Maybe Someday

I wouldn't mind a black jersey eventually but am quite happy with what we have now. I actually think our current uni's are some of the best looking in the league and that has nothing to do with being a Bills fan. I don't think wearing a black jersey is an appropriate way to honor Ralph because there is no way they wear those and don't try to sell them to the fans. I think a patch would be best but also wouldn't mind something on the helmet. I remember a long time ago (in the 80's??) the Eagles had a black stripe on the side of their helmet to honor someone's passing...no idea who. I wouldn't mind something like that. Sometime a patch kind of gets lost on TV...a black stripe through the buffalo would not.

John Bon Jovi is just the famous face of the group, he would not the majority owner. He'd own 5-10% tops IMO.

I like it. Similar path as The Browns Jordan Cameron but was way more productive in college. With the work ethic I keep hearing/reading about, no reason he can't/won't learn to do some blocking. He doesn't have to be a mauler to be productive, just not a pushover.

I'm still kind of on the fence with Thad but am leaning more to the side that he has earned the opportunity to be the #2 again this season. Awhile back I did want them to bring in a vet that can help EJ in the film room but the more I thought about it, the more it occurred to me that Thad is a really smart guy and has been around for awhile so he may already be very helpful to EJ in that respect. I did agree with this bold part when he was first called into action but the more he played, the less and less he stood in the pocket, took the hit and still made an accurate throw…accurate being the key word. He wasn’t stepping into his throws as much because he was already trying to avoid the hit (what I call the chuck and duck) and his throws sailed as a result. I do think that is more of an indication of the blocking but once that habit starts, it can be hard to break. I’ve seen too many of our QBs (Bledsoe, Edwards) start looking at the pass rush rather than down the field and once that started, it was the beginning of the end of their time in Buffalo. I agree.

Duh, how'd I forget that game.

With the DTs we already have on this team, I’d be shocked if we drafted another one unless that was far and away the BPA. Reaching for a position need rather than BPA causes you to draft guys like Maybin and Troup. I think blaming last season’s run deficiencies on the DTs is misguided. Based on the defense we ran, I don’t believe it would have mattered if we had that 350 guy in the middle. Many if not all of the big runs we gave up were due to the LBs being over aggressive and not handling their assignments. They seemed to take themselves out of the play way more often than they were blocked out of the way. When everyone handled their assignment, I thought we actually weren’t all that bad against the run. Maybe my memory is failing me but I don’t recall a team constantly gashing us for 5, 7, or 10 yard runs, at least not at the end of the season when the players were more comfortable in the defense. There were a lot of 1, 2, 3 yard runs and then a 25+ yarder when someone messed up. Last year’s defense was about gap control, each guy had a gap they were responsible for. If one guy didn’t control their gap, the result was a big run. All of that being said, I have no idea if Pettine’s defensive philosophy would have been any different if we had that big Ted Washington type of DT.

Seems like a logical next step for him. Steroids are not only “legal” in WWE but probably encouraged. Edit: and by legal I mean I don't think they get tested. I know they are not really legal anywhere in this country.

For a team as young as this one, I think it's good. They need all the reps they can get to develop some timing and cohesiveness. In this case that extra game is good for me as well because I am going to it. I know it’s just preseason and the starters will play maybe 1 series but I’ll take what I can get.

Exactly. Bon Jovi is just the famous face to the group, just like Jim Kelly would be if he were part of a group. When it comes down to it, he’d be a small minority owner. I read in one of the articles on two bills drive that he attempted to purchase 15% of the Falcons from Arthur Blank a few years back. Chances are the Bills will sell for more than what the Falcons are considered to be worth back then (since the next team always sells for more than the previous one) so if he owned more than 10% I’d be surprised. If he does succeed and they move the team to Toronto, Bon Jovi (the band) better never come back to Buffalo again and if they do I hope the crowd boos them for the whole show. Heck, I’d hope that any red blooded American nationwide would boycott the band for moving an American team out of the country.

After reading this review, I'm kind of glad they made the movie in Cleveland rather than Buffalo. I have no intension of going to the theatre to see it, even prior to reading that. Maybe I'll end up catching it on HBO in a few months.

I got a message from the Bills confirming this as well. I will be there for sure, I work a few blocks from the stadium. There are a ton of people from WNY here in Charlotte so this town will be rocking Bills colors. As for the rest of the schedule, this is what’s on the Bills website.

Wahoooooooo!!!!!! In Carolina for week 1. I will be there!!!

Agree 100% with this. Hughes is a pass rusher only, a 1 dimensional player IMO. That's all he did last season. He played passing downs and guys like Branch played run downs. Branch is not athletic enough to set the edge like a DE needs to do in a 4-3. I also think that Lawson is too small to be a run down DE. IIRC, he only weighs 240 lbs.

I have some additional details to share for our HOF weekend trip that some may be interested in. Our package was purchased through a travel agent with Sports, Travel and Tours. The package we have booked is called the “Absolutely Everything Package” which includes accommodations at Comfort Inn Canton. All of the details of this package and the others that they offer can be found on their website http://www.sportstravelandtours.com/. My parents actually purchased the package. They went a few years ago when Ralph & Bruce were inducted and knowing my Dad, I’m sure he did a ridiculous amount of research for that trip and decided on this travel agent at that time. Since he had booked with them before, he was able to reserve these packages a day before they went on sale so I am not sure how much research he did this time around. I do not believe he did very much because they were in the middle of a vacation when he told me he purchased them. Based on this, I can’t say for sure that this was a cheaper way to go this time around but am sure it was back in 2009. I briefly compared this package to those offered on the HOF website and for the most part they appear to include many of the same basic things but they are not exactly the same. So the travel agent is not just selling the same package that the HOF is…but they are very close. I would imagine other travel agents across the country could have different packages as well. I hope this helps. If anyone wants to say hello in August, we’ll be the family wearing Bills HOF jerseys: Mom has a #59 Ralph Wilson Jersey, Dad has a Bruce Smith jersey, I’ll have on one of my Andre Reed jerseys and my wife will be wearing her Jim Kelly jersey…assuming it still fits over her growing belly.

Wide Right by a landslide for me. 0-4 is at least something we can look back on now and realize what an accomplishment that really was. The chances of another team going to 4 SBs in a row is highly unlikely.

No goal was June 19, 1999. Music City Miracle was on January 8, 2000. Both considered the 1999 season.

I will be there as well. I went to the hall about 20 years ago but this will be the 1st enshrinement ceremony for me so I really don’t know what to expect. I know we have an all inclusive weekend package but I didn’t handle the details so am unsure if it was purchased right through the hall website or not. I do know we have a travel agent of some type but have no idea who he works for. Our package was booked the day after the announcement came out that Andre was in. If it helps, I have heard stories of people having to stay over an hour away because all of the local hotels were booked. I have also heard the best day to tour the museum is Friday because it’s really crowded the other days. I’ll be keeping an eye on this thread for what others can add.

Agreed that Freeman played terrible in that MNF game but how can you use that 1 game as the only indicator of him as a player? He was only with the Vikings for 10 days when he started that game. That is nowhere near enough time to digest an NFL playbook and be expected to play well. It was obvious in that game that he didn’t know the playbook beyond maybe the 1st read. The head coach/team put him in a really bad position and he predictably failed. He had some really good seasons in the past but was also inconsistent, which is to be expected from a young QB. It appears to me that last season was more of a result of him not being put in a position to succeed than him not having any talent. Either way, this league is all about 2nd/3rd chances so if a guy has talent and is not a locker room cancer, it’s worth a shot because he absolutely has more physical talent than either Thad or Tuel. If we could sign him to a team friendly deal and let him come in to compete, I don’t see how it could hurt…as long as it is very clear to him that EJ is the starter.

Yep, me too. It was the 1989 season but game was played Jan 6, 1990. Bills lose 34-30. Harmon drops the pass with 9 seconds left and then said Kelly over threw it. That was Harmon's last game for the Bills and he went on to catch many, many passes as a Charger. Welcome to the board Cleveland Rocks?!!! As long as they are respectful and somewhat knowledgeable, I believe that fans of all teams would get a fair shake on this board…even the teams we hate. Once you cross the line though, there's no coming back and you’ll be forever referred to as a troll. Being a Browns fan, we sympathize with you and your city so you’ll probably get more leeway than others might, LOL. As for Pettine, if your defensive players are smart and don’t make mistakes, they’ll be very good IMO. If they do make mistakes or play undisciplined, then you’ll be in for a long season as you’ll likely get gashed in the run game just like we did last season.

I love it!!! Gaining a proven NFL talent for only a 6th rounder is a great move in my book...low risk, high reward. I also like the fact that they didn’t just wait/hope the Bucs cut him to then go after him as a FA. They identified a talent that could help make this team better and went out to get him. Hopefully this trade and all the other off field stuff has humbled Williams and he comes in with a chip on his shoulder.

This is the 1st thing that popped into my head except the reality show would be to hire the head coach and/or GM. Trump owning this team would worry me even if he planned to keep them in Buffalo because I don't believe he would hire football men to run it, he would try and do it himself. We'd probably win FA each year but still be mediocre.

Keep in mind that the 2 jersey’s you provided links to for are different levels of quality and that’s why they are different prices. The white one is an authentic jersey and will be the best quality. The blue one is only a replithentic, which would be a step down. The lowest step is the replica. At least both of your choices will have sewn on #s rather than screen print although the replithentic may have the plastic type #s mrags referred to. You can google the differences between the different jersey levels as well. You may want to look at each level in person before you place an order to make sure you like what you get. Also, I am 99.99% positive you’ll be able to find either one of these in all 3 levels jersey’s come in, it just may take some digging, so I wouldn’t let the price dictate which one you buy. I’ve also seen the blue JK jerseys with the 75th NFL and 35th Bills anniversary patches. Something else to keep in mind when you make this decision…how often do you plan to wear this jersey? This may seem kind of dumb reasoning but the blue one will be easier for you to keep clean. If the white one gets stained, it’s going to be much more visible. It will suck if you or even worse someone else drops a chicken wing or spills something on you and it gets stained. I speak from experience on that. Good luck in your searching!!

I thought I read awhile back that Ty Powell was a speed rush type of player? I am kind of surprised he'd be mentioned as a posibility to take over the MLB spot.

As many have said in many other threads, you don’t build the core of your team through free agency. It hasn’t worked for any of the teams that have tried, at least that I recall. It didn’t work for the Dolphins last year, didn’t work for the Eagles “dream team” from a few years ago, didn’t work for the Redskins despite their many tries over the past 15 years and it didn’t work for the Bills when they signed Mario. IMO, the only time it makes sense to really spend on the top FAs is when you already have that core and just need those few pieces to get over the hump and win a championship. So it makes sense to me with what teams like the Broncos are doing. The *Pats* are trying to make that last push before Mrs. Brady hangs them up so I get why they would try as well. Does anyone really think that even if we had signed Byrd and Levitre to those huge deals and then signed a bunch of high priced free agents that they would be the missing pieces to a championship? I don’t unless one of those top FAs was a QB. Until we have one of those – and hopefully EJ ends up being that guy – I believe solid drafting, resigning the guys THAT WANT TO BE HERE and adding a few role player type of FAs is the better path to take. That way, in theory, when we do have that core, we still have some cap space to go get that missing piece and hopefully we can finally win the big one.