Saint Doug

I think it's a bit naive to believe Merriman will get back to being "Lights Out". While he may be a solid player, let's remind ourselves that he has never shown his previous greatness since being busted for steroids (forget preseason, it's just preseason). Remember, steroids are a performance enhancing drug. They make players better than they actually are. And that "player" people saw in SD may never come back, regardless of injuries.

Better them than us.

Yeah, it seems like it. But, he's no Brady. He's made out of glass and has no rings.

"I felt I got hit late. No flag," Vick said. "At some point something catastrophic is gonna happen. Not to blame the refs, but more precautions should be taken. I'm on the ground all the time in the pocket." Precautions should be taken!! Unfortunately it wasn't his throwing hand.

The Bills beat the Cheaters and Vick leaves with a broken hand. Couldn't have wished for more. And for those who are going to wonder why someone would wish an injury on an NFL player, just chill. I get it. But still don't care. I guess this is what Philly gets when they give a King's ransom in guaranteed cash to a player that has only played 16 games in a season only about twice in his career. Knowing that Peters is part of the o-line that is supposed to protect him is even better.

Nope. Otherwise we would have got a 1st for him.

You think he deserves Manning or Brady money? I don't think so, but he should get paid like a franchise QB. I don't think we have to worry about him leaving. We're the team who resurrected his career and he's the heart and soul of our team. If we offer him a reasonable contract, he'l likely take it, not like some DB who wouldl feel "dissed" and jump ship.

I wouldn't mind drafting a DB in the first round. I can't identify any other position we need more. Just think of all the Raider receivers that sat out on Sunday. Would we have won this game if they were all healthy? True, Fitz still would have carved them up, but their offense may have been on the field longer if their receivers were all healthy. I guess the true test is next week.

Had to bump this. Indeed, there was.

True. But, they are playing the Raiders though.

I can't see this being a statement game. Regardless of the product they will place on the field on Sunday, the Raiders have been one of the most dysfunctional franchises over the last 7 years (along with the Bills). Lets wait a few years before we crown the Raiders as a "team to beat". Now, next week will definitely be a statement game.

I really don't see what was so bad about what he said. He seemed pretty complementary of what the Bills did last Sunday and was impressed. He then goes on to state the obvious; "but we're not the Chiefs".

Unfortunately there is. Wawrow's article suggests financials drove the Evans trade, since the trade was facilitated by the Bills salary cap specialist. Now, I don't believe everything I read, but jw has a reputation of impeccable journalistic integrity. I'm not trying to start a pissing match, just being fair. There is, in fact, evidence of this happening. http://www.buffalorumblings.com/2011/8/24/2381348/lee-evans-trade-buddy-nix-jim-overdorf The Bills did receive appropriate compensation though, no disputing that. But the motivation of the trade is troubling.

Hmm, a future HOFer versus a stopgap.... Some people on here have Fitz mistaken with their wife (or mistress).

You're right. It's human nature to be curious and to even gossip. It's the foundation of Internet forums. When the time is right, and it will be at some point, I hope the organization or Easley himself gives the fans an explanation. Contrary to popular belief, although gossiping may be catty, it can be done tastefully. Since when is anything you read on a message forum based on anything but speculation?

It certainly could be lupus. It's more prevalent than we tend to believe, especially in the AA population. Again, like most diseases, there is a spectrum of severity. Although not seen in all lupus patients, there are lupus-related conditions that could land him on the IR, like a pulmonary embolism, an acute pericardial effusion (fluid in sac around heart), end-stage renal disease, or lupus cerebritis (inflammation in brain).

I get your point, nothing is ever straightforward in medicine. You never say never. And it's truly horrible you had to go through that. But, there's still a spectrum in GBS (that roughly follows a Gaussian curve). It can easy kill, but sometimes patients' courses are so mild they never even see a doctor. As for reactive arthritis, I stand by my comments. I treat about 3 cases a week. They get wheeled into my office in a wheelchair, then are doing jumping jacks after 3 days 60 mg of prednisone once per day. And, then again, most probably get by with their PMD giving them 800 mg of Motrin.

This truly would make my blood boil (out of jealousy) if the Colts either drafted either Luck or another franchise QB as a result of Manning's freak injury. The Bills dump Polian, then go on a 20 year losing streak due and about 20 different QBs. Meanwhile, during same time period, Polian lands on feet in Indy and drafts a future HOF, then will likely draft another great QB, minus the 20 year gap. What a bittersweet FU this will be to Ralph.

True, but hindsight is always 20/20. Do you really think Russ Brandon and Skeletor were smart enough to have this foresight?

At the beginning of the 2008 season, Crowell decided to have a surgery he possibly could've done earlier during training camp. If he would have done so, he would've likely been ready for the season opener. Thus, a surgery, then about 4 weeks of recovery time. How did the Bills respond? They place him on IR, a move many thought was done out of spite, for an injury that would have had him miss about 4 games. Keep in mind, he had a career year the season before and was to go into his contract year. How did the NFLPA respond to these accusations? They did nothing because such a move would be impossible to prove. http://www.buffalorumblings.com/2008/9/4/607727/crowell-to-ir Not quite. Reactive arthritis is very responsive to steroid treatment, so he wouldn't even have likely missed even a day of practice from this. As for GBS, it can be very severe, but this is mostly insidious in nature. First, it's a post-infectious process, so it develops in the days to weeks after an infection and then usually slowly worsens. And before you ask, I'm a board certified rheumatologist.

Not necessarily. He was apparently fine one day (an assumtpion) and then suddenly sick the next. To me, this does not sound like a chronic disease, but more like an acute injury. If he had a chronic disease, he would have likely experienced chronic symtpoms, like weight loss or fever, and eyebrows would have been raised weeks ago (again, another assumption he did show up sick to camp). An appendectomy or gallbladder removal wouldn't land him on the IR. And as it has been stated, it's a non-football injury. If this was as simple as rupturing an ACL in a pick-up basketball game, why is this being shrouded in mystery (hipaa aside)? Still, in the back of my mind I'm thinking his placement onto IR is a statement being made by the coaches. Slightly reminiscent of Crowell being placed on IR a few years back. I guess we'll wait for the official word.

I love the win and Fitz is a great leader, but we will likely need to draft a franchise QB for the future at some point. Watching yesterdays game, besides depth, I saw no glaring needs. A weird feeling, I know. So, assuming we keep winning (and have a pick somewhere between 15 and 25), would anyone on here make a large enough jump to pick up a QB in the top 5 picks (like the Jets did with Dirty Sanchez? Like giving up our 1st, 2nd, and 3rd round picks?

I would think if a coach doesn't scheme to somehow neutralize last season's sack leader, then he's not really a good coach.

What I learned from this thread, so far: 1) Ralph is cheap. 2) We have a TE on our roster.

Looks like he dusted off a few of those "moves" he always claimed to have. Likely too little, too late though.