JESSEFEFFER

Wow. 1560 posts on this guy. I guess this is 1561 or maybe someone else will beat me to it as I type this. The thing I like most about Nassib as a pick is that he knows the offense well enough to run it. This Bills has tailored it him and seen him succeed in it. This may give him an overall advantage on Kolb and Jackson and make it more likely that he will get meaningful snaps in the 2013 season. If the Bills can get him later, 2nd round or trade down, all the better. Then they might know whether to invest a top pick on a QB in the 2014 draft without having to wait around for their 2013 QB pick to learn the offense in order to better evaluate him.

He does fine with tracking punts and kickoffs. Fielding punts on a windy day is not easy at any level. Where he does have trouble is when tracking the ball when running up the sidelines. Specifically on the defensive left side when his back is to the ball and the vision from his left eye is the most critical. He might be severely right eye dominant. That's my totally uninformed hypothesis. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocular_dominance

As I recall, he threw multiple picks and had a throw where McKelvin was in perfect position for another but Rice(?) went right over his back for the TD. The Bills could not block Jared Allen and the Bills 2nd and 3rd choices at center had problems executing snaps. That was an ugly game.

My point was that the list of names I provided were deemed worthy of a 1st round pick. I through Weeden in because of his age and the others because they were in the top half of the 1st. Some team decided to "roll the dice" on them. I am asking what made these guys better prospects than what we see in this year's group. Maybe no one at the very top (Newton, Luck, etc.) but still a group of guys that warrant a shot.

If anyone can tell me what made Gabbert, Locker, Ponder, Tanneyhill and 28 year old Brandon Weeden so much better prospects than Manuel, Nassib, Barkley, Smith and Wilson, I'd like to hear it. Flawed college QBs that have potential to be winners are there most every draft. Tom Brady is still an unathletic, girly man. Being successful is more about developing a skillset that can overcome flaws and less about eliminating them.

When considering Ponder, Locker and Gabbert all went in the top 15 of the 2011 draft, I am of the opinion that we'll see something similar this year. Were these guys so much better as NFL prospects? I think not. I suspect, the Bills liked Ponder but were stunned to see him go so early. Same with Kaepernik, Wilson, and Cousins. The rookie wage scale has rewritten the rules about when they get drafted, how soon they should step in, and how much progress they should show. It will be much easier to kick Gabbert to the curb than Bradford. Ryan Fitzpatrick was never Mr. Right, he was Mr. Right Now and the Bills thought they could be patient and make a choice with which they were comfortable but they have been slow to realize that the rules regarding drafting and developing QBs have changed. Show me a quick, athletic QB but who takes a lot of sacks and doesn't break many plays on his feet and I can't help but think that they are "slow on their feet" thinkers. Maybe that is why Geno is #4 four in Al's ratings.

I am puzzled with the interest they showed. The guy had 4 drug test violations. One came after the lockout and all those that failed this got a mulligan (some sort of fairness issue.) Then he was one of two players to fail the retest and gets a 4 game suspension. Would the Bills draft a college player with that kind of record? Maybe the details would have helped it make some sense but I'd put him in the "too stupid to play on my team" category.

Scott Chandler has been the best down field receiver the Bills have had the last two sesons. Although not fast, he gets into his route early and plays the ball well when above his head. Even when covered, Fitz liked throwing it to him especially if the defender was in chase mode with their back to the ball.

They want another veteran QB on the roster to add to the mix during training camp but at a certain price. They wanted it to be Fitz but he was not comfortable with the setup and decided it was time to move on. Thus, they have to look elsewhere to find this other guy. So, I don't find any of this strange. I'd be OK with them drafting two, ala the Redskins. Nassib and Scott for instance. When the Seahawks went to camp with Wilson, Jackson and Flynn I doubt that they had any idea which of the three, if any, would take control of the position.

Seems to me that they might draft two. That's why they would be interviewing both top of the board candidates (likely 1/2 rounders Smith, Barkley, etc.) and down the board guys (Scott, Dysert, etc.) The Redskins taking Cousins last year worked out OK for them and the Bills have only two on their roster at present and they will go to camp with at least 4.

Or maybe just a "high" player. Failing 4 drug tests, two after the lockout, sounds like a man with a drug problem to me. I'd really need to know the details before I could like such a move.

I'd say the CBA is working. Instead of paying stupid money to college players they can now spend stupid money on players that have some NFL pedigree. They have game tape and work history to build their resume. It's a better system, IMO.

It makes sense. I think George Wilson and Fitz can help them win. We all know that the two of them combined to get them one of their wins last year. Seriously, both are good men with a professional attitude to match. I just wish they were better clutch performers.

Why yes I have. No human being covers 7 yards in .5 seconds (~28mph) from a standstill. Yusain Bolt tops out there between the 60th and 80th meter marks. So I reject your exaggeration. Cutler holds the ball too long and is slow to make a decision but he is quick to chew out his teammates when he's on camera. He's not the guy to have back there when there are serious protection problems. The week two game against GB was a memorable one. 7 sacks and 4 picks and he's chewing out his teammates left and right as he's heaving balls downfield into triple coverage. All that and the Bears still lost by only 23-10. I've never seen Fitz show up a teammate via on camera tirades for the viewing public's consumption. When TJ Graham owned up to making the wrong route adjustment in the Pats game, Fitz said that he "didn't need to do that." Many people who are inclined to direct blame at him and him alone figure the protection never breaks down early and receivers never run the wrong routes. It's all on Fitz which is ok with him. It's part of his leadership style. I've read some here put Cutler in the top 10 of NFL QBs. As for me, I'd hate to have a QB like that starting for my favorite team. Cutler's on field results are in Ryan's territory. That's Fitzpatrick not Matt.

The turnovers are a problem but to state it the way you do is misleading. How many QBs have 45 or more starts over the last 3 years. Answer not many. Who is in 2nd place? I think it's Eli Manning who is one behind (with 48 starts.) Turnovers are often a function of being behind and forcing plays. The way the Bills defense has played the last 3 years, being behind is more the norm. Why not do turnovers/game start and get back to us. You could give Fitz some credit for starting 45 games even though, as most QBs do, he has taken a beating. There are those that would have come out. Speaking of Jay Cutler, Fitz has provided as good as or better production than Cutler has over the last 3 years and the bonus is that Fitz is not a jerk. People love the idea of a strong-armed, 1st rounder like Cutler but what has that gotten the Bears? They've actually had a decent defense the last three years. The crunch time failures of 2012 are most troubling to me. Fitz had been a 50/50 kind of guy to play well in the clutch in the two years prior. Last year was a big step backwards.

He has trouble finding the ball and reacting to it when looking over his shoulder thus allowing the receiver to make a better play on it. This could be a peripheral vision, right eye-left eye dominance or the like. Otherwise he covers well and is an elite return man and seems to have a good team first attitude. He handled his demotions by becomming a better return man, for instance. This is a good signing. It's less than Terrance McGee signed for two contracts ago.

I thought he was a better passer at Missouri than Gabbert was although he had Maclin and Coffman to throw to. Maybe that's not saying much. He's short but so are Brees and Wilson. If he can be gotten for a reasonable price, then great. Leave no stone unturned and maybe someday we'll all agree that the QB problem is fixed for a decade. I am all for a plan A, A1, B, C, whatever. Keep trying until its fixed,.

Just speculating, but I would guess that Fitz has a restructured, more cap friendly contract offer in hand and has been given a certain amount of time to mull it over. That is why NIx can say that nothing has been decided yet. They are waiting to hear his answer. If they weren't interested in retaining him in any way they would have cut him by now. There's been plenty of time to do the evaluation.

I am hoping that the Bills are still interested in him, just not at the RFA tender amount. Coming off that injury, this would make some sense to me. The reports I heard just said they weren't going to offer him the tender amount which was something like $1.7 million to keep his rights. WRs with great hands that can still perform given the physical play underneath are valuable to an offense, imo. Give me what Naaman Roosevelt or David Nelson offered in their rookie and 2nd years over what TJ Graham did in his rookie year. Often times a 3rd down drop has the same effect as a turnover. Football players vs. track stars.

If cut he gets nothing additional. The cap hit is the unamortized, if that's a word, portion of the signing bonus he has already received. The incentive to restructure usually involves some up front money but on a lesser, revalued contract rather than facing the uncertainty of free agency.

It's largely up to Mike Pettine Jr to redefine the Nix tenure. If he can do for a putrid Bills' defense what Wade Phillips did for a putrid Texans' defense then things will look much different. I do not think the Jets' D talent is that much better than what the Bills have so there should be a good chance to make a big improvement. The QB position is another story and I think the rules for drafting/developing one are changing before our eyes. Rookies are performing at levels hitherto unseen. Patience used to be a necessary virtue but now it's likely to bring contempt. How can Gabbert get more development time when other rookies are playing like MVPs? I think they have pretty much liked most of the QBs they brought in for interviews which means that guys like Ponder, Wilson, Kaepernik and Cousins were on their radar but the old rules for determining their draft value are no longer valid.

Comparing a QBs completion % when he plays his 8 home games in a dome and 3 road games in NO, Charlotte, and TB to those of QBs that play outdoors in the northeast is not sensible.

I think McKelvin is fine at covering most routes but has difficulty finding and playing the ball on vertical ones where he has to track the ball over his shoulders. I seriously wonder if they have had his vision checked thoroughly. As it was, I was buying the "Leodis to cover the slot receiver" stories we getting in training camp and I thought he looked good there in the exhibition games . I know I would have been much happier to see him rather than Rogers covering Welker and can't really understand why it didn't happen.

I don't think he was worse. Interceptions were down. Sideline under throws seemed less abundant. Overthrows seemed more likely. Besides, I am talking QB guru here. Watching film, critiquing practices, building confidence, teaching the reads, talking to the media, whatever it takes to make him an effective pro. Don't think Ben was playing his best football very often this year. Let me restate it this way. Marrone made it a priority to have a DC with a successful NFL pedigree. I think this was smart thinking. I'd have thought the same if he made a it similar prerequisite for his QB COACH, not necessarily the OC. QB play and the defense were the biggest weaknesses (defense way more so, IMO) and bringing in guys with a successful NFL pedigree in both these areas would have been a wise thing to do. Maybe Hackett can wear both those hats but doing both those jobs at the NFL level for the first time might be too much to ask.

Maybe so, Burt Kurt Warner was a finished product. Who has Haley developed? Just asking.