Fan in Chicago

Assuming a 'big' roster move will be made before the season is done, I doubt it with be CJ or Gilmore. Whether I agree or not with either, I think it won't happen cos CJ = trade bait and will fetch something meaningful in the off-season so no point cutting him outright Gilmore = Too early to cut him. He too may have some trade value Of the others suggested in this thread, FJax= no way. He is a leader as well as a hard worker. Draft his replacement and keep him till his performance falls off which doesnt look to be now Stevie = most likely choice. But then again, I may be biased.

This should help the conversation: Mike Pereira, the NFL's former vice president of officiating, criticized the officials on FoxSports.com and in the article titled "No, that definitely was not pass interference," said that the call was wrong. "McFadden and Boyce were hand-fighting down the field," Pereira wrote. "There was not enough contact for defensive pass interference to be called." http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/nfl-week-14-winners-losers-patriots-gifted-win-034218399--nfl.html?vp=1 And yet you feel obliged to go on a division rival's message board and thump your chest one day after they are the beneficiaries of one of the worst calls. IS that supposed to be a defense against a bad officiating call ?

Are you also of the oponion that EJ hasnt shown enough to gain confidence in his future? I think he gets all of nextseason and it will be wel into next before shortening of the proverbial leash

JR is so polite that he even compliments bull-headed, stubborn and obstinate TBDers

So if I am TJ Graham, tonight I pray like hell that CJ doesn't fumble the Bucs game away Anyway, I may agree with the whipping boy analogy but not to the extent of cutting a player. Benching someone would be one thing but outright cutting him solely for this reason sounds extreme and not very productive.

I don't get it. Choice didn't screw-up. Stevie and Chandler did. That is like grounding my younger daughter cos the older one blew her curfew. SJBF, normally I agree with much of what you post but you are reaching on this one.

You been watching too many Ford commercials

Ask them to give you a couple of wins now as down payment in return.

true, under my scenario timing is off by a week

Agree re: Wingo. Most likely to bring up Meeks to the active roster when he is eligible in a few days (?) WAG - see what Meeks has and phase out Leonhard

Not going to argue with that but I think tighter throws could have resulted in 2 of those 3 being completed. But my point was that EJ does not have that confidence right now to attempt a tight throw. He is (pure speculation) being told to take a safer option in tight situations. He would rather miss long (a low risk proposition re: INT) than try to fit it in a narrow spot where Goodwin can attempt to wrestle the ball away or worse - have the throw fall short and have the CB look back.

Fair enough re: Choice. But I think Summers may have shown more as a short yardage RB. Combine that with the fact that Meeks is ready to return (see earlier posts) and the staff may have felt it has more to gain by giving Meeks an opportunity. Choice's skills and limitations are already well known and we have Spiller, Jackson and Summers to man the HB, FB spots

I don't think he was particularly effective

Or Summers has shown enough to be a FB who can also carry at times. But the outright release must be to get someone else on the roster.

What got lost in the muddy fist fight about the connection between immaturity & performance, is the fact that Stevie has proven himself over and over again as not being a clutch player. As one who will give you good statistical performances, yet let you down in key moments. If he caught that pass and we won, it would be hailed as one of his finest games due to the rest of his day. Setting aside his off-field behavior, purely on the basis of his in-game performances, I would get a big strong WR next year. Then renegotiate Stevie's contract, relegate him to the #3 role and preferably not have him on the field on key downs (keep said new WR, Woods, GOodwin and a new TE as catching options during critical moments)

It is likely that the coaches have been continuously drilling into EJ's head that it is better to fail long than fail short and risk an INT. Which is perhaps what you are saying. It was strange that Thad Lewis completed that bomb to Goodwin, yet EJ overthrew him the three times he tried. EJ's short accuracy is trending upwards compared to games earlier in the season. I have hopes that he continues to progress. Maybe it is a tough pill for us to swallow now, but compared to Geno's careless and ultimately fateful attitude towards QBing, I prefer the one the Bills coaches are taking. Of two bad choice (being ultra safe and opening it up early to a rookie risking turnovers), I prefer the earlier. A young 'un can easily fall into a bad habit of imagining himself to be a gunslinger and never get out of that mode later in his career.

We came out of a bye week against a 2-9 team and still lost

I like most of what you have written esp the part that the thin margin between winning and losing can cut both ways. Agree that a lot depends on how EJ develops and also that we need a good TE. On item #3 though, I would like to see yet another LB to complement Alonso and Lawson. Bradham and Moats may be good depth but they do not have the impact of the former two. So my off-season shopping list (draft or FA) is (in no particular order): Big WR, G, TE, LB, RB, CB

This is not an All-22 look but is a snap count of our players. http://www.buffalorumblings.com/2013/12/2/5166720/bills-falcons-snap-counts-marquise-goodwin-kiko-alonso - I am not sure why TJ Graham still sees such a high percent of snaps. Goodwin's role is increasing but EJ and him have to get on the same page. Once that happens, look for TJ to become the #4 - Chandler, very underwhelming this year even without SUnday's drop, is in a lot. Speaks to our terrible TE situation - I have said in another thread, but it bears repeating tht with Spiller not n every-down back, we better draft Freddy's replacement next year - Jim Leonhard is over the hill, IMHO even with seeing the field so much

Yes, cannot write him off this year. Next year will be the critical one for him. What I am finding disappointing is that he seems to lose his man quite often. Is the scheme confusing him to where he believes he has to hand off a WR to a safety when he is really not supposed to ? He just seems to be lacking the instinct which I saw in him last year. I want him to play a lot for the rest of this season as we can salvage a lost season for key player evaluations at least.

Not to derail this conversation, but I can't recall any reports that the Bills were interested at all.

Or traded for Alex Smith to set a firm floor in the short/medium term

Home record aside, I am favoring the Saints. They will be pumped to establish themselves as the NFC #1. Seattle also, but I think Brees' experience will win this.

It is tough to see. In a scheme where Aaron Williams (new scheme and new position) and McKelvin (who I had pretty much given up on) have both thrived, Gilmore seems to have gone the other way. Initially I attributed it to rust and the club, but now I am getting mildly concerned. He seems to have the talent, best utilized in press coverage, but seems to get beat a lot lately. Is it the dreaded sophomore slump ?

I am done debating with you.