Jerry Sullivan on WGR this morning

[Lurker]

Realizing it is just conjecture, but what do you think Nix did? Did he sit there when they were talking about draft strategy and check over his investment portfolio, thankful that Ralph had given him more bullets? Did he sit there mute as a stump, having spent hours upon hours reviewing film, listening to everything that transpired, so he could later torpedo Jauron and the others to Ralph behind closed doors? Or was he banging on the table, saying what he saw in the film, and advising against moves that would set the team back years, and everyone else in the room selectively filtered him out as a crank? Or maybe it was somewhere in the middle, where he didn't really have much input, no real strong feelings, and offered up the occasional one-liner for comedic effect, which begs the question of why the Bills hired him as National Scout in the first place?

Last I checked, a show of hands when you're in the minorty doesn't usually carry the day.

 

Was Buddy a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs sideways? Who knows. I don't, you don't. All we have to go on is his past record of not drafting 'one year wonders' and favoring production over potential. Which would be a pretty telling opinion on Maybin, I'm sure you'll admit.

 

BTW, how come I can't add you to my 'ignore' list anymore since you became a mod??

[mrags]

-Lee Evans being traded after our offense finally gets going again is ridiculous, and to not trade for another player is worse.

 

I would rather have Lee on the team but I understand the reality of trading him. LEE DID NOT WANT TO BE HERE WHERE THE OFFENSE WASNT GOING TO FEATURE HIM.......he asked for a trade...and he did it with respect and not going to the media. The bills obliged him for being the stand up guy that he was. Want to know what Kelsay has HIS contract? because he does it the exact same way.....jmo on that

 

 

-Not signing Clabo for 5 years because you can't win now is a joke.

 

We offered the most....he chose to stay with Atlanta...the bills tried....what more is to be said here?

 

 

-Why are you drafting these gadget guys when you have true needs?

 

What gadget guy did we draft? Spiller? He was the best offensive talent on the board at the time. There are SEVERAL other picks in the draft and in case Sullivan wast watching quite a few went to the defensive lines.....then this year we went MOSTLY defense. We are going to B word about 1 player in a whole draft worth of picks?

 

 

-Bell is the best tackle we have, and the best means he's being compared to bad offensive linemen, which is a joke.

 

Nobody was complaining about bell after the 1st pre season game where he held off Peppers....he had a HORRIBLE game on Saturday no doubt....but you have to take work as a whole not just the last game.

 

 

-Depth at WR is not the same as numbers- New England has depth and we have numbers.

 

New Englands WR dept looks better because they have Tom Brady throwing the ball

 

 

-Paying Brad Smith for only a handful of plays for a wildcat offense that is exposed is ridiculous.

 

This is my biggest peeve of his wrants......Brad Smith is the BEST in the league at what he provides....and the Bills jumped on an opportuntity. And Chan knows how to use a guy like this. There was nothing wrong with this aquisition when you have a chance to make your football team better you do it.

 

 

-The Eagles' depth is so good at CB that they are cutting a $2 million CB because he's slotted as a dime back.

 

no comment

 

 

-The Buffalo Sabres want to win and the Buffalo Bills are existing.

 

The Bills are doing it a different way while the Sabers look to be making Redskins type moves.....I dont agree with all of what the bills are doing but they are following the San Diego Chargers/Pittsburg Steelers game plan of rebiuld.

I would say tuis is the best response to all that that @ssclown says on a daily basis. I personally think he is the biggest POS in the Buffalo Sports Media. Even more so than Dope and the Lapdog (nice one). At least these guys are uneducated sports idiots. They have an excuse. Sully doesn't. He just does t like Buffalo. Doesn't like the city. Doesn't like the sports teams. I hope he moves back to NE and the Big Dig floods while he's in a tunnel and then Boston falls into the ocean.

 

Another point I'd like to add to yours is regarding the Beloved Sabres of Buffalo. Personally I think they are benefiting and suceeding only because the Bills have sucked for the last decade. The small chosen few of corporate Buffalo buy the majority of those season tickets and give away those tickets for free. The games are more expensive than Bills games and there are plenty of bandwagon fans that clinched on to them since thier presidents trophy year. With that said, thier ticket sales and fan support dropped off after they made decisions like getting rid of Drury and Briere, Campbell and others. Only to be brought back up again because of Pegula. I personally believe in his commitment to the team however what he's doing is really no different from the Bills. They make promises that can't be guaranteed. There is no sure fire way of winning. There's many different ways to do it. Nobody knows if what Pegula is doing is going to make it work. For all we know the Sabs could become the Skins of the NHL.

 

I realize I will get scorned and shot and stabbed an hung and raped and murdered and than beheaded for saying anything bad about our glorious Sabres but truth is they are doing well and the Bills suck. That's the only difference. If the Bills get good and competitive the driving market of the NHL can't even scratch the NFLs @ss if it was itching. The Bills at that point would become what they used to be in the glory days of the 90s.

 

Burn away

[Adam]

The line, which isn't much different then what they ended with last year was not as dismal as fans make it out to be.

 

And they didn't sign Smith at the expense of the o-line. They have plenty of cap room to sign all the o-line players they wanted, there is just slim pickings for decent o-line players that aren't available for a reason (injured, grossly overweight/lazy, attitude issues, close to retirement). The front office, like it or not, know that they aren't going to be a contender this year and have taken the approach that they would rather see what they have in some potential players like Bell, Pears, Urbick, Wrotto, Hairston, Reinhardt, etc. instead of signing players that may not be here longer then next year. They went hard after one of the top RT's available this offseason and lost out cause he wanted to stay where he was. After Clabo, there wasn't much else out there thats worth getting excited over.

 

BTW, the only "gadget player" the Bills drafted was Spiller

You must be desensitized after years of poor line play. You aren't going win anything with this line- the line will lead to more QB/Coach changes- just like it has over the last decade.

[Sisyphean Bills]

Buying time for what? Not sure what you mean.

I'm guessing he means until Ralph's heirs get their big pay day.

[Sisyphean Bills]

Last I checked, a show of hands when you're in the minorty doesn't usually carry the day.

I take that to mean that you think Nix was banging on the table and nobody listened to him. What does that tell you about his management skills and his ability to persuade others? He's not going to win every battle, obviously. But, the Maybin pick is legitimately one of the worst picks in franchise history -- a franchise that has made many terrible picks. If someone can't head a !@#$ up of that magnitude off, what is your purpose as a National Scout?

Was Buddy a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs sideways? Who knows. I don't, you don't.

That's why I used the word "conjecture." Here, this might help you.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/conjecture

All we have to go on is his past record of not drafting 'one year wonders' and favoring production over potential. Which would be a pretty telling opinion on Maybin, I'm sure you'll admit.

He has no track record as a GM as he's never held the position before. I realize it is popular for some revisionists to assume he made all of AJ Smith's decisions for him, but I'm sure those people have never met AJ Smith.

BTW, how come I can't add you to my 'ignore' list anymore since you became a mod??

Sucks to be you.

[Red Squirrel]

they offered him more (apparently) then what Atlanta offered, but it was enough for him to be comfortable to stay where where he was and not have to uproot his young new family accross the country to Buffalo. its actually refreshing to see an athlete turn down a bigger deal and accept one to stay where they are instead of chasing the bigger deal for a couple more million.

 

This is actually a very good point. Once you establish roots, it isn't easy to pull them up. Many of us have had similar chances to move and upgrade our careers and turn it down for the same reason.

 

The flip side of this situation exists in college sports; if a university doesn't get all the hometown talent, the fans scream and yell. Often a kid just wants to get out on his own and away from his family for four years...and many fans are hypocrites for complaining about this because we made the same decision for ourselves.

[Billsinfla]

I would say tuis is the best response to all that that @ssclown says on a daily basis. I personally think he is the biggest POS in the Buffalo Sports Media. Even more so than Dope and the Lapdog (nice one). At least these guys are uneducated sports idiots. They have an excuse. Sully doesn't. He just does t like Buffalo. Doesn't like the city. Doesn't like the sports teams. I hope he moves back to NE and the Big Dig floods while he's in a tunnel and then Boston falls into the ocean.

 

Another point I'd like to add to yours is regarding the Beloved Sabres of Buffalo. Personally I think they are benefiting and suceeding only because the Bills have sucked for the last decade. The small chosen few of corporate Buffalo buy the majority of those season tickets and give away those tickets for free. The games are more expensive than Bills games and there are plenty of bandwagon fans that clinched on to them since thier presidents trophy year. With that said, thier ticket sales and fan support dropped off after they made decisions like getting rid of Drury and Briere, Campbell and others. Only to be brought back up again because of Pegula. I personally believe in his commitment to the team however what he's doing is really no different from the Bills. They make promises that can't be guaranteed. There is no sure fire way of winning. There's many different ways to do it. Nobody knows if what Pegula is doing is going to make it work. For all we know the Sabs could become the Skins of the NHL.

 

I realize I will get scorned and shot and stabbed an hung and raped and murdered and than beheaded for saying anything bad about our glorious Sabres but truth is they are doing well and the Bills suck. That's the only difference. If the Bills get good and competitive the driving market of the NHL can't even scratch the NFLs @ss if it was itching. The Bills at that point would become what they used to be in the glory days of the 90s.

 

Burn away

 

You gotta be kidding me. The Sabres are beloved because they win. You still haven't done what many on this board refuse to do, offer a legitimate rebuttal to what Sullivan is saying. I'll be waiting.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

God, I hope the Sabres win the Stanley Cup soon... that would REALLY embarrass the Bills!

 

You know, my brother-in-law, who's a Philly sports fan made a point similar to this. He felt the Eagles' moves were related to the fact that in what used to be a football town, more people sport Phillies gear than Eagles.

 

Food for thought.

[Rico]

Sucks to be you.

Agree 100%.

[joey greco]

I hope he moves back to NE and the Big Dig floods while he's in a tunnel and then Boston falls into the ocean.

 

Agreed, although I couldn't care less if Sullivan is there when it happens.

[San Jose Bills Fan]

Speaking only to the Pegula = Snyder comments… they are way off the mark.

 

This is not opinion… it is fact.

 

Even if we forget that Pegula's purchase of the Sabres energized not only the fans, but the team as well and that the impending purchase of the team followed by its actual purchase caused the team to launch into a overachieving 2nd half of the season when they had the second best record in the league.

 

Yes the players knew what they were getting and responded to the knowledge that a huge Sabres fan, committed to excellence, was going to be the new owner… but let's forget all that and focus on some of the things he did after purchasing the team.

 

After Pegula purchased the team, he upgraded the dehumidifiers in the Arena to improve the ice surface.

When the team left on its first extended road trip after his purchase, he remodeled the locker room to improve it for the remainder of the season… knowing full well that he would have it torn down and remodeled again during the offseason. Yes, he wasted money in the short run to improve the locker room to send the message to the players, fans, and media that he was committed to making Buffalo, "Hockey Heaven."

 

These are just a small few of the handful of things Pegula has done since taking over. Neither of them increased revenues… both were done to improve the working conditions for the players.

 

Contrast this to the fact that the Washington Redskins are one of only 2 cold-weather NFL teams which still do not have an indoor practice facility in spite of being the highest revenue-generating team in the NFL. Last December they had to bus the team around to various indoor venues during one bad weather week.

While Snyder is filing a frivolous lawsuit against the newspaper in DC, Pegula is rounding up former Sabres and strengthening the legacy between players, former players, and fans. Pegula is the kind of owner who will eventually build a Sabres Hall of Fame down at the foot of Main Street… just like the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs have done in their cities. Feel free to mark my words.

 

Pegula has a vision for making the Sabres the best team in the NHL and for making Buffalo, THE DESTINATION for NHL players. Pegula's vision includes having the happiest fans in the NHL too.

 

To compare Terry Pegula to Daniel Snyder is to show an extreme lack of sports knowledge.

Edited August 24, 2011 by San Jose Bills Fan

[JTO]

Great story. With that said, once Ralph meets his maker and Pegula purchases the Bills Im sure all will be better. Hopefully, all of the coaches and assiatants follow out the door. It makes no sense to have ralphs puppets on board. What this team will need is smart people who arent afraid to share an idea or occssionally be verbal for the sake of the team. Ala Parcells.

[shrader]

After Pegula purchased the team, he upgraded the dehumidifiers in the Arena to improve the ice surface.

When the team left on its first extended road trip after his purchase, he remodeled the locker room to improve it for the remainder of the season… knowing full well that he would have it torn down and remodeled again during the offseason. Yes, he wasted money in the short run to improve the locker room to send the message to the players, fans, and media that he was committed to making Buffalo, "Hockey Heaven."

 

Come on, let's not over dramatize this. They put in a new carpet and a plaque on the wall. Both of these will wind up in the new one.