How would you evaluate Marv's off-season...

[2003]

I would say that Marv Levy did an outstanding job this off-season. His signings were like Magic shows, nobody had any idea what was going to happen next! He signed so many guys that I wouldn't even recognize if they were slapping me in the face! None the less, all of these guys had something in common, they are great team players. Let's check out his signings:

Robert Royal- I was shocked (and a little on the sad side) to see this guy as the Bills first signing of the off-season. But he has panned out to be quite the signing. He is a great locker room guy, a tremendous blocker, and he has been a pretty decent recieving threat.

Andre Davis- He is another great team guy, he only has 1 catch this year!! But he is a special teams standout, he makes plays all over the field.

Larry Tripplett- He was the Bills "major" signing this off-season, but no outsider would realize this. I'm not saying he has been a bust, I'm saying that he is just another one of the guys.

Anthony Thomas- This guy couldn't even make an NFL squad, but Marv gave him a chance and signed him. What a signig he has been! He is a very solid compliment to Willis.

Kiwaukee Thomas- When the Bills signed him, I thought he was just going to be a camp fodder. Well, I sure as he!! was wrong... I think this guy could start for us!

Draft- Those two days were a very entertaining adventure. All of the so called "experts" ripped the Bills for taking Whitner. Well, those experts can kiss Marv's ars!! Did he have a psychic in the War Room ?? All of his picks (except Butler and Merz) have had signifant playing time!

 

** Like it or not, Marv has a very different approach to his signings. None of his signings have an ego or a "me, me, me, all me!" attitude. So, If Marv keeps on track with his signings this Buffalo Bills team may become a clone of the New England Patriots.

[BuffaloBilliever]

Pennington, Royal, Fowler, Price, Tripplett, Williams, Ellison, Whitner, Simpson.

 

All are starters picked up by Marv.

 

7-7, and lost 4 games by 3 or less.

 

I'd say he did pretty well.

[Gotta Dream]

More than even all the player signings, were the front office signings. Fairchild, AVP, Turk get all the credit for grooming Losman (The Future). Whoever made the decision to shuffle the OL deserves the Coach of the Year award. And to do that mid season! Brilliant!

 

To have a coach who knows how to make the correct half time adjustments......PRICELESS!

[Fla Bills Fan]

More than even all the player signings, were the front office signings.  Fairchild, AVP, Turk get all the credit for grooming Losman (The Future).  Whoever made the decision to shuffle the OL deserves the Coach of the Year award.  And to do that mid season!  Brilliant!

 

To have a coach who knows how to make the correct half time adjustments......PRICELESS!

870069[/snapback]

You hit the nail on the head. I think TD did pretty well in evaluating player talent, but sucked when it came to picking a coach. I think that was TD's downfall.

[Dibs]

OK....own up......who was the grumble bum who ticked 'Below Average'?

[My Friends Call Me Tebucky]

I would say that Marv Levy did an outstanding job this off-season. His signings were like Magic shows, nobody had any idea what was going to happen next!  He signed so many guys that I wouldn't even recognize if they were slapping me in the face!  None the less, all of these guys had something in common, they are great team players.  Let's check out his signings:

Robert Royal- I was shocked (and a little on the sad side) to see this guy as the Bills first signing of the off-season. But he has panned out to be quite the signing.  He is a great locker room guy, a tremendous blocker, and he has been a pretty decent recieving threat.

Andre Davis- He is another great team guy, he only has 1 catch this year!! But he is a special teams standout, he makes plays all over the field.

Larry Tripplett- He was the Bills "major" signing this off-season, but no outsider would realize this. I'm not saying he has been a bust, I'm saying that he is just another one of the guys.

Anthony Thomas- This guy couldn't even make an NFL squad, but Marv gave him a chance and signed him. What a signig he has been! He is a very solid compliment to Willis.

Kiwaukee Thomas- When the Bills signed him, I thought he was just going to be a camp fodder. Well, I sure as he!! was wrong... I think this guy could start for us!

Draft- Those two days were a very entertaining adventure. All of the so called "experts" ripped the Bills for taking Whitner. Well, those experts can kiss Marv's ars!! Did he have a psychic in the War Room ?? All of his picks (except Butler and Merz) have had signifant playing time!

 

** Like it or not, Marv has a very different approach to his signings. None of his signings have an ego or a "me, me, me, all me!" attitude. So, If Marv keeps on track with his signings this Buffalo Bills team may become a clone of the New England Patriots.

870026[/snapback]

 

Royal's OK. Better than anyone else we have. Marv gets an A there because Royal's better than Kevin Everett.

 

Andre Davis needs to get reps in the regular offense- McGahee included, Davis is, aside from Lee Evans, the only player on the offense that can scare a defense. He is great on ST, though.

 

Tripplett's not an every down player. No power, not even a good penetrator. The type of soft d-lineman that has kept the Colts out of the Super Bowl 3 or 4 years in a row- shockingly, that's where he spent his previous years. He's a situation substitution, 3rd down pass-rushing DT, nothing more. Still, not a terrible signing, if only because the rest of the DTs are worse than him.....

 

Anthony Thomas is NOT a compliment to Willis McGahee. Just because he's his backup doesn't mean he's a "compliment." They're the same player, McGahee's just a little bit better because he has more burst. It's nothing against him, but Thomas would be a compliment to Warrick Dunn, Reggie Bush, LaDainian Tomlinson, or Tiki Barber- he's just too similar to McGahee. I like him, but he's not a long term fit on this team if McGahee sticks around.

 

Kiwaukee Thomas has been great...maybe Marv's most underrated signing...

 

As for the draft, it's not a knock on Whitner, he'll be a really good player- but you don't take a safety in the top 10 unless he's going to be the next Ronnie Lott or Ed Reed. Can't complain about the day two picks in any way.

[JÂy RÛßeÒ]

You left out Tutan Reyes, Craig Nall, and a few of the other FA pickups who haven't done anything.

 

But I give him a good grade. Not great, but good.

 

The trade for Anthony Hargrove has worked out OK. He's an emotional player, that's for sure - he jumped into the stands before the National Anthem today!

[MDH]

Royal's OK. Better than anyone else we have. Marv gets an A there because Royal's better than Kevin Everett.

870260[/snapback]

 

Royal is actually pretty good. The more he gets looks in the passing game the better he looks. If they'd gameplan the TE into the offense more I think he's look even better.

[apuszczalowski]

Anthony Thomas is NOT a compliment to Willis McGahee. Just because he's his backup doesn't mean he's a "compliment." They're the same player, McGahee's just a little bit better because he has more burst. It's nothing against him, but Thomas would be a compliment to Warrick Dunn, Reggie Bush, LaDainian Tomlinson, or Tiki Barber- he's just too similar to McGahee. I like him, but he's not a long term fit on this team if McGahee sticks around.

 

Kiwaukee Thomas has been great...maybe Marv's most underrated signing...

 

As for the draft, it's not a knock on Whitner, he'll be a really good player- but you don't take a safety in the top 10 unless he's going to be the next Ronnie Lott or Ed Reed. Can't complain about the day two picks in any way.

870260[/snapback]

I would have to disagree with these

 

Thomas is not the same kinda back as McGahee. A-train is a N/S runner who hits the hole in a straight line and uses power to get extra yards. McGahee is more of a E/W runner who will dance around and try to make moves to get around people instead of just hitting a hole

 

Kiwaukee thomas has started to play better, but for the first half of the season, he was not a great pickup

 

As for Whitner, you take the player you want where ever you could get them. How come the Bills are the only one taking shots for getting a DB when one was picked right before him? The drafts a crap shoot and you take what you believe will work best for your team, and Whitner was who they wanted and has worked out well for them

[Dan]

How come the Bills are the only one taking shots for getting a DB when one was picked right before him? The drafts a crap shoot and you take what you believe will work best for your team, and Whitner was who they wanted and has worked out well for them

870272[/snapback]

Thank you!

[stevewin]

You left out Tutan Reyes, Craig Nall, and a few of the other FA pickups who haven't done anything.

Has there ever been a player so quietly forgotten than Reyes - a fairly high profile signing as far as the Bills signings went - from starting OL to being inactive for the whole 2nd half of the season?!

 

At first there was some spin that he was banged up or nursing some injury - but it looks like they've just moved on from him and not looked back.

[Spiderweb]

Royal is actually pretty good.  The more he gets looks in the passing game the better he looks.  If they'd gameplan the TE into the offense more I think he's look even better.

870267[/snapback]

Actually, Royal appears the be the most athletic TE we've had since McKeller. Yet, while Royal has been contributing lately, I still can't forget his droppsies earlier. For my money though, he stays and so does the kid Cieslak (spelling?). If Neufield makes the team next year I'll be real surprised, or maybe more than a bit disappointed, especially since the "kid" can also play H back....

 

 

Everett eithers shows something by the start of next season or it's goodbye to him to.

[BB2004]

I would say that Marv Levy did an outstanding job this off-season. His signings were like Magic shows, nobody had any idea what was going to happen next!  He signed so many guys that I wouldn't even recognize if they were slapping me in the face!  None the less, all of these guys had something in common, they are great team players.  Let's check out his signings:

Robert Royal- I was shocked (and a little on the sad side) to see this guy as the Bills first signing of the off-season. But he has panned out to be quite the signing.  He is a great locker room guy, a tremendous blocker, and he has been a pretty decent recieving threat.

Andre Davis- He is another great team guy, he only has 1 catch this year!! But he is a special teams standout, he makes plays all over the field.

Larry Tripplett- He was the Bills "major" signing this off-season, but no outsider would realize this. I'm not saying he has been a bust, I'm saying that he is just another one of the guys.

Anthony Thomas- This guy couldn't even make an NFL squad, but Marv gave him a chance and signed him. What a signig he has been! He is a very solid compliment to Willis.

Kiwaukee Thomas- When the Bills signed him, I thought he was just going to be a camp fodder. Well, I sure as he!! was wrong... I think this guy could start for us!

Draft- Those two days were a very entertaining adventure. All of the so called "experts" ripped the Bills for taking Whitner. Well, those experts can kiss Marv's ars!! Did he have a psychic in the War Room ?? All of his picks (except Butler and Merz) have had signifant playing time!

 

** Like it or not, Marv has a very different approach to his signings. None of his signings have an ego or a "me, me, me, all me!" attitude. So, If Marv keeps on track with his signings this Buffalo Bills team may become a clone of the New England Patriots.

870026[/snapback]

 

 

I agree with your post. I think the biggest pickup of the group was Anthony Thomas. How this guy went under the radar is suprising. He has been a very good number two running back for our club. Robert Royal has done a good job for us at tight end. Also lets put Brad Cieslak on this list. Since he has been called up because of lots of injuries to other players, he has stepped in and done a good job for us as well. Our 2006-2007 draft has been solid all around.