ssf/2015/06/7_takeaways_from_conversations_with_buffalo_bills_assistant_coaches.html

We really need at least one of last year's OL draft picks to become a good starter this year. Two of the three - Kujo, Richardson, Henderson - becoming good starters would be a coup.