Buftex

The point when it set in that he didn't like the defense the new HC was intent on running, and he wasn't going to be on the team next season.

Could be, but remember, Mario is said to prefer smaller, lower profile cities...he reportedly hated living in Houston. I am thinking Carolina makes a lot of sense, assuming they have the cap space for him. When Mario went off a few weeks ago (after the Redskins game I think..or was it Phily?) he made the first mention I heard from anyone about his salary...I actually believed him at the time, when he seemed to be inferring that he would take less, if he was winning somewhere...he really hates this defense...he was quick to add "I think this team can win, but I won't take a paycut, just to return to the same defense again". Forcing his way out, because he knows Rex isn't going anywhere, and neither is his defensive scheme.

Even without Marios whining, and poor effort, it seemed a foregone conclusion that he would be a cap casualty, or at the very least, the Bills would ask him to restructure his deal, or take a pay cut. I think everyone who pays attention to these things, kind of saw that coming, after this season. Maybe that played a role in his drop off in effort? He didn't like the defense, and knew he wasn't going to get his money from the Bills, next season, so why go all out? A ****ty attitude to be sure, but I am not sure it wouldn't be the same with a lot of other guys...what a shame this whole thing is.

My favorite look is the blue jersey, white pants, current helmet...like they wore last week...but they keep fugging with it. For some reason, the blue on blue looks like people running around in medical scrubs or something...just a bad look...but what do I know? I only liked the blue on blue when they wore the darker blue (during the Tom Donohoe/Bledsoe horror show), because they looked better than the other combos...here we got one of the two or three best looking uniform in the NFL, but we keep messing with them...

Honestly, it seems to me that there has been a lot more bad information leaked to the national media than accurate stuff. I will give this more creedance because Wawrow is reporting it, but most "insider info" leaked via the national media seems to be speculation reported, and then people "run with it" so to speak...it makes sense that they would cut Mario, we all kind of guessed that...but I wonder if anyone really leaked it to a reporter.

We don't really know that...for all intents and purposes, it seems like our HC is also our DC.

Terrible uniform choice to end a terrible season...makes sense. One Buffalo!

So, you'll cut Rex some slack, but not Whaley? Whaley is assembling an entire roster, which, admittedly does have some holes. Rex's claim to fame is being an "elite defensive mind"...he did inherit a dominating defense that, more or less won about 7 of 9 games for the Bills the previous season. An improvement on offense, and that same 9-7 team of Marrones, could have been a 11-5, or 12-4 team. So, Rex comes in, makes a good OC hire, improves the offense, but lets the defense fall to pieces. I think your letting Rex off way too easy.

And how often do guys who sign these monster contracts actually get the numbers that are reported? I would say almost never. Mario Williams has already retired from the Bills, a full year before his contract runs out, because he knows he isn't getting that final year. In perspective of how disappointing this season has been, I think Clay was a good signing, and a good fit. I might argue that the seldom used fullback was a worse signing...but I don't put that on Whaley. You can criticize Whaley for "over-valuing" players, but don't forget, he also wasn't snookered into giving Byrd a monster contract...which looks pretty smart now, despite all the **** he took for it.

I am not big on Rex, but I do think there is something to be said for continuity...and who is to say a new hire would be much better? Honestly, I hated Doug Marrone, but I wouldn't have fired him after last season, and I would have been happy to have him back. With Marrone, he was a new head coach, and I liked some of what he brought to the team. I think there is a chance he could have grown into a better coach. Rex, I am not so sure about. Has he hit his ceiling? He seems to be making the same mistakes that he has been for years. I like the guy personally (see my avatar), but I have never been sold on him as our head coach...but, continuity counts for something.

While I didn't really hear anything I hadn't heard before (other than Jimbo and Frank Reichs table and chair being sent to the Super Bowl as to not mess with their Friday routine), I thought it was really well done. It has been the "cool kids" thing on TBD for some time to rip on these guys, so they should have been happy that yes, they did acknowledge that they may have "partied too much" before Super Bowl 25...but I have to ask, did it really make any difference. If that kick is 2 feet closer to the center of the uprights, Bills win the Super Bowl, and all this bs about them doesn't get discussed. If they had been blown off the field, it might be a more legit argument. Lets' face it, as painful as it is to admit it, Super Bowl 25 came down to coaching as much as anything. Not to say Levy and company did a bad job, just that Parcells/Bellechik really stepped their game up, and beat what was, probably, a superior team, with a great coaching scheme. Pound for pound, the Bills had better players, but the Giants had better coaching that day. And it makes sense. The Bills had gotten to that point, doing what they do...why would they change it for the biggest game of the year? All of the guys seemed reflective, and none of them (except for Kenny Davis maybe ) tried to make excuses. I thought Reich and Lofton had some good insight on that game. I loved the scenes of Thurman and Bruce watching the games together. You could tell, sincerely, that Thurman was still disappointed with himself. I don't think they tried to gloss over things as so many here seemed to assume they would. Well done!

No... his problem with the Sabres was that, perhaps, he didn't meddle enough. He put all his trust/faith in Darcy Regier, who were already in place, and doing a "meh" job for a while already. Not sure if the Lleno idea was his, but ultimately, he signed off on it. At the time, Lleno was coming off a great playoff run, and it was viewed as a "smart, progressive" sort of signing. But, it was a gamble that didn't pay off. Can't even be sure if Lleno would have been a much better player somewhere else. I won't blame Darcy for all the problems the Sabres had in those days, but he, like Pegula, was pretty loyal to "his" guys, even when the outside world could see that they were not going to work out. I don't think Whaley has shown the same tendency.

I used to hate Stephen A., and his style can be a little off-putting I realize, but I think he is about the only thing I like about ESPN, outside their actual games. FWIW- there is a free Center Court preview going on right now... got to see the Warriors and the Celtics the other night...one of the best regular season NBA games I have seen in some time...I was pulling for the Celtics, but there isn't anything to dislike about the Warriors...love the way they play...Celtics gave them everything they had, they could have just let the game go, but the played hard through the whole game, and two overtimes.

I loved that stong!

I like Whaley. I was never a huge Rex fan, but I will admit, I get swept up in the excitement of having a "name" coach for a change. That said, you have to remember the situation at the time Rex was hired. Whaley himself was perceived as being on thin ice...he probably didn't have much of a choice, assuming he wanted to keep his job, other than to go along with what the new owners wanted. As for Freddie, who cares at this point? Sure, I loved the guy, we all did. But he hasn't exactly lit the league on fire in Seattle. Even when they had injuries to their #1 guy, they had ps players and younger guys who were getting more time to play than Fred was. I am not saying he has no value, or that he couldn't have helped the Bills this season, but who would you have cut instead? Nobody can forsee all the injuries that will happen during the coarse of the season. You can't keep everyone. He has 24 carries for 89 yards (no TD's), 24 receptions for 191 yards (2 td). If Whaley handled it poorly (and that is really all mostly speculation), so be it. That is what he is being paid for, to make the tough decisions. Pegula is a nice guy, and probably loyal to a fault. He needs an ax man, to make smart football decisions. As cliché as it is, it is all a part of the game. I am sure, once there is some distance, Fred Jackson will be able to put it in to perspective. He had a nice, long career in Buffalo. Considering where he came from, he could have just as easily had no NFL career.

Yeah, but ESPN is the main culprit in trying to stir things up. Look what they did with Rex Ryans' return to New York. It was the biggest story in all of sports for a few days, and Rex, basically, said nothing...but then they analyze what he meant when he said nothing, and start attributing things to the guys that they never said, or indicated. I am sure Edwards doesn't like players talking, who does? McCoy popped off about this stuff over the summer, kept insisting he didn't have anything to say, but they keep asking, and asking him anyways... ESPN has become all about everything but the game...it isn't a new thing either, it has been that way for a few years now...if Herm was so distraught over it, and is so angered by it, why is he still working there. It is the price of 24/7 over analysis of a sport, a recreation, that obviously, does not require that much analysis. If Herm can't stand it, then stop...so many viewers have!

It sounded, to me, that this was his scripted reaction, and not a reaction to anything that McCoy actually said.

ESPN's sole purpose in the sports world, at this point, is to make sure that controversy is always swirling. About 80% of their programming revolves around "this vs that" kind of "discussion". I get the essence of what Herm Edwards is saying, and I can't say that I completely disagree with him in essence...his "take" is that of an NFL coach. However, he is not an NFL coach anymore, and is taking money to be part of the exact machinery he professes to hate so much. For that, I have zero respect for him. What an ass. Also, at this point, it is hard for me to get too riled up over something stupid an athlete may say. I think it is obvious, most of these guys are adults, only chronologically... they are paid for their physical skills, not their verbal skills. and nuanced thinking.

When your right your right!

I completely agree. Sad thing is, the first 6 episodes, I thought, were pretty close to perfect..but the minute Woody and Mccounaughey met in real time, the show quickly spiraled out of control...it was terrible. While I won't see it was horrible, I wouldn't necessarily recommend season two if you are undecided. There are some good things about it, but it was mostly just murky, rambling and kind of hard to follow/care after awhile. I will say, Collin Farrell was really good..but the writing was just not up to snuff...IMO

I give them an A for the Bills, and a B for the Sabres....I could be talked into straight A's. Only reason I give them a B for the Sabres is that Terry probably held on to Darcy too long, and we will never know what happened with the whole Pat Lafontaine thing. I have always been a little reserved about Rex, but despite their fumbling around right now, I still think he was about as good a hire as they could have made at the time. Even if they don't get everything right, nobody will ever be able to say that the Pegulas aren't going all out, with either franchise.

I am thinking that Deandre Hopkins might be the best receiver in the NFL right now. I think Sammy is similar, but he just hasn't had QB's willing to throw to him at all times, as Hopkins has had in Houston.