Good article by Gaughn on Buddy Nix Today

[Bob in STL]

I don't at all like the Bills tipping their hand at who or what they'll be drafting. Do the Steelers, Patriots or Packers do this sort of thing????????

 

Shut up your pie hole already. I'm sure the three clubs I mentioned above will be considering those comments right before the Bills pick in the second round and third round and on and on and on...

 

 

He said he wants to draft an impact player regardless of the position. That is not tipping their hat. That is normal rhetoric that GMs tells reporters.

 

He also said he improved the OL by bringing in Urbik, Rhinehardt, Wrotto and Pears. Those moves did not translate into good line play. Our OL looked really bad the last two games with Rhinehardt, Wrotto and Pears seeing a lot of playing time.

 

Does that mean they not draft OL? I sure hope not.

[whodat]

Our draft record is so bad over the last 10 years, any declaration made by the Bills could drop a players value a couple of rounds.

[CosmicBills]

Didn't see the article posted so here.

 

http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/bills-nfl/article323639.ece

 

 

I thought his comments on the offensive line were interesting. He almost seems satisfied with the offensive linemen we got. I don't know how much I like that...

I caught that too ...

 

This article sums up (for me) the dilemma that is Buddy Nix. He's an easy guy to like in the press. He has a cool accent, he speaks his mind, he's been around football for (literally) half a century plus. He comes across as old school and driven. Hell, it's tough not to like him. When he says they got better on the line, you want to believe him. And, as the good Doctor said above, the line isn't the number one problem anymore ... but it's still a problem.

 

Then you look at his accomplishments in year 1 with the Bills. Or should I say blunders. From Spiller to Edwards, to Green, to Marshawn -- there's a wake of missteps, utter failures, big talk with little return and a sense that he's in above his head. Every (reasonable) fan knew that the team that Nix inherited was a disaster and it was going to take more than a year or two to fix. But what those fans hoped for were signs of progress. Not in the wins column exactly, but in terms of bringing in more talent through the draft. While it's too early to judge his first draft fully, but the initial outlook is quite grim. Coupled with the other mistakes made in year 1, it gives me pause.

 

I want to believe in Buddy ... I do. But he has to step up in a big way in April. This franchise needs him to be the man so many on here believe he is.

[Green Lightning]

I don't know about you guys but I loved the way Buddy just lays it out there. Wood to Center. Stick with Bell. Get bigger at LB and pick an impact guy BPA at #3. He just puts it out there and I find it damn comforting and refreshing. Loved when Mark asked where Wood playing center puts Hanny. "We play the best guys.." Gotta love the guy. I am a bit concerned about RT. I agree that his PS and FA pick ups of Wrotto, Pears, Reinhart and Urbik were excellent and at the very least will give us good depth. I don't know if they will be the answer at guard with Wood moving and RT.....I'd fee better with a FA or solid pick in the draft.

[5 Wide]

I like Urbik at guard, I think if you add a RT in FA, the line is actually fairly solid

[stony]

Buddy's comments have AJ Green all over them

[CosmicBills]

Buddy's comments have AJ Green all over them

Or Peterson.

[Ozymandius]

It's hard to tip your hand when no team will believe you anyway. The NFL is a league of deception and no team trusts any other team. You could lay out your plan with 100% veracity and other teams would still have to consider that you may do something else.

 

But yes, I do tend to believe that Nix is being straightforward. All that talk about a "scatback" last offseason led to Spiller being picked.

[The Senator]

You better believe that teams interested in Cam will hear this....

Sly fox that he is, that's probably Buddy's intent - bait someone into trading up for Kim Newton, then draft the QB he really wants (Ryan Mallett).

[TPS]

I caught that too ...

 

This article sums up (for me) the dilemma that is Buddy Nix. He's an easy guy to like in the press. He has a cool accent, he speaks his mind, he's been around football for (literally) half a century plus. He comes across as old school and driven. Hell, it's tough not to like him. When he says they got better on the line, you want to believe him. And, as the good Doctor said above, the line isn't the number one problem anymore ... but it's still a problem.

 

Then you look at his accomplishments in year 1 with the Bills. Or should I say blunders. From Spiller to Edwards, to Green, to Marshawn -- there's a wake of missteps, utter failures, big talk with little return and a sense that he's in above his head. Every (reasonable) fan knew that the team that Nix inherited was a disaster and it was going to take more than a year or two to fix. But what those fans hoped for were signs of progress. Not in the wins column exactly, but in terms of bringing in more talent through the draft. While it's too early to judge his first draft fully, but the initial outlook is quite grim. Coupled with the other mistakes made in year 1, it gives me pause.

 

I want to believe in Buddy ... I do. But he has to step up in a big way in April. This franchise needs him to be the man so many on here believe he is.

Well, that's just your opinion man.

 

Yes, early to judge the draft, but one can also say the initial outlook is excellent.

1. Disappointing that he made little difference; next year is judgment year.

2. Better than expected, given he was behind an all-pro; still put up numbers equal to Pitt's Hampton.

3. Small school prospect who showed flashes of things to come. Could be a steal as a R3 pick.

4. Showed big play ability in practice before injury. Reminds me of Moulds. Could be a steal as a R4 pick.

5. Injuries hindered development. Hit or miss R5 pick.

6. R6 starter in first year--a steal; Injury made it difficult to judge Batten.

7. No harm no foul.

 

If you judge this draft solely on Spiller, then "the outlook is grim." Looking at the entire draft, I would argue they created the foundation for the turn around.

 

As for this draft, Would like to see Dareus or Fairley at 3, but would be very with the scenario of a trade down and pick up V.Miller.

[stony]

Or Peterson.

 

Yeah. I'm holding onto some false hope that he goes to Denver. But you're probably right.

[HARCO186]

Here is what I take away from this article. If the first two picks are D line, then our pick will be A J Green, Cam Newton or Patrick Peterson. This will make some people unhappy. I think of these three, Newton has the most risk.

 

Buddy is not going to draft need first, it will be the best player available.

 

As soon as I read that article, AJ came to mind as well. YES Buffalo has a defensive need in the worst way, but if AJ is really that good you take him. Just about every coach or GM will say that teams that draft by need end up having a bad draft. Just think if we snag AJ, what they will tell others. I feel if the two defensive guys are taken then AJ will be ours at #3 or Buffalo will trade down to get more picks. If AJ goes or Peterson goes within the first two picks only then do we go defense, if not we will take Green.

[Dorkington]

Well, that's just your opinion man.

 

Yes, early to judge the draft, but one can also say the initial outlook is excellent.

1. Disappointing that he made little difference; next year is judgment year.

2. Better than expected, given he was behind an all-pro; still put up numbers equal to Pitt's Hampton.

3. Small school prospect who showed flashes of things to come. Could be a steal as a R3 pick.

4. Showed big play ability in practice before injury. Reminds me of Moulds. Could be a steal as a R4 pick.

5. Injuries hindered development. Hit or miss R5 pick.

6. R6 starter in first year--a steal; Injury made it difficult to judge Batten.

7. No harm no foul.

 

If you judge this draft solely on Spiller, then "the outlook is grim." Looking at the entire draft, I would argue they created the foundation for the turn around.

 

As for this draft, Would like to see Dareus or Fairley at 3, but would be very with the scenario of a trade down and pick up V.Miller.

 

Great write up. Hopefully Spiller can be a contributer this year, and Easley can come back and contribute as well. If so, I think it ends up being a pretty solid draft.

[Fan in Chicago]

He said he wants to draft an impact player regardless of the position. That is not tipping their hat. That is normal rhetoric that GMs tells reporters.

 

He also said he improved the OL by bringing in Urbik, Rhinehardt, Wrotto and Pears. Those moves did not translate into good line play. Our OL looked really bad the last two games with Rhinehardt, Wrotto and Pears seeing a lot of playing time.

 

Does that mean they not draft OL? I sure hope not.

Precisely. I would be incredibly disappointed if we go into next season with the same cast of characters on the OL or just add low level FA into the mix. I really want to see high quality FA addition(s) and/or high draft picks. No way the FO gets by with selling us "our young guys are promising" line.

[BuffaloBillsMagic1]

Outside of the addition of a starting RT (and some depth), the Oline is hardly our biggest area of concern.

 

Bell is coming along, and between Wood, Levitre, and Urbik we have 3 young, highly ranked prospects that were all drafted early (1st round, 2nd round, 3rd round, respectively). Coupled with Hanny's veteran leadership, our interior should be improving. Just need to add some talent and depth on the edges.

 

DLine, and LBs are much bigger needs right now.

Hali, LBfrom KC and Ngata(NT) from Rabens are both FAs according to Sporting News. Maybe we could sign both and shore these 2 spots up immediately.

[DrDawkinstein]

I caught that too ...

 

This article sums up (for me) the dilemma that is Buddy Nix. He's an easy guy to like in the press. He has a cool accent, he speaks his mind, he's been around football for (literally) half a century plus. He comes across as old school and driven. Hell, it's tough not to like him. When he says they got better on the line, you want to believe him. And, as the good Doctor said above, the line isn't the number one problem anymore ... but it's still a problem.

 

Then you look at his accomplishments in year 1 with the Bills. Or should I say blunders. From Spiller to Edwards, to Green, to Marshawn -- there's a wake of missteps, utter failures, big talk with little return and a sense that he's in above his head. Every (reasonable) fan knew that the team that Nix inherited was a disaster and it was going to take more than a year or two to fix. But what those fans hoped for were signs of progress. Not in the wins column exactly, but in terms of bringing in more talent through the draft. While it's too early to judge his first draft fully, but the initial outlook is quite grim. Coupled with the other mistakes made in year 1, it gives me pause.

 

I want to believe in Buddy ... I do. But he has to step up in a big way in April. This franchise needs him to be the man so many on here believe he is.

 

 

I think you under estimate just how bad of a situation Nix and Gailey walked into last year. I also think your expectations of what can be done in those few short months are a little out of whack.

 

I see no issues with the way they handled Edwards or Lynch.

 

Green didnt pan out, but the FA class wasnt exactly strong and at least they tried to do something about the OT situation. When its all said and done, Green wasnt that much of a cap hit anyways.

 

I think his first draft looks like it will be very good down the line, as TPS pointed out. We got 2 solid DLs out of it from our first 3 picks. And Moats looks like he can be a baller too.

 

The biggest improvement, IMO, was what I was hoping to see before the season even started. And that was better (or actual) offensive game planning and play calling. I knew going into the season that the talent was very far and few between on this team, but wanted to see what the coaches could do. And I am highly impressed with Gailey and how he runs the team.

 

Throw in the new addition of Wannstache, and I think things are definitely looking up.

 

Nix has been upfront from the very beginning that it would not be done in 1 or 2 years, and that they will build through the draft. It's gonna be baby-steps, but at least we are seeing forward movement.

[Fan in Chicago]

 

If you judge this draft solely on Spiller, then "the outlook is grim." Looking at the entire draft, I would argue they created the foundation for the turn around.

 

As for this draft, Would like to see Dareus or Fairley at 3, but would be very with the scenario of a trade down and pick up V.Miller.

Well summarized regarding the draft. What I would like people to remember is that there were very few high level free agents to man the OL. The availability was very thin. The only difference I would make is choosing OL in place of Spiller

[Coach Tuesday]

Buddy's comments have AJ Green all over them

 

But then what? You'd have Green, Evans, Parrish, Nelson, Easley, and Stevie J? So you'd have to cut Evans, and even with a rookie salary cap you'd probably end up paying Green about what Evans was going to make over the next few years. Makes no sense - it's one thing to say you're going to take BPA, but you're still running a business with limited resources to allocate to various positions.

 

(And also, Julio Jones is the better prospect.)

 

Sly fox that he is, that's probably Buddy's intent - bait someone into trading up for Kim Newton, then draft the QB he really wants (Ryan Mallett).

 

Yeah, sly fox. Running up to the podium in the first 30 seconds to make his selections.

[DreReed83]

Saying who you are going to draft, doesn't always match up with who you are actually going to draft.

 

If we go on about drafting Newton, teams my find incentive to trade up to get him instead. It's all politics and maneuvering.

 

x2.

 

You can't believe anything that anyone says right now. Everybody's bluffing.

[DrDawkinstein]

 

 

Yeah, sly fox. Running up to the podium in the first 30 seconds to make his selections.

 

This is the dumbest criticism of Nix that I hear. So what? What is the big deal about knowing who you want?

 

Trade talk comes long before the actual pick. Nix knew what (if any) offers were on the table. I cant imagine anyone wanted to trade up to #9 last year for any reason. And if they did, they werent offering enough.