Booger Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 The Merriman signing, although it did not have many statistical results, was the key piece to changing the culture in Buffalo. Merriman gave the Bills a little swagger coming into the season and helped in signing a few free agents. His attitude and intensity towards the fans, players, franchise and community pulled everyone back together and helped us re-realize that the fanchise and fans have pride towards the Bills. In this day and age in the NFL his contract was not over the top. If he is able to recover, even being a situational pass rusher, I would love to see #56 give it one more try next year. Thank you Shawn for not shunning the Bills and Buffalo. Thank you for embracing the culture, the team and the fans. I wish you a speedy recovery and hope that you get one more shot next year. I guarantee if you make it back you will have 73,000 screaming maniacs there to greet you your first game back! http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/columns/jerry-sullivan/article608966.ece Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delete This Account Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 The Merriman signing, although it did not have many statistical results, was the key piece to changing the culture in Buffalo. Merriman gave the Bills a little swagger coming into the season and helped in signing a few free agents. His attitude and intensity towards the fans, players, franchise and community pulled everyone back together and helped us re-realize that the fanchise and fans have pride towards the Bills. In this day and age in the NFL his contract was not over the top. If he is able to recover, even being a situational pass rusher, I would love to see #56 give it one more try next year. Thank you Shawn for not shunning the Bills and Buffalo. Thank you for embracing the culture, the team and the fans. I wish you a speedy recovery and hope that you get one more shot next year. I guarantee if you make it back you will have 73,000 screaming maniacs there to greet you your first game back! who's Shawn? Nelson? jw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUFFALOTONE Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 And what does this have to do with Sullivan's article??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfreak Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 The Merriman signing, although it did not have many statistical results, was the key piece to changing the culture in Buffalo. Merriman gave the Bills a little swagger coming into the season and helped in signing a few free agents. His attitude and intensity towards the fans, players, franchise and community pulled everyone back together and helped us re-realize that the fanchise and fans have pride towards the Bills. In this day and age in the NFL his contract was not over the top. If he is able to recover, even being a situational pass rusher, I would love to see #56 give it one more try next year. Thank you Shawn for not shunning the Bills and Buffalo. Thank you for embracing the culture, the team and the fans. I wish you a speedy recovery and hope that you get one more shot next year. I guarantee if you make it back you will have 73,000 screaming maniacs there to greet you your first game back! I am glad you like Merriman, and so do I, but personal feelings aside, I have said from the beginning it was a move that was too risky and wasn't worth it at all, much less every penny. The Merriman signing is one sure sign that before this franchise gets to the level of being a consistent competitor, it will need a different GM then Buddy Nix. Him keeping Merriman around was a personal thing, and no other GM in the NFL would have even considered spending the money on him that the Bills did. If they paid him those millions to be a cheerleader, which is what you basically say, just put him in a two piece on the sidelines with the Jills, but he might get hurt doing that also. The Bills need to cut all ties with him now, not later and not rely on a guy that averages about 2 games a season for the past 4 or 5 years, and has been invisible in the few games that he has played. It is more than obvious that his body is no longer cut out for the rigors of the NFL, whether it is as many people say because of the effects of years of steriod use, or he is just injury prone, but the guy hurt himself on the sideline getting ready for the opening game. It would have been nice to see "Lights Out" again, but from the very beginning you had a better chance at winning the lottery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Jerry is wasting his time writing for the News. He should work for an NFL front office since he's such an astute judge of players. He obviously knew Merriman would flame out but graciously waited until now to let people know he knew it all along. PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfreak Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 (edited) Jerry is wasting his time writing for the News. He should work for an NFL front office since he's such an astute judge of players. He obviously knew Merriman would flame out but graciously waited until now to let people know he knew it all along. PTR Most people with common sense didn't need to wait, it was obvious he would flame out. Are you an ex-media type with a grudge against them? They really seem to get under your skin PTR. Edited October 27, 2011 by billsfreak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 (edited) I don't know...the Merriman signing looked bad from day one. Not faulting Nix, hard not to want to take a chance on a guy with that reputation. But, he didn't come for "next to nothing", and aside from a spectacular pre-season game against the Bears this past summer, he really didn't ever show anything. I wouldn't be thanking him for accepting the Bills, he should be thanking the Bills for paying him for contributing very little, and getting paid pretty nicely to do so. I think people are overstating his positive influence on the franchise and fan base. I think the positive vibe rests squarely with Chan Gailey (who I was not a big fan of when he was hired), Ryan Fitzpatrick, Fred Jackson, and Steve Johnson. They were all here before Merriman, and all performed well, in anonymity, before Merriman got here. So, what did Merriman do? He convinced Kirk Morrison to sign in Buffalo? Wow...I thought our low-bar days were fading... Anyways, yes, screw Jerry Sullivan for being negative (but honestly, who didn't see this coming), and shame on the Bills for trying to take the short-cut on a major need. But, they aren't that far off...still feeling good about this team, even if Merriman never steps foot in a Bills locker room again. They got where they are now, with no help from him... Edited October 27, 2011 by Buftex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmur66 Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Good post. Describes my thoughts exactly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Most people with common sense didn't need to wait, it was obvious he would flame out. Are you an ex-media type with a grudge against them? They really seem to get under your skin PTR. I am "ex-media" as you put it, though not in the news biz. But I'm around news types enough to know when a guy is mailing it in. If the Bills don't sign Merriman: Ralph is cheap. Bills are cowards. No risk, no reward. If the Bills sign Merriman and he fails: Bills are dumb for wasting money on broken players. GM is incompetent. If the Bills sign Merriman and he succeeds: Find something else to complain about. PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfreak Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 (edited) I am "ex-media" as you put it, though not in the news biz. But I'm around news types enough to know when a guy is mailing it in. If the Bills don't sign Merriman: Ralph is cheap. Bills are cowards. No risk, no reward. If the Bills sign Merriman and he fails: Bills are dumb for wasting money on broken players. GM is incompetent. If the Bills sign Merriman and he succeeds: Find something else to complain about. PTR Don't get upset, I was just asking a question because a high percentage of your posts here and in the shout box are complaining about media personnel. As far as the three items you posted about Merriman, not sure if those are your opinions or not, but they aren't mine. Myself and many others right from the beginning clearly stated we thought it was a terrible signing, and you can go back through the archives and check if you don't have anything else to do, because it might take awhile. Not sure people are complaining in this thread either, I know I wasn't, just stating facts. I think the people who were criticizing Sullivan were the ones complaining, his assessment was right on if you ask me. Edited October 27, 2011 by billsfreak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cvanvol Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/columns/jerry-sullivan/article241361.ece Guess buffalo was at the top of the list and Jerry I hope you enjoyed him while you could... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfreak Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 I don't know...the Merriman signing looked bad from day one. Not faulting Nix, hard not to want to take a chance on a guy with that reputation. But, he didn't come for "next to nothing", and aside from a spectacular pre-season game against the Bears this past summer, he really didn't ever show anything. I wouldn't be thanking him for accepting the Bills, he should be thanking the Bills for paying him for contributing very little, and getting paid pretty nicely to do so. I think people are overstating his positive influence on the franchise and fan base. I think the positive vibe rests squarely with Chan Gailey (who I was not a big fan of when he was hired), Ryan Fitzpatrick, Fred Jackson, and Steve Johnson. They were all here before Merriman, and all performed well, in anonymity, before Merriman got here. So, what did Merriman do? He convinced Kirk Morrison to sign in Buffalo? Wow...I thought our low-bar days were fading... Anyways, yes, screw Jerry Sullivan for being negative (but honestly, who didn't see this coming), and shame on the Bills for trying to take the short-cut on a major need. But, they aren't that far off...still feeling good about this team, even if Merriman never steps foot in a Bills locker room again. They got where they are now, with no help from him... Your post is spot on, I agree I am not sure what influence he could have had in this franchise with his 12+ million dollar 9 tackle career. If you ask me, watching Fred Jackson play with his heart, durability and enthusiasm has more to do with the atmosphere around here turning positive then Merriman being here, because you hardly if ever even heard his name during a game. He might have tried to help in recruiting people to come here, not sure if it worked, but as far as a player, he will soon be forgotten in WNY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Don't get upset, I was just asking a question because a high percentage of your posts here and in the shout box are complaining about media personnel. As far as the three items you posted about Merriman, not sure if those are your opinions or not, but they aren't mine. Myself and many others right from the beginning clearly stated we thought it was a terrible signing, and you can go back through the archives and check if you don't have anything else to do, because it might take awhile. Not sure people are complaining in this thread either, I know I wasn't, just stating facts. I think the people who were criticizing Sullivan were the ones complaining, his assessment was right on if you ask me. Point out where "I get upset??" PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truth on hold Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 This will never happen but if merriman had any integrity, if given medical clearance for next year he should offer to play for bills for vet minimum ( should be zero but that's not possible) with bills having an option on another year at minimum with some performance incentives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CSBill Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 I thin it was gamble worth taking, and I hep we're not done with him. If he can get fully healthy, he can still be a solid contributor on the football field. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 This will never happen but if merriman had any integrity, if given medical clearance for next year he should offer to play for bills for vet minimum ( should be zero but that's not possible) with bills having an option on another year at minimum with some performance incentives. Why wouldn't it happen? Who's going to sign Shawn for big money after this? PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wei 44 Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 One angle that people aren't focusing on is that it was also a marketing/PR move too (management's view: give the fans some hope and show we're not cheap and willing to take a chance, and if it works out, we were geniuses, and if it doesn't, can you really fault the team for giving it a shot (and spending some $$)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truth on hold Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Why wouldn't it happen? Who's going to sign Shawn for big money after this? PTR Other than Nix (jk) won't be big money but better terms than the ones I laid out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delete This Account Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Why wouldn't it happen? Who's going to sign Shawn for big money after this? PTR who's Shawn? Nelson? jw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Now, if they would only bring back Terrell Owens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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