Sisyphean Bills

I like that the AFC East is now the toughest division in the NFL. In 2007, the Dolphins were 1-15 and the Jets went 4-12. Heck, as bad as the Jets were, at least they beat a 1st place team in the Steelers. The only semi-decent team the Bills managed to beat was the Redskins and that was on a last second FG. How about his comment about crying to the front office to keep Jauron and company? And to maximize his own potential? He goes elsewhere. I disagree that "grasping at straws" is not a derogatory comment about the franchise. Sugar coat it as only the front office and lack of transparency as much as one wants, but "grasping at straws" is not a positive statement. IMO, the comment is deserved (the Bills are one of the worst franchises in terms of playoff drought in the NFL) and Preston isn't saying anything fans haven't said. He obviously has friends still in Buffalo and he made it clear he had their backs, but since when is a smoothly operating organization so clearly and sharply bifurcated into an assessment that management is grasping at straws while the workers are doing everything they can? Since when is management not part of the organization?

Joe and Devin Thomas.

Don't forget Ko! He's worth zillions!

Selmon brothers belong near the top. Lee Roy is in the Hall of Fame and Dewey was pretty good, an All-Pro in 79. Lucious got drafted but has made his mark in coaching.

I'll assume you are being sarcastic... Yes, it is entirely obvious who is a bust and who is a late bloomer after 1 year. (And a lot of it has to do with what uniform the dude is wearing of course.) Like I wrote before, Hardy may be a late bloomer. To be fair to Eric Moulds though, the Bills had a number of excellent veteran WRs at the time he was drafted so he had more than cardboard cutouts to beat out to get on the field.

I'm not making it sound like anything. The fact is that the Bills haven't drafted an All Pro OL since Ruben Brown. That was a long, long time ago. Indeed, it was many coaches and several front offices ago. The fact is the Bills have no track record of hitting on OL. Speculating that they can draft a great one is just that -- nothing but idle speculation. It could happen, of course; but, there is no evidence to support it. I would question the "hits" that you mentioned. Ellison? Williams? Schouman? You can't be serious. Just because some of these guys have been called upon to play doesn't mean they are world beaters and outstanding picks to build the team around. Heck, almost every one of those guys is quite debatable. Lynch might be an excellent pick if he can stop smoking his bong long enough. Yes, a team has to start somewhere with a rebuild, but going into a 4th year, one would hope that the paper used to patch the holes could be replaced by something more substantial.

Let's see who is an stud OL here. McCargo? Nope. Whitner? Nope. Youboty? Nope. Williams? Nope. Ellison? Nope. Butler? Well, he is an OL, but a stud? Nope. Lynch? Nope. Poz? Nope. Edwards? Nope. Schouman? Nope. Fine? Nope. So, basically you've confirmed the suspicion. Brad Butler, a decent but oft-injured RG, is the only example of an OL that the Bills have drafted. So the notion that the Bills should knee-jerk react, by dumping their most talented OL rather than negotiate with him and snap their fingers and replace him in the draft easily, simply flies in the face of the evidence.

Lineman do remember the guys that kick their ass all day long and make them work at their job. They may remember a guy that sucked real bad too -- but more from in an amused, chuckling way, and certainly with no respect. So while some Bills fans may think Peters is a joke, the players did him the respect of putting him in the Pro Bowl.

Hi Dave, No big thing. We just happen to disagree on this point. I watched Duke Preston plenty last year and he is very below average at best. And times, he is simply horrible and, yes, he sucked bad. I'm quite sure I would never want a guy who can't remember the snap count, the formation, or whether he ever beat New England or not, calling the protections for my offense if I were his coach. Just because we are Bills fans and used to seeing bad football players and just because Duke Preston happened to get his number called to start in Buffalo (What other options did they have? How often have you seen Dick go outside the 53 + taxi mid-season for an answer?) doesn't make him an average player. Indeed, it wouldn't surprise me one iota if the Packers simply cut him this camp. Just because they are willing to give him a shot to make their team in March as a ho-hum FA doesn't make him a great prospect. Lemmings? I've been saying Preston sucks for a long time. I guess I am the pied piper. Exactly. The word was that Fowler told the coaches he didn't feel he could take on Jenkins, Rodgers, etc. Has Fowler signed anywhere, even as camp fodder?

What in the recent Bills draft history makes people think they can just go out and draft a bunch of stud OL?

Anybody have actual stats on how many times Whitner is lined up in the box?

Hopefully, dave is not Linda Bogdan's assistant in OL scouting.

Correct. The Bills haven't beaten New England since Gregg Williams was the head coach.

June is visiting the Texans. He has not signed with them; earlier post was due to a misleading report.

It's a pretty steady refrain from fans that athletes that are not solid football players will emerge as good (if not great) football players at some time in the future after watching, learning, clapping, and sitting on the sidelines. Yeah, it sometimes works out that a guy is a late bloomer. Maybe it will with Hardy. On the other hand, Hardy already got a chance to display his imposing athletic skills in NFL games and defenses snuffed him out even while rolling their coverage packages away from him. In short, he sucked, catching 9 balls in 14 games.

Like how Parker used Russ "Hard Ball" Brandon to set the market value on Laveranues Coles? It may have turned out OK, marketing-wise it worked out great, as the Bills bounced back with Owens... but Owens is a 1 year mercenary and a massive headache. Team building, fug it.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/posturing Of course they are going to ask for the moon. He's played for below average for his position his entire career to date.

The Boz.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07117/781485-66.stm Note that the Bills use a 4-3 Tampa-2 defense.

I didn't know KOK was your papa. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?...tick+up+the+ass

Is Rudy in the draft this year?

You can never have too many CBs. Especially if they are as brittle as Yourbooty.

Monroe County is sort of the borderland between "Central NY" and "Western NY". Definitive source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_New_York

So , basically, you are disagreeing with NFL coaches, defenders, etc. that have gone on record on the topic and saying Hardy's route running is fine because he caught a TD. OK.

Of course, I wouldn't really expect Dick to say or indicate anything other than it is all systems go, he's pleased as punch with the guys he has, they have a good relationship, and everybody's working hard. In a position where performance isn't relevant, it is great for everyone to work hard on culture, build strong friendships, and develop a tight cozy community.