2003Contenders

I would classify that as a ho-hum draft. In other words, I wouldn't be upset because both picks are certainly reasonable and fill needs. However, I wouldn't be jumping for joy either. of course, I was excited when the Bills drafted Hardy last year. (Verdict is till out, I know...)

It depends on what they mean by "surprise" pick. Is it a surprise because no one had this player going in the top 10? Or is it a surprise because the player is drafted at a position that does not appear to be a position of need?

Maybe Brady's knee is NOT 100% -- and they want Sanchez. You know, the USC connection with Cassel. Also, that trade would ostensibly mean that they traded Cassel straight up for Sanchez, given that they received a 2nd rounder from the Chiefs for him.

I wouldn't get too worked up over this rumor mongering. The Bills have shown a propensity to move up into the bottom part of the first round -- but they have NEVER (at least in the past 20 years or so) traded to move up INTO the the top 10. This is actually a pretty good year to be picking where they are, given their needs. They should have plenty of options at DE, LB, TE -- and (yes) OT at this spot. In fact, if they really like Smith that much, there is a chance he could still be there at 11 without trading up. Assuming Stafford, Sanchez, Crabtree, Maclin, Raji, and Curry are all gone before 10, if Andre Smith is also gone that means that at least 3 OTs (maybe 4) went in the top 10. In that case, the Bills would have their pick for the best DE in the draft. I just don't see the team valuing Smith more than one of the elite DEs (Orakpo, Ayers, Brown, Jackson, Maybin) PLUS the 28th pick.

You know one thing that I have been thinking about in the past week since the Peters trade? Peters admitted that he came into the season out of shape and that it took him 4 games or so to get back into playing shape. The Bills were 4-0 in those games -- and we know how well they did afterward. Irony? Perhaps. But I suspect that the team was doing unique things in those first few weeks (including Week 1 when Peters didn't play and Week 2 when he played part time) to help compensate for his being out-of-shape or missing. Note also that in those final two games of the regular season when Peters was out, the team had one of their best offensive games against Denver -- and led the way for Jackson to rush for well over 100 yards against the Pats in brutal weather conditions in the season finale. I think the team needs some depth at OT certainly, but I don't know that they need to panic themselves into drafting one in the first round, if the "value" isn't there.

I suspect that if the first 3 picks unfold the way that McShay has them, the Bills would take Casey with the #75 pick in the 3rd round. I would be VERY pleased with that draft, regardless of what happens in rounds 4-7.

If that were really the case, then shame on the other 30 teams for not lining up to better Philly's offer. If the Bills really got so robbed, shouldn't one of the other teams picking in the top 27 have stepped up to the plate?

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Perhaps this could be strategy on the part of the Bills: go ahead and talk to potential suitors and see if any of them believe that you are worth as much as you think you are. If a re trade is consummated and the Eagles wind up paying him less than, say $11 M per year, we'll know that Peters simply did NOT want to be in Buffalo.

Why do I get the feeling that whoever at OBD that is REALLY responsible for contract negotiations is incapable of dealing with more than one at a time. From the standpoint of the team's own players as well as free agents, it seems like they move at the pace of a snail -- and never in mass. Am I the only one who is NOT sympathetic to Jackson's "plight"? OK, so maybe has to play as an Exclusive Rights Free Agent with the associative salary in 2009. But he has a tremendous opportunity before him with Lynch's 3-game suspension coming up. After this year, the Bills will have to tender him a high dollar offer, if they don't want to lose him in free agency. Moreover, they will have to match any contract offer to maintain his rights. Michael Turner made out pretty well, didn't he?

Yea, the real moron here was the ultra-liberal and hypersensitive girl at USC that KNEW about the inside joke and decided to twist it for her own agenda. Here's the whole story

Matt Millen? I know he crapped the bed in Detroit, but prior to that he was an outstanding analyst.

Larry English

The team is having their draft luncheon today, and I imagine the Bills official site will post a transcript or video of what transpires. Modrak is not one to blow smoke, so we may get a better gauge of how the team has players ranked based on his comments. For example, last year, he referred to McKelvin as a top ten player. The year before that he couldn't say enough nice things about Lynch. I expect that he will break down the strengths and weaknesses of the various DE/OLB that I've seen us projected to take at 11. He may also give us an indication of whether or not the team would seriously contemplate taking a TE (Pettigrew) or OL that high.

Well, to be fair, it was Sam Wyche that banged the drum for drafting JP. Recall that JP held his pre-draft workout on the same day and on the same field as Eli Manning. Wyche and a few other scouts came away from that workout believing that JP had superior physical skills. The book on JP at the time was that he was arguably the most physically gifted QB in the draft, but he was highly erratic and guilty of making some of the most idiotic plays at times. Five years later, the book hasn't changed. He's likely viewed as a coach killer around the league.

I'd be fine with that pick. He fills a position of need and isn't a reach. Here is how I look at it: I view (or, rather project) Cushing to be a major upgrade over Ellison. Is there another player at another position that would appear to be such an upgrade? I have worries about all of the DEs that I keep seeing us take in most mock drafts -- and I really think #11 is too early for Pettigrew. Of course, Chris Brown is the same guy that said that he just had a gut feeling that the Bills wouldn't take Lynch back in 2007. Of course, Brown only tells us what the Bills want him to tell us -- and there is no downside to reporting this information. If the Bills really do see Cushing as a possibility at 11, that is fine, because it is doubtful that he would go in the top 10. I suspect that they have SEVERAL players ranked fairly closely in that 11-20 range, which is why I would love to see them trade down.

The flips side of the coin is that IF Trent Edwards pans out (and that is admittedly a big IF at this point), we may look back on the 2007 draft as one of the best ever: Lynch, Poz, Edwards.

Well, Williams and Butler were both 5th rounders. Ellison was a 6th rounder. Schouman was a 7th rounder, and there is some positive buzz about Bell, who I believe was a 6th rounder last year. Jason Peters and Jabari Greer were both undrafted as was Fred Jackson. All of these guys have been/potentially will be starters.

Well, in all fairness, we do not know the particulars of the offer. It was reported that the Bills and Peters were about $3M per year apart, which at the time I read with optimism. That is, if they are $3M per year apart at the start of negotiations there is a reasonable middle ground. The clincher, of course, is the guaranteed portion of the contract. And that, I bet, is where the disparity is right now. Peters is probably looking for something in the $30 M range.

1. Size. He's one of the few guys in the draft this year that is a genuine 4-3 DE and NOT projected to be a 3-4 OLB in the NFL. 2. He gave Alabama's LT Smith fits. This happened BEFORE Smith hurt his draft value. 3. Scouts see a great deal of upside and believe what he did in college was only a tip of the iceberg. To summarize: potential.

Considering the number of holes that they have to fill (especially if they do part ways with Jason Peters) the team can put everyone's fears to rest by taking the best available player, especially with their first selection. If that best player happens to be at a position that does not need attention (say, CB) then they should trade down (assuming they can find a trading partner). Pretty simple, huh?

I don't think it matters too much, to be honest. Regardless of whether the Bills finished in 1st or last place in 2008, they would still have to play those 6 division games -- in which we went 0-6 last year. The year before that the team went 4-2 in the division and finished in 2nd place. So, who knows? The truth of the matter is that the team only got beaten badly in one of their 9 losses last year, the one against the Cardinals -- the eventual NFC Super Bowl representative. With just some minor improvements the team should win at least half of their division games; they should at least NOT be 0-6 again. Outside the division, it's anybody's guess.

Based on what Modrak said a couple of months back -- and assuming the team's evaluations haven't changed, I would expect them to grab Orakpo in a heartbeat.

The Broncos were smart to announce their intentions of trading Cutler by draft day. It created a frenzy and a bidding war. If the Bills really feel that they can't sign Peters long-term, they should do the same.

Yep. Hindsight is NOT always 20/20. That is, there are many flawed recollections of Williams' tenure in Buffalo. He was actually pretty darn good as a rookie, helping keep Bledsoe on his feet well enough to break some of the team's single-season passing records. I also remember Williams receiving heaps of praise after that magical 2-0 start in 2003, which consisted of blowouts against the Pats and Jags. That was followed by the Miami melt-down, where the offense couldn't score (and Gilbride called that now infamous Travis Henry pass play down around the end zone!) That game proved to be the beginning of the end for a lot of people, including Gregg, Gilbride, Bledsoe and Big Mike. I don't recall ever thinking again that Big Mike was going to be a perennial All Pro tackle.

Why the negativity? Why don't we give the guy a chance? I can't see that he's done anything to deserve your scorn? So what if his primary background is in marketing? Butler was a scout by trade -- and did a decent job acquiring talent (until he didn't care anymore and botched the last couple of drafts), but (with all due respect to the departed) he was also a HORRIBLE business manager -- which placed the team in a tough position financially. Has everyone forgotten the cap hell he left behind? Donahoe tends to be vilified here -- and he deserves it for 5 non-playoff seasons and two bad coaching hires. However, he did a very good job of cleaning up the salary cap mess and placing the franchise back on solid financial footing. I think his biggest problem is that -- whether it is true or not -- he was at least perceived as an autocrat. Thus, Ralph responded by hiring Marv (and then Brandon) as consensus builders. I think it is unfair to suggest that Jauron's staying on board shows that Ralph doesn't have Brandon's ear. The reason given for keeping Jauron on hand is that the team wanted to maintain a level of continuity. If that is true, it stands to reason that the entire inner circle was involved in the decision to keep Jauron on hand. If it isn't true -- and everyone is just saying the politically correct thing to cover for Ralph's financial decision to keep Jauron and forgo having to pay him his contract on top of a new coach's contract, I don't see how you can suggest that is Brandon's fault. I am not saying that Brandon will be the next Bill Polian, either. I simply have not seen enough to make me believe that he is the answer one way or the other -- and neither have you.