folz

Shanahan is obviously a good coach, no question, and when we were interviewing him I would have been really happy had he been hired...but now, I don't know, I really feel like being spurned by the bigger names (although I really think Cowher was interested but couldn't accept due to his wife's illness) and then hiring Chan may turn out to be a blessing in disguise. I'm just going on my gut here, we'll see how it plays out...but it just feels like Chan was the right guy at the right time for this team. Not to say the others couldn't have turned things around, but Chan wants to be here, has just as much to prove as the players...there's no savior coming in to bail the players out, just a hard work, expect to win, us against the world, they don't believe in me either let's prove them wrong guy.

I had seen most of the highlight films before, but what struck me about C.J. rewatching these vids was not his Sanders/Sayers type of jukes, change of direction, etc. (which is what jumps out at you first), but his Thurman Thomas-like ability to not take the big hit. Watch the way he uses his body positioning, balance, and momentum to keep guys from getting a clean shot, or be able to wrap him up. Going into the draft people wondered if he could get yards in the NFL up the gut...I think he'll get them the same way TT did, with balance and body positioning making him elusive even in tight quarters.

Thanks Dog and Wonderbread...the veetle feed worked for me and I got the stream.

I tried this link last game as well with no success. Does anyone know if it doesn't work for MACs or if the vshare plugin doesn't work with MACs...I can't click he link on the page and can find no where to download it for free.

When is the last time we even saw a successful screen in a game? Or a successful slant? Or... Sure, its preseason, but it is already like night and day between Gailey and Jauron's OC stooges (no offensive to AVP). Did you see that hole on Spiller's 2nd TD...the OL did their job sure, but that's playcalling and formation that creates openings like that.

There have been some posters who say we need to go back to go forward, hit rock bottom first. But what they fail to realize is that last year WAS Rock Bottom...even though it didn't secure us the number 1 pick or anything (it did get us C.J. though)...but just listen to what the players had to say about last year. Last year was as bad and as painful as any 2-14 season (fired coaches, QB carousel, pathetic losses, injuries) . I don't think anyone is looking at the preseason and thinking we are going to all of a sudden tear up the league but it does seem like we are witnessing a team pulling itself up off the carpet and finally taking some forward steps rather than running on the sub-mediocre treadmill. And that is cause to get excited despite what our final record will be this year. If nothing else, this team will be more fun to watch...if I had to live through another 3-6 loss to Cleveland when their QB wins the game having completed like 1 of 17 passes or whatever it was...I might have had to shoot myself.

I wonder if that link or plugin doesn't work with Macs. I've tried with Firefox and IE, click on the download link and nothing happens. Tried to google the vshare download but can't find anywhere to download it for free.

What link are you guys on...I had nothing for a while and am now just getting a radio feed.

Good for Chan! Let's face it, heckling at a practice is ridiculous and what does it accomplish? I know we as Bills fans are disgruntled after the last 10 years, but seriously.. these guys were not complaining about throws or the play on the field, they were mocking his haircut, etc. I don't get why people personally attack our own players. You may think he shouldn't start or whatever, but why bash any of the guys personally? If Trent doesn't play well, I'll be right with you on saying he should be replaced but I won't be saying I hate the guy, or his mother, or make some stupid gay joke about him. This is our team for better or worse this year, why can't we support them until proven otherwise. Do you think Trent (or any other player) doesn't want to get better, or isn't working hard? How can you fault a guy for that...if he just doesn't have it, he won't be around long, but it wouldn't be his fault, its not like he's dogging it, or bashing the team, or fans, or city, or anything that should provoke such hatred towards the guy. And for those that think Trent should fight his own battles, have you seen what happens to players in the media if they yell back at or bash the fans? They get killed in the media and reprimanded by the NFL, players don't get much leeway there. I really like the team mentality, us versus the world, bash one of us bash all of us attitude that Chan is bringing to the team. There was also the article about the whole secondary visiting Byrd at the hospital. These guys are becoming a team, they're going to fight for eachother and that's great. Can't we start fighting for this team as well. When I talk about the Bills I always say we, us...maybe that makes me a loser, but that's how I feel. We can discuss who should start or not, who's playing well or not and why, who should stay on the team and who should go, but seriously to HATE any of our players and personally bash them is not being a fan of the TEAM. I know I'll probably get called a homer and Trent-lover for this post, so be it, but I'm not for or against any one player, if Brohm got named the starter, I'll root like hell for him, I don't think Fitz should start, but I'm rooting for him too...I'm for the Bills as a team and right now Trent is our starting QB, so until he's no longer on the team, I'll be rooting for him.

Shaky start on the first few plays: sack, bad pass... But then settled down nicely and played well. Wasn't shy or afraid with the ball, put the ball up for the receivers to go get. Threw a few nice, quick slants. Beautiful sideline pass to Chad Jackson for 26 yards. Overall, he didn't make a bunch of big plays or anything, but he managed the game, kept the chains moving, and looked pretty poised and confident.

Besides our QBs and C.J., some guys who I thought played well tonight: No surprises here, but good to see: Leodis McKelvin (tight coverage) Kyle Williams (Looked good in the middle, still penetrating) Ashton Youboty (A man among boys playing with the 2s and 3s) Roscoe Parrish (He might be our real #2 even if he's working out of the slot) Young guys coming on? Joique Bell (Wow, 11 for 80 and a TD, nice blitz pickup) Naaman Roosevelt (A few nice grabs, sure hands) Chad Jackson (This kid is sick of moving around, he wants it, 5 for 52) Chris Ellis (3 solo tkls, 2 assists...he was around the ball a lot) Dominique Harris (3 tackles, sack forced fumble play, the kid hits hard) Anyone else jump out to you tonight?

I think Joique earned a spot on the roster after tonight...and he did pick up nicely on at least one blitz tonight, the commentators (Tasker and Bentley) took note of it. McIntyre was blocking well in the first quarter and they were definitely using him. If Fred and Lynch were in would we use a FB as much? Probably not, but I still think Gailey will want to keep one for offensive variety reasons. So, the question is can the Bills keep 5 RBs on the 53? Do any teams ever keep that many on their active roster? Would that mean one more receiver who has to go?

Like what I'm seeing from our young WRs and RBs in this game.

After a few rough plays to start, Brohm has made some nice throws. The Easley injury just might open a spot for Roosevelt...a couple of recs from Brohm, one for a first.

McKelvin has had some tight coverage tonight...nice tackle there.

I'm a little nervous about the special teams too... but don't forget, they're basically learning a new system also... Bruce is a good coach, hopefully he pulls it together.

That was a nice arm tackle by Ellis to save the first down on the Colts last series. He's been in on a couple of plays already.

Keep fightin' the good fight Promo...I'm with you. This team will be better.

Nice find Fingon...I had missed that thread. I was thinking even 2 out of 3 teams being successful switching to the 3-4 would show those posters who say most teams switching in the first year do not improve or it takes 2-3 years wrong, but 10 out of 12 shows that switching the D to a 3-4 should not be an excuse for anyone anymore as to why the Bills (in their words) are going to suck this year.

As to the original poster's question: I did like that in Spiller's interview he quoted Gailey saying something like "As coach says, it's a tough game for tough people" Hopefully Chan can inspire his men as Marv and other great coaches do... Don't underestimate leadership and inspiration...how many teams (in any sport) have we all seen that were loaded with talent and went no where because they weren't all pulling in the same direction towards the same goal or weren't motivated enough to lay it all on the line. And conversely how many times have we seen an underdog upset a more talented team because they were more inspired, motivated, working harder, etc.

You guys are crazy.... Talk to any player from the SB teams, or Bill Polian, or Bill Parcells, or Don Shula, they all praise Marv's leadership and football knowledge! Sure, he stunk as a GM, but really he was more of a figurehead in that role... stop letting that make you revise history. Sure they had to be a very talented team to get to that first Superbowl, but it was Marv's leadership that got them to 3 more. How many teams have even been to 2 in a row let alone 4? And to say that had nothing to do with leadership is just crazy. In the first superbowl we lost by a field goal in the last seconds of the game. That's about as tight as a game could be and that's against a Parcells/Belicheck coached team (that we had already beat in another nail biter just a few weeks earlier in the regular season). So to say Marv was totally outcoached again is an over statement. Marv helped reinvent Special Teams...do you think Tasker would be who he was/is without Marv. I could go on and on...but Marv is not overrated and is totally deserving of the HOF. "It is said that leadership is that unique quality which enables special people to stand up and pull the rest of us over the horizon. By that or any other definition, Marv Levy is one of the greatest leaders this game has ever known." Bill Polian "That's one of my frustrations, not getting Dan Marino back into the Super Bowl, and Marv had a lot to do with that. They had a great team with great players. Bill Polian made it all happen when he hired Marv, and Marv's genius and ability to coach was just the natural fit for Buffalo." Don Shula

From Allen Wilson's Buffalo news article http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/bills-nfl/article94267.ece : "Denver's switch to the 3-4 helped its defense improve from 29th in the NFL in 2008 to seventh last season. Green Bay's newly installed 3-4 ranked first against the run, fifth against the pass and second overall. The Packers were 20th in total defense while using the 4-3 in 2008. Conversely, Kansas City found little success in its move to the 3-4, ranking 30th in the league (It was 31st in '08). Which category the Bills fall in remains to be seen, but Edwards has no doubt the move to the 3-4 will be a success." So, can we agree that we have to wait and see...switching to the 3-4 (in the first year) does not guarantee success, but it also isn't true that every team that switches has to wait 2-3 years for improvement. And I think one of the biggest positives about switching to the 3-4 is that our offense will be practicing against it on a regular basis (since everyone in our division plays it). I am looking for improvement this year. I think a lot will ride on the OLBs. If a couple guys step up and play well there, I think we could turn into a pretty tough D by mid-season.

I'm not saying he should change the tone for Bills fans...its his article and he can write whatever he wants...I was more just noticing how it seems to me that his tone towards the team has changed since he left this board. And for me, an optimistic fan, it makes his articles less interesting for me to read because they seem less objective than they used to be. Some might say more realistic, but football isn't fun for me if I expect my team to lose every week... so until proven otherwise, I'm hoping for the best (despite our holes and question marks).

It was nice of Tim to say it does look like we're heading in the right direction, but it also seems to me that Tim's columns have gotten more negative about the Bills since leaving this board due to a few fans being rude. You throw in the line about our LB coach never having worked in the 3-4, but don't mention that our DC has been a LB coach for the majority of his career and was part of switching to a 3-4 three times in his career. I'm sure DeMontie talks things over with Davis due to his experience and since he is calling the plays for the D right now... but don't make it sound like if it wasn't for Andra the coaches wouldn't know what to do. I guarantee DeMontie is getting more of his knowledge from his own experience and from Edwards than he is from Andra. Tim added that line after talking about a quote from Kawika, but did Kawika actually say "DeMontie relies on Davis when it comes to 3-4 questions (because he doesn't know)?" That's what Tim implies. And who cares how packed and vocal training camp is...It's training camp. Does that mean we won't be rowdy at the Ralph during games this year? Does it mean the entire fan base has given up on the team? No. And let's not forget, last year was the whole TO show. We had more media and probably more fans come out than would be normal, so to anyone this year is going to seem quieter. I'm not saying Tim has it out for the Bills or anything and his articles probably aren't that much different from before, except in tone. I mean when you start out the article saying, "Of any preseason prediction I can make, the one I'm most confident in is that the Buffalo Bills will finish fourth in the AFC East," it doesn't matter what you say after that, you have basically said "These guys suck right now." (Whether its true or not) To show the difference in tone, he could have said something like. "Gailey is trying to establish a new culture with his first training camp. He wants people to use two adjectives that haven't been associated with the Bills for a long time: tough and disciplined. (that is quoted from his article--then he could have said) I don't know that it will be enough for them to overtake any of their division rivals this year, but the players are buying into it. The Bills do have some concerns and question marks..." The tone of the article could have been different and I feel like that changed with TG after he left this board.

Thanks for the reports...much appreciated by us out-of-towners "...working on play-action fakes, bootlegs, screens, and even slants." Halleluja! Shouldn't these be a staple of any offense? How often did we see any of these in the Jauron era. Ok, a few bootlegs while J. P. was here, and I remember one slant last year to Evans that went for a TD, but God bless Chan for bringing back a real offense. Now let's just hope it works. Which, of course leads to another point in the article about O-line depth. I'm not totally thrilled with our O-line, but I'm not as down on the projected starters as some...but if we sustain even one or two injuries on the line this year, we could be in trouble. I hope they bolster the O-line depth before we wrap up camp.