mjt328

Let's say we didn't spend $16 million per year on Mario Williams? What combination of other top free agents would have been better for the same amount of money? John Abraham just re-signed for $7 million per year Jeremy Mincey got between $6-7 million Prior to free agency, Robert Mathis got $9 million Pierre Garcon got over $8 million Vincent Jackson got over $11 million Robert Meachem and Laurent Robinson got $6-7 million Reggie Wayne re-signed for over $6 million DeSean Jackson re-signed for over $10 million People who say we could have gotten "several" good free agents for the same price are fooling themselves. For roughly the same amount of money, we could have signed maybe TWO decent players. Like a combination of 34-year-old John Abraham and the overrated Pierre Garcon. I'll take Mario Williams - thank you very much.

I saw a breakdown of Mario Williams contract. Because of his bonus, the biggest cap hit will come this year (about $25 million). His cap number will be VERY small in 2013 and 2014, and then gradually goes back into double digits for the last three years. In other words, the only thing his signing will prevent is us signing free agents THIS YEAR. So my question is, who are we missing out on?

I wouldn't be surprised if he's right about Tannehill dropping out of the first. Every year, the "experts" push about 15 guys as SURE-FIRE top 10 picks, and about 45 guys as SURE-FIRE first round picks. They don't know. Consider this. These are the teams that really need a quarterback: Miami, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Washington, Seattle We know that Indianaplis is taking Luck and Washington is taking Griffin. The current assumption is that either Seattle or Miami will sign Matt Flynn. When Peyton Manning signs, it will likely put Matt Hasselbeck, Tim Tebow or Kevin Kolb on the market. There is a good chance that one of the two remaining teams I listed snatch that guy up. That leaves one potential suitor for Tannehill. That team may not like him. Or they may be more comfortable waiting awhile and going for Brandon Wheeden.

I don't think it's that simple. Prior to the start of free agency, I imagine that DOZENS of teams expressed interest in Mario Williams. I'm sure that we weren't the only scheduled visit for him this week - just the first one. But in the NFL, free agency usually moves pretty quickly. By the time his meeting with Buffalo was over on Tuesday night, many of those teams had probably moved on. Chicago got Brandon Marshall and dropped out of the bidding. Jacksonville was considering a run at him, but then they re-signed Mincey. Detroit was interested, but franchised Cliff Avril. Other teams were likely "forced" out of the race, simply because of Buffalo's large offer. The theory about Tennessee and Peyton Manning makes A LOT of sense. If another team had a legitimate offer on the table for Williams, I'm sure he would be heading out of town to visit with the coaches and see the city (like he did with us). Instead, he seems to be stalling or waiting for something to happen. The only thing that makes sense, is that he's waiting for the only other top free agent (Manning) to sign, so he can see if another team jumps in the race. Personally, I don't think Manning will be making his decision anytime soon. And Williams would be foolish to pass on this offer, leave town and take the chance that Buffalo moves on to other free agents. Then if Manning signs with Tennessee, he may be forced to take a much smaller contract.

As always, take this with a grain of salt. But I was just over on the Tennessee Titans message board to see if anyone has some insight on our situation. The fans in Tennessee believe that Mario Williams is waiting to see if the Titans get Peyton Manning. He is the number one priority for Bud Adams. If the Titans don't get Manning, they have apparently told Mario's agent that they will match Buffalo's offer. And with the money equal, Williams would rather play in Tennessee. If true, that may be why he is stalling. The good news for Buffalo is that Tennessee seems to be in the driver's seat for getting Manning.

It's concerning that "trying their best" might not be enough. The top coaches - Cowher, Shanahan - wouldn't even consider us back in 2009. During last year's free agency, Tyson Clabo used us for leverage, then re-signed with the Falcons. Now Mario. If the problem is our front office - we can always have hope they will someday be replaced with aggressive and competent people. If the problem is that nobody wants to come here, then we have no hope to ever build a winner again.

1) Demetrius Bell was decent last year. But he can't stay healthy. 2) Levi Brown was a former first rounder, but most consider him a bust. Left Tackle is a very important position. And considering the above statements, we could certainly stand an upgrade.

Biggest team needs, in order: #1 - Quarterback Unfortunately, drafting at the #10 spot prevents us from drafting Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin. And it's doubtful Peyton Manning would even consider coming here. So this one will have to wait another year. #2 - Defensive End Without a pass rush, having talent at other defensive positions is basically worthless. With Chris Kelsay and Shawne Merriman slated as our probable starters, we could use upgrades on both sides. #3 - Left Tackle Demetrius Bell was decent last year, but we can't count on him to stay healthy and he currently remains unsigned. Chris Hairston is probably better suited to play on the right side. At the very least, we need some better depth. #4 - Wide Receiver Re-signing Stevie Johnson was a big step in the right direction. We need a downfield playmaker to draw the defenses away from the line of scrimmage, and to make up for Ryan Fitzpatrick's lack of downfield accuracy. #5 - Cornerback In a passing league, a team can never have enough cornerbacks. I like the potential of Aaron Williams and Justin Rogers. But there isn't much else behind them. Drayton Florence was a disappointment last year. Terrance McGee is done. Leodis McKelvin is officially a bust. #6 - Linebacker I wouldn't mind an upgrade on the strong side or some more depth. #7 - Center Eric Wood is one of our best players. But he's injury prone and we had no backup plan last year.

Tannehill has been flying up the draft boards. It's becoming more unlikely that he makes it out of the first round. He'll get a lot of consideration from Cleveland at #4 or #22, Miami at #8 and Seattle at #12. I sure hope the Bills aren't considering him. I think he has talent to be a starter in the NFL... just not a very good one.

As the owner of Phillip Rivers in a dynasty league, I've watched quite a bit of Vincent Jackson. Although I think he could add a much needed downfield threat to the offense, I would be nervous to throw out the money he's going to demand. 1) Like Lee Evans, V-Jax is a one-dimensional player. He's a downfield threat and that's about it. 2) He's also a big "ME-FIRST" player. Once he gets that free-agent payday, I could see his effort go down the toilet.

No doubt that Randy Moss was one of the most talented wide receivers in NFL history. Possibly Hall of Fame worthy. BUT.... Every athlete hits the age wall at some point - no matter how good they were. Usually that comes in the mid-late 30's for football players. Moss seemed to hit that wall in 2009 at 33 years old. And he didn't even play last year, so his physical condition would be a major concern. Unlike Stevie Johnson (who simply lacks focus at times and is not really a problem player) Moss is a legitimate distraction to the team. That means on the field, off the field and in the locker room. That doesn't take into account that he has ALWAYS been the type to take off plays and give a half-hearted effort when his mind isn't into the game. And finally... a lot of people believe he purposely dropped that ball in 2009 against the Patriots (myself included) while a member of the Titans. Do you want him to purposely blow games for us twice a year against New England?

I always thought this was the case. Elway clearly never liked Tebow and never expected him to succeed.

Obviously we should trade Ryan Fitzpatrick for a franchise long snapper!!!! We can win the Super Bowl with ANYONE under center!!!! The Ravens did it with Trent Dilfer!!!! Only idiots think having a good quarterback is important!!!!

Not really. They fired their coach the day after the season ended. Then they aggressively went after the top coach they could find on the market - battling it out against the Dolphins. Two days after the Saints were eliminated, they snatched up Gregg Williams. Do you honestly see Wilson ever taking this kind of approach at upgrading the coaching staff?

Honestly, I couldn't care less what Ryan Fitzpatrick's final stats say - good or positive. His play on the field spoke for itself. When the season started, the Bills had developed a system perfectly suited to his strengths (reading a defense before the snap and then making a quick throw). As the season progressed (starting about Week 4 with the Bengals), teams began to catch on to the Bills attack. They started playing closer to the line of scrimmage and taking away the short stuff. They started to do more things to confuse him after the ball was snapped. Fitzpatrick's weaknesses were exposed. He has no accuracy on the deep ball. He makes very poor decisions when the defense takes away his initial reads. Blame his play on injuries all you want. Those with an eye for football realize that Fitzpatrick's play was steadily getting worse long before his teammates started dropping off.

In my opinion, this is a very valid thread topic. And very Bills related. Lots of Bills fans have suggested that Ralph Wilson is cheap when it comes to hiring coaches, and is unwilling to give up the power necessary to draw in a proven commodity. Many believe that is one of the main reasons this team has struggled for so long. St. Louis is taking a very aggressive approach this offseason. Quite the opposite of the Buffalo Bills. It will be interesting to see which team turns it around first.

When Tom Donahoe was the GM. During his tenure they were great in free agency. Unfortunately, they couldn't get the right coach and their drafting was mostly below average.

I'm also a believer that defensive teams have an edge in the postseason (for several different reasons). But I would hardly call San Francisco's win a great defensive effort. They allowed 32 points to their opponent, despite getting FIVE TURNOVERS.

You know what makes me mad? I live in St. Louis and get NFL Sunday Ticket. If the Rams game doesn't sell out, then it gets blacked out on Sunday Ticket too. Even though I paid to watch EVERY NFL game!!!!!!!! The only time I can imagine wanting to watch the Rams is when they are playing the Bills every 8 years, but still...

I'm not a supporter of Fitzpatrick as our starter, but I agree with this. Dalton has looked solid as a rookie, but I don't see anything that makes me believe he will be a great NFL quarterback. I didn't regret passing on him in the second round back in April, and after a full season, I still don't. In five years, I think Dalton will still be a middle of the road starter. Personally, I was a big fan of Ryan Mallet. It will be interesting to see what happens when he finally gets his shot.

What can we learn from this weekend's game? How about: No matter how bad an NFL quarterback is playing, you never want to spend an entire game with 9 MEN IN THE BOX!!! I understand that Tebow had been struggling pretty bad. And even Denver's coaches didn't seem to trust him under center. But Pittsburgh's gameplan was ridiculous - and they got burned for it. How little respect do you have for an opposing quarterback to play most of the game without at least one deep safety?

The Bills would be stupid not to consider options for trading up (for Griffin or Luck). Until we get a better quarterback, this team will always be mediocre.

It's not all his fault. But there is no doubt that Fitz is big contributor to our 10-22 record over the last two seasons. And considering how important the quarterback position is in the NFL, he might be the biggest problem. Everybody makes a bad throw once in awhile. But you will never see the top QBs in this league consistently miss open receivers like Fitzpatrick. You will never find a top QB go weeks at a time without hitting even one deep throw. If you don't believe me, just watch a game involving Rodgers, Brees, Brady, Ryan, Roethlisberger, Manning, Stafford, Rivers, etc. Fitzpatrick does make some beautiful throws occasionally. I like his fire and I like his competitiveness. But it's those 5-6 overthrows and misfires (I'm being generous here) each week that will keep him from being a consistent winner in the NFL.

It's not quite that simple. A few things to consider: >> VERY FEW teams in the NFL could lose their Future Hall of Fame starting quarterback before the season, and still have a good season. The position is simply too important, and it's not easy to find a good one. A lot of teams don't have ONE good quarterback, much less two. >> I remember hearing Jeff Saturday say earlier this season that the Colts run the most complicated offense in the league. That cannot be understated. Saturday said he didn't believe anyone in the NFL could just step on the field and run it successfully. And he said that with Kerry Collins (a 16-year NFL veteran) as the starter. Losing Manning's talent was one thing. But the Colts also lost the ability to simply RUN their regular offense. >> Also consider that in early September, the Colts still thought Manning was going to play in Week 1. Within a span of DAYS, there were questions that he was going on I.R. The Colts didn't have a lot of time to prepare anyone else to run the team. They suddenly had the choice to start Curtis Painter (a guy with no NFL starts in two seasons) or sign a guy off the street. >> People seem to have understand the Colts offense stinking without Manning, but they can't believe the Colts defense playing so bad. What they forget is that Indianapolis built the whole team around Manning and his unique talents. The defensive scheme (a Cover-2 variation with heavy pressure) is specifically designed to play with a lead. After all, Manning and the offense was a virtual lock for 25-30 points each week. Suddenly, the team is struggling to put up 10. The defense couldn't play their game either. >> The Colts have been a Super Bowl contender for the last 10+ years. They are a veteran team used to winning and playing long into January. When the season spiraled out of control, it's clear that those veterans quit on the season. Simply put, I don't think Polian can be blamed here. First of all, I don't believe the team is anywhere near as bad as they looked this season. They still have a lot of talent. Also consider that Polian hasn't had a top draft pick in well over a decade. That limits the ability to restock a team with impact players. His cap room is tied up in veteran stars (Manning, Wayne, Saturday, Clark, Freeney, Mathis), which limits his ability to grab talent in free agency.

This. Somebody will be willing to make the trade (especially with the rookie salary cap in place now). The only thing that keeps Luck from going #1 is a freak accident between now and April.