Mikie2times

Let’s try this for a second. A 2nd year 4th round pick makes 8 starts nearly goes for 700 yards and 7 TD’s and he sucks because he went into New England IN THE PLAYOFFS and had a bad game. Makes Sense. By the way just out of curiosity do you live in MAC country, or is your infinite wisdom based solely on your draft guides? In MAC world if you’re not from Ohio or Michigan, odds are you never watched much Miami (OH) ball, and if you did it certainly wasn’t enough to pretend you know everything about freaking Martin Nance.

Valid point, but at the same time that doesn't mean those teams from the past went unaffected by this. As much as people want to make a mockery of these sessions they DO matter to the overall improvement of the team. The Bills need to install a brand new offense and defense, while other teams may be returning 75% of their starters and remain in the same system. The point is you only have so many days until kickoff and everyday of preparation does matter in a game with such a small margin for error.

I agree that he is not NFL ready in those areas, all of which play a critical role to an every down receiver. But what I see happening with Nance is him making this team because he can provide our receivers with a dimension we just don't have right now. In the past we haven't run many fade patterns and if we did it was to Moulds. With Moulds gone we have no WR on this roster that can run that pattern around the goal line. With the RZ problems we had last year that dimension could win Nance a spot he probably wouldn't win on a team with larger WR's.

At 6'4 with his arm length that should be more then enough VJ.

Reggie Germany

Just came across this thread. Like many I never met Paul, but I've always enjoyed his posts. He and his wife obviously shared a very special connection, one that is rare in today’s world. Rest in peace TBD brother.

Its almost 3:30am, can't you at least wait for the morning crew to divert my thread

I know he's a UDFA so spare me the line about he has to make the roster first. Being a Western Michigan Alum I witnessed Nance's jump ball skill first hand. Needless to say the guy can elevate, and he does a fantastic job catching the ball at it's highest point. If done right the fade is a very difficult move for DB to defend and virtually impossible to defend against someone with Nance’s height and leaping ability. His route running/speed/agility is not NFL caliber yet, but for the time being if Nance can just become our jump ball man in the Red Zone it could make the difference between making the playoffs and being at home. Ernest Wilford

4.05 On grass right?

I'm going with a good friend from college, also a Bears fan. I'm also thinking the Detroit game should get a good Bills turn out.

On PASSING downs the cover two generally turns into a cover 3 with the two safeties covering the outside 1/3 of the field, and the Mike LB covering the deep middle 1/3 of the field. So if it is a passing down, such as 3rd and 5 or longer how does London’s play recognition or tackling ability outweigh his less then ideal cover skills? In a zone defense in passing situations the defenders job is to get into his zone as fast as possible and defend everything within that area. London’s short, doesn't have a big vertical, and doesn't have a tremendous amount of athleticism in the passing game. What he does well is stop the run, and with situational subs available it just doesn't make sense to assign him such a critical part of real estate in the passing game

In passing situations the cover 2 defenses relies on a linebacker strong enough in coverage to turn the cover two into a three deep look. The Mike linebacker is often the player looked at to fill this requirement. London Fletcher will be our Mike LB in running situations but in passing situations the role will probably be up for grabs. Here is an early look at the camp battle for this important role. London Fletcher- London will be the Mike linebacker in running situations, but having him stay in at the Mike LB in passing situations might become a liability. London's short stature, and less then ideal coverage skills would make him a target of athletic TE's and WR's posts down the seem. Takeo Spikes- A healthy Takeo Spikes would be perfect in this role, a fast strong LB with great coverage skills. But as we all know he is coming off an injury many don't recover from. If he does eventually return to 100% his speed will still be reduced during at least the early portion of the 2006, year and probably the whole season. Keith Ellison- Being a late draft picks it was difficult to consider Ellison in this role so early, but at the same time it was clear the Bills drafted him for his pass coverage skills. Most pundits said he wouldn't be a full time LB in the NFL, but that's fine for us if he can become a strong Mike LB in passing situations. Angelo Crowell- Crowell came in last year and had to replace the best player on this defense. He did that rather admirably, and showed enough coverage and athleticism for me to believe he can play the Mike on passing downs. IMO London won't under any circumstances remain at middle LB in passing situations. In this system it would be like fitting a square peg in a round hole. So essentially it's a three man race between TKO, Ellison, and Crowell. If TKO is fully recovered he is the best fit but I can’t see that happening in just one year. Given Ellison’s lack of experience it would lead me to believe Crowell is the early leader for this role.

That was bad, but in no way was it as bad as the "Just Give it to them" game. As for the throwback game I still won't watch it. Every loss hurts, and the ones with more at stake hurt the most. Obviously Norwood’s kick is the most painful moment in the history of this franchise but the fact is he still missed a FG. Under those circumstance most Bills fans knew we had about a coin flip chance of being world champions. The throwback was a different kind of hurt. When Christie put us up that late nobody considered the Titans might still win, and absolutely no one could have predicted they would win in that fashion. Then as many pointed out the Titans would go onto the super bowl, a destiny many feel we would have had. To sum it up take the complete opposite feeling the comeback gave me and that’s pretty much how I felt that day.

Detroit, 1989 Shanikwa: Eddie, get of yo a** and change that babies diaper Eddie: Damn baby, chill, I'm watchin the Bad Boys Shanikwa:You know you haven't done a damn thang all day,lazy,no job havin... Eddie: Do I look like da Baby's Momma? Shanikwa: Oh no you did not…….

Good post. Character on the field in many ways is exactly what you/Levy describe it to be. Is a player going to give 100% effort when he's playing, and will a player do everything possible to maximize his natural limitations when he's not playing. That's what football character means to me. Just like in many aspects of life a football player can vastly exceed his natural limitations if he has these attributes. But what's more difficult to define, and subsequently more difficult to find is players who not only possess football character but character as a PERSON. In life character as a person can mean many different things, and is much broader then the type of character a person needs to fit in on a NFL team. To put it simply a player does not need to be a Saint to have enough character as a person to be a good NFL teamate. But what a player does need is an accepting attitude toward his teammates and general respect for his fellow teammates. He also can't have an egocentric outlook because with that approach a player will have a very difficult time meeting the two previously mentioned character requirements. Finding both types of character in a player is critical because without both types the football character of the team will certainly be affected. Teams thrive with chemistry and acceptance in the locker room, and the number one thing that can boost the team’s football character is a genuine desire to achieve not only for yourself but for the guy next to you. Congrats to Marv and Co. As they appeared to nab several guys this year that not only have both types of character but that also have a great deal of physical talent.

Unfortunately I still think Juice is the best pure RUNNER in Bills history. If I had to rank the top 5 it would probably be 1. Juice 2. Thurman 3. Cookie 4. Willis 5. Travis Willis and Travis are equal but I suspect Willis will surpass him this year in terms of production in a Bills uniform. You also have to figure Willis should get at least slightly better with more healing time so I'll give him the nod over Travis.

I am, but from the magic of NFL films not memory.

I bet Willis has smoked Marijuana before

I live in Ohio

I think the problem with these types of players is simple, they just don't understand how difficult the NFL is. Physical ability can only take you so far in a game stock full of world class athletes. In college the physically gifted often get buy on talent alone. But in the NFL this couldn't be further from the truth. We see so many upsets because the talent level in the NFL is paper thin down the line. The best master the tricks of the trade, and motivate those around them to achieve. You simply can't do that off physical talent. It explains how marginal athletes by NFL standards have been able to become hall of famers, and that top 5 sure thing that's out of football in 3 years.

Can you even imagine how sick this trio was in high school? Whitner Bio

Atleast it's not underware

Starting to feel the same. I’ll be 24 next Saturday, what I wouldn't give for those years again. You always hear people say how great it is when your that age but you never really know until your worries go from which Liquor shall I drink to how the hell am I going to pay the bills this month. Live it up man.

It's not as simple as him just losing the weight. He tore THREE ligaments in his knee. It takes years and sometimes never happens for RB's that tear ONE ligament to return to form in the NFL. Willis was thrown into the NFL basically needing to reinvent himself as a runner. He's not explosive anymore, not like the freak at the U, so he worked out like a mad man trying to become more of a power back. If Willis can return to the more balanced back he was in college the weight will come off. I just feel at this point we shouldn't be expecting this to happen, it could, but if he just ends up being a Duce Staley type we should be happy given the risk involved in drafting him.

1. S- Donte Whitner 1. C- Nick Mangold 3. TE- Leonard Pope 4. S- Ko Simpson 5. OT- Jonathan Scott 5. DT- Anthony Montgomery 6. LB- Keith Ellison 7. OG- Mark Setterstrom 7. RB- Andre Hall