D_House

To be fair, I think Losman helped his line out at times yesterday with his mobility. The blown snap on the first play is the only specific play I can remember, but I do recall him moving around to buy time on a couple of occasions.

Ha didn't see the thread on this. I totally agree. It is ridiculous what a mockery of sports announcing Theismann is.

I'm loving Vermeil as an announcer. Jaws is solid too. The three stooges were terrible in the Skins game. The worst bit was how often they cut to the studio, like when Jamie Foxx was in there. Hello! There's a football game going on!

Yeah, and Gallery was the "can't miss" player of the draft, according to the experts. Shows you what they know.

I liked the call on the 4th down too. It was Belichick-like. Which is a good thing.

I agree with pretty much all your points, and I think it's important for us as fans to maintain a positive outlook, especially since this is only the first game of the season, and it was a road game against a quality opponent. One point I didn't see you mention that was very postitive to me was the pass rush we were able to muster. Honestly, I don't know if I've ever seen Brady look that flustered. I am very much looking forward to a win next week against Miami. Go Bills!

I think if DJ and Levy are honest with the players and take a firm stance that JP is the QB, and that Holcomb is the backup, that Holcomb will be a valuable member of the roster. He is definitely capable of being a serviceable backup, something that Nall has not yet shown.

It helps when you use your players correctly, thereby giving your team the best chance to execute and complete the play. The Bills do not have a QB anywhere near the caliber of Brady on their roster, however, they do have a much better RB than any on the Pats' roster in McGahee. You put the ball in your star's hands in crunchtime situations. The Pats know this, and Brady guides them to victory after victory. We need to do the same with McGahee and forget about the gadget plays.

from CNNSI.com: "I may be guilty of judging a book by its cover, a dangerous thing to do with an accomplished and savvy veteran such as DT Sam Adams, whom the Bengals signed in the off-season -- and who has never been a candidate for the cover of a fitness magazine -- but looking at him it's hard to believe he is the answer for the Bengals' run defense. Right now he's the answer to the question, "Who's that fat guy over there on the sidelines?" There's a pic of him too. Big Pat's not the only one with weight issues.

I read it too. I agree that it was fair. It is easy for the government to come off bad when they keep changing their story or even worse, hide in a cloud of secrecy. The article does no disrespect to Pat, it acknowledes his sacrifice, and repeatedly commends his character. He is described as humble, and I know that in other articles I read about the man, he did not want a big deal media blitz made out of his decision to quit the NFL for the army. Given his nature I think it's even more ironic that the army felt the need to fabricate a story and cover up the truth. Basically, they used him. ANd that makes me mad.

so what you're saying is we need more trial lawyers?

And the 'experts' would have blasted the bills for taking a guard predicted to go in round 2 when we had needs at safety and DT to address. The Bills were in a lose-lose situation sitting at 8. Either they take guys like Leinart or Ngata that make the pundits happy (because they were talking them up), but don't help the team, or they take a guy that helps the team but isn't good 'value,' according to ESPN.

thanks for the analysis. do you recall offhand who was playing on the other side of the ball for each team? was reyes handling anderson or adams (or other)? who were the carolina linemen that were dominating our interior line?

http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories...01/daily30.html

http://www.footballsfuture.com/2006/prospe...loti_ngata.html Haloti Ngata DT 6’5 338 Oregon Jr. By: Robert Davis Haloti Ngata has always been one of the most imposing figures you’ll see on a football field. He was widely regarded as one of the top five players in the entire country coming out of high school. He gave glimpses of his talent as a freshman, but missed the entire following year due to a knee injury. Ngata didn’t regain his previous form until halfway through last year at Oregon. As a junior this past season, Ngata notched 61 tackles, nine for loss, and three sacks, despite constant double and triple teams. You cannot dream up a more physically gifted defensive tackle. Ngata is absolutely massive and is immovable from the interior line. He combines his bulk with amazing physical strength. Along with his great size and strength, he has impressive athleticism and agility. Moving up the field, he shows the ability to change direction well and has the closing speed to finish off plays. Oregon even drops him into coverage from his tackle spot. That is unheard of for a 340lber. He must be accounted for at all times. Teams routinely double and triple team him to neutralize his impact. Ngata has gotten a ton of hype because of his physical gifts, but he still needs some more consistency on the field. At times, he thinks his raw strength is enough to dominate, and that will not work at the next level. He injured his knee in 2003, and even though he appears to be back at full strength, it will be something that is looked into. On his talent alone, Ngata is going to be a high draft pick. Teams will drool over his physical ability in workouts. He is one of the elite defensive players in this draft, and could go in the Top eight of this years draft. EDIT:***OK that's enough, I just wanted to add some contrasting evaluations of Ngata, I knew he has SOME positives***

http://football.about.com/od/nationalfootb...halotingata.htm Position: Defensive Tackle *Top Rated* School: Oregon Status: Junior Height: 6-5 Weight: 335 40-Yard Dash: 4.85 (EST) Positives: Haloti Ngata is a veritable mountain of a man in the middle of the defensive line, and has the strength to throw around guards when he's getting into the backfield. He also has great burst and agility to get through the line when brute force isn't enough. Ngata's coaches also call him among the most intelligent athletes they've ever seen, and he uses that intelligence to his full advantage, showing an ability to read play-action passes or where runs are going better than nearly anyone at his level of development, and better than many NFL linemen. Ngata also will refuse to give up on plays and doesn't take any off. He also has a rare ability among defensive linemen that he doesn't lose much from his play if he's on the field and hurting. Negatives: The only real negative about Ngata is that he tore an ACL in his sophomore year, which is always a concern for someone his age. However, he came back claiming that his damaged knee was stronger post-rehab than his healthy knee was, and no proof to the contrary has come out through his play. Overview: Haloti Ngata has been described as a quiet, but good-natured football player, which is never a bad thing to see. With his size and the tools he has, he will be a valuable pickup for any NFL franchise looking for a high-flight DT to add to their roster. Barring future complications from his previous knee surgery, he should be an NFL star for years to come.

Scout.com Player Evaluation: NFL Draft Rankings (full list): Pos: DT Pos Rank: #1 STRENGTHS Explosion Size Strength AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT Techniques and Moves Powerful defensive lineman who occupy blockers and control the line of scrimmage. Has upside associated with improvement of technique at the pro level. Biography: Finished up his college career with a season that pushed him into the first round of the NFL draft. Consensus All-American following the a season where Ngata was a dominating force in the defensive line and registered 71 tackles, including tackles-for-losses in nine games during the season. Finalist for both the Outland and Nagurski trophies.

http://www.nfldraftcountdown.com/scoutingr...alotingata.html Height: 6-4 1/8 | Weight: 338 | 40-Time: 5.12 Official Bio Strengths: Has outstanding size and a huge frame...Is an amazing athlete...Moves well and has excellent speed and quickness...Extremely strong and gets a great push...Can control the line of scrimmage...Can stuff the run and take on multiple blockers...Is not merely a space eater and can penetrate and rush the passer if given the opportunity...Plays with great leverage...Has the potential to be a dominant 3-4 nose tackle...A great kick blocker on special teams...Major upside. Weaknesses: Has an inconsistent motor and disappears for stretches...Needs to work on his technique and master the nuances of the position...Tore the ACL in his left knee and missed basically the entire 2003 season...Is not yet a finished product. Notes: Was a premier recruit coming out of high school...As the "Planet Theory" says there are only so many guys in the world with his blend of size, speed and athleticism...A rare prospect with the tools to be one of the best in the league.

Interesting. I was thinking with as much hype as Davis has been getting (especially on these boards) that he might not last to the Bills' pick. This seems to validate that. If he is still there, the Bills have to make that trade... too many holes on this team to take a TE in the top 10.

Absolutely. I live in Baltimore and check out the Ravens boards once in a while. They LOVE Ngata, and Justice is getting a lot of hype too.

TD is in NO? Ha! That explains why they've let 3 starting lineman go with no attempts to replace them.

From the linked site: "A "pork" project is a line-item in an appropriations bill that designates tax dollars for a specific purpose in circumvention of established budgetary procedures. To qualify as pork, a project must meet one of seven criteria that were developed in 1991 by CAGW and the Congressional Porkbusters Coalition."

Yeah me too. Someone on this board also made the point that Juaron did well in Chicago with big DTs Traylor and Washington, although I don't know if he was using the cover 2 then.

think Ravens.