thebandit27

I think 5 is a bit too high for us, but that's cool to see...I'd say 8-10 is more reasonable. A few other thoughts: - To heck with suspensions, Pittsburgh is #1 - SD is ranked waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too high - Atlanta and Cincinnati are ranked waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too low - New Orleans still has a great shot to produce a top-5 triplets unit - How the Rams could rank above anyone right now is beyond me

Jonathan Williams was reportedly very impressive during minicamp and OTAs, so that should be considered. I think you're looking at McCoy/Bush/Gilislee/J-Will on the active roster, with Karlos on the RES/SUS and Wilder on the PS. Depending upon how Reggie looks and the state of injuries, Karlos' return will coincide with Gilislee being shown the door or someone going to IR.

Freddie was a nice player, but that's all. They gave 56 away after Darryl Talley, 90 away after Phil Hansen, 94 away after Mario, 80 away after Lofton, etc. Freddie doesn't hold a candle to those guys.

Bruce Arians Greg Roman Wade Phillips

Above: Sammy Watkins, Jonathan Williams Below: Ronald Darby, Kyle Williams I don't really see a problem with the Sammy opinion given that you've couched it in the respect that he should put up elite numbers. If he has 80 catches for 1,200 yards and 10 TDs, it's a great season. It wouldn't be elite, and therefore would fall below expectations. Am I on target (no pun intended) with how you're stating this?

Ah ok--I guess if it were me, I'd push for a while, but in the end, I have to believe that a guy like Bosa would believe in himself enough to meet somewhere in the middle and sign simply to get on the field. But that's me speaking from afar. Yes, teams have to set aside all gtd money into escrow. The issue becomes how long they withhold signing bonus/upfront cash. For a long time, teams were able to defer portions of those payments for over a year (sometimes two); now, agents are pushing to get the money paid in less time. It's silly IMO, as the whole thing is guaranteed anyway.

It's not breaking news that the President of the Team talks to the owner. If all you're doing is pointing out that Brandon answers questions when he's asked or speaks to the owner and GM, well, my response is: so what? I think, however, that it's clear that you ascribe blame for the on-field product to him, otherwise there's zero point in bringing it up repeatedly. So let me give you the chance to make clear your beef with him: what are the hirings/personnel moves/football-related facets of the team for which you are blaming Russ, and why do you think it's his influence that is the driving force in those decisions (as opposed to him playing the "yes man" role in football decisions made by the GM and owner)? Seems to me this boils down to you not being happy that he told the Pegulas not to let Rex leave, and if that's the case, well, then your complaint should be with Whaley. As the head of football operations, it's his job to speak up if he thinks it's a bad hire. Neither Russ nor the Pegulas would've ignored him and done what they wish; that is not their style (nor has it ever been). For the record, I also am disappointed with Whaley in that regard. If he felt strongly that Rex wasn't the right guy, then he should've pressed the issue. Maybe he was nervous having never been through this process with the new ownership before, but the GM job requires that kind of gumption. At the same time, if he truly was fine with Rex's hiring, then (IMO) he missed the mark with that as well. I've never been a big Rex fan, and I don't think it was a great hire (despite the fact that I think he's a fun character and would be great to have a beer with).

I think you misread (or maybe I stated it poorly)--I think that, while both sides are being too stubborn, the team is the one that should blink first (i.e. Bosa shouldn't have to take offset language or compromise on cash flow). They picked him, and they did it 3rd overall in a very talented draft. They look silly, IMO, trying to force offset language on him--it's basically admitting that they aren't sure about him, in which case they shouldn't have taken him 1st overall. Of course, I suppose it's possible that the impasse comes down to the cash flow of the contract, in which case I still think they're being cheap.

They're both being too stubborn--the whole contract is guaranteed. However, if forced to pick, I'd say the team should blink first--you picked the guy 3rd overall. Forcing offset language is basically admitting that you aren't sure about him at this point.

Not sure I agree with that last part, but yes, Mr. Wilson was quite the friend to WNY

That about sums it up. It's really not that complicated, though I'm not at all surprised to see Nihilarian bust out the "you must be a shill" argument. It fits really well... I'm the shill that didn't like the Rex hire I'm the shill that didn't like that Whaley didn't get to hand-pick his coach I'm the shill that hated the Darby pick (glad to be wrong!) I'm the shill that hated the Kouandjio pick (hated being right!) When faced with the idea that the need to blame one single person for 16 years of futility is misguided, it becomes a lot easier for some to cast history aside and apply labels instead. #shillinlikeavillian Absolutely...if nothing else, he knows what the people want to hear. It doesn't surprise me one bit that Uncle Terry loves Russ--they have the same philosophy: hire qualified people that you trust, and then let them do their jobs. What's always been interesting to me about the insistence that Russ is heavily involved in personnel is that for the better part of 2 years (from January 2013 to October 2014), he had veto power over any personnel decision that the GM wanted to make (as acting CEO in Mr. Wilson's stead). Never once (to my knowledge) did he exercise it--he wanted Whaley (and Nix) to sink or swim on their own. In fact, when Whaley wanted to move up for Sammy and give away significant resources to do so, Russ told him "be bold". That's hardly a guy that reeks of interfering in personnel. But in the end, folks will believe what they want. The truth is like gravity--it's there regardless of what we believe. Mr. Wilson did a LOT of things wrong--one thing I'll never fault him for is his desire to win. He just didn't know how to do it. I am happy that he brought in Nix, who then brought in Whaley, because yes, it seems like Whaley's got the train moving in the right direction. As I said before though: they need to take the next step, and soon, or new people will (and should) be driving the train.

Of course he's not 100% forthcoming about everything with the media. Nobody is. On this particular subject, as he says, the draft that folks want to attribute to him would be one that he had no reason to distance himself from--Wood/Byrd/Levitre was a solid haul. Moreover, let's apply simple logic here: his boss--the owner of the team--is happy with the job he's done. He has no impetus to distance himself from any job he's currently doing, so if he draws a distinction so clearly, there's no reason to suspect he's not being truthful. IMO, Brandon catches blame for the football department because folks want to find a common thread to tie together 16 years of non-playoff football. Why not Russ since he's a highly ranking team official? Unfortunately, it's not really the truth. The truth is that it's been systemic--bad drafting, bad coaching, poor allocation of resources. It's gotten better under Whaley and Pegula, but they need to take the next step.

What this comes down to, for you, is confirmation bias. In the link above, Russ's own words printed in black and white say specifically that he's not involved in the scouting process. So that should seal the book on it, but alas, instead of believing the simple truth before you, you'd rather rely on a board source that--while I appreciate the info he's brought--has been wrong as often as he's been right. I like Leroi. He's cheeky and has occasioned to have good info. He's also been flat-out wrong on some things--no biggie. I started this exchange by telling you that you don't have to believe me, but he is wrong about Russ's role. You don't even have to take my word for that--Russ's words are right there for you. I don't have any compulsive need to defend the organization; I do prefer that folks that criticize them know what they're criticizing. Anyway, I suggest we take it to PM if you want to discuss it further--I feel like we're getting in the way of the thread

Leroi had had some things dead right. He's also had some things dead wrong (like who our 3rd rd pick was going to be there year we took Darby and that Cardale Jones would compete for the #2 job this year, and that EJ would be cut just to name a few). That's not to pick on him--it's only to say that not all info that anyone has is gospel. What I'm telling you is that the Pegulas don't need to be swayed by Russ or anyone else. If they feel strongly about something, they'll move on it. Now, my opinion is that I agree that Whaley should've had autonomy in picking the coach. What I can't do is attribute the Pegulas' decision to go with Rex to some sorcery by Russ. Even when he was the "GM" in title he didn't make those kinds of decisions--it's not his MO...and that's straight from his own mouth. http://www.syracuse.com/buffalo-bills/index.ssf/2015/10/bills_sabres_president_russ_brandon_new_role_criticism_unbelievable_year.html

Hey, I was no fan of the hire myself. Of course, I didn't want Hue Jackson either

I personally don't, no. I have a very close friend that does. Additionally, there are folks on this board that have direct contact with the beef over at OBD, and at least one of them has corroborated what my friend told me. And you're reaching too far if you think anyone manipulated the Pegulas. They liked Rex, and Russ advised them that if they (the collective they) thought he was their man, then they shouldn't let him leave. You're hanging too much on this quote. For the record, as I understand it, if Whaley was dead set against Rex, he could've plead his case. He wasn't, and he didn't. He did make it clear that Hue Jackson was his 1st choice, but make no mistake: Whaley liked Rex (and still does for that matter).

I guess I need to understand how Whaley is sub-par, since by your own admission they now have a guy that you think is a franchise QB? When compared to the rest of the league, he's been average, though I'd say slightly above that given how the 2015 draft looks. Just FYI--you don't have to believe this if you choose not to, but what you're claiming went down with regard to Russ isn't what happened. I know you like to cite this "don't let him leave the room" stuff. The fact that the president encouraged the owners to move quickly when they identified their guy is being overblown.

This pleases me

Slight hyperbole here. Striker was a decent edge rusher; a guy that could win with speed and not much else. He doesn't really have a 2nd trick in his repertoire when speed rushing doesn't get it done. I'm not saying that he can't develop into a situational guy as a pass rusher. In fact, I think he can eventually play downs as an EDGE and as a Will; he's a guy that I really liked as a mid-round developmental prospect. I do think, however, that he's got a lot of work to do before he can be a spot-duty player in the NFL. Pure speed rushers tend to get chewed up and spit out by NFL OTs. I must've missed the timeline report Yolo...what was it exactly?

Blokes certainly doesn't need me to defend him--he's quite capable himself. I will say on his behalf that he's quite informed. He knows his stuff, and though I'll admit I haven't read every single one of his posts, he has never struck me as a negative guy. Are you sure you've got the right poster? It just seems really out there to see someone accuse Blokes of being extremely negative...

No, you haven't. In fact, you've addressed approximately 0.0 of the points I made in the previous post (again). You asked for context; I gave it to you; no response. You asked how Sammy fared against great defenses, and I answered; no response. All you've done is completely ignore that context matters, and totally dismiss real, actual, quantifiable statistics that run counter to your argument. Which, again, is fine as long as you don't want to be taken seriously. That you manage to couple it with personal insults every time does make it more entertaining though, which I know is what you're after anyway. If you had any real interest in discussion, you'd be at work trying to explain why Sammy's "inconsistency" is actually more consistent than Antonio Brown's performance when both are receiving similar numbers of targets, instead of falling back on the idea that quantity of targets has no correlation to performance (which again, you haven't even acknowledged). I don't lecture; I inform. And I make honest assessments while considering context. I don't endeavor to trump up a stance simply because I don't have a changeable disposition. Were that the case, I'd still be firmly entrenched in the EJ-can-be-a-franchise-QB camp. Don't waste keystrokes. He won't address your points even when you spell them out clearly. It's not that he can't; it's that he won't.

Not my words, yours: But I can see why you've bailed on the discussion. As i said before, if you bring anything of substance to the table that even remotely contradicts what I've said, I'll be happy to respond.

That sounds positive on Gilmore; they said many of the same things about Glenn, Hughes, and Dareus

He's been with the training staff all offseason--if they didn't want him playing basketball, then he wouldn't be doing it. Sammy's serious about his preparation.

I don't think it should depend squarely upon continuity. I do favor it, but at the same time, the team needs to be showing signs of progress, since Rex hasn't earned the benefit of the doubt yet. IMO, it'll be obvious whether or not they should sack the current regime. If they make progress on both sides of the ball, and it's palpable, then they should stay regardless of whether or not they have a playoff campaign (though I tend to believe that significant progress on both sides of the ball would yield a playoff berth). If they don't progress on either side, then they're gone. If it's somewhere in the middle, then the record will speak for itself; anything other than a winning season should probably see them gone.