Just in Atlanta

Hey, that kinda rhymes.

In defense of the reporter--I do think this story has serious holes--he said it WASN'T franchise altering.

No roids found in his "vehicle." But what about on HIM? Story appears to be full of holes. I think a certain 8-year-old might want to stay off the streets for a while. I hear Marshawn Lynch is in town.

Shawne just tweeted something about hair grease. Is that code for steroids?

I remember learning this reporting technique in J school. When using unnamed sources, you can wish your kid to be run over by a car if the story isn't true and that will instantly prove your story is legit. Woodward and Bernstein would have done the same, except they didn't have kids. I can just picture tonight's dinner discussion at his house.

This sucks. Any thoughts on what the penalty would be? Hope it's light. He, and Dareus, are the only good news this defense has right now.

The entire front page has changed, not just Stevie.

And if he were busted, I'm pretty sure a high profile like Merriman would have been news, and that he would not have been playing in the preseason game.

OK, how is he implying it's Merriman? The guy was suspended years ago for alleged steroid use. What a tease this publisher is. ...He said he did not imply the player had taken steroids recently.

According to this photo and caption, he was showing off "his quarterback skills" on Tuesday. http://www.mpnnow.com/sports/x386660625/Buffalos-Big-Mike'>http://www.mpnnow.com/sports/x386660625/Buffalos-Big-Mike 'cept the ball is in the wrong hand.

He does have a lot of technique to learn on D. But how much technique is there to learn for a couple of I formation plays? Run left, center or right. Hit the first guy as hard as you can. Keep him engaged. Or keep on running. The Fridge weighed the same weight, I believe, during his prime. Also like the idea of OG, too.

What about Jasper as a blocking fullback in Red Zone situations? Certainly an athletic 380-pounder could plow a hole, at least for a second, for a potential 4th and inches situation. With all the moving backup QBs to Safety (Nesbitt) and Wildcat shenanigans, I thought out of the box thinking is a possibility with this offense. Just wanted to throw the thought out there and see if anyone finds any validity with it. No haters :] Just an idea.

With Nesbitt at Safety, and Smith at QB/WR/KR we can finally move Mike Jasper to backup QB.

At least he's running.

@Double J, the standing buffalo looks like he's grazing...or taking a dump. We'll keep the charging one, thanks.

Jeez, he used five different QBs because it's the first preseason game. That's what you're supposed to do--to give guys a chance to show what they got. The Wildcat isn't going to win championships by itself. But it does add another level of complication for defensive planning. I might call Gailey a lot of things. Arrogant is by far not one of them.

After further review, I rescind my optimism. Pathetic move getting rid of our most respected player...for a 4th rounder. Yet another year of "rebuilding" I guess. When I wrote this post, I had fully anticipated picking up a tackle or at least a TE and never dreamed of us getting rid of Lee for only a future draft pick.

"I swear...if you took all the castaways from the Bills, you'd have a pretty damn good team. They just don't do it right at all." Was pretty high on this team. All we got, which is to say all the owner gets, is some freed up salary. A 4th rd pick does nothing. How can you trade your only card (WR depth) that actually was above average?

Had posted a couple times about my optimism for this team this season. It's faded. WR was the only spot we actually excelled at. We just traded our most proven receiver...for a 4th rd draft pick? What are we going to get that high in the draft? Still no OT. Still no TE. Lee was a big reason Stevie did so well last season. And what happens if Stevie gets hurt? Sad. Especially since we will be too competitive for a No. 1 draft pick next year. I don't understand this move at all. Lee had several above-average years left in him.

He's widely regarded as an offensive mastermind. However, at Ga Tech, he never once beat in-state rival Georgia--despite putting together a respected team. Don't know how that will translate to the Bills-Patriots rivalry this season (if you can call being swept every year a rivalry). On another note, since we're talking about eggs, I would categorize the Bills as a well-mixed, nicely-seasoned bowl of fork-split eggs and milk. The chives and Tabasco are ready to add at the last minute. We even have some delicious grease left over from the bacon to make em a little dirty. However, we don't have a nonstick skillet to cook them in. Get the skillet, and we'll be a good team. Otherwise, the Bills will show some brilliance, but won't reach their full potential because too much egg will be stuck to the pan.

Every power ranking I've read has the Bills in the bottom 5. One has the Bills dead last. Further, I can't believe all the negativity from actual fans. We're all tired of the past decade of futility. But I see this team headed in the right direction. I haven't had this much offseason optimism since Bledsoe was QB. Gailey and Co. have done a remarkable job improving our defense. We have a stud DE and NT, a much improved linebacker core, and we already had a decent secondary. We have three good receivers and just added a utility player in Smith. We have two great RBs, one of whom (Spiller) I can't imagine not being a star someday. Our QB is at least average; I think he can only improve. And we have Wannstedt. The only thing keeping us from being a dominant force in the AFC East is a TE (Boss, we need you) and OT. Don't quite understand how we haven't picked up anyone yet, but I honestly don't see any other weak spots other than those two positions. With the addition of new unis, I firmly believe this is the start of a new Bills team. I think if we get some more help on our offensive line, we can beat the Jets and even the Pats once and sweep the Fins. Just my two cents. Does anyone share my reasoned optimism? Or am I just setting myself up for another disappointment?

Too funny. I like this poster's passion. But 8-8? C'mon. We can do better than that. We've been an 8-8 team, or there about, for 10 years. I won't be happy until we make the playoffs. That won't happen at 8-8. I think this team will be good next season. We've upgraded every level of defense and added an O lineman. My only concern now is a backup QB and a TE. It seems every good team relies heavily on TEs and we don't seem to even have one who'd be considered a starter.

Kaepernick Rudolph Mallett Bowers All of them in my opinion are winners. I might jinx things here but I actually think the Bills can't go wrong. Bowers would be a killer compliment to our first round, Mallett could start right away, a tight end is desperately needed and Rudolph is No. 1 and Kaepernick in my mind is the best QB of the bunch. Go Bills.

How 'bout we stop the lame snarkiness, mkay? Didn't see the original thread, mkay?

EA Sports has pulled the video, but a still shot is available here. http://www.pastapadre.com/2011/04/25/new-buffalo-bills-uniforms-spotted-in-latest-madden-12-video A little disappointed there weren't some more modern touches on them, but they are much better than the previous ones.