JESSEFEFFER

I was struck by the amount they paid for the Bills. Billionaires don't get to be that way by overpaying above and beyond the market value set by other bidders by $300,000,000. Then, Mary Wilson formed the foundation from the most of the proceeds and it's now being used to fund community development in and around Buffalo and Detroit. So maybe they looked at it as a good will overpayment to help endow the foundation.

Sure. But a preference for what? QB #2 job description: 1) Study the gameplan and work practice reps behind the #1. 2) Enter the game as a substitute for #1 sand run the offense after having had minimal practice reps during the week. 3) Start any of the games that the #1 is unable to.

During the spring there was a thread here about Ryan Tannehill that went along the lines of who'd we want to see as the Bills QB, him or EJ. Tannehill never impressed vs. the Bills, didn't show much clutch play especially late in the season and now has the big contract. I said that I really wanted to see EJ play in this offense for these coaches because I thought this situation is more suited to bringing the best out of him.

You have to realize that TV coverage will almost always give us a better look at these plays than the officials get calling them live. There is no other way to make calls other than how they "look." Umpriing a stolen base attempt at second base from behind home plate, you make a call based on whether the ball was there in time and whether the ball is caught and the glove is down before the runner reaches the bag. Don't tell the umpire that the tag was actually missed because it is impossible to see if a tag is actually applied from that angle. I am surprised at how poorly the wording is for the horse collar rule. There should be language about pulling the runner down from behind while striking the back of their legs. That's the dangerous play it is intended to prevent so why not word it that way. The Titans did this to Tyrod and the Bills did not do so to Mariota.

Travel anywhere in the other 49 and tell someone that you are from New York. All of them will assume you mean the city. Kind of irritating in a way. This is more subtle evidence that Rex is an intelligent, observant man who has picked up the sensitivities of our region rather quickly.

Once he beats the RT, he becomes the fastest moving player in that clip. He also had a very good game against the Bills last year. I think much of Kyle Orton's difficult day was the result of Mack. Also, as happens often, the o-lineman that gets toasted becomes the most likely to recover the fumble because he is the first to know that his QB is going to be road kill.

Thanks for the serious reply. The best of the smart ass replies was the one about the wings but they certainly can add something extra to the conversation.

When Rex was going over the history of how he developed an interest in Tyrod Taylor he mentioned that he had gotten positive reviews from guys like Ed Reed and Ray Lewis. What was most interesting to me was the one he got from Cam Cameron after Cam had left the Ravens. Rex said he COULDN'T share what that opinion was which left me to wonder why. Since Flacco was not very good much of the 2012 regular season which probably lead to Cam's firing, I think his opinion may be along the lines of "Tyrod is better than Flacco and if it were my call, he'd have been the starter." NFL coaches are adverse to having their names attached to opinions like that because it could bite them in the butt down the road. Often we hear opinions with unnamed sources, whereas, in this case, we know the source but not the opinion.

But, I heard from multiple, well-informed, expert analysts that the Bills had the worst QB situation in the entire NFL. So this just can't be true. I also heard that Darby was a 4th round talent that could not play the ball and that the Bills were screwed because they did not have a 1st round pick to leverage to draft a QB.

Christian Ponder? There is evidence to suggest that the Bills liked him in the draft.

I particulaly liked the descriptions of the blocking miscues and the "Surrender Cobra" term. I hadn't that one before. I think I'll search the term and see if it had been used before. Fairly new but maybe common to the college game.

Maybe this will get moved because it is Bills related only because Chad is related to Jim, but this is the funniest breakdown of a play I have ever seen. It's from the Mississippi vs. 'Bama game. I think I laughed out loud 5 times reading this and thought it was worth a share. http://www.redcuprebellion.com/2015/9/23/9372921/ole-miss-touchdown-alabama-chad-kelly-quincy-adeboyejo-tip-6

Within the normal context of #2 / #3 designations, the question makes sense. But, if Jerry were paying attention, he might have sensed that there was something different about the MC / EJM situation. The first clue was that they cut Matt Cassel, so obvioulsy there was some thinking that the risk of losing him and having EJM as the #2 was acceptable. What Rex said and didn't say at the PC when Matt was brought back certainly left room to speculate that there was something abnormal about what the #2 and #3 designations meant.

Gameweek practice can only accommodate getting 1 QB fully prepared to play and 1 QB to play, if needed, but without nearly as much preparation. You can't really have both at the same time. EJ was probably doing well with the scout team work and it could have helped him with decision making, throwing mechanics, use of time and space and overall accuracy but that was doing nothing to help him grow in Greg Roman's offense.

Which is more valuable to a franchise? A #2 QB that has extensive NFL starting experience and can thus work the practices and the games with the #1 QB who has very litttle starting experience while offering no long term value himself or a #2 QB who is showing signs of developing into the QB he was drafted to be and needs more experience within its offense and its weekly gameplans. That's two different visions for the role. So, to say that Matt was the better QB for the first two weeks because EJ didn't dress is to ignore that there are different reasons a QB could be best suited to be #2. A short term one (for Tyrod's benefit) or a longer term one (who has more to offer should they become #1.)

This is what I threw out there when Rex had his press conference after they brought back Cassel: I'll play the game. In the following quote: What was going to follow the "....."? "We brought Matt Cassel back,” Ryan said in an unscheduled meeting with reporters. “We said all along we like our three quarterbacks which is obvious. For your depth chart purposes Matt will be two, EJ [Manuel] will be three, but that means…. As I have said from day one we like all three of the guys and we never want to lose anybody obviously. So that is why we made the decision we did." The "your depth chart" implies the one released to the media. The "but" implies that there is more to the depth chart than appearances. What that is, I do not know. But I will speculate for the fun of it. The Bills like to have Cassel with the ones in practices, running plays that are in the game plan. They think there is something of benefit to Tyrod to have Matt Cassel there with him during practices and reviewing the tape. EJ will run the scout team because it's a better look for the D to defend a QB that can challenge them more and good for EJ because it gives him more reps that what the typical #2 gets. If they were actually going to miss/replace Tyrod for any significant amount of time, I don't know what the hell happens then. But if the answer to that is EJ, then what you have is an atypical #2/#3 situation which seems to be what Rex was starting to say and then didn't finish. #2 and #3 for the purposes of your (the press release roster) roster, but the Bills' situation is not what it seems. Somehow. This is totally consistent with the trade. If this was the correct reading of the situation, Matt Cassel might have wanted the move because he has a better chance of actually earning the money back with the playing incentives that were added in to his new contract. If he was a gameday #2 only and EJ were the long term replacement #2 then I could see Matt Cassel being OK with the trade where he could see more actual playing time in Romo's absence.

One occurrence can happen with any random thing. Twice can be just a coincidence. Three times is a trend. This could be three consecutive NFL franchises that tried to improve their QB play by getting rid of FItz and have failed. Oh, the irony.

Nailed it. I am not sure how the blame gets divied up, but the o-line from deterioration from 2012 to 2014 is the biggest problem they had. Not EJ or KO. Going into a season with an o-line in disarray as they did last year is the prescription for a disappointing season. Decent o-line play in the first two games says that maybe Williams was going to help. Choosing Richardson over Urbik was probably more Doug Marrone's decision as was moving Pears to guard but Whaley wanted to keep that 2nd round pick and Cyrus Kouandjio was not of any help to them in 2014.

I bought season tickets to ensure that my 80 year old aunt and 76 year old mother could go to one more game of their choosing. I told them that they should pick the 2nd week to go to with all the implications of that matchup and hoped I could get some of the money back on some of the others. I have people in mind for the Giants and Dolphins games which I will sell at my cost but I'll be curious to see what the market for those tickets will be in the remaining games.

I took this as road rage sarcasm. But, it sounded like a slight exaggeration of genuine malice. Much like I felt toward the driver of a semi tractor/trailor who decided to change lanes from the righthand lane to the center lane, in heavy rush hour traffic on the eastbound 90, right where my minivan was, then changed back to the original right lane, then drove on the berm to pass all those taking the eastbound 33 exit. I felt genuine malice toward that truck driver for having put so many people at risk of inury/death. Practically speaking, let's weigh a single vehicle accident and his serious/fatal injury vs. a multivehicle pileup and serious injuries/fatalities to others, including my 5 year old son and 4 year old daughter, my wife and me. I suspect we all know that feeling and, I suspect, that feeling is the source of Schopp's comments. So I can't call him out on it.

All this began when the speculation about the preseason game 3 starter was ramping up. WGR hosts felt the need to trash EJ when callers suggested that it should be EJ, mostly in the name of a fair competition but also in an acknowledgement of how well EJ had showed in the prior outings. Wanted tp justify that it wouldn't happen since game 3 was so important to the #1 QB. Schopp got really annoyed with this and gave his "He's horrilble (terrible?)" X3 line. He then asked for someone to explain why EJ was getting so much support, I e-mailed this to him: Mike, You're an analytics proponent so here is an analytical case. I would assume that you are familiar with the concept of "quality start" for pitchers. Three or less earned runs and seven or more innings pitched. The idea being that the pitcher has given his team a decent chance to win. Well, apply this type of measure to NFL QBs. What to use as the criteria? I particlarly do not favor the NFL's passer rating as a comprehensive measure. It does not consider sacks, fumbles, rush yards gained nor the game context of when the stats it does track are acquired. I do favor ESPN's tQBR which was developed by Football Outsiders as a comprehensive measure of QB play. I am sure it has its flaws as any measure would have that tries to isolate a QB's play from that of the rest of the offense. The tQBR scale is 0 to 100 with 50 being midscale. I think it's fair to say this would also be a fair measure of a QB performance that gives his team a chance to win. In EJ's 14 starts, he hit 50+ 8 times. The Bills were 5 and 3 in those games with the 3 losses coming against NE (the SJ drop you mentioned earlier) Cle (EJ's 3rd quarter injury and all the bad things that happened after he left) and Atlanta (4th quarter and OT fumbles by SJ and Chandler.) This tells me that the 50+ measure is fair in that EJ played decently enough to give his team a chance but other factors made the result a loss. What is 8 of 14 as a measure? What does it say? Here are how some others stack up. Kyle Orton was 4 of 12 in 2014. This is the guy that was giving the Bills the best chance to win? Joe Flacco was 6 of 16 his rookie year and 9 of 16 in 2013, the year after the Super Bowl win. He starts 16 games every year so credit the Bills for identifying Tyrod Taylor as someone that could be a great QB candidate without much direct evidence. Matt Cassel is 6 of 18 in his last 3 years. As you said today, this is not compatible with "game manager." He would have to play much better to earn that title. I think "game manager" is the title he gets when projecting him as a successful QB in this offense. If they decide to start him, "game manager" is the hoped for outcome. I do not think it's racial. It's the best we could hope for from him. Geno Smith is 8 of 30 for his career. He and EJ have not had similar careers to date. Ryan Tannehill had 8, 8 and 7 of 16, respectively, in his 3 years although he has seen an improvement in that he has had fewer "crappy games." Derek Carr was 7 of 16 in 2014. Blake Bortles was 4 of 14 in 2014. Eli Manning was 9 of 16 in 2007, his 4th NFL season, with 3 games at <10. In 2013, he was 5 of 16. In 2014, Aaron Rodgers was 13 of 16 with 2 other games in the 40's and one other, against the Bills, at 12.4. So, what to think of EJ? I think he has played decently in more games than most would think. His last two games were disastrous but they were heavily influenced by 1) 30+ mph winds and poor protection and 2) extremely poor protection and JJ Watt. In that last game, EJ took 18 hits but only 2 sacks which is an odd, 9:1 ratio. The WRs were credited with 5 drops and the coaching staff called pass to run plays at an inexplicable 2:1 ratio. Even with all that, EJ had the Bills driving to get the lead when a gutless, PI nocall on Robert Woods (that's my opinion, but check it out--it was PI that lasted over 15 yards and probably for 2+ seconds) that lead to the int that sealed the loss. It's these last two games that have most heavily weighed in on how most percoieve EJ. Fans remember them quite well but back-to-back poor games are not uncommon, especially for QBs earlier in their careers. It's not the norm for a HC to bench them for a 4 of 12 talent like Kyle Orton. I see him as a guy that was considered a decent QB prospect that needed development. Give him Nate Hackett as his QB coach his rookie year, sign Kevin Kolb to be the template, mentor QB but see him get concussed out of the NFL in preseason, have him suffer 3 separate knee injuries which forced him to miss 6+ weeks of game prep practice, set him up behind an unsettled, deteriorating o-line which offered particularly poor protection up-the-middle and then ask him to play well with JJ Watt in his face and at his knees. With all these bad circumstances, EJ still managed to be 8 of 14 for "quality starts" in his brief career. A 6 and 8 career record which is really 6 and 7 when you consider that he did not finish the game in Cle (a baseball pitcher does not get credit for a loss like that.) A career 7 and 6 record if either of his teammates protected the ball from trailing defenders. When did patience become so obsolete? How many other QBs took 3 or 4 years in the league to show some progress toward the upper echelons of NFL QBs? This is actually the norm with a few notable exceptions. None of this says he has to start. It all says that he is worth keeping on the roster should they need to go 3 deep like they did in 2013. Retaining him while on his rookie contract to see if he will continue the improvement he has shown this preseason seems prudent. And maybe it says that it would be worth it to give him a chance in game action with the starting group. Regards, I never heard back from him.

Play fake to McCoy to left, quick screen to Sammy on the right for 11 yards. 17 first downs.

In my opnion, Matt Cassel as the #2 is the QB caddy. He works the game plan, practices and videotape sessions right beside Tyrod and is in his ear the most when Tyrod is not on the headset talking to the coaches. If anything happens to Tyrod, Matt is the choice to go in. Who starts the next game, if needed, is a mystery but I think it might be EJ. Rex's comment suggested that there is something atypical about the #2 / #3 QB roles. I have refrained from happy dances of any sort because we are still just guessing about how the coaching staff feels about any of these guys. They might like Tyrod as #1 but we have no clue as to the depth of that support. They may like Cassel as #2 but they certainly weren't prepping him to start with 4 series of live action and they certainly exposed themselves to losing him. In their minds, they obviously were ok with EJ at #2 but we have no idea what they want to see from him that he has yet to show or whether they really believe he can develop into a QB they could win with.

I like this game. I see a resemblance to Percy from The Green Mile. Here's another, Johnny Manziel reminded me of Archie from Rob Roy. Once I get these in my head it somehow changes how I think of them. In some cases, I think look-a-likes do fit a proper perception.

I'll play the game. In the following quote: What was going to follow the "....."? "We brought Matt Cassel back,” Ryan said in an unscheduled meeting with reporters. “We said all along we like our three quarterbacks which is obvious. For your depth chart purposes Matt will be two, EJ [Manuel] will be three, but that means…. As I have said from day one we like all three of the guys and we never want to lose anybody obviously. So that is why we made the decision we did." The "your depth chart" implies the one released to the media. The "but" implies that there is more to the depth chart than appearances. What that is, I do not know. But I will speculate for the fun of it. The Bills like to have Cassel with the ones in practices, running plays that are in the game plan. They think there is something of benefit to Tyrod to have Matt Cassel there with him during practices and reviewing the tape. EJ will run the scout team because it's a better look for the D to defend a QB that can challenge them more and good for EJ because it gives him more reps than what the typical #2 gets. If they were actually going to miss/replace Tyrod for any significant amount of time, I don't know what the hell happens then. But if the answer to that is EJ, then what you have is an atypical #2/#3 situation which seems to be what Rex was starting to say and then didn't finish. #2 and #3 for the purposes of your (the press release roster) roster, but the Bills' situation is not what it seems. Somehow.