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Chan Gailey seems to like every prospect he's been asked about this week, but when he talked about Kelvin Sheppard I believed him (see Wednesday's Senior Bowl presser, on BuffaloBills.com). Couple that with the fact that he plays at a position of need, ILB, and that he's played at a high level for 4 years in the SEC at LSU, and I think he could be a Buddy Nix guy when it's all said and done. I also think Buddy Nix's comments in his interview with Chris Brown (on BuffaloBills.com) that they'll need to add another ILB or 2 were pretty telling. He obviously sees ILB as much more of an area of need over OLB. A quick bio recapping his career at LSU: http://www.seniorbowl.com/playerinfo.asp?ID=353 At a shade over 6'2" and 250 lbs. he seems to have plenty of size for the 3-4 as well. The guy was a leader and team captain for one of the nations best defenses and was selected to the First Team All SEC. I believe Sheppards stock was in the late 2nd - 3rd round range, but when the dust settles he'll probably be a solid second round pick. At the moment pick #34 seems a bit high, but with some maneuvering on draft day I could definitely see Sheppard in a Bills uniform on Sundays. 2 Videos to get a quick look at Sheppard. First is a quick highlight reel, the second a post game press conference:

Are these your observations, becuase I gotta say I agree with almost all of them? Especially on Akeem Ayers and Von Miller. Ayers plays too upright and is blocked easily by offensive lineman in the second level. I too would not touch Von Miller with a 1st round pick. I don't care how much havoc he wreaked in the Big 12, after the Maybin disaster I'd be too afraid to go down that road again. He's been getting his fair share of hype from Mayock this week, but Mayock carefully states that he's a beast getting after the passer, not sure about him in the other areas. Once 300 lb. OL get there hands on him coming off the edge, which they will more often than not he'll be totally neutralized. There isn't much else to say, these reports are right on the money. I think Bowers is a nice player, but agree he's not dominant in any phase of the game, which a top 3 pick should be. The fact that we're sticking with the 3-4 (listen to Buddy Nix's video w/ Chris Brown) means Bowers doesn't fit into our defense. Quinn was an absolute beast last year, and I don't think you can take that away from him. The fact that he hasn't played live football in over a year though is surely going to hurt his stock. #3, IMO is too risky for Quinn, and I don't think it fits Nix' drafting philosophy. Once again, if you listen to Buddy's video with Brown today he seems much more concerned with acquiring ILB and DL than he does finding OLB, and I think that's what Quinn would be in a 3-4 defense. I still think OLB is an area of major need regardless of what Nix says (lot of posturing during this time of year), and if the Bills were to trade down, Quinn would certainly be an option. My Top 5 Prospects as of now: 1 - A.J. Green - I love everything about him as a receiver, only downside is he has a thin build. A luxury pick for sure, but you never know. Reminds me of a young Larry Fitzgerald. 2 - Nick Fairley - Big time prospect for a 4-3 team looking for a penetrating DT. Don't think he fits Buddy'd philosophy, only did it for 1 year. 3 - Marcel Dareus - Think he'd be a great 3-4 DE who can kick inside on passing downs and collapse the pocket. Strong and surprisingly athletic. More in line with Buddy's philosphy, played at a high level for a few years. 4 - Robery Quinn - Won't go this high because of the suspension, but he's a physical specimen. If teams believe he can play OLB in the 3-4 he's a top 10 pick. 5 - DaQuan Bowers - A 4-3 DE, that's it. So IMO, no way the Bills take him. Above average in a lot of areas, not dominant in any.

That wasn't Derrick Sherrod. It was the OT from Alabama #77, James Carpenter, that was struggling when Coach Joe D dropped his head.

He did make a nice play clubbing that ball loose to force a fumble. That play enabled Oregon to go down and tie the game late in the 4th quarter. Those are the type of game changing plays defenders get paid to make. Can't judge a player based on one play though, and I agree he's probably an overrated prospect due to his name.

I'm pretty intrigued with Matthews as a prospect in this years draft. Irrationally, the thing I like most about him is the fact that his brother is Clay Matthews, and we've all seen the success he's had. The more I look into it though, the more I realize the comparisons to his brother seem pretty unrealistic, at least from a physical standpoint: Clay Matthews (Packers): Arrived at the Senior Bowl 2 years ago at 6'3" and 246 lbs. His hands measured 9 3/8" and his arms were 32". Casey Matthews (Oregon): Arrived at the Senior Bowl at 6'0 6/8" (a touch under 6'1") and 232 lbs. His hands measured 8 3/4" and his arms were 31 3/4". So Casey is a full 2 1/4" shorter than his brother and he's also 12 lbs. lighter. I know Casey is smaller than your prototypical ILB from a weight standpoint, but he may have a frame that can pack on some pounds, that I don't know. I'll definitely be keeping my eye on him this week throughout the Senior Bowl practices and in the game. He's got the bloodlines and I like his speed and awareness on the field. In the end I think Casey will be drafted a full round or 2 higher, than he would have been if he didn't have a brother named Clay Matthews terrorizing NFL QB's. His bloodlines will definitely bump him up, IMO. For those interested in checking out the official weigh in of the 2011 Senior Bowl attended: http://walterfootball.com/seniorbowl2011.php For what it's worth Clay Matthews is now listed as 255 lbs. on the Packers roster. If Casey could pack on 10-15 lbs I think you can at least consider him as a 3-4 ILB, but if not, I don't think he could hold up in a 3-4, just too small right now.

Astro do you guys have Allen Bailey rated as a Top 35 prosopect or is this just for the sake of drafting all South Senior Bowl participants? From the little I've seen of Bailey he looks like a mid round pick not a top end 2nd rounder. You have any insight on the guy? Also I'm noticing a lot of 4-3 DL in this draft. I suppose your conclusion is that the Bills are transitioning back to the 4-3 after the Wanny hire. True?

I knew when training camp started Danny was slated as an OLB and Moats an ILB. Due to injury we obviously know Moats was kicked out to OLB, but I never heard about Batten moving to ILB. I know the scouts definitely liked Danny Batten as an OLB. When and where did you hear that Batten moved to ILB, I must've missed this?

Watched the game pretty closely, and listened a lot to what Mayock had to say about some of his intriguing prospects, here's what I came away with: - Marvin Austin, DT, UNC looked pretty good. Good lateral quickness coming down the line and making plays. Tough to really evaluate talent in this game because some of the offensive lineman were downright terrible. Mayock said he's heard some people will have austin graded as high as the 2nd round, others may drop him to the 5th round due to his year long suspension. Didn't believe he'd get into the 1st round due to the depth of DL in this years draft. - I tried to focus on players at positions of need for the Bills (DL, LB, S, CB, OL, etc.), but Delone Carter, RB out of Syracuse had an impressive game. Thick lower body, not fast, but nice quickness to get to the edge. Would lower his pads aat contaact and pick up a couple of extra tough yards frequently. Looked to be a mid-late round draftable prospect, seemed Mayock agreed. - All of the QB's, including Patrick Devlin (QB, Delaware) were underwhelming. Devlin made one nice seam pass to a TE for a 20 yard gain, but that was about the only positive I saw out of him. Footwork, accuracy and arm strenth were all below average IMO. I've seen him as a 2nd-3rd round pick in a lot of mock drafts, I didn't see enough positives in this game for him to go that high. His arm strength in particular did not look to be NFL quality. - Mayock focused in on Josh Thomas, CB out of University of Buffalo, and actually had some good things to say about him. Said he thought he'd be a better cover 2 corner in the NFL, but liked his quickness and physicality. - Jerron Johnson, S out of Boise State looked decent. Not the best athleticism, but was in the right spot a lot and made some nice tackles in run support. Nice form on his tackles. Perhaps a late round pickup for the Bills to add soem safety depth. - Kenny Rowe, DE, Oregon. Played DE and is listed at 6'3" , 232 lbs., obviously too small to play DE in the NFL, but maybe a good prospect at OLB. Looked to have some good pass rushing skills. Had a nice sack and forced fumble, was actually untouched around the RT (once again tough to assess defenders when no one is blocking them). Don't know if he has the athleticism to make the transition, though. Aaron Maybin would've looked good in this ganme, to put things into perspective. - I know a lot of people have talked about Dontay Moch, OLB, Nevada on this board. Mayock said Moch told coaches he ran a 4.1 in the 40, and then Mayock basically said he'll believe it when he sees it. I can tell you by watching him, he has no where near that type of speed. Looked athletic, but much too small for a 3-4 defense IMO. Also did not look that physical, saw him easily blocked on a few plays, and didn't have the best play recognition on a couple of other plays. - Akeem Dent (ILB, Georgia) and Orie Lemon (ILB, Oklahoma St.) both in the 6'1"/6'2" - 240 lb. range looked to have some nice instincts and tackling ability for inside backers. I think finding an athletic inside backer who can run with TE's is one of the Bills biggest needs this offseason so I tried to pay attention to them pretty close. Mayock seemed to think both were draftable prospects and both looked above average on the field today. - Shiloh Keo, SS, Idaho. Not an overly athletic guy, but could be a good special teamer. A 7th rounder or priority FA who could definitely add value to a special teams. He was in on kickoff returns, kickoff coverage, and defense. Versatile guy. - The QB's and pass protection were so bad that it was hard to evaluate any of the WR's or TE's, so I'll hold comment on them. Charles Gantt, TE, Michigan St., had some nice seal blocks on the outside though, and looked to be a pretty physical TE. - Lastly, a guy Mayock seems to think has some real potential is Brandon Bair, DT, Oregon. He's 6'7" - 272 lbs., and Mayock said several scouts say he has the frame to add another 20-30 lbs. easy. Said he could make a great 5 technique in a 3-4 and could have 3-4 defenses salivating with his potential. 3rd-4th round pick. Sorry that was a little long, but I just wanted to comment on as much as I could remember. With the recent signing of Wannstedt, it's tough to peg what the Bills will be looking for on defense in this years draft. Are they really going to abandon the 3-4 after only one year? I don't think so. I think they'll continue to play a combination of both fronts, but will look to add more 3-4 suited defenders in FA and the draft.

Wanny signed in time to head down to Mobile to coach up the South draft prospects. Should be fun to watch.

Nawrocki's gotten the Bills pick right 5 consecutive years, dating back to Donte Whitner. Nawrocki has been and continues to be amazing in his final mock draft, particularly with the first 10 picks.

If you like Dareus you should be rooting for the Bills to lose tomorrows game. With a loss we have a very good chance of getting him, with a win we have little chance of him being on the board. I see Dareus as a #3-8 pick in the draft.

Funny because I was thinking the same exact thing a few days ago. He seems to be a highly rated prospect, and I believe our secondary is missing a true difference maker. McKelvin was drafted with the expectation of being a difference maker and I think it's pretty clear he hasn't lived up to that. I still think we need D-Line and LB's over CB's but nix showed he's not afraid to take BPA with their 1st pick.

In Gailey's post game presser he mentioned that Wood had a tough assignment against Paul Soliai. I forgot word for word what Gailey said, but he made a comment that indiciated he believed Soliai was one of the best NT's they've faced all season. It just so happens that Soliai is an unrestricted FA after this season. Kyle Williams has played great this year, but many people think the Bills will look to upgrade the D-Line this offseason and you can never have enough big bodies up front. Here's an article on Paul Soliai for those who don't know much about him: http://www.footballnewsnow.com/2010/dolphins-nt-soliai-in-high-demand/ Go back and listen to Gailey's presser to see what I'm talking about, it looks like he'd be very high on him this offseason. I could definitely see the Bills making a serious run at Soliai.

Agreed. The next 3 weeks we get to see how much progress we've made since the beginning of the season. I'm particularly interested to see how we hold up in the trenches on both sides of the ball vs. our divisional opponents. A win vs. NE would be sweet, it's been way too long since we've knocked them off, we're due. And nothing would be sweeter than to face the Jets in week 17 with their playoff hopes on the line. That would be the Bills Super Bowl for the 2010 season.

McKelvin lacks football knowledge. On the touchdown pass to Rice he totally misplayed the ball. Once again he turned around much too late to locate the ball and allowed Rice to make a catch he had no business making. Nice play by Rice, but McKelvin should've at the very least swatted it away at the balls high point. On the kickoff return, McKelvin had the ball in his wrong hand (his inside hand) and the fumble was caused as a result of him running right into the back of his blocker. Then, just for measure, McKelvin committs PI on a 3rd down inside the 10 to ensure the Vikings walk away with 7 points rather than 3. Once again his lack of awareness and ball skills kills the Bills. Dude needs to be benched.

Gailey mentioned Reggie Corner also will be out awhile, so don't be surprised to see him put on IR soon Also, McGee, who hasn't played a full game since early October looks to be the next IR victim. Our defense is slowly losing some key contributors, McGee, Corner, Dwan Edwards, Reggie Torbor.

The thing that irritates me the most, and others have pointed it out, is that Lee Evans does not attack the football. He keeps his hands tucked in up against his chest and waits for the football to hit him between the numbers. Meanwhile the CB going up against him will attack the football and either break it up or take it away. He's just not physical enough and doesn't have the heart that most prototypical #1 WR's possess. I truly believe all of the losing over the last 6-7 seasons has given Evans a "Let me just show up, do what's expected out of me and make my money" type of attitude. He doesn't seem to really be into the game and all the losing doesn't really seem to bother him. He's so used to losing and coming up short it's like he is almost numb to the emotions a typical player feels after a loss. There is no question that Lee is highly overpaid and I think it's becoming obvious he's not going to be one of our key offensive players moving forward (2-3 year outlook). I believe Chan and Buddy will be looking for a big framed, tall, physical receiver who can go across the middle and move the chains this offseason. Couple that with Stevie, D. Nelson and hope Easley can contribute with his speed and Evans looks expendable to me. The way I judge a player is I ask myself how would this game be different today if this player weren't in the lineup. Take a look at guys like Kyle Williams and Fitz's performances today. Those 2 went out and played at an extremely high level, without them the game is much different (for the worse). Now, evaluate Lee Evans. I think we do the same if not better if Lee Evans doesn't suit up today. And for those who think Lee is still drawing the double teams go back and watch this game. Polamalu was more often than not over the top on Stevie's side. Lee was singled up a ton in this game, and Fitz often doesn't even look his way and I don't blame him. On our first possession of overtime Fitz threw a great ball to Lee down to the 10 yardline and the guy couldn't make a play. No effort whatsoever to jump, dive, attack the football. Just waited for it to hit his hands and it appeared to be slightly tipped and fell incomplete. That play pretty much epitomized Lee's effort this entire season.......not good enough. How many times as a QB are you going to give a guy a shot to make a play for you on a 50/50 ball before you realize he just doesn't have it in him to make a key play? I think Fitz has already realized it and that's why you see Lee's production going down the toilet, there are guys doing a much better job given the opportunity. Many times when you're double covered you have to find the soft spot or the cushion in the defense and attack that spot. Lee just doesn't find a way to get open, which is why he can't be considered a true #1 receiver. When Freddy Jackson, Steve Johnson, David Nelson, Donald Jones and Quinton Ganther all go out and outproduce our $10 million dollar man in the passing game, there's no excise you can make. The o-line showed up and played, Fitz came out and played, and Lee came in with another grade D effort. His play with the exception of the Ravens game has been garbage. The last thing I want to point out is Lee is averageing 3 receptions for 46 yards per game. He's on pace to finish the season with - 49 receptions for 736 yards. Dude is going to make almost $200,000 per catch this season ($9.3 miilion/season). I don't care if he's double covered every single snap of every single football game, when you're making top 5 WR money 80-90 catch seasons should be the norm.

According to buffalobills.com. Hurt his knee and walked to the tunnel where a cart waited to drive him to the lockerroom. Walked off with a noticable limp. He can't seem to shake these recurring knee injuries, which is a concern. I thought he polled injured vs. the Bengals as he was unusually slow in coverage.

Mr Brittle hurt again, I'd expect him to be on IR by the beginning of next week. You have to start to wonder how many productive seasons McGee has left in him. He has not been able to stay healthy the last couple of seasons and he's aging. I was a big fan of McGee, but always thought we made a mistake by giving him the extension over Greer. While Greer, misses time too, I just thought the fact that he was younger made him the better choice for an extension. What do you guys think?

Cam Newton is not the answer at QB in Buffalo. Nix values experience in his selections. Newton has only done it really for 1 year at a big time program, add to that, he's a run first QB, and theres no way he'd be taken as a high 1st round pick. Unlike Andrew Luck, Newton could gain a lot by coming back to school and competing at a high level in 2011. If he enters the 2011 draft he's at the very least behind 2 QB's (Mallett & Luck) maybe more. If he came back and played well he could position himself to be the #1 QB, which would never happen this year. Given the allegations that have come out about his father, I fully expect Newton to be swayed into coming out ASAP to start earning $$$$$.

Anybody who wants to get the best player in next years draft. Anyone who has thrown in the towel weeks ago and is thinking maybe a nice consolation to this season would be the #1 pick.

There are two team tied for worst in the league, the Carolina Panthers (1-8) & the Buffalo Bills (1-8). As has been discussed if two teams have identical records at seasons end the team with the easier strength of schedule gets the better pick (the thinking being they have the same record vs. worse opponents, thus making them the worse team). The Panthers schedule is as follows: 1 Sun, Sep 12 @New York L31-18 (6-3) 2 Sun, Sep 19 vsTampa Bay L20-7 (6-3) 3 Sun, Sep 26 vsCincinnati L20-7 (2-7) 4 Sun, Oct 3 @New Orleans L16-14 (6-3) 5 Sun, Oct 10 vsChicago L23-6 (6-3) 6 BYE WEEK 7 Sun, Oct 24 vsSan Francisco (3-6) 8 Sun, Oct 31 @St. Louis L20-10 (4-5) 9 Sun, Nov 7 vsNew Orleans L34-3 (6-3) 10 Sun, Nov 14 @Tampa Bay L31-16 (6-3) 11 Sun, Nov 21 vsBaltimore 1:00 PM (6-3) 12 Sun, Nov 28 @Cleveland 1:00 PM (3-6) 13 Sun, Dec 5 @Seattle 4:15 PM (5-4) 14 Sun, Dec 12 vsAtlanta 1:00 (7-2) 15 Sun, Dec 19 vsArizona 1:00 PM (3-6) 16 Thu, Dec 23 @Pittsburgh 8:20 (6-2) 17 Sun, Jan 2 @Atlanta (7-2) Combined Record of Opponents: (82-61)57.34% The Bills schedule is as follows: 1 Sun, Sep 12 vsMiami L15-10 (5-4) 2 Sun, Sep 19 @Green Bay L34-7 (6-3) 3 Sun, Sep 26 @New England L38-30 (6-2) 4 Sun, Oct 3 vsNew York L38-14 (7-2) 5 Sun, Oct 10 vsJacksonville L36-26 (5-4) 6 BYE WEEK 7 Sun, Oct 24 @Baltimore L37-34 OT (6-3) 8 Sun, Oct 31 @Kansas City L13-10 OT (5-4) 9 Sun, Nov 7 vsChicago L22-19 (6-3) 10 Sun, Nov 14 vsDetroit W14-12 (2-7) 11 Sun, Nov 21 @Cincinnati 1:00 PM (2-7) 12 Sun, Nov 28 vsPittsburgh 1:00 PM (6-2) 13 Sun, Dec 5 @Minnesota 1:00 PM (3-6) 14 Sun, Dec 12 vsCleveland 1:00 PM (3-6) 15 Sun, Dec 19 @Miami 1:00 PM (5-4) 16 Sun, Dec 26 vsNew England 1:00 PM (6-2) 17 Sun, Jan 2 @New York 1:00 PM (7-2) Combined Record of Opponents: (80-61) 56.74% If New England holds on and beats the Steelers, the Bills and Panthers will have identical SOS both at 82-62. In the end I see the Bills finishing with the 2-3 pick in the draft because it'll be extremely difficult to finish worse than the Panthers. I see the Bills as a 3 win team and I don't think the Panthers get another 2 wins this season, time will tell.

The second video down, is the actual in game call.....gotta love Gus Johnson's call. I've never heard a human make the noise he makes at 0:29 in the video. Gotta love Gus!

Fitz underthwos a wide open Stevie for the ball game. A good QB makes that throw look easy. I like Fitz, but it's throws like this that show me we need to find a franchise QB. His completion % has been very poor as of late, and I think it's dipped below 60% on the season, which won't get it done.

Cordaro Howard, who was absolutely manhandled last week @ KC, is in the process of being replaced by Mansfield Wrotto, another street free agent. RT will be a high priority come this offseason.