Rocky Landing

Has Tuel passed Lewis on the depth chart? As far as I know, Lewis is still #2. Be that as it may, as much as I don't like the idea of Christian Ponder saving our season, I have to agree with you. That being said, I still don't think we should pursue Ponder. It does smack of desperation, and I don't think that's useful at this point in the preseason. If he becomes available, great. If not, it's not worth the distraction.

What does Hogan Have to do to et some love on this board? Has he not exceeded expectations in TC? Has he not improved from last season? Really, this whole thread smacks of desperation. If the FO jumped on this right now, we'd be lucky to get Ponder into the last preseason game. And, how much would that be worth? If we pick up Ponder, it should be in free agency. We should not be trading anything of value for a back-up QB at this time. At this point in the preseason, it would be more of a distraction than a solution.

He would never be approved to buy an NFL team.

This has been an occasional misunderstanding on these boards for a while. According to the Non-Relocation Agreement (and I have read it), the team cannot be sold to a group with plans to move the team within the timeframe of the NRA. That does not preclude the sale to a group that plans to move the team after the NRA has expired.

You remind me of an utterly neurotic girlfriend I used to have. I was drinking my coffee one morning, and she started yelling at me for "criticizing [her] with [my] body language." Once she got mad at me because, apparently, the way I had trimmed my beard meant that I would develop a short temper. But, she never told me that I was selfish because I put on a coat in the winter, or that I lacked leadership skills because I didn't like the glare of bright lights. That would be crazy.

This really is premature. The truth is that we have four very talented running backs, each with unique skill sets. FJ is far (well, maybe not too far) from done. It almost doesn't matter who the starter is-- all four should be on the field a lot. When FJ's production starts dropping, adjust the amount of time he is on the field. But, right now, four starting caliber RBs (or at least three, and one solid back-up caliber) is a really enviable position that won't last long. Our ground game, properly utilized, should be the best in the league. Moving FJ down the depth chart now would not be proper utilization.

I think most teams evaluate a payer like RI in terms of risk vs. reward, and every team has a different formula for that-- especially regarding the sort of baggage RI carries with him. Mike Williams was let go from the Bucs for his baggage. But, we must have a huge storage space adjoining the locker room just for such baggage. Signing RI would bring a certain amount of media scrutiny that many teams would not welcome. I'm not sure that that sort of media frenzy would follow him to Buffalo-- and if it did, he would just be one more Bill with a questionable history, getting a second chance. That being said, I'm not sure we need him.

Also, it's hard to know how our front line is going to be. So far, it seems to me that Marrone/Hackett were experimenting a bit with our front line package-- minus Glenn, which makes a difference. (I think? Am I right in this?) But, the time to sign anybody to the front line isn't after we find out we have problems. This is the time to be fixing our issues, not realizing that we have them. I'm not particularly worried about our front line.

We're the Bills. We love baggage. Edit: Back in Rochester, btw. On my way to Country Sweet.

We don't play the Bears at home, we play them in Chicago. They're working under a very polished offense with a veteran QB who, love him, or hate him, has a proven arm. But, he does rattle, and even with the loss of Kiko, and Bradham, I think we can do just that. Like I mentioned earlier, this is a great game to have Schwartz as our DC. We're kidding ourselves if we think this won't be a hard win, but I do think this is a winnable game. Their run defense was abysmal last season. The more I think about it, the more I think this may be a good first matchup. An opening day win would be huge for the team, especially on the road.

Well, now that this thread has been moved, I have to express my frustration that all issues related to conservation are "liberal-only" issues. It's foolish. I will admit that I know little about fracking issues as they relate to NYS (and I assume that the relevance varies between states), but I can say that fracking in California, where I live, is quickly becoming an unmitigated disaster. And, when I say "unmitigated," I mean that literally. The oil industry recently spent $1.5 million in less than three months in lobbying efforts to squash a moratorium bill (which had close to 70% public approval). It is clearly exacerbating the drought, and damaging agriculture. Many almond trees, for example, will be lost this year. It pumps millions of gallons of chemically tainted water (chemicals that the oil companies will not disclose under the guise of proprietary secrecy) into the ground, threatening the water supply. There is also mounting evidence that it is contributing to increased seismic activity. And when anything like this is brought up, it is received by a chorus from the right of "environmental extremists!" "liberal bias!" or "leftist hacks!" Why? When did conservation (a word that shares the same root as conservative) become anathema to the conservative movement? Is the conservative movement that married to corporate entitlement that all environmental concerns must be dismissed off hand?

A win in Chicago would be huge. Clearly, we are underdogs in that game, but it will be a great game to have Schwarz as our DC. Also, I think (or maybe just hope) that facing the Patriots, and the Jets later in the season (week 6 & 8, respectively) will work to our advantage. Be that as it may, I think the Jets and Patriots will be battling for the division. And, while I believe we will be much improved, I see scant chance for a playoff berth, or even second place in our division.

Which word did you have trouble with?

Wow, Mark80. This is an outstanding post-- germane, compelling, and adroit. And, it answers OC's unhinged rant perfectly, although, by his standards, George Washington was likely a bleeding-heart lib. I doubt he will bother to answer it-- or understand it, for that matter. Again, well done. I would like to suggest that if it is germane to the discussion regarding the next owner of the Bills, then it is a valid thread.

About fifteen years ago, a good friend of mine (Mike) bought a really beautiful, 1950's Nash Rambler. It leaked oil like a sieve. The first thing he did was to give it a gorgeous, and expensive paint job- a move that I criticized as foolish and backwards. On the second day that he had it back from the body shop, we stopped at a friend's house. Mike wanted to check the oil. He opened the hood, and pulled out the dipstick. "Down two quarts, already," he complained. As he lowered the dipstick in despair, the end of it touched the positive battery terminal which caused a bright, and loud spark. The spark was significant enough that it caused us both to take a couple steps back. Which was fortunate, because about nine seconds later, the engine blew sky high, the car ignited, and it burned to a smelly, black pile of slag right there in the driveway. If EJ craps out, that is what it is going to feel like.

To be entirely honest, I've had similar thoughts, myself. I don't watch a lot of college ball, and I never saw him play in a game. I've watched his highlights. And, yes, he's explosive, great hands, amazing acceleration, etc. But, what I also saw in the highlight reel was plenty of coverage that would be laughable by NFL standards. Clearly, he's a talented, and gifted athlete. Clearly, he has a great future in the NFL. But, there is going to be an adjustment in facing down NFL defenses week after week. If EJ's play is only mediocre, I doubt he's going to have a 1,000 yard season his rookie year.

I saw bad games on EJ's part. But, I don't believe I saw fear, just inexperience, and inconsistency. Not the Trent Edwards, "holy crap, I've got 2.2 seconds to get rid of this ball before I get smashed" syndrome. (Which, IMO, was entirely understandable, considering our poor O-line, and worse coaching at the time.) But, that's not really what this thread is about. If EJ doesn't finish the season, it won't likely be a result of poor play. It would be foolish and weird to assume that EJ will be worse this season, than last. If his play is the same this season as it was last season, I don't see him getting benched. He would have to be much worse (IMO) to get benched for the likes of Lewis, or Tuel. If he doesn't finish the season, it will be because of injury, at which point we will limp to the end of the season with Lewis, or Tuel- neither of whom are likely to be anything resembling a long term solution. BUT: If EJ has not progressed by season's end, or is (once again) sidelined by injury... what then?

It's a shame how the media utterly destroyed what could have been a perfectly mediocre career.

I think Lewis may very well be underestimated. It's easy to forget that before he became our starter last season, he hadn't even become a Bill until late August, and was pulled off the practice squad in early October. And, when he hit the field, he knew the playbook better than anyone could have hoped. When he won his first game as a starter, he had been off the practice squad less than three weeks. I'm sorry, but that's pretty impressive. That's not just "great heart." That's brains, and ability, as well. It is certainly possible that he has almost reached his ceiling. But, I don't see any reason to just assume that. Quarterbacks can exist in the league for years before getting their opportunity. Lewis got his opportunity in his fourth season- his first in Buffalo- and it was rife with what has to be considered some pretty extreme challenges. And, he stepped up admirably in my opinion. Why should we assume that's as good as he gets? Be that as it may, I have stated on these boards several times that I can't believe anybody would be happy to keep our QB roster the same as last season.

This is just trolling.

Yep.

It sounds like they are playing Lewis like he is the presumptive #2. Accurate? Or does Tuel have a shot at the #2 spot? Also, it sounds like Hogan is solid, no?

Has Elliot been seeing a lot of play? How does he look?

I assume it's designed to benefit the owners. But, how does it hurt the fans?

Rex has been very slow to bench his starting QBs in the past. If Vick takes over as starter, it will likely be late in the season, and Geno will really have to crap the bed. Especially if they are a run-heavy team this year, which seems likely.