All_Pro_Bills

Consistency in head coach Front office that identifies and signs good talent through both the draft and FA An awareness of when to let players go (Bledsoe) - especially if you get good draft picks in exchange Proficiency, if not strength, in defense (ranked in top 1/3) A very good QB Good o-line and d-line A couple of star players but none of whom attract unwanted or negative attention That's a good list and great insight summarizing those attributes. One I'd add is the use of a consistent and repeatable system in building your team and the approach to the game, which eliminates switching philosophies numerous time (e.g. the Steelers have followed basically the same approach for over 30 years). So onto the hard part, doing it. Look at each one of these winning attributes and ask what is keeping the Bills from embracing each of these qualities of a winning organization? For arguments sake I'd say its ownership and front office management failures. Look at coaching talent. Switch Jeff Fisher with Dick Juron and you'd tell yourself with a straight face that the Bills and Titans would both have the same records they have now with their current coach? Some will say funding in small markets vs. big markets is a factor. But I've never seen the results of an external of each NFL teams books so I suspect while a few teams are making an obscene amount of money the rest are doing pretty good too.

The sad thing is why doesn't Ralph want to build a team that wins? Either his sense of reality is distorted or he just doesn't care. Given how long this has gone on I suspect its the later. So sell the team now to a group commited to building a winner in Buffalo and avoid higher capital gains and/or estate taxes that the new administration is going to impose on transactions starting in 2009. As someone who has backed the Bills since the early 80's I find it difficult to entertain the idea of boycotting the team in any manner. But I understand the sense of frustration, anger, and grief people are feeling.

Everyone seems to agree the defense could use a talent upgrade at a couple key positions, most importantly at DE and LB. But I’ve never questioned their effort. If you give up less than 17 points you should win most of those games. If the pass rush was just average this defense would be generating more turnovers and big plays. Most Sunday’s the opposing QB could be wearing a white tuxedo and not have to worry about the dry cleaning bill on Monday. Give almost any QB that much time and he’ll pick about a secondary. The offense on the other hand, specifically the O-Line just doesn’t seem to make any effort or have fire in their guts. With a couple exceptions these guys have played like slackers this year. Every game I see the graphic about the Bills having one of the ‘biggest’ offensive lines in the league, maybe the biggest. Unfortunately big without athleticism, smarts, strength, and a SOB mean streak doesn’t cut it in the NFL. This O-line should be knocking the snot out of D-lines if only they’d show some passion and fire. Some would argue this is a reflection of the coach but that’s another long painful subject.