2003Contenders

Agreed... Many on this baord could have written a more credible article. My guess is that "Two league sources " = Eric Moulds and his advisor.

Unless some team is willing to fork over a #1 for him -- which ain't happening -- you can be rest assured that he stays on the roster... at least for this season.

You know, this is actually a good point -- that Marv knows that the ST are a strength but is not willing to tear them down for the sake of improving other areas. That to me, was one of TD's failures. He'd become so obsessed with whichever side of the ball was struggling that he'd neglect the side that was doing well.

I think we all get too hung up on "draft value" as perceived by various draftniks out there. What is important is drafting a good football player that will fit our scheme -- hopefully someone with very little risk. That is what the Patriots have been doing for years. Every year I am undwhelmed by the guys that they draft -- but every year they pick up playmakers. Meanwhile, a team like Detroit comes away with a great "draft grade", but winds up with a class full of non-players. If the Bills really do see a player that they like at #8 that they feel will help the team, even if he doesn't grade out on some draft boards as being worthy of the #8 selection, I'd be inclined to shrug off the "reach" alegations and take that player (provided, of course, that there is no opportunity to trade down).

Considering that Royal is new to the Bills -- the Bills haven't even had a mini camp yet with him on the roster -- and he played for a team that wasn't even in the same conference last season, I wouldn't read too much into the statement at all.

I think each situation is different and unique. I remember Peyton Manning's rookie season. The Colts were 3-13 that year -- and Manning was a good part of the reason why they finished so poorly. But even so, you could still see that he possessed that "it" factor. He had an unquestioned confidence in himself -- and you knew that he would eventually get better. In JP's case, I have my doubts based on what I did and didn't see out of him last year. I'm not so sure that he has that "it" factor. On the other hand, there were clearly mitigating circumstances. I mentioned Manning above. One thing that I will never forget is that the Colts went almost exclusively with mass protection formations, which usually meant that he only had one or two passing options with a bail-out valve to Faulk. While this may have led to his forcing the ball frequently, it prevented him from getting beaten to a pulp -- and fearing the sound of defenders' steps. Additionally, Manning had a pretty good line to begin with. Our coaching staff severely handicapped JP last season by refusing to protect him at all costs -- and not placing him in the best situation to succeed. I don't think any of us have high expectations about this season. I'd really like to see the Bills start the season with a very conservative/mass-protect system. This may equate to boring football, but I think it will be the best test to see what we have in our young QB. We can give JP some time to develop and see how he perfroms when he doesn't have opposing defenders racing after him. If he can keep his eyes focused on his weapons -- rather than the defenders in his face -- maybe his completion percentage will increase. If he fails under these circumstance, then we know that we need to go in another direction.

The one difference was that the market was flooded with RBs last season -- and there was an unusual number of top prospects at the position in the draft too. Thus, it was a buyer's market for RBs, which is why Henry's trade value diminished. The situation is very different at WR this year. There really is no other top free agent WR out there at this point, and the draft is fairly weak at the position.

Funny thing is that Ryan Denney's size is not out of place for a DT in this Tampa Cover 2 -- at least on obvious passing downs.

I must say that I agree. There really is no fair and objective way of handling this, which is why the compensatory system should be abolished.

Recall that Miami blew out Denver in the season opener last year...

It was out of the Houston paper, which stated that the Bills "reportedly" were seeking a 4th rounder. As you say, maybe wishful thinking on the part of the Houston writers.

My only concern is that reportedly it was the Bills who were asking for a 4th rounder.

Actually, I'm not so sure that he'll do any better in Philly. The rest of the Eagles' WR corps is pretty weak, so teams will double-team EM just as much as he was double-teamed in Buffalo.

Actually Favre COULD be behind this. Last year Favre was very vocal in his criticism of Walker's holdout. In fact, some would say that #4 crossed the line of being a mouthpiece for the Packers' organization when he went so far as to say that he hoped that the team didn't "give in". I love Favre, but considering that he was making more than 10 times what Walker was, maybe he should have kept his nose out of it. Suffice to say that there may be some bad blood between the two.

True, and on top of that... Even if GB did offer this, that means it is the starting point for negotiations. You'd have to expect Marv to counter with something a little more equitable for the Bills -- if the original report is true.

It's odd that after a decade of success, the drafting of Moulds in 1996 brought with it a decade with ZERO playoff victories. I'm not in any way blaming him for this, but maybe if he does indeed leave, we can turn the page on a new era of success.

In all seriousness, I have never really understood the love that some have for Moulds. I'm not even going to comment on his class -- or lack thereof. Instead, let's talk about his production -- or lack thereof. He could be the most overrated WR of the last decade. If you look back at his career, you'd have to same that he's only had 2-3 really good years in his 10-year career. I've heard so much from him about how jealous he is of Marvin Harrison for having had the opportunity to play with one really good QB, while "poor" Eric has had to deal with a QB turnstile. Maybe, we should look at it from the other point of view. That is, maybe just maybe Moulds has been a QB-killer during his time in Buffalo. Don't want to play in Buffalo anymore, Eric? Don't let the door hit you going out.

I don't think they are smoke screens at all. I seriously think that there really is a lot of debate amongst scouts about Young. Some really do feel that he is a rare, even once in a generation, talent coming out of college -- and, therefore, think that he is worthy of a a top 2-3 draft pick. Others worry that his style of play is not condusive to being a successful QB in the NFL. I wouldn't be surprised to find some teams unwilling to draft him at ANY point in the first round. What I imagine will happen is that we may see something similar to the Tim Couch-Akili Smith charade that took place in 1999. Leinert's agent has already stated that he wants a $30 M signing bonus for his client. Teams interested at the top of the draft may threaten to draft Young as leverage in negotitations with Leinert and his people. As it turned out both Couch and Smith were busts. We'll just have to wait and see about Leinert and Young.

Supposedly the Broncos are interested. I'd guess that the NYG are interested, since they just lost out on Keyshawn. Remember that the Bears were willing to throw a lot of money Randle El's way. Probably both NE and Miami would be interested. The 49ers need a WR in the worst kind of way. The Chiefs have been needing a playmaker at WR for a long time. The Packers could be desperate if Walker is serious about holding out. We've said all along that EM would be a perfect fit for the Eagles. I have no doubt that there are 8 or more interested teams. And this year's WR draft class is not supposed to be one of the better ones either.

I like him in run support, and I believe that Denney's sack numbers have increased each year he's been in the league.

With the lack of credible WRs out there is free agency, this could be a seller's market. I'm thinking we can get a Day 1 pick for EM.

I think this may finally be the year that Josh Reed steps it up, becuase I think that this will finally be the year that he is used properly. 2002: Promising Rookie Season 2003: Miscast in Peerless Price deep threat role. 2004: Battled through injuries 2005: Was arguably the most consistent WR on the team amidst the QB musical chairs situation. I really do think that he is primed to have a big season. With the other WRs all taking on the speed burner role, Josh could be a beast over the middle of the field, maybe even brining back memories of another Reed we all remember well.

The Walker situation is an interesting one, because he was also a hold-out last year. He returned after the Packers made their stand, which included having Favre call Walker out publicly. Of course, soon thereafter, he blew out his knee. While intriguing, I'd want the following questions answered prior to even considering giving up a pick for him... 1. Is he healthy? If he is at least close to his 2004 form, Walker would instantly improve our WR corps. The dude is the total package of size and speed -- and would be a welcome addition to a roster of mostly under-sized WRs. 2. Is this hold-out threat two years in a row going to be a pattern for him? Maybe last year was understandable, as he was coming off a Pro Bowl caliber season. However, he missed virtually all of last season with his injury, so his leverage is nil now. 3. As this is the final year of his existing contract, is he up for negociating a long-term deal? (Of course, this is also contigent upon his health.) Once those questions are answered then I'd be willing to talk about compensation in terms of a trade.

Actually, call me silly, but if Teague remains unsigned -- and is willing to come back to Buffalo on the cheap, I would not balk at that. I wouldn't want him as a starter, but he provides smart, veteran depth at multiple positions.

At the time, Glenn was a victim of Parcells' didain simply because the Tuna was overruled by the Pats' GM on draft day. If memory serves me correctly, Parcells wanted to draft a defensive player instead. Glenn went onto set some rookie receiving records that year, and the Patriots wouldn't have made it to the Super Bowl that year without him.