Thurman8125 Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 I am a bit surprised at just how bad they are killing the Bills. I understand some of the criticism but a lot of it also seems a bit over the top. "Buffalo Bills (Last Year: 4-12) - Buy Tickets 2011 NFL Draft Grades: Teams that draft well (i.e. Steelers, Packers, Colts) win Super Bowls. Teams that screw up in the NFL Draft every year never make the playoffs. Buffalo hasn't qualified for the postseason in more than a decade, and if you want to know why, all you have to do is look at how they draft. The Bills screwed up yet again. How the hell did they come away from the 2011 NFL Draft without a quarterback? Ryan Fitzpatrick is not the answer. Every football person outside of Buffalo knows this, yet the Bills stubbornly continue to settle for mediocrity at the most important position in football. Protecting the quarterback and getting to the other quarterback are two things that are also very important to every team in the league outside of Buffalo. No rush linebackers? No offensive lineman until the 122nd pick? And what's with all of these running backs and cornerbacks? I really feel sorry for sensible Buffalo fans who know that their front office is clueless. The Bills are like the fantasy owner in your league who drafts a kicker in the eighth round every single summer. You quietly laugh at them during the draft, and smile when they hand in their league dues because you know they're going to finish 5-8 for the 10th year in a row. Overall 2011 NFL Draft Grade given on 5/1/11: D 2011 NFL Draft Individual Grades: 3. Marcell Dareus, DE/DT This pick is not an A because the Bills need a franchise quarterback and are once again passing up on the opportunity to acquire one. Buffalo will never be a playoff contender until it finds a franchise signal-caller. However, Marcell Dareus is a terrific prospect and should be a fixture on Buffalo's defensive front for years to come. The Bills' stop unit has just improved exponentially. (Pick Grade: B) 34. Aaron Williams, CB/FS, Texas So, Ryan Fitzpatrick is a franchise quarterback, eh? I like Aaron Williams, but he does not fill a need at all. As I've been saying, new regimes mean new rush linebackers, cornerbacks (safeties) and "pass-catchin' runnin' backs" in Buffalo. (Pick Grade: C) 68. Kelvin Sheppard, ILB, LSU I mocked Kelvin Sheppard to the Bills atop the fourth round for a while, so I can certainly understand why they're taking him, albeit a round early. Buffalo had to find an upgrade next to Paul Posluszny. (Pick Grade: B) 100. Da'Norris Searcy, S, North Carolina What are the Bills doing? How many defensive backs do they need? This is a slight reach, so it's not even like Buffalo is getting good value. (Pick Grade: D) 122. Chris Hairston, OT, Clemson This is a decent pick. The Bills had to upgrade their offensive line, and Chris Hairston fits the range as a right tackle in the bottom of the fourth round. (Pick Grade: B) 133. Johnny White, RB, North Carolina Where does Johnny White fit in with Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller entrenched as the team's top running backs? I don't get this pick. It's not like White is an incredible value or anything. (Pick Grade: D) 169. Chris White, ILB, Mississippi State This pick is a slight reach and doesn't fill a need. Some of Buffalo's selections have been head-scratchers. (Pick Grade: D) 206. Justin Rogers, CB, Richmond Another defensive back? I'd like to say I'm surprised, but the Bills draft this way every year. It sucks for their fans. (Pick Grade: C) 245. Michael Jasper, G, Bethel Here's how you know this is a crappy pick: NFL.com lists Michael Jasper as a defensive tackle even though he's really a guard. Oops. (Pick Grade: D)" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 The Marcell Dareus pick being graded a "B" and the thing about Jasper tells you all you need to know about Walterfootball.com. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 They lose a lot of credibility right at the top by knocking down the Dareus grade because it wasn't a QB. Good teams stay true to the board and don't pick for need. Everyone and their mother had Dareus ahead of Gabbert on their boards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewEra Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Who cares? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob's House Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 I'm not sure how you rip a late 7th rounder with the physical attributes of Jasper, but then there was a lot about the author, and the publication that he wrote for, that didn't make a lot of sense to me either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QCity Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Please don't drive traffic to this guy's site, he intentionally gives harsh reviews for this sole purpose. He has no more football knowledge than any of the other 100,000 bloggers out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob in STL Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 (edited) I am a bit surprised at just how bad they are killing the Bills. I understand some of the criticism but a lot of it also seems a bit over the top. "Buffalo Bills (Last Year: 4-12) - Buy Tickets 2011 NFL Draft Grades: Teams that draft well (i.e. Steelers, Packers, Colts) win Super Bowls. Teams that screw up in the NFL Draft every year never make the playoffs. Buffalo hasn't qualified for the postseason in more than a decade, and if you want to know why, all you have to do is look at how they draft. The Bills screwed up yet again. How the hell did they come away from the 2011 NFL Draft without a quarterback? Ryan Fitzpatrick is not the answer. Every football person outside of Buffalo knows this, yet the Bills stubbornly continue to settle for mediocrity at the most important position in football. Protecting the quarterback and getting to the other quarterback are two things that are also very important to every team in the league outside of Buffalo. No rush linebackers? No offensive lineman until the 122nd pick? And what's with all of these running backs and cornerbacks? I really feel sorry for sensible Buffalo fans who know that their front office is clueless. The Bills are like the fantasy owner in your league who drafts a kicker in the eighth round every single summer. You quietly laugh at them during the draft, and smile when they hand in their league dues because you know they're going to finish 5-8 for the 10th year in a row. Overall 2011 NFL Draft Grade given on 5/1/11: D 2011 NFL Draft Individual Grades: 3. Marcell Dareus, DE/DT This pick is not an A because the Bills need a franchise quarterback and are once again passing up on the opportunity to acquire one. Buffalo will never be a playoff contender until it finds a franchise signal-caller. However, Marcell Dareus is a terrific prospect and should be a fixture on Buffalo's defensive front for years to come. The Bills' stop unit has just improved exponentially. (Pick Grade: B) 34. Aaron Williams, CB/FS, Texas So, Ryan Fitzpatrick is a franchise quarterback, eh? I like Aaron Williams, but he does not fill a need at all. As I've been saying, new regimes mean new rush linebackers, cornerbacks (safeties) and "pass-catchin' runnin' backs" in Buffalo. (Pick Grade: C) 68. Kelvin Sheppard, ILB, LSU I mocked Kelvin Sheppard to the Bills atop the fourth round for a while, so I can certainly understand why they're taking him, albeit a round early. Buffalo had to find an upgrade next to Paul Posluszny. (Pick Grade: B) 100. Da'Norris Searcy, S, North Carolina What are the Bills doing? How many defensive backs do they need? This is a slight reach, so it's not even like Buffalo is getting good value. (Pick Grade: D) 122. Chris Hairston, OT, Clemson This is a decent pick. The Bills had to upgrade their offensive line, and Chris Hairston fits the range as a right tackle in the bottom of the fourth round. (Pick Grade: B) 133. Johnny White, RB, North Carolina Where does Johnny White fit in with Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller entrenched as the team's top running backs? I don't get this pick. It's not like White is an incredible value or anything. (Pick Grade: D) 169. Chris White, ILB, Mississippi State This pick is a slight reach and doesn't fill a need. Some of Buffalo's selections have been head-scratchers. (Pick Grade: D) 206. Justin Rogers, CB, Richmond Another defensive back? I'd like to say I'm surprised, but the Bills draft this way every year. It sucks for their fans. (Pick Grade: C) 245. Michael Jasper, G, Bethel Here's how you know this is a crappy pick: NFL.com lists Michael Jasper as a defensive tackle even though he's really a guard. Oops. (Pick Grade: D)" So if we take Gabbert at #3 we will have people saying we are gambling when Dareus is a sure thing. If we take Locker or Ponder we are reaching. If we trade down we lose a shot at an impact player. Play the games and we will see in the next three years how these QBs perform. I still like the draft. Our defense is going to get good and that is start toward respectability. We need a franchise QB yes, so do 25 other teams. Edited May 1, 2011 by Bob in STL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 as far as draft grades go I try to stick with the major networks. I don't put much stock in lesser known media outlets. They are just trying to generate hits and will more typically go to extremes just to get their name out. Now when someone like gruden, mayock, and kiper (to a certain extent) give their opinion, then I listen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob in STL Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 So if we take Gabbert at #3 we will have people saying we are gambling when Dareus is a sure thing. If we take Locker or Ponder we are reaching. If we trade down we lose a shot at an impact player. Play the games and we will see in the next three years how these QBs perform. I still like the draft. Our defense is going to get good and that is start toward respectability. We need a franchise QB yes, so do 25 other teams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Consider who Walter hires to write these. Ever go to Bills Zone? Ever see people recruiting writers for football websites? Can't expect much when you use unpaid writers found at message boards. PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mob16151 Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Walters just butt hurt, after Bills fans collectively tore him a new one after his snarky grade and comment about the Williams selection. And basically Walter just got bitchier from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punch Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 It sounds like a child wrote this assessment. He clearly has no sense of the Bills' overall needs... nor does he have any clue what other draft analysts actually feel about the Bills picks. He makes it sound like all the "experts" agree with his opinion that Buffalo again screwed up royally, which is obviously not the case. It looks like a terrific draft, the day after... we'll know for sure over the course of the next few years. The only thing I can say for absolutely certain right now is that I can't wait to find out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RealityCheck Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 It seems that the premise of this whole evaluation is based on their belief that there were FRANCHISE QBs that were available. Since I disagree with that, I am quite happy right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Anderson's Lunch Pail Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 I like to hear someone being critical rather ethnic rehashing the same tired stuff, but this is over the top. You can't fit a square peg into a round hole - if the Bills didn't like one of the QB prospects, why force it? I am certainly glad to didn't force it to appease bloggers. THAT is how you remain mediocre. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Was there really any QB in this draft that could have thrown for the equivalent of almost 3,700 yards, 28 TD passes, and had a completion rate of 58%? Doubtful at best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 (edited) Was there really any QB in this draft that could have thrown for the equivalent of almost 3,700 yards, 28 TD passes, and had a completion rate of 58%? Doubtful at best. There is a crap load of average QBs every year. What's the rush? PTR Edited May 1, 2011 by PromoTheRobot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clancynut Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Even Buddy and Chan realize they need a Franchise QB. Newton and Ponder were two they probably thought were the answer and Ponder was not a third overall pick. Obviously if they felt that if Andy Dalton or Colin Kaepernick were the answer they would be the 34th pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpberr Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 I don't pay attention to draft grades immediately after the draft. More often than not the grades reflect effort to substantiate or defend pre-draft prognostication. Some national pundits love the Bills draft, others find it ok, others find it bad. The ones that love it saw Buffalo taking Dareus. Guess that makes them feel good. For every blog that says Buffalo failed in this draft due to not drafting a QB, there are two that say Minnesota, Tenn, Cincy and SF all reached for theirs, and how could they due to all their other needs.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scrappy Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Dareus was considered to be the best player in the draft by many, so a B for a team with a huge need like that is a joke. I stopped reading right there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Hindsight Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 Maybe someone should compare a 3000 yard passer vs 170 yards given up on the ground a game and see what the priorities are Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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