GhostsOfTheRockpile

The reason that the Bills don't have consistent QBing is because they don't have a good QB (at least at this stage in his career). A good QB would have had the 2008 Bills in the playoff hunt, hands down.

That's your problem. Your deluded assumption is that everyone is in some ridiculous state of pain and suffering. Personally, I'm able to detach myself from your warped reality and realize the NFL (and sports in general) is simply ENTERTAINMENT. This is showbiz, plain and simple. Anyone who wants to try and convince us otherwise is completely wrong. And no s--t the Bills and Ralph coexist. Try and tell us something we don't know, Einstein. I have no problem forking over my hard earned cash for tickets because NFL football is entertainment I enjoy with friends and family... much like going to the movies, or a concert. When the Bills suck, I'm well within my rights to B word and moan just like I am when I go see a movie that turns out to be garbage or a band I like puts on a crappy show. It doesn't mean anyone has a "hold over [me]" or that buying tickets is "unhealthy." It means I like going to Orchard Park in the fall, hanging out with good people, enjoying a good meal, and watching a football game for a few hours. It might do you well to keep your useless dime-store psychology out of your posts. Doesn't do much for any perceived intelligence you might have.

I'm close to agreeing with you... but the sad fact is I trust Bill Cowher a whole hell of a lot more to (hypothetically) rebuild the Bills front office than Ralph, Russ, etc. I'd do it.

I disagree with that last statement, too. John Elway would have had the 2008 Buffalo Bills in the playoffs DESPITE all of Jauron's failings. Its no coincidence Buffalo's season went in the tank the same time the consistent quarterbacking we were getting dropped off the face of the Earth. Consistent quarterbacking and the '08 Bills are in (or at the very least near, like the Patriots) the playoffs.

No offense, but if "the Bills are in pretty good shape from the QB perspective" then they shouldn't even CONSIDER using a first day pick on a quarterback. That said, I agree a quality QB needs to be brought in not only to backup Edwards but to compete with him in camp. Also, I wouldn't even start to compare Bradford to Big Ben. Bradford plays in one of these wide-open spread D's, probably can't sit under center and read a defense to save his life at this point in his career, doesn't have NEARLY the bulk Roethlisberger has to absorb an NFL beating...

Not ridiculously crazy surprising, but very interesting nonetheless. Just goes to show you how "home field advantage" continues to become a thing of the past as transportation options evolve, road accommodations improve, more and more teams play in state of the art stadiums that value corporate clients over regular fans...

Can anyone explain to me why Kansas City is an away game again, let alone ANOTHER game in Jacksonville? I'm pretty sure you alternate who you play home-and-away when you rotate which division you play (i.e. we were at TB and NO last time we played the NFC South, at Indy and Houston last time we played the AFC South which explains at Jacksonville this time around). But how do they reconcile that with the other two AFC teams you play that finished in the same spot as you?

You're clearly not. Way to stay classy. Where did I "defend staying with this cancer" in any of my posts? Ralph is responsible for the state of the Bills. Doesn't mean I can't still follow my favorite team, buy tickets, enjoy my Sundays with friends and family. Your argument has gone from "we need Ralph gone as owner" to "if you support the Bills you're acting like a battered wife" to "move on from Ralph" without offering any solutions... once again, this has to be the worst thread in TBD history.

I disagree. While your facts are obviously right, it simply doesn't matter what the record of the Bills' opponents is/was. You don't have to consistently beat playoff bound teams to make the playoffs. You just have to beat your schedule, and the Bills had an easy one. The Broncos almost made the playoffs, the Chargers and Cardinals are weak teams and DID make the playoffs... there's no reason the Bills couldn't have made a playoff push being a similarly mediocre squad. Beat the Browns. Beat the 49ers. Close out both games against the Jets and the first Miami game. SHOW UP in Toronto. A playoff push should not have been out of the question, which brings us to your overall theme (leadership change) which I agree with (coupled with significant roster improvements and quality quarterbacking).

Translation:"I don't know anything about how the NFL is run or how the economics of the league work - let alone economics in general - so I'm going to continue with this ridiculous battered wife syndrome kick because it makes me feel smarter than everyone else." If you honestly think the NFL is coming back after the Bills leave, I've got a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you. I'm no Ralph Wilson supporter and think he's the "disease" causing the "symptoms" (bad coaching hires, personnel decisions, front office appointments, etc.), nor do I think its a foregone conclusion the Bills leave if they're sold to the highest bidder... but this is probably the dumbest thread in TBD history. To say Ralph is "abusing" us or to compare this to domestic violence is easily the stupidest thing I've read on TBD in a long time. Get a grip.

Anyone who thinks the NFL will expand back into Buffalo if the Bills leave is BEYOND stupid. There are a DOZEN markets they'd look at before they look at our dying region.

Completely ridiculous and not realistic at all. Not sure how you figure the Bills "save" money to pay Peters and sign Suggs. First, there'd be a significant buy-out of Jauron and his staff. Second, the coaches you mentioned would require larger contracts than Ralph has ever paid for a coach or assistant(s). Third, there would be likely be serious cap implications for merely cutting Dockery and Kelsay. There is NO WAY we move to a 3-4. This obsession with it is ludicrous. We do NOT have a 3-4 NT. We do NOT have 3-4 DE's. And our linebackers are MEDIOCRE on their best days... not to mention NOBODY on the roster fits the 3-4 OLB mold at all. To switch would require a LOT of roster shuffling. 3-4, 4-3, 46, Tampa-Two... it doesn't matter what scheme you run. People need to stop obsessing over the 3-4, because switching with this roster plus a few tweaks would set the team back even further. We simply don't have the personnel for it, and we're not even close. TALENT is the key. Draft well. Make good free agent pick-ups. Coach well. Do that, and you can run any defense you want. Switching to the 3-4 solves ABSOLUTELY NOTHING if you don't fix our huge personnel deficiencies currently in place. And THAT'S going to take some time.

While I agree Ralph is the disease and bad personnel decisions and coaching hires are merely the symptoms, does this warrant consideration as TBD's worst thread ever?

How do I figure? I can add, Einstein.

Just like Sporano, Harbaugh, Smith just this year? I have absolutely NO PROBLEM with the Bills hiring an "unproven" coordinator type, because at some point ALL coaches are in that position. What I DO have a problem with are the folks making that hire, the ones deciding on who is going to man the helm. THEY'RE the disease, bad coaching hires are the symptom. An unproven coach is no reason to be up in arms. Trusting the Bills "brain trust" to make the right decision is.

If Jauron stays and ticket sales slide, it will be as much because of the crumbling economy as anyone's distaste for Jauron. Seasons ticket sales were at a near all-time high coming into 2008 on the heels of terrible 2006 and 2007 seasons. People like partying more than they do actually watching the games... so I wouldn't expect a whole hell of a lot of change with regards to the behavior of local fans.

The 49ers had a weaker strength of schedule. San Fran drafts 10th, Buffalo 11th. Head-to-head means squat.

I'm not saying he's "The Guy," but if Maualuga is available and the best available on the Bills' board, why not take him? Posluszny has proven NOTHING at MLB other than the fact he's ridiculously overrated. Rey at MLB and Posluszny taking over for Crowell on the strong-side would likely be an improvement for this mediocre LB corps.

Great research. But why let FACTS get in the way of the original poster's nonesense?!?

Detroit's cold weather?!? The Lions play in a dome, Einstein.

I'll agree with that sentiment... to a point. If Whitner were any good, he'd be making plays regardless of the front seven. As other posters have already mentioned, he's left PLENTY of plays on the field that were there for the making. This, coupled with his substandard coverage skills, leads me to believe he just ain't that good. And while he likely wouldn't be considered the best safety in the game if he were on the Bills, I'm pretty certain Ed Reed would still be making huge play after huge play were he on the Bills... because he's a ridiculous talent. A stronger front seven will only make Whitner so much better. The rest is on him to provide, and I just don't think he's got it.

On his best days, Whitner is slightly above-average. Most days, he's mediocre at best. I asked another Donte-lover a few weeks ago: name one big play Whitner's made in his entire career. Do that, and I'll counter with NUMEROUS times he's taken horrible angles to ballcarriers who subsequently blow by him for big gains... or the times he's been SMOKED in coverage... or the times he's flat-out late to get over in help... the list goes on... He and Posluszny are mediocre NFL talents at this point in their careers, yet somehow they get a MAJOR pass from Bills fans.

Can we merge this thread with the other one on the exact same topic?

I was under the impression that Guy/Modrak/Overdorff did all the contracts under Marv. Russ was busy marketing and "counting beans." Russ has (for sure) paid Mitchell, Brad Butler, Spencer Johnson... how are those bad contracts, as this scout calls them? Just a baseless comment buy some dope who'd prefer to remain anonymous than put his name behind his statement. His comments are (obviously) better served on a blog or message board, than in confidence to the "press."

Jauron will be coaching the Bills in 2009. Deal with it.