msw2112

I'm a fan of Boldin, but wonder whether he has hit the ceiling age-wise and may not have much on-the-field value. He definitely would be a good locker room presence for the young guys.

Unless, of course, he suffers a career-threatening (or career-ending) injury. Look at Teddy Bridgewater, sitting out his 2nd straight season and may never play again. RG3, Cousins' former teammate in Washington, also suffered a knee injury and has never been the same after that. He went from highly-drafted and successful rookie to a guy fighting to stay in the league. I suppose that with $45 million in the bank, Cousins can afford to take this kind of gamble.

I like this post and think it makes sense. The players get a larger piece of the pie and the league gets more control to recoup guaranteed money paid out from guys who don't live up to the "off the field" terms of the contract. Everyone says that the Dareus contract is so horrible, but if he stayed out of trouble and performed at the levels he has when he was at his best, the contract would be justified under the current system and nobody would be complaining. Top notch defensive linemen get paid big bucks. Eliminating the Ryan Bros. scheme having a negative impact on Dareus' play the last two years, his off-the-field transgressions are really what make the deal so shaky. He's getting a huge amount of guaranteed money, he has been suspended, he has been in rehab and as a result, came back out of football shape, he is at great risk of a much longer suspension, etc. If you eliminate the off-the-field issues and look objectively at Dareus' ability, you would think that he would be extremely successful in the new 4-3 scheme being installed by McDermott and Frazier and that he could perform like one of the top defensive linemen in the league, thus justifying the big contract. As far as the international stuff, it makes sense to expand worldwide interest and the marijuana thing is what it is. As more states legalize it and it is approved for medical purposes, it becomes less and less of an issue and the league may benefit from distancing itself from it. It would be a big win for the players without being a big loss for the league, in my opinion.

I am usually on the pro-management side of the discussion, feeling that players make a ton of money to work out, play a sport, travel to major cities, stay in nice hotels, eat at good restaurants, have celebrity "access" to attractive women across the country, etc. Most of us who go to work every day to support our families would kill for this lifestyle. But, given the health risks undertaken by NFL players, which are far greater than in any other sport, I do believe they have a valid argument for a bigger piece of the pie. In addition to the concussion issue, you have arms, legs, knees, ankles, shoulders, hands, fingers and every joint in the body sustaining permanent damage for these guys. Many of them live the rest of their lives in pain and have shortened life spans. Plus, careers are short - most don't even make it to their mid-30's. There's also the factor that their entire contracts are not guaranteed. NHL players, with body checking and fighting, have some of these issues too, although to a much smaller extent. The NBA, while physical, doesn't have the regular contact and concussion risks of football and hockey. MLB players have it the best. As to the Watkins comment, I really don't care that much about it one way or another. It doesn't get a rise out of me. He's just an immature guy making a poor decision to use social media to express his feelings on a topic. He has a pattern of this. On this particular topic, as I stated above, in comparison to NBA players, he has a valid point. I like Watkins as a player and I hope he is able to stay healthy this year, contribute to the level of his talent, sign a long-term deal and have a long, productive career as a Buffalo Bill. And yes, I would prefer if he stayed off of social media, but it won't be a big deal for me if he doesn't.

I went to a Bills preseason game at Lambeau a few years ago and it was a great experience. The Bills were horrible, but the atmosphere, tailgating, welcoming Green Bay fans, etc. made it a great time. I work with a firm that started in Wisconsin and has a big Wisconsin presence today, so I have many friends and colleagues that are Wisconsinites and Packer fans. Great people who are a lot like us Buffalonians. We have a mutual respect for each others' teams and fan bases. I expect to find my way up there the next time the Bills play there, which, according to this thread, is next year.

I think that the Bills are closer to making the playoffs. Last year, with a terrible head coach, they were very close. Had they won the second Miami game, which they really should have, they would have started Taylor in the final game against the Jests, would have had something big to play for in that game, would have won that game, and would have gotten in as a Wild Card. With much better coaching and discipline this year (and beyond), I see the Bills getting into the Wild Card mix. As to being closer to winning a championship, I think the Sabres are closer. The Bills have enough talent to be competitive and qualify for the playoffs, but they don't have the top end talent that it takes to win it all. The Sabres have a bunch of young, talented players that could be the foundation of a championship caliber team. Others have mentioned the talent: Eichel, Rinehart, Kane (if they keep him - and the player they get in return if they trade him), Okposo, Ristolainen, Lehner form a very solid core that COULD mature together into a contending team. The Bills top talent has issues: McCoy is great, but on the wrong side of the age scale, Dareus is talented and young, but has issues, Watkins is injury-prone, Incognito and Kyle Williams are on the downside of their careers age-wise, etc. Ragland, Lawson, Zay Jones, LaDarius White and others have yet to prove themselves in the league.

I borrowed from what a couple of others had posted and made some corrections and clarifications. Thanks to all for the legwork and posts! I try to make it into town for one of these weekends every year, and it looks like I will have several opportunities this year! Friday October 20 - Vancouver Canucks at Buffalo Sabres (7:00 PM Eastern) Sunday October 22 - Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Buffalo Sabres (1:00 PM Eastern) Saturday October 28 - San Jose Sharks at Buffalo Sabres (1:00 PM Eastern) Sunday October 29 - Oakland Raiders at Buffalo Bills (1:00 PM Eastern) Friday November 10 - Florida Panthers at Buffalo Sabres (7:00 PM Eastern) Sunday November 12 - New Orleans Saints at Buffalo Bills (1:00 PM Eastern) Friday December 1 - Pittsburgh Penguins at Buffalo Sabres (7:00 PM Eastern) Sunday December 3 - New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills (1:00 PM Eastern) December 15 - Carolina Hurricanes at Buffalo Sabres (7:00 PM Eastern) December 17 - Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills (1:00 PM Eastern)

Every player on every team in every scheme cannot be a Pro Bowler. Brown was a solid starter and regular contributor in the Schwartz system and was not a good fit in the Ryan scheme. I am of the mindset that he will be a solid contributor in the new defense. Brown's skill set would seem to be a better fit to the current system, but Ragland hasn't played a down in the NFL, so we don't know at this point who will be the better player this year. I hope that they both play well and one is a quality starter while the other is a regular contributor off the bench. That's assuming Frazier doesn't configure the defense in such a way that they are both starters and one of the other projected starters is the backup. I have not seen enough of Hodges or Humber in any scheme, or Lorax in the current scheme, to know where all the pieces will fit. I will wait and see what training camp and the pre-season brings.

I'm no beacon of fashion taste, but I kind of like these.

This is a well-stated post that raises some good points, but I respectfully disagree that it was the right move. The Bills are a run-heavy team and have been at the top of the league in rushing the last couple of years. Running will remain a staple of our offense. We have a great starting RB, but he's 29 years old and is likely to be injured at some point in the season and/or hit the proverbial wall which usually happens when RBs hit 30. A backup RB means more to a team like the Bills than it does to most other teams and we let a really good one go for a difference of roughly 900,000 when we were able to free up roughly $11 Million in cap space. I think (as others have stated) that this was a mistake made by the Whaley administration that would not likely have been made by the Beane leadership team. I think they gambled (that nobody else would sign him to an offer sheet) and lost. And props to the guy with the Ruvell Martin comment!

Here's what we do with the cap space: patiently wait to see who gets released, who gets injured/what needs develop, then spend it wisely. Maclin would have been a nice addition who could have helped the team, but he has some question marks and may not have been worth using a substantial portion of our remaining cap space. It's OK to have a few dollars in the bank for a rainy day.

For what it's worth, I am more upset about losing Mike Gillislee than losing Maclin. Gillislee is younger, in the prime of his career, is coming off a great year, and was WITHIN THE BILLS CONTROL to retain. I lament the organization's short-sightedness in not putting a second round tender on him. Perhaps they truly felt that a 5th round draft pick is worthy compensation and that they can find a successor to Mike, just like Mike was the successor to Karlos Williams. Back to Maclin, I would have liked to have him on the roster, but he is 29, coming off an injury-plagued year in which his stats declined and perhaps his contract demands were too high. I'm disappointed, but like a previous poster, won't lose any sleep over this. I feel the same way about Decker. Would love to have him, but won't lose any sleep if the Bills don't land him.

Too bad I don't have time to watch this video again. I didn't even realize that Dawkins was on the field. I would have paid some attention to the tackle if I knew that was him! I noticed a post above that compares Peterman to Brady. I don't even want to go there, but I will just a little bit. I went to Michigan and watch every Michigan game. I knew that Brady was clutch coming out of college. He was the best QB on third down that I have ever seen (and I have watched a lot of football). No matter where the sticks were or what the situation was, he always found the open guy and got the first down. It was incredible. I would watch games with my friends and say "Brady is going to be a really good NFL QB." Now, I never imagined that he would be a league MVP, 5 time Super Bowl Champion or possibly the GOAT, but I did think he'd be very good and wished the Bills would draft him. If you watch him play, he never had, and still doesn't have, a particularly strong arm. He just has a great feel for the game, knows how to find the open guy and has enough arm strength and accuracy to get it there. He beats you with his brain, not with his arm. In comparison to watching every college game that Brady played, I have watched Peterman only twice: the last 5 minutes of last year's Pitt-Clemson game and the 6 minute video contained in this thread. Thus, I don't have much to go on here, but he at least looks the part of a competent QB who knows when and where to go with the ball and he seems to have just enough arm to get it there. No predictions of MVPs, Super Bowls or GOAT, but I think he could have a decent NFL career.

I really enjoyed the video. Peterman looks solid and has a good command of the pro style offense. He appears to go through is progressions and he hangs in the pocket, despite pressure, to make the throws. He floated a few, but for the most part, displayed good accuracy. He has the makings of a solid NFL QB, but not likely a major star. Could be a reliable career #2, but may have starter potential. I can see the arm strength issues that are known to be part of his profile, but only time will tell. Somewhere I saw him compared to Chad Pennington, who had a good career as an NFL starting QB. He moved the chains and scored some points, but didn't overwhelm anyone with his athleticism. More impressive was Zay Jones. He was all over the field and made catches of all types. He displayed size, speed, hands, route running and a nose for the end zone (I think I saw 2 TD or 3 TDs, although one may have come back on penalty). Looks like the Bills made a couple of good draft picks.

I have always liked Whaley, but I think that he never had a congruous relationship with his head coaches and it just didn't work out. It was time for the team to move in a different direction and I am impressed with the new front office moves so far. Whaley exited with dignity and class, unlike Rex, who was a buffoon from Day 1 (and well before Day 1). I hope he finds success elsewhere. Despite my comments, I still think they should have put a 2nd round tender on Gillislee and not doing so was a mistake that weakens the roster.

This was a great post and the type of post that message boards are for. Helpful insights and opinions from a fan who is interested in what is going on, but is not pretending to be an expert. I don't know a lot about Beane and I was skeptical about the hire, but this post gives me more optimism! Thank you for your insights!

I agree that I am uninspired by this hire and I believe that the hiring process was a bit of a sham. It's pretty clear that Beane was the guy from the start, based on his connection to McDermott. That said, this guy might not be a bad hire. For an organization to be successful, the GM and head coach need to complement each other and work together. They need to share a vision for what they believe will make the team successful. Whaley didn't have such a shared vision with Marrone or Rex and the results showed both on and off the field. Beane and McDermott should work well together and if they are both good at their jobs, it could turn out very well. If it doesn't, they will crash and burn together and this board will be debating a new GM and HC in 2-3 years.

My picks from this list (and reasoning): 1. S. Watkins (one of the best in the league when healthy, high draft pick) 2. Z. Jones (high draft pick, high overall potential) 3. A. Holmes (key FA signing with high potential and good size) 4. B. Tate (kick return skills and filled in well in limited action as backup WR last year) 5. K. Listenbee (superior speed, draft pick) 6. P. Brown (known quantity from coach's former team) All of the other guys on the list will compete for slots 4-6 along with the 3 guys I put in those spots.

Yes, it is true that these draft grades are meaningless. Until the players take the field, and ultimately two or three years down the road for the developmental guys, you never know. That said, I would rather get graded a meaningless A than a meaningless C, D or F. In so many past drafts, I would groan and say "WHY? or "WTF?" as the Bills picks are made (the most painful in my memory being Donte Whitner, followed by Aaron Maybin). This year, I was nodding my head and thinking "YES, GREAT PICK!" as the draft went on. Putting it all into perspective, draft grades, meaningless or not, are part of the fun and entertainment in following the Bills, so let's just let go of the angst and enjoy the high grades!

I agree with everyone who says that we should have put a 2nd Round tender on him in the first place. If the Pats still signed him to the offer sheet (highly unlikely), we'd be in a great spot receiving a 2nd round pick. Most likely, no team would be willing to part with a 2nd round pick for a RB who hasn't been a proven starter and we would have kept him for only $900K more than what we tendered him at. We certainly have $900K with our current cap situation and it would have made a very minor impact on the cap overall. I am generally a Whaley supporter, but I think he bungled this move. Either he underestimated MG's value on the open market, or he truly believes that backup RBs are a dime a dozen and he'd prefer to get a 5th round pick and insert a guy like Jonathan Williams into the backup role. In the playing time that he had, Williams did not demonstrate nearly the same effectiveness as MG, plus he has a drug suspension in his history. You build a successful team by finding and keeping good players without overpaying for them. MG is a good player and placing a 2nd round tender and the additional $900K it would have cost would not have been overpaying, by any stretch. I know it is crazy to have a 66 page (and growing) thread about a backup RB, but the thread is really more about mismanagement of the roster and salary cap, which is a significant contributor to the poor performance of the team in the last two decades.

This whole think seems to be silly click-bait. Nobody in the Bills organization has even hinted at trading Preston Brown. A local media member in Buffalo was simply speculating over social media and rotoworld picked it up. Brown has played well for us and he has also played poorly for us. He's a linebacker with starting experience who has shown well at points in his career and the Bills have very little depth at the linebacker position. It does not seem logical that he would be on the trading block.

I agree with you that it means nothing until the games start. That said, I was definitely NOT impressed with Jauron's demeanor and having watched him in Chicago for many years, I knew he would not be successful. I was neutral on Marrone's demeanor, but didn't think his experience was all that impressive (his greatest achievement was mild success as a college head coach). As I stated earlier, I am cautiously optimistic that McDermott's demeanor AND experience seem to be a good fit for what this team needs right now. But hey, I am not Nostradamus. This team could go anywhere from 4-12 to 12-4. Might end up 8-8 or 7-9 again. You don't know and neither do I.

Sleep eating? You must be thinking of Rob Ryan.

I hated the Rex hire from day one and knew that it was a disaster waiting to happen - which it was. With McDermott, I have no idea how it will turn out, but I am cautiously optimistic based on what I have seen so far. He seems to have the right experience as a coordinator with two successful franchises and the right discipline and work ethic to be successful. If he has a good scheme and the players buy in to what he is doing, there is a good chance for success. Our roster is not perfect, but there is enough talent to be successful with the right leadership. Even the Rex dumpster fire was close to a .500 team with this squad, far better than his last few years with the Jests.

Those that are projecting Cardale as the #2 are overlooking the fact that we have a new OC with a new offense. If we had the same coaching staff and offense as last year, I think Cardale could be the #2. Given how green he is, however, I don't think we can realistically expect him to pick up a new NFL offensive scheme quickly enough to be effective for us this year. I think we will pick up a veteran backup who has either played in a Dennison type of offense of who is capable of learning it in one offseason. I don't believe we'll be bringing Fitz back to Buffalo. I love the guy, but given the way he left the franchise, I just don't see the two parties reuniting. While I have not studied who is available, I have seen Chase Daniel mentioned in other posts and I believe a guy like that would be the right type of fit, or perhaps one of the McCown brothers, if one is available. Shaun Hill, anyone? Given that we re-signed Tyrod, I don't think we plan on drafting a QB at 10. I'm OK with that if our scouts don't feel that there is QB talent that has a higher ceiling than Taylor that is available at 10. I'm fine with drafting a QB in the 2nd round or later to compete with Cardale for his roster spot and ultimately groom for a future starting role. It's possible that the coaching staff feels that Cardale has enough talent to develop as a future starter and may elect to forego drafting a QB altogether.