Peter King on McGahee

[HelloNewman]

9. I think Willis McGahee, today, is one of the 10 best backs in football. And tomorrow he might be one of the five. He runs with power and enough shiftiness and speed to make big people miss. As much as I didn't like the drafting of McGahee because the Bills had Travis Henry, I must say Tom Donahoe's gut instincts on this kid were dead-on: McGahee is going to be a very good back in this league, and he improves the Bills at that position.

[jad1]

9. I think Willis McGahee, today, is one of the 10 best backs in football. And tomorrow he might be one of the five. He runs with power and enough shiftiness and speed to make big people miss. As much as I didn't like the drafting of McGahee because the Bills had Travis Henry, I must say Tom Donahoe's gut instincts on this kid were dead-on: McGahee is going to be a very good back in this league, and he improves the Bills at that position.

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Imagine that. Drafting a guy with #1-pick-overall talent at #23 is a GOOD MOVE.

 

Who woulda thought?

 

Now what am I supposed to do with my Donahoe-is-a-Moron crusade?

[Alaska Darin]

Imagine that.  Drafting a guy with #1-pick-overall talent at #23 is a GOOD MOVE.

 

Who woulda thought? 

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I did.

[_BiB_]

I did.

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Oh, your just so !@#$ing perfect. Jerk.

[Alaska Darin]

Oh, your just so !@#$ing perfect. Jerk.

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Nah, I just missed my calling as a scout.

[jad1]

I did.

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You know your football.

 

Although when the guy you're drafting scored 28 TDs on a national championship caliber college team, and he's cleared by your doctors, it's not that difficult a decision.

 

Peter King didn't like it at the time, though. I'm sure he was the only one.

[Alaska Darin]

You know your football. 

 

Although when the guy you're drafting scored 28 TDs on a national championship caliber college team, and he's cleared by your doctors, it's not that difficult a decision.

 

Peter King didn't like it at the time, though.  I'm sure he was the only one. 

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It's really not. When you have a chance to draft a game changer who is also a known good guy off the field, YOU DO IT. Added to that is the fact the next best player on the board played a position that can be easily filled (guard) and the best guy after that is not going to help you immediately (Kelsey).

 

TD made the right move, because he's smart and patient. Unlike most people in this world, who are neither.

[John from Riverside]

I actually have never been on the "kick TD while he is down" wagon...I didn't like some comments he made last year when he had to fire G dubia.....but his personel moves have been outstanding I think...

 

An unlooked aspect of the Willis Magehee draft pick.....keep in mind that one of the biggest needs was a DEFENSIVE END.....and take a look at how Kelsay is starting to really come along....given the production of the DE's taken in front of him....I dont think anybody would have complained had it been Kelsay first....Magehee second.....

 

But there is NO CHANCE that WIllis would have made it out of the first round......how much better would the raiders look with him in the backfield right now? And they were PRAYING that Willis fell to them at the end of the 1st.....

 

Good job Tom

[34-78-83]

It's really not.  When you have a chance to draft a game changer who is also a known good guy off the field, YOU DO IT.  Added to that is the fact the next best player on the board played a position that can be easily filled (guard) and the best guy after that is not going to help you immediately (Kelsey).

 

TD made the right move, because he's smart and patient.  Unlike most people in this world, who are neither.

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I seem to remember a risky pick made in 1988 for a pretty decent runningback too

[Alaska Darin]

I seem to remember a risky pick made in 1988 for a pretty decent runningback too 

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Not surprisingly, the current guy reminds me a little bit of that guy. Runs with a little more power, though.

[jad1]

I seem to remember a risky pick made in 1988 for a pretty decent runningback too 

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Amazing how good drafting can make up for the fact that you have no first round pick.

[col_forbin]

The same people that steered clear of WM, were the same ones that steered cleared of Randy Moss. Different reasons of course.

[Like A Mofo]

You know your football. 

 

Although when the guy you're drafting scored 28 TDs on a national championship caliber college team, and he's cleared by your doctors, it's not that difficult a decision.

 

Peter King didn't like it at the time, though.  I'm sure he was the only one. 

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I do give King credit for mentioning he didnt like the move at the time and he didnt.

[Rubes]

Not surprisingly, the current guy reminds me a little bit of that guy.  Runs with a little more power, though.

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I can't recall Thurman, or any other running back of ours, ever stiff-arming a defender with such power and success as McGahee did yesterday on his way to the end zone. Too bad he went out of bounds at the one; that was ESPN highlight material if he made it in.

 

He is one big, powerful dude.

[BRH]

I actually have never been on the "kick TD while he is down" wagon...I didn't like some comments he made last year when he had to fire G dubia.....but his personel moves have been outstanding I think...

 

An unlooked aspect of the Willis Magehee draft pick.....keep in mind that one of the biggest needs was a DEFENSIVE END.....and take a look at how Kelsay is starting to really come along....given the production of the DE's taken in front of him....I dont think anybody would have complained had it been Kelsay first....Magehee second.....

 

But there is NO CHANCE that WIllis would have made it out of the first round......how much better would the raiders look with him in the backfield right now?  And they were PRAYING that Willis fell to them at the end of the 1st.....

 

Good job Tom

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Very true.

 

When Jeff Faine went to Cleveland at 21, the Bills were pretty much down to the defensive line if they were going to draft based on need, unless they went for Eric Steinbach. So they looked at the remaining available defensive linemen (William Joseph, Kelsay, Tyler Brayton, Osi Umenyiora), correctly concluded that at least one of them -- and probably Kelsay -- would be available when they picked in the middle of the second round because most teams with D-line needs would already have filled them in the first round. They probably didn't like Joseph anyway -- there's got to be a reason he fell to 26.

 

At that point people in the war room were probably making noises about trading down. Think of where we were at that point (spring 2003):

 

* Bledsoe had had a bad second half in 2002 but no one thought at that point he was finished. We weren't thinking QB and at any rate, after Rex Grossman went to Chicago at 22, the plate was empty at that position.

 

* As previously noted, there weren't really any bona fide OL or DL first-rounders left at 23.

 

* Dallas Clark was still on the board, but we still had Dave Moore and had already traded for Mark Campbell, so we were set at TE. Not that Clark isn't a talent, but you rarely take a TE in the first round.

 

* Eric Moulds and Josh Reed were set to begin the year as our starting wideouts, and we'd signed Bobby Shaw. There wasn't a first-round WR available at 23 anyway.

 

* We were set at linebacker with Posey, Fletcher and Spikes. All the blue-chip linebackers were gone anyway.

 

* In the secondary we still had Winfield and Clements, and the only safeties left (Rashean Mathis, Ken Hamlin and Mike Doss) would still be around in the second.

 

* That was an "extra" first-round pick (we'd gotten it for Peerless). Our real first-round pick in 2003 was Drew Bledsoe, just like our first-rounder in 2005 will be J.P. Losman. So we were playing with Monopoly money at that point.

 

* A healthy McGahee was head and shoulders above everyone else available. Think of it: had he not ripped up his knee, he'd have been the second pick in the draft and no one would have batted an eye. You knew he was going to the Raiders at the end of the first round if we didn't take him there, and maybe there just wasn't a trade-down possibility available in the next seven slots.

 

So the alternatives were these:

 

1. Take Joseph or Steinbach at 23.

 

2. Trade down into the second round and take Kelsay and a safety.

 

3. Take McGahee.

 

Man am I glad we went for door number three.

[BRH]

I can't recall Thurman, or any other running back of ours, ever stiff-arming a defender with such power and success as McGahee did yesterday on his way to the end zone.

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I can. McGahee on Antuan Edwards against Miami earlier this year. Edwards had sent him flying out of bounds on a late hit earlier in the game. McGahee got another shot at him in the fourth quarter and knocked his sorry ass right out of the game.

[Alaska Darin]

Very true.

 

When Jeff Faine went to Cleveland at 21, the Bills were pretty much down to the defensive line if they were going to draft based on need, unless they went for Eric Steinbach.  So they looked at the remaining available defensive linemen (William Joseph, Kelsay, Tyler Brayton, Osi Umenyiora), correctly concluded that at least one of them -- and probably Kelsay -- would be available when they picked in the middle of the second round because most teams with D-line needs would already have filled them in the first round.  They probably didn't like Joseph anyway -- there's got to be a reason he fell to 26.

 

At that point people in the war room were probably making noises about trading down.  Think of where we were at that point (spring 2003):

 

* Bledsoe had had a bad second half in 2002 but no one thought at that point he was finished.  We weren't thinking QB and at any rate, after Rex Grossman went to Chicago at 22, the plate was empty at that position.

 

* As previously noted, there weren't really any bona fide OL or DL first-rounders left at 23.

 

* Dallas Clark was still on the board, but we still had Dave Moore and had already traded for Mark Campbell, so we were set at TE.  Not that Clark isn't a talent, but you rarely take a TE in the first round.

 

* Eric Moulds and Josh Reed were set to begin the year as our starting wideouts, and we'd signed Bobby Shaw.  There wasn't a first-round WR available at 23 anyway.

 

* We were set at linebacker with Posey, Fletcher and Spikes.  All the blue-chip linebackers were gone anyway.

 

* In the secondary we still had Winfield and Clements, and the only safeties left (Rashean Mathis, Ken Hamlin and Mike Doss) would still be around in the second.

 

* That was an "extra" first-round pick (we'd gotten it for Peerless).  Our real first-round pick in 2003 was Drew Bledsoe, just like our first-rounder in 2005 will be J.P. Losman.  So we were playing with Monopoly money at that point.

 

* A healthy McGahee was head and shoulders above everyone else available.  Think of it:  had he not ripped up his knee, he'd have been the second pick in the draft and no one would have batted an eye.  You knew he was going to the Raiders at the end of the first round if we didn't take him there, and maybe there just wasn't a trade-down possibility available in the next seven slots.

 

So the alternatives were these:

 

1.  Take Joseph or Steinbach at 23.

 

2.  Trade down into the second round and take Kelsay and a safety.

 

3.  Take McGahee.

 

Man am I glad we went for door number three.

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Good post.

[Rubes]

I can.  McGahee on Antuan Edwards against Miami earlier this year.  Edwards had sent him flying out of bounds on a late hit earlier in the game.  McGahee got another shot at him in the fourth quarter and knocked his sorry ass right out of the game.

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True, although technically speaking I said "Thurman, or any other running back" in reference to any running back other than McGahee.

 

But it's a good point since McGahee did happen to flatten the guy.

[Mark VI]

Very true.

 

When Jeff Faine went to Cleveland at 21, the Bills were pretty much down to the defensive line if they were going to draft based on need, unless they went for Eric Steinbach.  So they looked at the remaining available defensive linemen (William Joseph, Kelsay, Tyler Brayton, Osi Umenyiora), correctly concluded that at least one of them -- and probably Kelsay -- would be available when they picked in the middle of the second round because most teams with D-line needs would already have filled them in the first round.  They probably didn't like Joseph anyway -- there's got to be a reason he fell to 26.

 

At that point people in the war room were probably making noises about trading down.  Think of where we were at that point (spring 2003):

 

* Bledsoe had had a bad second half in 2002 but no one thought at that point he was finished.  We weren't thinking QB and at any rate, after Rex Grossman went to Chicago at 22, the plate was empty at that position.

 

* As previously noted, there weren't really any bona fide OL or DL first-rounders left at 23.

 

* Dallas Clark was still on the board, but we still had Dave Moore and had already traded for Mark Campbell, so we were set at TE.  Not that Clark isn't a talent, but you rarely take a TE in the first round.

 

* Eric Moulds and Josh Reed were set to begin the year as our starting wideouts, and we'd signed Bobby Shaw.  There wasn't a first-round WR available at 23 anyway.

 

* We were set at linebacker with Posey, Fletcher and Spikes.  All the blue-chip linebackers were gone anyway.

 

* In the secondary we still had Winfield and Clements, and the only safeties left (Rashean Mathis, Ken Hamlin and Mike Doss) would still be around in the second.

 

* That was an "extra" first-round pick (we'd gotten it for Peerless).  Our real first-round pick in 2003 was Drew Bledsoe, just like our first-rounder in 2005 will be J.P. Losman.  So we were playing with Monopoly money at that point.

 

* A healthy McGahee was head and shoulders above everyone else available.  Think of it:  had he not ripped up his knee, he'd have been the second pick in the draft and no one would have batted an eye.  You knew he was going to the Raiders at the end of the first round if we didn't take him there, and maybe there just wasn't a trade-down possibility available in the next seven slots.

 

So the alternatives were these:

 

1.  Take Joseph or Steinbach at 23.

 

2.  Trade down into the second round and take Kelsay and a safety.

 

3.  Take McGahee.

 

Man am I glad we went for door number three.

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Outstanding post .

[jarthur31]

It's really not.  When you have a chance to draft a game changer who is also a known good guy off the field, YOU DO IT.  Added to that is the fact the next best player on the board played a position that can be easily filled (guard) and the best guy after that is not going to help you immediately (Kelsey).

 

TD made the right move, because he's smart and patient.  Unlike most people in this world, who are neither.

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I'm with ya. I'm humble enough to know that there are people in football who know alot more about the game than I do.

 

Alot of posters on this board can't make that claim. It's funny, that they are the most vocal with their opinions as well.

 

My only gripe with TD has been his lack of selecting good O-line players in his years here. What we have now is only coming together as a group. Until some of them make the PB, I won't change my opinion on this matter. And if some do, I'll be humble about it and apologize.