Lothar
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Posts posted by Lothar
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"meager $3.5m exclusion", $7m for married couples. I love that... meager $3.5m. What's a multi-millionaire to do? Put the inheritance tax up for a referendum vote like gay marriage. I'm sure the average guy has a lot of sympathy.
Bingo! But call it a death tax and see the masses flock to repeal it.
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I just don't understand (or care to) death tax. It is blantan robbery.
This is what happens when Frank Luntz and his crew of wordscribes gets a hold of ways to manipulate the masses. Most people were in favor of the 'inheritance' tax because they ascribed to the theory that if you earn your money, you should be able to keep it and do with it as you will. However, keeping money 'in the family' from one generation to another - so to speak - is a sure fire way to build an aristocratic elite. This particular tax truly only affects a small segment of the very richest of society.
Just as Luntz and his crew got labels changed to present "healthy forest" and "blue sky" initiatives because he realized most Americans can't be bothered with understanding details of important legislation (as both pieces of the afore-mentioned initiatives were simply used to defile the environment), just give it a nice title and people will follow like sheep. It is interesting that Madison himself wrote that one of his greatest fears was the growth of a more direct democracy were people would be misled into doing what was not in their best interest.
Sorry, I didn't want this to devolve into a political rant (I've already seen the "open-mindedness" of folks in that section of TBD), simply wanted to point out that most Americans were in favor of an inheritance tax - but once the name changed to something more ominous like 'death tax', the majority of the populace screamed foul and wanted it repealed.
Are we not lemmings?
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I'm confused here - is this an attempt to make money off us? It seems as though PFC only comes over to mention a live or archived interview with a Bills related player / coach / alumni. That doesn't seem equivalent to selling memorabilia or pimping a book or even a fanblog. If Scott sees it otherwise, I would defer to him since this is his website. However, in my opinion, this seems well within the bounds of Stadium Wall propreity - perhaps the solution might be a link off the Bills Daily partner site?
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How about a million buck bonus for 10 sacks.....should be motivation enough.
Maybe I should have re-phrased the discussion. I hope his attitude and coachability will improve now that he will be getting a paycheck.
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I assume this means he has no further military obligation, and will be able to start his football career immediately? Wonder how that works? I always thought the Army players would have to fulfill a 2-4 year military commitment after graduation from the academy??
GO BILLS!
I think his military job is to serve as a recruiter (according to radio reports)
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I've heard some draftniks say that Ellis will be a good player when he understands he's not as good as he thinks he is.
Plus his motivation isn't necessarily on "playing a game that he loves" (which may just be a cliche anyway for these millionaires-to-be.)
Here are some interesting comments from a local newspaper article:
Even as a senior, a football paycheck was never far from his mind. He sometimes wore a T-shirt depicting an X-ray of a man's head with dollar bills floating around inside it -- a visual representation of the phrase "money on my mind."
Ellis was surprised the Bills picked him because they didn't seem to show much more interest than the 20 or so other teams he met with at the combine. When the Bills called his cell phone yesterday to tell him they wanted to select him, it marked his official transition from a college career in which Tech's coaches sometimes hoped he would change his attitude, something the unapologetic Ellis resisted.
"It's not that I don't want to change, because I plan on changing," he said in the fall. "I plan on changing my bank account."
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Checked out Fine's combine results compared to other TEs (for clues about selection):
5th strongest - according to reps
fastest in 3 cone drill
2nd fastest in 20 yard shuttle
Seems to have quick twitch but not very fast - short yardage option
It does seem as though Kellen Davis must have some serious issues that haven't come out.
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Any guesses on who we will pick?
I'm guessing Kellen Davis or Martin Rucker ... we need TE about now
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Man, Connor still out there. Can't believe that.
I know there's a lot of Nittany Lion fans out there but I've seen him ranked as a 3rd or 4th rounder by the War Room and other places. Frankly we have much bigger needs. Now if he drops into the end of the 4th ...
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I like the PFW review of the Hardy pick:
After landing the draft's top corner in the first round, the Bills were able to find another big receiver other than Devin Thomas to take some attention away from Lee Evans and open up the offense for Trent Edwards and Marshawn Lynch. Hardy would have been a Pittsburgh Steeler and the first receiver drafted had Rashard Mendenhall been off the board. He could be a dominant red zone player and create mismatches with his tremendous size.
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I am picking TE Brad Cottam - 3rd Round
Unless Bennett falls thru the 2nd and we try to trade up, I like taking a flyer on Cottam in the 4th - you'd be drafting all potential though.
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From the front office interviews over on the official Bills site, I think it more likely we trade back down into the second to get a top TE. I think now they see 4 or 5 bg receivers about the same and expect one to fall to them.
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WIN - Sept. 7 Seattle Seahawks 1 p.m.
LOSS - Sept. 14 at Jacksonville Jaguars 1 p.m.
WIN - Sept. 21 Oakland Raiders 1 p.m.
WIN - Sept. 28 at St. Louis Rams 4:05 p.m.
WIN - Oct. 5 at Arizona Cardinals 4:15 p.m.
Oct. 12 Bye
LOSS - Oct. 19 San Diego Chargers 1 p.m.
WIN - Oct. 26 at Miami Dolphins 1 p.m.
WIN - Nov. 2 New York Jets 1 p.m.
LOSS - Nov. 9 at New England Patriots* 1 p.m.
WIN - Nov. 17 (Mon.) Cleveland Browns 8:30 p.m.
WIN - Nov. 23 at Kansas City Chiefs 1 p.m.
WIN - Nov. 30 San Francisco 49ers 1 p.m.
WIN - Dec. 7 Miami Dolphins (at Toronto) 4:05 p.m.
WIN - Dec. 14 at New York Jets 1 p.m.
LOSS - Dec. 21 at Denver Broncos 4:05 p.m.
LOSS - Dec. 28 New England Patriots* 1 p.m
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Vernon Gholston
the guy is a workout wonder with stiff hips. He is definitely too stiff for OLB. As a down DE, the kid has the bull rush and the straight wide rush, but ask him to double move and the hips start to show. Any decent OT in the NFL with enough power to handle his bull rush should shut down Gholston completely. We can only hope he ends up a Jet or Pat.
Excellent speed rusher who needs to be accounted for on every play and has good field presence, locating the ball quickly to fly to it and contain the run … Has the ability to consistently disrupt the backfield, as he has the speed to escape and the strength to overpower offensive tackles off the edge … Plays with the type of effort and emotion that makes a coach comfortable knowing that he will make plays all over the field … Has great flexibility and balance working down the line and changing direction … Has a low center of gravity and strong anchor, making it very rare to see him on the ground … When he is taken off of his feet, he is quick to recover and get back into the action … Has loose hips, good knee bend and balance in his running stride when chasing long distances … Has rare ability to run the field for a player his size and can be sudden in his initial movement
Every analysis I've seen of this kid says just the opposite of what you said (Warroom scouts take above) ... but ok.
I don't want this kid in the AFC East.
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A good buddy of mine who follows PSU football religiously told me he wouldn't be surprised if Connor winds up being a better pro than Poz -- and he loves Poz' game.
War Room scouts have Connor rated as a 3rd or 4th rounder calling him one of the more overrated players in the draft. Another guy whose career merits watching ...
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What is the big knock on him anyhow? I have not been pushing for him but I've seen some hi-lite clips & he looks great. Lots of draft gurus have us taking anyone but. What gives?
I've read several reviews of him fwiw - Sweed's big knock is that he's more athlete than football player, raw with his routes, makes spectacular catches but drops easy ones and a potential boom or bust pick.
I still think Kelly will be the best of the bigs coming out - and with the speed fiasco from last week, a solid choice if available in the 2nd. Kelly was described as having the best hands of this current crop (1 dropped pass over the last 2 years + he catches the majority of his passes over the middle) and he's been called the best blocking receiver EVER (according to WarRoom scouts.) I just think he's a perfect fit for the type of receiver the Bills need.
It really will be interesting to revisit these wideouts in 5 years.
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And if I can reiterate what the Sporting News said about Kelly:
1. He has the best hands of any receiver coming out - dropped 1 pass in the last 2 years.
2. He is fearless going over the middle and has the skills to turn upfield.
3. He is the best blocking receiver their scouts have EVER seen.
In comparison, they said, Sweed is a better athlete than football player - will drop some easy throws. And he is definitely more of a boom or bust pick - if his wrist is well and he checks out, he seems more likely a 2nd round selection and at that slot he would be well worth a shot. To me, if we go wideout in the 1st, I'd be shocked if it isn't Kelly or Thomas. If we don't pick a WR until the 2nd or later , I think the possibilities for a tall, strong wideout are wide open.
if a receiver runs excellent routes, has good burst off the line, and has excellent ball skills - the 40 isn't nearly as important.Housmandzadeh - 4.6
Jerry Rice - 4.6
Larry Fitzgerald - 4.6
Plaxico Burress - never ran it officially (apparently) but was estimated to be a 4.6
basically if Kelly runs anything in the 4.5/4.6 range, he's probably fine - assuming the scouts are satisfied with his game (routes, burst, ball skills) and his health.
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Harvey has already bulked up to 277 and is showing he can maintain the speed and quickness.
If he has - and can still play - I stand corrected. Too many guys gain or lose weight to hit the requisite specs for the combine or pro day. Bottom line is if our personnel guys feel good about him at that weight, he seems a good choice.
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FWIW, looking at a bunch of post-season pre-workout analyses of players is I think a great basis for deciding if a player has the right intangibles and performance history to succeed. To that end, the Sporting News and a couple other online publications detailed some of their best picks and why others are extremely risky.
I really think it comes down to 3 questions and their corollaries:
1. Did you have solid production in school? If not, why not?
2. Can you compete athletically with NFL caliber competition? This is where workouts allow you to compare kids from schools that don't have top-flight competition
3. Do you have the instincts and smarts to play your position? Are you competitive?
CB: With respect to cornerbacks, consensus was that Rogers-Cromartie looked like an average player against mediocre competition on game tape. His rise up the charts coincided with his Senior bowl practices and his workout numbers. Buyer beware. McKelvin and Jenkins seem like more complete and tested players at this position.
DE: While I wouldn't be disappinted in the selection of the 250lb Harvey (the first choice in this poll), he really would have to put on 15-20 pounds to be effective at this level since I don't see him as on OLB. Frankly, Calais, the 6-8 defensive end fom Miami has received comparisons to Julius Peppers. If you buy into the idea that the inept offense at UM this past year affected the play of their D, he may also be worth a look as a potential star at this position
WR: If it comes down to it, I'd rather take Kelly - who has far better hands and is a better blocker than Sweed (who has off-the-field issues and his own wrist injury to make me think he's red flagged on our board). Thomas, from MSU, seems to have a great blend of breakaway speed and size and production - albeit for just 1 year given MSU's coaching flubs the last few years - that I think the Bills consider him if they have doubts about Kelly's knees.
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I'd agree with that except they just had James Hall in who is just as nicked up and equally unproductive save for one year. He's possibly cheaper but the rest of the arguement really doens't work for me. He's the 4th DE, we need what 10-15 good snaps a game?
except that DJ is familiar with both guys and know their work habits and their potential impact on a young club.
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chris brown pretty much ruled it out as a bills' option - I'm thinkin' those "people in Detroit" probably reside in Buffalo now:
DON'T THINK DE EDWARDS IS AN OPTION: The release of Kalimba Edwards got my attention yesterday, but after looking at him further and talking to some people in the know, I don't anticipate him being a free agent target of the Bills. Talking to some people in Detroit he's a great practice player, but it never translates to the game field. He's had a myriad of injuries in his career and lost his starting job to Jared DeVries, a player that produces even though he's not as physically gifted as Edwards. An NFL head coach once told me that being available on Sundays is one of the most important qualities needed to have a long career in the NFL. Granted a lot of that is luck, but a guy with knee, ankle, foot, head and groin injuries in his six-year career is viewed as a risk. Even in a situational pass rushing role I don't think Edwards comes off as anything impressive, since his best sack season was 6.5
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They showed us having interest in Lynch and Poz last year plus a bunch of other folks who we didn't draft. It looks like the list is a lot shorter in terms of what they know this year:
'08
Todd Blythe, WR, Iowa State
Fred Davis, TE, Southern California
Kalvin McRae, RB, Ohio
Martin Rucker, TE, Missouri
'07
Buffalo Bills
Quarterbacks:
Troy Smith, Ohio State
Running Backs:
Marshawn Lynch, California
Fullbacks:
Brian Leonard, Rutgers
Wide Receivers:
Aundrae Allison, East Carolina, Ted Ginn Jr., Ohio State, Anthony Gonzalez, Ohio State, Brandon Myles, West Virginia
Tight Ends:
Scott Chandler, Iowa
Offensive Tackles:
None
Offensive Guards:
Manuel Ramirez, Texas Tech
Centers:
Dustin Fry, Clemson, Ryan Kalil, Southern California
Defensive Ends:
None
Defensive Tackles:
Amobi Okoye, Louisville
Outside Linebackers:
Paul Posluszny, Penn State
Inside Linebackers:
Patrick Willis, Mississippi
Cornerbacks:
Leon Hall, Michigan, Marcus McCauley, Fresno State, Aaron Ross, Texas
Safeties:
None
Kickers/Punters:
None
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To echo the above sentiments, that was some outstanding analysis. Thank you.
One comment with regard to the vertical jump - I do think it reflects explosion for most every position. A LB's potential to go thru a ball carrier as opposed to just tackling him is often times reflected in this number.
Ideally, you want production (stats) and durability (injuries) to be your first pass thru this group. Then the instincts and leadership intangibles get combined with an individual's athleticism to refine that decision. On that basis, I like your thinking - Willis/Poz/Beason all seem like fine choices early. Durant - and lately, Shaw impress me as 3rd round possibilities. Shaw's physical tools and versatility lead me to think he may be better than he's shown thus far if a coaching staff lets him settle into a position.
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The model for this is actually the Jax defense which finished 4th in the league in rush defense, The biggest DT is Henderson at 325 (about 40-50 pounds less than the standard big run plugger like a Big Ted). The other 3 DTs Stroud, Meier and I can't remember who else all weigh in at less than 310 (I think a couple of them have playing weights below 300.
There are many things uncertain about the Bills in this draft, but one of the more certain ones is that we are not going to spend big resources going after a DL player in this draft.
While I agree with your conclusion (no DL - especially 1st day), I couldn't disagree more with your example. Henderson and Stroud are the antithesis of Cover-2 DTs - they're both big and strong and tend to play most downs. They completely choke off any semblance of a running game inside but you definitely wouldn't mistake Henderson for a speedy interior lineman. Chicago and Indy are more the prototypes for our defense and it remains to be seen just how good the interior of our line can be with a healthy McCargo and an experienced Walker. I do know we are woefully short on LB depth right now and expect to see multiple picks at this position.
Was in Seattle this weekend
in The Stadium Wall Archives
Posted
Beautiful city, wonderful music festival (Bumbershoot) but I did make time to catch the Hawk pre-season finale last week. Interesting to see the local TV announcers play down the Bills as the Hawks first opponent - something to the effect of "we're lucky to be playing the Bills in week 1 - they finished 31st in offense and 31st in defense last year." Umm ok. I know we all put homerville glasses on when we praise the strengths and minimize the weaknesses of our team but sheesh, that's just lazy reporting to not know what's transpired in the offseason or look at records.
My analysis of this matchup:
When Seahawks have the ball
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Their offense is pretty beat up. Both in terms of the QB and wideouts. Hasselback is a smart and savvy QB but he's been hurting for three works with a back issue. He did start practicing today so he will be playing, albeit rusty, on Sunday. Their RB situation has gone from a strength to a liability - Julius Jones, TJ Duckett and Maurice Morris are an adequate group but clearly not among the elite. In fact, the smallish Justin Forsett may be the best of the bunch based on preseason outings. They have a corps of uber-young wideouts who performed well in preseason but it remains to be seen just how they adapt to real bullets flying. Nate Burleson (good special teamer, mediocre receiver), Courtney Taylor and Ben Obamanu are the top three wideouts and I don't see them posing huge problems for our own revamped secondary. That said, their short passing game is the bread and butter of the WCO and Holmgren's tweak off it is to use the tight end down the middle more often. However, the TEs on their roster currently are really no better than the ones we have (rookie Carlson appears to have beat out Putzier for the starter's role) so it's hard to see them being a huge threat right now.
In Buffalo, their inexperienced wideouts and Hasselback's rust combined with the crowd noise WILL result in at least a couple turnovers.
When Bills have the ball
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The Hawks return all eleven starters from a solid defense. They fit the adage attributed to earlier Sabres teams, however, in that they play Ruff at home and Lindy on the road - all due respect, I do love our Sabres. They nearly set the franchise record for giving up the fewest points in their history last year. Patrick Kerney, Darryl Tapp and their first rounder from USC make for a formidable group of defensive ends. But the strength of the Hawk defense is now their linebacking corps - Lofa Totupu and Julian Peterson as well as an up and comer in Leroy Hill on the other side. Their starting DT just got suspended for the first game so there will be holes to be had in the middle of their line. Given these issues, it does seem to me that we should pound them as much as possible to get into manageable 3rd down situations. Trufant is a good corner but RCB Jennings is definitely the weak link of a strong secondary. Deion Grant and Brian Russell are solid, if not spectacular.
Edwards' own lack of playing time in the preseason combined with Peters' absence will make scoring on this defense tougher than we might expect. Again, though, opening at home against a banged up team may be all that's needed to score 2 touchdowns and a couple of field goals.
In the main, I really do like the matchup of our defense against their offense. Plus I believe our special teams will have a couple nice surprises for the opener. Early turnovers from our D and this could become what we all want for an opener. But our own issues on offense will make this closer than it should. I think Buffalo wins 23-13.