Props to the Free Agent pickups

[Buffalo Barbarian]

It seems that our FO did one hell of a job adding quality veteran talent this off season.

 

Alan Branch has done very well on the DL for us. Manny Lawson has been great at LB. The trade for Hughes seems to be turning out great. The trade for Thad Lewis was another great addition. Legurskey has been very strong since being inserted, and Jim Leonard provided some quality play at a moments notice with Byrd out.

 

I cannot imagine our team performing very well without those guys. None of which are big names but are the type of players we need to keep adding.

 

Is this a sign of Whaley putting his mark on the team? I think so. Coupled with our draft, we have about 6-8 new starters from last years team. That is a big turn around and IMO it was desperately needed.

 

Shows that Whaley had his hand in the mix

 

I have high expectations for Doug Whaley.

I think he will find good players and I think this coaching staff will be capable of developing them.

Bills fans are rightly reluctant to be too optimistic but with another good draft, and FA signing or two, this team will be ready to raise a lot of eyebrows. They are doing it already. I can't believe that the football world has failed to notice that the Bills basically wiped the floor with the leagues only unbeaten team with an as green as can be UDFA QB getting his first start. In fact they have noticed.

 

for those who only saw the score they figured it was business as usual.

 

If not for the turnovers and kick return called back we would have smashed those guys. Last week, minus the score, was probably our best game of the year.

Edited November 8, 2013 by Buffalo Barbarian

[BigBuff423]

I agree overall, the FA players and of course the Drafted Rookies have been quite an important part of this year's turn around despite their current record...time will tell how they all pan out or if this year was more an aberration of the expected standard of good drafting and solid FA pick-ups, but if not, then this Front Office is beginning to demonstrate true signs of life...that, to me, is more the long-term ailment this team has faced: a lack of true leadership and excellent decision-making by the Front Office over the duration of this playoff drought...

Edited November 8, 2013 by BigBuff423

[Buffalo Barbarian]

^^^^^^^^^^^^

 

I've posted before that if McCargo had the career that Kyle Williams is having, no one would have considered him a bust.

 

I respect your posts SJ but this makes no sense, clearly he didn't play like Kyle and he was no good. Are you trying to say he was a good player but didn't live up to it (which is a bust) or that injuries cut him short?

[peterpan]

You were the first to mention Robey. Amazing.

The guy won us the Miami game with his pick six, and had a 4 point play against KC with that incredible hit in the flat on 3rd and 4 in the red zone.

 

What a gamer. So glad he's 5'7 otherwise there is no way he falls in our lap like that. He's the Darren Sproles of d-backs. Love this kid....

Robey is quickly becoming my favorite player on the D. How this guy went undrafted is mind blowing. He has been playing great!!!! Another strong pick up.

 

Branch is who we signed for one year. I'd love to see him get a 2 or 3 year deal from the Bills at seasons end.

 

I'd really like to see Branch extended ASAP.

 

And that Charles guy who made two big plays last week was also impressive in very limited action. We finally have what is looking like a great D line!!!

[texasabres]

Robey is quickly becoming my favorite player on the D. How this guy went undrafted is mind blowing. He has been playing great!!!! Another strong pick up.

 

 

Totally agree.

 

Also, Carpenter has been a great pickup. This FO/Coaching staff has been really encouraging

[WhitewalkerInPhilly]

I know it's basically reiterating everything that as already been said, but really, this current FA market has been about picking up very servisable players at reasonable prices. I was bullish on Lawson, and he has pretty much matched my expectations. Getting anything while getting rid of Sheppard was a boon, and the fact that Hughes is a pretty decent pass rusher is a boon.

 

But seriously, I have to hand it to them for Leonard. With Byrd getting injured, and then Aaron Williams getting sent to CB, I think the man has done a remarkable job considering the expectation level. I would seriously consider keeping him over Seacry if we had to make cuts at safety.

 

I look forward to the upcoming offseason, when the Bills will have effectively gotten rid of Fitz's cap hit and they have the chance to shop around for a really complete team.

 

Props it is, you can add Robey to the list too (and IMO Tuel, even though).

 

Yeah, I forgot this.. much like many OC's in the league. I swear, I don't think you can ask more for an undrafted rookie CB. He might be a designated slot player (I'd loathe seeing him outside) but when you have to face Amendola twice a year, and a lot of speedy slot WR the man is a beast.

[San Jose Bills Fan]

I respect your posts SJ but this makes no sense, clearly he didn't play like Kyle and he was no good. Are you trying to say he was a good player but didn't live up to it (which is a bust) or that injuries cut him short?

 

Don't know how to re-phrase it BB but I'll try.

 

I'm saying that if John McCargo played as well as Kyle Williams has (2 Pro Bowls, 2010 All Pro), people would be saying that McCargo was a good draft pick.

[Mark Vader]

Totally agree.

 

Also, Carpenter has been a great pickup. This FO/Coaching staff has been really encouraging

Does this mean we have a controversy at our Kicker position?

[BADOLBILZ]

It seems that our FO did one hell of a job adding quality veteran talent this off season.

 

Alan Branch has done very well on the DL for us. Manny Lawson has been great at LB. The trade for Hughes seems to be turning out great. The trade for Thad Lewis was another great addition. Legurskey has been very strong since being inserted, and Jim Leonard provided some quality play at a moments notice with Byrd out.

 

I cannot imagine our team performing very well without those guys. None of which are big names but are the type of players we need to keep adding.

 

Is this a sign of Whaley putting his mark on the team? I think so. Coupled with our draft, we have about 6-8 new starters from last years team. That is a big turn around and IMO it was desperately needed.

 

I agree that they have gotten a lot of mileage out of some very small investments. Branch has been a monster in limited action after an awful pre-season and Lawson has played the best football of his career when healthy. Great fits in Pettine's defense.

 

But they are 3-6 because of other personnel moves made and not made.

 

This team had the starting talent to be a playoff team.

 

It is no mistake that they have lost a lot of close games.

 

They had some tough opponents but they couldn't afford to be relying on undrafted free agents at backup QB or in the secondary and the junk they brought to camp at OG. For all the injuries they have had, it is nothing short of miraculous that zero depth at OT hasn't provided another blow to the cause.

 

There was no reason for it. They had plenty of money....free agency was a bargain shoppers paradise this offseason.....it just comes down to some bad decisions, headlined by the signing of Kevin on the Kolb.

 

They had a slew of home games early and with even moderate quality veteran support this team is 7-2 at least.

 

Marrone and the Bills organization really would have been boosted long term by a winning start. We have seen first year coaches start off like this time and again and it only instills doubt in the coaching staff by the players and raises the heat on the staff in following seasons.

[texasabres]

Does this mean we have a controversy at our Kicker position?

 

No. Carpenter should be our kicker next year.

[Buftex]

^^^^^^^^^^^^

 

I've posted before that if McCargo had the career that Kyle Williams is having, no one would have considered him a bust.

 

San Jose...I don't get it. Sure, if McCargo had the career of KW he wouldn't be considered a bust...but he didn't... and to compound it, the Bills traded up in the first round to get him. Who knows what else they might have been able to do with that pick?

 

The fact that they got pretty solid production, in the same draft, from a guy they picked, four rounds later, IMO, only serves to make the pick look even worse.

 

I am not saying, at the time, I was all over the pick saying it was a bad pick, but in retrospect, I think McCargo may be the worst Bills first round pick of this century. Sure, when the topic of worst picks in Bills draft history comes up, people usually mention Mike Williams or Aaron Maybin...they rarely mention McCargo.

 

At least with Maybin, they cut bait fairly quickly....and you could argue that Williams never played to the level that was expected of him for as high as he was drafted...but he did start for 4 years, and wasn't completely useless. Based on your argument (maybe not argument, but observation?) about McCargo/Kyle W, I would argue that if Mike Williams had been a third, fourth or fifth round draft pick, he would have been viewed far differently, and favorably.

 

McCargo, somehow, managed to stay on the Bills roster for 5 years, was a healthy scratch as often as not, when he was healthy enough to play...and I think, for all his time as a Bill, the only thing he had to show for it was recovering a fumble on a special teams play.... McCargo rarely gets mention as being amongst the Bills worst 1st round picks ever, because he did so little, people forget he actually existed!

Edited November 9, 2013 by Buftex

[San Jose Bills Fan]

That's weird.

 

No one gets what I'm saying.

 

Maybe it only makes sense to me?

 

[3rdnlng]

San Jose...I don't get it. Sure, if McCargo had the career of KW he wouldn't be considered a bust...but he didn't... and to compound it, the Bills traded up in the first round to get him. Who knows what else they might have been able to do with that pick?

 

The fact that they got pretty solid production, in the same draft, from a guy they picked, four rounds later, IMO, only serves to make the pick look even worse.

 

I am not saying, at the time, I was all over the pick saying it was a bad pick, but in retrospect, I think McCargo may be the worst Bills first round pick of this century. Sure, when the topic of worst picks in Bills draft history comes up, people usually mention Mike Williams or Aaron Maybin...they rarely mention McCargo.

 

At least with Maybin, they cut bait fairly quickly....and you could argue that Williams never played to the level that was expected of him for as high as he was drafted...but he did start for 4 years, and wasn't completely useless. Based on your argument (maybe not argument, but observation?) about McCargo/Kyle W, I would argue that if Mike Williams had been a third, fourth or fifth round draft pick, he would have been viewed far differently, and favorably.

 

McCargo, somehow, managed to stay on the Bills roster for 5 years, was a healthy scratch as often as not, when he was healthy enough to play...and I think, for all his time as a Bill, the only thing he had to show for it was recovering a fumble on a special teams play.... McCargo rarely gets mention as being amongst the Bills worst 1st round picks ever, because he did so little, people forget he actually existed!

 

If Kyle Williams and John McCargo traded draft places there would be no talk here. BTW, McCargo was was mostly an unhealthy scratch. Sometimes it just doesn't work out.

[Dibs]

That's weird.

 

No one gets what I'm saying.

 

Maybe it only makes sense to me?

 

 

lol....yeah, pretty much.

 

It seems that you are basically saying that if your Aunt had balls.......she'd be your Uncle.

 

If McCargo didn't play like a bust and instead played like a very good player.....he wouldn't be a bust.

 

 

Is your point that the high risk factor & moving up in the draft to obtain McCargo would be irrelevant if he had not been a bust......therefore it should be irrelevant when discussing the concept that he is a bust?

[Buffalo Barbarian]

Don't know how to re-phrase it BB but I'll try.

 

I'm saying that if John McCargo played as well as Kyle Williams has (2 Pro Bowls, 2010 All Pro), people would be saying that McCargo was a good draft pick.

 

right but he didn't, So why would he be a good draft pick?

 

If any player played as well as Kyle they would be a good draft pick, why single out Mccargo?

[WhitewalkerInPhilly]

I agree that they have gotten a lot of mileage out of some very small investments. Branch has been a monster in limited action after an awful pre-season and Lawson has played the best football of his career when healthy. Great fits in Pettine's defense.

 

But they are 3-6 because of other personnel moves made and not made.

 

This team had the starting talent to be a playoff team.

 

It is no mistake that they have lost a lot of close games.

 

They had some tough opponents but they couldn't afford to be relying on undrafted free agents at backup QB or in the secondary and the junk they brought to camp at OG. For all the injuries they have had, it is nothing short of miraculous that zero depth at OT hasn't provided another blow to the cause.

 

There was no reason for it. They had plenty of money....free agency was a bargain shoppers paradise this offseason.....it just comes down to some bad decisions, headlined by the signing of Kevin on the Kolb.

 

They had a slew of home games early and with even moderate quality veteran support this team is 7-2 at least.

 

Marrone and the Bills organization really would have been boosted long term by a winning start. We have seen first year coaches start off like this time and again and it only instills doubt in the coaching staff by the players and raises the heat on the staff in following seasons.

 

IDK, I think we had too many problems to try fixing them all in one season. I don't think it's a mistake that almost all of our linebacking corps starters from last year were gutted. Now, this year, we have the money to hunt for the players that really can make us a complete team, plus another (hopefully) solid draft.

 

I think we also have to say that, while the jury may still be out on EJ, I can't think of a better 2nd and 3rd round for the Bills in a long time

 

Also, we knew what we were getting with Kolb. The man is going to get almost nothing, and now that the Bills have Thad, I really don't see Kolb winning even a 3rd QB spot.

Edited November 9, 2013 by Whitewalker Merriman

[San Jose Bills Fan]

right but he didn't, So why would he be a good draft pick?

 

If any player played as well as Kyle they would be a good draft pick, why single out Mccargo?

 

Because they play the same position and were taken in the same draft.

 

It's very ironic that Kyle is playing like McCargo was supposed to and that McCargo is playing like a 5th rounder (which Kyle was).

[BADOLBILZ]

IDK, I think we had too many problems to try fixing them all in one season. I don't think it's a mistake that almost all of our linebacking corps starters from last year were gutted. Now, this year, we have the money to hunt for the players that really can make us a complete team, plus another (hopefully) solid draft.

 

I think we also have to say that, while the jury may still be out on EJ, I can't think of a better 2nd and 3rd round for the Bills in a long time

 

Also, we knew what we were getting with Kolb. The man is going to get almost nothing, and now that the Bills have Thad, I really don't see Kolb winning even a 3rd QB spot.

 

t's a quick turnaround league. It seems that every year a team or two goes from dreadful the previous year to the playoffs the next. The only caveat apparently is that team absolutely must not be the Buffalo Bills.

 

Last year, the team with the top pick in the draft made the playoffs. This year, the Chiefs had the top pick and they are 9-0. If that is geographically out of Bills fans vision then recall when Rex Ryan took over a woeful Jets team and took them to the AFC championship in year 1 with a rookie QB. Might be hard to remember but going into that offseason where Ryan was hired the only thing that seemed certain for the Bills was that the Jets were in much worse shape. Their roster looked like a bunch of has beens and never were's, they had Brett Favre on the way out and had traded away their second round pick to get him. The Jets were very aggressive that offseason and despite having less to start with than Buffalo and less draft picks and less cap space they managed to lap the less than urgent Bills organization. The Jets haven't drafted all that well, Sanchez turned into a bust and their roster got old and had to be turned over and yet they STILL beat the Bills like a drum and are ahead of them in the standings 3 Bills head coaches later.

 

The point is: enough with the excuses. Show us the victories, Bills.

 

The spread between being a bad team and being a playoff team is not that significant. Yet Bills fans still think that painful re-building years are the stepping stones to success. Doesn't work that way.

[Mark Vader]

No. Carpenter should be our kicker next year.

So we just part ways with Hopkins?

[Buffalo Barbarian]

Because they play the same position and were taken in the same draft.

 

It's very ironic that Kyle is playing like McCargo was supposed to and that McCargo is playing like a 5th rounder (which Kyle was).

 

I see