Fixxxer

Or maybe he's not buying the athlete or the arm strenght hype. It was great listening to Billick at the combine talking about QBs. He mentioned Boller as being one of the reason he is now a reporter and not a coach anymore. When he was the Baltimore HC they needed a QB and they had this physicall specimen in Boller, he could run, had amazing arm strenght but he wasn't very accute in terms of football knowledge. He said his arrogance lead him to believe he could make a QB out of him. He said that Boller and him put the time and effort to make Boller better but in the end the shortcomings were too much and no amount of arm strenght was going to solve the problem. Billick's candor and humility were great to hear, specially when you thought the guy was not capable of being that auto-critic. It seems being out of the HC job humbled the guy. In terms of QBs you can't allow yourself to get blinded by hype, arm strenght (worry only if it is sufficient) or how fast a guy can run, the main reason QBs fail is because the guys that drafted them thought they could coach those guys up.

Some people age differently, I guess. Who knows? All I know is Stroud was not being effective for us, for the hybrid defense that he will also play in NE. We will see how this plays out, I wish him all the luck in the world (except against us), he is a classy guy

Very interesting Astro, thanks for the links.

Marcus Stroud: A big name, but is there anything left? February 16th, 2011 | Author: Sam Monson Hot Start 2008 was Stroud’s first season as a Bill, and by far his most successful. His season featured two of the best graded games we have ever given to a defensive tackle. Opening the season at home to Seattle he recorded a pair of sacks and added another six pressures. Then in Week 11, when the Bills hosted the Browns he was able to knock down the passer twice and add five more pressures. These games were as dominant as anything we had seen from an interior lineman (until his former Bill teammate Kyle Williams redefined dominance against the Steelers in 2010). He finished the season inside the top 10 of our DT rankings that year with a +17.1 PFF grade on the season, but Stroud scored a +19.2 grade from those two monster games alone. For the 14 other games Stroud actually graded out below average. The signs were there for the Bills that sinking money into Stroud might not have been the best plan. Especially since in the same year, much less heralded defensive tackle Kyle Williams finished with a +26.5 PFF grade and since gone on to become one of the leagues’ standouts at the position. Never justifying the money After the Bills extended Stroud’s contract, he has never looked likely to justify the salary. 2009 saw his play drive over a cliff. From being ranked in the top 10 the previous season, albeit on the back of a pair of huge games, Stroud found himself rooted near the bottom of our DT rankings in ’09. Stroud’s -17.7 PFF grade for the season was bad enough to rank him 83rd amongst DTs, just two spots better off than Ryan Sims, a name synonymous with defensive tackle bust....... Worth a look? As with all big names that get released, the first question thousands of fans ask is “Is he worth bringing in”? In the case of Marcus Stroud, you can probably get your answer from looking at who released him. Buffalo had the worst run defense in the NFL in 2010, and they decided that they were better off without him. Stroud is now 32 years old, and like so many NFL players, his career has taken a steep nosedive in flight-path after his 30th birthday. more............. http://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2011/02/16/marcus-stroud-a-big-name-but-is-there-anything-left/

I think I might have been one of the stupid f...... who believed in Pizza man Anderson. I will forever live in shame about it.

hahaha, that is some nasty "pick" right there. That is John Moffitt, from now on aka Nasty pick.

We need a thumper next to Poz. I like Shepard, I don't exactly know if he is the guy for that job but Gailey praised his natural ability to lead. (maked the defensive calls in the Senior Bowl) Not very familiar with McCarthy, though, the first time I watched him was in the Senior Bowl.

Players I don't want with the #3 pick: Newton Gabbert AJ Green Von Miller Peterson Amukamara

If I say great depth I mean I hope they get a better player to start. But I want more, I want him to get better too. Sometimes I think fans believe a player can only get worse and not better.

Great depth player, I hope he keeps improving within the offense.

This is the right move. Wilson is a class act and a very complete football player, I'm glad they re-signed him.

I would have loved for the kid to say "No sir Billick sir, I don't like cokeheads like the one beside me, sir"

No doubt, I agree with you. I was looking for some data from rookies and I remembered that Spoon had a good year as a rookie, he was not the greatest athlete but I always thought he could have had a good career if not for the injuries (biceps IIRC)

Or maybe he already think he is the "best next thing" and won't put the best effort to be best. Like every rookie, they're coached to say the things they say, the PC way. Maybe he doesn't feel like lying and his speech comes as insincere as it comes, often times the nuggets of what he really think come out, like the icon and entertainer bid came out. I believe the guy is one big act, good for him that he is trying to get the best deal for him, bad for the team that believes said act.

Sorry, but we're talking philosophies here, not scouting. You scout base on philosophy. You can see clear differencies in Marv/Jauron/Brandon's approach and Nix's approach. M/J/B went after lots of junior players because they thought they would develop further as players and individuals. Nix wants more tested players coming from College. If Nix tells his scouts to focus first on players that meet certain criteria the scouts will do as they are told.

Sorry, Nix was not in charge back in 2009, the philosophies regarding draft approach were set by different people back then.

Brandon Spoon had a good rookie season, starting 14 games and scoring twice after interceptions, which at that times was some sort of rookie record.

If I'm a coach I wouldn't waste my time trying to correct his flaws. He's the quintessenial coach killer.

Late first rounder, but I will keep my fingers crossed for him to be available at #34. Bell - Levitre - Wood -Urbik/Hang - Carimi.

What are you trying to say here? That Nix saw something in Clabo (who was a UFDA btw) and sent him to the PS squad so he could be developed by their coaching staff?

What about Captain Obvious? Is he related too? Regarding free agent FAs, how good are Miller and Boss's blocking ablilities? Who would be the most complete player of the two?

While I agree with you, that goes for any QB we might draft this year.

Great summary post. It was evident that the last deal was hurried to be signed so that football could carry on. In the meantime players got a sweet deal, they also agreed in good faith that if the owners didn't think this deal was good for them the deal could be voided. What bothers me is that now that the owners are saying that the past deal was not a good one for them the players start claiming dishonesty from their employers? Either way, it all started when the owners rushed to sign the last deal. They should have been more conscious of the potential problems the new CBA would bring.

From the same link "When I asked about the pain he was in, about the big hit in the fourth quarter that left him awfully slow to get up,..." I think it was pretty evident what hit hurt him the most and up until that hit he didn't show he was in a good deal of pain throught the game. He obviously tried to minized the hit, which doesn't bother me. The point is, he will be hit harder and teams will easily gameplan against him in the NFL if he thinks that he'll have success running the ball like he did in College. If he wants to maximize the damage he can do with his legs he will first have to learn to hurt teams from the pocket.