purple haze

The problem wasn’t that he asked a tough question. The problem was he made himself the story. No reason for him to inject his opinion the way he did. He’s not a columnist paid to give his opinion; he’s a blogger/reporter. Sully is the columnist. Larry Felser was a columnist. TG is a reporter who asked a legit question, then followed that up by giving a personal opinion he didn’t need to give. He should have reframed EJ’s question back to him by relaying fan concerns about his knee and asked EJ his response to fans' feeling that’s a reason they might need to take another QB. Journalism 101. Unless one has an agenda. TG wouldn’t have one of those would he?

He was always the same dude you described after your first sentence. Needlessly negative and an outright d*&@k. He is a wrestling heel with a keyboard and tape recorder. Wasn’t sorry he left the board. Notice he doesn’t like people calling him out... Allen Wilson was a great reporter and I like Joe B and Coach Sal. I think they are fair minded even if others disagree with their opinions from time to time. But the Schopp & Bulldogs and Tim Graham’s et al can be upgraded.

Torrey Smith. How about Anquan Boldin? How about Jacoby Jones (He’s better now than he was in Houston as WR).

I don’t think it’s that they don’t want to keep O’Neil. I think they know it’s just good mojo to let a man who has worked hard get his promotion.

Borland is really good. I also like Shayne Skov out of Stanford. Very aggressive, fiery and has a nose for the ball.

We’ll wait and see. At least he has some very good talent to work with. If they aren’t any good there won’t be any excuses for him.

Not bad if we’re just counting his DC stint. It would also be interesting to see the talent on hand when he had the various results. Does play a part. Schwartz is very respected in league circles. The Bills have talent on hand. Considering the circumstances they did well from where I sit. Wade Phillips would have been good too, but I couldn’t see that happening based on the history even though he said he’d be willing to return to any city he was a HC in. Schwartz also fits in with the Bills under Brandon’s paradigm of young/aggressive.

Overrating him based on what though? As a HC he wasn’t the answer. As a DC he was very experienced and accomplished. I know he’s under contract. That’s why I said technically they don’t have to let him go. I think it’s the right thing to do though. Either way, no sweat off my back. O’Neil won’t be in the bread line.

Very true. I like this hire. Schwartz turned out to be a questionable HC, but as a DC he’s very accomplished. And the Bills have talent at every level of the D. I like that Brandon and Whaley have a plan and appear to execute it. It speaks to an overall preparedness and confidence in their evaluations. I dig. I dig.

Nah. Why penalize O’Neil? It would be a promotion for him. Marrone should let him go onward and upward. They can find another LB coach. Just like McCarthy shouldn’t tie Alex Van Pelt to being a QB coach when he could be an OC with the Browns. Technically they don’t have to, I get that. Just saying it would be good mojo.

He can only follow Pettine if the Bills give him permission. If they go in-house I would take O’Neil. Wouldn’t mind Henderson either, but O’Neil has been around that scheme longer. If they go w/a proven guy outside the organization I say Wade Phillips. If they go outside the box totally I say John Chavis or Kirby Smart.

God bless him, it’s a great opportunity for Pettine. Bills still have the talent. I would promote from within just to keep continuity. Donnie Henderson or Jim O’Neil seem to be the best options on that front. Since it’s so late in the day I don’t know of outside DC options that would be viable who are dedicated to running the same aggressive, hybrid scheme. Pepper Johnson maybe? I have advocated for the Bills to go defense (LB specifically) at pick 9 and losing Pettine makes me double-down on that desire. We need to get the most talent on this D as possible. Make the D damn near coach proof if that’s possible.

His wife is from the south, I believe. And Whisenhunt went to school at Georgia Tech. It might be that they want to get back to the region; add the extra money; add the fact that Martin Mayhew could be on his last legs in Detroit and a new GM might want his own coach and Detroit, as talented as they are, might not be the best choice. Everything is not about “rust belt” or people not wanting to be there. I’m sure most in the Lions organization don’t live in the city, but in the suburbs where the money is. The Lions situation could change again very soon. It’s a pressure cooker that the new HC in Detroit would be stepping into. It doesn’t appear to be that way in Tennessee. Why do you believe they would be living in the city itself? Come on now...

Even if they do away with the extra point I don’t think it would stop the commercial barrage. That’s a large part of how the league is making it’s money. Look for more commercials, not less, unfortunately. And I wish Goodell would stop messing with the game. He’s really irritating at this point.

NoSaint, I hear you. I would contend that the broadcast networks LOVE Richard Sherman. For all those that don’t care for his on-field persona, they will still watch the Super Bowl. And those casual fans will watch too and root for Sherman to get his azz kicked; just like they rooted against a Deion Sanders or Mike Irvin or a Charles Barkley or a Muhammad Ali, etc… Eyeballs means more ad dollars which means more money all around. Sherman will make money because he will make everyone else money. Think about why Erin Andrews grabbed him instead of the guy who actually caught the interception. Or Marshawn. Or Russell. Because he’s a live wire. He speaks his mind. He’s entertaining. Sherman is not in it alone. All that said, I can understand why Sherman’s antics rubs some people the wrong way. I don’t take any issue with that. My old coach would have had us sitting on the bench. But all Sherman is is a loud talker. There is nothing else to be extrapolated from his outspokenness. For people to do that is what I take issue with because often it is not innocuous; there is more behind it. And in the grand scheme Sherman’s antics are just about meaningless.

You’d be surprised at how many people are saying exactly what they mean and couching it behind that term. That’s what I don’t like about the use of “thug” in this instance. Sherman, as far as any of us can know, has never been violent in the public arena or in any type of legal trouble. Yet, he’s a “thug." Was he loud? Yep. Was he over the top? Yep. Was it literally, seconds after an emotional game? Yep. Will that turn off a lot of people? Yep. But there is a large swath for who any young, black male is a thug regardless of other facts about the individual person. In another thread someone brought up Sherman being from Compton and guns, etc. And that person probably hasn’t been to Compton recently if ever. I have. A lot of different people in Compton like anywhere else. Where I’m from a braggart is a braggart and a loud mouth is a loud mouth. A thug will knock you over your head and rob you, or steal your car or some such criminality. Sherman is not now known and has not been known to do anything of that sort. You’re right. But I assure you many of those black men and women aren’t labeling Sherman a “thug” or blowing this thing up all out of proportion. He’s a loudmouth. That’s very different than what many have described him as. One would think Sherman beat up Erin Andrews, cursed America out and stole the camera. Sherman has been a loud talker for a long time. It’s not new. Why does everyone act like it is?

Agree with this WEO. I don’t see why this is supposed to be that big of deal. Trash Talk has ALWAYS been in sports. The difference is the coverage of the game. Athletes misbehaved off the field back in the day. But there was no TV coverage in Babe Ruth’s day. In Mickey Mantle’s day the writers chose not to include his personal life into their pieces, the same as they did for many politicians. Trash talk and bad behavior is not new. Just how much attention is paid has changed. And BTW, Richard Sherman is far from a thug. He’s playing a violent game; an emotional game; against an arch-rival; against a specific player, Crabtree, he has a beef with; and here comes a camera thirty seconds after the game ends. TV got what they wanted. Sherman knows what they feed on. Nobody should act like they are surprised. Could he calm down a bit? Yeah, he could. But the guy didn’t kill anyone or rob anyone. No bar room brawls he’s in the middle of. Sherman is very intelligent and will wind up laughing all the way to the bank of endorsements, while some continue to mischaracterize him as a thug. If Richard Sherman is accused by some on this board of being a thug, that person does not truly know what a thug is in today’s age.

Britt is too unreliable off the field. They can do better.

I voted Mosley. Bills can have a dominant defense if they had another three down LB next to Kiko. Mosley is that guy. EJ’s best friend could be a dominant defense. If not Mosley, then Robinson or Watkins would make me happy too.

Dr. Tooth, listing your reasons for turning coat are meaningless here. You aren’t convincing any true fan that they should follow your “lead.” Although I understand the frustration that causes thoughts of bailing, I do not understand the actual follow-through. Thinking and doing are two different things. I have thought about it too out of anger. But I would never actually bail on the Bills. I was born into being a Bills fan. And a true fan would not just bail out and claim allegiance to another team. You actual feel about the Steelers how you felt about the Bills? Really? What goes around comes around. The Bills will be relevant again and I will be there to enjoy the sweetness of that after suffering through these bitter years. This is a taste you will not know because you ran out and abandoned the team you supposedly loved. So, be gone and good luck. Just make sure you don’t come running back when times get better; no need to come here with congratulations; no need to explain why you had to do what you had to do, but really didn’t want to do because the Bills/WNY made you do it. You would simply be one in a long line of bandwagon riders, no better than those thousands of minions claiming the Patriots after Belichick and Brady led them to their post-apocolypse recovery. Good riddance to you, Dr. Benedict Arnold Tooth.

Trying to take players I didn’t notice others mention yet: Biscuit and D. Talley on defense and Joe D., Reggie McKenzie and Conrad Dobler on offense. Because we need more nasty.

Jernigan would be interesting, but redundant, I think. I’d take Mosley. Best thing Whaley can do for EJ and that offense is get a dominant defense and they are only a couple pieces away from having one. Moseley would be a great pick in terms of talent/position need and value of pick. (and I’m not a “value” guy at all. Just saying what the experts would say.) Moseley or Mack. They are more versatile. Barr is excellent, but more a straight up pass rush threat and we already have a player like him in Hughes.

Byrd has almost twice as many INT’s in his five year career as Leonhard does in his 9 year career. Byrd has more than quadruple the the Forced Fumbles. Byrd has more defensed passes. Byrd has just 30 less tackles than Leonhard. Again, Leonhard has played four more seasons. So please, STOP. Leonhard is a good player. Byrd is an elite player at his position, on par with Weddle and Berry who are making top dollar. Byrd should be making top dollar. And if the Bills didn’t tag him a different organization would pay him top dollar. Players who create turnovers consistently are rare. Paying the man should not even be an issue at this point. You forget Troy Polamalu. Eric Berry and Eric Weddle are getting paid top dollar. How much do you think another team would pay to get Byrd in FA? You think he would get as much or more than Weddle or Berry? Because he was going to be a FA again in 2014 since the Bills didn’t sign him long term. Business decision. A good one too. He doesn’t risk aggravating the plantar fascitis and he plays well as usual once healthy.

Football writers aren’t the same as baseball writers. Many wouldn’t be in the HOF if football writers voted like baseball writers. Nobody will be all that concerned with what Marvin might have done. He’s a free man, never been indicted or convicted.

Don’t forget, Irvin’s career ended prematurely due to that neck injury… Win what? It’s a TEAM game. For instance, by your standard Barry Sanders shouldn’t be in either. Lions never won jack and only went to the playoffs a couple times w/Barry in the backfield.