I Have Questions - Please Give Me Answers !!!

[San Jose Bills Fan]

I agree that Merriman will probably be back to play out the last year of his contract.

 

I also worry that even though the injury is less serious than a complete rupture that it might require a long recovery time.

 

That would be too bad.

 

In preseason (playing against other team's starters) Merriman looked real solid and made some spectacular plays.

 

There was one running play where he had backside contain and was chasing the running back who was running to the opposite side. Merriman running full speed, took off like Superman and made a diving tackle from behind. It was really an amazing play.

 

Then just before kickoff of the first regular season game he did his trademark "Lights Out" Dance to fire up his teammates and hurt his shoulder. The moment it happened you knew he had injured himself. He immediately did a full-body grimace and started feeling the shoulder. So even while his achilles was slowly giving out, he played virtually his entire season wearing a shoulder harness.

 

A healthy Merriman would have made a big difference this year. He's way better than anyone we have on this roster both as a pass rusher and as a stout run defender.

 

He's a big, strong guy but he needs to show his doubters that he can stay healthy.

Edited December 31, 2011 by San Jose Bills Fan

[Bart]

It seems as though in respect to one player in particular , i watched something totally different from others that are fans of the Bills .. I will admit that after we signed this player what happened almost immediately after i thought we made a bad decision but what i saw the possibility of in preseason made me think it was a better decision than i thought at first .

 

If you haven't figured out just who it is i'm talking about by now it's Shawn Merrimen . The flash that i saw in the Chicago game this year & pretty much through out the preseason was what i expected him to be right from the start .

 

I feel that seeing as he is under contract for this year we need to at least bring him back for OTA's & see what he has got . If with what i have read with his operation and all that his tendon wasn't ruptured he should be good as new (hopefully) . Plus if you look at what Takeo Spikes has done after we let him go because he did rupture the tendon then i don't see how Merriman at his age can miss .

 

And i would like some of you to answer this for me . From what i watched of the Bills this year our D was doing pretty dam good until Merriman went down , then when we lost Williams & for get it after that !! But while Merriman was on the field (it seemed to me any way) we had some pass rush like we did the year before Schobel retired & as long as we have something that resembles a pass rush we get INT's , FF's & all that good stuff . But when it's gone as it did when Schobel left & then this year when Merriman went on IR our D goes down .

 

So i don't get it when i read all of these posts or reply's that say Merriman's done , we need to get rid of him blah blah blah !! The guy is still in his 20's he has a great work ethic , is a high motor guy & is a veteran presence in the locker room . The only way i can see to not bring him back is if he comes up lame after a few OTA's then cut him & use his money else where but don't do what the Bills usually do and cut our nose off inspite of our face .. I'm just saying !!

 

Your Turn !!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

Merriman is finished. The bills will always suck.

[bowery4]

Wow Dick Drawn! you have any real proof, how did he not get busted? 30 year fan, boarder patrol let him pass? "Hey we need the defense guys, let's turn him loose".

 

I hope he heals, I hope we draft or sign 2 more pass rushers. I hope Chan improves his game plans and we RUN the damned ball more and something needs to really come together on D. I hope we bring Stevie back and pick up a truly solid other WR option. I hope we get another OT, a TE and maybe a CB. That would be my list at the moment. A good back up QB might be a bonus too. I think we may be those players and positions close though.FA and the draft this year could be all it takes, fingers crossed. GO BILLS and Happy safe, wonderful new years to you all! Take care out there.

[chris heff]

I think if Merriman can pass a physical, he is back. The Bills are incredibly weak at the position he plays. Whether he makes the team remains to be seen.

 

Please correct me if I am wrong but juicing aside, didn't his problems in San Diego begin when he refused to have knee surgery in the off season? Then a couple of games into the season decided to have the surgery and went on IR, sound familiar? I think tha he is reluctant to go under the knife. He seems to think that in time he will heal, his problem is he is running out of time.

[Kelly the Dog]

He tweeted a while back that doctors said he should be 100% by March. I agree with the OP that he was missed a lot after he went out, even though he was playing on one leg and with one shoulder. We're paying him, we should bring him back. I doubt he will ever be what he was but he's pretty good at 80% of that. We very much missed his leadership and emotion in the huddle and on the field.

[Webster Guy]

I'm with you and would really like to give him one last shot at making our team. It's not like we had anyone step up at that position so what do we have to lose. I do disagree that we looked better with Shawne in the line up. I think we have looked terrible on defense in every game but the KC and Denver game. Shawne displayed some things in pre-season that got me a little excited but I never saw it in the real games. I think he played in the game against the Raiders and Patriots and they went up and down the field on us. I hope he heals and gives us a positive shot in the arm next year.

Agreed. Someone tell me one play he made all year that made a difference in a game. I don't think he even had one pressure when he played. He looked slow and old. Remember what steroids do to your body people, he may be in his 20's still but his body isn't.

 

It can never hurt to have him in camp and see how he competes, but not at the expense of giving someone a shot who we know can still be playing in December next year and helping us win. Preseason snaps are very important to player development, I'd hate to see Merriman win the job and do what he did last year for us in the regular season which was nothing then he goes on IR.

 

Personally I think Moats will win the OLB spot next year in camp. He never had a shot at it this year because they moved him inside until Shawne went out.