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blacklabel

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Everything posted by blacklabel

  1. Like the very few educated, patient, understanding and well-informed board members here, he'll get roughly his first nine plays before I jump on here like a screeching lunatic demanding he be benched, the coaching staff terminated (by like, a real T-1000) and the front office demolished (with a real wrecking ball). And of course I'll squeal for the complete deconstruction of the entire franchise. Why? Because I'm an extremely important fan with many medium level business meetings and my stance on how much time the rookie deserves before being shown the door is the only one that counts.
  2. They're probably in the most unique and favorable set of circumstances they've ever been in for a draft. Two picks in each of the top three rounds. They have the ammo like no other team does in this draft. They've relentlessly studied these QBs for this year and must have one or two on the "must have" list because otherwise, why make all those trades and gather up all this draft capital? Sure it'd be good to stock up but if they go through another draft neglecting the most important position in all of sports, this regime is going to get crucified endlessly. They have to take their shot at some point. Obviously the thinking that you can win consistently without a franchise QB but with a decent team around him just doesn't cut it. I think they wanna be able to obtain their QB while retaining enough picks to obtain starters in other positions they prioritize.
  3. The most important question needed to be asked about him is, can he translate the lyrics of international superhit and one of Earth's greatest musical compositions of all time, the classic song, "Despacito?" If not, I don't want him anywhere near the Bills. I don't care if he can throw a 900 yard pass and hit a Target (yes, the store), if he don't know those words, he no play foosball in Billstown.
  4. Staying where they're at with the picks they have isn't the worst thing that could happen. Two picks in rounds 1-3 ain't too shabby. But I just don't believe that they did all that legwork starting last summer up through the Glenn trade to sit back and take whatever's left to them. It may not be the Giants but at this point I'm more convinced that they'll manuever into the top seven, at least. The Giants don't have very many picks and still believe Eli has a few good years left. They could rake in a haul and fill a bunch of spots over these next two drafts and then go for their next QB with a readymade team already set around him. Giants are just waiting it out because they wanna see if anyone else comes at them with a better deal. I actually don't buy that they have legitimate interest in any of the top QBs. They're just posturing like they do because of the position they're in.
  5. Dave Hasselbeck...the least known Hasselbeck brother. First team Gatorade cooler operator.
  6. Oh, for sure. All these GMs throwing around false information, leaking different things, etc. It's all a game. They try to visualize every sort of scenario to be as prepared as they can but at the end of the day they won't have a clue until the first domino falls.
  7. Tony Pauline. He runs draftinsider.net. He's been doing scouting stuff for years, he's pretty good. He kinda flies under the radar compared to other draft guys but he knows his stuff. Not sure how legit his sources are but we've heard for a while now that there's an "in principle" deal between the Bills and Giants. And there probably is...these guys talk more and more as the draft gets closer so they can say, "OK, if our guy is available at your spot, this is what we're prepared to give you."
  8. Didn't you guys know that's why they signed Conor McDermott? It's so Rosen has a pal when he arrives in Buffalo.
  9. If this dude seriously believes that, he has no business refuting any sort of criticism he gets when it comes to the game of football. On the other hand, this is exactly the kind of crap someone tweets out to stir up attention and get reactions. If Paxton Lynch was better than Darnold, Mayfield, Rosen, Allen, Jackson and Rudolph he would've been starting in Denver last season. And he's not an upgrade over Tannehill.
  10. Yeah. Kelly wanted to play for Penn State but they wanted him to play linebacker. In fact, I think several schools had the intention of switching his position. Miami was one of the only "big name" schools to come through with a scholarship and the guarantee that he would stay at QB.
  11. The buzz has been all about Allen but there are several media folks that have maintained that the Bills have had their sights set on Darnold since early last year. When you look at all the QB prospects and try to find the best match for the Bills, it's Darnold. Not exactly because of the type of athlete he is or how he plays the position but because of how he carries himself and his attitude. Rosen is a good kid, but he may challenge coaches and some coaches won't like that. Mayfield is also a good kid, but some probably feel like he might be a bit of a loose cannon. Allen is all potential at this point and I don't think the Bills wanna take the risk with him. Darnold needs work, sure. But of the top four guys, he's the one that has natural leadership ability, maturity beyond his years, an understanding of how to present himself to the media as the face of a franchise, and overall he seems to have this very easy-going vibe to him where it seems like no amount of pressure can get to him. Put those things together with "the process" and it makes sense that Darnold is their top target.
  12. Your last statement here is perfect. I think a lot of people fail to realize that these guys are human with flaws and other interests and hobbies, etc. I cringe when an athlete tweets out a photo of him and his family having fun, or just the athlete alone doing something unrelated to football and the comments are flooded with BS from people saying, "You should be watching film!" or "You sucked last year, you should be in the weight room!" Some people seem to truly believe that athletes should be living and breathing their occupation 100% of the time. And that's crap. No matter what your occupation is, you should never allow yourself to be completely consumed by it. There must always be a work-life balance in order to stay healthy both physically and especially mentally. These guys are regular people with a very interesting and high profile job. They need time away just like anyone else. I think it shocks a lot of people when an athlete retires early for reasons other than injury. They see it as, "How can you walk away from that opportunity and all that money?" Well, easy...if your heart isn't in it, should you be doing it? And these guys are in the position to decide things with that in mind because they don't have to worry about continuing with the daily grind just to make a paycheck. Most regular schmoes don't have those options so I think they have a warped view of how athletes handle their jobs. And, to clarify, I include myself as a regular schmoe. All I mean is most average everyday people do jobs they're not passionate about but can't just walk away from because they gotta earn a paycheck. Some people may be surprised to know that a moderate percentage of players in the league don't play for love of the game or to win titles or to even rack up crazy stats. Some play because they discovered they were good enough and knew they could make some serious money. For some it's the achievement of a dream, for others it's just a job.
  13. You're forgetting the true gem of that class, one JP Losman. 10 wins, 23 losses, 59.2 career completion percentage, 6.6 YPA, 33 TDs, 34 INTs. Frickin' Hall of Fame numbers if I've ever seen any, huh? HUH?! Nah, for real though, I'd say Ben, Eli and Rivers. Eli gets the edge of Rivers because of the championships.
  14. Accuracy, throwing receivers open, making tight-window throws, reading defenses, working through progressions, the willingness to take some risks in order to allow his teammates to make a play.
  15. This scenario is something that has picked up steam over the last week. I dunno if it's the media trying to connect the dots or simply stirring the pot but it's coming down to the wire. At this point, I fully expect them to pull off some kind of trade to get inside the top five. I dunno who Beane thinks he's fooling when he says their draft would still be a success if they don't come away with one of the top four QBs, but in the next breath say, "I'll say it every time, it's a quarterback league, you must have a franchise QB. That's a GM's job, to find a franchise QB."
  16. Oh holy crap. Pitchforks would've been out before the first quarter of their first career start was done. Even if they end up with the kid who turns out to be the best of the bunch, he's still gonna have his struggles... and we're gonna see umpteen million threads about why McBeane made a mistake, why they wasted picks to trade up, why this, why that, etc. etc. Overreaction City! At this point, I'm just ready for Thursday. Gonna be the most interesting Bills draft in years, plus, Avengers: Infinity War on the same weekend.
  17. If they can't get one of the top guys, I can surely see this kid being one of their contingency plans. From a number of scouting reports I've read, the dude is ahead of almost all the other QBs in terms of reading defenses, looking off the safety, going through progressions, etc. I have a lot of faith in the guys running the show over at OBD now so I'm on board with whoever they get. What I can't wait for is watching a good part of the fanbase have an absolute meltdown the moment the new QB (no matter where he was picked) throws a pick or has a bad game. I can see it now... let's go hypothetical, the Bills get, eh... Darnold... he plays in his first game and goes 15 of 28 for 267 yards, one TD and 2 picks and a couple of sacks. Several people will be screaming: "SEE?!?!?! I told you all! ALL OF YOU DIDN'T LISTEN TO ME!!! I am the message board genius and I KNEW this Darnold kid was a bum!!! A friggin' bum!! Pack your bags, Beane!! Fire McDermott!! 200 more years of no playoffs, I for one will not be around to watch it!!! I am DONE with this team!! AAAUHFUERHFRHUFRHRJHRFODFDFIHD!!!!!!!!!"
  18. 100%. He's third all-time in rushing for the Bills behind only Thurman and that other guy.
  19. Word in New England is Brady is leading some kinda anti-Belicheck revolt. I think a lot of players up there are getting worn out of the grumpy old man schtick. First Belicheck barred Alex Guerrero (Brady's personal trainer, Gronk was also training with him) last season and ripped Gronk a new one in front of the entire team for working with Guerrero. Then he benched Butler for the Super Bowl over a "rules violation" that has never been explained to any player. And then other players, like Amendola, were tired of performing well only to be asked to take a pay cut after the season. Amendola took three straight pay cuts over the past few seasons. This season he was looking for a moderate extension and raise from the Pats, they passed, so he signed a two-year $12 million dollar ($8 million guaranteed) with Miami. I'd say methinks Belicheck is losing the locker room but this is the Pats and no matter what happens these M!@#$s always find a way to make it work and win a crapload of games and run deep into the playoffs. So... until Brady retires (Gronk can leave that team and they'll still be fine, they win without him all the time) I'll continue to believe they'll be just fine and contend for a championship as always. But hopefully this is the first few bricks falling out of the whole foundation for these turds. I have friends who favor the NFC and NFC teams and even they're sick of the Pats dynasty. Time for it to end.... in probably five more years, haha.
  20. I like Sony Michel in the second. He models his game after Shady, would be great to get him and have him learn from Shady for a season or two.
  21. O'Leary has played well in spots but he's dispensable. If he puts together a solid 8 or 10 games I could see him being rewarded with a modest contract extension. But I don't think the Bills are settled at the TE position. I'd bet money that this is Clay's last season here and wouldn't be surprised if they tried to grab one of these rookie TEs coming up this year as it's a decent TE group.
  22. Man, if they thought Watkins was a diva, I can't imagine what they think of Dez...
  23. I'd like to see Mayfield's passing chart just to see how many of his completions were "gimmies" as in easy throws like bubble screens, dump-offs, short in-breaking routes, etc. It'd also be nice to see charts for the other guys as well to see which parts of the field they excel at throwing to.
  24. I typically buy the draft hat each year (like to collect stuff) but passed on last years and feel like I might pass on this years too. Design and color-wise I think it's fine, just not a huge fan of using a slogan in lieu of the team name or logo or name of city. At least this one isn't too bad. Some of the other hats have some lame slogans. Like the Miami hat. It says "Go Fins." Shouldn't it be "Go Phins" instead? They aren't rooting for a singular fin out there. But, also, it's Miami so HA HA, losers.
  25. Good stuff here, Shaw. There's definitely something to be said for the players that come from small schools and have had to really work for everything they have. I think a mix of players like that and players from big time schools with experience in the biggest games in front of the biggest crowds can be beneficial to a team. If the coaches figure out the best methods to reach and teach their players and are able to combine those elements... then I think they'd stand a pretty good chance of winning. Coaching makes a huge difference as well. Coaches have to understand how their players learn and figure out what they have to do to get the most out of a player. They can't scream and yell at everyone and expect a 100% success rate. I can't remember the specifics but I read about a coach who had a player join his team and this player was talented. But the player had a difficult time understanding the system the coach was running. They'd practice and prep all week but then on gameday the results just weren't there. Eventually the coach figured out what type of learner this player was and that coach went and taught himself as much as he could on how he could help this player learn. Once he did that, the results they were looking for finally showed up. Interesting that you mention Coughlin, too. He was always known as a hot-head, hard-nosed, "my way or the highway" type of coach who would go bananas over the most mundane things. Players began to tune him out. Coaches finally told Coughlin the vibe in the locker room and Coughlin realized he had to take a step back, reevaluate his methods and find a better way to reach his players. He learned how to keep his temper under control, he showed more interest in players lives off the field and they ended up winning the Super Bowl that year. Would really be awesome to sit down and talk about this stuff with McBeane, or really any pro coach or GM, just to see what they think the right formula is for a winning team.
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