MJS

This has been my stance for a couple of years now. Hughes was a good player. Anyone ever claiming he was elite or even a great player is just wrong. He had some good moments here. I'm really looking forward to the future development of the defensive line.

100%.

Do we know contract details yet? I'm interested to see what he got.

I'd much rather open against a crappy team. Give the Bills a week to warm up.

Yep. We need to restock the shelves. But, having a bunch of former Bill coaches and GM's will have benefits too. Beane will have inside knowledge into those organizations and will be more privy to players becoming available, etc. Even if they brought in guys he recommended, it is still an uphill battle for talented players to make a difference on really bad teams and organizations. We saw plenty of talented players come through Buffalo during the drought, and it didn't make a measurable difference.

Not only that. They often get overlooked and so you can bring in some great individuals if you know how to find them. There are talented individuals working for every one of the 32 NFL teams. It's not fair to judge every single employee by the foibles of upper management and coaching.

Hey, if Whaley gets the job we should get draft picks for developing him...

Hope Tre White is back for that game. Guess we'll have to wait and see.

I would be very surprised. I think Singletary is the superior back in almost every single way, except maybe pass protection.

He was never "really, really good". He did have moments of competence, though.

It's not just about matching up against bigger receivers. Arm length helps you recover and make up ground on a receiver. It can be the difference between reaching out and tipping the pass for an incompletion, or reaching out and missing and the receiver makes the catch. Short arms means you have to play almost perfect. There is less room for error and recovery.

Next he needs to be honest about the phone he had destroyed during deflate gate.

Mayfield is honestly a decent QB. I'm surprised nothing has gotten done yet.

I don't think anyone is being toxic in this thread. Disagreement is not toxic. Bates was paid a multi-year deal. He is paid like a starter and I think it is clear he is viewed as a starter by the franchise. If he doesn't start, that's a huge swing and a miss by Beane considering the contract he just gave him.

I understand. I don't think he has the value that you perceive he does, but I guess we'll see.

Starts wasn't my argument, it was the argument of the OP, that we should bring in Herbig because he has starting experience. While I think there is some validity to and value to starting experience, I think that is secondary to everything else, including athleticism, scheme fit, and potential.

Get thicker skin, I guess. There was nothing wrong with his comment. They've been trying to replace Wallace ever since he got here (without investing a ton in the position). I think the writing was on the wall. They wanted an upgrade regardless of that game.

Cody Ford is a better athlete and a better scheme fit, in my opinion. Ford has started 29 games versus only 17 for Herbig (and starting experience was the main argument in the OP for bringing him in). I also think Ike Boettger is a high quality backup who has performed pretty well with his starting experience. I don't feel strongly about this. I do, however, think it is not true to say that our backup linemen are really bad. I think Ford is an alright backup and Ike is a really good backup. I don't know much about Mancz. Obviously, you never want your backups to be starting because that's the nature of backups. But Ford and Boettger can get in and do alright.

Our backups aren't bad, they just aren't good starters. I completely disagree that Herbig is better depth.

One Bills Live talked about it. Said he has completely transformed himself.

I think you'd at least want to portray yourself in a better light, even if it isn't true. Guys who complain about mentoring other players come across as incredibly insecure and bitter. As a player it is always better to take the stance of "Hey, I am always willing to help out my teammates in any way I can. If young players need advice or mentoring, all they need to do is ask. I'm an open book." As a player, you always need to be mindful of your brand and your legacy.

Man, what was he thinking looking behind him as he ran?

I think he is overrated, personally. Maybe he used to be really good, but he is just average at this point.

So they can work on it all practice long. The backup QB is in the QB room and has to prepare to actually play QB and also helps get the starting QB ready.

Ford will be here. He is decent depth. I am sure Epenesa will remain as well. Moss I could see either way. Depends on how he compares to Duke Johnson, I guess. I think Sweeney will be gone. Either Andre Smith or Tyrel Dodson could be gone, given that we drafted two linebackers. Maybe Matakevich if one of those linebackers takes over his special teams snaps. Haack is for sure gone.