Flip Johnson

We will get through the Bears game. Presumably the weather is good - against that attack we'll be in nickel all day. Is there a suspension season - i.e. when will Dareus hear something?

I actually don't think we'll see a ton of surprises. I could see Legursky getting cut. Pears is probably not in the clear yet either.

Tim Graham ‏@ByTimGraham 5m Source: Bills left tackle Cordy Glenn should return from mystery illness in time to start in season opener http://bills.buffalonews.com/2014/07/28/source-bills-lt-cordy-glenn-return-time-start-season-opener/ … … Big!

The Bickering Bills loss vs. Cleveland in 1989 in the wildcard game (Harmon's drop, Clay Matthews' INT) was an incredibly exciting comeback. I mention it, because that was really the birth of the no-huddle and the beginning of an era. Kelly and Thurman were hitting their peak right then. The 77 second comeback in 1990 against the Broncos, followed by next week's comeback win on Sunday night against the Raiders felt like the announcement to the world that the Bills were a contender. The 51-3 win over the Raiders - at halftime the network showed a crew painting BILLS in the end zone in Tampa ... that was probably the ultimate.

Whaley has stated that they want a backup QB that can go .500 when called upon. It also appears that this is a team that wants to run first and play strong defense. Given the above, the question of "upside" is not the point. They want a guy who can steer the ship for a game or two. Everyone knows Thad played better than Tuel last year. However, Thad plays with aggression, is a little smallish, and has a tendency to put the ball on the ground. I'm not a Tuel fan because of the weakness of his throwing arm. However, if he becomes a better decision-maker they might feel like he puts the team at less risk.

For all the heat Graham has taken, I would expect him to make this team. Speed is speed. Goodwin gets hurt a lot. Graham's presence may make the Bills more willing to use Goodwin as a KR. 15.7 YPC last year - the big play ability is still there. If Hogan gets cut, he will be fortunate to latch on somewhere else. Graham will get picked up in a second.

Yes, and for that reason this is the year to evaluate Crossman. No excuses.

Almost everyone who plays ST in the NFL is on the "bottom of the roster." Where do you think Mark Pike was on the depth chart for the '90s Bills?

Reed is right. I don't remember anyone shutting him down man to man.

Agree. Buscaglia tries to sound like a dispassionate analytics guy but rarely has any actual data or expertise. I like that he tries to be a serious football reporter but his conclusions are always safe and after the fact.

He needs to play at the rate that most starting QBs play at. He can ease into the HOF game, but he needs to be playing at least half the game in week 3 and 4, and then get a series or 2 in for the last week. I don't like the idea that he needs "extra" work, or that we need to save him for live bullets.

Most likely candidates would be a young guy who makes the leap and becomes part of the broader NFL consciousness. Someone like Cordy Glenn, Aaron Williams, or Stephon Gilmore.

Why do you think Summers is excellent on special teams? I know he blocked on our KR team and we had a very poor average last year. Marrone has certainly not mentioned him as one of their "core" special teams guys. Agree that the man ran with some intensity last year when given the opportunity, but I see him as a very long shot to make the roster. The addition of Dixon and our late season pickup of Rodriguez makes me think this guy is not in our plans.

Woods doesn't drop the ball - he just had a lot of inaccurate passes thrown at him.According to espn.com Woods caught 40 of 86 targets and SJ was 52 of 100.

Chandler is a bit of an underrated player - he had 53 catches for 655 yards last year. He also caught about 66% of his targets - a much higher number than SJ (52%) or Woods (below 50%). That said, I don't think Chandler presents huge matchup problems for our opponents given his lack of speed. I do think this year we'll see some two TE sets with Moeaki and Chandler on the field, and the combination may have something like 80 catches for 1,000. In terms of EJ's development, I love the idea of additional big targets. Last year the non-Chandler TEs gave the Bills very little in terms of offensive production. If Moeaki's healthy I don't think that will be the case.

Think about this from Spikes' perspective. He is a natural leader with a big personality. He was an All-American in college and won a national championship. He's ambitious and wants to make a name for himself in the NFL. While he experiences some success in New England, he's a cog in the machine. His personality gets suppressed and the powers that be are already established. So while the Pats keep going to the playoffs there's not much in growth opportunities for Spikes himself. I am not saying he is an all-pro - if he was the Pats would have kept them. But he's 26, possibly with his best football in front of him, and feeling very motivated and energized to put his mark on a team that welcomes his voice. It is a good situation for the Bills providing he stays healthy, has some good football in him, and doesn't do anything overly juvenile.

Spiller to re-leap.

No doubt this WR group has the talent to create a lot of problems. Woods could develop into a dynamic complement to Watkins. This is going to be on EJ to make it happen. Not to overreact from what we're seeing at OTAs, but I do get the feeling that EJ is more comfortable. His throwing motion looks less mechanical. He also appears more relaxed in his press conferences. Little things, but they are hopeful signs.

I'm not looking for versatility at 9

Clowney's price tag will be too high. The Manziel - Favre comparison is absurd. Favre was 6'2" 220lbs and had a massive arm.

Chandler gets crushed on this board and Chandler's 2013 season was significantly better than Moeaki's peak year in 2010. And that was with last year's QB cocktail.

Marrone has specifically mentioned Elliott as someone they see potential in. I don't see him as a guy who is going to change their draft plans but if healthy he could put Hogan and Graham in some jeopardy.

Ralph was a HOFer who lived to 95. We have a lot to be grateful for and good reason to believe the team remains viable. Watching the greatest athlete in the city's history go through rd. 2 with cancer is a different story. But he is still with us.

Chandler resigning tells me that this is not going to happen. Chandler is roughly league average in terms of offensive production. We're not resigning him and bringing in Moeaki to take a TE at #9.

Put it this way: if the Bills had fully committed to Manuel as a starter last year, but had Vick on the bench as their #2, then they would have gone no worse than 8-8. Vick would have come off the bench and closed out Cleveland and he would have beaten KC. He is a viable #2 that could outperform Thad. Because he's never been known as a highly intelligent QB that would mentor a younger QB, I don't think the Bills will go this direction. But could he come off the bench and win a game or two? No doubt.