FLFan

Perhaps the glass is not as full as the original poster hopes - there are no doubt question marks - but neither is the "glass is always empty" view of Mickey the likely answer. There is ample reason for optimism - especially since it is only May. I am not sure why you would even bother to be interested if you did not think so, but some people clearly prefer overwhelming negativity. I guess that way you can always say "I told you so" if things do not work out. Personally, I am cautiously optimistic and anxious to see this team on the field again come September - then we will see. Go Bills.

Sounds kind of gay, no? Not that there is anything wrong with that!

Prior to the draft the Bills had 11 DBs on the roster - 6 corners and 5 safetys. Out of that group, they keep at least 9 and likley 10. That does not leave much room for competition. Anyone really believe it is not possible to find upgrades over the second tier of this group? Of course it is. They needed competition and depth at this position. They have addressed the depth issue at OT and DT through UDFAs. Little difference to me between a 6th or 7th round draft choice and a UDFA. I understand the concern that we seem to be focussed on DBs, but the reality is you need more DBs than any other position and you have to plan for injuries and keep compeition in the group. No problem at all with these picks from my perspective, and I am thrilled we finally drafted what looks to be a potential legitimate free safety in Round 2, especially when 3 out of 4 picks in rounds 1 and 2 were linemen. (of course if they went DB in the first round I would have puked in my beer)

My brain hurts from the idiocy of the original post. I am going to stop reading now.

Who are they, this mysterious secret cabal of big time investors and Buffalo backers? Why is Jim Kelly the front man? I do not doubt Kelly's sincerity about wanting to make something happen, but until such time as the details are known, and the real business people behind the supposed group step up, it remains a fantasy, not reality. You seem to assume because Jim Kelly said so it must be and that it would happen if only cheap old Ralph would come to the table. If there is a group and a plan I am sure we would all like to hear it, most of all the Buffalo Bills. Until then, keep putting your teeth underneath your pillow. As regards the Steelers, check your facts. They never have been a free spending franchise - just the opposite. They are a model of how to succeed with fiscal responsibility. They have never been big players in free agency and have let many rising stars go to free agency over the years rather than over pay. They choose to target and pay a few core players and build through the draft. By the way, they also have a brand new state of the art facility and a very strong coporate base of support in Pittsburgh, neither of which Buffalo has. I am sure nobody cares that I live in MD, I was just making the point that reality in other NFL cities is very different than in Buffalo. Apparently you missed the point - you douche. Not sure I understand your last point - really does not make any sense.

The supposed "Jim Kelly ownership group" is a fantasy. There is no such thing - just a wish and prayer. I am really sick of so called Bills fans criticizing Ralph Wilson and calling him every name in the book. If not for him, there would be no Bills football. The simple fact is he could have sold this team 20 times by now to out of town groups, or moved it himself, and made tons more money. To say he has been all about money is being ignorant of the facts. Today's NFL is all business, and there are no current owners who sacrifice profits for championships - another myth. The fact of the modern NFL is it takes luxury stadiums, mega corporate support, and very high end ticket priices to sustain the business model. Any group buying the bills will surely need to borrow in excess of $500 million and with that debt load survival in Buffalo alone is not an option. I live in Maryland - try buying a single game ticket for the Ravens or Redskins and you will see what I mean. The season ticket packages, which required PSL fees, when they were available, were out of the price range of 90% of Bills fans. Grow up - enjoy the team while you can and pray that Wilson lives to 110. If sacrificing a few home games a year keeps the "Buffalo Bills" in business, then I am all for it, as sad and regrettable as it is. This efort by Wilson is his last, and perhaps best option, for ensuring survival in Buffalo in some form long term.

If the Bills can pick up an extra #1 and another day 1 pick for Peters, while unloading a major distraction, and for now a liability, in the process, this is a step forward in my opinion. They can pick up two potential OL starters with those picks and still address other holes at LB, DE, and TE. This is a win for a team with as many holes as the Bills. It is too bad this situation has developed with Peters but letting it drag into another season would be madness, as would paying him as the best left tackle in the league when he is not given the situation. Perhaps he could be with committment to the position and the team, but lacking that he is a liability. I wish him luck - time to move on.

Jay Remeirsma came in a trade from Pittsburgh if my memory serves. (and it may not).

They may offer it but I do not think he will accept. I think Peters is gone - mentally now, and physically by the end of the first round of the draft.

Assuming the speculation about Peters is correct (and it does make sense) then I say trade for a number 1 and go LT, TE, and LB. I woyuld love the choices discussed. Pettrigew and Matthews would be great. As for the LT spot, I would be OK with Smith, and there will be others available. Peter's had had one good season at LT. He is more hype than reality at this point, and his attitude is clearly hurting the team. Excise the cancer and pick up an extra player of you can.

At the risk of being labeled "irrational" or "bitter" by those of you who seem to know everything, I would have to disagree with your conclusion that this has been a smart strategy. Despite all of Peters' foot stomping, he is still under contract for the previously committed amount - for two more years. He still must play for that money or be satisfied to end his career without another dime. The Bill's still own the power position here. The fact that Peters made the pro bowl last year is inconsequential. By all rational standards his play was subpar. Reputation often carries players beyond their performance, but this does not last. In other words, if he pulls another lazy off season and extended hold out, that pro bowl streak is over. Do you honestly think other teams, evaluating potential interest in some future free agency, will over look his attitude and poor performance directly resulting from his unwillingness to play to his contract? His value in this respect deminishes as time goes on. Finally, there is the injury situation. His career could be over the next time he takes a snap. As he is under contract to the Bills, not taking that risk does not improve his position. If he steps on the field, he risks getting nothing. Given all that, is his agent playing this smart, or playing this for a maximum payout to his commission account, without regard to Jason's best interests? I say the latter, but of course I must be irrational and bitter. The Bills hold the cards. I encourage them to play those cards to maximum advantage for the franchise over the long term. If that means letting him sit - let him sit. If it means trading him for reasonable value (high number 1 at least) , then so be it. They should not cave in to unreasonable demands from a greedy agent and a misguided and more than slightly ignorant football player, no matter how indespensible he thinks he is. There is no one, in any job, that can not be replaced.

34 is OLD for a cornerback. While it does not necessarily make him too old and slow to play the position at a high level, I have watched him locally since he has been in Washington and he has been injured often. When healthy, he is a shell of his former self. He is definitely past it which is why the Redskins dumped him. The difference with TO at that age is that although he does not appear to be 100% of his prime career self, he still plays at a very high level. That is unsual for either a WR or a CB at 35. I do not really know the other guy (Bodden) but Springs is mediocre at best.

Like, Romeo Crennel? Charlie Weiss? Eric Mangini? or were you just kidding?

He would be third string strong safety and third string punt returner on the Bills, just like before he was not resigned. What is with this fascintation? He is an average player at best who had the good fortune to be the back up safety on a team with a great front seven, an all time player beside him in Ed Reed, who had no other options when the starter went out. Get over it.

I know everyone is in the mood to whine, but I just do not see it here. The Bills worked him out, made an offer his agent admits was impressive, but the player decided on Miami because of a better fit of scheme to his skills. Exactly how does that point to the Bills FO being wrong here? People are upset at the Bills FO in general - I get it. The facts here simply do not justify the whining. Lets see what happens when the real game begins.

Not sure where people are getting the $160 million number from with regard to the Rich Stadium renovation in 1998. The actual project cost was around $60 million, and it was a massive struggle to get that. The following link will take you to that informnation and an interesting review of "the Ralph". http://football.ballparks.com/NFL/BuffaloBills/index.htm The sad reality is that WNY can not afford to compete in the modern NFL with cities that can dump massive amounts of taxpayer funds into stadium construction. At the prices the Bill's charge, they can not afford to pay for them either. PSL's, very expensive suites and club seats, and extremely high prices for all extras are the norm.

I think you are dead on here. TE was a different QB starting in game 7. Once the turnover/mistake fest started, he seemed to withdraw and certainly did not play with the same confidence, waiting for recievers to open instead of throwing with confidence based on the play design. This lack of confident play by the QB kills the offense and forced the ultimate regression to a run first and dink/dunk pass offense. In the first 6 games, plenty of downfield and over the middle medium throws; after that, TE refused to throw those routes. All the histeria over Turk boils down to poor QB play mostly. I am sure he made some rookie mistakes, but he had to adjust midstream to a suddenly underperforming and under confident QB. Better QB play equals better offense, plain and simple. The Bills are simply not built or schemed like the Ravens. While it could be argued we should have followed a more conservative attack philosposhy from the beginning, the fact is the offense was built on the assumption that TE could execute it, and he simply could not after the first 6 games. Any coordinator would have looked foolish with the inept QB play we experienced in the second half. In the first 6 games (discounting the AZ game where we had to play JP) the Turk looked like a genious.

Great Post! Your reply on item #5 is particualrly right on. There is only one reason the Bills still exist in Buffalo and that is Ralph Wilson's committment to keeping the team there, despite the fact he could have made much more money elsewhere, or sold the team for hundreds of milllions at any point. Buffalo can simply not play the same game as other communities who have supported $300 to $500 million investments in new stadiums and that contain corporate sponsors and wealthy individuals in suffcient quantity to support high prices. That is the future of the NFL and Buffalo does not belong. When the old man dies, its all over, in all probability. I am intent on enjoying the team while I can, despite the failings. These anti-Ralph Wison whines I see on this board constantly annoy me to no end.

When the losing streak started Turk was getting criticized for being too creative. Now he is not creative enough. The problem on offense has been QB play - plain and simple. TE was on fire early in the season - executing crisply, with confidence, and the team had confidence in him. Then the turnover festival started with him. TE no longer plays with confidence or executes crisply. That, combined with the need to play JP who has never shown the ability to make good decisions or execute consistently, and you get bland offensive game plans and simple approaches, the hope being "at least lets limit the turnovers". Not saying I like it, but you need a QB performing well to score points in this league consistently. If TE plays better, this offense will look very different - certainly good enough to have won the last two games and the Cleveland game as well. He and JP, however, have combined to suck the life out of any offensive game plan.

Agreed. There is no way Buffalo is a playoff team. Look at what Indy and Baltimore did yesterday. The Ravens crushed an inferior opponent on the road. Indy pulled out a win on a very poor performance by their all star quaterback. These are playoff teams. The Bills could not generate a win over a supposedly inferior opponent at home, now twice in a row. They will be lucky to finish 8 and 8. 6 and 10 is not unlikley.

A few points to the discussion: - I was always a JP supporter, however, yesterday's performance by JP combbined with TE's outstanding play YTD should put this silly debate to bed once and for all. JP was certainly not the sole reason we lost, but he was terrible. Three turnovers, holding on to the ball way to long, poor judgement - we got the whole package. I am really disappointed that he could not play in a relief role and get the job done. - This game was about turnovers. The Bills had 4 turnovers leading to 24 points. Whe you put your defense on the field for 2/3 of the game because you can not hang on to the ball, this is what happens. Everything else is secondary. We have no idea what would have transpoired absent the turnovers, but it certainly would have been a closer game. - The Bills are not as good as people were making them out to be before yesterday, and not as bad as yesterday's game would indicate. This was an important learning experience. How they react as a team, and as a coaching staff, over the next 4 games will detrmine their fate, not yesterday's subpar performance. - Like every team, the Bills have some issues. They also have some great components and great potential to be very good for a long time. Lets not over react to one bad day.

The North Star is great, but no food. Its bring your own. Great hangout though. I watched the Sabres get clubed by the Senators there 2 seasons ago.

Where's Mickey?

Could not agree more. Peters is not on the team at this point. Get ready to enjoy some Bills football and accept the fact that neither you nor anyone else on this board has the slightest idea what is really being said or thought of by the Bills, and you can not control it in any case. I wish he were here, but oh well, he is not.

What a tool you are. Further response not warranted.