gfalk87

Tim's back working at the Buffalo News, but not in a sports role.

I wouldn't mind Ballard, Stanzi, Stocker or even Quan Sturdivant or D.J. Williams in the fourth round. Plenty of interesting options to consider!

A group of friends and myself were at a downtown bar before going to the Sabres-Flyers Game 4 last Wednesday when in walked Doug Whaley (Bills assistant GM for those who dont know). After a few minutes of wondering whether to approach him or not, my friend and I went up and introduced ourselves. Although he didn't tell us any earth shattering or secret news about the team, he was a very nice guy that did dive into a few football topics. Here is what he had to say: (paraphrasing everything) On the lockout: He doesn't think any games will get canceled, but he does see the lockout lasting until July or August. If Newton and Dareus are gone at three will you be looking at offense or defense?: He said I would look towards defense. On Shawne Merriman's health: He said from every report they've gotten he's 100 percent. On Aaron Maybin's status with the team: After a laugh, he said he wasn't in good standing, but Dave Wannstedt has plans to utilize him better. Are Dareus and Miller as advertised: Yes they are both legit! The difference between Fairley and Dareus: He said Fairley is a good pass rusher, but for the defense the Bills are looking to run Dareus is a much better fit. This is all I have and like I said its nothing earth shattering, but I figured I would share it. It was a cool experience and I was glad he took a few minutes to discuss football.

I think this a great thread and I like your strategy, but until the CBA situation gets worked out there might not even be free agency. If the owners lock out the players there will be no free agency or they can agree to continue working under the current rules, which would mean only players who have been in the league 6+ years will be unrestricted free agents. That's why you have to hope for a new agreement to get done because a lot of the good potential free agents have only been in the league four or five years (they will be restricted). I know its confusing, but here is a good article by Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports that better explains the situation and who could potentially be unrestricted. http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=jc-freeagents111810 Let me know what you think.

I like the positions you targeted, but I dont think Kerrigan will be there in round two and I know Tyron Smith wont be there in the fourth round. A lot of draft experts are predicting Smith will be one of the top tackles taken. I would love to get Casey Matthews, he's got a great NFL bloodlline.

Great thread, signing someone like Harris would make a lot of sense for the Bills. He's a tackling machine that has experience in the 3-4. I know poz makes a lot of tackles, but Harris makes more at the point of attack instead of five yards downfield. And yes I don't think the jets will be able to sign, but it also depends on the CBA. If they don't reach a new agreement by March, Harris might qualify as a restricted free agent. If a new CBA is reached he will most likely be unrestricted, depending on the terms in the CBA.

Listen I'm not saying Fitzpatrick is a bad quarterback, but he's had plenty of opportunities to prove that he's a franchise qb and he hasn't gotten it done. He has a 10-22-1 record as a starter in the league and that's not going to cut it. Fitzpatrick is a great story on a lousy Bills team, but he isn't the long term answer at qb. If you can draft a top prospect like Andrew Luck you can't pass that up. I hope the Bills are smart enough to keep Fitzpatrick around to be their backup and possibly start next year. And for those of you that think a rookie qb can't come in and have immediate success, how do you explain what the Rams are doing this year(or Matt Ryan a few years ago)? The Bills have to get an elite quarterback eventually or else there going to keep being average with a guy like Fitzpatrick.

First how can you say that Kolb, Orton, and Troy Smith are the stud qb's we've been looking for. Kolb isn't starting, the Broncos used a first round pick on a project qb even though they had Orton and Troy Smith, really? The guy has won two games and you suddenly think he is a "stud" quarterback. And no the team can't wait until a later round to get their franchise qb, they've tried that and it hasn't worked out. If Andrew Luck is there you can't pass on him, but if he stays in school then you can draft your defensive stud. I'm not trying to shoot down your comparison to the Bills of the 80's, but they can't possibly pass on the the opportunity to get franchise quarterback like Luck if he's there.

I think you're the one that needs to open your eyes and take a look around the NFL at all the top teams. They have one thing in common, A GOOD quarterback. Yes the Bills need to improve their o-line, but simply doing that will not translate to more wins. Teams win in the NFL with average o-lines, but what sets them apart is the quarterback. I don't see how you would want to go another year with fitzpatrick who is an average back-up. They have to get one of the top qb's in the upcoming draft because I cant take another season like this. And there have been examples of rookie qb's having success in their first season (Matt Ryan).

Here is an interesting interview that relates to this conversation done by Brian Galliford and Mocking the Draft's Dan Kadar: http://www.buffalorumblings.com/2010/10/2/1724169/rumblings-draft-scouting-kadar-interview-week-5-preview#storyjump He talks about how Luck is the only blue-chip qb and there aren't any elite offensive tackles this year. He said there probably wont be an offensive tackle taken in the first 15 picks for the first time since 1982 (Unless someone emerges throughout the rest of the year).

I think you're a bit confused on what point I was trying to make. I didn't say Manning wasn't an elite qb, I was arguing that he is elite and that in the NFL you can win with a great qb and a average o-line. With an average o-line the Colts continue to win 10+ games each year and it's because of Manning. Like I already said there are some intriguing qb prospects, so lets see how the year finishes out and go from there. If the Bills have a top pick and one of the top qb's is there they can't possibly pass on one. If not then they should take the best player at one of their many positions of need. I still don't understand why everyone thinks Locker wouldn't have been a top ten pick last year? I followed the draft more closely last year than any year in the past and there were several of the "so called experts" predicting that Locker would go high. If he continues the way he's playing this year he could suffer a major slide in the draft. And for those that argue you shouldn't take a young qb and throw him to the wolves, look at how Matt Ryan played in his first year. The Falcons had a similar offense to us and they were able to significantly improve with him at qb (From 4-12 to 11-5 in his first year). And they got they got their future left tackle later in the first round (Sam Baker).

Yes after the season Locker had last year, he was projected as a high first round pick, but if you have watched him this year you might have a different view. I understand if everyone is not sold on one of the qb's yet, but if at the end of the year Luck, Mallet or Locker are considered to be elite qb's and lock top ten picks I can't see the Bills passing on one of them. I understand the point of drafting the top offensive tackle, but until you get a quarterback nothing will change in terms of competing for a playoff spot. Look at Cleveland who has a franchise left tackle (Joe Thomas), but continues to be at the bottom of the league every year. You can win with an average offensive line (see the Colts), but you need a top qb. At the end of this year if none of the top qb's project high, than you take a position of need. Eventually the Bills need to stop signing back-up qb's and drafting projects, they need to get a franchise qb.

Yes Jake Locker was being projected ahead of Bradford last year.

I understand the fact that it's way to early to talk about who is going to be the top quarterback at the end of the year, but you're wrong to think that no one compares to Sam Bradford this year. From the way scouts are talking, Andrew Luck (if he comes out) projects to be an even better qb than Bradford. I know there is no way to predict how it will play out, but I can't see the Bills having a top five pick and not selecting a qb. We have a lot of needs, but quarterback should be number one on the list. I just cant see how the Bills can justify going another season with either Fitz or Brohm as the starting qb.

I'm not adding fiction, Jake Locker would have had strong consideration of being the first qb taken and if not he would have gone in the top ten.