Brandon

If by a 'Whitner' pick you mean a reach for need that can only barely be justified at 11, I think it would be Robert Ayers.

Pro Bowlers: 1 If you want to know why the Bills suck, that's why. They're great at finding guys who are just good enough to hold onto the starting job, but they rarely do any better than that. A team full of average players usually won't win many games.

That's a really good question and I haven't heard a satisfactory answer, either. The last time the Bills drafted a DE who had all of this supposed talent, but with mediocre collegiate production, his name was Chris Kelsay. We all know how well that one turned out, though thankfully, he was picked in the 2nd and not the first.

He may well end up being better than Brown, Maybin or Orakpo. From top to bottom, I don't really like this DE class very much. For my part, I think its extremely unlikely that Ayers ever becomes more than an ordinary pass rusher in the NFL and if size/strength are the priority at DE, I'd rather just take Tyson Jackson at 11. I think he'll be at least as good of a pass rusher in the NFL as Ayers, while being an immovable object in the running game.

I suppose its possible that he'll turn into a guy who posts 8-10 sacks per year in the NFL, but in almost all cases, if a DE can't get to the QB in college, he won't do it in the NFL, either. Perhaps Ayers is an exception, but the odds are definitely against him. I wouldn't draft him before the 2nd round, at the earliest.

If Raji has already been selected, and it appears that'll ultimately prove to be the case, then I have no issue with taking Pettigrew at 11. The only other position that I'd seriously consider at this point is DE, and to be quite honest, none of them seem that great to me. The first round overall just seems a bit lackluster this year.

And that's pretty much the only question that needs to be asked, isn't it? As I said a couple weeks back during the combine, if a GM can't trust the guy to keep his sh-- together for four months leading up to the biggest payday of his life, how could that same GM ever trust him to act responsibly once he gets that big check and for the next 10-12 years? Obviously, you can't.

No. I wouldn't draft him in the 2nd round based upon what I've seen of him. He's a good athlete, but that's about it.

Considering that he had Brooks Bollinger and 9,000 year old Brad Johnson throwing him the ball for a number of games, are you surprised that his stats declined? Romo probably wasn't healthy when he returned to the starting lineup, either.

There's a reason why 'dropped passes' is not an official NFL stat. One person's dropped pass may be another's bad throw. For my part, I'll trust the 9 (10?) that Stats has him down for. At least there I can see how he compared to the rest of the league under their methodology.

No kidding. What's the worst that can happen? I guess they could miss the playoffs, Dick Jauron could get fired, and they clean house with the roster. You know, pretty much what everyone expected to happen this year before T.O. signed. At least now there's a little hope for this team.

Yes, Mort, we all know that you're madly in love with Tom Donahoe. BTW, how well has ol' Tommy done since being canned by the Bills? What's that? No one has offered him a GM job since? I guess the rest of the league just considers it unfair to have such a 'great' GM working for them, huh Mort?

I'm sure there are. Of course, most all of them suck, but don't let that technicality get in the way of a good rant.

It doesn't surprise me at all. I certainly can't imagine Dick Jauron opposing this move. He has absolutely nothing to lose by bringing him in. In the worst case scenario, T.O. costs him his job. Big deal. With the Bills' offense as it is, that was going to happen anyway. At least now there's a chance that unit might show some signs of life in '09 and if it does, they might actually win 9 or 10 games.

Assuming that the Bills' scouts have him rated highly, they should go ahead and take him. Terrell Owens will only be with this team for one season. Following that, we're right back in the same situation offensively and for that reason, his signing shouldn't alter their draft plans much at all.

I doubt that it makes much impact on their draft plans, except that they won't draft a WR now due to the 53 man roster limit. Its just a one-year contract, afterall, and once he's gone, the old problems on offense will still be there if they don't work on it. They still need to take an interior OL and a TE high in the draft next month.

Considering that Owens' deal is only for one year, its very likely to be Jenkins. The other apparent candidate would be Steve Johnson, but I think they like his potential as a WR, not just a STer, so he'll likely be retained to compete for the starting job a year from now.

I also suspect that T.O. will be on his best behavior this year. The league is getting fed up with his antics and if he turns into a problem yet again, he may not receive another big payday next year. On the other hand, if he keeps his mouth shut, he'll collect $6.5 million this fall with the chance for more next season and if he doesn't like how the Bills play football, he can leave.

He can be a pain in the ass, but at the same time, he's still perhaps the best WR in the NFL. The Bills offense needed a major boost and got one, at a relative bargain price, I might add. The only downside is that its only a one year contract, but then again, that's also a positive if he gets out of line. They can unload him easily enough if necessary.

Bledsoe Edwards Van Pelt Flutie Johnson Losman Collins The top two are clearly the best, IMO and there's not a nickel's worth of difference between the rest.

James Hardy is over 6'5". How well did he play last year? I really don't care how tall Coles or any other WR is. The more important question is whether or not he can play.

The problem with Reed is that he very rarely makes a big play. He's a good example of the problem weighing this team down. He's just good enough that it never seems to be a pressing need to replace him, but he's not making a lot of plays to help them win games, either. Just look at his stats. He averages 11.6 yards per catch and, through seven seasons, has 284 receptions for only 9 TDs. He's scored no more than 2 TDs in any one season of his career. In his three best seasons, he's caught 165 passes...for three TDs. He certainly has a place on the team, but that's unacceptable for a starter. They need more production out of that position, specifically points.

The Bills are what, $30 million under the cap? It really doesn't matter all that much if they sign Coles. I'd also point out that the current group of guys quite clearly aren't getting the job done. The Bills can't just sit back and hope for their best. They've been needing to address their passing attack, including the 2nd WR spot, for years, arguably as far back as the Peerless Price trade after the '02 season. They've stunk ever since then.

Considering how pathetic the Bills passing attack has been for most of this decade, can you really blame anyone? With the exception of Lee Evans, every other receiver they have should feel as though their job is in jeopardy.

I haven't, then again, I try to avoid the NBA like the plague. But now that you mention it, at least their games are good for something.