San Jose Bills Fan

I see your points but bottom line I think there are more negatives than positives in drafting two highly-rated QBs in one year. I also think it's better to draft a highly-rated QB in consecutive years if the first quarterback taken shows signs of not being the player the team projected him to be. JMO.

Yeah and they didn't affix any "postage."

Very solid first post. Welcome aboard. That's right. I remember now. Thanks Coach. I would be skeptical of the credibility of this Eric Smith person and that site. Is there some discernible track record that lends itself to thinking he knows what he's talking about? His evaluation of Sheppard immediately casts his "expertise" in doubt. Bottom line, Indy was not the only team that had a first round grade on Jerry Hughes (Buddy said the Bills also did) and Hughes was viewed as a pass rush prospect. Hughes had 4 sacks last year. His problem is not quickness. There are however credible reports which bring to question Hughes' effort and work ethic.

Not bad! Thanks for the chuckle.

Well I hope he came out of the closet. Wait….

There are two different types of linebackers.

Really? I find his interviews more interesting than any Bills head coach of recent memory. His native intelligence is very apparent despite his working-class demeanor. Marrone has very nice moments of honesty when he chooses to let his guard down. The way he measures his words reveals very good intelligence, IMO. You'll notice also that he's already addressing everyone by first name and when he was first hired, he was bantering with the national media members who were at the presser. This guy commands the room and has a very strong, understated presence. Even when he's guarded he's fascinating, IMO.

My theory on Gailey is that he had a very narrow comfort zone for working with people. He was very risk averse and needed to feel a high comfort level with people and that many of his personnel decisions were made too largely on that basis. As far as Buddy, I think he is developing his successor. I'd be very surprised if Sheppard amounts to anything in the NFL. JMO.

As far as eball's timeline (and I think it's a bit generous but also has some merit), we can add that Nix inherited Tom Modrak and has since completely revamped the personnel department. There are now only a few holdover scouts from when Nix originally took over.

Where have you heard those whispers?

He probably meant brain scientist…. it was intentional…. like asking if the Pope poops in the woods.

Interesting to read all the critiques of Alonso's playing style. It should make you wonder what sort of techniques he was coached to play. Not all teams teach their linebackers to play a read and react style.

Well FWIW, when the Bengals were the featured team in 2009, the series got it's highest ratings ever to that point, beating out the Chiefs, Ravens, and two seasons of the Cowboys.

Thanks for posting. This quote says it all: Flacco is making the Ravens look smart now, but they were criticized for a reach when they made him their first choice five years ago. Ironically, like Buffalo, Baltimore bailed out of the eighth overall pick to acquire him, first moving down to the 26th spot before trading back up to 18. "We made a decision to draft him in the first round because we thought he was a first-round talent," DeCosta said. "It was an easy decision to make. We knew he had value around the league, and we had to assess the league -- and taking a chance of waiting around to the second or third [round] was too much of gamble. "The downside was that we might not get him. So we moved from 26th to 18th. We knew we were taking Joe higher than [most people] thought, but we had conviction about him."

Purely from the NFL's standpoint, the reason they might want the Bills to do Hard Knocks is because every year it's difficult to find a team willing to do it. If it's a choice between the Bills and no one….

Well of course and that's one of the givens in the conversation. I'll just say that I can't wait to see the kid play and I'll also be curious to see if the reservations some have about Austin's ability to succeed in the NFL have any merit.

Yeah Kelly. They sure make an easy target even for fans of the Bills. It's like watching a munitions warehouse burn down and every time you think the flames will finally die down, there's another explosion and the fire renews itself. BTW, I did hate them during that New York Sack Exchange era. I hated Gastineau.

Perfectly stated. Look. We had several threads pre-draft talking about the idea of "doubling down" and drafting two QBs this year. It worked out well for Washington last year. Good for them. There are more reasons against the idea than for it. The lone justification for doubling down is that QB's the most important position and you want to invest heavily enough to guarantee a return. But it makes a lot more sense to give this year's rookie an unequivocal commitment and investment in time and energy. If after one year the evaluation is that there's some doubt as to him succeeding, then draft another QB NEXT YEAR. Why would we burn two picks on QBs in one draft when we can simply draft another QB next year (if need be)?

In the last game either team played, we "pwn'd" them 28-9. If you're trying to support some notion that the Bills don't measure up to the Jets I would reply that history refutes that as does our most recent game. And if you were to ask my opinion, I'd tell you that the Bills are the better organization.

I'm not sure why you're responding to me. I was responding to Hank Bullough and he was responding to Kelly. I wasn't addressing you. As for going in circles, my point was one that had not been made before: it would be practical and also in good faith to not close judgement on Buddy Nix's tenure.

Here's a few interesting facts about Kiko Alonso that people should know to help understand him. In spite of going to high school in the very affluent town of Los Gatos, CA, Kiko is the child of immigrant parents. His father is a Cuban who lived in Puerto Rico and his mother is from Columbia. As such he grew up in a house where neither parent was a native english speaker. His real name is Kristian, a name that made him the subject of lots of teasing growing up. People who've had life experiences like this would understand why Kiko might have had some issues growing up, not to mention his less-than-stellar speaking ability.

Staying with the EJ lovefest, here's a piece featuring former Brown's GM Phil Savage who now runs the Senior Bowl. EJ's Senior Bowl teammates voted him team captain before the game. http://www.seniorbowl.com/news-highlights-detail.php?news=40 There's some video of EJ during Senior Bowl practices.

Don't forget Christian Ponder.

I feel this way too and have posted that thought more than once. The two biggest determinants for success in the NFL is a good QB and a good Head Coach. Nix finally pulled the trigger on a QB and was given the good fortune of hiring his second Head Coach. Wanny is gone too. While I'm very lukewarm about the job Nix did in his first three years, his biggest failings were hiring Gailey and not drafting Kaepernick or Russell Wilson. All the rest of his work is average IMO. And I believe in stories of redemption. Be careful of damning the tenure of Buddy Nix. It might be premature.

Great interview, Damond. You are an encyclopedia of knowledge. You've got me really excited to see Vernon Kearney play. This is looking like a very good UDFA crop. You're discussion of the depth of this cornerback class was a fascinating take on why Buddy didn't draft a cornerback this year. Keep up the good work!