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The transition tag no longer exists (under the new CBA). Franchise tag is your only option, but the team can consider less compensation than the mandatory picks.

Wouldn't the Bills pick up a 3rd round compensatory pick next year if they were to lose Byrd via FA. If they trade him for anything less than a 3rd it'd make no sense at all. Honestly your team isn't going to get better in the long run if you're in the business of trading Pro Bowlers away for mid round draft picks. Byrd is a very very good player and I'd rather have him on the team this year and next year (for $8.2 million), than take a mid round draft pick. Also shipping him out basically concedes the fact that once again Eugene Parker has outplayed the Bills. Need to put an end to these negotiation tactics so that it doesn't happen with other players down the road

I'm just not all in as a believer in EJ Manuel. As a Bills fan, I want him to be amazing, of course. This season will tell us a lot. I'm just not 100% sold he'll be the man. I am 100% sold that Tahj Boyd will be "the man" in the pros. I'm looking forward to watching him in the Carrier Dome vs. Syracuse this season, if my schedule allows me to attend. I do agree with your assessment of the Dolphins. I don't see them finishing any better than .500. Weak running game, weak o-line, unproven QB, weak head coach, that's why I predicted the Jets finish 2nd. I just don't think the Bills are ready to make that step, with all the ??????/ at the QB position.

1. The Jets finish the year in 2nd place in the AFC EAST. Most are writing the Jets off as being one of the bottom teams in the league, and I understand that sentiment. For some reason I see Sanchez having an above average season and their defense playing well enough to get them to 8 or 9 wins, god enough for second in the AFC East, and possibly only one game behind the Patriots. 2. I think RG3 has somewhat of a "sophomore" slump and the Redskins finish below .500 and fail to make the playoffs. 3. I think this is the year for the Falcons. 12 to 1 odds to win the Super Bowl. I like that bet A LOT. 4. Tahj Boyd won't be the first QB selected in the 2014 NFL Draft, but he will go on to have the best professional career of any QB taken in the 2014 draft. The Bills likely will not select a QB, because of the investment in EJ, and fans will be wondering how we ever passed on a QB like Tahj Boyd, after he repeatedly leads his team to the playoffs.

When it comes to Tim Graham, I'll start off by saying I've never met the man. I do have to say though, I follow him on twitter, and watching his back a forths with fellow tweeters can get quite annoying. Definitely seems like the type of dude that is sensitive and thin skinned.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_wNZZ__BLJDI/TH2EGKoYQVI/AAAAAAAABSo/ipK1QeV2kvQ/s1600/Jason+Peters+loves+cake.PNG

13th, Khalil Mack, OLB, Buffalo.

Monos had a hand in the Saints drafting Jahri Evans in the 4th round of the 2006 NFL Draft. I read an article that Monos "urged" the Saints to take Evans. Score one in the win column for that pick.

Replace Easley with Brad Smith and I like your list. The only thing Easley's proven thus far is that he can't stay healthy. I'd take my chances with a vet who's been around the block and is versatile over the guy who's shown nothing. But if you're looking to save a few million, it's another story.

Trade a young and very talented safety? I don't agree with that logic. While not as important of a position than say CB, I think safeties play an important role in Pettine's defense. Couple that with the fact that we aren't already spending major resources, in terms of dollars, on our secondary and I think the Bills have plenty of room to workout a deal that won't harm them in the future. Keep in mind we have Stephon Gilmore locked up for at least another 3 years at a very, very reasonable rookie-deal price.

The Bills do have some leverage when it comes to negotiations, that hasn't been talked about too much. If Byrd and the Bills do not come to an agreement he will play the season out at a salary of $6.916 million, none of which is paid up front. Meaning Byrd will have to wait until the completion of week 17 to see that full $6.916 million. The Bills then could, and very likely would, tag Byrd again for the 2014 season at a 20% raise, which would earn Byrd $8.3 million. Once again, that $8.3 million would not be fully earned until the completion of week 17 of the 2014 season. So the Bills could essentially have Byrd for the next 2 seasons on a 2 year - $15.215 million deal, a relative bargain compared to the other top end safety contracts. Obviously there is quite a bit of incentive for Byrd not to go down that road because an injury could cost him his first shot at a "big money" deal. Likewise the Bills would rather do a long term deal to have cap friendlier numbers in the first few years of a new deal. Although, if the Bills still strictly follow a cash to cap model, they wouldn't really care about Byrd carrying high cap numbers under the franchise tag contract, because they are securing his services for a relatively low price when compared to what it'll cost to sing him long-term. What's better for the Bills: 2 years - $15.215 million (all guaranteed) or 5 years - $42 million ($20 million guaranteed)? Obviously, the first choice wins hands down, but you risk alienating a young talented player. Which would you choose if you were running the Bills front office? It's a tough call. I only bring it up to point out the fact the Bills are the ones truly holding all the leverage in these negotiations.

A very fair and analytical breakdown of what Byrd's next contract might look like. I happen to believe the projection is a little in Byrd's favor, as it pays him nearly 800k more per season when compared to the contract just signed by Dashon Goldson, which seems to be a market setter. I do think Byrd is better than Goldson, but I expect his contract to just barely beat out Goldson's. Byrd's representatives surely know their man is worth being the highest paid safety (not counting Eric Berry's contract, because it was under the old rookie wage scale), and no discounts will be given. Where I think the major negotiations will need to be hashed out is the guaranteed money. Byrd's agent will be looking for the $20+ million as projected in the article, IMO, but I think the Bills will hold firm on a figure closer to the guarantees that Goldson and Weddle received ($18 & $19 million, respectively). My assessment of a fair deal for both sides: 5 years - $42 million, with $19.5 million guaranteed My bad.

http://www.spotrac.c...airus-byrd-313/

I think Vegas will set the Bills over/under on total wins in the regular season at 5 or 5 and a half. If its set at 5 the over bet will be -125. If its set at 5.5 the under will be set at -130. Personally I think its a good year to bet with the Bills. Expectations are down. National media hype is down. I think the coaching changes and culture change at 1 Bills Drive will account for at least 1-2 additional wins this season. I expect this to be a team that looks better in quarters 3 and 4 than they did in the 1st half, which is the exact opposite of what they were under Gailey. Still not a playoff team, but a 6-8 win team depending on how the ball bounces. Either way they will be a very solid bet for the over on season wins this year. Take that one to the bank.

Shamarko Thomas has a history with concussions and I think NFL teams take that very seriously when deciding whether or not to draft a player. I don't think he goes as high as some people think he's worth on this board.

I've had a bit of a gut feeling that this might be his last. We'll see. I have no ill will toward Buddy, either. In fact, quite the opposite. I know he never delivered on getting the Bills a "real-deal" QB, but time will tell with Manuel. I think Buddy helped get us better scouts and evaluators, Whaley included.

Dolphins get #3. Raiders get #12 *. Dolphins win 2200 pts. to 1680 pts. Rams get #8 & #71. Bills get #16, #46, #78 & #222. Bills win 1642.6 pts. to 1635 pts. 49ers get #18. Cowboys get #31 & #74. 49ers win 900 pts. to 820 pts. Falcons get #22 & a 7th round pick in 2015. Rams get #30, #92 & #198. Falcons win 780.5 pts. to 764.2 pts. Vikings get #29. Patriots get #52, #83, #102 & #229. Patriots win 648 pts. to 640 pts. From a point perspective: The Dolphins fleeced the Raiders in their trade up. The 49ers got a great deal in their move up, the Cowboys should've gotten an additional 4th round pick in that move down. All the rest were very even trades, with the Bills and Pats being the only two teams that moved down that got full value for their pick.

I thought the Patriots fleeced them too, but upon further inspection it's right in line with the Bills Rams trade. The Pats gave away pick #29, worth 640. The Vikings gave up #52, #83, #102 & #229, worth a total of 648. The difference in math is +8 in the Patriots favor, nearly identical to the Bills +7.6 differential with the Rams. The team that got fleeced was the Raiders giving up 2,200 and getting back 1680 in return. I guess they liked Hayden enough to take him at #3, so they were pretty much willing to take anything to trade down knowing he'd be there a bit further down.

So according to Jason whitlock, nawrocki is gutless because he won't appear on Jason whitlocks podcast to explain his position on geno smith. Nawrocki doesn't owe Jim any explanation....that article makes Whitlock sound like an entire clown.

Yes, you are talking about Nolan Nawrocki of ProFootballWeekly.com. The guy is the best in the business, hands down. Yea, he takes some flack when he criticizes a QB, and gets called a racist when he's down on a black QB (Geno Smith, Cam Newton), but he's only calling it like he's hearing from scouts. But onto his mock draft......Unfortunately it appears tha ProFootballWeekly is on their way out, and by out I mean out of business. Their comprehensive 2013 NFL Draft Preview had a very ominous outlook on their future as a business going forward, because people simply don't buy things in print anymore (think newspapers). And their website doesn't get nearly as much traffic as some of the other big ones we all know and use. I've noticed they've had very little new content on their website these last few months. Last year Nawrocki put out 2-3 mock drafts, along with draft value charts leading up to the draft. This year, absolutely nothing. I'm still holding out hope there's a final mock draft released tomorrow, but it doesn't look good. If PFW.com is indeed dead, I hope Nawrocki continues somewhere else because he's an excellent resource. For the poster who said he had Matt Barkley and Robert Woods going to the Bills.....tell me where you saw that????? Or were you just playing around, cause I've seen zip from him.

If we trade down all the way to #30, we need Atlanta's 2nd rounder and their 1st rounder in the 2014 draft, and I don't think that's a price that Atlanta would be willing to pay. It would be a great deal for the Bills, but I can't see the Falcons parting with that many resources to get up to #8 in a draft that is considered relatively weak at the top. So the question becomes........if you're Buddy Nix do you accept a trade down with the Falcons if they only offer #30, #60 and #127 (Atlanta's 1st, 2nd & 4th rounders, respectively)? If you look at the draft trade charts, that scenario is clearly in the Falcons favor from a point standpoint, but it's a buyers market for trading up because it seems so many teams want to move down. So would you accept that compensation from the Falcons......#8 for #30, #60 and #127. If I was Buddy i'd probably want an additional mid rounder next year (3rd or 4th) for me to begin considering pulling the trigger.

IMO, DeAndre Hopkins is the #1 WR in this draft, ties with Tavon Austin. I like them both better than Patterson, because I believe they're readt to "start right now" in the NFL, and I think Patterson might not be a plug n play starter. I've always thought 1st rounders should be ready to play immediately, and I think Hopkins and Austin are ready to start immediately. Hopkins ability to track the ball and contort his body to make difficult catches is Grade A. He also has great leaping ability to go up and get it as well as strong hands to rip away those 50/50 balls. You can't overlook his 18 TD receptions last season either. A very impressive statisitic given Clemson only had 13 games. My predicition is that Hopkins goes somwhere in the 15-25 range. Would love him as a Bill, but unless the Bills move around in the 1st round I don't see it happening because I think #8 is just a bit too high for Hopkins and I don't think there's a chance he's there at #41.

While Alan Branch seems like a decent signing today, knowing that it will likely cost us a 3rd or 4th round compensatory pick in the 2014 draft hurts. As of today we've lost LeVitre and Rinehart (Jones and Nelson do not count because they could've been retained via RFA tags). We have signed Manny Lawson and Alan Branch (Kolb doesn't count, as he was cut), meaning we no longer have a net loss of FA, which will keep us from being awarded a pick. So let me ask you this........do you think Alan Branch was worth forgoing a 3rd or 4th round pick in next years draft? I say he's not.

I agree with the above poster in regards to Tavon Austin. IMO, he's a pretty safe draft pick and might be the type of offensive player Nix would consider at #8. I've heard a lot of GM's talk about taking a guy high, who is electric with the football and can score TD's every time they touch the football, and that's exactly what Tavon Austin is (similar to CJ Spiller). Tavon also happens to play a position that the Bills are sorely in need of. While he might not be the big bodied outside receiver the Bills really want, Austin would take our offense to another level, and would make any QB's job a lot easier. Tavon had a great year and has had a great offseason, and I think he's the best skill position player in this draft. #8 wouldn't be a reach for him at all, IMO. For the record I have DeAndre Hopkins as my top rated WR tied with Tavon Austin for that spot. Would love either of these guys in a Bills uni.

So the signing of Kevin Kolb does not count against us for a compensatory pick next year, because he was cut, correct? At least that's good news.