Brandon

I would say that all of this trade talk was crazy, but some of the comments from the Bills have left me wondering. I also don't think that they wasted Ralph's money bringing Jamaal Brown in for a visit for nothing. The Bills are usually somewhat predictable in R1, especially if you can read the tea leaves without any personal biases towards or against certain players, but this year, without a R1 pick, that doesn't seem to be the case. At this point, I would not be totally shocked if Tipster's idea proves closer to fact than fiction. The scenario itself is somewhat believable. If Ronde Barber has had a falling out with the Bucs, they might just be willing to let him go in exchange for Henry. Interestingly enough, the Bucs-Bills trade possibility for Henry has been rumored to be player-for-player. The Clements trade has been rumored for a week or two and though I'm against it, I would be a lot more forgiving of such a trade if Donahoe could secure a starting CB BEFORE making that trade. #9 for Brown is a bit steep, but if these trades were to occur, Donahoe could trade back to around 20 and draft Brown or Khalif Barnes, while also securing an additional 2nd or 3rd round pick. Needless to say, this would be an ideal situation for the Buffalo Bills. Unfortunately, I doubt it will happen. The whole thing hinges upon trading Henry for a decent starting CB, and if that doesn't happen, the trade of Clements can't happen, either, and the whole scenario falls apart.

He's only 27 years old and the franchise tag at the TE position is about $2.2M. So he's not old and shouldn't be particularly expensive. I'm guessing that he's simply not viewed as worthy of making top dollar at the position and the transition tag effectively ended any outside interest in him.

I've seen about three quarters of the games Matt Jones played in college. He is indeed a 'real playmaker' and is the best athlete I've ever seen for a guy his size. People mistakenly think he's just a workout warrior, but he's also been an excellent player on the field as well. Through the course of his four years at Arkansas, he made an awful lot of good SEC defenders look stupid. He's not going to be an NFL QB, and yes, it will take some time for him to fully transition to WR, but he's going to be an excellent player. If the Bills find a way to draft him, you won't be complaining long. As for the TE position and selecting Alex Smith, I still feel its a more realistic scenario than a move up into the late 1st round to select a WR. However, even if the Bills were to move up that high, I feel that they are more likely to select either Heath Miller (if available) or possibly Washington OT Khalif Barnes. I agree completely that there needs to be time for Losman to develop with the new WR, but with the team in its present state, I think they're better off trying to find a value pick at the WR position in the middle of the draft and hopefully hit a homerun that way. For that matter, the Bills could probably draft Vincent Jackson in R3, who may not be quite the athlete Jones is, but is still a pretty good prospect in his own right.

If they trade up, and assuming they are not targeting an OL, I think its more likely they'd try to position themselves for TE Alex Smith of Stanford than a WR (though I do fully expect them to pick a WR in the first four rounds). The TE position hasn't been mentioned much among the fans, but the Bills could certainly stand to add a quality recieving threat at the position, not to mention the need for depth with the serious injuries to their top two TEs a year ago. Interestingly enough, if they could acquire the 44th overall pick, they would indeed stand a fairly decent chance of having Smith fall to them at that spot.

I think you're right. I doubt Donahoe has much interest in trading Travis Henry for much less than he has invested in him, which is a late 2nd round pick. Accepting significantly less than a break-even trade would be almost an admission of defeat, and Donahoe doesn't strike me as the type who admits defeat often.

He might not be my ideal pick for the Bills, but I think Jason Brown would indeed be a solid selection for the Bills at 55. While he's projected a bit lower than that by most of the so-called experts, he'd probably be an excellent fit for a Bills offense that seems intent upon featuring the running game and Willis McGahee next season. Such a move would also put the Bills in a much better position to move Teague to LT. Teague's LT experience in Denver was not a positive one, but he's probably our best option at this point.

Unbelievable. I hope the teacher and school district are both sued for every last dime they have, and then some.

I have a pretty good idea how NFL trades work and I know that the Bills would have a tough time getting more than the 9th overall pick for Nate Clements. That still does not make the trade acceptable to me, as the Bills will be trading an excellent player in the prime of his career for a complete unknown in a draft with a questionable top 10. I'm sorry, but just because everyone else jumps off a bridge doesn't mean I'm going to.

I agree with you completely. I don't think it makes a bit of sense to trade one of the best CBs in the league for just the 9th pick in a weak draft. They'd have to offer me quite a bit more than that pick for Clements before I would make that trade.

Considering that Clements is better than any CB prospect in this draft, and possibly better than any player in this draft, I would want more than the #9 overall pick. I also want to say this: if this trade happens (and I doubt it will), I never want to see this team select a 1st round CB again. Ever. I'm sick of seeing this team waste 1st round picks on CBs that they have no intention of keeping past their initial contract.

I've been playing Silent Hunter 3 for the last week and a half almost non-stop. If you like WW2 submarine simulations, its a must-have.

To answer your question, no, I do not think he is good enough and I feel the Bills overpaid for him. Oh well, there's nothing that can be done about it now.

Peters was basically a 3rd OT at Arkansas, anyway, so I don't think this is a major stretch. He's clearly got the strength and athleticism for it and he's got a fair amount of experience as a blocker. In addition, the Bills have a good OL coach and have had a year to evaluate his ability at the position and if they think he can do it, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

They'd probably have to draft a C to compete with Tucker. There's really not much doubt in my mind at this point that the Bills are going to have at least one rookie starting up front.

I'd certainly feel a whole lot better about that left side if DeMulling signs. He doesn't solve all the Bills problems over there by any stretch, but at least they'd have one quality veteran over there. On the downside, its looking more and more like LT is either going to be Trey Teague or a rookie and I'm not sure which one I'd dread seeing at that position more. I know a rookie will struggle over there, but on the other hand, I remember Teague's LT days from Denver. Not good at all.

He's about the same caliber of player as Villarrial. He's not a great player, but he won't embarass himself or his team, either.

Guard, tackle, center...I really don't care as long as the Bills find someone for those three spots on the left side of the OL that can actually play.

I'm not as convinced that it was a good deal for the Bills. $23M over 5 years is a lot of money, especially for the third best starter on the Bills defensive line (well, now he's the 2nd best). Schobel is a little better than average, but he does not command double teams and is not someone I think opposing teams really worry much about.

2) G David Baas, Michigan This pick is projected to be acquired by trading our 3rd round pick in 2006 and Travis Henry to Arizona in exchange for their R2 pick this year. 2) C Chris Spencer, Ole Miss 3) WR Terrence Murphy, Texas A&M 4) CB Alphonso Hodge, Miami (OH) 5) RB Brandon Jacobs, Southern Illinois 6) K Tyler Jones, Boise State or K Jonathan Nichols, Ole Miss 7) Defensive Depth Obviously, the first two picks are made with the intent of helping correct this friggin' mess known as the Bills OL. Both are excellent prospects who should be come, at the least, above average NFL starters and I think there's a good chance both will be on the board. Trey Teague would have to move to LT, where I don't think he'll be particularly effective, but IMO, he's the best of a sorry bunch of available options. Baas and Spencer compete at LG and C, respectively, with Tucker, Gandy and Smith for the interior starting spots. Hopefully, these two picks will improve the interior of the OL enough that the Bills can hide their weakness at LT. LT will probably be a priority in the '06 offseason. I don't think they'll find one this offseason. This isn't an ideal solution, for sure, but given that the Bills OL situation is currently pretty bleak, its about as good as can be expected. Murphy and Hodge could potentially see close to 50% of the snaps this year if they can win the #3 roles at their respective positions. Jacobs gives the Bills a strong backup to Willis McGahee who can help wear defenses down. Either of the two kickers represent good value in R6, and I believe both will have very good NFL careers. In R7, who knows who the Bills will pick, but hopefully they can find a little defensive depth. Admittedly, this draft would be very light on defense, but given our needs on offense and our strength defensively, I don't see the Bills actual draft being much different, barring additional FA signings.

That's an excellent signing. Holcomb is the guy I wanted them to sign to backup Losman. He's good enough to be a short term starter, yet he doesn't have the ego that a longtime starter might and shouldn't be a lockerroom problem.

I'll choose to believe the older numbers until another source confirms that the Bills are in this type of cap trouble. This is far worse than what anyone else is projecting for the Bills cap situation.

And the Giants OL was absolutely awful his last year there. He's a good OL coach, but he can't perform miracles. He needs some talent to work with.

There's always something to be said for taking a risk and going for the home run. He's not a safe pick, but he is indeed one of those players with a rare level of talent that could be a truly great player a couple of seasons down the road. Every once in a while, you have to roll the dice and this deep in the draft, the Bills likely won't find a more talented prospect on the board. So, I would have no problems whatsoever with making him our pick in R2.

TE Bubba Franks, Green Bay. He would seem to fit well in the run oriented offense the Bills seem intent on installing. Given that the franchise tag rate is about $2.7M for TEs, signing him shouldn't break the bank.

It would be a pretty easy choice for me. Baas is a relatively safe pick at a position of need who should, at the least, become an above average OG starter. If he's gone, its a lot tougher. Kevin Burnett would probably be my number two choice, but I'd also be very tempted to select Chris Henry. Henry is one of those players who will probably be either great or terrible and nothing in between, but late in R2 is a place where you can afford to take a risk on a boom-or-bust prospect. Eric Green would also be an option, though I think we're OK at CB for now.