GhostsOfTheRockpile

While I'm no huge fan of Brandon's thus far... what stupid contracts has he given out? Mitchell? It sounds to me like this "scout" has an axe to grind. Sounds like one of these football-lifers who couldn't fathom a world in which someone runs an operation without having paid dues for decades the way this schlub likely did (just like baseball scouts allegedly resent the Theo Epstein's and Billy Beane's of the world).

The Bills win another without Peters. In no way am I saying he is at fault for any losses, but this goes to the point that his presence is not necessary for victory. There are plenty of teams succeeding in the NFL without a "star" left tackle. If I had any faith at all in the Bills front office, I would rather they move Peters for the bounty he'd likely attract and use the money they otherwise would have spent on him to bring in a couple legit NFL players on the D-line, O-line, linebacking corps, wherever. The Bills would be better off in the short- and long-run. Problem is, I have no faith in the front office to pull off such a shrewd maneuver. But that doesn't change the fact that Peters is worth more to the Bills as an expendable asset than as a $9 million a year tackle they have done just fine without.

Locking Greer up - and thus establishing the quality depth the original poster mentioned - would be the ridiculously easy and smart thing to do. Therefore, the Bills will likely do the opposite. This will "force" them to use (read: waste) a pick in the first three rounds on yet another DB. Brilliant! Expect the same treatment for Fred Jackson. Until they prove otherwise, there's no reason to suspect the Bills front office has any idea what they're doing.

Hit it on the head, Lurker. EXPLORE ALL OPTIONS. If the Bills aren't willing to go where he wanted to LAST summer on contract demands, I'd move him ASAP before those demands go even HIGHER this off-season, and you lose any trade leverage you might have. Because of Ralph-imposed salary constraints, the Bills need to operate like the Oakland A's. Like it or not, Billy Beane's "Moneyball" approach applies to the Bills. They need to move Peters and his soon-to-be monster salary for plenty of just-as-valuable assets before his star starts to fade... as it undoubtedly did this year. Is the guy markedly better than anyone a savvy front office couldn't bring in? I say no. But again, we don't have one of those, so I'd resist moving him right now.

What do you see on the field?!?!? Because most objective fans see nothing we wouldn't get from any NFL-caliber MLB. And are you REALLY going to point to STATS to validate Posluszny's worth?! He's a middle linebacker... OF COURSE he's going to put up big numbers. But he's quickly morphing into London Fletcher, padding his stats by making tackles six or seven yards down field. In his year and a couple games, he has made very, VERY few - if any - impact plays. To wit, coming into the year many thought the Bills would be much better up the middle with the addition of Stroud and replacing DiGiorgio with Stroud. But can anyone say we've gotten more out of the MLB spot with Posluszny than we got last year out of DiGiorgio? You'll have a hard time convincing any objective fan of that one. The guy simply isn't an impact player at all. Same with Whitner. The Bills could do better at BOTH positions. I'm not advocating cutting the guys by any means, and I think there are BIGGER holes to fill (FS, OLB, two DE's, two interior O-linemen, TE, QB, 2nd WR). But if a better option presents itself, the Bills should take it.

Hardly an idiot move. Well, let me clarify. If we had a savvy front office who I trusted to bring in a good replacement or build a good line, I would have no problem dealing Peters now while his value is highest. Detroit just got a FIRST, THIRD AND SIXTH for Roy Williams, who isn't nearly regarded at his position in the light Peters is at his. You can build a good line quickly through the draft and/or smart free agent pickups. You don't need big-name, highly-paid "stars." If the Bills had guys who knew what they were doing in key positions within the organization, Peters wouldn't be even close to "untouchable." In fact, I'd venture to think they'd consider him a key asset that could yield the franchise a windfall of first day picks. A smart front office, better quarterbacking, good coaching and Peters is ABSOLUTELY expendable, especially considering he's going to be a problem again this coming summer. Unfortunately, we have none of the above. So I'd resist dealing him for now.

We also need help at safety. Lots of it. And I wouldn't limit linebacker help to OLB. If there is an option better than Posluszny, take it. Move him to Ellison's spot. Or jumble him and Mitchell around. Regardless, the Bills need to acquire the best LB they can, whether he plays the inside or outside.

It is NOT subjective, it is quite OBJECTIVE. Please list for me the last big play either Whitner or Posluszny made. EXTREMELY good players? Really? I wouldn't even label them GOOD players, based on the lack of production both have displayed thus far. I see no-name players making plays for teams around the league every week. And even if they step out once a season to make a big pick, or force a big fumble... that's one more than these two. It boggles my mind why so many people give guys like Whiter, Posluszny, Ryan Miller, etc. a pass. Why do Buffalo fans put certain guys on a pedestal and remove them from all criticism?

Ridiculously wrong. There is a maddening lack of talent on this team, which is why we consistently lose more games than we win. Front office is bad, coaches are bad, talent is mediocre AT BEST. Does this roster REALLY have a lot of good players on it? We have one good WR, a good RB, our QB is mediocre, our O-line is hit or miss with substandard talent at a few spots, our DE's are terrible, our LB's are average on good days, our safeties are borderline terrible... where's all this playoff-caliber talent?!? Whitner? Posluszny? Kelsay? Preston? Ellison? Butler? Dockery? C'mon. Bills fans really need to start being honest with themselves. The TEAM IS NOT GOOD.

What, you mean two character players?!? NO!!! NO!!! We need people who jump up and down and act like idiots and thus intimidate the opponents!!! Thanks for proving a point, Pride. Character and talent sure as hell CAN go hand-in-hand... you just need talented people at the top making the right decisions. People like the original poster shouldn't be complaining about too many "character" players, they should be complaining about too many marginal talents in leadership roles like Whitner, Posluszny, etc.

Why should we be sick of "character" guys on the team? "Character" and "talent" aren't mutually exclusive. Despite what Marv Levy's drafting habits would have you believe, you can have guys who are good citizens and talented football players. You don't need "intimidating" or "a--hole" players. You need guys who can execute. If we had a team of emotion-less automatons who executed each and every play to perfection, I would be thrilled beyond belief. Ranting and raving and acting like a petulant child is overrated.

Personally, if that happens I'll be asking why the f**k Losman WASN'T starting the last two games, as our draft position will have undoubtedly suffered because of said wins.

If he's HEALTHY do you even want him as the cornerstone for the franchise? He's shown me nothing to say "yes."

While he was still on the payroll during the '06 draft, it has been widely reported that Casserly had nothing to do with the Texans draft that April, a mere two months before his eventual ousting. From a Richard Justice article in the Houston Chronicle, 10/16/06: "The failings of this franchise begin with him. Yes, they actually begin with McNair because he's responsible for everything. Yet he hired Cassserly and Casserly constructed the front office and Casserly was in charge when most of these players arrived. He drafted 19 players in the first four rounds of his drafts. (He had no role in the 2006 draft. I'd like to blame him for Mario Williams, but I just can't. Maybe in a year or two, we'll blame him for that one, too, and the traffic on the Katy Freeway as well.) Ten of those 19 players are gone. Some of the ones that remain--Travis Johnson, Jason Babin, Antwan Peek--seem to be hanging on. Of those 19 picks, the Texans got just four difference-makers: David Carr, Dunta Robinson, Andre Johnson and Chester Pitts. We can debate Carr all day long, but there are times now when he looks like a winning quarterback. Sunday's loss to the Cowboys was a huge step backwards, and the truth is, given the circumstances into which he was thrust, it's impossible to know if he'll ever be the guy the Texans thought he'd be." Good job getting DeMeco Ryans and Andre Johnson... but what else? Not the track record I want running my team. Next?

They have nothing to lose, so I don't mind this move. Let's us know if we need to bring in two or three quarterbacks next season. That said... ... 6-9.

The players helped vote Ruben Brown back to the Pro Bowl time after time after time. Reputation is what gets linemen in, so I doubt there's any collusion among the players here. But yes, "ANYTHING" is possible...

You might want to improve your reading comprehension skills. At no point did I call Edwards fragile. I clearly said their investment in him was fragile, and there is a significant difference. Fans are losing (have lost?) confidence in the quarterback. Boos are reigning down week after week. Everyone is calling for the coach's head, the heads of our three-headed-GM monster, even the owner. Nobody is going to come to the New England game. To put Edwards back on the field and continue to watch him fail is to all but doom your already-fragile investment to failure. Even with Edwards under center, there's no doubt in my mind we lose the Miami and New York games. By protecting him now, they buy him time to come back and start next season. If he's playing and failing these past two weeks, it becomes abundantly clear this team needs TWO new QB's next year (which they do anyway... Edwards has proven nothing except that he's got Tim Connolly's level of durability), as opposed to one.

Moving to a 3-4 would be a mistake of epic proportions at this point. 1 - We do NOT have DE's even remotely capable of playing in that system. 2 - Our linebackers aren't NEARLY good enough to play that system. 3 - Our safeties are pitiful, and not qualified to play in such a system. There is a dearth of talent on the defensive side of the ball, like it or not. No ends, mediocre linebackers, below average safeties. If you have talent, you can win with any system... Tampa-2, 4-3, 3-4, 46, whatever. This team could win with the Fewell Tampa-2 if they had impact players. Unfortunately, they don't have nearly enough.

Agree. If the Bills REALLY believed that garbage they were spewing the last few weeks about "well, we're still technically in the playoff push so we're going out there and we're going to put our best foot forward" they wouldn't have let Losman anywhere near the field. I'm not saying Trent is faking it, just that they're playing it EXTRA careful with him because they have nothing to play for. If this team were REALLY in the hunt, he'd be out there playing hurt. They're protecting their fragile investment in Edwards by removing him from the line of fire.

The Bills are worth whatever someone will pay, plain and simple. The Forbes valuations are just estimates, as access to each teams' books is severely limited. If someone will pay $800 million for the Bills, that's what they're worth. If that number is $1 billion or $550 million, there you go. Rest assured, though, that the NFL owners won't approve of ANY sale that isn't to the highest bidder. If someone offers $800 million for the Bills and this ALLEGED group Kelly has offers $750 million, you can bet the owners won't let Kelly anywhere near the keys to the kingdom. I understand why people keep talking about the "Kelly Group" - its the only hope we really have of keeping our beloved Bills in town - but reality has to kick in at some point. The odds are stacked against Jim raising nearly enough capital to purchase an NFL franchise in the current economic climate.

Disagree with original poster, agree with subsequent posters - our quarterbacking is terrible, and a decent QB turns several losses (and thus, the season) around. Period. A good quarterback is more important than a good coach. We could have Dick Jauron coaching this team another ten years, and nobody would mind provided we had a good quarterback (see: 2008 Buffalo Bills first six games). Good quarterbacking, a good schedule, and you make the playoffs far more often than not. For some reason, people don't want to hear it... but even WITH Jauron being a dope most of the time, if Edwards doesn't start regressing mid-season this team is going to the playoffs. The Bills won't miss the playoffs because of Jauron, they'll miss the playoffs because they got terrible quarterbacking most of the season. (Don't get me wrong... I want Jauron gone as much as the next guy, but he's hardly the only one to blame.)

Details - extension through 2013, will be one of highest paid coaches in MAC, all assistants got raises.

The Bills have been allowing UB to practice in the fieldhouse in preparation for playing in the SkyDome. The press conference was to discuss all the junk that's been attached to his name regarding the Auburn job. The good news? He made mention of how he was working diligently on an extension with UB. Imagine that... a team and its "front office" discussing a potential contract that impacts how fans and supporters see the program!

There. Fixed it for you.

Wings, that's what I'm getting at. He may pay lip service to the success of the team on the field, but his actions speak louder than his words. I give him credit for bringing in Donahoe. It obviously didn't work out, but he swung for the fences with that one. Nearly every personnel move he's made since firing Donahoe (and plenty before him) evidences a guy who's more concerned with control, keeping costs down, etc. than building a consistent winner, a legitimate contender. Your point about having his cake is spot on. He wants to win, but he doesn't want to commit to building a winning franchise. Which, in my mind, means he doesn't care nearly enough about doing what it takes to win.