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What makes Buffalo appealing to Luck

DC Grid

By DC Grid
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DC Grid RFA

DC Grid

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Despite all the national BS, talk of a Harbaugh grudge, speculation that no one would ever want to go to Buffalo, when you look at it, Buffalo is a pretty appealing situation for a QB in terms of on-field career development. On the national level everyone lumps this team in with the last decade of futility and fails to appreciate the subtle changes that make Buffalo a pretty good starting place for a highly drafted QB.

 

All teams who draft in the No. 1 spot stink, and have loads of negative baggage so many negatives people would point to about Buffalo plague every team. About the only wild card in Buffalo is worse late season weather, and a shaky ownership structure.

 

Now for the reasons Buffalo should appeal to Luck or his advisers:

 

1- Chan Gailey. Buffalo has an offensive minded coach in Chan Gailey who seems to be able to get the most out of his QBs. He's turned turds like Kordell, Thigpen, Fitz etc, into legitimate starting QBs while he was around them. He has a solid playbook that is heavy on passing options, and he calls an excellent game.

 

2- Fitz. Buffalo has a decent starting QB right now who has little to no chance to be a long term starter, but who could serve as a great mentor. He also helps provide a bridge such that if Luck isn't ready to play right away he can learn on the sidelines and not have his career destroyed by being thrown in to early. Carolina for example has no one like this. Fitz is a non-threatening mentor. 2 years from now no one thinks Fitz could be starting over a guy like Luck. In Carolina, Luck would likely be thrown to the wovles and if he floundered Claussen another high draft pick with some long term potential would be waiting in the wings.

 

3- Skilled position players. You'd be hard pressed to find another team drafting No. 1 overall with as much talent at the skilled positions as Buffalo. At RB you have the steady freddy Jackson a back good for a plus 4 yards per carry average and over 1000 a year, and the dynamic and developing Spiller. At WR you have the speedy vet Lee Evans, and the fast developing star in Steve Johnson. Add to that role playing WRs like David Nelson and Roscoe Parish and you could be looking at one of the better up and coming WR corps in the NFL.

 

4- Buffalo has an improving OL. Not necessarily a good one, but with a another high OT draft pick and development of those on the roster the Bills will have a solid OL that can keep Luck from getting killed.

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yungmack Veteran

yungmack

Posted
Posted

Despite all the national BS, talk of a Harbaugh grudge, speculation that no one would ever want to go to Buffalo, when you look at it, Buffalo is a pretty appealing situation for a QB in terms of on-field career development. On the national level everyone lumps this team in with the last decade of futility and fails to appreciate the subtle changes that make Buffalo a pretty good starting place for a highly drafted QB.

 

All teams who draft in the No. 1 spot stink, and have loads of negative baggage so many negatives people would point to about Buffalo plague every team. About the only wild card in Buffalo is worse late season weather, and a shaky ownership structure.

 

Now for the reasons Buffalo should appeal to Luck or his advisers:

 

1- Chan Gailey. Buffalo has an offensive minded coach in Chan Gailey who seems to be able to get the most out of his QBs. He's turned turds like Kordell, Thigpen, Fitz etc, into legitimate starting QBs while he was around them. He has a solid playbook that is heavy on passing options, and he calls an excellent game.

 

2- Fitz. Buffalo has a decent starting QB right now who has little to no chance to be a long term starter, but who could serve as a great mentor. He also helps provide a bridge such that if Luck isn't ready to play right away he can learn on the sidelines and not have his career destroyed by being thrown in to early. Carolina for example has no one like this. Fitz is a non-threatening mentor. 2 years from now no one thinks Fitz could be starting over a guy like Luck. In Carolina, Luck would likely be thrown to the wovles and if he floundered Claussen another high draft pick with some long term potential would be waiting in the wings.

 

3- Skilled position players. You'd be hard pressed to find another team drafting No. 1 overall with as much talent at the skilled positions as Buffalo. At RB you have the steady freddy Jackson a back good for a plus 4 yards per carry average and over 1000 a year, and the dynamic and developing Spiller. At WR you have the speedy vet Lee Evans, and the fast developing star in Steve Johnson. Add to that role playing WRs like David Nelson and Roscoe Parish and you could be looking at one of the better up and coming WR corps in the NFL.

 

4- Buffalo has an improving OL. Not necessarily a good one, but with a another high OT draft pick and development of those on the roster the Bills will have a solid OL that can keep Luck from getting killed.

You make some very good points. I would only add that this next draft is likely the last one where the top picks can count on walking away with enormous sums of money. So if Luck comes out in the 2011 draft, that's a sign to me that he understands the financial implications. And so I don't think he'll screw around with the "I'm not going to sign with Buffalo" tactic.

 

Of course, I don't know if the Bills will pick him, even if they have the first pick.

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Big Turk Hall of Famer

Big Turk

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And so I don't think he'll screw around with the "I'm not going to sign with Buffalo" tactic.

 

Yeah, he probably shouldn't even go that route...how did it end up for Jim Kelly? Buffalo is likely the one team in the NFL that wouldn't be afraid of that...basically just tell him "If you wanna take your chances and sit out the year and then get re-drafted next year, probably at a lower pick, and get about $25 million dollars less, be our guest."

 

No player these days is gonna sit out a year with so much money at stake and all the negatives that could happen.

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Big Turk Hall of Famer

Big Turk

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He's not coming to Buffalo. No prayer. If Buffalo drafts him, they're giving away their first pick for a lot less than market. Dad's rich, he's smart, and he doesn't have to come out. He isn't moving in next door. Forget it.

 

If the Bills draft him, he is playing Russian Roulette with his career if he doesn't come here...you don't sit out for a year and get drafted in the same spot the following year. Just not going to happen, he would be lucky to be drafted in the first round next year, and some teams would stay away because they would question his character...

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Big Turk Hall of Famer

Big Turk

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At this point, some teams would probably see him turning down Buffalo as a positive. "Wow...he isn't just hunting for #1 money for a few years...he really wants to win!"

 

More likely they would question a guy who was afraid to take on a challenge and wanted things handed to him...

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QB Bills Veteran

QB Bills

Posted
Posted

Despite all the national BS, talk of a Harbaugh grudge, speculation that no one would ever want to go to Buffalo, when you look at it, Buffalo is a pretty appealing situation for a QB in terms of on-field career development. On the national level everyone lumps this team in with the last decade of futility and fails to appreciate the subtle changes that make Buffalo a pretty good starting place for a highly drafted QB.

 

All teams who draft in the No. 1 spot stink, and have loads of negative baggage so many negatives people would point to about Buffalo plague every team. About the only wild card in Buffalo is worse late season weather, and a shaky ownership structure.

 

Now for the reasons Buffalo should appeal to Luck or his advisers:

 

1- Chan Gailey. Buffalo has an offensive minded coach in Chan Gailey who seems to be able to get the most out of his QBs. He's turned turds like Kordell, Thigpen, Fitz etc, into legitimate starting QBs while he was around them. He has a solid playbook that is heavy on passing options, and he calls an excellent game.

 

2- Fitz. Buffalo has a decent starting QB right now who has little to no chance to be a long term starter, but who could serve as a great mentor. He also helps provide a bridge such that if Luck isn't ready to play right away he can learn on the sidelines and not have his career destroyed by being thrown in to early. Carolina for example has no one like this. Fitz is a non-threatening mentor. 2 years from now no one thinks Fitz could be starting over a guy like Luck. In Carolina, Luck would likely be thrown to the wovles and if he floundered Claussen another high draft pick with some long term potential would be waiting in the wings.

 

3- Skilled position players. You'd be hard pressed to find another team drafting No. 1 overall with as much talent at the skilled positions as Buffalo. At RB you have the steady freddy Jackson a back good for a plus 4 yards per carry average and over 1000 a year, and the dynamic and developing Spiller. At WR you have the speedy vet Lee Evans, and the fast developing star in Steve Johnson. Add to that role playing WRs like David Nelson and Roscoe Parish and you could be looking at one of the better up and coming WR corps in the NFL.

 

4- Buffalo has an improving OL. Not necessarily a good one, but with a another high OT draft pick and development of those on the roster the Bills will have a solid OL that can keep Luck from getting killed.

whoa whoa whoa! easy there, grasshopper...the fitz is alright, and thigpen's not bad either...i'll give you kordell stewart though

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Hplarrm RFA

Hplarrm

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On the other hand-

 

 

 

 

1- Chan Gailey. Buffalo has an offensive minded coach in Chan Gailey who seems to be able to get the most out of his QBs. He's turned turds like Kordell, Thigpen, Fitz etc, into legitimate starting QBs while he was around them. He has a solid playbook that is heavy on passing options, and he calls an excellent game.

 

Gailey's MO with QBs is not success at the very different task of developing a talented rookie but instead getting production out of a vet who has failed elsewhere. IMHO, his O production depends on a vet who reads NFL Ds well and then makes quick decisions to get the ball out to the hot WR diagnosed by the vet. I do not see any real evidence of Gailey being the type of HC that has much appeal to Luck, nor Luck having the failed vet skillset which appeals to Gailey.

 

2- Fitz. Definitely not a threat in the eyes of rabid fans, but this merely means that in face of legend in their own mind reporters like Sully or Schoop they are gonna push hard for Luck to start and produce immediately.

 

The situation that should have the most appeal to a QB like Luck is a team which is set at QB with an over the hill guy like a Bledsoe who is not gonna do anything and the fates conspired to give Brady a chance to play with zero expectations. Instead in our likely situation if we spend the first rounder on Luck and neither use that resource to protect the QB by adding the OL player and a half we need to be adequate or an OL player to improve our pass rush. Instead Luck either blows past Fitz and gets to start with an OL than only can be adequate with a vet QB smart enough to help Hamgartner make OL calls, AND pick-out hot receivers, AND release the ball quickly, AND defeat opposing DCs trying to fool him with false coverages. In no way is our situation next year likely to be a good one for Luck.

 

3- Skilled position players. Agreed except for TE.

 

 

4- Buffalo has an improving OL. Not necessarily a good one, but with a another high OT draft pick and development of those on the roster the Bills will have a solid OL that can keep Luck from getting killed.

 

Doubtful as we are a starter (RT) and a sub away from adequacy. Ad the need to build chemistry and we are a year away from OL adequacy. The situation actually gets worse with Luck replacing the vet Fitzy. Luck is a far better athlete than Fitzy, but he has the game experience to read pro Ds and also help Hamgartner and no rookie no matter how good will not be a vet until after his rookie year.

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stony Veteran

stony

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Oh, you mean like Eli Manning?

 

Eli Manning didn't sit out for an entire year as the poster was suggesting Luck might do. Big difference between forcing a trade and having a team unwilling to trade you and be forced to choose between sucking it up or sitting out.

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