bills_fan

Which was then wrecked by Tom Donahoe.

Yep. Been celebrating it since I heard about it 3 years ago and pointed it out to my wife.

This is my belief as well. But MLB would still be a hole.

Nothing would make me happier than being wrong about this. But Alan Branch isn't falling to us and there are very few true one technique NTs out there. And, yes, I believe I loath Tom Donahoe more than almost any human being alive.

Damn. That sucks. What will happen...we'll draft or sign a DT who's too light in the pants, our run D will still be spotty until after next season, when Marv signs UFA Phat Pat Williams to solidify our run D. Wonderful. Thanks Donahoe.

Willis, spend some time around traders on the floor of the NYSE. I know several who have gone on to run hedge funds and their own brokerage firms. $500 million is small potatoes to these people. The coarsest (and funniest) people you'd ever want to meet.

Dobies, nice. Wonderful dogs. Seriously. I have a Malamute/Husky mix and a Pit Bull guarding the house when I'm not home. I also employ the (G)Lock strategy when I am home. Potential thieves will move on to the next house.

I haven't been over there. Apparently, Le Cirque got into a dispute with the Palace over rent. So, Sirio closed Le Cirque for almost a year, recently opening the new location at Beacon Court. The dining room is very nice, the bar is 1/3 the size of Le Cirque 200. I may be in the minority, but I feel he lost something with the move, its just agreat restaurant, not an event anymore. Le Cirque

Biggest mistake of the Donahoe era...not hiring Charlie Weis when he had a chance.

The tipping thread got me thinking...since we have folks from all over the country, name the best restaurant you've eaten at, or your favorite restaurant (it may be the same). Mine is the now closed Le Cirque 2000. IMHO, the greatest dining experience you could have. The food was fabulous, the service impeccable and atmosphere was so over-the-top fantasic; a perfect mix of the old world New York Palace and a trendy, uposcale restaurant. It was an event unto itself. The bar was always packed (and was huge, it attracted a well-heeled after work crowd). The crowd was full of whos who. I was friends with the bartenders, I was never charged for a drink in the place (believe it or not), but always left an extremely large tip. I miss the place. Honorable mentions... La Grenouille in NYC La Vie en Rose in St. Martin

Thanks for the great footage Ozymandius. I think signing him and drafting Patrick Willis would go a long way toward improving our run D.

Is there a NC Bills Backers Group? Check the Bills website. I met a ton of folks thru the NYC Bills Backers. Also, VA brings up golf. Golf is a great way to meet people. I generally play a lot here in the summer, with probably 2/3 of the rounds by myself. I get paired with different people each time. Great way to meet people. I don't know where Concord, NC is, but it sounds like you are in some type of suburban development, not the most social place. Is there a central downtown area with lots of bars/restaurants/shopping. That may be the place to live. Also, do you go right home after work? Maybe stopping for a drink at different local hotspots would be a good thing. I've met many people this way, and found some great places I never would have known about. Just a few suggestions from someone who moved to NYC and met a whole bunch of new people.

Absolutely right. But those are not the places to which I was referring. It was more someone who you have not seen brings out your food, there may be a problem or you may need more X or a knife or whatever, but that person walks away so fast and your waiter is nowhere in sight.

Why do you say that? How do you know he will gain the weight? How will he solidfy our run D? Branch I can see just due to his size and the type of player he's gone against in the Big 10 for the last couple of years. But Okoye, I'm not sure. The kid is 19. A good player for a 19 year old sure, but what happens when he goes against 330 lb guards, who are jacked and in their primes? Will he have the strength and weight to hold his ground? Has he been successful at the college level taking on guards and stopping the run? If we have two penetrating type DTs, who cleans up the mess if they miss? The MLB after shedding the blocks of the guards? Also, given that an athlete in football generally hits their prime between 24-29 years old, are we just developing Okoye for the next team a la Nate Clements? I have concerns about Okoye. His upside certainly intrigues me but I don't want a project on my hands. I, of course, may regret those words but...

Your points are all valid. Some folks are in a rush. But, depending upon the type of place you work, you should have an idea when your customers are finishing their apps. Either you bus the table or you walk by and see where they are. At that point, hit fire check on the micros, and about 10 min later their meal is done. How many tables do you usually have? At the places I've worked 7-8 is normal for a weekend. Weekdays, it was 10-12, as we had less servers on. It can get pretty crazy at times, but thats the job.

Just a thought...the team wants to get grittier. What about taking a flier on Mike Keane? The guy is good on the PK, good at positioning and brings leadership to the locker room He won 2 cups and was awarded another on No Goal). He wouldn't cost much (the prorated vet minimum would do it). He is currently playing in the minors in Winnipeg. It would just be a flier, and wouldn't be the only move Buffalo made, but may remove the need for multiple moves. Different sport but, this is exactly the type of move the Yankees try and it almost always works out (See Cecil Fielder, Rueben Sierra etc.). Here is a link to a recent ESPN article on it. The article was in the Magazine (which I get) but I don't have the Insider package. So if anyone wants to copy and paste, cool. Mike Keane

As do I. Harper won't break the bank, can play for a year or two while Youboty is worked in as the dime and nickel CB. Then Youboty becomes the starter.

Correct, but both guys penetrate and disrupt the play. Neitehr is a stay-at-home, take-on-2-blockers type of player. That type of player, Sands or Pat Williams, allows the rest of the D to make the play on the ball. Our MLB would not have to fight off a 330 lb G, the McCargo/Tripletts could try and beat their man one on one, without the double team. I know I'm oversimplifying, but you get the point. Jokeman, I use yards per carry allowed in evaluating a run D. Total yards is often a function of whether a team was way ahead or way behind a lot (ie killing the clock with a big lead, or abandoning the run game trying to catch up). Couldn't agree more. Either Stroud or Henderson a free agent any time soon?? Okoye does intrigue me, a 19 year old with big upside is impressive. But I wonder, 19 year old muscles are nowhere near as strong as 25-28 year old muscles. Will we just be developing Okoye for a big money deal elsewhere? How much will he really help in the near term?

He should, at the very least, be good for clogging things up!!

Someone other than the server bringing out my food is a bit of a pet peeve of mine. You are the server, manage your tables. You should know when your food is going to come out. Pace accordingly. Of course, my absolute pet peeve that will ensure that I never again set foot back in the restaurant is having multiple courses on the table at once. This practice is most prevalent at god awful chain restaurants that I usually avoid like the plague but recently I have noticed it in more upscale places. If I order an appetizer and a dinner that may come with soup or salad, I expect to eat one course, have the plates taken away, get the next course, enjoy it, have it cleared and then get my dinner. Nothing irks me more than being halfway through my appetizer and here comes someone with my dinner. Just awful. Learn to use the "Hold Dinner #" and "Fire Check #" functions on the micros machine please. My wife and I have actually taken to ordering the appetizer, finishing it and then ordering dinner. Annoying, yes, but sometimes its the only way to go. I have tried to say something to the server, before we order. On occasion that works. Most often it does not. I guess the logic is in "flipping" the table. However, when I go out to dinner, usually an appetizer, bottle of wine, dinner, dessert and after dinner drinks are in offering. Hence the bill is not cheap. Nor will be the tip I leave. All I ask, is don't rush me like I am ordering two plain pastas, water and have an entertainment coupon.

No, that was Scott and partially my point. Scott wasn't all that effective. Terdell Sands, on the other hand, helped the Raiders to have a very good run defense. In fact, Warren Sapp had his most effective season in years playing next to Sands. This is a guy who will definately help us, much moreso than Scott or any 19 year old kid.

I wonder why everyone believes that Ian Scott or Amobi Okoye are the answer for our run D? Neither is very big, with Scott at 302 and Okoye at 287 (per the senior bowl). Neither appears strong enough to hold the point of attack against two OL, a la Pat Williams. Also, we have the "3 technique guy" covered in our Tampa 2 scheme. Those guys are Triplett and McCargo. We do not have a run stuffing nose tackle. Kyle Williams is a decent rotation player but certainly will not take on two blockers. The best solution I see out there is DT Terdell Sands. 6'7", 335 lbs. Thats a run-stuffer. Playing him next to a guy like Triplett or McCargo will only make them more effective. A rotation of Sands, Triplett, McCargo and Williams would be very effective and make our MLB (whoever it is) that much more effective. Am I missing something?

True...the parity driven NFL at its best.

Noone is saying cakewalk, but 3-1 is not out of the question vs. the NFC East. Dallas, I'm not impressed. I hope we get them later in the season, after TO has forced the team to take sides and generally made a mess of the season. Also, I'm not sold on Romo. Their OL is a year older. Yes their D will be better, but I think the O will suffer. Washington...no clue what they will do. But noone on that team is a matchup nightmare for us. Who..Santana Moss? We've dealt with him before. Gibbs is a good coach, but they lost some high character players and don't scare me. NYG...two words...Kevin Gilbride. I think the Giants crash and burn next year, setting Coughlin up for a fall and laying the red carpet for Cowher's return to pro football. In future years the Giants will be tough to deal with, but next year...5-11. Eagles..tough team. This could be the L. They are tough and experienced. Good lines, good D. Great coach. This will be a tough game and a true test of how good we are.

Given the loss of Gaustad for the season, and the fact that the team was already a bit soft (without McKee or Grier), what moves do you think could be made? Keep in mind we don't have a lot of cap room. Anyone hear any reliable rumors or even have any good, realistic ideas? This article is decent regarding what losing Gaustad would mean to the team... Gaustad lost for season.