hondo in seattle

We'll see if the Pats know what they are doing as the season unfolds. But their off season is "strange" because they've gone after some players who weren't especially in high demand and not necessarily good fits in NE. Ochocinco. Over the hill? Big mouth. Likes attention. Pouts when he doesn't get the ball. Odd choice because the Pats like players to shut up, forget individual stats and win as a team. Haynesworth. Over the hill? Takes plays off. Not a team guy. Locker room poison. Ellis. Over the hill? Even if the three of them turn out to have a little gas left in the tank this year, they certainly won't help the Pats for many seasons. NE will have to readdress these same needs next year.

+1 When TE was QB, he was clearly afraid of 5 and 7 step drops (maybe rightly so) and would immediately look for a checkdown. Lee's numbers suffered because of this. But unlike a lot of prima donna receivers out there, Lee never complains. He hasn't complained about having to work with 4 different head coaches or 6 different starting QBs during his Bills career. He hasn't complained about the woeful offense lines that couldn't block long enough for him to get open deep. Think of all the Ochocinco's and TO's and Randy Moss's who would be in the papers all the time explaining exactly why they aren't posting Pro Bowl numbers if they had been wearing Lee's shoes. Or who pout and take plays off when they feel the QB or coach isn't focusing on them enough. Lots of WRs these days are whiny babies. Not Lee.

I wish Fitz was more accurate (and maybe he will be this year with more familiarity) but he's never been afraid to go after the big play. Evans has speed. Spiller, Parish and Smith make plays in space. Johnson last year just plain made plays. Gailey likes to run an unpredictable offense. It could all add up to explosiveness. It would be more explosive and better sustain drives if the right side of the line was better.

I agree! It seems to a certain extent Lee's productions rises and falls with the QB. Lee is a deep threat but not great underneath. He does best with QBs who can throw deep (like Bledsoe and JP) and isn't as productive with QBs who don't throw the long ball particularly well (Edwards, Fitz). If you pay attention to Chan, he says some interesting things. He's said in the past that Fitz needs to get more accurate on his deep throws. He's also said that Lee has to do a better job getting open on shorter routes. Both comments relate directly to Lee's productivity. Still, Lee stretches defenses like no one else on the squad and he's a great locker room guy.

I'm glad they have camaraderie. That helps. But I still worry about the right side of the line.

Thanks for posting - interesting reading.

The Bills had too many problems to be fixed in two drafts. Buddy did acquire some play-makers (we had more-or-less none) and shored up the defense. He hasn't solved all our needs yet, but he's getting closer.

AJ, I think you are are right. I think the Bills are more confident in some of their young players - especially on the line - than we fans may be. Would you rather hitch your wagon to a 22 year old coming up or a 30 year old going down? At some point their trajectories intersect.

How many games do you think we would have won if we had hired Bill Polian to be our GM? I agree wholeheartedly. I think Nix is doing a good job so far. And I think it's still early to judge him BUT I am frustrated we haven't signed some linemen, especially a RT.

Here's what they say about the QBR: "All QB plays are scored based on how much they contribute to a win." Football is a team sport and QBs are expected to not to win games by themselves but to contribute. Some stat nerds and ex-players apparently got together and figured out a system to measure that contribution, rather than 'passing efficiency.'

Thanks for the support and, yep, I'm comparing the fans. Fans everywhere want to see a big splash in free agency. But some GMs - including some good ones (see Green Bay) - just don't play that way. They build through the draft and remain relatively quiet during free agency. So we fans complain when big name FAs sign elsewhere. It's too early to judge, but let's hope our new front office turns out to be as successful as Green Bay's.

If the cap is irrelevant, why are teams cutting players to make cap space? Obviously, it was a relevant consideration for them.

Obviously the Bills are a better team if they have a better TE. But great TEs cost great money. Since Chan's intended scheme doesn't rely a lot on the TE, it would be foolish to tie up a lot of salary cap space on a TE. That's my guess of what they are thinking at OBD.

I've already posted my reasons for being optimistic (10 Reasons Why the Bills Won't Suck) but I still have doubts when I allow myself to think rationally. Besides OL, the Defensive front seven is still a concern. Although there have been meaningful changes to last year's squad, the Bills were #32 against the run in 2010. I'll feel better when they actually shut down someone's rushing attack.

I thought a few of Greg Rosenthal's quotes about free agency were interesting: "Green Bay: It was comical to hear some Packers fans gripe about G.M. Ted Thompson staying quiet in free agency. What did you expect? Thompson’s discipline to rely on drafting and developing works." (reminds me of people griping about Nix) "Trouble spots. 1. Miami quarterback: The Dolphins said all offseason they wanted true competition for quarterback Chad Henne. Instead, they got Matt Moore. Miami didn’t go all in on Kyle Orton trade talks, betting Henne would be enough." (not my style to root against anybody but it's good to see AFCE opponents with their own problems) "Shaky Strategies. 1. Jacksonville: The Jaguars gave $37 million guaranteed and $99.5 million overall to pick up three defensive starters: linebacker Paul Poslusnzy, linebacker Clint Session, and safety Dawan Landry. The Jaguars overpaid because it’s “go time” in their three-year rebuilding process. G.M. Gene Smith has drafted well, but paying big signing bonuses to middling starters rarely pays off. The three players above will never make a Pro Bowl and they are all getting paid like stars." (I liked Poz and hoped we'd resign him. But his new salary is ridiculous).

Miller ran for 1,000 yards his rookie season as the starting RB. No way that he was worse than Maybin who doesn't even suit up a lot of Sundays. Miller would have been a good pick if he hadn't developed some weird medical condition that took away his peripheral vision. And Patulski, while not great, did at least crack the starting lineup. Maybin hardly gets on the field as a reserve.

Yep, lots of assumptions. I am a fan, after all. Hopefully most of the assumption prove true.

Ten Reasons Why the Bills Won’t Suck this Year 1. Dareus 2. Fitz is better prepared for this season than any in his life. 3. Edwards will get better. No one excels their first time doing something. But with Sanders and Wannstedt to mentor him, Edwards will run a better ‘D’ this year. 4. Merriman is healthy. 5. The veterans now understand Gailey’s offense and will execute better. 6. Our new S&C coaches will make a difference. The Bills will not be ravaged by injuries this year. 7. Younger players are reaching their potential. Wood, Levitre, Bell, Spiller, Moats, et al will be more productive. 8. Gailey has lots of weapons (Smith, Parrish, Spiller, Evans) and will find better ways to use them. 9. Fewer defensive players are now playing out of position as we transition to 3-4/hybrid. 10. Cosmic karmic forces will finally give us long-suffering Bills fans some relief.

We offer guys too much. We don't offer guys enough. Seems us armchair GMs are never satisfied.

So you know how they act? Secret cams at OBD? You have inside knowledge on what offers Nix is actually making, how he's working the phone, which agents he's in touch with? Seems to me that Nix is acting in complete harmony with his stated philosophy. He says his intent is to build a Super Bowl team. While he might upgrade some positions through free agency, primarily he'll look to build through the draft. Nix and others seem to believe that the marquee free agents are overpriced. There's a salary cap and if you overspend on one position, you have no choice but to underspend on others. It's better to get your stars through the draft, especially now with a rookie wage scale. And sure you might sign some FAs but if you continually chase after the overpriced Top 20, you'll get in trouble.

If you notice, the Bills as a team have a lot of tackles - lots more than other teams. Either there's an anomaly with the record keeping or the Bills defense is on the field too much because they can't make 3rd down stops.

Thanks for the update. Poor Orton. Not a bad QB. Liked by his teammates. Never loved by his coaches, though. Must be tough to go thru life as the fall-back prom date.

Miami? Depends if Henne is under center or Orton. Bills? 8-8

I was married to a woman with BDP. She was like Jekyll and Hyde. When not in the throes of the disease, she was warm, intelligent, wise, generous, sociable, attractive, etc. When some trivial thing triggered her insecurity, she'd fly off into an irrational, uncontrollable rage that could last for hours. She'd attack me with whatever was at hand, including (twice) kitchen knives. I used to wear long-sleeve shirts every day to hide the bruises, bite marks and lacerations. I divorced her for all our safety, especially my daughter's. BDP, in its most severe forms, is no joke. A terrible thing. As far as it being treatable, that's somewhat debatable. The best her psychologist had to offer was some combination of therapy and drugs (with the cooperation of a MD). The program had a 40% success rate after 5 years. In other words, 40% of patients reported improvement (not necessarily normalcy; certainly not cure) after 5 long years. I doubt I would have survived five years, but that was the best treatment available at the time. The big problem is that most people with BDP don't stick to their treatment. They often feel that others have the problem, not them. My wife used to say that I needed to learn to avoid her "trigger" points. I had to change, not her. I should respect her "sensitivity." She had no real interest in treatment. I hope Marshall does, and sticks to it.

A year ago some of the pundits were saying that the Bills were dead in the AFC East because of QB play. Supposedly the Pats, Jets and Fins all had established starters - either current superstars (Brady) or up-and-coming stars (Sanchez, Henne). I think someone (who????) was even predicting a Pro Bowl for Henne. The Bills, they said, had no answers at QB. Funny how things worked out. Fitz took over in Buffalo and had a better year than Sanchez, all things considered. Certainly a better year than Henne. Now fans in Florida are chanting for Orton.