Rocky Landing

I agree with all of this. I will say that the general consensus is that in both the preseason opener and the scrimmage, he had a slow start, but kept his head and finished strong. That may be indicative of the inconsistency criticisms that pundits had, pre-draft, but it also shows poise, and tenacity. One of the disagreements on these boards seems to be whether putting EJ in a starting position immediately would be helpful, or harmful to his development. My personal opinion is that if Marrone doesn't feel that EJ is NFL ready, then he will use Kolb as a stopgap until he is. Historically, I believe there are examples of QB careers that have been damaged by being started too soon. If one accepts that premise, I think the downside of starting him too soon, would outweigh the downside of starting him later in the season. Either way, I think the person most qualified to make that decision is Doug Marrone. Generally, when the decision of who to start at QB is not made until late in the preseason, the situation is described as either a, "quarterback competition," or a "quarterback controversy." I think what they've got going on in New Jersey is something like a controversy. I think what we have going on is a competition. If Kolb wins the starting job, everyone (including him) will know that it will be a temporary role that EJ will eventually hold. If EJ wins, Kolb will be a veteran backup who will be valuable on the sidelines, and the practice field, will help EJ develop, and step in if necessary. And, I don't think there will be any animosity between the two either way. They seem to both have really good attitudes. It's really a pretty good situation.

I'm trying to imagine the conversations involved in trying to convince Doug Marrone to throw his first season as an NFL head coach. Come to think of it, such a scheme would probably violate federal anti-trust laws. That being said, if the front office were really interested in throwing the season (without the fear of committing a felony), they could just fire Marrone and bring back Dick Jauron. VOILA! Season tanked!

I think you may have missed the point I was making. Your statement, "He has done nothing to show he is any different of a player since he got into the league," exemplifies exactly what I am talking about. I don't believe for a minute that Marrone is starting Kolb because he has to. I believe he is starting Kolb because Kolb is a veteran player who might give us the best chance of winning week one vs. the Patriots. And, IMO, fans who believe that they know better than Marrone- who thinks that Kolb is a talented QB (that is why he signed him)- aren't placing much faith in Marrone's judgement. As far as "poking" fans and "hiding it in a post," that's just weird. I haven't hidden anything. I'm not speaking in code.

Reading the posts on here that suggest that Kolb shouldn't start on Friday, or even be cut (!?) strike me as a bit loony. The idea that Marrone should end the QB competition, and essentially abandon his preseason strategy based on EJ's decent showing in the first half of the first preseason game, and without even giving Kolb a chance in the preseason, is crazy. Marrone didn't sign Kolb on a whim. I'll admit, the knee injury is pretty weird, and his absence during the week of the scrimmage was unfortunate. But, people on this forum who dismiss Kolb as some sort of weakling hack can't hold a very high level of faith in our new head coach. Personally, I hope EJ gets (and deserves) the starting job come September. But, Marrone has been very clear about how he will fill that role, and unless Kolb's knee injury is much worse than is being reported, I don't see any reason to change that very sensible strategy.

If Kolb ends up starting, it will be as a stop gap until Manuel is ready. I'm optimistic, as well, about Manuel. But, I don't think he has exactly proven himself to the extent that many think he has.

This seemed like a curious acquisition of a fairly unremarkable player (on paper, at least). But, Pettine obviously knows this guy well, so I will trust his judgement. I'd be surprised if we haven't been talking to him.

Someone is going to write a list of the top 10 reasons we WON'T win the division. It won't be me, but someone will.

We should've gotten Tim Tebow when we had the chance.

You're betting on the Bills to win, or cover the spread?

Great topic. These stats are a little incomplete with knowing how much time was spent in the pocket. The point has been made that Fitz spent less time in the pocket than average, which (if true), would skew the results towards a lower hit/att ratio.

No need to get insulting. I'm aware of why Kolb missed the scrimmage, and I certainly don't fault him for it. nor do I think the coaching staff would. I just think that the door has been opened a bit for EJ to step up and he seems to be taking advantage of it.

I've been a firm believer that Kolb would, and should start the regular season. But, given his embarrassing knee injury, his general poor performance in camp, and missing the scrimmage, I'b be surprised if EJ didn't start in the preseason. Especially, considering EJ's progression during the scrimmage. I wasn't there, and only know what I read (including on here- thanks, Mrags!), but it seemed like EJ started very poorly, but then calmed down, and kept his head. I think the coaches would be very interested to see if he can overcome the general criticisms that analysts had of him, pre-draft. It seemed like he exhibited some of them early in the scrimmage, but (perhaps) worked through them.

As either a stopgap until EJ is ready, or as a veteran back-up, Kolb is a great acquisition for the Bills. But, there is absolutely no guarantee that EJ will cut it as a franchise QB. More than one pundit, pre-draft, questioned EJ's potential as a starter. One article I read posited that he was either a "late bloomer," or "not NFL caliber." This was the opinion of several analysts. I trust that Marrone, et al, saw the former when they tried him out. But, "late bloomer" may very well translate to "slow learner." We shall see.

I'm sorry, but Gailey wasn't worse than Jauron. No one was worse than Jauron.

Kind of scares me. Even if his muscle strength is back to 100%, the actual ACL needs to rebuild. I've had two replaced myself. It's a weird procedure. They thread a cadaver's ligament into where the old one was, then new ligament grows around it. It takes time. I hope they're not rushing him.

I hear what you're saying. I'm just looking forward to the day that the time for optimism extends into the middle, or even late into the season. That being said, I think we have great potential, both in our new coaching staff and our new QB. But, a rookie coach and a rookie QB also seems like a terrible combination, so I don't expect them all to gel right away. That's why I see Kolb as a stopgap until Marrone gets his legs, so to speak.

I'm sorry, I'm just going to say it: you're kind of an idiot.

It was right around this time last year that Dave Wannstedt was a defensive genius.

That made me sad.

I was thinking that the Hernandez situation should change the odds for the opener. According to all the casinos I know about that have early odds for the opener, our odds have improved 0.5 points. We went from 7.5 point to 7 point underdogs. I'll bet the odds tighten up further as the season approaches.

I live in Los Angeles (born and raised in Rochester), and work in the motion picture industry. I worked on a commercial for a body wash product that featured Tony Gonzalez from the Falcons. Holy smokes, that guy is a beast!

That's a ridiculously simplistic assessment of Kolb's career. His pattern has been that he plays well early in the season when he's healthy, and then succumbs to injury. And, considering the dismal O-line he was playing behind in Arizona, it's difficult to say if it's a chronic pattern. But, even if it is, the consensus on these boards that Kolb has no value as a starter strikes me as short-sighted. If Kolb had truly "proven that he is nothing more than a back up in this league," then Marrone is a fool for acquiring him. I get that everyone is optimistic about EJ- I am too. But, I'm not willing to ignore everything that was written about him before the draft. Most notably, I am bothered by assessments made at the end of his college career that raised questions about his mechanics, footwork, and inconsistency. Add to this the fact that we have a new coaching staff with a new system, and a very young team overall. In my opinion, we are better off with a veteran under center for the first few games at least. What's so baffling about that?

"Put faith in the coaching staff you just hired, and go with EJ Manuel?" You're making the assumption that Marrone has already decided to go with Manuel? I'm not convinced of that for a moment. The new coaching staff we just hired are also the same people that acquired Kolb. Vince didn't start right away, either. He didn't start until week four of his rookie year. Very good points here.

I just heard a story on the radio during my hour-long morning commute that the talks between the NFL and Anschutz Entertainment Group have stalled out and are at an impasse. I live in the crap-hole that is Los Angeles (born and raised in Rochester). It would feel very weird to have the Rams return to L.A., but someone confirm or correct me if I'm wrong: is it not league rules now that when teams change locations, they are no longer allowed to keep their names?

I was kind of hoping (and I think Doug Marrone would agree with me) to do a little better than 3-13. Even so, you're comparing apples to oranges. Manning, Brees, Luck, and RGIII all started in established systems. We've got a new coaching staff and a new system. Also, all four of those QBs were stellar prospects when they were drafted. This years QB class was widely reported as exceptionally weak, and Manuel wasn't even considered to be in the top three. Now, after a handful of practices without pads, people on here think he's the next Big Ben, and that "it's EJ's job to lose" without having proved ANYTHING in a real game. I don't buy it. Kolb beat the Pats in week two, last season, with one of the worst O-lines in the league. That included a rushing touchdown. I don't know about you, but I would like to win the opener against the Pats. I'm hoping that Marrone will have a game plan- I'm sure he will. But, coming up with one, and using it, will be a lot easier with a known commodity behind center instead of an unproven, project rookie.