Webster Guy

Freddy, Kyle, Mario (hey if Lynch and McGahee can make it as injury replacements then FJax belongs for sure) Barnett and Dareus alternates.

The "send the kitchen sink" idea you speak of seems like it would make sense but good NFL qb's with decent receivers almost always burn the blitz, sometimes for long gains. Used sparingly it can work, but as everyone seems to know these days, linemen on both sides of the ball decide the majority of outcomes. It's not schemes or complexities, it's big tough athletes winning the trenches. If you're lucky enough to have the right personnel and even luckier to have them healthy at playoff time, you have a shot. That's why depth is so key on the front lines and why Nix is looking for a less injury prone LT right now. Rushing four allows you at least two free defenders that can double-cover the other teams weapons like Gronk, Welker,(I was gonna say Brandon Marshall but the fins traded him thankfully) Plaxico--guys in our division that burned us last year because we had single man coverage on them far too much. If we split with NE and the Jets and beat Miami twice then win 6 out of 10 outside our division it gives us a legit playoff shot. I worry that one of these years the Pats are going to have a decent draft and get unbeatable again.

Actually we beat the Pats this year too, and damn near beat the Giants. We aren't that far away, but our defensive investment in both draft picks and money is very heavy compared to offense. Nix will go with his BPA on the board (minus running backs) and go for an instant starter. That means OT, WR or CB in this year's top 10.

I think we might re-sign him because he won't cost that much. It's not that he hasn't shown interest in being here, it's just that he's an injury prone former 7th round draft pick who is hitting free agency for the first time and he knows this is probably the last contract in his life he will sign in the NFL so he's trying to get every penny he can. I'm sure Green Bay offered him an incentive type contract after his workout there, but Bell is obviously looking for as much guaranteed money as possible. He's probably done with talks until the draft is over and everyone sees where the chips land and what holes they have left to fill. I hope we let him walk unless he signs for backup-type money.

We've been saying this for a long time. Nobody cares that they can SEE the official looking at the replay on the field. It's like, wait are you kidding me? you're actually wheeling out a television in the snow for an official to look at the replay when you have a high speed machine and a bank of monitors upstairs? If they're so worried about some mysterious officiating then put a camera on the official in the upstairs booth. I'm not kidding when I say I have tivo'd NFL games on a delayed start just so I don't have to sit there and watch the super slow mo replays over and over and over again. And TIVO kills advertising revenue because people just blow by the ads, the NFL should know that. The advertisers do.

That Von Miller is too small to beat NFL tackles, and Cam Newton is the next Jamarcus Russel ( my words )

I love that pic of him during the redskins game. what a great day for bills fans. shutting out shanahan (the genius) and snyder, sacks and pressures every play, dareus unblockable and all over ESPN that night.

If Anderson has the same type of year he had for the Pats, he is worth $6M all day.

We will pick a LT either way because Bell is simply not durable enough to count on for an NFL season. He hurts that shoulder every year, forget all the knee and ankle stuff, a guy like that takes reps away from us having consistency at our most important Oline spot. I'd rather have a dude that has 80% of the talent but solid durability so I know we aren't going into the playoffs with another patched up line.

I agree that he's improved quite a bit in some of those areas but he wasn't just a downhill guy. He could get to the corner and turn it upfield pretty well even when he was first on the team. And for the record, I know anything is possible with NFL roster moves, but Nix is not Tom Donahoe. Buddy understands team chemistry and leadership and the value that hardworking productive team-players bring to a squad. Letting Fred Jackson go would crush this team in so many ways. It's the last thing in the world we will do and it's not just because it takes two good running backs to be a great team.

Life is too busy to watch college football? Jeez, I love it.

I agree that the #1 or #2 receiver thing is so outdated and irrelevant in a spread offense. I also think our starting four WR's after the dust settles from camp will be Stevie, Nelson, Jones and Hagan (maybe Easley). Throw in Chandler at TE and they give you QB chemistry, size, blocking and toughness. And they get open. We don't need to burn our 1st round pick on a head case WR, we need to keep focusing on fixing what is broken. OT, linebacker depth, another corner etc. We need can't-miss picks. Talent and character. Floyd is too risky at a position we're already good at. Buddy is going to just go to his board after the Miami pick and I don't think Floyd will be ranked high enough for us to take him there. My guess is OT, LB, corner, WR in the first four.

good post, i don't usually troll on the message boards behind enemy lines but it was interesting to see their take on the signing. One poster stuck in my mind, "yeah the defense looks tough but they still have a qb that threw as many picks as TD's last year" This is sad but true, and why I think we will go LT in the first round. Our QB needs to have a major shift in the way he plays the game this year. If you are leading the league in picks AND sacked the least in the league, it means you're pulling the trigger too early. This means you either don't trust your line, or you get too used to throwing quick timing routes so that when it's 3rd and 12 and you have to let some routes develop downfield a little, you lose your mechanics/accuracy/or ability to read your coverages. Fitz is reportedly good at presnap reads and adjustments (I wouldn't know) but after the snap his downfield strikes need to be more efficient and on the money. I remember someone saying Fitz drops his shoulder and loses his throwing integrity when throwing 20 yards or more, or when zipping a fastball in a tight spot. Our Quarterback's coach needs to be an all star this offseason.

Merriman will have to beat out Mark Anderson to be our pass rushing specialist. Either way we have a deadly 4 man rush on passing downs and we have depth as well. Wanny is big on getting 4 animals upfront and having the remaining 7 focused on contain and cover. He's not a gimmick guy--stack the deck on the line and dare em to throw. No zone blitzes or complexities. Get pressure with four, stuff the run and keep em under 17 points a game. Training camp will be interesting this year because that open DE spot is still up for grabs in non-passing downs. Anderson is too small to play 1st and 2nd down in a 4-3 which is why guys like Dwan and Carrington and Spencer are probably all dying for the opportunity to be the starting 4th man on a line with 3 other pro bowlers. LB's will be interesting too. I think they will only keep one from the Batten/Moats tandem and give White one more year. I wish camp started today.

I know we had significant room for spending but we've signed Fitz, Stevie, Mario and now Mark Anderson, and have committed to signing Fred Jackson. Does anybody have the scoop on where we stand now? Is Pegula donating to the Bills personnel fund these days or what? We obviously must have room to pay our 2012 draft picks as well but it seems like we must be out of cash for a few years now. Does anybody have the data?

I was thinking about that too, but the Bills have flexibility with Fred because he's still under contract through next year so my guess is they could still guarantee him good money but just backload it so his major cap hit is next year (and subsequent years in the form of a roster bonus or something) to work around Mario's deal. I also think with a guy like Freddie who is a stand up guy and probably a Buffalonian for life, they might include some sort of team-involvement contract after his playing days are over.

Thank you for saving me from having to explain that to people. It's maddening. Some guy on the Buffalo News comments section was just droning on and on how Stevie is not a true number one (the guy who had back to back 1000 yard seasons and schooled Revis last year) They're worse than the "franchise qb" people. Hagan has perfect size and looked great against NE last year. I think he makes the top 4 WR's and starts in the spread formation. Nelson Stevie Hagan and Jones. All those guys can get open and are strong athletic good sized Wr's that can block.

Kill this thread then

I like our receivers anyway. Spend the money on OL depth, protect our QB so he can have an extra second or two this year and we'll be fine on offense

Awesome reference I love that episode. "how many miles?" Two. "city or highway." Everytime I see a van with a for sale sign on i remember that line "I don't think I want to meet the people who are in the market for a USED van..."

If this goes down we will have three pro bowl defensive linemen next year in Dareus, Kyle, and Mario Williams. Its as close to an instant fix as you can find in the NFL. The reason I think this might be legit is that Ralph is probably saying I have ONE more run at this elusive trophy and I can't take the cash with me so lets win now at all costs. I mean, everyone is signed that we want to sign on our team, so if there is room to make the deal then why on earth wouldn't we? What do we have to lose, a year without being in the playoffs? hmmmmm

I agree that we need OL depth but I think Buddy is going to say goodbye to the perennially injured guys this year. I don't see him re-signing Bell, Roscoe or even keeping Easley around unless he shines in camp early. I base this simply on his tone of voice at the presser where you could tell he's fed up with guys that aren't around for the team at the end of the season when teams with durability and consistency are making playoff runs. I think he might draft an LT in the first round this year, use Hairston as the floater and Bell is gone. Personally I think Hairston could do the job. We ran the ball well last year and our pass protection seemed decent when he was in there.

Ingram Strengths: Speed to turn the corner Rare athlete Agility to sink his hips/shoulder to get leverage on tackles Strength Has a powerful bull rush A developed repertoire of pass rushing moves Nice rip move Good spin move Propensity to make splash plays Active hands Has the strength to anchor and hold his ground vs. the run Versatile to play end or tackle on passing downs Quick get-off Shedding blocks Excellent technique Natural pad level Too quick for guards to handle Plays hurt Consistently productive Experienced starter Weaknesses: Short arms Lack of height Unique body type has the capacity to turn him into a tweener Does not have a natural position fit in a 3-4 defense All four weaknesses seem meaningless.

OK so who is a real coach that you think Ralph refused to pay to come to Buffalo? Who is the genius GM that had the skills to turn this team around but was asking too much money? Is it Shanahan, the guy who we shutout and embarrassed on a neutral field last year, the guy with 11 wins in 2 years? What about the GM? We had the best draft last year vs. the other three in our division. What brilliant GM and talent evaluator did we miss? You said Ralph never "conducted a real search for a GM" so what team DID? Dolphins? Eagles? Chiefs? Who got it right? Your comment about paying a 7th round pick big money makes no sense at all. So we should've let Stevie walk is that what you're saying? The only back to back 1000 yard Bills receiver who is young and talented and the only NFL receiver who doesn't get shut down by Revis our division rival. What's your solution then, to let him go when we have the cap room to sign him AND he's giving us a hometown discount because we drafted him and were patient with his development? So tell us all, who is the "real coach" or GM you're talking about? It's a pretty short list so instead of attacking the owner, lets hear your genius opinion, even WITH the benefit of hindsight. Look, I can't stand that Ralph doesn't communicate with the fans about a succession plan for the team, but I hate when people say we haven't invested in front office people or coaches. We have an excellent head coach right now and the best GM we've had since Polian. Ask any NFL analyst about Chan or Wannstedt and they'll say we have a very solid 1/2 punch. Experienced, driven guys that know their stuff and get the most out of their personnel. Playoff caliber coaching. Now our GM has us lined up for double picks in the 4th and 5th round with probably EVERY player from last year's draft making the team again this year. I don't see it the way you see it at all.

Kinda looks like a swastika in Fitz's head.