OldTimer1960

A convert? I am pretty sure that most players in the NFL have played several positions from HS through the NFL. In particular, my understanding is that it is not that big of a conversion to go from CB to S, however it is big to go the other way. Aaron Williams has the size to play S and his CB skills would likely translate there. The only question, in my mind, would be whether he has the mental aspect of S down (not that it is rocket-science, but the safety (one of em) is sort of a QB of the D). Williams has the size necessary and has demonstrated that he will hit and tackle. He might be a bit too big to play CB effectively, but he would be considered a pretty good cover-safety.

They have to take a QB in the top 3 rounds? Even if they are convinced that none are future NFL starters? I believe that the Bills are VERY desperate to find a QB in this draft. If they don't take one in the first two rounds, they clearly didn't think any were likely future starters. Again, just because we all know they need a QB does not mean that there are any good ones in this draft. A bunch of other teams need QBs too and this reality sucks for them just as much as it does for the Bills. The truly foolish teams will take flyers early on someone that they aren't convinced of and end up like Cleveland - looking for a QB a year after they spent a #1 on Brandon Weeden and 3 years after a #3 on Colt McCoy. I will admit, that there *might* be a decent QB prospect among Geno Smith, Matt Barkley, Ryan Nassib, Mike Glennon and Tyler Wilson. However, I suspect at least 4 of those 5 will be career backups. Which one, if any, will become good starters, I don't know. I think that there are other positions of need that can be addressed early with much greater probability of successfully filling a great need (LB, WR, and lesser needs: DB, OL, DL). If you whiff on a QB early, you not only still need a QB, but you still need another position that you might've found a very good starter at. While I am at it, I know that some here are saying "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take". Well, sometimes taking a shot costs a lot more than the expected payoff. For instance, I agree that you can't win the lottery if you don't play. However, I know that the lottery is a losing proposition (ie, I will very likely come out negative in terms of dollars spent vs dollars won).

They may be considering any of those ex-Jets (and might be negotiating with them), but IMHO re-signing Byrd and Levitre is FAR more important than going after any of the players cut by other teams recently. We know that Byrd and Levitre have played well for the Bills. We also know that the Jets think that the players that they've cut haven't performed up to their high dollar contracts. I think the Bills should be all-in on trying to re-sign both Byrd and Levitre even if it means signing zero FAs from other teams. I can't think of a FA from another team that could help as much as it would hurt to lose either Jairus Byrd or Andy Levitre.

I agree with your sentiment to stay away from QB in round 1, but disagree that there is good QB talent to find "later". I think that all of these guys are very questionable and that the half-decent prospects will be gone by early round 2. Now, I don't know if any of them are good enough to take early in round 2, but I do think it is looking at the world with rose-colored-glasses to think that there will be good QB prospects available in round 3 on in this draft.

I agree, it would be WONDERFUL to just go to the QB store and get a very good starting NFL QB. However, it is highly questionable whether there is a good QB prospect at all in this draft. Unfortunately, no matter how much in denial some folks are, there may not be a better QB prospect in this draft than Fitz. Simply drafting a QB in round 1 or 2 to say that you've drafted a "QB of the future" that isn't any better than Fitz is foolish.

Agreed, there are guys worth a "shot" in round 2 at the 10th pick. I also agree that they should pick a QB relatively early every year until they find a good one. I am just VERY skeptical that there is a good starting NFL QB in this draft. Of the QBs, I look at Nassib, Wilson, Glennon, and Manuel as possible round 2 picks. There may be others, such as Bray, but I would shy away from QB at 8. One analyst that I follow (Russ Lande) does think that Nassib is worth a round 1 pick.

With the re-signing of Tarvaris Jackson and keeping Fitz around, I don't think they'll go after Alex Smith now - unless it was a trade something like our 3rd and Fitz for Smith.

I'd have concerns drafting him. Not because he isn't a choir boy, but because I'd wonder what level of effort and dedication he'd have to being the best pro he can be. Now, if the scouts think that he is so gifted that he can play at a high level in the NFL without effort and dedication then you have to consider him - but beware, the majority of your team has to get by on effort and dedication and guys that don't have that can erode that effort in the rest of the team. Further, with his record, you have to wonder if he'll end up being suspended.

Well, the obvious answer is that the Bills' didn't think he was very good. I guess if you think a guy with a 1-5 record, 6TDs and 5ints is a promising young QB then the Bills' certainly blew it again.

I don't understand your point. Are you saying that Mayock is no good because he didn't have Cam Newton at the top of his QB list before they went to the Combine that year? There were a lot of people (analysts and I suspect scouting departments) who were leery of Cam Newton. He had only played 1 year of major college football and played in a simplified offense. Most of his thows were set up by his and his ultra talented RB's runs. He had had a string of questionable decisions off the field. Obviously, he has shown that he could handle and excel with the transition to the NFL, however that doesn't mean that everyone who was skeptical was an "idiot". Locker was picked 8th, Gabbert 10th, Ponder 12th, Tannehill 8th and Wheeden 22nd. I am not saying that the Bills absolutely shouldn't pick a QB with their 1st round pick. I am only saying that pointing to the guys listed above as proof that it is a good idea is a little premature. Maybe they will all turnout great, but so far the jury is still out on all of them.

Todd Collins - is he an option, too? He has played a long time and never got a chance after he failed to take over for Jim Kelly.

I think the question is whether Locker, Gabbert, Ponder, Tannehill or Wheeden are any good. Gabbert is struggling badly after 2 years. Locker has not burned up the track and the Browns are not giving Wheeden a vote of confidence by naming him their starter going into his 2nd year after picking him in the first round last year. Ponder has not done anything beyond cleanup after AP wins the game for the Vikes. I am not saying that none of those guys will become good starting QBs, but I don't think any of them have proven that it was wise to take them early in round 1 either.

The Bills have absolutely no say in who Nassib hires to help him prepare for the draft. I doubt that Paul Hackett asked his son for permission to be hired to help Nassib. It is definitely NEVER in Nassib's (or anyone's) best interest to not put your best foot forward. The pay difference between the 8th pick and the 10th pick in round 2 is many MILLIONS of dollars. Nassib might think it'd be nice to play for Hackett/Marrone in Buffalo, but I am 100% certain that he would be thrilled to get an opportunity to play anywhere else in the NFL. His focus is on getting better and trying to be picked as high as possible in the draft.

I'll play devil's advocate for a moment. I am not saying Nassib will or won't be a good NFL QB, but what are you looking at when you say his "ceiling isn't that high"? He has improved every year - he hasn't plateaued. There might or might not be continued improvement. He has good size and strength. His arm is plenty strong - certainly as strong or stronger than Tom Brady's and Drew Brees'. Arm strength is not the most important factor in NFL QB success - to be sure, you need "enough" arm to make the necessary throws and threaten the defense deep or you end up with lots of turnovers and a very limited offense. However, Brees, P. Manning and Brady are certainly 3 of the very top QBs in the NFL and none of them have cannons for an arm. By accounts I've read (don't know for sure if they are accurate or not), he is supposedly a good leader and hard worker. I'll agree that he isn't a tremendous running threat like RG III, Cam Newton or Colin Kaepernick. But there are different formulas for success. Again, I don't know if he will be good in the NFL or not, but I don't see any physical limitations that limit his "ceiling".

I think worrying comes with being Bills fans.

You are right! I could break a hip or something.

I will be glued to the combine and any draft related stuff that I can record while I am at work. I love following the draft and it gives me something to do while I am working out in the AM trying to maintain my old-timer body in some semblance of shape. Anyone know where I can get one of those "Hurry-cane's" that they show the commercials for now?

Agreed, but it also cuts the other way too. While some of the 1st and 2nd year QBs have looked good so far, some of them may fall by the way-side. I remember many of us thinking that the Bills had found their long-time starter in Trent Edwards. His is a story that plays out at least as often (good-to-bad) as guys who have weak career starts morph into good players.

It should be the case that the use of the TE in a given offense is more a function of what the TE can/can't do rather than the scheme limiting them. I know that most coaches say that, but I do believe that Marrone and Hackett have been insistent that they will tailor their offense to take best advantage of the talent on the roster. Point being, maybe Syracuse's offense didn't feature the TE on many plays because they didn't have a TE who excelled as a pass receiver?

I am not sure that I understand your point. Are you saying that based on the league drafting Gabbert, Harrington, Ramsey etc in the first round that surely Barkley and Smith (at least) will be taken in round 1 this year? If so, I agree with you. If, however, you are saying that because the busts that you listed we're drafted in round 1 that it proves that Barkley and Smith have a high probability of becoming high end starters - then I disagree.

Daniel Jeremiah is a former NFL scout who worked in the league for something like 8 years. To me, that gives him more credibility than many of the other "draft analysts". That being said, no scout is always right, there are no "absolute" grades, grades on a player can differ significantly from team to team, etc. I think that it is fair to say that none of this year's QB prospects are considered to be very good prospects. It does not mean that there won't be a surprise that emerges as a good QB from this draft. However, finding that guy, in my opinion, is a long-shot. I'd rather see the team spend their first and maybe 2nd round picks on prospects at other positions who are considered to have a higher probability of success. After that, if they want to take a flyer on one or two QBs in the hopes of striking gold, then great.

TJ Graham ran 10.50 w/o training for track and field. Now, I am not saying that Graham has shown the receiving skills that Wheaton has, but fast track times don't mean a great deal in the NFL. Track times are inflated/deflated by starting technique which has little to nothing to do with playing WR in the NFL. Also, track tells you nothing about a player's ability to catch and catch in traffic. I am not too down on TJ Graham. He was a lightly experienced very fast WR who had a decent rookie season, despite what many say here. Sure, he needs to reduce the drops (and the jury is out regarding whether he can), but he has speed and with a QB who can take advantage of his deep speed, he might develop. To be clear, I am not saying that the Bills should not bring in a quality WR or two. I think that their WR/TE group is in the bottom 20% of the league and needs a significant influx of talent.

I hope that you are right, but draft history suggests that this view is highly optimistic (that there will be 3 solid starting NFL QBs plus a star "unexpected" later round QB). There are several years where ZERO good starting NFL QBs come out of the draft. It is indeed very rare to have more than 1 or 2 good starting QBs in a draft. I will agree that it seems that it seems to be becoming more common to find decent-to-good starting QBs in the draft. It could be that the NFL rules now allow lesser passers to succeed in the league (with more restrictions on the defenses), it might be because NFL coaches are more willing to adapt their offenses to a more diverse QB skill set, but then it might be that we've just had a couple of exceptional drafts. I'll even mention that it is possible that some of the young QBs who have started out so well, might be flashes in the pan and will fade into oblivion. I remain hopeful, but quite skeptical, that the Bills will be able to find a long-term good starting QB in this draft. I am not a scout by any means, but I am a long-time draft fanatic and I have read everything that I could find on the draft for the past 25+ years. It hasn't been uncommon for QBs to be talked up and over-hyped. I don't even hear that this year. What I hear is, "man, wish we could find a QB or two to get excited about, but all that I see are prospects with some talent and some big concerns."

Agreed that we can't afford another failed high pick. That is why I said that the similarities in their rise to college prominence was a concern. I will admit that I was impressed with Ansah's play in the Senior Bowl (after a reportedly weak week in the practices), but picking a guy whose college coaches didn't think was good enough to start heading into his final year has to be a risky proposition.

Agreed, I am not totally outraged, but how is it possible that a pro football player in this day and age isn't working out hard? I disagree with the person that said this doesn't matter to others on the team. If it is true that he isn't working out, then it is a true shame as he could be much better than the upper-middle-of-the-league WR that he is.