JESSEFEFFER

I can see a scenario where EJ was slated for #3 from the get go. Doug Whaley may have made it a condition of the coaching hire that EJ would stay on the roster which fits the stories we heard at the time. DW saying something like "I really believe in EJ and want the next coacing staff to properly develop him because I do not like the job the previous staff did in this regard." We heard Rex say things like "We really need to develop EJ" and " I foresee carrying 3 QBs on the 53 man roster." EJ just had to demonstrate to this coaching staff that he has enough upside to be worth a roster spot, which he probably has done.

I missed this: @john_wawrow More to come: Speaking to AP, #Bills QB Manuel doesn't dispute possibility his days in Buffalo might be numbered. pro32.ap.org/article/manuel… I guess it's this. JW asks if its a possibility. EJ thinks/says that it's not his decision, but he could see why the QB practice rotation might make it seem like that could be the case because he's not an idiot.

Answers always matter most in the context of the questions that are asked. Sees "the writing on the wall" implies it's a done deal. Acknowledging the coaching staff/FO might not have a roster spot for him is making an honest statement about the appearance of the practice rotation. We were told in the Spring by Rex that they were likely to keep 3 QBs. Although that could be including Simms on the PS who was brought in since. We heard that Whaley was talking up EJ during the hiring process and Rex mentioned a need to "develop EJ" when he was hired. Almost implying that he didn't think EJ would be ready but there was a longer term plan for him. My opinion: Show me anything that says EJ has produced less than the typical young NFL QB. Make any case that Matt Cassel has been a more productive NFL QB over his last 3 seasons (something like 6W and 12L, only 6 of those 18 with a tQBR of 50+) than EJ has (6 and 8, with 8 of those 14 games with a tQBR of 50+) in his first two seasons. You have to go back to 2011 to find a time when Matt Cassel played decently in 3 consecutive games. I do not feel good about putting this season in Matt Cassel's hands.

Second snap was on the C. The rest of the o-line was not moving and EJ was still reseting the formation. Only the C thought the play was starting. First snap was not as errant as I thought watching it live. It was definitley high and destined to be over his head, but in order to catch it one has to move their hands up which probably blocks their view of the ball much of the way. An even worse, higher snap can be seen the whole way and is probably easier to catch. I saw Winston bobble a similar snap in his first game. So, my theory is that it is in spot and at an angle/velocity that is tough to track.

Mettenberger? 0 and 6? Only 2 of those starts with a tQBR over 50. That guy? Three starts at sub 10? What makes him better than any of the guys we have in camp? I don't know what it would take to get him but the better question is "what would it take to want him?"

He's been making accurate, downfield throws in the blue/white game and last night. It might be a sign of some degree of improvement so there's that. I think back to the coaching search and how Whaley was reportedly talking up EJ and saying how the previous staff did him no favors. Rex is hired and says something to the effect that there was a "need to develop EJ." It's almost like buying into that was a condition of employment. Removing EJ from the competiton but keeping him on the roster would be consistent with that. Cutting him would not.

He makes that play going to his right. Woods in endzone vs. Ravens, Chandler vs. Chargers and Williams vs. Texans. To his left, its the pick vs. the Bears and that throw last night.

Tyrod Taylor could be the 2015 version of what Michael Vick was a dozen or so years ago. In my mind that is not a good thing. Flashy and entertaining but not really getting the most from his teammates, taking big hits and turning the ball over. Basically, being not good at throwing the ball from the pocket and running at the first sign of pressure is not a prescription to leading a team to wins against other good teams. Or Tyrod Taylor could be like Flutie/Wilson. Outstanding agility, able to deliver accurately from any body position, and very aware of everything going on around him to the point where he never takes big hits and is able to protect the ball. I don't think we could find out which type he is without him playing in real NFL games against elite NFL defenders.

I wonder about this. Sammy had 3 of those drops against Houston. After one of them, I remember Sammy lobbyihg for the ball to have been a foot higher. EJ is getting killed back there and trying to get rid of the ball before the hits come and his receivers are acting like they are the ones having to make plays in difficult circumstances. I hope they felt differently when they saw the game tape. Eighteen hits, 2 sacks. That's 18 near sacks (they have to within a step to make the hit legal) but ony 2 sacks. That's 18 balls delivered 1) with a poor view of the field and/or 2) before the normal timing of the play would dictate. I do not know of QBs that have had good games in similar circumstances.

I've seen him play decently in 8 of his 14 starts. Not bad at the start of an NFL career. I saw his coach bail on him after back to back pitiful games one in which his WRs dropped 5, his o-line let him get pressured on ~50% of his dropbacks, and his coaches called 2X more passes than runs. I saw his replacement have a few decent games but otherwise look ineffective, something like 4 out of 12. That's what I've seen. The man is working to make himself a better QB. I hope he succeeds soon enough to make it obvious so the Bills can benefit at some point.

I was at the game and was one of the "boo-ers." I was booing the entire offense + coaching staff for looking so unprepared to play football afer having looked bad in the HOF game. Receivers that quit routes, slipped on the their breaks and an o-line that took three consecutive penalties are amongst my recollections. The offensive line that day was a sign of trouble to come. So for you to say that the crowd was booing just EJ is a bit presumptive. The 1st team o did start the second half and played well against whomever Tampa Bay was playing.

Based on what I saw last night, I'd extrapolate to these: 1) Cassel performance is what teams do that can't run the ball. A limited, short passing game run by an immobile QB will eventually stiffle the run game. He would eventually have to show some down the field playmaking to make this offense to work. He may be short term low-risk but he offers little longterm reward at the position. Please, please please Rex. Now's the time to let a bold action match your bold talk. 2) Tyrod is intriging. He is definitely worth some situational package plays at the very least. I had always thought of him as Mike Vick-light. I know the Madden and fantasy football playing crowd still thinks highly of him by I never thought he was going to take his teams anywhere. The turnovers, the run at any sign of trouble instinct, poor downfield field passing game doesn't beat good teams. An unaware and indecisive QB that takes big hits is the ticket to offensive failure. Maybe Tyrod can be better. More aware and decisive like Wilson/Flutie. 3) I like how EJ just keeps working when all around him seems to be against him. Three leg injuries and no experienced, dedicated QB coach his rookie year, a deteriorating, unsettled o-line in his second year and a HC looking for a reason to give up on him as he headed into the Houston game. JJ Watt, 18 QB hits (with only 2 sacks taken) 5 WR drops and a disastrous pick 6 and a sub 10 tQBR were waiting for him there. Still he had the Bills driving to take the lead at the end of the game and may have done so if not for a gutless PI no call. Guy takes a bunch of crap and his response is to keep working to get better. He looked pretty good last night from section 328. Rex said 2 drops but I saw a third to Goodwin that looked like it was a laser shot to Goodwin's hands on the sideline. He constantly found the open guy, avoided pressure and delivered accurately. All his work might be paying off. Option 2 or 3 Rex! 2 or 3.

Sounds to me like they are getting Cassel more time with the 1's in preparation for Carolina. Seems like Taylor will be 2nd in. The real test would be how they prepare for the Browns and Steelers.

That's quite punny!

I loved watching Gash play so if Felton is anything close that's good enough for me. Football without FBs and MLBs is just less interesting to me.

Flacco had 6 games with a tQBR at <25 in 2012. Eli's tQBR in 2007, his 4th NFL season, was sub 40. Both of these guys were taking alot of heat from their respective fanbase/media as they were far from great for those 16 game regular seasons. Football Outsiders' DVOA had Flacco at 17th and Manning at 34th in those years. They played good enough to get to the playoffs and then they played great when they got there. IMO, they are the best examples for how middling QB play can finish with a big result. By the way, the Giants' and Ravens' defenses were 13th and 19th, respeectively, in the those years by DVOA. So going back to the OP, these defenses were far from top 3 while their QBs were far from top 10. As for the bolded, do you the comparison now? If you believe that you have to have a great QB to win it all, then you just assume that Manning and Flacco must have been great QBs those years. They were not by any measure.

I think of the 2007 Giants and 2012 Ravens as models for what the Bills could be. Manning and Flacco were not good those years but had great playoff runs capped with SB wins. I don't think either of those defenses qualified as a top 3 but they were certainly a strength.

The thought has come to me that it is a good thing that Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and the like did not exist 25 years ago. Social media and those Bills' players would not have been a good mix. The stories we have heard are bad enough without them having been documented for posterity. Social media is becoming like many social diseases, ugliness that's shared and lasts forever.

SJ in Miami in 2012 and Goodwin at home vs. the Chiefs in 2013 were worse in my book. SJ lost the ball after hitting the ground in the endzone and rolling over and Marquise had the ball pinned to his helmet while on the ground and the defender dislodged it well after the play was legitimately over. I wish I could find the clips but, then again, I'd probably just want to throw something at my computer monitor. When Dez made his play I was convinced it would be a "no catch" and would have been upset if they allowed it when considering those two plays invovling the Bills. There is no way that the nuance of reaching for the endzone with the ball being becoming "a football move" when he never had been balanced and upright with the ball would have set right with me.

There were things about Marrone that I did like and times when I felt like he was showing good management of his team. Backing Dareus, challenging Hughes, giving Mike Williams another chance, sending some sort of message to Woods, talking about players not being good teammates and the like. At the time he benched EJ because of his apparent regression, he said something to the effect that there would be alot of crap coming out but that it wasn't all EJs fault. There things for him to work on and improve and that if he handled his business the right way, EJ could still have a decent NFL career. I was ok with this. It sounded like wisdom. But then Orton started playing like crap, in many ways worse than EJ, and DM kept trotting out the "he gives us the best chance to win" line right up through week 17. Maybe this was still wisdom in that it gave EJ a chance to be remake himself in the offseason without any recent failures to weigh on his confidence and still be a viable starting candidate for the 2015 season. Then we heard the stories about St. Doug how he wasn't pleasant with any of the staff at One Bills Drive, football or otherwise. Wanting the best starting 5 o-lineman not named Urbik, the misreading of his own marketability and his attempted power grab. None of this speaks of wisdom to me. Enter Rex, the new staff and a new season. There certainly is some mystery about how EJ will look in this offense with these coaches. The general assumption outside these parts is that EJ's benching sealed his NFL fate. I'd give that a Lee Corso "Not so fast!" and predict that EJ will succeed under these coaches if given the chance.

I Here's my theory. I think they wanted Orton earlier and he played hard to get. Maybe it was money or a desire to miss training camp altogether and still get a big payday to be the sideline, clipboard holder. Only Marrone messed with the plan by naming him the starter for week 5 and refusing to bench him no matter how bad he played the rest of way. Kyle's plan backfired and he played way more football than he either wanted or was prepared for, so retirement was his best option.

A larger stadium in a smaller market has always meant that fans had some buying options. There was no pressure to buy season ticket to have access to games and no real reason to buy season tickets that included preseason and cold weather games that they would rather not view in person. I do not think the existence of this buyers' market is the same thing as having "Bandwagon" fans. Contrast this to markets where there are season ticket waiting lists and fans do not give theirs up because they know that they will go to the end of the line and will be waiting for a generation to get them back. The fluctuationsin the levels of interstest, enthsusiasm and passion from year to year would be a more accurate definition of "bandwagon fans" but what is the best measure. TV ratings, merchandise sales, out-of-market fan clubs, maybe? The Bills Backers at the Tavern on the Tracks in Charlotte did not strike me as the bandwagon type.

I think that many of us have stated beliefs that EJ performs better 1) under center and 2) with play action. This most likely is the case with the 1st down passes that the article is talking about. Being in the shotgun combined with poor pass protection (3rd and longer passes) injected enough doubt into his game to allow him to perform consistently well.

Being blitzed and being pressured are not the same thing. Some meaningful context about QB performance that comes to my mind: 1) Plays where the QB is hit or sacked. 2) When the pressure is "in his face" vs. from the edge. 3) Plays where a defender has an unabated path vs. just collapsing the pocket. 4) Performance when the blocking scheme against a blitz succeeds vs. when it fails. 5) Plays where only one block failed vs. ones with multiple failures.