BarleyNY

Good way to spark interest in the game, including in the US as some people will tune in just to see the coverage of an exotic venue. Might be a bad way to keep players out of trouble though.

Obviously it would depend upon who's available - and I'm sure this topic will be revisited post draft - but I think the Bills would go OL as well. An OT like Collins, Peat of Flowers makes a lot of sense. I would throw C/G/OT Cam Erving in the mix as well as he offers a lot of versatility.

I make the trade. RG3 has not put in the work and developed as hoped. He's definitely been a disappointment, only has one year left on his contract and has been known in Washington's locker room as a prima donna. But Hes got a better chance of becoming a franchise QB than Manuel and the combination of getting benched for much lesser talents, getting shipped to Buffalo for not much compensation and Ryan putting his foot up his arse might be the wake up call he needs. Sometimes a change of scenery helps as well. It might for EJ, too. Funny thing: When RG3 was drafted by Washington I said I looked forward to rooting for him on his second team because I figured he'd be totally misused there and wind up being traded, cut or leave after his rookie contract. I didn't expect him to have dedication issues in the pros, but I'd still take him if the price was right and I would find it amusing if I really did wind up rooting for him on his second team because it was the Bills. Zero upside for RG3, but plenty for EJ? Wow. All I can say regarding people having their heads examined is "After you."

Tre' Jackson, OG in a slight fall. Hundley or Petty if available and deemed worthy. Just gotta keep trying to find that QB. Nelson Agholor, WR should be there.

Prediction: Wildcard, but with a first round playoff loss. Give or take. In 11 months I won't be arguing if the Bills find themselves with an elite defense and an excellent all around offense with the exception of QB. Because that would mean that the moves made this year are working out well. The Bills would be a very desirable location for any free agent QB that might be looking for a/another ring before hanging up the cleats. If not, they could find one via trade or sell out for one in the draft. They'd be set up well to justify that.

I'm happier about the the defensive front 7 that the Bills have built - including keeping Hughes - than I am about anything they've added in free agency. I like that Clay is so versatile and he should be a good player, but they really spent on him and I don't see him living up to the contract he signed. Likewise Shady can be an excellent back for the Bills, but I don't like spending on any RB like that. Still, overpaying a few players isn't the end of the world. I think the Bills will improve and make the playoffs this year, but lack of quality QB play is going to result in an early exit. If they can somehow find that elusive franchise QB then they could really make some noise. That would be fun.

Yup. Make the Bills QB beat them.

Looks like he's using one of those high altitude simulating (oxygen deprivation) masks too.

Totally disagree. Interviews are over at that point. It is nothing at all like being defiant in an interview. Nothing. Let's face it, staying OUT of the public spotlight hasn't been Winston's problem. Staying home - which I'll note isn't all that far from Tampa Bay - is probably a good move. But what others have posted about him eventually changing his mind and showing up is what I see happening. That would make all of this just a big "look at me!" PR move.

Miami isn't matching this deal. Clay will be the 4th highest paid TE in the league with this deal ($7.6M/year). I don't see them paying both Clay and Jordan Cameron, who is close to the same number ($7.5M/year).

Team probably told him they were not going to pay his roster bonus. His choices were down to taking the pay cut or looking for another job. If he didn't think he was going to make more elsewhere his decision was easy.

Assuming Hingle McCringleberry is off the board.

Pretty much this. Very good player that falls short.

Not a huge Tanny fan, but yeah. Without hesitation.

I don't think he has that left in the tank. Even if he does, this isn't something that could be done in a vacuum. It would not only cost in terms of draft pick(s) and/or players, his huge salary is an issue. Either players have to be traded/cut or restructured which would move some hellish dollars into future years. Oh and I failed to mention another important issue. Brees has to have excellent interior line play to be effective. Just look at who plays there in NO and what they are paid. That would have to be dealt with too.

Rule of 51 currently applies so:Ellerbe's trade frees up $5.65M and the acquisition of Stills only adds back $75k. The net is a 2015 cap savings of $5.575M for Miami. The reason Stills only adds $75 is that his salary is $585k and that will replace a player making $510k on the top 51 players.

Word from Cleveland is that they backed off on Clay due to getting the (familiar) feeling that his agent was playing them. Guess it is either the Phish and Bills or just the Bills in it now. Not sure if the interest from the Phish is legit or just his agent trying to drive up his price. It would be difficult to do that if only the Bills were interested at this point.

Couple things about Brees: - He isn't the same player he was even a couple years ago. - He has a huge salary.* When I think of acquiring him I think of Joe Montana in a Chiefs uniform. The Saints might rape some team for him, but I hope it's not the Bills. *edited to add: $18.75M GUARANTEED in 2015 and $19.75M (non-guaranteed) in 2016. Eligible for a $250k work out bonus in each year. To sum up: the Bills can't afford him and shouldn't want him even if they could.

http://overthecap.com/salary-cap/miami-dolphins The other thing I notice here is that in 2016 Miami has $131M tied up in 34 players under contract. That includes ALL of the players they have under contract through that time. It does not include Tanny. They aren't going to be carrying much over either, which is why their heads are above water now. Booting Ellerbe will help, but I'm not sure how they sign Clay to a sizeable longterm deal. They have to fit Tanny and the hits from two draft classes under their 2016 cap. Those players are relatively cheap, but they'd better hope the cap continues to rise.

http://overthecap.com/salary-cap/miami-dolphinsCutting Ellerbe would save the Phins $5.65M in cap space this year, unless they designated him as a June 1st cut which would give them more immediate relief and push some of the cap hit back to 2016. The $131M+ would only cover 36 players then. Quite frankly, 2016 looks ugly for them already so I don't think it much matters how they handle Ellerbe. They really are pushing to win in the short term. Check out the link, lots of info there.

You are correct. Clay has not signed his tender contract with the Dolphins so he's not under contract. A team can't trade a player it doesn't have under contract. Hypothetically a deal could be worked out between the player and the two teams where the team holding the tender signs the player and then trades him, but that is frowned upon by the league. It could still happen though. It doesn't make any sense in this case since there is no compensation for signing Clay and Miami already signed Jordan Cameron.

Clay is visiting Cleveland, and the Browns want him bad. This will be interesting. Also I'm not sure if Clay will officially sign an offer sheet until Suh's deal hits the books in Miami. Of course he could still make a choice and come to terms before then.

He just meant that if there was no hurry in cutting him, why not keep him until a replacement/upgrade was officially on board. That's what most teams do. Looks like there might have been a hurry due to the roster bonus though.

Saves $2.25M of cap space.

That was my first thought, but I see he has a $250k roster bonus due. Perhaps it was going to hit before the Clay situation played out anyway.