Richard Noggin

Gotta draft especially well for the expensive positions (QB/DE/CB, etc.)

Uh...what?

Why the hate for a solid and appropriate football metaphor? The connotation for me goes immediately to the Peyton Manning prime years with the Colts. Manning's pregame routine with Harrison was regimented and becoming legendary; their rapid, robotic, rote execution of each of the nine routes during warm-ups represented something we in Buffalo had been missing for a number of years already, and would continue to miss for many more: high-end, precise passing execution. I remember that a reluctant/aloof Reggie Wayne didn't really emerge until he swallowed his pride and began to participate in the ritualistic preparation that goes into being consistently great. Anyone raised on Air Coryell offensive football, as my mom made sure I was, could appreciate that kind of nearly-impossible-to-defend passing precision. Anyways, the route tree itself looks less like a tree and more like a dandelion puffy with seeds. Major sidebar, batman. Apologies.

To be fair, that was a 3-4 alignment, technically. So a longer, pass-rushing OLB who could also set the edge was instrumental. The Bills current D is different, in many ways. I'm sure you know that, though, and of course a #2 overall talent like #97, on the field, has a home in really any scheme/alignment.

No doubt. They let the ancillary stuff overshadow the primary factor: can the player play at the next level? What does the film say? Now, by that logic, unfortunately, the Bills have a young QB whose college film must be rationalized with all the other factors and tools. Sure hope that's an outlier situation...

I'll have to disagree here. Teller looks to me like the definition of solid o-line depth: young guy with some physical tools who has started in the league. I hope the Bills find someone better to start, but a cost-controlled backup with upside (however limited you might think it is, some see upside there) sounds just about right? Am I wrong? Is it just that you think Teller has no business on the field ever?

Great illustration of Occam's Razor right here. I think you just Richard-punched most draft pundits and their entire artificial draft news cycle nonsense. Only medicals and interviews mean much once the college season ends, except in rare circumstances. Watch the film. Talk to the kids. Make sure they have cartilage in their joints. Draft the best overall players available, for the most part. You're either filling holes OR creating competition and depth. Both things are good. Keep adding talent to the roster.

Things aren't black-and-white, even though people want them to be. Productivity and longevity alone don't mean someone was the best, although it can be difficult to argue against. Stats help us bring objectivity into the discussion, but it's ultimately such a subjective analysis. Therefore, I hate Rob Gronkowski. He was a terrible tight end. The end.

Now of course what you need to do is compare the total numbers of players at each position (WR and TE) drafted in each round, against the numbers of productive and elite players drafted in those same rounds, to see a better correlation of hit-vs-miss probability. I'm an English prof, though, so stats isn't my strong suit. But it makes sense, right? Could it be that fewer total TEs get drafted early (as compared to QB, WR, OT, DE, DT, CB, etc.), therefore spreading out the numbers (of productive/elite players) based simply on greater quantities going later in the draft? Without doing a single keystroke of research, I will make a bold assertion: productive guards and running backs are available in rounds 2-4. (But of course really good ones often do still get drafted highly nonetheless, which of course complicates the matter.) I appreciate the conversation you're starting here, and I hope people want to engage.

I know, right? I wish the league would have let him wear a weapon on one of his arms so he could have at least defended himself against the onslaught this behemoth of a man faced from much smaller DBs and LBs. At least once he should have just assaulted one of those smaller men for trying hard to defend him. I mean, what gives? Playing him physically in the NFL? Totally out of line. Seriously, poor Gronk.

Glad Tre White still has full use of HIS...

Is 16 penalties over 4 seasons a lot? I know a few more were declined over the years, but committing a penalty in less than half the games each season doesn't strike me as alarming. That being said, I have done zero research to contextualize his penalty frequency.

I moonlight at Tempo, turns out. Have for years. Was there for the Mario Williams buzz and all that. I think everyone knows that restaurant has been pretty closely connected to the team for a long time. We've been privy to some significant and candid team functions. So we were busy as ever that night, and we don't have a TV on the main floor. But we were keeping each other posted as best we could, and the guys upstairs had the game on. I was walking out to the dining room, knowing it was fourth down, figuring there was no way they'd pull it off. So when the Bengals scored, the noises from upstairs were insane. I truly thought someone had fallen through the ceiling, or maybe tumbled down the stairs. The building actually shook. Guests at tables were watching and hugging. It was pretty nuts. Cool memory, even though I didn't watch it happen in real time.

Unless it is different kinds of deers. Like the feast of seven fishes, and so on...

Meh. His uncle was a shameful young man, too. Apples and trees...

These rankings show an addition of two above average linemen. We now have three instead of one. According to these rankings. That's improvement. And maybe someone else develops under new coaching, with better linemates? Not an unreasonable projection...

That's what she said.

I miss Steve Smith's touchdown celebrations. The canoe bit was a classic.

I am happy with Dorsey as the QB coach, but...you DO realize Culley was a high-level college QB, right? His NFL coaching experience was primarily at the WR position, but his personal experience as a player was as a QB, so... Why are people so uninformed?

Scary, intense, and mostly illegal. But, I'm in...

Looks like we need to do a supplemental Wife Draft for Jim Halpert. I'm a Pam guy all the way, but I understand the contrarian love for Karen.

This is who YOU'D pick, right? Rather than who you think the BILLS will pick? Because recent history shows a mid-to-late round leaning towards underappreciated and/or smaller school guys. You're rocking all major school/conference prospects here. Also, you see Fant's athleticism far outweighing the quiet criticisms about his effort/grit, yes?

Hopefully some posters will actually read the Charlotte Observer profile. Give us great insight on how this guy is wired, and what players can expect. Sounds good to me. The Carolina griping is just lazy (and/or funny, depending on who the Bills bring in).

I'm not crying you're crying

Moot versus mute. Easy mistake. And frankly, I don't think oline is a group you "fix" in FA. I think you draft and sign guys (but mostly draft) continuously until your cupboards overfloweth. Once you have a QB to build around, you can't eff around with patchwork olines (like Seattle did for a couple years, for example.)