R. Rich

Here's the final standings for the TBD related leagues for the 2009 season: R. Rich's Buffalo Bills League: 12th place: dre's zone dawgz 11th place: hitandrun23 10th place: Heavy Artillery 9th place: T.O.'s Last Stop And the results of the Consolation bracket: 8th place: Draft Clausen 7th place: buffalo bandits 6th place: justnzanes alcoholix 5th place: Buffalo Blitz And the championship bracket: 4th place: Mountaineers 3rd place: Ray's Anatomy 2nd place: Panos and our champion for 2009..... McNair's Mistresses!!!!! TBD2: 10th place: monsterman75 9th place: The RedNecks And the results of the Consolation bracket: 8th place: Play not to lose 7th place: NorthWesternBill 6th place: the hotpockets 5th place: R. Rich And the championship bracket: 4th place: obama rules!!!! 3rd place: ExWNYer 2nd place: Cyber Bills-09 and our champion for 2009..... SVEN233!!!!! and last but certainly not least............ R. Rich's Buffalo Bills Keeper League: 10th place: BuffBills1 9th place: Absolut Power And the results of the Consolation bracket: 8th place: Pro Bowler 7th place: Raging Waves 6th place: BUFFALO RULES 5th place: Blitzing Barracudas And the championship bracket: 4th place (winner of $25.00): Kickin Wing 3rd place (winner of $50.00): Grilled Mahi-Mahi 2nd place (winner of $75.00): The Rising and our champion for 2009 and winner of the $100.00 grand prize..... Wu Tang Financial!!!!! Congratulations to all of the winners and we'll see you next year!

What's w/ the 1a and 1b picks?

It may have something to do w/ the fact that Schottenheimer has told everyone who has asked him that he is in no way interested in coaching football again.

Oliver Twist?

Hey; that rhymes.

He also has 3 years experience as a major college football starter whereas Maybin had one, and that was due to another player's suspension. Just sayin.

Nooooooooooo!!!!!!!

I've been saying I like McClain for quite a while myself, but he still hasn't declared his intent to forego his senior year yet. Maybe if 'Bama wins the title in a convincing fashion tomorrow night he'll make the jump. Then again, he might come back for more, since many of the Tide's best players are underclassmen and Saban is doing a bang up job of recruiting even more talent to bring in.

Yes.

Sure do: those "small and quick" guys like Pat and Kevin Williams.

And so, another season is finished. Mercifully. Another year that started out w/ plenty of high hopes and finished w/ plenty of frustration. That makes it an even ten years now. Woo hoo! As for the game? Well, they won....I guess that counts for something. Sure, they blew the opportunity to draft a few spots higher, but 'til we see what the front office is going to look like, that may not even be an issue. If the Bills turn out to be, "more of the same", then it wouldn't matter if they had the chance to draft Ndamukong Suh, they'd still find a way for it to turn sour. Ryan Fitzpatrick had a really good game vs the Colts, so props to him. W/ the weather being as poor as it was, it was that much more impressive to see the throws he made (that TD to Lee Evans was a work of art, and the bomb to Terrell Owens wasn't so shabby, either), even the ones that were misfires (the "shoulda been TD" to TE Joel Klopfenstein was another terrific throw). Even though there were some miscues (more missed passes, including a few to Owens that could've gone for TDs and clock management snafus), this very well could have been Fitzpatrick's best game as a Bill. How timely, as everyone was playing for their 2010 jobs and/or positions on the depth chart. The running game took center stage on Sunday, which is to say Fred Jackson took center stage. Fred seems to like center stage....a lot!! He run w/ a sense of purpose, making people miss (excellent footing, considering the weather conditions) and, when necessary, plowing (pun intended) ahead to get tough yards. His performance, as well as the "performance" of Marshawn Lynch, just goes to show that Jackson is the lead back while Lynch isn't much more than the backup for the Bills. A 200 yard game for a Bills RB? Nice. Been a while since we've seen those. Overall, this was a good game for the receivers. Evans and Owens both had TD catches, and TEs Jonathan Stupar, Shawn Nelson, and Klopfenstein each got involved w/ a catch. I even saw Evans go downfield and make a nice block for Jackson! Seriously. Of course, there were a few plays where they did nothing away from the play (one in particular, in the red zone, where Evans, on the left side, took 3 steps, turned 'round, and did nothing else as the play was a run to the right side; Owens' run blocking left a lot to be desired for the most part), but these guys produced when given the chance. Good job. The true stars of this game were the offensive line. These guys made public their desire to get Jackson the yardage needed to get to 1,000 yards (needed 150 going into the game) and they delivered, as Jackson finished w/ 212. The left side, yes, the LEFT side, was very strong as tackle Jermon Meredith and guard Andy Levitre did a tremendous job of knocking guys off the line and allowing Jackson to get to the second level all day. The one guy I really would like to commend though is beleagured (certainly by me this season) center Geoff Hangartner. On more than a few plays Sunday, I saw Hangartner go and lead the way for Jackson on runs to the outside and he made nice blocks past the line of scrimmage. There was one play where he made his block on the line, released to lead block, and then took out the LB on a play that went for big yards in the red zone. Outstanding run blocking and, seeing as though Fitzpatrick wasn't sacked @ all, they were solid in pass protection as well. The defensive line had a workman like day, as everyone did their part for the common good. Aaron Schobel brought the pressure and showed that he still has plenty in the tank for a guy who talked 'bout retirement earlier. Chris Kelsay and Ryan Denney were soild in terms of run defense, forcing action back inside and letting the pursuit clean up. Speaking of, Kyle Williams had another good game, pressuring the QB and coming up w/ a sack while also finishing w/ 7 tackles and being tough vs the run. Spencer Johnson was a bit more stout than usual, as I didn't observe him being knocked 8 yards off the ball in this one. Same for Marcus Stroud, who did okay coming off blocks and actually was double teamed a few times in the first half. There was even another Aaron Maybin sighting, though he really didn't do a whole heck of a lot. I can only hope that the more reps he gets, the more he'll develop the skills needed to be productive. Right now, he's just far too raw to step in and be a dominant player. Much like the D line, the linebackers had a nice overall game. Though they weren't much of a factor in rushing the passer, they did neutralize the Colts' running game as they finished w/ 25 yards total. Paul Posluszny and John Corto both had plenty of tackles and did a good job of getting to the play and making stops, something we haven't seen much of out of Bills linebackers all season. Chris Draft didn't have quite as productive a game as the other two, but I did see him make a play or two in coverage. A bit more size to help stuff the run better, and a bit more speed off the edge to get to the QB and force hurried throws or come up w/ sacks and turnovers, and this unit will really scare people. The secondary probably were the only ones who appreciated the lovely weather conditions @ RICH on Sunday, as it certainly helped their cause. Case in point: the first INT by Cary Harris, a pass by Peyton Manning that got hung up a tiny bit, plus the receiver slipped, allowing Harris to dive for the pick. Manning did recover to make some nice throws, including a really nice Manning-led TD drive. But, when they went to backup Curtis Painter, it was not so pretty. He could not make the kind of throws that Manning and Fitzpatrick did, and he looked lost out there. That, plus the terrific run defense the Bills played (no, that's not a typo!) made for a great outing for the secondary. Reggie Corner had to be happy that he was playing @ home on Sunday and not in the ATL, as there was no Roddy White there. He had a solid game, breaking up a deep throw and stopping a bubble screen that he diagnosed right from the snap. Drayton Florence was strong in run support and also was reliable in coverage, as he has been for most of the season. George Wilson was in on some nice stops in run support also, which is his forte. Overall, they were there to help lock down the running game and didn't let the Colts get into any kind of rhythm in the passing game. Great job. Overall, I thought the special teams were solid but not spectacular. Rian Lindell came through w/ 3 field goals, but they were all makeable (each below 40 yards). Brian Moorman didn't have any booming kicks, but also didn't hurt the team in terms of field position. The return units left a bit to be desired as Roscoe Parrish didn't even get to 5 yards per punt return and Jackson had just one kick return for 14 yards. The kick coverage units fared a bit better, keeping the Colts in long field position and not being victimized for any momentum changing, heartbreaking big returns. Coaching wise, I think this game showed why they need to look outside the organization for a new head coach. Perry Fewell had a few of those Dick Jauron type moments (a delay of game AFTER a timeout and a punt call on 4th and 2 in the Colts' end of the field???) that we hope not to see any more. Was Alex Van Pelt's game plan genius, or was it just "run the ball more as the weather sucks and we can't effectively throw it all day"? I give 'em credit for not blowing things and for not letting any momentum slip @ any time in the game, but I do think it's time to look elsewhere for leadership. Thanks for the ride, Perry, and best of luck to you in your future endeavors. Okay, so it's on to the offseason. I think it's time for me to work up a few scenarios, something I haven't done here in a few years, but it's always so fun for me to try. Also, it's time to see what direction the new GM, Buddy Nix, will take the Bills. There is hope, as he kinda hinted to the fact that the Tampa 2 may be a thing of the past and that the Bills may bring in some big guys on BOTH lines (YES!!!). I hope he also wants to add size to the LB corps and wants to develop an overall tougher, more aggressive Bills team. Maybe they'll start practicing more outdoors...like daily! Time for the Bills to be a bit more nasty and tough. No more babying these guys; they need to toughen up. Good luck to Mr Nix. As a season ticket holder, I will be watching to see what happens in the next few months, and it may make a difference in whether I remain a season ticket holder. I won't jump the gun 'til I have some kind of idea what direction the Bills are heading in. If I feel it's more of the "same old Bills", then I may just give up my season tickets and go back to buying individual seats. But if I get the feeling that things are going to change, I'll be more than happy to re-up. Even though I could use the extra cash that would come from not renewing, I am certainly hoping to be spending my cash on the Bills yet again.

To each his own. La Nova isn't bad @ all. I also tried the Bar Bill tavern's wings and they're pretty good. Basically, it's pretty easy to get good wings in the Buffalo area.

I disagree. I think Duffs wings are very good.

...w/ vodka to help ease the pain.

Seriously? Where'd you hear that?

Maybe so.

I never root for an athlete to get injured, no matter how much I dislike the athlete, his/her team, or anything else.

Is it too late to beg for Jauron to come back?

They shouldn't.

If time and schedule permits, I'll be heading to Lambeau and to Arrowhead next season.

I'm not too thrilled w/ that 3-4 lineup. Johnson as a DE? He does do a better job of getting upfield, but as a 3-4 DE, he's going to be responsible for stopping the run a lot more than rushing the passer as he'll see way more double teams (see just 'bout any game this year to see how well Johnson does vs double teams on runnning plays). Hampton is an aging veteran, but still one who can get things done, so that isn't an altogether bad idea. Stroud? Again, he's had his issues just going against single blocks; now, you want him to take on double teams on a frequent basis? Not a great idea. The LBs? Schobel might do okay, but he's had very limited exposure to dropping back in coverage, something he'll do far more frequently as an OLB in the 3-4. He's also a sucker for counter plays, so if he goes for that, that leaves you w/ nobody on the edge to stop plays heading to the outside. Same w/ Maybin. Now, w/ him, I think he just needs more experience to know how to handle misdirection plays, but it would be a disaster to leave him out there now and hope he could contain (it's not just "rush the QB all day" as a 3-4 OLB). Foote has been a solid 3-4 middle 'backer for some time and appears to have plenty left, but I think Posluszny would be horribly miscast in that role. You need a guy like the Jets' David Harris in there: a big guy who can shed the blocks of guards (many of whom tend to be in the 310 lb and up range) on a regular basis to chase plays from sideline to sideline and who can deliver quite a hit when they arrive. As for the secondary, I'd like to have better press corners if I'm going to run a 3-4 (especially if, in your scenario, it's a Cowher/LeBeau type 3-4). I think the safeties could be okay, as I really like Wilson and his knack for making things happen (tackles for loss, INTs), not to mention Byrd and his ballhawking skills.

Which QB in Round 1 and which LT and RT in Rounds 2 and 3? It has to be more than just grab a certain position. You take the best talent for the pick. Well, the teams that consistently win do that. If you go after a position w/ a certain pick, you end up settling for players instead of getting the best player available.

Yep.

Still gotta go w/ the lack of cohesion from ownership to management to coaching to players on this one. Good teams have it; the rest...

This has seemingly been the mantra for the Bills' front office since the late 90s, which is 'round the time when they stopped being a competitive team.