cmjoyce113 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I don't mean to start crap with anyone because all Bills fans have a right to be negative and a right to be pissed at the current situation. The thing I don't understand though is how anyone views the Mario signing as a dumb/stupid decision. Lets be honest, there were several teams that would have gladly signed him to the same contract we gave him, we just got the first chance. Fitz sucks now but Buddy took a chance on a QB we all saw play at a very high level and occasionally a low level. Point is they thought they knew what they were signing up for which is more than Seattle knows about Flynn, or Arizona Kolb or Cleveland Derek Anderson, etc. It seems as though people will easily criticize moves that haven't worked out perfect but many other GM's would have done the same exact thing. Just a thought... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SageAgainstTheMachine Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Decisions should be judged on the probability of success. NOT the final result. We can't repeat "Ralph is Cheap" time after time after time, and then criticize when he opens the wallet on proven talent. I guarantee that no fewer than 75% of the people saying "Cut Mario!" were gushing over the move a few months ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QB Bills Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I don't mean to start crap with anyone because all Bills fans have a right to be negative and a right to be pissed at the current situation. The thing I don't understand though is how anyone views the Mario signing as a dumb/stupid decision. Lets be honest, there were several teams that would have gladly signed him to the same contract we gave him, we just got the first chance. Fitz sucks now but Buddy took a chance on a QB we all saw play at a very high level and occasionally a low level. Point is they thought they knew what they were signing up for which is more than Seattle knows about Flynn, or Arizona Kolb or Cleveland Derek Anderson, etc. It seems as though people will easily criticize moves that haven't worked out perfect but many other GM's would have done the same exact thing. Just a thought... Very good point. As angry as we are about Stupor Mario's play so far, imagine how upset the guy who's paying him must be. (cue the tasteless ageist jokes) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronc24 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Fitz is like a rookie pitcher. Sure, he may strike out the side the first time through the rotation, but later on hitters are going to adjust. Defenses know his limitations with the deep ball and have adjusted. I just wish Buddy had waited until the second time through the lineup before offering that contract. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterpan Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Fitz was signed after what, 8 total good games? 2 at the end of one season and 6 in the next. Why not make him lead us to the playoffs to get an extension? Only an idiot would have resigned him when they did. And ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmjoyce113 Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 Fitz is like a rookie pitcher. Sure, he may strike out the side the first time through the rotation, but later on hitters are going to adjust. Defenses know his limitations with the deep ball and have adjusted. I just wish Buddy had waited until the second time through the lineup before offering that contract. Buddy took a chance (the right one IMO). If he played as well as he did the rest of the year as he did in the first half you were paying him top qb money or franchising him. I say he did the right thing at that point. I hate Fitz right now but I still agree with the move at THAT time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Buddy took a chance (the right one IMO). If he played as well as he did the rest of the year as he did in the first half you were paying him top qb money or franchising him. I say he did the right thing at that point. I hate Fitz right now but I still agree with the move at THAT time. I don't understand this mentality at all. Was there some chance that another team was going to steal him in mid-season if the Bills didn't rush to throw a huge contract at him after five games? There was no reason to offer him a contract mid-season. This was the worst contract decision since Notre Dame gave Charlie Weiss a ten year extension halfway through his first season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Lightning Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Story on Mario is far from written...look at Peppers first year in Chicago...wasn't pretty but looks good now. Fitz's story is written ....he'll be great to train the QB we draft next year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmjoyce113 Posted October 24, 2012 Author Share Posted October 24, 2012 Fitz was signed after what, 8 total good games? 2 at the end of one season and 6 in the next. Why not make him lead us to the playoffs to get an extension? Only an idiot would have resigned him when they did. And ..... If he leads you to the playoffs and looks as good as he did (no one in a production business expects to suck or someone they employ will start to suck) you pay him top money or franchise him. Buddy took a chance and it was the wrong one. It's the same mistake many GMs have made. I don't understand this mentality at all. Was there some chance that another team was going to steal him in mid-season if the Bills didn't rush to throw a huge contract at him after five games? There was no reason to offer him a contract mid-season. This was the worst contract decision since Notre Dame gave Charlie Weiss a ten year extension halfway through his first season. No but his price was only going up in Buddy's eyes, the closer they got to the end of the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronc24 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Buddy took a chance (the right one IMO). If he played as well as he did the rest of the year as he did in the first half you were paying him top qb money or franchising him. I say he did the right thing at that point. I hate Fitz right now but I still agree with the move at THAT time. Hated it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo 66 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I don't mean to start crap with anyone because all Bills fans have a right to be negative and a right to be pissed at the current situation. The thing I don't understand though is how anyone views the Mario signing as a dumb/stupid decision. Lets be honest, there were several teams that would have gladly signed him to the same contract we gave him, we just got the first chance. Fitz sucks now but Buddy took a chance on a QB we all saw play at a very high level and occasionally a low level. Point is they thought they knew what they were signing up for which is more than Seattle knows about Flynn, or Arizona Kolb or Cleveland Derek Anderson, etc. It seems as though people will easily criticize moves that haven't worked out perfect but many other GM's would have done the same exact thing. Just a thought... Maybe the longest playoff drought in the NFL has something to do with it! Maybe fan's are sick of spending their HARD EARNED money on watching a team lose year after year as well as their precious time and energy.Maybe a lot of folks on here are older than 30 and used to watch the Bills when they were actually good! I don't know just saying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChasBB Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 (edited) Agree. At the time, it seemed like a good idea. I did question paying this much money for ANY one player. If the guy gets hurt, you've got SO MUCH invested into ONE guy -- it's a big risk. To have that player turn out to be a prima donna has really got to sting management. Nix has been playing it smart and NOT making a big splash in free agency for the past few years based on the belief that you build via the draft and fill in here & there via free agency when the situation fits. I'm sure Nix believed Mario Williams to be the exception to the rule as did probably most of us fans. Williams appeared to be a proven commodity in this league and it was reasonable to think there would be return on investment -- that he'd be the guy to put us over the top. His lackluster play must have Nix absolutely kicking himself for going against his own guidelines for building a team via the draft as opposed to making a big splash with the Williams signing. With all this money tied up in Mario Williams, it's got to have an impact on the ability in the future to retain other talent on the team. Had Williams had the decency to simply be a professional and put forth his best effort each and every week, it probably would have seemed like the best move of the decade. Now, unfortunately, the move is looking more like a disaster in the making -- another Dockery type of move, but even magnified. If Williams would take on the leadership role he was supposed to, this could be an entirely different story. Instead, he comes across as someone who just doesn't care about why he was brought here. His insistence on playing left defensive end should have been the first clue. And I'm not questioning whether that is the best place for him or not -- I really don't know. My point is that a true team player just says "I'll line up wherever coach decides" instead of insisting on playing a certain position. At this point, he is a colossal disappointment. I don't blame Nix. I feel bad for Nix for getting screwed over by Williams. In retrospect, Nix probably should have stuck firmly to his own philosophy of building through the draft, but I can't fault him in trying to make what could have potentially been a brilliant move. Pissed at Williams for basically being a jackass. Even if his wrist is hampering him, that's no reason to stop running when the play is behind you. As Kelsay says, you got to get bodies around the football -- ANYTHING can happen and if you have more guys around the ball carrier than the opponent, then there's a good chance your guys are going to recover a fumble or whatever. To me, it looks like Williams just stops competing as soon as he believes he's out of the play -- that is unacceptable of a professional player. It's a hustle sport and the guy that hustles is more times than not going to be the victor. I hate these huge guaranteed contracts. There needs to be some sort of out for teams when a player pulls this crap. Edited October 24, 2012 by ChasBB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I don't mean to start crap with anyone because all Bills fans have a right to be negative and a right to be pissed at the current situation. The thing I don't understand though is how anyone views the Mario signing as a dumb/stupid decision. Lets be honest, there were several teams that would have gladly signed him to the same contract we gave him, we just got the first chance. It seems as though people will easily criticize moves that haven't worked out perfect but many other GM's would have done the same exact thing. Just a thought... What??? Really? Link?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CardinalScotts Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 these are actual human beings this isnt a video game, Mario is a good football player...11 on 1 doesn't work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Hindsight Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Decisions should be judged on the probability of success. NOT the final result. We can't repeat "Ralph is Cheap" time after time after time, and then criticize when he opens the wallet on proven talent. I guarantee that no fewer than 75% of the people saying "Cut Mario!" were gushing over the move a few months ago. Yup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragonborn10 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I don't understand the contract worries for any of these guys...The Bills are not cap strapped. Most of their players are awful and don't get paid that much to begin with. RW opened up the vault for a few guys but there is still plenty of cap room to sign Levitre and Byrd and a LB or two next year. Why do you care how much Fitz makes? Did his contract really sway draft decisions away from taking a QB? This team had so many holes and they thought Fitz would at least be servicabel while they added other pieces to the roster. All you Dalton and Newton fans...how are you feeling right now? How much of Dalton's success is AJ Green? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Cubed Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I don't understand the contract worries for any of these guys...The Bills are not cap strapped. Most of their players are awful and don't get paid that much to begin with. RW opened up the vault for a few guys but there is still plenty of cap room to sign Levitre and Byrd and a LB or two next year. Why do you care how much Fitz makes? Did his contract really sway draft decisions away from taking a QB? This team had so many holes and they thought Fitz would at least be servicabel while they added other pieces to the roster. All you Dalton and Newton fans...how are you feeling right now? How much of Dalton's success is AJ Green? This is exactly the point. Why bring up the amount of money everytime you mention his play? Who cares. Thats the price it took to get a FA here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Barbarian Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I don't mean to start crap with anyone because all Bills fans have a right to be negative and a right to be pissed at the current situation. The thing I don't understand though is how anyone views the Mario signing as a dumb/stupid decision. Lets be honest, there were several teams that would have gladly signed him to the same contract we gave him, we just got the first chance. Fitz sucks now but Buddy took a chance on a QB we all saw play at a very high level and occasionally a low level. Point is they thought they knew what they were signing up for which is more than Seattle knows about Flynn, or Arizona Kolb or Cleveland Derek Anderson, etc. It seems as though people will easily criticize moves that haven't worked out perfect but many other GM's would have done the same exact thing. Just a thought... many would signed Mario but no one would stuck with Fitz, he was (is) a career backup for a reason, he simply doesn't have the talent to be a NFL starter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plenzmd1 Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I am with the OP, i agreed with both contracts when they signed, and still like them both..do i like the production out of those two players right now? NO! But, as someone else mentioned..we are still below the cap, neither move prevented us from a cap perspective of signing any other player, neither move prevented us from drafting any player..in short not our money. Did this Fitz signing prevent them drafting a QB from an ego perspective..i guess one could make that argument..but it was certainly not due to contract. Now we may be stuck with Mario a while because that contract was huge, but if i recall Fitz can be cut after this year with minimal cap impact, especially in this upcoming year where teams must spend to a very high minimum % of the cap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuncha Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Fitz was signed after what, 8 total good games? 2 at the end of one season and 6 in the next. Why not make him lead us to the playoffs to get an extension? Only an idiot would have resigned him when they did. And ..... The same bunch of [idiots] extended Jauron and Kelsay....hummm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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