OldTimer1960

Hiring a coordinator from a playoff team is going to be a problem. I would not want to see them in a position where they have to wait deep into the playoffs - possibly after the Super Bowl in order to get one of those guys. That is just a recipe for a weak staff of assistants as the assistants worth a damn will have already been snapped up by teams who get their new coaches in place earlier. That being said, it is a balancing act. Of course, you don't want to settle for a lesser candidate to be your head coach just because he is currently available to hire rather than wait for a better candidate to fall out of the playoffs.

I can't see how taking a QB with the Bills' first pick would be a consideration - unless it is some Randall Cunningham/Fran Tarkenton clone who can run around behind the very shaky OL. My $.02 worth is that this draft must be about shoring up the OL and significantly improving the run defense. On the OL, I think that the main missing piece is a legitimate LT. Assuming that Eric Wood can come back healthy, I like the C and Gs in Hangartner, Wood and Levitre with Incognito in the mix, too. I would *hope* that Brad Butler can come back and play RT and I'd want to find a mid level veteran RT to compete with Butler. On D, they need to decide whether to stay 4-3 or go to a 3-4. They'll need 1, possibly 2 starting calibre LBs and one could come on the inside pushing Poz to OLB. I am not saying Poz isn't doing a good job inside, but he is small for an NFL MLB. If they go 3-4, they need a NT and a DE (at least 1). I don't know if Stroud or Kyle Williams could play NT effectively, but maybe one of them could play one of the DEs in a 3-4. I know that it is difficult to find a trading partner in order to move back in the first round, but if they can do so. I think it would be advantageous to them to trade back and stock pile picks in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th rounds. They don't need flash as much as some tough SOBs on the OL and D to make this team at least competitive and those kind of guys can often be found in those rounds. Grab some veteran QB as a stop-gap in FA or via trade (but don't give away much) and fix the D and OL first. Next year they can work on the skill positions...

But the trick is, you kind of have to decide your path before the draft because FA is open and mostly over before the draft in April.

I think that arm strength is the question. I am not stating the he does not have an NFL capable arm, but that is what the knock was on him coming out of college according to the various draft publications I saw.

Really? One LB away from a top-10 defense? Wow, I must be watching the wrong games. I don't want to come across as totally negative, but this defense is not very good. I agree that there is lots of talen in the secondary (if healthy) with McKelvin, McGee and young Jairus Byrd, but Whitner/Scott/Wilson at the other safety spot is nothing to write home about (IMHO). I think DE is still a glaring problem. Kelsay is sort of OK and Schobel is still a decent pass rusher when healthy and if he doesn't retire. I can't say that Maybin is a bust after one lost year, but his total lack of playing time in a lost season could lead some to believe that the coaches see absolutely nothing in him. I think two new starting LBs are needed - unless the team goes to a 3-4 then maybe 3 new ones. Kawika Mitchell might be adequate at one OLB, but Ellison/Harris/Scott/whoever else has played there are not answers on bottom third NFL defense let alone a top-10 D. If Stroud can stay healthy, they may be OK at DT, but you have to wonder if the DTs had some part in the woeful run D.