mjt328

Because I don't trust Sean McDermott. There I said it. Over the last 15 years, I've come to believe that 99% of coaches are average. They just have different styles, different areas of strength and run different schemes. Their success depends completely upon how well the talent matches what they are doing. By themselves, coaches contribute virtually nothing to wins and losses. As big of a MESS Rex Ryan was as a coach when it comes to organization, I truly believe that if we would have been a playoff team the last 2 years if our defensive core was skilled towards his 3-4 scheme. But since our guys fit a 4-3 instead, we played the square peg-round hole game (for the trillionth time) and struggled on that side of the ball. Since our defensive core (namely Kyle Williams, Marcel Dareus and Jerry Hughes) still are 4-3 guys, I think McDermott will get tons of credit for turning around the defense this season. But it will have less to do with his "genius" and more to do with a good fit. Meanwhile, the offense will pull this team into the gutter, because Rick Dennison's scheme is not a match for the Bills talent or Tyrod Taylor. There is no continuity with last year's offense, and that will cost us the games necessary to make the playoffs.

These players have the right to be disrespectful to the flag, unpatriotic and express ignorant opinions. That's what freedom is about. Just like owners have the freedom and right to cut or refuse to sign them. People are wasting too much time and energy worried about guys like Colin Kaepernick and Cameron Jefferson. They don't represent a large portion of the population, and most people disagree with their methods. And they are destroying their careers by these public displays.

Only in Buffalo. This one reminds me of the calls for Jeff Tuel. Here are my thoughts: Nathan Peterman is a rookie. One that was taken on the 3rd day of the draft. And from what I've seen in Preseason, I haven't been impressed in the slightest. Has he looked better than Tyrod Taylor (against mostly 2nd-3rd stringers)? Yeah, probably. But defenses will be much different when the real bullets start flying. Once the actual games start, I'm very confident that Taylor would be a significantly better option under center. Throwing a rookie to the wolves when he clearly isn't ready is a good recipe to destroy any chance he's got for developing in the future. I don't believe in purposely tanking. I think the Bills should still try to win this season. I think they should play Taylor, and make sure the offense fits his strengths as a quarterback.

Maybe they have to let him practice, but they certainly can bench him, relegate him to 3rd string and then make him inactive on game day.

Exactly. And that's why I'm rarely in favor of a complete and total roster overhaul. By the time Beane gets this team back (just to where Whaley had them), it's going to be at least 2-3 seasons into the rebuild. And even the fans supporting all these moves now will start calling for a change at the top.

In my time observing NFL "rebuilding" projects, I've noticed that a GM can address about one-fourth of a team per year (using both the draft and free agency). This comes to about 5-6 starters and about 7-8 backups. How long a rebuilding project takes is dependent on how many pieces are already in place when the GM arrives, and how effective that GM is in drafting, signing and re-signing good players. A strong team with most of the pieces in place may only take 1 season to turn around. A team completely devoid of talent like the Cleveland Browns or San Francisco 49ers may take 3-4 seasons. When a coach brings in a new scheme, certain players don't fit and the rebuilding process takes longer. This is one of the main reasons the Bills have been spinning their wheels between 6-9 wins almost every season for the last decade. This cannot be understated. In my personal opinion (and I know that I'm not alone on this board), the Bills have been about a year away from playoff contention almost every offseason. With continuity, a strong draft and solid free agent pickups, we could easily bump the win total to double-digits. But then we flip the scheme and reset the process by at least another year. By hiring Sean McDermott (and flipping back to a 4-3 defense), I figured this team was going to spin its wheels in the 6-7 win area again in 2017. But I had some high hopes for 2018. By trading away two young starters (Sammy Watkins and Ronald Darby) and failing to find a place for another young talent (Reggie Ragland), I'm afraid we pushed the rebuild process back another season. Frustrate the older players (Kyle Williams, LeSean McCoy, Ritchie Incognito) into leaving and you are setting yourself back even farther. This year is a wash. My guess is 3-5 wins at max. Assuming Beane does a really good job with draft picks and free agency, I think we could make a jump back into the 6-8 win area in 2018 and hopefully get into the playoffs by 2019. But that's only if Beane does a good job. Does this fanbase have the patience for a project like that? Does the owner?

It's clear the new regime is starting over. Other GMs have come in, realized the team had some strong talent to work with, and then tried to get better without completely gutting the roster. Personally, I think this is (usually) the best approach in the NFL. But it's clear that Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott don't agree. We will see. I have a feeling this is only the beginning of the tear-down. Anything else is just lip service to the veteran players and the fans by saying we are trying to win in 2017. Tyrod Taylor is a placeholder and will be replaced next season. I anticipate Kyle Williams retiring after this year. I wouldn't be surprised if we cut LeSean McCoy next year, or find a way to dump Marcel Dareus. Within two seasons, this roster will be totally unrecognizable. And maybe that sounds like a good thing to some fans. But the question isn't how we purge the roster. It's how we rebuild. And that process hasn't even started yet. Too many people seem to believe that with SO MANY DRAFT PICKS, we are setting ourselves up to be a powerhouse in 1-2 years. That only happens if Beane kills the draft. If Beane doesn't find at least 4-5 strong starters next year, the Bills will be a worse team after these moves. Instead of being the mediocre 7-9, 8-8 Bills our fans have been used to, this team will become a 3-13, 4-2 squad.

Not every coach. The New England Patriots are the obvious and clear exception to the rule. Bill Belichick's ability to adapt scheme to player (and not vice versa) is the primary reason - possibly even more than having Tom Brady - that his teams have continued to have success for 15+ years straight. Mark my words. They will not miss Julian Edelman in the slightest. Because even if the team gets a drop-off in play from their backup slot receiver, they will simply shift to another focus on offense and keep on rolling. There are many reasons for the Buffalo Bills managing THIS MANY YEARS without even making the playoffs. But lack of continuity is absolutely near the top of the list. We have clearly had enough talent at various times during the drought to pull off a wild card slot. But the constant merry-go-round with head coaches, coordinators and schemes just keeps us stuck in the mud. It's only preseason, but the signs are already showing of this ridiculous cycle continuing. The offensive line, which has been solid for the last 2 years, is struggling badly with the new zone blocking. Tyrod Taylor looks very uncomfortable under center, and is regressing almost every snap he takes. Even the NFL's best running game is suddenly looking poor. As much as the defense looks improved (surprise, surprise after going back to 4-3), the offense clearly appears to be taking a step back. My guess is that our offense will cost us games early, Taylor will eventually get benched for the rookie, things still won't improve, and by years end Rick Dennison will be cast as the scapegoat. At which point, we will recycle offensive coordinators yet again.

I'm not impressed by GMs who know how to "gut" a roster. I'm impressed by GMs who know how to BUILD a roster. I'm not impressed by GMs who believe in "building through the draft." I'm impressed by GMs who actually make smart draft picks. I don't care if a coach is a disciplinarian or a players buddy. I care about them putting players in a position to win games. I don't care if a coach is a loud mouth or subdued and quiet. I care about them coming up with smart game plans, and making intelligent decisions.

The draft is not total luck. Look at the statistics and you will see a clear correlation between how early players are chosen, and how successful they are in the NFL. In other words, you will find that the vast majority of successful players are drafted in the first 3 rounds. The majority of Pro Bowlers and eventual Hall of Fame players come in the top half of the first round. The vast majority of guys drafted 4th Round and later will flame out. Most undrafted players will not even make an NFL roster. This tells me that scouts, GMs and draft experts have a pretty good idea of what is going on. Is it an exact science? Of course not. There will always be great 1st Round prospects that bust. There will always be late round picks like Tom Brady that turn into greats. But saying the draft is just total luck, just isn't true.

Draft picks mean nothing if they aren't used correctly. The Browns had 14 picks in 2016, and so far, they have gotten virtually nothing out of that draft class. It's early, but from what I understand, only 2-3 of those picks are even slated to start this year.

Tanking in the NFL is stupid and pointless. Rosters are too big. Draft picks are too unpredictable. Careers are too short. The salary cap is too complicated. In the NBA, tanking makes a ton of sense. You can trade away your aging talent, bottom out, get a couple high draft picks, land 1-2 young superstars and completely turn a franchise around for the next decade. You don't really need to be a brilliant GM to find success. You just need to make a few smart moves. Once you get the pieces in place, it's easy to maintain. In the NFL, you are constantly juggling 22 starting positions and 50+ roster slots. By the time you start drafting the finishing pieces, the other parts of your roster are hitting free agency or getting old and ineffective. The only way to maintain consistent success in the NFL is through good drafting, year after year, always keeping the pipeline full and replacing old productive players with younger and cheaper players without a drop-off. You can get lucky as a GM a few times, but if you don't know what you are doing, pretty soon your weakness will be exposed and the team will fall apart. Having a ton of draft picks in 2018 is nice. But (by trading Watkins and Darby) we now have two extra roster spots to fill. Instead of needing to hit on 3 picks next year, Brandon Beane needs to hit on 5 to really make progress with the team. And then we have the impending roster turnover of Kyle Williams, LeSean McCoy, Eric Wood, Ritchie Incognito, etc., which is bound to happen within the next 1-3 seasons. We will need a constant influx of young talent to fill those spots. Truthfully, bottoming out in 2017 will gain us nothing in the long run. We just need to cross our fingers that Beane is the right guy for the job.

Nothing this front office has done yet is worthy of praise or applause. And I'm getting tired of people acting like these moves are putting the Buffalo Bills on the "right" track. Dumping players is the easy part. It takes no skill or intelligence to trade away a productive/star player for a draft pick. Some of the biggest idiots this team has ever employed took the exact same approach. Trading away talent and vowing to build through the draft. Actually "REBUILDING" is the hard part. Making those draft picks count. Signing the right free agents. Giving contracts to the right players. Correctly utilizing the salary cap. I'll reserve judgement for Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott, and watch as this whole thing unfolds. But at this point, I see no reason to be optimistic for the upcoming season, or the team's future as a whole.

I have no problem with players being vocal politically, or using their fame to speak out about perceived injustice. And truthfully, I couldn't care less if they sit, stand, pump their fist or stay in the locker room. It's a free country, and I'm not offended by people with different thoughts and opinions than me. But truthfully, these players aren't hurting anybody but themselves (see Colin Kaepernick's career). A good chunk of the people that DO care think it's disrespectful. And instead of changing anyone's minds about political issues or really making a difference in society, it's turning them away from the NFL completely. If the National Anthem is removed from the NFL or other sporting events, it's only going to make those particular fans angrier. It's not going to make the issue disappear. It's isn't going to erase the controversy. It's going to create a mass exodus of fans, and may be the final nail in the coffin for the NFL.

If he doesn't fit the scheme, the Bills need to trade him now. Maybe they can get a player from another team that is underachieving in the wrong system. Maybe they can get lucky and land another mid-round pick. I'm coming to grips that 2017 is a total lost cause. At one point, I was holding out slim hope for a wild card. But after trading away Sammy Watkins and watching Tyrod Taylor struggle to adapt in the new scheme, I realize this team is (or will soon be) in full rebuild mode. Every snap/roster spot used on someone like Reggie Ragland is a waste, because it could be used on a player who fits better.

I don't understand the previous reports that claimed Rick Dennison's offense was a great match for Tyrod Taylor. So far, the passing game seems to be the complete opposite of what Taylor is good at. It's clear the staff is looking for a pure pocket passer. Somebody who can play under center, make quick reads and deliver fast and accurate throws. Not someone with limited field vision, who likes to scramble and extend plays with his feet. Not to mention, Taylor is short and already has trouble with batted passes, even when he isn't playing at the line of scrimmage. From my early perspective, this is a disaster in the making. I understand that Taylor may not fit the mold that Dennison, Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane are looking for. But if the team is "really trying" to win this year, then the offense should be molded to fit the quarterback's strengths and hide his weaknesses. Of course, after 15 years of watching new regimes do the same thing (square peg, round hole, poor fit), I'm really not surprised in the slightest.

Sounds like Buffalo Bills luck. We make all these moves and purge our roster for draft picks, then the top QBs in the draft decide to stay in school. After the season is over, we will probably hear our coaching staff clamoring for "more speed" on the outside. Then we will use our 2nd Round pick from the Rams to overdraft a track star receiver.

Outside of the Buffalo fans/media, I haven't seen anyone applauding the Sammy Watkins trade. Most are questioning why we let a young talent go for such a low pick. Many people have been screaming for us to "tank" for a quarterback for years. So they think would be a step in the right direction.

I believe that coaching/front office style is very overrated. There are many approaches that can work... IF they are done correctly. Marv Levy was a great coach. But he was a terrible GM because he sucked at drafting, and he sucked at adding free agents. It's that simple. It had nothing to do with his personality, or his desire to add high-character players. He just did a poor job at giving the Bills a talented team.

Agree 100% on the tanking comment. The NFL isn't like other sports leagues. There are too many roster spots, too much risk on draft selections, too much fluctuation with injuries, too many outside factors with salary cap, coaching changes, scheme switches, etc. The idea that our best avenue was to purge talent, stockpile draft picks and rebuild a successful roster from scratch is nonsense. I'm highly skeptical of this front office, until they start proving they can properly scout and make smart draft picks.

Some GMs undervalue draft picks. Others overvalue them. It's clear that Doug Whaley undervalued them. This is a big hint that Brandon Beane may overvalue them. To me, the value of a draft pick vs. an established player, comes down to "how likely" it will result in talent of equal or greater value. Stockpiling draft picks always sounds nice and promising for the future. But at some point, those picks become real players. For every Herschel Walker trade that creates a dynasty, there are hundreds of Darrelle Revis for Dee Milliner trades. Dumping Jason Peters got us Eric Wood, which was an OK deal. But dumping Marshawn Lynch only got us Chris Hairston and Tank Carder. When Whaley traded up for Sammy Watkins, it was a bad trade. Why? Because it was very unlikely that a wide receiver (with no franchise QB) would ever be as valuable as two 1st Round starters at other positions. As many pointed out at the time, it would have been smarter to take a "lesser" talent at wide receiver (like Kelvin Benjamin or Odell Beckham were considered at the time) and pair him with a starting offensive lineman, cornerback, linebacker, etc. the next draft. The Beane trade is also bad. Why? Because EJ Gaines is a fringe starter with injury issues, and it's unlikely a 2nd Round pick will be as good as Watkins.

I mentioned this in another thread, but I think it bears repeating. The only way anyone can support the Watkins/Darby trades is by assuming the plan is to go after a 2018 QB prospect. One of the big problems though... None of the top QB prospects are going to be seniors. Sam Darnold is a Sophomore. Josh Allen, Josh Rosen and Lamar Jackson are Juniors. This means some or all of them could return to school, even if they turn out to be fantastic prospects. Not to mention, the Bills are going to have plenty of competition for draft position, even if they are loaded with picks. The Jets have a terrible roster and seem to be purposely tanking for the #1 pick. The Browns are awful and also loaded with picks. The 49ers will certainly be in the mix. Another terrible season and the Jags could move on from Bortles. The Chargers could be ready to find a replacement for Rivers. Could the Rams dump Goff after 2 seasons? If the next Andrew Luck is poised to come out and these guys are sitting in the Top 1-2-3 spots, why would they trade to Buffalo? There are so many ways this whole plan could backfire, it just depresses me.

As a whole, I didn't like the moves. I understand the concept of "rebuilding" the roster. But it makes very little sense to trade away some of your youngest star players during a rebuild. It makes more sense to shop players like LeSean McCoy, Kyle Williams or Ritchie Incognito. If a rebuild is successful, a front office should plan on being competitive within 2-3 years. It makes more sense to shop guys that won't be around, or may not be effective that far down the road. I fail to see how Sammy Watkins and Ronald Darby fit that mold. The value we got in return for Watkins was not nearly enough. If that pick (probably late 30s or early 40s) is used on a replacement, the chances we get someone with Watkins' talent is very low. If our plan is to package the pick in a draft move next year, I don't think that extra 2nd Rounder is going to be the vital piece that makes it happen or kills it. The Eagles/Jordan Matthews trade was comparable value. This one was a rip-off, which only looks promising to fans using the "Madden mentality" of overvaluing draft picks. It also makes the decision to decline his 5th Year Option look extra foolish, because we probably would have gotten a better trade offer with an extra contract year involved. If the Bills were worried about re-signing Watkins, then I fail to see the value in obtaining two players in the last years of their contract. Matthews is probably looking at a deal similar or higher than Robert Woods, who was ridiculously overvalued in free agency. Smart teams let players like this walk. So the Bills are left in a lose-lose situation. People keep talking about positioning for a Quarterback. I guess that makes some sense. But there are still WAY TOO MANY unknown factors that could completely destroy this plan. We still don't know which prospects will be declaring. Not a single 2018 top QB prospect is a senior. There is a great chance Sam Darnold stays in school. We don't know what scouts will actually think of these prospects by April. Maybe some of these top guys crash and burn over the next 12 months like Matt Barkley or Jake Locker. Not to mention, we don't know what draft positioning will look like. If the Jets, Browns, 49ers are sitting in the Top 3 spots, what are the chances they would trade with us? What if the Chargers, Jags, Rams, Redskins, etc., etc. are sitting there? I like having ammo, but that extra 2nd and 3rd Rounder is going to be pennies in the grand-scheme of things. I have a feeling that in 12 months, Sammy Watkins will be a Pro-Bowler, Jordan Matthews will be on his third team, the Bills still won't have a premier QB prospect, and our front office will be trying to hype a massive new draft class full of unproven rookies as the saviors of our franchise.

So if the Bills weren't going to pay Sammy Watkins next year, what makes you think they are going to pay Jordan Matthews? And even with all the "ammunition" in the world, don't forget: - The Jets have one of the worst rosters in 20 years - The Browns also have tons of draft picks and need a QB - There is no guarantee all the top guys will be coming out of school next year

For some reason, the Bills were desperate to move-on from Sammy Watkins. There is no other explanation for getting so little in return. (A 2nd-Round Pick and below average starter...) I think the Eagles trade was a domino-effect from moving Watkins. The Bills could not enter the season with nothing at receiver. It just happens that the Darby/Matthews trade was actually a decent swap. The Bills make out pretty good on that one. Anyone that thinks this was just about money... Don't forget that Matthews is also a free agent next year.