EJ Manuel Retires from NFL

[Irv]

Grief counseling being made available to entire Jacksonville organization

[Reed83HOF]

3 hours ago, Rico said:

Nice post, but I’m not sure I would call it ‘vindication’, as least not for me. As is usually the case, it’s not really about the player and it’s not really about being right. It’s about a very vocal minority being very WRONG and reminding them just how wrong they were.

 

Happy trails EJ, we will always have London. 

He just needs more time...

 

[eball]

I’ll always remember that hard snap count to draw the Jets Offside in Rex’s Super Bowl...aww, no I won’t. 

 

Happy trails, EJ. You’re a good dude, just not a very good NFL QB.

[Phil The Thrill]

3 hours ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

Last decade?  Not even close.  Aaron Maybin in 2009.

 

 

Buddy Nix was the GM who neglected the QB position "as long as he did".  While we'll never know who led the 2013 draft board, it's quite revisionist to make Whaley responsible for neglecting to draft a QB with a reasonable shot to become a starter during the years Nix was GM.

 

The reason Nix/Whaley overdrafted EJ is reputed to be because they wanted to draft a QB in the mid-rounds in 2012 and possibly 2011, and the QB they wanted didn't last until the round where they had him slotted.  The reason I believe this is because Nix was quoted in interviews after the 2012 draft and before the 2013 draft saying that if you want a QB you'd better over-draft him because he won't last until the spot where you have him valued.

 

 

You aren’t considering context Hap. Z I disagree that Maybin was worse than EJ, given their positions.  Maybin ended up having a very small impact on the Bills overall.  They never passed on other DE prospects since he was drafted in 2009.  Never overspent on to draft an underperforming WR to prove that he was the real deal.  

 

I do hold Whaley responsible for EJ.  Everything I have seen on Whaley would indicate that while he technically wasn’t GM at the time, he was waiting in the wings to take over months later and there is little doubt he was on board with the move.  This, again, is evidenced by the huge gamble on Watkins the next year.

 

I know a portion of the fan base love Whaley but he’s not innocent here

3 hours ago, Seasons1992 said:

 

It still is amazing that Russ Brandon was our GM for that season........say that out loud.

And then he took Maybin who was in no way qualified to play professional football.

 

Take a look at the 2009 draft with Eric Wood, Jairus Byrd and Andy Levitre drafted consecutively.  Three Pro Bowl talents.   Yes Maybin was a flop but those 3 in one draft is better than anything Nix or Whaley ever put together:

[Turk71]

  Guy made almost $10 million and was never any good. Started a total of 18 games. Can retire a multi-millionaire at 29 without his body being wrecked by the NFL. 

  That's good work if you can get it.

[BringBackOrton]

15 hours ago, plenzmd1 said:

what part of "somewhat a victim of circumstance" translates to franchise QB? If you think playing for Marrone and Hacket is not a bit of a circumstance for a QB we will have to disagree. The guy was decent his first year, made rookie mistakes sure..and then was .500 in his second year and gets benched. Orton comes in a goes 1 game over 500 with the same group..and wins with D just like EJ did.

 

And with certainty, EJ had one of the worst 5-minute stretches of football ever played by an NFL QB in London...but had the team in the lead with 4 minutes to play. That was basically his last action in the NFL

 

I don't think EJ was ever going to be a quality starting QB in this league..but he is a damn site better than i would think then half the backups.

LOL EJ better than half the backups, which is why he was making league minimum, and got replaced by Peterman. LOL

[todd]

I wish him the best, but still can’t forgive him for the Jacksonville game.

[Captain Hindsight]

On 5/13/2019 at 8:44 PM, Buffalo86 said:

 

No kidding.  Here's a video from our 2014 war room, queued up to the part where Overdorff starts working the phones to try to make a trade.  LMFAO!

 

 

Surprised Russ Brandon has his pants on in this video

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

LOL  still going at it?   

 

Let the man walk off into the sunset and retire in peace.  We've had mush worse than EJ.  

 

[colin]

people who pretend that the pick someone was drafted at, the personality of the qb coach on the rookie team, etc etc is what makes or breaks a qb make me chortle.

 

it's a sport, if a guy falls apart it means he sucks, period.  you can argue that like phillip rivers might have won a super bowl if he were the qb of the giants, or that sam cowart would be a goat if he never got hurt, but you can't argue that a write of joke like ej manual, or jp losman, needed a different play book and then they are a 10 year starter in the nfl.  the suck, they always sucked, and no matter what happened, the were gonna suck.

[uticaclub]

On 5/15/2019 at 5:28 AM, todd said:

I wish him the best, but still can’t forgive him for the Jacksonville game.

He did come back and would have won if it wasn’t for a bull#### PI call that gave Jax the game to help build their London fan base. 

[Rob's House]

On 5/16/2019 at 8:31 AM, uticaclub said:

He did come back and would have won if it wasn’t for a bull#### PI call that gave Jax the game to help build their London fan base. 

 

He didn't though. We took the lead on a pick-6 by Corey Graham.

 

He did make some plays to get it close (after single-handedly putting the team in a deep hole), but late in the 4th and down by 3, with the game on the line and the ball in his hands, he took a ***** on the field. 

 

He sucked.

[formerlyofCtown]

Who are we trading up from 32 with.?

[aristocrat]

Yea he ruined part of my London trip. 

[BADOLBILZ]

On 5/14/2019 at 11:47 AM, LabattBlue said:

Going forward, not sure how many years EJ could have stayed on a roster as a backup, but if I was him, I would have milked it for every last penny.  Even at a mil or two per year, what a great gig.  Train your ass off, be a good guy in the QB room, etc....

 

 

When he was picked I thought for sure he would at least pull a Todd Collins and hang around the league into his late 30's.    

 

One of the things that has changed since Collins days though is that all teams don't carry 3 QB's on the 53 anymore.

 

QB's don't take the abuse they once did and once you get to QB3 now it's pretty much tank-time........so might as well get one off the street at that point rather than waste a roster spot for 17 weeks.

 

So hanging around the league now means changing teams every year or two instead of getting to kick back with a clipboard for 5 years in the same town like Collins did in KC...........and with $10M banked already that transient life isn't necessary.

 

 

[KD in CA]

3 hours ago, aristocrat said:

Yea he ruined part of my London trip. 

 

I always say, that was a great trip other than about ten minutes in the first half of the game.....and that bogus PI call.

[aristocrat]

7 hours ago, KD in CA said:

 

I always say, that was a great trip other than about ten minutes in the first half of the game.....and that bogus PI call.

 

Yea my gf went to get beers and came back to me sitting down in shock and she’s like what happened ?

 

funny thing was we were 50 yard line second row and at a quiet point gets up and yells “***** you rex “ and he turned around and looked at her.  We about died

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

On 5/14/2019 at 2:01 PM, Starr Almighty said:

I read somewhere that he strained a vocal cord and would  not be unable to do a hard count ever again causing him to retire

Karaoke?

30 minutes ago, aristocrat said:

funny thing was we were 50 yard line second row and at a quiet point gets up and yells “***** you rex “ and he turned around and looked at her.  We about died

Probably wondering ‘ok, now for what?’  He had a list of them weekly, both on and off field.

[Solomon Grundy]

Thank you St Doug for ruining the career of a young, capable QB

 

Sharp Football Analysis
http://www.sharpfootballanalysis.com/blog/2015/how-a-rookie-head-coach-derailed-a-rookie-quarterback-then-vanished-with-4-million

[prissythecat]

9 minutes ago, the skycap said:

Thank you St Doug for ruining the career of a young, capable QB

 

Sharp Football Analysis
http://www.sharpfootballanalysis.com/blog/2015/how-a-rookie-head-coach-derailed-a-rookie-quarterback-then-vanished-with-4-million

 

 

Lol EJ was everything but capable . It doesn’t matter who the coach was .

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

...kid was over drafted as Hibernatin' Buddy's pick, despite Genome being his #1 before the workout/interview......can't fault EJ's personality or work ethic....kid just had a woeful OBD start with the Kolb Mat Attack and had ZERO confidence in his ability at the NFL level from day 1 especially being thrust into starting role..yet he tried in Bflo and failed but moved on to other clubs.....at least he gave it his best effort but failed like many others before him and like many others will after him...........

[The Frankish Reich]

No, I don't agree with EJ's (deleted) comment about not getting chances based on race. But he does have a larger point: some guys get chances. And chances. And more chances. Some don't. And I dare you to find any objective explanation for why this happens.

Which one is EJ? (And who are the others?). Note: these guys are ages 33, 30, 29, 29, 29, 28 (not in order); 4 are still on NFL rosters (and at least 3 are very good shots to make a final roster), 1 is unsigned as of today, and of course 1 is retired. No, composite stats like this aren't everything, but if you disagree, choose any other objective measure of success and tell me why one (or more) of these guys is better/worse than the others. EJ, you kinda sucked, but ...

 

A. Career 77.1 QB rating, 4.95 ANY/A (adjusted net yards/attempt)

B. Career 75.5 rating, 4.91 

C. Career 79.9 rating, 5.34

D. Career 78.0 rating, 4.99

E. Career 74.9 rating, 4.27

F. Career 68.3 rating, 4.84

Edited May 19, 2019 by The Frankish Reich

[BringBackOrton]

1 hour ago, The Frankish Reich said:

No, I don't agree with EJ's (deleted) comment about not getting chances based on race. But he does have a larger point: some guys get chances. And chances. And more chances. Some don't. And I dare you to find any objective explanation for why this happens.

Which one is EJ? (And who are the others?). Note: these guys are ages 33, 30, 29, 29, 29, 28 (not in order); 4 are still on NFL rosters (and at least 3 are very good shots to make a final roster), 1 is unsigned as of today, and of course 1 is retired. No, composite stats like this aren't everything, but if you disagree, choose any other objective measure of success and tell me why one (or more) of these guys is better/worse than the others. EJ, you kinda sucked, but ...

 

A. Career 77.1 QB rating, 4.95 ANY/A (adjusted net yards/attempt)

B. Career 75.5 rating, 4.91 

C. Career 79.9 rating, 5.34

D. Career 78.0 rating, 4.99

E. Career 74.9 rating, 4.27

F. Career 68.3 rating, 4.84

Answer:

 

Someone in the league saw something they liked in those guys. No one in the league saw something they liked in EJ. Do those other guys probably suck? Yes. Other guys sucking or not sucking doesn’t prove that EJ doesn’t suck.

 

He sucks. It’s over.

[Orlando Tim]

i wish EJ the best and he was brought into the wrong system with the wrong coach but he was not good enough consistently enough to argue he should be a starter. he was not reliable enough to be a top end backup- so he is out of league due to his own game tape. 

[Bill from NYC]

5 hours ago, prissythecat said:

 

 

Lol EJ was everything but capable . It doesn’t matter who the coach was .

Agreed, and I am not saying this with malice.

Some very good college QBs are just not good enough to make it in the NFL. Hey, Rob Johnson had a much better arm than Tom Brady and he could run but he was a horrible QB. I am the first to admit that for years, I thought that Johnson would figure things out and make use of all of his talent but it was never going to happen, and he was WAY more talented than EJ.

[The Frankish Reich]

4 hours ago, BringBackOrton said:

Answer:

 

Someone in the league saw something they liked in those guys. No one in the league saw something they liked in EJ. Do those other guys probably suck? Yes. Other guys sucking or not sucking doesn’t prove that EJ doesn’t suck.

 

He sucks. It’s over.

I think you're missing my point. My example B is Chad Henne, who looks like he may stick with the Chiefs. He's 33. He's gotten 53 starts in his career, in which he's 18-35. I think EJ is legitimately puzzled. "Someone in the league saw something they liked" in Chad Henne, after 10 full years of sub-mediocrity?

[Gugny]

20 hours ago, KD in CA said:

 

I always say, that was a great trip other than about ten minutes in the first half of the game.....and that bogus PI call.

 

Defense lost that game.  EJ put them behind the 8-ball, but the D lost the game.  Oh ... and Sam Watkins quitting on his team. That didn't help, either.

[BringBackFergy]

There was one person on the board who said (and I quote) “EJ will be out of this league sooner than Geno Smith and that’s why Geno should be the pick for the Bills”. Do you know who said that? @CountryCletus  Props to you sir! I’ll be looking for more of your stone cold lock picks in the future. 

[Augie]

9 minutes ago, BringBackFergy said:

There was one person on the board who said (and I quote) “EJ will be out of this league sooner than Geno Smith and that’s why Geno should be the pick for the Bills”. Do you know who said that? @CountryCletus  Props to you sir! I’ll be looking for more of your stone cold lock picks in the future. 

 

The guy has a keen eye for roadkill, that’s for sure! 

[Ol Dirty B]

8 hours ago, The Frankish Reich said:

No, I don't agree with EJ's (deleted) comment about not getting chances based on race. But he does have a larger point: some guys get chances. And chances. And more chances. Some don't. And I dare you to find any objective explanation for why this happens.

Which one is EJ? (And who are the others?). Note: these guys are ages 33, 30, 29, 29, 29, 28 (not in order); 4 are still on NFL rosters (and at least 3 are very good shots to make a final roster), 1 is unsigned as of today, and of course 1 is retired. No, composite stats like this aren't everything, but if you disagree, choose any other objective measure of success and tell me why one (or more) of these guys is better/worse than the others. EJ, you kinda sucked, but ...

 

A. Career 77.1 QB rating, 4.95 ANY/A (adjusted net yards/attempt)

B. Career 75.5 rating, 4.91 

C. Career 79.9 rating, 5.34

D. Career 78.0 rating, 4.99

E. Career 74.9 rating, 4.27

F. Career 68.3 rating, 4.84

 

It was more about Peterman having a job while he didn't.

 

You inserted race into this yourself. 

 

You're as wrong as you can be.

 

Edit: I see your point and agree. I think people insert race in things when it's not warranted now. I reread the tweet to make sure I didnt misremember.

 

The media inserted race imo because how else do you get clicks out of EJ at that point. My bad, you're not completely wrong but I do disagree with the characterization of that tweet.

Edited May 20, 2019 by Ol Dirty B

[The Frankish Reich]

1 hour ago, Ol Dirty B said:

 

It was more about Peterman having a job while he didn't.

 

You inserted race into this yourself. 

 

You're as wrong as you can be.

 

Edit: I see your point and agree. I think people insert race in things when it's not warranted now. I reread the tweet to make sure I didnt misremember.

 

The media inserted race imo because how else do you get clicks out of EJ at that point. My bad, you're not completely wrong but I do disagree with the characterization of that tweet.

I think you're right about that ... EJ didn't expressly mention race, but it was taken as such by other commenters.

By the way, my final example of guys who have a job -- my Example F -- is none other than Matt Barkley. If there's one guy who clearly has a poorer body of work than EJ, it's Barkley, and Barkley is the one with a contract.

[DaBillsFanSince1973]

 

Edited May 23, 2019 by DaBillsFanSince1973

[Over 29 years of fanhood]

On 5/19/2019 at 12:40 PM, the skycap said:

Thank you St Doug for ruining the career of a young, capable QB

 

Sharp Football Analysis
http://www.sharpfootballanalysis.com/blog/2015/how-a-rookie-head-coach-derailed-a-rookie-quarterback-then-vanished-with-4-million

 

Doug didn’t do him any favors, but he only could have hidden him just so long. 

 

EJ just didnt end end up having what it takes, unfortunately. I was disappointed too.  

[SirAndrew]

On 5/19/2019 at 11:24 PM, The Frankish Reich said:

I think you're right about that ... EJ didn't expressly mention race, but it was taken as such by other commenters.

By the way, my final example of guys who have a job -- my Example F -- is none other than Matt Barkley. If there's one guy who clearly has a poorer body of work than EJ, it's Barkley, and Barkley is the one with a contract.

It’s not like Barkley has a job while Manuel got chased out of the league though. I’m seeing a lot of posts around here making it sound as if Manuel couldn’t find employment. He had just signed a deal with the Chiefs before retiring. Manuel chose to retire, he didn't fail to find a job. Lower tier guys can stick around for a long time as a backup. Manuel would have been given a chance to compete in KC. He chose to walk away. 

[Boca BIlls]

 Saw the bumped thread, came in here thinking he was unretiring.... you guys scared me for a second.

[Beerbelly]

On 5/13/2019 at 5:47 PM, OldTimeAFLGuy said:

....started his career with a pretty lousy set of circumstances in Bflo.....skill set and collegiate  body of work hardly equated to 1st round pick, with special thanks to Buddy Nix.....cannot discount work ethic but the kid had ZERO confidence at the NFL level.....he tried which is about as much as you can ask for......

I wish that I could've bombed out at a job, and walked away with several million $$$.

[Norcalbillsfan]

Never had anything against ej, he seemed like a class act and played hard he just was drafted way too high and too much hope put on a solid backup qb.