Bruce

I'd love to see Easley rise to the occasion and become the #2. But if he doesn't make it, Donald Jones would be good, too. Or Graham. But I am biased. I'd love all of the Bills players to succeed in Buffalo. I'd like to see David Clowney live up to his potential with the Bills...

My point is that the Pats are not the same team that they were when they were winning it all on a regular basis, had a machine of a team (along with video cameras), and talent at every position. They also had depth on the field AND in the coaching ranks. The Pats that we see today are not the same. True, they are still successful, but their era of dominance is over. Patriot teams always had solid RB's. Woodhead would not be on the field for alot of NFL teams; but he fits his role in New England and they have a bit of a history of not putting much into the RB position as of late. You can say that the pass attack is the main focus of the Pats- which I agree with, and the rest of the NFL seems to unfortunately be moving towards- but you still need a solid RB. As we see in Buffalo, or Green Bay, or New England for that matter...the elements don't always allow for passing. You can't be 1 dimensional in the NFL and still expect to win on a consistent basis. It will catch up to them. When you look at Welker, sure...he is getting tons of catches. But is he a true, #1 receiver? Not talking stats. Welker works for Brady, in a dump off role. If he wasn't a TE, Gronkowski seems to be the more designed receiver on most plays, the one where they are wanting to go to alot of the time. That's not to diminish Welker- the guy has the stats because he does keep the Patriots drives alive. He is a really good, clutch player. But he's not a true #1 receiver along the lines of Calvin Johnson, Eric Moulds, Andre Reed, Jerry Rice, Anquan Boldin, etc. When Scott Pioli, Charlie Weis, and Romeo Crennel left, so did alot of their organizational talent and depth. You can see that they are not making the same shrewd choices on talent that they were when Pioli was at the GM helm. They are missing way more often than they had been when the franchise was at its zenith. Banta-Cain, anyone? When the Pats were rolling through everyone and everything, they had such organizational depth it was hard to ever see an end to their dominance. Not so anymore. When a star went down, there was a new stud to replace said player. They've never replaced Seymour. Bruschi. Moss. LT Light is retired. That could be the final straw in their success right there. Brady's blind side is critical to their pass-happy approach. We now have majorly upgraded our pass rush, and overall defensive philosophy with a D-Line friendly attack. Kyle Williams and Dareus pushing the pocket. Mario Williams and Mark Anderson on the outside against a new LT. A hopefully healed and renewed Merriman? If things work like I hope that they will, the Bills will expose the Pats this year as fatally flawed former shells of themselves. If Brady can't sit and set, not even Giselle will be able to console Tommy Boy and his crying. There is absolutely no way that the Pats of the past 2-3 seasons are anything like the Pats of the 2001-2008 seasons.

I think that the major beef most people have had with Kelsay is that his contract has not been on par with his performance on the field. Buddy initially came out and blabbed about his value in the locker room, as a leader, as a captain, etc. And those things are not to be diminished, but you don't pay a guy millions of dollars for a multiyear deal if he is a cheerleader in pads. Now, I view Kelsay as a poor mans Phil Hansen; a steady player who holds his own, but is never going to dominate. Indeed, when you look at his accumulation of sacks they seem to come in flood-type games where he gets 3 in a game against a 2nd or 3rd string tackle. I like Kelsay, and think- barring injuries- when combined with other stars like Super Mario- Kelsay should find a rejuvenated career. Kind of like Trace Armstrong had during his final days in Miami. I personally like Kelsay, but I don't think that he's worth the contract. Talented and dependable, but unsensational and overpaid.

You must be a hemorroid, because you're acting like one. I was referring to the rookies that were invited to try out but we never saw.

I've wondered this myself. Obviously not good enough to stick around, but it's funny how oftentimes the players we think should stick around do not. For example, last year there was a rookie LB that was better than Eddins, he looked fantastic during the preseason, then shockingly got cut. He was later added back to the practice squad then the active roster, but looked out of place in the regular season and was again cut and never heard from again. Overall, the Bills made the right move, but looking at performance after the preseason, it did not make sense that the LB was waived. Same thing with our RB's from a year or 2 ago. We had a couple of good players, who performed really well during the preseason, then were waived. The Bills know what they are doing, but it would be interesting to see how they did.

I completely agree with the premise of this post. The Pats have not really been a relevant contender for about 2-3 seasons now. They are totally running on fumes as a franchise. The dynasty is clearly at an end. The big things that stick out for me is that: 1.) they don't have and have not had a quality RB/ running game in about 4 seasons. Woodhead is benefitting from playing with Brady, and being used as a sort of gimmick player. They have no dominant running attack. 2.) They have no #1 receiver. 3.) the D has been nothing like it used to be with Harrison, Bruschi, Seymour, etc. They are porous. Right now, they are benefitting from having Mr. Pretty Boy Brady, and their 2 headed TE menace in Gronkowski and Co. I look for the Pats to fall even more, as LT Matt Light is retired. Mario Williams should eat up whomever is on Brady's blind side. Take away Tommy boy, and the Pats are an 7-9 team at best.

Hard Knocks. That's basically going to be the story of the 2012 Miami Dolphins. 3-13, perhaps?

Well, what makes you think that more years on the "job" makes someone more qualified to basically guess and gossip about all things football? Do you honestly think that Mark Gaughan or Jerry Sullivan are more qualified because they work at a newspaper and get to vote for the Pro Bowl? Whatever happened to 'you have to start somewhere'? Methinks there is a just a hint of jealousy here, as this kid has some pretty impressive credentials for being all of 19 years old. I can only wonder what you were doing at 19 years old. Picking yourself out of keg, perhaps? Trying to remember which side is your left? He's barely out of high school, and he's in college, got an internship at a relatively relevant online sport resource, and per his spot worked for the Buffalo Bills on their scouting reporting. If he keeps going, the sky is the limit.

I went Robo-wideout. Providing you have a QB that can throw him the ball, catching everything in sight is too tempting to pass up (pardon the pun).

You know, I have to agree with this. Bell was always given the benefit of the doubt because he had to fill in for Peters, was a developmental player, and had not played much football prior to being drafted. Then he was always getting hurt. I could not agree more. I was waiting for him to consistently hold the position, and develop into a strong player, when he would constantly be injured. He was IMO solid when he did play, but I never saw him dominating anyone physically, either. Methinks that this is more speaking to make himself feel better. Wood, Urbik, and Levitre/ Rinehardt have some grit. I never saw anything resembling a mauler from Bell. Sour grapes. Exactly. "Aggressive" pass blocking? Sounds to me like a recipe for false start penalties. Pass blocking is basically sit back and wait for them to come to you. How is that aggressive? If he's talking about playing with an aggressive attitude, then that's his problem, not the team. Maybe he should have talked to Eric Wood more.

And? What did Weiss do at Notre Dame that makes the Bills look incompetent for not choosing him? And by "real" QB, I hope that you are not referring to....<belch>...Brady Quinn? Waiting.... What really peeves me off is how all he has to do is cry to the officials and he gets a flag against the opposing defense. I can't wait for Super Mario to send a forearm shiver through Brady's pretty head. With LT Light retiring this year, New England is going to have a huge hole to fill on Tommy Boy's blind side.

Well, certain types of lifestyle would even warrant an HIV test, and I'm not just talking about homosexuality. Multiple partners, etc, sharing needles, etc. all tend to lend themselves to attractors of greater HIV risk. What must be questioned, is what type of behavior would cause one to even want an HIV test? Now that he has "passed" his test, does it change the lifestyle? Probably not. Sounds like this guy is a problem already, and despite the measurables on the field, the off the field behavior might explain why he hasn't succeeded thus far. I'm kinda thinking we may have signed a real clown here.

I was just thinking how wrong it is to see Manning in a Broncos uniform. I don't know if it was even discussed, but Manning should have taken a pay cut and retired a Colt. Sophomore jinx it would have to be, because last year Cincy showed that they have been very skilled in terms of talent development and selection. I could see the Bills and Bengals as the 2 most improved teams in the NFL this season. Uh-oh, 1989 all over again. No irritating Icky Shuffle this time, though.

I agree with his points, but I'm happy staying under the radar. What I don't think people are putting together, is that similar to the Jim Kelly- led K-Gun days, jumping on opponents early and often with TD's forces the other team into passing situations to catch up. Now that we should have a deadly pass rush, and our Offense should be improved with a #2 receiver, Chandler back at TE, the O Line jelling now, and Fred coming back, Gailey should have us putting points up in furious fashion. Allowing our improved pass rush to feast on more QB drop backs and hurries, forces those same QB's to throw earlier than they both want to and are ready to, and look out for the flood of INT's!! Put plainly: if injuries don't hurt us, and if the pass rush is as improved as I think that it is, I would not see it unrealistic for a 12-4 record and a home playoff game or 2. GO BILLS! ARE YOU CRAZY!??!??!? Did you even watch Nick Barnett play last year? The guy is everywhere. Heck, if I'm not mistaken he singlehandedly led the defense against the Giants and a couple of others. I think he killed a few Dolphins, too. Go back and look at the tape, dude. Barnett is a beast!

I would have to agree that this IS their time to shine. The only variable that I would say is again the injury bug. #1, that no more injuries occur of a significant nature, and #2 that those that were injured return to top form for the start of the season (namely: Wood). I'm actually pretty motivated that LT has been addressed, and our overall depth seems mucho better-o than any time in the past decade. I like that Brown guy. He impressed me last season. Just solid. He stepped in Center towards the end of the year after Wood and Urbik went down. I think that our Tackles are better. Guards. Centers. We should field a pretty competitive unit. And then there's this years crop of NFL camp fodder and FA's. We might pick up another gem that way. But we should be really taking off now.

I will second this. Jauron had an inverse success rate when compared to the rest of the NFL. That is, if the rest of the NFL had a 70% success rate with players and a 30% rate of failure, Mauron had a 30% rate of success and a 70% rate of failure.

Meh. I thought that he was going to tear it up when he went down to Tampa...but hasn't.

I don't see why anything should change. If Young makes the team, I think that we'll probably be seeing more 'Wildcat'- type sets, but other than that I don't see any reason to change anything. It worked. IF anything, I think that the improved D should help our 'O' get the jump on teams, and then make it hard for opposing teams to keep up. This would allow us to go down to more of a lockdown, running game, preserve the lead- type offense, but I don't think that anything changes with our basic offense. And where are we seeing an improvement in the running game?

Though I do think that he is way overpaid based upon his performance on the field and should be due to renegotiate to remain on the team, I would have to agree that he is a sturdy plugger- kind of like a poor man's Phil Hansen- who was out of place last season by the ridiculous move to OLB, and should benefit tremendously from the arrival of Super Mario, Mark Anderson, and a revived Kyle Williams and 1st round gem Dareus. I think Kelsay is more valuable than either Dwan Edwards or Spencer Johnson, and both of those guys should be gone, as their production is nil and they are being paid too much for producing nothing. I'm seeing a big year for Kelsay. 8 sacks....

AAAAAA- MEN, brother! Reminds me of that Maurice Clarett knucklehead that thought he was something special that he could declare himself eligible for the draft as a sophomore RB from Ohio State, the NFL says "NO", then he decides to sue the NFL because he can't come in a year earlier. Then, he does eventually get to the NFL and flops, majorly! I couldn't have been happier; but what especially took the cake was that this idiot was caught with several automatic weapons in his vehicle along with other illegal paraphenalia shortly after he was cut from Denver. I mean...wasn't this doofus going to college? Shouldn't he have learned something in school? Atleast enough to get a legit job and not gun-run and sell drugs? It reminds me of Robert DeNiro's character in A Bronx Tale. "You think he's the hero? He ain't no hero. The working man is the hero." Apparently, Clarett never saw that movie. Suing your future employer. Sheesh/...

You sure about that? I can remember being in my living room at home, watching the game in North Tonawanda. I can specifically remember it, too...because the announcers made a big deal after having taken a commercial break that Don Beebe stepped out of bounds and that it shouldn't have been a touchdown. I can remember sticking around, despite the what, 35-3 shelling about to turn the TV off, when it all started. I know that this game was broadcast. I watched it. I think that you're confusing that most fans left when the Oilers came out to score another touchdown right after halftime, and I can even remember the announcers talking about how fans were clamoring to get back IN the stadium because the comeback started.

Northern VA in the metro Washington DC area. Hey, I'm about 20 minutes away from Leesburg! Ever go to Jimmy's Old Town Tavern in Herndon?

Oh, please. I'm far from having a wet dream over a rookie. GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF!! Lets see Wilson successfully make it through Training Camp, the Preseason, and actually throw a ball in a live game against a real NFL defense. "I told ya so". Give me a break!

Dude, I think all of these 'Bills to LA' posts need to stop. It's not going to happen. Everyone points to one factor, maybe two, and that is the end of their factual info. One, they point to Mr. Wilson getting close to not being the owner anymore and just naturally conclude that they will move because, two, the WNY region is economically strapped. Now, both points are valid, but there is alot more that goes into this type of thing. I have said, and will continue to say, that selling out the stadium is a much bigger contributor than the region. When I lived in FL, I went to a couple of Bills/ Jags games. As can be found in alot of road games, there are alot of Bills transplants. Jacksonville had approx. 1/4 of the stadium Bills fans. Tailgating felt like being in Buffalo. But Jacksonville actively blocks out entire sections of their stadium EVERY game because they can't sell out. They also don't enforce their blackout rule, because if they did no one would see the games and it would only serve to hurt their marketing even more. The Bills sell out most of the time, and NEVER block out sections with a tarp because they can't sell out. That fact, and THAT fact alone, tells me that Jacksonville would be the first team to move to LA. Jacksonville has some economic success, but it ain't Texas, folks. They'd move. St. Louis is also not the most supportive city, and the Rams have not been competitive since Vermeil left. They'd be my #2 choice to move. The Charges and Raiders, sound an awful lot like posturing more than anything factual. I think I would say the same thing about Minnesota; but I would put them as a #3 candidate to move. If I'm not mistaken, they're trying to posture for a new stadium, too. Jags and Rams as the 2 realistic ones. And I don't know what anyone owning an NFL team would want with LA, anyways. I lived there for 5 years, and I understand the media component, but the Raiders and Rams were both there at one point, and both left (Raiders did it twice). People just don't go to games. They'd need a new stadium, as part of the problem was that the LA Coliseum housed 100,000 fans, and they couldn't sell 70,000 on a regular basis. There are just too many distractions in LA, and the weather is soooo sweet 10-11 months of the year that people do other things. Nobody even knows that the Kings exist. The Dodgers are nothing major in the area. The only team garnering fan attention on a consistent basis are the Lakers. As much as LA would seem like such a logical choice to expand, I don't think that a team would stay there past 6-7 years as there just is not the fan base. Plus, LA is a tremendously transient area, and not too many people that live in LA are actually from LA. These fans usually follow their home teams (as I did with the Bills and Sabres), so this would not help an LA team, either. Just my 2 cents... I agree with your last paragraph, but don't see how the post you quote is way off base. When I lived in LA, the Lakers were it. And only it. I went to some Kings games, and based on the horrific lack of coverage in the LA Times and by the comatose state of the "fans", you wouldn't even know that LA had a hockey team. Dodgers were lukewarm, at best. And the reason why LA couldn't sell out the Coliseum had nothing to do with the crowds...it had everything to do with the fact that the place seated 100,000. No team, with the exception of maybe the Cowboys, is selling out 100,000 seats on a continuous basis. Most people in the area are transients, and follow their own home town team. It's a seasonal, fickle fan base that only wants to follow a winner. And when they can put the mirror down to stop looking at themselves.

Which begs the question...what is all of this reported friction between Wilson and Polian? Polian, in his interview about winning the spot on the Wall, has nothing but praise and thanks and friendship to speak of when mentioning Wilson. He also speaks highly of Buffalo as a city where his children grew up. Listening to the interview, I can only think that all of these Buffalo Snooze reports about issues between Wilson and Polian are...well, baloney.