MDH

As a fan base we trash Greg Williams, Mike Mularkey and Dick Jauron on a regular basis. Hell, we used to bag on Wade "punt catcher" Phillips until we witnessed true incompetence. I hope to hell 5 years from now we're not trashing Chan Gaily...

Because the linked article has quotes from both Cowher and Simms as they are both CBS employs/analysts.

If the stadium is cheering for the team you are rooting for then the stadium experience can't be beat - no matter what the sport. The experience can still be good on the road, but not nearly the adrenaline rush of cheering along side 60-70k of your fellow fans. Depending on the stadium you're going to it's a toss up between TV and live. I live in the NYC/NJ area and I long stopped going to Bills/Jets games at the Medowlands. I never had a bad experience with the opposing fans but it just isn't worth all the money I have to lay out to sit in a stadium full of fans cheering at the Bills blunders or totally silent as their team is getting beaten (and I have to watch how loudly I cheer to avoid those drunken bad fan incidents.)

I've been away awhile myself and was unaware that Lori had left. She has a pretty thick skin so I can't imagine that it was something minor that caused her to leave. It's a shame as she was one of the most intelligent, respectful and insightful posters the board had. It would be great to have her back for the upcoming season. As for all the comments about how the "board has changed," people have been saying this since the very beginning of TSW (as compared to the old Democrat and Chronicle board) - and I just don't see it. There have always been rude & obnoxious posters who contribute virtually nothing other than conflict (hell, one of the most notable of these is/was a mod... ). But if you can weed through all those posts there are also good people - with varying degrees of football knowledge - who just want to talk Bills football. Things haven't changed, there are still all those things and they aren't any worse. People just love the nostalgia angle where "the good old days" were always better.

This sums up my sentiments exactly.

It's a bit early to make such claims. You know, since Spiller hasn't played in anything but practice games thus far... Not to mention no single player "wins games" they all do their part to help the team win. Alla Fred Jackson. Don't get me wrong, Spiller looks to be a very good player but the level of fan revolt is going to be high given the expectations some you guys have.

Jackson was the best player on the Bills last year and gives his all on every single snap. The guy always drives his feet forward and seemingly earns positive yards on every down. I've never heard him utter one word of complaint in his entire career and he handles himself with class. If that guy hasn't earned your respect I'm not sure what it takes.

You want the Bills to be given respect but respect is earned. What have the Bills done in the last decade on the field to earn respect? Nothing, let the media say what they will, the games are decided on the field. If the Bills win and compete for a playoff spot they will have earned some respect. If they stink it up - yet again - then they get the bashing they deserve.

While the award is for on field achievement it can only go to an eligible player. Reggie Bush, through his actions, made himself ineligible. So don't think about it as a punishment for off field activities, think about it in terms of taking back an award given by mistake to an ineligible player. Had everybody realized that Bush was ineligible at the time he would have never been allowed on the field in the first place.

As an encouraged as I am about Edward's pre-season I'll hold off on genuine enthusiasm until the regular season. Defenses don't blitz in pre-season (except the Jets) so we haven't had the opportunity to see captain check down in action just yet. If he can look this good in the first few games then I'll let myself start to believe he's turned a corner.

No position is going to pay immediate dividends like a RB - it's the easiest position to learn and the one where pure athleticism and instinct can be enough initially. That being said, you don't take a RB just because they'll make an immediate impact and other positions won't. You take players who will help your team the most over the next 7 years. Will that be Spiller? I don't know but with Jackson and Lynch already back there it still doesn't seem like the wise pick. What was the stat I heard last week - the Bills ranked first in the league in percentage of runs over 4 yards? Yet we take a back with the 9th overall pick? Yeah, he has home run power but it still strikes me as an odd pick. But at the end of the day if the guy retires 9 years from now being one of the all time great Bills players I'll have no complaints.

The Bills are in desperate need of tackle help and they are well under the cap - but hey, good thing our pro bowl LT isn't playing here anymore! We're saving all kinds of money that we spend on other - err - that goes unused against the cap.

This. Unless there is a significant wind I'd always play the odds and hope for an extra offensive possession each game by deferring. Having a 50% chance of getting back to back drives is like having a 50% chance of getting an extra turnover per game.

True, but at the same time it's not like Gaily is helping them out right now. 3WR 2RB formations were what were used primarily in the 1st quarter (I haven't watched the other 3 quarters yet - had to get to bed.) I'm assuming he's testing these guys but Trent almost got his head taken off at one point. I don't think they need to do max protect but at least having a TE chip a DE would slow them down somewhat.

So you'd cut off your nose to spite your face? That's the way to run a business!

At this point in their careers Fitz has a hell of a lot more starts than Kolb.

Are the teams held to this as well? Do you complain when teams cut players without "honoring" the contract? These contracts aren't guaranteed, teams can cut guys at any time. It goes both ways and until player contracts are guaranteed I don't hold it against the players for wanting more money when they outperform their contracts.

He's a distraction and is appears dissatisfied with his role on the team. There aren't enough balls to go around with 3 backs particularly to one who spends a good deal of his time dancing in the backfield. Keeping the ball out of Jackson's and Spillers hands isn't a good idea. Please kick Marshawn to the curb.

While I don't agree with your optimism in terms of their record (I see us winning 5-6 games) you could also add in injuries to your case. The Bills have been one of the most injured teams the past few seasons. If they can avoid the injury bug this year it will also improve their chances.

The Bills aren't contending for anything this year and Wood and Levitre need seasoning. No need to sign Faneca. As for Henderson, he isn't coming to the Bills. Why would he choose to sign with a losing organization at the end of his career particularly when he'd have to play in a system he wasn't familiar with? Even if the Bills pursued him I'd have to think he could find a better option.

That's true of every team's front office. Are you suggesting that no teams ever make mistakes or that fans can't ever be unhappy with a pick? I'm assuming we should all just nod our heads at every single pick (even the Raiders) and say, "that must be a good pick because their front office knows more than me."

Brees matured into a top tier QB before he left SD.

Not so. You'd love to draft a top 1-3 guy at his position when selecting in the top 10 but it doesn't have to happen for the draft pick to significantly help your team. If you get a guy who is top 10-15 at his position at certain positions - QB, OT, DE, DT - that's good enough to help your team improve significantly. Those are positions where if you are weak you will be totally exposed and a guy who's very good - but not great, is almost a must. When you start looking at positions like RB & S - spots that have traditionally been easy to pick up quality guys in later rounds then it devalues drafting those positions early in round 1 UNLESS the guy is an all time talent. Someone who is going to be a total game changer - a perennial pro bowler. Spiller has to be that type of player for this pick to be justified. I said the same thing when Dante Whitner was drafted and got blasted by the board then. There are certain positions I just don't favor drafting at the top of the draft unless your team has just about all the other pieces in place already. If a team has a bunch of holes I just don't think you can justify taking a RB in the top 10. It's just my opinion - I hope to hell Spiller ends up being the best back in the league and the pick works out but I have my doubts. If he ends up being good but not great it's a wasted pick.

Thankfully it was the Steve Young show. He was the only one on set who would actually criticize picks - everybody else would pretty much just compliment every pick as if they had HoF potential. Other than Young I found ESPN's show to be extremely watered down. If I could stand listening to Faulk or Sanders I'd watch NFL Network - but I can't so I'll tune into ESPN again tonight.

Anthony Davis wasn't a reach at 9. The D could have used a player like Paul-Pierre. A little raw to be sure but this D needs playmakers and he fits that bill. And does Spiller really have no weaknesses? I haven't seen Clemson much in the past few years but everything I've seen of the guy shows him running wide on just about every play. Can he run between the tackles is my question? If he can't he's going to struggle in the NFL. Imo it's relatively easy to find quality running backs in the NFL - not so easy to find quality OT or DE. Spiller has to be REALLY special to make this pick worthwhile.