timtebow15

My biggest concern is that Whaley is in way over his head. He makes too many mistakes to ever compete with the elite teams. Just the way he handles the news conference...you can't say things that are obviously not true. He had a lot of time to prepare for a logical conference and it was horrible. How is he going to outsmart any other GMs when he can't outsmart the Buffalo media? Just the comment about making a mistake hanging his hat on one QB in Manuel alone - who would hang their hat on an unproven QB? And the shape he's left the roster in with little cap room and so few players signed for next year? He's playing checkers while 3/4 or the league are playing chess. The Bills won't win until they have a competent GM and no qualified coach will take this job until that happens. We're stuck hoping for a miracle as always.

This worries me because Rex says he has learned from his mistakes. I think one of his biggest is that he is a champion for the D players but doesn't seem to understand the offensive side and how important confidence is to some of the skill positions. On D you can just attack and be emotional. On O you have to execute and the QB and Kicker need to be confident to do well. Carpenter was great last year and is just coming back from injury. Now you are going to call him out and get in his head after six kicks? And there sits Darby who has struggled mightily and you seem to give him a free pass. I think he should be approaching a few missed kicks differently. Everybody, kickers especially, know if they start missing too many their job will be on the line. It's not helping Carpenter to be reminded of that in a press conference.

Very well said. The problem is journalists today have little integrity and don't understand nuances of using certain words or else they have become so self-centered they subjectively add words that convey an opinion or try to convey someone else's opinion in the most sensational way possible to garner attention. He could have reported that objectively and there wouldn't have been a problem. Instead of merely reporting on sports, entertainment, politics or news they now see themselves as part of the process. His response shows he just doesn't get it. It's funny when a reporter like that says just don't pay attention when you know they are doing everything possible to get your attention.

We have no idea what the real story is and it does seem strange the Bills cut Fred. Perhaps they discussed with him this being his last year and he wasn't open to that. Perhaps he has been critical of some of Whaley's moves. Fred was outspoken. Or perhaps Whaley does have to justify the Brown trade. In the long run we will find out because if Whaley "went rogue" the Pegulas won't appreciate that nor will Rex. It would be really stupid of Whaley not to include them.

Any chance they can sign him back at a reduced salary? I wish they would have cut one of the WRs who will never see any real time this year. There are just too many positions they have to keep an extra guy like TE and 3 QBs and an extra KO specialist, etc.

Normally I would agree but I think that is offset but a few things. First, you are assuming consistent play, however, some days athletes are just off and you can usually see it early. If it is an established starter like Rodgers you try to let them works themselves out of it but sometimes they don't. Did you see him play in Buffalo last year? He was brutal (WRs didn't help). By not having an established star, if Rex has the guts, we can sit a QB having an off day. Plus some defenses are just better suited to stop certain guys. If there is ever a year it makes sense to be creative this is it.

Great pickup. We need insurance for Darrius. Who knows when he'll do something, shall we say, not too smart. Plus it will keep him and maybe Kyle fresher by taking care of some of the running downs.

I find this all humorous. What a great job of making everyone guess Rex has done. I would play all three at times. Why do we have to go with one QB for the season? Just play the hot QB. Sure, TT and EJ look exciting now but when defenses start bringing everything we may find their inexperience still results in mistakes. TT plays an aggressive brand of football and EJ has been injury prone and Cassel is a statue so who knows how long any of these guys can go without injury. First, cutting Cassel would be stupid to save a little money because we have a team that looks one decent QB away from the playoffs. Wouldn't you pay $4 or $5 million in insurance in case Cassel needs to be that guy? I really don't care who starts - I am interested to see how long whoever is named the starter can be effective. At least we have 3 viable options to turn to. That said, Taylor has played the best and brings speed to the position. When the OLine breaks down or blitzes bring pressure which happens at times no matter what I think in todays NFL it is optimal to have a QB that can make something out of those situations to keep the drive alive. I think EJ has some of that too but TT brings more of it so I'd start there and give him the first chance.

The day I was at camp EJ looked the best. But I understand that might not have been the case every day. I think the staff keeps all three. How do we know who will continue to improve in the new system and end up the best QB? It's nice that I am going into the season not worrying about a QB injury because we have three viable options. Don't give that up! It's a good problem to have that no one has run away with the competition because I see it as all three have looked pretty good as opposed to horrible. You aren't going to get a high enough pick to take an option off the table. We are all in this year and more than 1 QB can go down in a season.

Rex knows how to create headlines! 33 pages of discussion. I've thought all along this team might be set up to manage real differently. I think our margin for error is pretty narrow and if we are going to win 10+ games we are going to have to play the hot QB and keep the other team guessing. All our QBs, with the possible exception of Taylor but maybe him too, are pretty inconsistent. If one struggles go to the next guy. Also, it is not hard to imagine some of them match up better against different defenses. Why not be one of the only teams to go QB by committee in NFL history? It's worth a shot. In baseball not all that long ago if you started you finished a game. Now MLB has changed and rarely does that occur. In the NFL you used to ride one featured back every game and now it's often RB by committee. Why not do something trendsetting at the QB position?

After watching this I'd really like to see Taylor get a shot to prove what he can do. We know what Cassel can do and, to a good extent EJ. Taylor reminds me of Flutie in that he just hasn't had the chance in the NFL yet. He seems to have a lot of the skills Russel Wilson has. He hasn't done anything yet to not deserve a shot as a starter.

I don't see the Bills getting hyped much. Everyone says they are interesting and competitive IF they find a QB but no one is hyping them! The Dolphins are hyped just as much and just as often picked ahead of the Bills. This guy is ignorant.

If someone like Thompson is getting trade interest (I'm sure Hogan is not) I'd trade him for a 5th. You can get a player in the 5th round but I don't like 6 or 7 round picks as undrafted free agents usually fare just as well. The reason is that none of these guys are going to see much time on the field and there isn't a heck of a lot of difference between them. If you can't get a 5th pick I think he brings a little more to the table than Hogan does.

With these 3 QBs it is what is going on behind the scenes we cannot see which will determine who starts. We have no real idea who is picking up the offense really quickly and who exhibits the best leadership. In the NFL with all the game planning that goes on from week to week you need a QB that can retain it quickly, make adjustments and decisions on the fly. Those have been EJs weak spots but I see improvement this year. I don't know how Taylor and Cassel really compare. I do think EJ is prone to some bad mistakes and bad luck at times and think he'd fit better off the bench. I think best case is Taylor shows well in these other areas because he brings running into the mix at the position. One thing I do know...we need all three because we will need to be in every game this year and if 2 QBs go down I don't want to try to win with someone like Simms out there.

I think he should have the Blazer taken away. As much as I dislike Brady the football issue is less serious than this. So many of these players do so much damage to others and he's telling them how to get away with it. The league should bar him from any association with the NFL for the rest of his life.

It does seem like it is Thompson or Goodwin as they play the same role to stretch the D. Thompson seems to get behind people almost as well as Goodwin. I think I stash Thompson on the PS for the future? What Goodwin brings that I don't think Thompson does is that I believe he is a very good kick returner.

I think EJ is still learning the position and the last coaching staff didn't do him any favors. Taylor had the benefit of a couple more years in the league and playing for a good coaching staff. Cassel is a veteran and should not be compared with Orton because I see him as a much better leader and teammate than Orton who was an individualist always in it for himself. I do think at this point Taylor or Cassel should start but don't give up on EJ. It's a lot better QB situation than last year.

I don't mind when the QB runs often even if he has the option to throw if running is open. It's usually the safest option. Throwing on the run can result in an incompletion, drop or interception while taking a running gain is smart. Unless someone is behind the D and a TD is very possible. A smart running QB is no more likely to get hurt than someone like Cassel who is tied to the pocket and will take hits. The QB has to be smart about getting out of bounds or down quickly - something Wilson is very good at. I also don't think a defense can game plan and shut down a running QB that easily. Sure, if they focus on the run they can keep him in the pocket better but then something else is open and he's got to be able to deliver the ball.

Except in this particular defense he might be a problem.

ChevyVanMiller thanks for the observations and getting things started. I was encouraged by the OLine and noticed Miller did well but did not grade anybody else out. It seemed to me Kujo looked very good which was a nice surprise and everyone that played in the first have looked solid if unspectacular. When you have a QB running around like that it makes everyone look good. I also was surprised by McCoy. He looked like a Spiller that knew how to play the position (not just capable of a spectacular play every once in awhile). And Williams looks like a great RB. Most encouraging of all is that the coaching staff looked great! Finally a real staff? I see the officials still blow. How do you review the TD and not determine that the Panthers QB is not over the line of scrimmage when he throws the ball? Was that a just give it to them because it's preseason call? Why bother reviewing TDs if you can't fix that? I hope we aren't in for another year of this garbage - someone needs to tell Rex he needs to win by two TDs every game to make sure he still gets a win with the calls the officials make during Bills games.

EJ is such a lightning rod! I was encouraged because he looked capable. They all looked good which is great. EJ just seems to have bad things happen creating inconsistency. Sometimes it is his fault dropping snaps and misfiring on a throw he can make and sometimes they decide to drop balls on him, etc. Some QBs improve quickly but I think he is one of those guys where you just have to be really patient. To me he looks like he's getting better - just painfully slow. I wouldn't count on him yet if I was Rex but I wouldn't give up on him either.

I like Darby because he looked very quick and capable of staying with NFL receivers which is the first test. In college he did not get tested a lot so he really needs to learn how to defend the ball better and my one concern is that his is small. He is going to have to learn to anticipate and really get up in the air at the right time and understand what they are trying to do with the ball like that back shoulder catch he gave up. Will that come with experience? That's the question.

I think it is a fascinating situation but thank goodness it looks like we have 3 QBs that can play. It almost seems like we could start Cassel or Taylor depending upon the defense. I think EJ is too inconsistent and is a mix of the two in that he can use his legs but not nearly as electric as Taylor. I think in today's NFL Taylor is a better fit because you need to be able to move the chains and his ability to scramble does that. The Defenses are so quick and prepared that many of the short, third-down routes are blanketed so you need a creative QB to improvise. That's my theory anyway. However, on this team with this defense Cassel could be the veteran, game managing QB that is needed. Less reward but less risk. I thought this was a position of weakness so we will wait and see. What's nice is that if something isn't working we have other options to throw out there.

Gilmore has potential to be very good but his style worries me. Of course if he played for the Seahawks two years ago he would have been fine because they held on every play. But he has to adjust. He doesn't give up a ton of catches but will be called for way too many penalties and many are needless. Revis didn't do that so you couldn't go after him. I'd go after Gilmore just because he'll draw so many flags.

It does seem like we have a lot of boxers on the team. Instead of the Bickering Bills perhaps we should go with the Brawlin' Bills this year!