Billsguy

I hope you're right, but fear you are wrong. Russ Brandon wears a teflon suit. Nothing sticks to this guy. He is a slick talker and I'm sure he'll convince Pegula the problems lie elsewhere and have nothing to do with him. I believe strongly that Whaley made one of the worst trades in Bills history.It may not be in the Sam Bowie/Michael Jordan category of bad decisions, but it will definitely set the team back significantly. Hopefully, the Pegulas will want a fresh start with a new management team, but history says he will stick with the status quo.

Spot on! I argued from the moment it happened that forfeiting a future #1 draft pick to trade up for a WR was an historic blunder. I still believe it strongly today. Today, would you trade Sammy Watkins for Odell Beckham Jr. and a 1st round pick? Every GM in the league outside of Orchard Park would do so in a second!!! Whaley blew it big time. I agree he should be fired on this basis alone when you consider the Bills had no established QB to get him the ball. A classic case of putting the cart in front of the horse. Look at what Dallas did over the last few years in the draft. Three number 1 picks on offensive lineman and now that are headed to the playoffs based on a great rushing attack and giving the QB time to throw. The Bills used two number one picks on a WR with no quality QB to pass it to him. And people wonder why the Bills haven't made the playoffs in 15 years.

I agree of much of what you wrote. I would emphasize the fact that he looks like a professional and he gets much more respect than he deserves because of it. He is the ultimate politician who knows how to schmooze the owner(s). I call it the "empty suit syndrome". He looks the part of an executive even though the actual substance is absent. Let's look at Brandon's record as a top executive with the Bills. He has been the top exec since 2006. During these 9 seasons the team has never made the playoffs. Also, the team's win percentage is less than 40%. He has failed by any objective measure, but he manages to escape scrutiny and responsibility for his failure. What next? Based on what I observed from Terry Pegula when he took over the Sabres, Brandon will remain in his position next year at least. He will most likely keep the equally flawed Doug Whaley and Marrone. Pegula kept the Sabres hierarchy together with the Sabres when he took over. Over time he realized that the people in charge were not doing the job well and he eventually made changes. He will most likely follow the same course with the Bills. What I would do if I were the owner? I would immediately hire a consulting team of current or former executives, personnel men(GM's), and even coaches who have a track record of success in the NFL. I would ask them to evaluate the performance of the current management team and ask for their recommendations and possible courses of action. After I received their report, I would ask the consultants to recommend a list of candidates to fill the CEO and GM positions. Given the list of candidates, I would hire the best possible candidates regardless of salary. (shopping for talent in the discount bin has not worked for the Bills!) I would replace the current failures with the best candidates that money can buy. These executives might be working for other teams right now, but I would offer them more money to turn the Bills into a champion. Once I hired the CEO and GM, I would instruct the GM to follow the same process to hire a new head coach. Hire the best possible coach and assistants that money can buy! Spending $18.5 million on a quality coaching staff is a better investment than spending the same amount on a Jay Cutler for one year! Previous Bills GM's have hired coaches who couldn't find jobs anywhere else! The only chance the Bills have for future success is to replace the current failures with top notch people. The current management has the stink of losing all over them. Hopefully the new owner will realize this fact.

I would add, "and is he bringing a quality NFL QB with him?"

Well, the egg was laid in Oakland. You got that part of the script correct. The future would be bright if the Bills had a legit NFL QB, but at this point they don't. Keep the champagne cold for awhile.

Statistically speaking the Bills have about a 5-6% chance of making the playoffs at this point (depending on who you ask).

I believe there are many who share your sentiment that if the Bills finish 9-7 it will be considered a successful season. I am not one who shares your belief. IMO, if you miss the playoffs, you have failed. Twelve teams make the playoffs. In other terms, 37.5% of all teams make the playoffs. If you miss the playoffs, you have not been successful. I guess it all depends on how you define successful. The problem with the Buffalo Bills is that they have been horrible for such a long time that any improvement is seen as success. The bar has been lowered so low over the last 15 years that Bills fans have forgotten was true success looks like. This team has shown progress, but I wouldn't mistake that for success just yet. I've seen every Bills team since 1960 and I remember what success looks like and what failure looks like, this team is somewhere between the extremes. However, it is not good enough at present and has a considerable way to go. Without a franchise QB in sight, the Bills are a long way from a Super Bowl.

Don't feed the trolls.

The Pegulas need to clean house from top to bottom. The stink of losing is all over the current administration. Brandon and Whaley are the prime stinkers!!! The new CEO and club president should be an astute executive who can hire the best possible GM available. The new GM should hire the best possible coaching staff regardless of cost. Only then will this franchise have a chance for future success.

It reminds me of a quote from former Tampa Bay coach John McKay when asked about his teams execution. He said in response, "I'm in favor of it!"

I didn't realize that being a Bills fan and having the ability to reason were mutually exclusive. Thank you for clearing that up. Is it possible to hope the Bills succeed, but realize that the odds are heavily against them? Why is that so difficult for you to understand?

Denver, Green Bay, and New England remaining on the schedule. Seriously, the chance of making the playoffs is not realistic to anyone with common sense.

I really hope the Pegulas have replacements lined up for the entire management team (i.e. Brandon, Whaley, Marrone, etc.) It is time to wash away the decades of failure and remove all traces of the disease.

I'm on record saying that you don't give up two 1st round picks for a WR regardless of the player. This is not a knock on Watkins, but if you don't have a franchise QB like Rodgers,Manning, Brees or Luck, then you don't use a top 5 pick on a WR. The Bills have made many strategic errors over the years and this is on the list.

Absolutely! The Bills need to start with new, top class personnel from team president to GM to coaching staff to trainers. It makes no sense to keep the people who have proven they aren't successful. The Peter Principle is working in Buffalo. People have risen to their level of incompetence.

Well they were going to need a veteran anyway so I guess the Bills will be stuck with Orton for the time being. The next QB to lead the Bills to the playoffs is NOT currently on the roster. There's your problem in an obvious nutshell! The Pegulas may be smart enough to seek the advice of knowledgeable football people to hire the next management team. The current management is sorely lacking in talent and acumen.

Absolutely, EJ needs to start and here is why: 1.) Kyle Orton is not the long term answer at QB. In my view, he is a stop gap QB who had a chance of somehow giving this team a shot at the playoffs. Now that this fantasy is almost entirely gone, he needs to sit down. The Bills should definitely not re-sign Orton past this year! He is certainly not worthy of anything longer than a one year deal. 2.) The Bills need to find out if EJ Manuel can be a winning QB for the long term so he definitely needs to start. The Bills management needs to see with their own eyes that the team blundered when they chose him in the 1st round. Only by playing Manuel will they realize that they must find a new QB with long term potential. Imho, EJ Manuel doesn't have the winning aptitude for being a successful top quality NFL QB. The team must admit their mistake and turn the page rather than wasting two or thee more years trying to develop him into a QB. 3.) If the Bills let EJ Manuel sit the rest of the season with the hope that next year he will develop into something, they will have wasted another year. The time is now to let him play and come to the conclusion that he is not the answer. It's too bad they don't have a number 1 pick next year, but that is another error that will be imprinted on the Bills legacy of failure. The ray of hope is Terry and Kim Pegula. If they realize that the current management and coaches are inept and incompetent, they will hire top quality people to turn the organization into a winning one eventually. If they stick with the empty suit known as Russ Brandon then they will struggle for many more years.

It is the St. John Fisher curse! Don't blame Fredonia State.

I just thought I would take a look at the WR's drafted in the 1st round of 2014 and see how they compare statistically. All stats are compared on a per game basis. Avg Receptions per game, Avg yds per gm, Avg TD's per gm Player A 4.88 73.1 .63 Player B 5.00 74.0 .60 Player C 4.30 65.9 .70 Player D 4.67 68.5 .56 Player E 5.33 55.6 .33 Based on the numbers, can you match the player with the stats? In draft order the top picks were: #4 Sammy Watkins #7 Mike Evans #12 Odell Beckham #20 Brandin Cooks #28 Kelvin Benjamin What do you think? Player B leads in avg yds per game. Player C leads in avg TD's per game. Player E leads in avg receptions per game. Do any of these stats standout enough that you would invest two first round picks to get one? Which one stands out? In my view, they are all relatively close and therefore I could not justify giving up two 1st round picks for any of them. The answers are: A= Mike Evans B= Odell Beckham C= Kelvin Benjamin D= Sammy Watkins E= Brandin Cooks

Statistically, the Bills have a 23.6% chance of making the playoffs according to sportsclubstats. The chance of missing the playoffs is 76.4%. Remain calm and hope for the best.

Instead of stealing his material, I've provided the proper link below: http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/nfl-week-9-elo-ratings-and-playoff-odds/

Last week the Bills were 19th. Don't jump to conclusions. It's not like they piled up numbers against the Broncos. Remember it was the pathetic Jets!

The Bills will be favorites to win against Jets,Browns and Raiders. They will be underdogs against Denver,Green Bay and New England. The games against Miami and Kansas City are toss ups. Just for argument, if the Bills win as favorites and lose as dogs, they will be 8-6. If they win the toss ups, they likely will make the playoffs. Otherwise, it will be troublesome. Right now my guess is 9-7 and a playoff miss. BTW, the Bills really miss Kiko Alonso. The more I see of Nigel Bradham, the less I like. He was brutal against the Jets.

Another case of premature speculation! Too early to tell. Ask again in 2018.