We're not going to be a good team in 2010

[Deep2Moulds46]

ANd the sooner you accept that, the sooner you'll probably be willing to give Buddy Nix the benefit of the doubt on this draft.

 

Jauron and Levy left this team void of talent. Our 2006 first round draft pick has been rumored to be on the trade block, our other one can't get on the field. Our 2007 first round draft pick is now 3rd string, and rumored to be on the trade block.

 

McKelvin looks promising when healthy, and Maybin too early to tell.

 

But the point remains, Levy and Jauron tried to base this team around smaller speedy guys, and now Nix and Gailey are forced to retool this entire roster with adequate sized players.

 

I think Nix and Gailey understand this team is probably not going to be in the mix this year, and they need to fix whats wrong under the hood before they worry about the paint job. They had a top 10 pick, and instead of doing what Levy did EVERYTIME, picking a player who fit the number 1 need, Nix took the absolute best player available. How can you fault him for that?

 

If this team is built up in 2 years, Spiller will still be here. So, drafting for your primary need in 2010 made very little sense when 2010 is most likely a throw away year . You can't overcome a decade of mediocrity in one off-season. Hopefully RW is patient enough with Nix, and hopefully Gailey turns out to be the right coach for this team.

[notwoz]

Hopefully RW is patient enough with Nix, and hopefully Gailey turns out to be the right coach for this team.

Let''s hope he lives long enough for Nix and Gailey to turn the team around .

[Fastback]

We haven't been a good team for 15 years...what else is new? The Buffalo Bills are a joke. I now follow this team as an odd curiosity, but I'm not the fan I once was (for most of my life). Thasnk God I don't live in Buffalo.

 

Oh well...

[murra]

The reason I like this post so much is because it speaks to both the fanatic apologists, and the chronic pessimists. You made a lot of fantastic points, but what rings true is that everyone just needs to be patient for this whole rebuilding thing to show real improvement.

[Deep2Moulds46]

The reason I like this post so much is because it speaks to both the fanatic apologists, and the chronic pessimists. You made a lot of fantastic points, but what rings true is that everyone just needs to be patient for this whole rebuilding thing to show real improvement.

 

And for the people who scream " We have been rebuilding for 15 years".......you're right....but that's not fair to Nix.

 

Rebuilding isn't drafting scheme specific players for two years, then changing coaches and schemes, then re-building the roster to fit that scheme.

 

Like it or not, Nix is in year-one. We are in year 12 of suffering, but this is year one with a talent depleted roster. THis is a lot like 2001. We drafted a lot of bodies to fill potential roles, and the record will probably get worse. And just like in 2001, they stuck with Rob Johnson because they weren't going to win anyway. In 2002 they made their aggressive play for a QB once the roster was shaped better.

[deep2evans]

We haven't been a good team for 15 years...what else is new? The Buffalo Bills are a joke. I now follow this team as an odd curiosity, but I'm not the fan I once was (for most of my life). Thasnk God I don't live in Buffalo.

 

Oh well...

 

Buffalo thanks God that you don't live here either.

[murra]

Buffalo thanks God that you don't live here either.

 

Meanwhile God thanks Buffalo for continually falling for every hilarious prank he has pulled on the city for the last 100 years. It couldn't be done without their unmatched fascination for sports and the rest of the nation's attention.

[evilbuffalobob]

But let's not forget that even with the Levy/DJ teams, each of the last three years, they were 5-10 bad coaching plays and 5-10 injuries away from winning 3-4 more games per season... even with the confusion offense & Tampon-2. Anything can happen. I think this team can be competitive.

[Hossage]

We dont have the albatross of jauron around our necks. Anything can happen.

[thebug]

We haven't been a good team for 15 years...what else is new? The Buffalo Bills are a joke. I now follow this team as an odd curiosity, but I'm not the fan I once was (for most of my life). Thasnk God I don't live in Buffalo.

 

Oh well...

 

 

Maybe you should !@#$ off then?

[OCinBuffalo]

But let's not forget that even with the Levy/DJ teams, each of the last three years, they were 5-10 bad coaching plays and 5-10 injuries away from winning 3-4 more games per season... even with the confusion offense & Tampon-2. Anything can happen. I think this team can be competitive.

LOL!

 

I don't know which is funnier. Love "The Confusion Offense". Perfect. So is the Tampon-2

[CosmicBills]

I don't think any (rational) fan of the Bills ever thought this years team was going to be a playoff contender or even a .500 club. Fact is this team has a serious dearth in talent, a brand new offensive and defensive scheme\philosophy. It takes a good team a season, if not two to completely buy into a new scheme -- so expecting a very raw and untalented roster to do it in one off season is unrealistic and unfair.

 

However, the question you should be asking is whether this rebuilding project has better architects than the past three or if its just more of the same. The Spiller pick to me is a huge red flag that this front office is just the same as before -- ie clueless about how to properly build a wining foundation. Taking a RB, no matter how good, at 9 is stupid. I'm sorry. Its even worse when that RB isn't going to be an every down player and will split carries with not one, but TWO other 1,000 yard rushers.

 

The rest of the draft was muddled for me. It appears they focused on shoring up the defensive front 7 which was long over due. However, I don't claim to know enough about the players they picked to say that they upgraded with Kyle Williams type talent (yes, he had an awesome year last year) or if they got a bunch of Chris Ellises and John McCargos. If they hadn't blown the first pick so spectacularly I'd be willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. But now I'm a bit suspect albeit optimistic.

 

Still, the utter failure to address the OLine (not impressed with Wang or the other G they got) is silly. Especially when they could have traded back from 9, picked up one of the better OTs (like the guy who went at the start of round 2 to the Rams) AND gotten another pick is just sheer stupidity to me. I'm fine with not taking a QB if they didn't feel that there was a legit franchise guy there. That's fine. But you can't convince me that Wang is going to be a day one starter which means our starting OLine is perhaps the worst in the NFL now. In fact it got worse over the off season w Butlers retirement. Bell, Levitre, Wood, Handgarter, and Green? Awesome.

 

So now, best case scenario the Front Office has fixed the defensive line this off season. That's all. That still leaves huge holes on the OL, WR corps, LB corps and a franchise QB. I know its impossible to fix everything in one off season but I don't think its unfair to expect the front office to try to fix TWO or THREE of the issues.

 

The only way we are going to find a Franchise QB is to have a top 3 pick in the draft. I doubt that will happen. But even if it did, they'd still need serious help at OT, LB and WR meaning they'd have just as many holes to fill NEXT year.

 

I'm sorry that's not pessimism. That's the truth. So I can't blame people who are upset with this offseason. Not because they expected to win now but because they expected the front office to address more than just one of the dozens of holes on this team. They simply can't go one hole at a timr.

[Max997]

We're not going to be a good team in 2010

 

WHO EXACTLY IS THIS NEWS TO?

 

hey, tomorrow is Sunday...just accept it

[kasper13]

I knew they were not going to be good in 2010 before the draft. That should have been obvious to everyone. The draft just confirms it. Spiller was the flashy pick to sell tickets. The rest of the draft is filled with projects and future potential. If they hit on 3 or 4 guys then great. We won't know for a couple years. It's going to take another draft or two before they actually start to show improvement on the field. In fact, I think they will finish worse than they did in 2009. That's OK by me as long as they stick to their plan of building through the draft with mostly unknown, mostly small college guys with loads of potential. It doesn't sound like a great plan to me but nothing else has worked for the last 11 years. Looking at it objectively, they are probably a 4 win team- at best in 2010 and if the plan works, a .500 team in 2011 and a playoff contender in 2012 and a Super Bowl contender by 2013. They seriously need a franchise QB though and they do not have one of those right now. That is probably coming with a Top 5 pick in 2011. It's a rebuild from square one and it's undoing the mess Marv Levy and even Tom Donahoe left them with. That takes years, not one offseason.

[BillyBaroo]

The reason I like this post so much is because it speaks to both the fanatic apologists, and the chronic pessimists. You made a lot of fantastic points, but what rings true is that everyone just needs to be patient for this whole rebuilding thing to show real improvement.

I am all for the rebuilding - if we truly try to do it. I can sit through even 2 more bad years if there is some sort of light at the end of the tunnel. Wood and Levitre should be at the tops of their game in 3 years. We just need to add a couple more quality guys there and I think we will be fine.

[BillyBaroo]

And for the people who scream " We have been rebuilding for 15 years".......you're right....but that's not fair to Nix.

 

Rebuilding isn't drafting scheme specific players for two years, then changing coaches and schemes, then re-building the roster to fit that scheme.

 

Like it or not, Nix is in year-one. We are in year 12 of suffering, but this is year one with a talent depleted roster. THis is a lot like 2001. We drafted a lot of bodies to fill potential roles, and the record will probably get worse. And just like in 2001, they stuck with Rob Johnson because they weren't going to win anyway. In 2002 they made their aggressive play for a QB once the roster was shaped better.

Good post - I agree that there were a lot of mistakes that were not even related. Getting rid of the Off. Coordinator right before the season was just one of the huge ones (DJ should have known earlier to get rid of him). Gailey is right to decide his scheme first and then try to draft for that scheme especially since Denney, Schobel, Stroud, Kelsay and even Maybin are living on very limited time. Can we wait for 3 years - or are we going to be faked into this team "maybe" being good at the beginning of the season and getting rid of Chan and starting this revolving door process all over again?

[DanInUticaTampa]

The Spillar pick did help fill a need I think. He is going to really help the passing game and help fix the need at reciever. Especially if Trent becomes our starter, I can see spillar being trent's new check down favorite. Plus spillar can be used as an extra blocker to protect the QB if needed.

 

As for the rest of the guys, I don't really know. But they seem to expect troup to play 30+ snaps a a game. With the addition of troup and Davis, this team should be well improved on run defense, which will be great. So it looks like we can stop the run and stop the pass, the only thing this defense really needs to do is rush the passer. Which it has the potential to do, but there are a lot of question marks.

 

Overall, I think that if the spillar pick was an OT, a lot more people would like this draft. And I might even like it a little more myself. But personally, I think that this draft would have been a lot easier had the maybin pick last year been michael oher.

 

If this draft works out well, I think our biggest needs next year will be QB, LT, and OLB with most of the other positions being at least ok if not better.

[muggins]

However, the question you should be asking is whether this rebuilding project has better architects than the past three or if its just more of the same. The Spiller pick to me is a huge red flag that this front office is just the same as before -- ie clueless about how to properly build a wining foundation. Taking a), no matter how good, at 9 is stupid. I'm sorry. Its even worse when that) isn't going to be an every down player and will split carries with not one, but TWO other 1,000 yard rushers.

Every apologist should read this post.

[noplayoffsagain]

We haven't been a good team for 15 years...what else is new? The Buffalo Bills are a joke. I now follow this team as an odd curiosity, but I'm not the fan I once was (for most of my life). Thasnk God I don't live in Buffalo.

 

Oh well...

 

 

Wow, i couldnt have said it better myself....except i do live in western NY.

I love the "odd curiosity" term....This team was a great passion of mine for many years, now i feel like i only watch and follow them due to some obligation because i live here. They have ripped out of me all the love i had for the team. Sad

[ExWNYer]

Let''s hope he lives long enough for Nix and Gailey to turn the team around .

If he doesn't, oh well. He let 10 years of his football life (and ours) pass him by and has no one to blame but himself for running this team into the ground over the last decade.