hondo in seattle

I would say this is optimistic but then the Senator has 90 Bills being named to the Pro Bowl!

BuffaloBills.com asks a good question today: Who will go to the Pro Bowl this season? (Assuming, of course, there is a Pro Bowl). We haven't sent a lot of players to Hawaii over the past decade partly because we've been devoid of talent and partly because players on losing teams don't get noticed. But I think we solve both those handicaps this year. We have some elite talent this year and I think the Bills will finally post a winning record. Some guys I think might be candidates are FredEx, Stevie, the Williams twins, and Marcel. And our front four could help some of our LBs and DBs tally good seasons. Who would you add to the list?

I like Berman for all the times he predicted the Bills to win the Super Bowl. The guys alright with me.

One of the reasons that Buffalonians are die-hard football fans is because we don't have a major league baseball or basketball team to cheer for. For some reason, NBC Sports decided to rub a little salt in that wound today. Sadly, I'm old enough to remember when we had an NBA team and MLB dreams... Buffalo’s MLB team that wasn’t Craig Calcaterra Jul 10, 2012, 2:31 PM EDT 16 Comments Buffalo NY Great article about Coca-Cola Field – formerly known as Pilot Field — in Buffalo. The ballpark that, back in the late 80s and early 90s, was constantly outdrawing a couple of major league teams every years. Forgotten now was that the park was built to be expanded, with the specific intent of luring a major league team. But, as Mark Byrnes explains in The Atlantic, it was never to be: Ownership and the city did everything it was supposed to do. It built spectacular facilities and filled it up each game those first three and a half seasons, even outdrawing two Major League teams. So when June of 1991 came and Denver and Miami were given the two expansion franchises, the city’s pursuit of big time baseball ended as deflating heartbreak to a population just months into coping with ‘Wide Right.’ It was the right thing done at the wrong time, as the economics of Major League Baseball were on the brink of a fundamental shift, and smaller cities without major media and corporate power were no longer welcome at the big boy’s table. It’s a dynamic that, had it existed earlier, would have kept Pittsburgh, Milwaukee and a host of other cities out of Major League Baseball. http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/07/10/buffalos-mlb-team-that-wasnt/

Well, yep, he is. Why else would we be $7 million under the cap????

When I grew up in Cheektowaga, I was as much a Browns fan as a Bills fan. The first NFL game I watched maybe 40 years ago was between the Browns and the Cowboys. The Browns were losing by double-digits when I turned on the tube so - being a kid - I naturally rooted for them as the underdogs. And sure enough, they came back to win. In my high school days, I wouldn't care much who won in a Cleveland vs. Buffalo contest. But when I went out-of-state for college, I noticed that I started following the Bills more closely. It was my way, I think, of staying connected with my Buffalo and the people I left behind. Over the years, I've lived in Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky, Georgia, Korea, Saudi Arabia, California and Washington. And, instead of dissipating, my loyalty to the Bills has only grown stronger. Even after all these losing seasons, I've never abandoned the Bills for the local favorite. And when I first moved away, I was desperate for news about the Bills. When I did get any, it was usually pretty general. Now I'm on TBD virtually every day and can name more players now than when I lived in Buffalo/Cheektowaga. So thanks to everyone here for keeping me informed and connected!

If I was invited, I probably would have gone. And, then I suppose, someone would ask "Who the hell does he think he is?" And I wouldn't care as long as I had fun.

The way Buddy and Chan have talked since drafting Glenn, I expect him to start at LT. Obviously, they say it's a competition. What else would they say? And I'm sure it actually is. I just think both Buddy and Chan expect Glenn to win that competition.

+1

This reminds me of the late 80s when good things were starting to happen and many fans had that feeling we were heading in the right direction. I like this coaching staff. I like the FO. We're assembling a lot of talented players who leave it all on the field. I don't think we're quite ready for Super Bowl run yet but the playoffs seem realistic for the first time in geologic eras.

I deleted the Jim Kelly story. By all accounts Jim is a devoted & good father and husband these days. But, by his own admission, Jim liked the ladies when he first came to Buffalo. Who can blame him? Personally, I think stories about misspent youth often can be amusing when we've grown and matured since then as Jim obviously have. However, some people were apparently offended when my story reminded them of Jim's youthful follies. So the little Kelly tidbit is gone. I have no desire to offend any Bill fan anywhere. And, yeah, I know the original post was not very meaty. But it's the offseason and I don't often meet people with personal, inside knowledge of the Bills or anyone on the Bills team/staff so I thought I'd share. It was nice to hear so many good things about Pete from someone who knows him. I hope hPete helps make our TEs more productive this year.

I had dinner tonight with someone who's known Pete Metzelaars since Wabash. Says Pete was recruited to play football at bigger schools (Bo Schembechler tried to get him to Michigan) but Pete wanted to play both football and basketball and so went to Wabash. Pete's nickname, at least on the basketball team, was "The Red Headed Woodpecker." The gentleman from Wabash says that, unlike a lot of other athletes who made a lot of money in sports, Pete stayed humble and down-to-earth. Says Pete's a solid human being.

I never knew we used Buffalo Bill as an icon for our Bills. These are cool program covers with flair and character. Your dad was a talented artist and I'm sure a worthy man in many other ways as well. Condolences to you and your family.

Personally, I HATED North Dallas Forty. I'm old enough that I saw that one in the theaters and quickly regretted wasting my money. I have no problems with the rest of your list. Brian's Song wasn't a great big Hollywood movie but I'll confess my eyes watered when first seeing it (the original) on TV. Rudy wasn't fascinating every minute but the ending was very moving and inspirational.

"Most of the holes" were filled. But this roster had so many problems, they couldn't fill all of them. The Bills are hardly the only team really hoping their starting QB doesn't get hurt. I'd rather praise the FO for what they did accomplish than criticize them for what they didn't. Not all draft picks or FA signing will work out. I hope VY does work out as a second-stringer. When you look at his physical skills and his 'resume,' there's some reason to believe he can be a good back-up, maybe more. But every signing is a gamble and perhaps we'll lose this one. I'm still really pleased with the FO and the offseason they just completed.

Good nicknames like "The Purple People Eaters" and "The Steel Curtain" have some specificity. There had been a song about "purple people eaters" but who else in the NFL at the time could have adopted that nickname? Only the Vikes. "Steel Curtain" is cool because curtains are usually soft but this one is made of steel. Only the Steelers could use this nickname. Some of the suggestions here for the Bills D Line (Boom & Doom, Beef Curtain) are too generic. My faves so far are Bill Collectors and Buffalo Stampede. The former is more clever, I think, but the latter is more dynamic and thus my #1 pick so far.

How Fitz can be better? Getting no broken/bruised ribs! Not trying to force the ball into tight windows when we're down (i.e. better decision making). Better accuracy on long balls (maybe Lee helps here).

Just out of curiosity, what exactly do you like about Andrew Dees???

I shave with a Braun electric razor. Since Braun is a German company, I'm guessing that at least one Braun employee went to a Berlin Thunder game. The Thunder helped launched the career of David Akers who at least once kicked a FG against the Bills. That's it! I'm not using my Braun razor anymore!

I admit that I also felt we should have run more late last year. BUT one of the reasons Spiller averaged 5.2 yards was because of the way Chan used him. Chan's pass-first play-calling had teams on their heels, or at least, not stacking the box. If we ran Spiller the way the Browns ran Brown or the Lions ran Sanders, I doubt very seriously if he would have averaged 5.2 ypc. I think those kinds of comparisons are invalid.

Easley can run the 40 in 3.9???? OJ was an Olympian sprinter and couldn't run 3.9. Wow, I really want to see this guy on the field!!!

Yeah.... gotta to love the optimism but a lot of this goes too far for me. I also wouldn't classify Byrd-Wilson elite though it will be interesting to see what they do with a better pass rush. Glenn may be a superstar someday but right now he's unproven as a NFL LT, and as a rookie will make rookie mistakes. The remarks about our WR corps says we only have one legitimate starter but lots of good backups. That isn't ideal. Brad Smith and VY being in the same backfield a deadly combination? I doubt we'll see that very much. But overall I have to agree, the Bills improved on many fronts.

I like Jaws because he's a Lackawanna boy and besides (1) he obviously knows football, especially the QB position, and (2) he does more film study than most of analysts on TV. But, like anyone, he has flaws. Film study isn't the same as being with the guy in the huddle. Jaws used to like TE because he saw on film that Edwards had good mechanics and good accuracy. What he didn't see was that TE wasn't executing the game plan, wasn't throwing to the primary because he was afraid or whatever, and wasn't inspiring his fellow players. His rating of Fitz is fair based on what the tape will tell him. I doubt if he's factoring in Fitz's guts and leadership. And I wonder if he's considering the broken ribs. Painful ribs will play havoc with mechanics, though of course, Fitz's mechanics were flawed before then. All in all, I think #24 is fair based on past performance. My expectation for this year, though, is much higher. I'm really hoping, especially with Coach Lee here and lots of guys getting healthy, for Fitz to have a career year in 2012.

Power rankings never make me excited. Wins do. BUT... I do enjoy having my optimism affirmed by NFL experts.

There are a lot of reasons to be excited this season. Here's one more - in the words of Ryan Fitzpatrick: "C.J. is a completely changed man. It's been apparent from day one of this off-season. I think the biggest thing with what he did at the end of the year last year, was he got his confidence. You just see how comfortable he is in this system now. He's telling guys, receivers that they're lined up wrong and letting them know... there's just so many things. He's directing people on the field and out of the huddle. I think he's ready to make a big jump. I think mentally he's made a big jump in the last year. With his confidence level where it is right now, we expect big things out of him this year. He really showed last year what he can do."