Buftex Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Please, everyone knows that if it was Belichick or Ryan who signed Merriman, Sulilvan would be praising them for being gutsy, unafraid of taking, risks, and not being cheap. He would say that if it failed they could just cut him and be done with it with only a cap hit. A cap hit that means little because there is so much cap space available. same thing all the "experts" said about new England signing Ocho and Haynesworth who both have had little impact. But since the Bills did it, Buddy is terrible and anyone who thinks taking a chance on Merriman was a good idea regardless of how it ends is an apologist and not objective. Yeah Sully, all the other GM's in the NFL are laughing at us. Whatever. He goes on to say how we pretended Merriman was the fix and ignored the need completely. Well Jerry, since you're such an astute personnel man, you know with your GLEAMING record on players, please enlighten us as to which premier pass rusher we passed on to "settle" for Merriman? Sullivan is a worthless piece of cow dung. When you win Super Bowl rings, and field competitive teams year after year you get that kind of leadway. That is just a bad way to frame your argument. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 (edited) This one man's crusade to bring in Merrmian was hardly a popular movement. The thread was filled with skeptical Bills fans' (skepticism now validated completely)repsponses. Yes, the archive function is very revealing. Consider this guy's (who seemed to diasappear a year ago)other beauties: Is The Lord Merrimen playing? If he does, 78-0 Buffalo! My plan is to draft QB Andrew Luck in 2011,DE Da'Quan Bowers in 2012 then WR Alshon Jefferey in 2013. To get these guys we need to lose 48 straight games.....no problem In 2014 we make the playoffs..... Go ahead and laugh, out there somwhere is a fan that thinks this is a great plan! And my favorite.... At 26 any thought of his career is over is just plain Crazy, he just passed a physical. Anyway, I asked that given the way this worked out for the Bills, how would you have reacted if it happened to the pats of jets. Your response was that "everyone else here would be committing suicide over Buddy Nix "napping" while other AFC East teams steal talent"--which makes no sense. Edited October 27, 2011 by Mr. WEO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San-O Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 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. Maybe this is a pattern now that were're seeing, Kelsay? 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 So, Merriman was the like the 2011 version of Eddie Robinson? But not quite. http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/buf/2002.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 So, Merriman was the like the 2011 version of Eddie Robinson? But not quite. http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/buf/2002.htm Robinson, for better or worse, at least played. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biglukes Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 When you win Super Bowl rings, and field competitive teams year after year you get that kind of leadway. That is just a bad way to frame your argument. Fine, if any other team in the NFL did it, he'd talk them up. He'd be talking about how they aren't afraid to take risks and are at least trying to make their team better, while the Bills sit on their hands and count their money. It's not even a double standard, it's stupidity. I'm sure you've heard now how he went on WGR and claims that we'll be swept by the Jets and lost at least 1 to Miami now. He's just a d!ck. I don't know how he can sit there and ignore that Barnett talked very openly about what a big factor Merriman was in his signing with Buffalo this summer. Same for Morrison. Regardless of the impact he's having now is a solid depth guy. Which is something that we don't have enough of. Now he's going to start banging the drum about how the Bills are stupid for letting Maybin go. You know the Maybin that last year Sully called the worst player in the NFL. Because now he has 3 garbage sacks. He's already laid the groundwork in this article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Fine, if any other team in the NFL did it, he'd talk them up. He'd be talking about how they aren't afraid to take risks and are at least trying to make their team better, while the Bills sit on their hands and count their money. It's not even a double standard, it's stupidity. I'm sure you've heard now how he went on WGR and claims that we'll be swept by the Jets and lost at least 1 to Miami now. He's just a d!ck. I don't know how he can sit there and ignore that Barnett talked very openly about what a big factor Merriman was in his signing with Buffalo this summer. Same for Morrison. Regardless of the impact he's having now is a solid depth guy. Which is something that we don't have enough of. Now he's going to start banging the drum about how the Bills are stupid for letting Maybin go. You know the Maybin that last year Sully called the worst player in the NFL. Because now he has 3 garbage sacks. He's already laid the groundwork in this article. Merriman only had one garbage sack.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delete This Account Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 John, Just curious: Do you think your time is better spent correcting posters on this board, or copy editors who make that same error on Web pages on which your byline appears? http://sports.nationalpost.com/tag/shawne-merriman/ (second photo caption) Yeah... That's what I thought, too. that's a Getty photo. jw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vegas55 Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 And what does this have to do with Sullivan's article??? Sullivan is an idiot who knows zero about professional football and even worse has been too lazy to develop any sources who do have knowledge of the game, who actually watch game film and have been employed at some point in the NFL. And his Merriman take is a joke - he assumes that the money given to Merriman is money that should have gone to Fitz or Jackson or some potential free agent. There is plenty of money for taking a shot with Merriman and paying those other guys - the Bills are way under the cap. Ralph Wilson has made, when you include franchise appreciation and yearly operating profits well over one billion dollars in profit. He can well afford to let his front office take a shot at a pure pass rusher while paying the other players the money they deserve. They certainly deserve it more than he does. Forget the cap to cash games, pay your players and take a shot with a guy like merriman who did not cost us a draft choice, just some of Ralphs money And why is Sullivan so worried about Ralphs bank roll. All the merriman deal cost this team was a relatively small amount (in NFL terms) of money, and Ralph has plenty of that. Given the billion + he has already made off this franchise, he can afford a year or two where his annual profits dip a bit below 30 million. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfreak Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Merriman only had one garbage sack.... At least Maybin touched the QB for his sacks, Merriman was just the closest when the QB ran out of bounds. I don't think any Bills fan with common sense will criticize the Bills for dumping Maybin, but they should and have been criticizing the Bills for the Merriman debacle. Sullivan is an idiot who knows zero about professional football and even worse has been too lazy to develop any sources who do have knowledge of the game, who actually watch game film and have been employed at some point in the NFL. And his Merriman take is a joke - he assumes that the money given to Merriman is money that should have gone to Fitz or Jackson or some potential free agent. There is plenty of money for taking a shot with Merriman and paying those other guys - the Bills are way under the cap. Ralph Wilson has made, when you include franchise appreciation and yearly operating profits well over one billion dollars in profit. He can well afford to let his front office take a shot at a pure pass rusher while paying the other players the money they deserve. They certainly deserve it more than he does. Forget the cap to cash games, pay your players and take a shot with a guy like merriman who did not cost us a draft choice, just some of Ralphs money And why is Sullivan so worried about Ralphs bank roll. All the merriman deal cost this team was a relatively small amount (in NFL terms) of money, and Ralph has plenty of that. Given the billion + he has already made off this franchise, he can afford a year or two where his annual profits dip a bit below 30 million. I don't think anyone on here has ever said Ralph can't afford to do anything. I can afford to buy a 1985 Geo Prism, but I am not going to. There is a big difference in being able to afford something and being willing to spend the money on it. And almost any Bills fan knows, the most important thing to Ralph is "Ralph's Money." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The AntiFin Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 that's a Getty photo. jw Doesn't change the fact that your byline is on that page -- And the very error you're pointing out is on that page. C'mon, John -- You of all people should know that copy editors are the ones responsible for those errors, NOT the photographers. Photogs' captions are known to be plagued with inaccuracies. Hence, the need for a copy editor. Point being, I'm sure they'd be happy to fix it if you contacted them. Apparently, you'd rather correct posters here. To each his own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfreak Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Fine, if any other team in the NFL did it, he'd talk them up. He'd be talking about how they aren't afraid to take risks and are at least trying to make their team better, while the Bills sit on their hands and count their money. It's not even a double standard, it's stupidity. I'm sure you've heard now how he went on WGR and claims that we'll be swept by the Jets and lost at least 1 to Miami now. He's just a d!ck. I don't know how he can sit there and ignore that Barnett talked very openly about what a big factor Merriman was in his signing with Buffalo this summer. Same for Morrison. Regardless of the impact he's having now is a solid depth guy. Which is something that we don't have enough of. Now he's going to start banging the drum about how the Bills are stupid for letting Maybin go. You know the Maybin that last year Sully called the worst player in the NFL. Because now he has 3 garbage sacks. He's already laid the groundwork in this article. I am not criticizing Barnett, because he has been one of the Bills' best players so far, but training camp was well into session and nobody else signed him, so was he going to say no? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cvanvol Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Doesn't change the fact that your byline is on that page -- And the very error you're pointing out is on that page. C'mon, John -- You of all people should know that copy editors are the ones responsible for those errors, NOT the photographers. Photogs' captions are known to be plagued with inaccuracies. Hence, the need for a copy editor. Point being, I'm sure they'd be happy to fix it if you contacted them. Apparently, you'd rather correct posters here. To each his own. This is awesome WARROW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RTW2012 Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 If the Bills pass (on Merriman), WE ARE FREAKIN CRAZY The Stadium Wall Archive search function is a wonderful thing. As for the question you asked about BB or Rexy, would I have laughed? Maybe. But everyone else here would be committing suicide over Buddy Nix "napping" while other AFC East teams steal talent. PTR Those posts are dated October 18. The Bills claimed him on Nov. 3. Fifteen minutes into his first practice here he goes down. Maybe you can use the search function and find some posts after Nov. 3 where people are freaking out that the Bills have to resign him for this season, because your previous search did nothing to prove your point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cvanvol Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 I am not criticizing Barnett, because he has been one of the Bills' best players so far, but training camp was well into session and nobody else signed him, so was he going to say no? Other teams wanted barnett he could have easily gone to a team that was projected to be better than the bills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 (edited) Those posts are dated October 18. The Bills claimed him on Nov. 3. Fifteen minutes into his first practice here he goes down. Maybe you can use the search function and find some posts after Nov. 3 where people are freaking out that the Bills have to resign him for this season, because your previous search did nothing to prove your point. DUHHHHHH!! I was making the point how many folks were hot to sign Merriman when he was released from the Chargers. We want the Bills to sign every reject who used to be good, Merriman included. PTR Edited October 27, 2011 by PromoTheRobot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDaDdy Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 (edited) 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 Maybin was also well worth it. He showed the team that top drafted players are not given a free ride and given a starting position. It helped change the culture of this team to one of the no name heroes that nobody else wanted that were given a chance to play regardless of where they were drafted. Maybin served as proof of that. He was an energetic try hard guy that inspired those around him and gave his teammates and fans someone to hate and focus their frustrations on while others were able to develop out of the spot light. Thanks you for giving Buffalo a chance and not refusing to sign with us. We were blessed to have you. I am not criticizing Barnett, because he has been one of the Bills' best players so far, but training camp was well into session and nobody else signed him, so was he going to say no? Don't you know that Merriman held his hand and forced him while he was signing the contract? Edited October 27, 2011 by PDaDdy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 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... That's always been Sully. He's a weather vane. When Merriman successfully rehabs and returns to the starting lineup next year or the year after (he's only 27), Jerry will once again shift positions. I don't necessarily fault him though. He's a columnist. He's supposed to be provocative. And it's easy to tap into the fickle nature of fans in general and Bills fans in particular. I still wouldn't line a birdcage with his column though. Birds deserve to crap on something far nicer. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDaDdy Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Was it a good idea signing Merriman? 5 Years playing 29% of the games with terrible statistical performance compared to his first 3 steroid fueled, injury free probowl years? Obviously, it's a no brainier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RTW2012 Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 DUHHHHHH!! I was making the point how many folks were hot to sign Merriman when he was released from the Chargers. We want the Bills to sign every reject who used to be good, Merriman included. PTR Duh. The point of Sullivan's column is that it was foolish to sign Merriman this year, not claim him off of waivers last year. Who was clamoring to sign him after he came up lame last year? You said if the Bills didn't sign him this year that people would call Ralph cheap. Preposterous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cvanvol Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Duh. The point of Sullivan's column is that it was foolish to sign Merriman this year, not claim him off of waivers last year. Who was clamoring to sign him after he came up lame last year? You said if the Bills didn't sign him this year that people would call Ralph cheap. Preposterous. I can promise you people on this site would have called ralph cheap... remember when we traded lee evans? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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