VOR

Actually only the second part (he will lose money) is 100% true. Whether it will lead to losing games remains to be seen.

I suspect each side's position was made know to each other the day that Peters made the Pro Bowl last year, i.e. 12/17/08. That was the Monday before Peters got injured against the Giants. I'm sure Parker said Peters wants more money than Dockery (the only numbers I've heard are "between $8M and $11.5M a year) and the Bills told them no way he'd get a new deal before 2009. Neither side has gone public though, so we don't know for sure/how much money Peters wants, but that makes the most sense. Regarding the silence on Peters' part, Dockery said that when Peters wants to get away from the game, he really gets away. But also that the last time he talked (texted actually) with him, Peters said "I can't wait to be back there with you guys." I think he's waiting for word from his agent and no one else, and getting away and concentrating on his clothing line start-up. As for the injury theory, I doubt he's still hurting. He'd get a physical which would uncover that. It's possible that the groin injury robbed him of some lateral agility and he wants a huge contract without showing up so no one knows until he gets his money. I guess that could be a possibility, but I'm sure the Bills would include some language covering that in his contract. I think basically this is Peters wanting more money, a LOT more of it, and that's it. So basically it's a stalemate. Peters won't report until he gets his new contract and the Bills won't give him a new contract until he reports, if even. Until then Peters has 3 years left on his current contract, is being fined $15K a day, and will lose 1/16th of his salary for every game missed. If he sits out the whole year, the Bills still have him for 3 more years at least. If he reports after the 10th game, he basically makes no money for the year and the Bills have him for 2 more years at least, and 4 years if they franchise him after his contract is up. The Bills are in a seemingly tough position since Peters won't talk or show up. But it appears they're ready to move on without him. We'll see just how far each side is willing to go.

That and Lucas making a good play against Smith and others teasing him about "nosejob" Lucas getting the better of him. Who knows, Lucas might have prodded the bear as well.

True. The NFL leader in TD's and yards means nothing. And Flutie is the NFL leader in...what? Oh I know, ego-to-height ratio.

Odds are it means a lot more for the Packers than the Vikes.

Please don't compare Favre to Flutie. And when Flutie played in SD, he "just lost."

As I alluded to in my previous post, if they miss the playoffs, and there's is a high likelihood of that, Thompson and McCarthy are done. If not dead. I could see the Vikes rolling the Packers. With that Vikes DL (especially the addition of Jared Allen) against an inexperienced Rodgers, not to mention Peterson and Taylor against an aging DL that lost Corey Williams, it might not even matter if Tarvaris is the starter or not.

Actually I think it's no less of an ego trip on Thompson's and McCarthy's parts, believing "we built this team, don't need Favre, and the guy we drafted can run it just as well." Except they hedged their bets by drafting Brohm in the 2nd.

The Packers did NOTHING to "focus on...running a system that won't turn over the ball and running more." They didn't add a RB or FB in FA or the draft, didn't re-sign Bubba Franks, who was an excellent blocker, and signed Ryan Grant to a huge money extension despite half a season starting and a horrible NFCCG (13 rushes for 29 yards, with 13 coming on one rush). Instead they drafted a WR and TE with their top-3 picks, and as a show of the faith they have in Rodgers, drafted Brian Brohm late in the 2nd.

I'll be LMMAO when the Packers fail to make the playoffs this season and Thompson and McCarthy are fired at the end of year, if not sooner.

I got 26 of them (I didn't know Salaam, Clady, Harris, Williams, Foster, and Terry). And as for Peters' ranking, I'll go by the AP, who had him as 2nd team All-Pro, meaning that at worst, he was the 4th best LT, and thus OL, in the NFL. Pace might be done, so he doesn't count. Peters is still developing. He just finished his 3rd year of playing OT ever, yet he's considered among the best in the game. That's pretty amazing. But I agree that he needs to come to camp and show he's back 100%. And if he does, the Bills need to pay him immediately. It's called compromising.

The Bills have Peters for at least the next 3 years, and if they want, the next 5 (franchise tag). If he decides to retire, the Bills will demand that he repay his $5M signing bonus, and they'll still own his rights. And by racking-up fines for missing TC and sitting out the first 10 games, he'll make almost nothing this season. The question becomes, does he want to take that road?

Sure it's hindsight. I mentioned a list of other "blue chip" DT's who failed in the NFL, and a link Lori provided explained why Ngata's stock dropped. To me this is no better than lamenting on how the Bills missed on Tom Brady or Marques Colston or Antonio Gates. But the real test would be to see how many of you were clamoring for the Bills to draft Ngata or even Bunkley prior to the 2006 draft. I'd be willing to bet most that wanted a DT wanted Bunkley, who fit the cover-2 better, and his stats last year as a starter were little better than McCargo's as a backup, and he couldn't use injury as an excuse.

At least Lynch wasn't suspended.

McKelvin missed some practices. Cut him some slack.

If that's what you got out of it, then yes, it's been nice. Bye.

Only the last link called him a blue chip DT prior, and in reference, to the NFL draft (the first called him one as a high school player and the 2nd is saying it in hindsight). So yes, you got me that someone, even if it was "rotoscoop," called him a blue chip DT prior to being drafted. But the 2nd link pretty much gives the reasons he wasn't considered one by many "experts." Still the point that calling him a blue chip DT didn't guarantee anything, based on other blue chip DT's who failed, many of whom had the same concerns as Ngata. And given that the Bills were looking to implement the cover-2, they were more likely to draft Bunkley (who also could have been considered a blue chip DT), but hasn't played like one. And as for McCargo, here's a little something from PFW: http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/A.../wwhi080108.htm

I wouldn't call it desperation. I think they saw that McCargo was still there, when they figured he wouldn't be, and made a move. Kind of like they did with Poz. Apparently they liked Whitner a lot more than any of the DT's.

There were many that had Bunkley as the top-rated DT. My point was that looking back with hindsight, passing on Ngata was a bad move. But at the time, Ngata was considered one of the top 2 DT's, and the Bills probably would have taken the afore-mentioned Bunkley instead, and it's not like he's a great DT either. Not to mention that being a "blue-chip DT" (but being taken 12th overall) doesn't guarantee a player will be successful.

You're a joke. For starters, let's assume that I do bring my own drinks into bars, which I don't. How is that "stealing?" Much less when I've spent money on a soda (and probably food) in which to put my hooch, like Lynch did? Using that "logic," you have stolen by bringing alcohol into Bills games. Sorry but if anyone is stealing, it's you getting comped drinks from your barkeep friends. Under the guise that your worthless presence somehow means more than a celeb like Lynch. Then again, it could be a sign of just how MUCH you drink. Which would explain a lot. BTW, did anyone find the words "blue chip" and Ngata together? Did you find anyone who saw Lynch drinking that night? Care to take a guess why not? Credibility indeed.

A contender usually has talent more along the lines of what the Packers did last year, versus 2005 and 2006. Are the Jets a SB contender with Favre? No. And as for Favre costing the Packers the NFCCG, hardly. The running game was non-existent (Ryan Grant, who is holding-out for a huge new deal, had 29 yards on 13 carries). And the Giants' FG kicker, who made a 47-yarder in OT after Favre's 2nd INT, missed a 36-yarder at the end of the game that would have won it for them. And the Packers DID ultimately lose to the team that won the SB, and caused arguably the greatest upset in NFL history.

As I said in the other post, Favre doesn't want to go to any old team; he wants to play for a contender. And yes the Packers are worried that if he goes to a divisional team he'll help them beat the Packers. That would be their ultimate nightmare, especially if Rodgers struggles throughout the season.

That's what I've been saying. After Peters' injury, I think that the Bills taking a look-see at him before giving him a deal is totally reasonable. But if he does come to camp, show he's back 100%, then the Bills need to pay him.

Congrats. A survey once said that married men are the happiest people, and married women are the unhappiest. Be glad you're on the right side.