Buddy's moves

[OldTimer1960]

I just find it ironic that many of the major players on the roster aren't Nix draft picks or UFA signings: Fitz, FJ, Johnson, Levitre, Wood, and Byrd. Dareus has been very good and Barnett a good signing, but giving guaranteed money to a guy clearly washed up and not offered much if anything by 31 other teams should say something about Nix.

 

He has only had 2 drafts. That is 4-6 premium picks (1st-3rd rounds). It is too early to judge any of his draft picks, but:

 

1. I'd say that Spiller has acquitted himself very well in his limited opportunities this year (5ish ypc). He is being a team

player and is it really his fault that Fred Jackson has developed into a very good player and a leader that they do not want

to take carries away from?

 

2. Torrell Troup has been injured, but has played decently when healthy. That he hasn't beaten out Pro-Bowler Kyle Williams

doesn't say he is a bust. I'll admit he probably won't be a dominant player, but he hasn't been horrible when healthy.

 

3 Alex Carrington has looked promising in his 2nd year.

 

4. Marcel Dareus has looked like everything he was advertised to be.

 

5. Aron Williams was playing well before his injury. Hopefully his aggressiveness won't be hurt by the injury.

 

6. Kelvin Sheppard has earned a good deal of playing time after missing a lot of preseason time with injury. He looks quite

promising.

[John from Riverside]

Lets tackle these one at a time shall we?

 

- 2010 Draft they by pass needs on defense and QB for a reach at Spiller who has done minimal. This could have been forseen as Spiller and Bush are same RB 'scat back' that Nix and Gailey wanted so much. I have no problem saying that Spiller is a bust and was great in college but this is the pros. If you can't learn to run straight betweeen the tackles by now then there is a bigger issue here. Nix wanted Spiller to succeed so they could cut Jackson. You don't take a first round RB and not want to start him. Jackson is doing well and benching him would only cause a problem. Look for Bills to procrastinate on Jackson's contract. They will say he's 30 and wants to0 much money. Spiller to start for Bills next year while Jackson goes to another team.

 

OK so the question of that draft that is always asked and NEVER answered was....WHO DO WE TAKE IF NOT CJ SPILLER at that spot?...what QB was worthy?......who on defense?....you cannot just go taking players that are not the value of that selection. What if Nix could not find a trade down partner? We DONT KNOW....it might be possible that nobody was giving us a deal worth doing in a trade down. So Nix stood his ground and took the best player available on the board at that time.

 

Nix did NOT want Spiller to succeed so they could cut Jackson...Nix had a situation where he had a older RB and he didn't know too much about him.....and a running back that was one infraction away from being out of the league for the year! And you have absolutley NO proof that they are gonna screw Jackson around....he is under contract and we have other guys we need to tie up first. If they REALLY wanted to screw Jackson around they would start Spiller regardless of who is producing and sit Jackson TEAMS HAVE DONE IT BEFORE.

 

- The so called QB competition when they obviously wanted to give the job to Edwards. Reason they talked about competition was to really please media and fans to make it look like they cared. Reality was they were hoping Gailey's QB magic would work on Edwards rather than looking at the tape of previous years on Edwards and seeing that he was not starter material. Bills love mediocrity and Fitz fits that mold. We'll prob lock him up for a few years. If Cam was on the board he would have been a Bill but there was no way to go wrong with out #3 pick. With the new CBA agreement structuring out rookie contracts Ralph Wilson prob got a hard on for the first time by not paying the high gauranteed money.

 

First full season as the GM of the team.....and Edwards was looking great in pre season....we are going to take Fitz who looked less then steller in pre season and play him over the incumbant who was playing well? AS SOON as Edwards showed his true colors he was gone...simple as that...and that is a testimate of a GM who doesnt screw around and doesn't have a huge ego about players. And by the way....as a GM you absolutely CAN screw up a number 3 pick....stop degrading him saying his job is easy because he has a high pick.....if anything there is no pressure to NOT BE WRONG with a pick like that.

 

-Merriman was on decline in San Diego after injuries....Nix picked him up. Great move for leadership but leadership only goes so much if ur not on the field to back up the talk. The light has gone out. Point is this was a Nix decision.

 

Merriman was a name....he was a beast in pre season....and his body simply didn't hold up....comparatively speaking we did not pay a ton of cash for him......and he can either come back from his surgery and be healthy or he wont.....he gave the bills swagger again and was probably a deciding factor of Barnett and Morrison coming here.

 

-I am 50/50 if Nix gives the $ Stevie is looking for. We do need him but depends on what he's asking.

Interesting how you are 50/50 if Nix does his OTHER GM JOB which is not just drafting talent but also deciding what talent is worth keeping on the team.....if you are gonna take swipes at him for his GM duties then you gotta give him credit when he does it right as well.

 

Nix as GM has made some very questionable moves and while the Bills are doing well it mostly part to Gailey's system and these players showing they belong. I love all these guys and what they stand for. Nix does not have the 'eye' for talent and has proven that....why do we have him? He's cheap, old school, and will ask daddy's permission before making any type of move. Be weary of the future.

 

Actually...with the exception of a few guys...Nix has made VERY FEW questionable moves....he has brought in the right coach for the the team.....his draft selections have been solid......and his eye for what talent to keep has been equally sharp. PS......if you think that GM's dont ask owners for permission before they make moves around the league then you are fooling youself.

Edited October 26, 2011 by John from Hemet

[John from Riverside]

OP is right, I don't know why people get so upset with these threads. 5-10 years from now nobody will grade the front office based on the W/L record in the first six games of 2011. This same thread could've been made in 2008 and would've gotten the same "stop being debbie downer" replies. That's not to say I wouldn't rather have Nix than Marv but he is not the reason we're 4-2; Fitz, Freddy & Chan are. You can give Nix credit for hiring one of them, but not for the guy he tried to replace with his 1st draft pick.

 

If the team is losing....the GM deserves blame....and when they are winning...he deserves credit.

 

Do you really think this team is 4-2 without Chan which is one of the GM's biggest contributions to the team?

[Ozymandius]

His first draft sucked. He did hire Gailey though and his second draft looks like it has a chance to be quite good.

 

I can give him a mulligan on his first draft. The first time you do anything, mistakes should be expected.

[Gray Beard]

His first draft sucked. He did hire Gailey though and his second draft looks like it has a chance to be quite good.

 

I can give him a mulligan on his first draft. The first time you do anything, mistakes should be expected.

"Sucked" is a little harsh. Otherwise, I think you have summed things up pretty well.

[BillsVet]

He has only had 2 drafts. That is 4-6 premium picks (1st-3rd rounds). It is too early to judge any of his draft picks, but:

 

1. I'd say that Spiller has acquitted himself very well in his limited opportunities this year (5ish ypc). He is being a team

player and is it really his fault that Fred Jackson has developed into a very good player and a leader that they do not want

to take carries away from?

 

2. Torrell Troup has been injured, but has played decently when healthy. That he hasn't beaten out Pro-Bowler Kyle Williams

doesn't say he is a bust. I'll admit he probably won't be a dominant player, but he hasn't been horrible when healthy.

 

3 Alex Carrington has looked promising in his 2nd year.

 

4. Marcel Dareus has looked like everything he was advertised to be.

 

5. Aron Williams was playing well before his injury. Hopefully his aggressiveness won't be hurt by the injury.

 

6. Kelvin Sheppard has earned a good deal of playing time after missing a lot of preseason time with injury. He looks quite

promising.

 

My issue with Nix remains that he wastes resources or doesn't maximize them. I'm specifically talking about not getting value out of his draft picks or in some of the UFA's signed. Merriman's getting 7M over 2 seasons for very little. Spiller was a 9th overall pick who's a part time player. Brad Smith is getting almost 4M per season to be a gadget player. Cornell Green got a 3 year deal and lasted a half season. Last year's 2nd and 3rd round picks don't appear to be starting anytime soon. Small market GM's can't do this and build a roster with talent at the integral positions and some depth.

 

On the other hand, he signed Barnett and saved the team money over what it would have cost to sign Posluszny. He took the BPA at a position of need in Dareus, who I think will be the foundation of their defense for many years. I can't say either draft is a disappointment, because it's far too soon.

 

Even outstanding GMs like Ted Thompson and Ozzie Newsome make mistakes. The key is limiting them and getting value out of your draft picks and UFA dollars, which I don't think Nix is doing as well as playoff caliber franchises.

[Trader]

• Kraig Urbik
  
• Dwan Edwards
  
• Nick Barnett
  
• Erik Pears
  
• David Nelson
  
• Scott Chandler
  
• Marcell Dareus
  
• Donald Jones
  
• Chris Hairston
  

 

All solid contributors drafted or signed by Nix.

 

Yep very good indeed. This is chief talent scout stuff. No one ever questioned Nix's ability in a Personnel or chief scout role. The GM part is very different. Nix has shown very little as a GM.

[thewildrabbit]

FIRST! If you are gonna gush about how good a coach Chan Gailey is, with his spread offense and his unreal ability to get maximum play from a bunch of nobody receivers and O linemen. Then you had better thank Buddy Nix for hiring Gailey!

 

SECOND! The biggest concern of most fans the last ten years has been the horrible drafts and acquisitions made in free agency by the team over the last decade. About 90% of the posters here blamed Tom Modrak for all those failed drafts as he was the only common denominator that has been with the team over the last ten years Guess who finally was able to fire the guy, you guessed it, Buddy Nix. Guys this move was huge! I give Nix 3 years to prove himself just on the fact he dumped that bum

 

Now considering that Nix came into the org not knowing who as good at their job and who wasn't, I'm giving the man his first year in Buffalo to determine just that. Think about it, a GM is supposed to read the evaluations given to him by his scouts, so he reads a file and accepts the scouts word on such and such a player. Not realizing that he needed to put his scouts hat back on and watch tape and workouts for himself, instead of trusting people like Modrak, who was inept at his job.

 

If you know me, then you know I've been very very skeptical about both Nix and Gailey. I've since changed my mind, not just because the team is 4-2. But because even in the losses (which were both by field goals) the HC and his staff has this band of cast offs and nobody's believing in themselves and playing pretty darn good.

 

Look at this team...a Back up QB, a back up RB, back up receivers, back up linemen and a TE nobody else wanted all playing very well.

 

 

 

 

As for Merriman, Nix took a chance on the guy and listened to the doctors who cleared him. Elite pass rushers are worth their weight in gold in this league, Merriman may eventually pan out, just not this year. The Bills are 4-5 guys away from becoming an elite team, lets hope Nix can find them in the next draft and free agency.

[Bill from NYC]

If you know me, then you know I've been very very skeptical about both Nix and Gailey. I've since changed my mind, not just because the team is 4-2. But because even in the losses (which were both by field goals) the HC and his staff has this band of cast offs and nobody's believing in themselves and playing pretty darn good.

 

I feel the same way, but I think that we both know that the Bills will need at least one VERY good draft to get to the next level.

The Bills are not the type of team to sign high profile free agents, and I don't care so much about this. This does however mean that the draft means more to us than it does most other teams.

 

If Nix/Gailey go into this coming April and avoid the dumb draft mistakes of the past, the Bills can contend sooner than later. I suppose we have to see it to believe it.

[Homer]

It's gonna take some time before a majority of posters admit that Spiller was a mistake. It was the same with Losman and Whitner.

 

At the time of the draft Spiller was BPA. I like the way he has started to run, I think he hsa followed Freds lead and sort of flows down hill and has put up good numbers when given the chance. He'll be a good player in this league long after Fred has retired. He's a couple of shoe string tackles away from big yardage.

Edited October 27, 2011 by Homer

[John from Riverside]

Yep very good indeed. This is chief talent scout stuff. No one ever questioned Nix's ability in a Personnel or chief scout role. The GM part is very different. Nix has shown very little as a GM.

 

Well.....what exactly does a GM do in your eyes?

[KollegeStudnet]

5 players he's brought in starting on offense

5 players he's brought in starting on defense

Even if you don't want to give him credit, and give credit to coaching, he hired the coach.

 

I say, Buddy should get more credit...he has helped turn this team around!

[Pirate Angel]

Nix inherited a complete mess....in 2 years he has us competitive.

[KollegeStudnet]

Spiller at the time was the talk of the draft for RB's...I think we have a strong backfield, similar to that of the Raiders!

[Alphadawg7]

Am I the only one who has noticed that the OP has not posted in this thread since his original post? You guys are talking to no one...lol

[EastRochBillsfan]

Frickin Troll. Thanks for waking up all the haters. what a bullcrap thread. Buddy Nix is the best thing that has happened to this franchise in over a decade.

 

 

Plain and simple, we are a bigger and better football team than we were before Nix got here. In year 2 of the rebuild we can actually compete with any team in this league. So suck on it nancies and actually enjoy this winning record

 

Amen brother!

 

 

Let's face it, some people here aren't happy unless they are miserable.

 

Ain't that the truth.

 

Lets tackle these one at a time shall we?

 

- 2010 Draft they by pass needs on defense and QB for a reach at Spiller who has done minimal. This could have been forseen as Spiller and Bush are same RB 'scat back' that Nix and Gailey wanted so much. I have no problem saying that Spiller is a bust and was great in college but this is the pros. If you can't learn to run straight betweeen the tackles by now then there is a bigger issue here. Nix wanted Spiller to succeed so they could cut Jackson. You don't take a first round RB and not want to start him. Jackson is doing well and benching him would only cause a problem. Look for Bills to procrastinate on Jackson's contract. They will say he's 30 and wants to0 much money. Spiller to start for Bills next year while Jackson goes to another team.

 

OK so the question of that draft that is always asked and NEVER answered was....WHO DO WE TAKE IF NOT CJ SPILLER at that spot?...what QB was worthy?......who on defense?....you cannot just go taking players that are not the value of that selection. What if Nix could not find a trade down partner? We DONT KNOW....it might be possible that nobody was giving us a deal worth doing in a trade down. So Nix stood his ground and took the best player available on the board at that time.

 

Nix did NOT want Spiller to succeed so they could cut Jackson...Nix had a situation where he had a older RB and he didn't know too much about him.....and a running back that was one infraction away from being out of the league for the year! And you have absolutley NO proof that they are gonna screw Jackson around....he is under contract and we have other guys we need to tie up first. If they REALLY wanted to screw Jackson around they would start Spiller regardless of who is producing and sit Jackson TEAMS HAVE DONE IT BEFORE.

 

- The so called QB competition when they obviously wanted to give the job to Edwards. Reason they talked about competition was to really please media and fans to make it look like they cared. Reality was they were hoping Gailey's QB magic would work on Edwards rather than looking at the tape of previous years on Edwards and seeing that he was not starter material. Bills love mediocrity and Fitz fits that mold. We'll prob lock him up for a few years. If Cam was on the board he would have been a Bill but there was no way to go wrong with out #3 pick. With the new CBA agreement structuring out rookie contracts Ralph Wilson prob got a hard on for the first time by not paying the high gauranteed money.

 

First full season as the GM of the team.....and Edwards was looking great in pre season....we are going to take Fitz who looked less then steller in pre season and play him over the incumbant who was playing well? AS SOON as Edwards showed his true colors he was gone...simple as that...and that is a testimate of a GM who doesnt screw around and doesn't have a huge ego about players. And by the way....as a GM you absolutely CAN screw up a number 3 pick....stop degrading him saying his job is easy because he has a high pick.....if anything there is no pressure to NOT BE WRONG with a pick like that.

 

-Merriman was on decline in San Diego after injuries....Nix picked him up. Great move for leadership but leadership only goes so much if ur not on the field to back up the talk. The light has gone out. Point is this was a Nix decision.

 

Merriman was a name....he was a beast in pre season....and his body simply didn't hold up....comparatively speaking we did not pay a ton of cash for him......and he can either come back from his surgery and be healthy or he wont.....he gave the bills swagger again and was probably a deciding factor of Barnett and Morrison coming here.

 

-I am 50/50 if Nix gives the $ Stevie is looking for. We do need him but depends on what he's asking.

Interesting how you are 50/50 if Nix does his OTHER GM JOB which is not just drafting talent but also deciding what talent is worth keeping on the team.....if you are gonna take swipes at him for his GM duties then you gotta give him credit when he does it right as well.

 

Nix as GM has made some very questionable moves and while the Bills are doing well it mostly part to Gailey's system and these players showing they belong. I love all these guys and what they stand for. Nix does not have the 'eye' for talent and has proven that....why do we have him? He's cheap, old school, and will ask daddy's permission before making any type of move. Be weary of the future.

 

Actually...with the exception of a few guys...Nix has made VERY FEW questionable moves....he has brought in the right coach for the the team.....his draft selections have been solid......and his eye for what talent to keep has been equally sharp. PS......if you think that GM's dont ask owners for permission before they make moves around the league then you are fooling youself.

 

Excellent post. Unless you're a hater I guess.

Edited October 27, 2011 by EastRochBillsfan

[spartacus]

His first draft sucked. He did hire Gailey though and his second draft looks like it has a chance to be quite good.

 

I can give him a mulligan on his first draft. The first time you do anything, mistakes should be expected.

 

the first time he was involved resulted in Maybin

 

 

Spiller busted in his 2nd go round

 

 

[flaz]

In light of Merriman's move to IR let's look at Nix's moves:

 

- 2010 Draft they by pass needs on defense and QB for a reach at Spiller who has done minimal. This could have been forseen as Spiller and Bush are same RB 'scat back' that Nix and Gailey wanted so much. I have no problem saying that Spiller is a bust and was great in college but this is the pros. If you can't learn to run straight betweeen the tackles by now then there is a bigger issue here. Nix wanted Spiller to succeed so they could cut Jackson. You don't take a first round RB and not want to start him. Jackson is doing well and benching him would only cause a problem. Look for Bills to procrastinate on Jackson's contract. They will say he's 30 and wants to0 much money. Spiller to start for Bills next year while Jackson goes to another team.

 

- The so called QB competition when they obviously wanted to give the job to Edwards. Reason they talked about competition was to really please media and fans to make it look like they cared. Reality was they were hoping Gailey's QB magic would work on Edwards rather than looking at the tape of previous years on Edwards and seeing that he was not starter material. Bills love mediocrity and Fitz fits that mold. We'll prob lock him up for a few years. If Cam was on the board he would have been a Bill but there was no way to go wrong with out #3 pick. With the new CBA agreement structuring out rookie contracts Ralph Wilson prob got a hard on for the first time by not paying the high gauranteed money.

 

-Merriman was on decline in San Diego after injuries....Nix picked him up. Great move for leadership but leadership only goes so much if ur not on the field to back up the talk. The light has gone out. Point is this was a Nix decision.

 

-I am 50/50 if Nix gives the $ Stevie is looking for. We do need him but depends on what he's asking.

 

Nix as GM has made some very questionable moves and while the Bills are doing well it mostly part to Gailey's system and these players showing they belong. I love all these guys and what they stand for. Nix does not have the 'eye' for talent and has proven that....why do we have him? He's cheap, old school, and will ask daddy's permission before making any type of move. Be weary of the future.

I'm as new as you,but please make this your last post!!!!!!!!!!!!

[nucci]

the first time he was involved resulted in Maybin

 

 

Spiller busted in his 2nd go round

Dick Jauron drafted Maybin.

[Estelle Getty]

 

It was only a matter of time before Buddy got the big job.