HurlyBurly51

Actually I have seen him play, both guard and tackle. Their line was horrid, and he was regarded as the worst of the worst. I didn't say I'm writing him off, but some folks seem to think that because McNally seems to like him we can just discount his horrid play in Chicago, with all kinds of excuses to boot (poor coaching, etc.) I've heard this song before with L. Smith last year, which proves that JMac can't necessarily turn all his reclamation projects around. I'd hate to see us scrambling again if Gandy proves he's not up to the task.

I'm just curious for those that have experienced this, what are the long term ramifications? If most people they invite do not attend, does that introduce a rift and chill the relationship, never to be the same? Do they have to get a new set of friends, or do they get over it? If they're this selfish, do they even understand the burden they're placing on people? I mean when you want to celebrate with friends but no one shows, that's gotta open their eyes, no? I just don't understand why people place this type of burden on their friends, then get upset when people don't comply.

OMG. Have you ever seen Gandy play? What makes people think he'll be any good other than blind faith in McNally. JMac tried this same type of reclamation project last year with L. Smith, so he is not failproof. And yes, I've seen Gandy play plenty, and to think he would be compared to Verba is laughable.

QB is still the top question. 1st round and the investment in him dictate that, not to mention the future of the franchise riding on his shoulders. If Holcomb turns into the answer (long term), we are in trouble. Ask London or Takeo about DT. I think the impact of TE is less than any of the top 3 (QB, LT, DT). Of course, IMHO.

TE is hardly one of the two biggest question marks on this team. I'd start with QB, LT, DT as your top three, with backup RB and 3rd WR next, rounded out by nickel CB. I think I'd even throw K in before I put TE in as a question mark. I too thought Everett would add a new dimension to the offense, but don't worry, Campbell is solid and Euhus is continuing to develop, and both are reported healthy and ready to go.

On the Chicago news they said his father was an executive for a steel company, so I'm guessing he was with Bethlehem and moved his family to IN for a promo or something - I'm sure his father brought him up right

Do your own homework

That reminds me - whatever happened to the NFL Network special on this?

Looks like his agent Hadley is trying to dictate a deal. I recall someone on the wall saying a drunken Engelhard after a game running off at the mouth about how he was going to screw the Bills. Well, he could be stalling contract extension talks with the Titans in order to force a deal to the Jags, since Tenn presumably won't complete the trade unless they have an extension in place. The 3rd from Tenn is better than a 3rd from Jax in that it will likely be at the top of the round as opposed to Jax, as well as not helping a team that will be competing for a playoff spot this year. I could see his dumbass agent screwing this one up, and I hope Donahoe doesn't end up giving TH to the Jags just because TH agent won't make a deal with Tenn. If he gets stubborn, we could see Jax drop out and be stuck with Henry even longer, with no competition for Tenn to bid against. God I'll be glad when this is FINALLY over!

I've thought all along that they will be making another roster addition before camp and once the Henry transaction is completed. This makes sense for a good price and could be our transition guy until we take one of the 1st round tackles available in next years draft. Getting him for two years would provide us a lot of flexibility. Just going by a conversation on Sirius, they felt LJ Shelton was a downgrade from Verba, so from a football perspective he should be able to help us.

Say Hello to Ty Law....

Beleive it or not he's still drawing an NFL paycheck down in N'awlins.

Man, I gotta stop by this year. There's some "must see" stories developing here. Wonder if some of the ex wallers will be in attendance?

Kettle's - that's it! There's one in Hamburg too I believe. I stopped in there a few years back after a game, and forgot about the redneck vibe in there. That place was a powderkeg just waiting to explode

I'll take your word for it until I can verify Growing up there it was always called/known as Big Tree Road, but I have to admit Southwestern and 20A didn't quite sound right. Anyway, I had a friend in high school that lived on Sheldon - we used to go to that fighting bar on Abbott, but the name escapes me.

They kind of run parallel to each other on either side of the stadium. Big Tree Road is closer to the Fieldhouse and the pinto, and 20A is closer to Sully's stadium wear, 7-Eleven, etc. Clear as mud?

Sam Adams. How about Mike Gandy? I'm not too thrilled with him to begin with, can you imagine if we had to go to our backup plan? I know they'd probably move Teague out and either the rook or Tucker would move in, but that could set in motion a nasty chain of events

I don't recall the exact years, but I do remember one year Fletcher was being ridden out of plays and making tackles 6 or 7 or more yards down the field, then for the next season when Sam came in London was able to pursue more freely and make plays much closer to the line of scrimmage. His tackle numbers may have been similar, but there was a distinct difference in where he was making them. Just as for any LB, the DT's need to keep the OL off them and they will make the plays to stop the run. Otherwise you might be in on the plays, but you're not really stopping the run when you're tackling 6 yards downfield. I was just answering the guys question - with Sam and Pat there was not a problem, now with Pat gone and a lesser run stopping replacement, that could spell trouble.

I am, and it will be one of the top two things that bear watching this summer (LT being #1). I relate it to what happened to Urlacher here in Chicago. When Ted was around the guy was an all pro, as soon as he leaves all off a sudden he's heavily criticized and labeled by some as overrated. I think if London has a big OL in his grill all game then we're going to be very frustrated watching teams break into the secondary consistently, which also takes us out of favorable down and distance situations, leading to less turnovers. Sam and Pat were proven at protecting the LBs from the bigguns, allowing them to freely roam the field to pursue and make plays. We're a very situational team, where Sam and Pat were to stop them on first and second, and put the opposition at higher risk in 3rd and passing situations. That won't happen if they're pounding it at will on you. Not saying it will happen, but it is a concern until proven otherwise.

I am. I'm amazed whenever I walk around with my Bills colors on how many people stop me to show their support for the Bills as well The neighborhood festival I mentioned is about 8 blocks south of Wrigley, and within the confines of that party are two Bills bars - Lincoln Station and Delilah's (which I believe is owned by a guy from OP). There may be a crew of Buffalo fans hanging around the Lincoln Station since they serve kick ass Vodka/Lemonades and it's usually pretty hot, but I'd say in late July you'd be hard pressed to find a Bills friendly conversation at any other establishments. If you end up in this area I'll probably wear a white Bills hat so you know you're in friendly territory! Not sure if this is your first and only trip to Chicago, but this is more of a local event and I can understand if the wife wants to see some of the more famous city attractions.

There is a great neighborhood festival going on that weekend - I would recommend heading just a little south of Wrigley after the game to the "Taste of Lincoln" in the Lincoln/Fullerton area. A couple blocks of city streets blocked off with multiple stages for bands, food, bars lined up and down the street, great "sightseeing" etc. Of course all the touristy things are fine, but this is a nice "little" neighborhood gathering.

Ooh, what about the show where Howard's band kicked the crap out of Flutie's band and he cried like a little girl?!

For some reason I liked the hot airhead gymnast that came in for implants. And the Margolis episode was the one with her hot friend where they couldn't get her pants down, right? Then there's the bits with stuck on you, and how 'bout the wack pack version of politically incorrect with Maher, or the equally politically incorrect hollyweird squares