Eric Berry

[BuffaloBillsForever]

Anybody watching the Ravens vs Chiefs would notice the impact of how a high draft safety should have on a team. This guy is all over the field making plays.

 

Now that I think of it, when do you see Whitner deflect any passes?

[KD in CA]

Yeah, he looks like a player. In fact I like this whole Chiefs team -- they are young and seem to have a lot of talent.

[Ghost of Rob Johnson]

Anybody watching the Ravens vs Chiefs would notice the impact of how a high draft safety should have on a team. This guy is all over the field making plays.

 

Now that I think of it, when do you see Whitner deflect any passes?

He's also making $10 million per year, he should be making plays.

[San Jose Bills Fan]

Earl Thomas in Seattle has also had a major impact this year as a rookie safety.

 

And that's on a team with a marginal front 7.

 

Both of those guys are gonna be great players for a long time.

[Buffaloed in Pa]

He's also making $10 million per year, he should be making plays.

Ha,Ha,Ha Goodone. Oh they have a PASS RUSH also. I pity the fool.

[colin]

he's a super star, and was touted as such since like 10 games into his college career. i don't think anyone wouldn't take a do over with whitner at this point, that horse is pretty dead and should stop being beaten.

[Thoner7]

He's also making $10 million per year, he should be making plays.

 

So when can I start counting on Whitner to earn his money?

[C.Biscuit97]

EB is going to be a very good player but the Ravens are throwing at him a lot. Heap is having a big game.

[Green Lightning]

he's a super star, and was touted as such since like 10 games into his college career. i don't think anyone wouldn't take a do over with whitner at this point, that horse is pretty dead and should stop being beaten.

 

Thanks for saving me the time to write that. Very well put.

[dgrid]

saw alot of tackles w/ him and Tamba Hali

 

So would that be a HALI BERRY tackle??

[NoSaint]

he's a super star, and was touted as such since like 10 games into his college career. i don't think anyone wouldn't take a do over with whitner at this point, that horse is pretty dead and should stop being beaten.

 

Unfortunately, now that whitner wants more money, he has re-lit the debate. The idea that it wasn't his fault he was drafted there is out the window now that he's telling the front office he has earned the money that polamula, reed, etc... Are getting. Had he accepted a healthy above average payment plan going forward we would be fine. Problem is, he is saying he deserves the respect of the top ten pick, the probowl, all pro selections etc.

[Malazan]

Unfortunately, now that whitner wants more money, he has re-lit the debate. The idea that it wasn't his fault he was drafted there is out the window now that he's telling the front office he has earned the money that polamula, reed, etc... Are getting. Had he accepted a healthy above average payment plan going forward we would be fine. Problem is, he is saying he deserves the respect of the top ten pick, the probowl, all pro selections etc.

 

The nail and hammer head have met

[BuffaloBillsForever]

I noticed Berry is much better in space. Overall I thought he had a decent game.

[Erik]

Unfortunately, now that whitner wants more money, he has re-lit the debate. The idea that it wasn't his fault he was drafted there is out the window now that he's telling the front office he has earned the money that polamula, reed, etc... Are getting. Had he accepted a healthy above average payment plan going forward we would be fine. Problem is, he is saying he deserves the respect of the top ten pick, the probowl, all pro selections etc.

 

Who cares about that as long as we aren't the ones that overpay for him?

[silvermike]

Berry's performance at least sort of justifies the Whitner pick - he's showing that adding a rookie safety with a high pick can really energize your defense. The problem then switches to the Bills' inability to identify whether or not Donte was an elite safety, and not their blunder in drafting a safety at all instead of a lineman.

[Max997]

He's also making $10 million per year, he should be making plays.

 

and Whitner averaged what, 8.5 million? I guess that isnt enough to expect him to be making plays

[Ghost of Rob Johnson]

and Whitner averaged what, 8.5 million? I guess that isnt enough to expect him to be making plays

8/5/2006: Signed a five-year, $29 million contract. The deal includes $13.5 million guaranteed. 2009: $2.355 million, 2010: $2.445 million, 2011: $1.95075 million (Voidable Year), 2012: Free Agent

 

http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/player_contract.aspx?sport=NFL&id=3691

 

Averages $5.8 per year, you had the "8" and the "5" right, just in the wrong order. And actually Berry signed a 5 year $60 million deal, an average of $12 million per year.

 

I guess my point is that the price Whitner is asking for, reportedly around $7 million, is not what "elite" safeties are making. The new standard has been set by Berry, Polamalu and Reed's are not comparable as both were signed over 3 years ago. Antrel Rolle signed a contract last offseason giving him $7.4 million per season. What he's reportedly asking for is the new market price for average to good safeties.

Edited January 10, 2011 by Ghost of Rob Johnson

[Bill from NYC]

8/5/2006: Signed a five-year, $29 million contract. The deal includes $13.5 million guaranteed. 2009: $2.355 million, 2010: $2.445 million, 2011: $1.95075 million (Voidable Year), 2012: Free Agent

 

http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/player_contract.aspx?sport=NFL&id=3691

 

Averages $5.8 per year, you had the "8" and the "5" right, just in the wrong order.

 

I would think that for this kind of money a play or 2 would be in order as well.

[GOBILLS78]

he's a super star, and was touted as such since like 10 games into his college career. i don't think anyone wouldn't take a do over with whitner at this point, that horse is pretty dead and should stop being beaten.

 

Didn't the University of Tennessee get a verbal commitment from his younger brother when the kid was still in sixth or seventh grade?

[Doc]

Berry's performance at least sort of justifies the Whitner pick - he's showing that adding a rookie safety with a high pick can really energize your defense. The problem then switches to the Bills' inability to identify whether or not Donte was an elite safety, and not their blunder in drafting a safety at all instead of a lineman.

True. At some point the onus is on the player(s).

[DrDawkinstein]

Yeah, he looks like a player. In fact I like this whole Chiefs team -- they are young and seem to have a lot of talent.

 

Well, theyve picked in the top 5 for the past 3 years in a row.

 

Guess that means only 2 more seasons like this past one for the Bills, and we should be STACKED!

 

(Just like how the Chargers picked in the top 5 for 4 out of the first 5 years that Butler/Smith/Nix were there, and then came out with a loaded team)

 

Patience will be a virtue...

[BuffaloFan68]

It's pretty hard to truly evaluate our secondary since we our Defensive front is so weak. When the RBs are getting huge holes to run through and the QBs have all day to pick us apart, it's kind of hard to determine how good/bad our secondary players are. We need some serious help at DE, DT & LB. Actually, now that I think of it, we're not giving RBs huge holes, they just run right over, through and around us.

[Over 29 years of fanhood]

I have never seen a post asserting DW lived up to his pick. The way the Ravens owned the middle and Heap dominated I'd say outside of those highlights Berry didn't either, not yet anyway.

 

DW is a good, not great SS. thats it

 

 

[BuffaloBillsForever]

I have never seen a post asserting DW lived up to his pick. The way the Ravens owned the middle and Heap dominated I'd say outside of those highlights Berry didn't either, not yet anyway.

 

DW is a good, not great SS. thats it

 

Actually one of the flaws with the KC gameplan is not solely using Berry on Heap. If you watched the game carefully they were mixing it up a lot on his coverage which was a big mistake. Heap's big play's were when a linebacker or cornerback was responsible for him.

[Orton's Arm]

Berry's performance at least sort of justifies the Whitner pick - he's showing that adding a rookie safety with a high pick can really energize your defense. The problem then switches to the Bills' inability to identify whether or not Donte was an elite safety, and not their blunder in drafting a safety at all instead of a lineman.

My understanding was that, going into the 2006 draft, the two positions Marv and Jauron were most interested in addressing were SS and DT. They felt they could get a better combination of players if they went SS first and then DT, as opposed to the other way around. The fact that McCargo turned out to be a bust, and Whitner has come nowhere near living up to his draft position, illustrates the flaw with this general approach. To address your point, the Bills failed to get an elite player with their 8th overall pick in part because they went into the draft with a mentality which predisposed them to reach for perceived need. The failure of the Whitner and McCargo picks--the failure of Marv's early picks in general--illustrates the weakness of reaching for need as a strategy. Besides that, the Bills had a ton of holes after the end of their 2005 season, so a blinkered focus on just two positions was far harder to justify than would have been the case for a team with only a few holes.

 

There are other problems with picking DBs early. One is that there have been three separate times over the last decade when the Bills DB with the best combination of youth + proven accomplishment has left via free agency, with no compensation. The first was Antoine Winfield after 2003. The Bills received just five years of his career; whereas the Vikings have (thus far) gotten seven years of his play. The next to leave was Nate Clements, which he did after the 2006 season. The third to go was Jabari Greer; who left after the 2008 season. Like Winfield, he provided the Bills with five seasons of play before moving elsewhere.

 

Now it appears the next player out the door will be Whitner. As little as I liked (or like) the Whitner pick at 8th overall, I must admit that Whitner is currently the Bills' DB with the best combination of youth + proven accomplishment. McGee is too old (and isn't that great anyway), McKelvin is too young and has proven too little.

 

Over the last decade, the Bills' front office has acted like good DBs are pure gold on draft day; but seems to view them as a dime a dozen once it's time to renew their rookie contracts. The front office's split personality WRT defensive backs has caused the Bills to squander an inordinate amount of early picks on DBs, while neglecting other positions.

 

Another factor worth considering is that if your offensive line is bad enough, your entire offense is almost guaranteed to fail. The quarterback won't be able to throw because he'll always be on his back, and your running backs won't be able to produce because someone will always be there to meet them in the backfield. Conditions such as those make it hard to evaluate your talent on offense. Such conditions can also ruin a quarterback, for example with concussions. That's one of the reasons why I feel that a team which lacks both OL and DBs should try to get the OL first if possible. Needless to say, I strongly disagreed with the draft day priorities Marv and Jauron had decided upon going into the 2006 draft. (Not to mention the 2007 draft, but that's another story.)