TPS

You looked at not signing Levitre as bad? Really? The only thing bad related to that issue is Marrone's judgement of Brown. They should've been more active in bringing in better competition. I for one am glad we don't have a $6 mil + price tag for a G.

As reported, this has been a couple months in the making, so it would seem it's (somewhat) independent of Byrd's offer. Not only does it give Byrd an additional enticement, but it sends a signal that the Bills are serious about building a contender and locking up their good, young players. We'll see in a couple weeks or less how it plays out.

Or it could be viewed as a way to entice Byrd knowing he'd be paired with AW for most of their careers...

not after Mack's 40 today; he ran a 4.53.

He must have missed the combine, because there were some serious concerns raised by Charles Davis about Richardson's knee and his ability to play in 2014..

The bills gave up 20 passing TDs in the first 8 games, and 8 in the last 8 games. I think your answer is the Byrd and Gilmore injuries.

That is a decent analysis. One change would be to flip what they gave for bradham and Williams at SS. I also would've included moeaki over smith and given him a red color.

Does this poll mean the fans of the first 8 teams voted to bypass Robinson? Man, that is totally unrealistic.

people here don't think much of Barr, but 3/4 nfl.com mocks have him going before 9. That's a great scenario for the bills.http://www.nfl.com/draft/2014/mock-drafts that's the key, there has to be a run on QBs, if not, then we are probably looking at Ebron or Evans. I'm with you on Lewan, I think he'll be better than Mathews over time.

and he has Borland in the 2nd. I'd take that draft.

Bucky brooks has moved Lewan up to #8 in his top 25. http://www.nfl.com/combine/story/0ap2000000329512/article/buckys-big-board-20-sammy-watkins-khalil-mack-rise-up

i think Barr is the wild card. TB and Minn could use a pass rusher. If he cracks the top 8, I think that pushes either Mathews or Watkins onto your list.

while I think his combine performance makes him a legit pick at 9, as I stated in another thread, I think one of Watkins and Mathews will now be there at 9 because there are easily 3-4 players whose combine also pushed them into possible picks at 6-8.

I know it wasn't too clear, but what I'm trying to say is 1) Mathews (or Watkins) could slide if Barr or Gilbert get pick in the top 8; and 2) Lewan is not viewed as a reach if picked at 9.

I know. I interpreted lybob's question with regards to what players would be picked in the first 8, so we could try to see who would be there at the 9th pick.I don't think anything has changed wrt the top 8 picks, but I do think several players did well enough that they will be considered worthy of being considered a "top 10 pick", and therefore could be selected 6-8. I think the top 6 picks, in no order, are 3QBs, Clowney, Robinson, and Mack. I think Mathews and Watkins are part of the top 8, but they've been pushed back toward the end of the 8, making it quite possible that one of them slides to 9 if there's a team that likes one of the handful of players bunched up after these 8. I think that "bunch" who could be justified on the margin at 8 or earlier includes: Barr, Lewan, Mosely, Evans, Ebron, and Gilbert. If one of Atlanta, TB, or the Vikes likes one of these players over Mathews or Watkins, then one of Mathews/Watkins slides to the Bills at 9. So my answer to the OP is that, yes, I think these players performed well enough to be discussed in the top 8 based on the combine and could push someone like Mathews or Watkins to 9.

the 3 QBs, clowney, Robinson, Mack, Mathews, and Watkins. I don't think anything changed there. I should add, guys like Lewan, Ebron, gilbert, and Evans made a case for being top 10 picks.

I thought we cleared this up, they are not leaving NY.

As the combine winds down, I'm not sure much has changed in terms of the top picks. It looks like 3 QBs, clowney, Robinson, and Mack as the top 6. It looks like the next 2 will be some combination of Barr, Watkins, and Mathews, and I hope Barr goes as one of the 2 picks before the Bills' pick, leaving either Watkins or Mathews at 9.

hmmm...why stop at 2000 then? Let's add up every job that wasn't created in NY for the past few years!

obviously I'm looking into it too much, however... Most HCs hire coordinators they have some kind of history with, or a coaching friend vouches for. Hackett and crossman for example. A HC wants a coordinator who is capable, but also one he can work with day in, day out. What I'm saying is that I think there were philosophical differences AND I don't think they got along all that well. Lastly, there was a little bit of pushing and helping out the door. The push came from firing Driesbach, pettine's guy, for philosophical differences, the help was prepping him for the interview, and probably encouraging him to apply..

Hadn't heard about that, so i did a quick search and found this...http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2014/02/remington_outdoor_co_to_open_factory_in_alabama.html

Yes, he wanted someone with an "aggressive D" philosophy. Pettine was one of a couple names available, and DM courted him. Yes, Pettine brought and delivered it, but, in the end, not to Marrone's satisfaction with the run D (and some other stats mentioned by others in the thread). AND, while I think they had to have a decent professional working relationship, I don't think it went any further than that; and I do think that the personal relationship matters, especially if there's going to be a difference of opinion on philosophy wrt the run D. Firing Driesbach doesn't make a lot of sense in isolation. If DM said it was due to "philosophical differences," doesn't that suggest he has the same differences with Driesbach's mentor Pettine? It would've been interesting to see how the defensive "changes" would've played out if Pettine didn't get the Browns' job.

Put this in the category of thinking too much during the off-season... Every time I see an article about Marrone wanting to make changes on defense, I wonder about what happened behind the scenes in the D-Co regime change? I think that once Schwartz was fired, and several coaching jobs became available, Marrone started to work toward the Schwartz hire. My reasoning... 1. Any time Marrone is asked about Pettine, he says something like "I have nothing but the utmost respect for him," but you can tell there is no emotional attachment. Pettine was never a Marrone guy, in the sense they had some personal history. I never sensed any kind of friendship between them, and I think their relationship was just that, professional. What you see with most coaching relationships is some past connection that is also personal--you typically hire a guy you like and know you can work with. Marrone went for Pettine as one of the best available options for the type of D he wanted, but they shared no personal history; it was purely a professional relationship between the two. 2. We know that Marrone was not happy with Pettine's D overall. Yes, it generated flashy sack numbers and TOs, but did poorly against the run. I think Marrone is philosophically a "run and stop the run" kind of coach. He said changes were happening regardless, and the change was mainly going to be focused on stopping the run. 3. Pettine credited Marrone for preparing him for the job interviews; not just a general thanks, but DM went above and beyond. As I believe, getting Pettine hired was the easiest solution for Marrone's change on D, especially knowing Schwartz was available. 4. Firing Driesbach seemed to come out of the blue, and DM's reasoning was cited as "philosophical differences." Driesbach was a Pettine man who coached up the (almost) DOY in Kiko. That is a pretty flimsy excuse, unless he was trying to ruffle Pettine's feathers? Pettine picked Driesbach up once he was hired. Marrone obviously couldn't fire Pettine without setting off a fire storm, so I believe this was the next best thing--urge Pettine to go for the Browns' opening by both encouraging him to and firing one of his boys. Yes, purely conjecture, but I wouldn't be surprised if there's some substance to it...

The governor's gifts just keep coming. I wonder if he has future plans...? http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/development/ibm-to-bring-500-new-jobs-to-buffalo-20140224

I agree, but if you have 3 players all rated within 1 point of each other, you've got to go with who you think helps you the most. The Bills will be faced with a choice between some very good players at significantly different positions, but with grades that are insignificantly different. That's a good position to be in.