Kirby Jackson

I sit in 237 row 10 and wouldn’t trade it. Last year the weather was HORRENDOUS pretty much all season. You probably want to be above row 7 or 8. That will keep you undercover. I believe that the heaters are turned on at 45 degrees which is nice. They work pretty well unless the weather is like zero. The clubs fill up pretty quickly inside as people sit around tables watching other games. I’ve found though that people are happy to share a table (although I spent 1/2 of the year on crutches in a boot). The food is better, there is Rachel’s and La Nova. The bar is open the entire game as well. It’s a nice way to watch a game.

The Bills inability to find competent QB play isn’t connected to Kelly. In 2004, the Bills tried DESPERATELY to trade up for a QB. They thought that they had a deal with Jacksonville but the Jags backed out. The Bills would have drafted Ben Roethlisberger.

It’s June on TBD. That’s why it’s out there.

I’m not so much worried about the passing yards (although that’s a fair point). At the same time, a lot of the yards that he got were after the catch. Andre Reed is one of the best after the catch that I’ve ever seen. He wouldn’t have had that in SD or Miami. I’m not trashing him in any sense. I just think that we look at him, and history looks at him, as a more dominant player than he was. He was excellent. He belongs in the HOF. Kelly just isn’t in that special room in the HOF. FWIW, I think Allen has a chance to be in that room.

The flip side is that those elite weapons elevated him some. They did a ton after the catch. He was great and belongs in the HOF. If you include the guys not yet in though, I’m not sure if he is top 25 all-time.

Hot take: Kelly was a very good QB, not an elite QB. He belongs in the HOF because of his winning. He is in the Fouts/Moon/Aikman/Griese/Warner tier of HOF QBs not the Brady/Montana/Peyton/Elway/Marino tier.

I’ll be out there. Text me and we can catch up for a drink.

I’m not even sure if they are bad. I think that they have a lot of guys that are similar. They are going to have to “rank” them over the next few months. That’s a little scary to me. As an example, Ford would have been “ranked” ahead of Bates last year at this time. Bates isn’t Larry Allen but he’s not bad. He’s way better than Ford IMO. The Bills are going to identify (and be right) about which 3 or 4 of those OL are best.

I guess maybe the Dodson blue too. My point is that I actually think he is the “safer” of the 2. I think that they both make the team. My point was that they COULD look at some of those guys as similar and take the $2.5M in cap savings. I don’t think that it is likely but not impossible.

Good stuff Gunner!! It looks pretty close to accurate. There are only a couple of places that I differ: - I’d move Howard to blue. He likely makes the team but has had injury issues & been a disappointment. I loved that guy coming out but wouldn’t be shocked if he was cut. He would have to be a nightmare because almost all of his money is guaranteed. I’m just saying if he is totally outplayed by someone like Wydermyer (for example) I could see them eating the $3M. Unlikely but not impossible IMO - I’d move all 3 OL in blue to red. I’m just not sure that the Bills have a sense how the depth will shake out at this point. - I’d flip flop Dodson and Matakevich. Dodson played well last year & Matakevich COULD be used to free up some cash if they get a camp injury. - Ariaza to blue (or even black). He isn’t battling with Haack. He is here to replace him. If he’s an absolute nightmare as a holder I think that it’s possible they buck the trend & have someone other than the punter hold (Kumerow maybe). Haack was terrible & Beane commented as much last year. He drafted one of the most talented punters ever. I don’t think hangtime is his major concern. He wanted Araiza to dig them out when the offense sputters in their own end. My $.02 and a great job overall.

That guy sucks.

I’ve just tried to provide clarity as to what actually happened vs. people’s perception. That era I know well. People can feel free to judge whoever they want. My goal is to just make sure that they attribute the pros and cons to the right people.

Again, you can feel free to disagree but it’s the truth. He spent his days signing books for club seat holders (which some of you received). He LITERALLY slept through the biggest scouting meeting of the year. Marv was nothing more than a figurehead.

I can hopefully shed a little light on the last 20 years in terms of what was really happening vs. perception of what was happening. Donahoe had complete control. That complete control though came with oversight from Grosse Pointe (which basically means Jeff Littmann who was the real boss). After Donahoe left Ralph (and Littmann) were reluctant to give that much control to anyone. They replaced him with John Guy on the pro side (disaster) and Modrak on the college side. At the point Russ Brandon was running the business side. They operated as 3 silos under an aging Ralph (and Littmann). Marv Levy was technically the GM but was only there because Ralph wanted someone that he could trust on the football side. Marv had about as much GM responsibility as a TBD poster though. He didn’t scout. He didn’t sign players. He was a figurehead and ONLY a figurehead. As Ralph’s health got worse he appointed Russ Brandon as the de facto owner. I don’t know how else to describe the role. It was the first time that someone didn’t need to get approval from Littmann or Ralph to make decisions. To be clear RUSS BRANDON WAS NOT INVOLVED IN MAKING PERSONNEL DECISIONS. He was acting in the same role that Terry Pegula is now. He was overseeing the business side and signing off on what Nix, and later Whaley wanted. Nix and Whaley made the football decisions and worked alongside Jim Overdorf to bang out the contract details. This held true until McDermott and Beane arrived. Basically, Ralph (and Littmann) had control until maybe the last 3 or 4 years of Ralph’s life. At that point Russ Brandon filled that role through the sale to the Pegula’s. The people playing the Beane role along the way were: Donahoe, Guy, Modrak, Nix, and Whaley. Obviously, you know all of the coaches. With all of that said, Whaley was Colbert’s right hand man in Pittsburgh before coming to Buffalo. They thought of him as a rising star as an evaluator. I’m not saying that they were right, just the perception of him in Pittsburgh. It’s no surprise that he is being considered, especially considering that Colbert and Tomlin are involved in the decision making. He’s the favorite.

Remember the Bills went Thursday - Monday last year after Thanksgiving. Personally, I don’t think that’s a factor. It could be Dallas or Las Vegas I suppose (maybe even SF). The Bills are pretty compelling though.

Dallas was last year and just aren’t that interesting. I could see the 49ers or Raiders I guess. The Bills are a massive draw, with star power. They are the Super Bowl favorites with an explosive offense. Von Miller returning home shouldn’t go unnoticed either. Objectively, that’s the most appealing matchup.

With the Broncos playing at the Rams on Christmas it leads me to believe that the Bills - Rams will be the opener. They just don’t have many (or any) viable alternatives. Wilson with a new team was interesting (at least to a degree).

He is a partner at AJ Capital. They have a large portfolio of hotels throughout the country. The Graduate in Nashville as well as The Thompson in Nashville come to mind. The portfolio is north of $1B.

Lol, I wasn’t going to call you out by name 😂😂.

Hmm, I think that I’ve been saying this was a possibility for years? I took a lot of heat from some of you for saying that. Just wanted to come back for my apology 😂😂😂

I posted this in another thread but I heard two yesterday from a pretty reliable source: - Seaon opener in LA - Thanksgiving night at home vs. GB Obviously, there has been a lot of talk about LA but hadn’t heard about GB on Thanksgiving. I think that the assumption has been the Lions. We will see I guess…

There has been a lot of talk about Thanksgiving in Detroit. Don’t be surprised if the Bills actually play home Thanksgiving Night vs. GB 👀. Rumblings of that are in the universe…

Not in person but caught a couple of his games last year. It’s crazy to watch. We’ve heard of “outkicking the coverage.” He “outkicks the returners” at times. https://youtu.be/OafZBFXyg-M Lol, I pop in from time to time. This place was just so toxic for a while that I chose to stay away.

It has stopped as practice times have been cut back with the CBA. All 3 phases practice simultaneously now. The specialists are working together while the others are practicing. I don’t know how to make it work but I’m sure that you could. It just isn’t something that anyone else is doing.