Archives for February 7, 2017

'The Bears fired Byrd in 2013. He spent the 2014 season as cornerbacks coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who let him go after the 2015 season.'

'In addition to their AFC East opponents, the Bills will face the AFC West (visiting the Chargers and Chiefs while hosting the Broncos and Raiders) and NFC South (visiting the Falcons and Panthers while hosting the Buccaneers and Saints) teams. Buffalo also will host Indianapolis and visit Cincinnati by way of those teams finishing in third place − like the Bills did in the AFC East − in the AFC South and AFC North, respectively. The Colts have the "easiest" schedule, with an opponent winning percentage of .424.'

'Last year, a Bills' spokesman told The Buffalo News that the average price of a regular seat for a Bills game was $68.18 in 2016, which ranked in the bottom five of the NFL.'

'The Buffalo Bills have 80/1 odds, according to the website. Just six teams have worse odds — the Jaguars (100/1), Bears (125/1), Rams (150/1), Jets (150/1), Browns (400/1) and 49ers (400/1).'

'"The Bills have moved on to their eighth coach since they last made a playoff appearance in 1999. Sean McDermott has a defensive background — much like Rex Ryan, Dick Jauron, Gregg Williams and Wade Phillips before him — but what the Bills really need to focus on is their offense," Seifert wrote. "Quarterback Tyrod Taylor has shown some promise, but the front-office decision to bench him in Week 17 suggests the team will commence yet another offseason search for a quarterback. The cycle continues in Buffalo."'

'So let the debate begin.'

'Byrd fills the biggest vacancy remaining on the Bills' coaching staff. The team will likely hire a few more assistants, but Byrd is the last of the primary position coaches that needed to be hired.'

'As for the Buffalo Bills, few teams have worse opening odds. After a 7-9 season that led to Rex Ryan getting fired and replaced by Sean McDermott, the Bills have 60-1 odds to win the Super Bowl. They are tied with the Lions, Saints, Chargers and Jaguars with those odds. Meanwhile, the Bears, Rams, Jets, 49ers and Browns are the only five teams with worse odds.'

'Gilmore is seeking a deal which would pay him among the top five players in the league at his position, which would be $14 million or more per season. The Bills offered him roughly $10.5 million per year during training camp in August, but did not negotiate after that.'

'Outside of the two men that were just mentioned, the Bills also need to figure out where the rest of the defensive starters fit in McDermott's 4-3, zone-based defensive scheme. Marcell Dareus, Jerry Hughes, and Shaq Lawson should all be fine along the defensive line. The question remains with the back-seven.'

'The website has the Bills odds to win Super Bowl 52 as 66-to-1… a long-shot bet, and a figure that is tied for the sixth-worst in the National Football League. The only teams that have worse odds than the Bills are San Francisco (150-to-1), Cleveland (150-to-1), Chicago (100-to-1), the New York Jets (100-to-1), and the Los Angeles Rams (75-to-1). The Bills also have the same odds as Washington, Jacksonville, and the Los Angeles Chargers.'

'“Just continue to keep improving my play,” Taylor said. “I just finished up my second year as a starter, going into my seventh in the league, but like I said it sounds crazy, I’m still learning. We’ve been without a couple guys in the lineup for two years now, so the main thing is that we stay healthy, that we get healthy, and that we remain healthy and go out there and play winning football. I know guys are excited.”'