hondo in seattle

Thanks for posting, CB. That was an awesome read.

I haven't been excited for a Super Bowl since the last time the Bills played in one. Some years, I don't watch Super Bowls. Once the Bills season is over, I'm ready to move on to other interests.

How do you know it's a douche move when you don't know why it was done? Maybe there's a video of him snorting cocaine. Maybe he developed a drinking problem. Maybe he showed up late for multiple practices and meetings. Maybe he didn't get along with Frazier - it was so bad one of them had to go. Maybe a million other things. We just don't know.

Because NFL teams don't need good centers?

Obviously Beane and McD determined that Darby and Dareus were bad fits for the defense and/or (attitudinally) for the team. Given Beane and McD gave us a cohesive, hard-fighting team that earned our first playoff birth in 17 years, I'm willing to cut them a lot of slack right now. I suspect that if we were in the meetings where these decisions were made, and knew/considered everything Beane & McD knew and considered, most of us would have agreed with these moves. Nice find. A Gettleman quote from the article: “It’s actually something I learned in Carolina. There’s an old saying: Every man is my equal, in that I may learn from him. These guys taught me a different way of looking at it — not how to evaluate, not how to do it philosophically, but just a different way of setting up a board, and I think it’s terrific.’’ Presumably, this "terrific" way of setting up the board is the one Beane is using.

I think this is about right. Of course, with Plans A and B (especially A), the Bills could/would still draft a QB. Just not a guy they had to trade up for.

There are so many intelligent posts that generate 2 or 3 pages of commentary yet this one produces 23 pages.

Apparently, Beane (who was hired late) built a good initial staff. Already one has earned a GM position and another is interviewing for a GM position.

I just think it's way too early in Beane's tenure to judge him. Imagine judging Bill Belichick after his 6-10 rookie season as a HC in Cleveland. Or consider Tex Schramm - widely regarded as one of the best GMs in NFL history - who needed 7 years to achieve a winning record in Dallas. Lots of mistakes were made in those years. Yet Schramm then went on a streak of 20 consecutive winning seasons, including five SB appearances. You can now find Schramm's bust in Canton. Beane hasn't conducted his first draft yet and people are already judging and condemning him. The irony of the OP's screen name - Ittakestime - had already been noted. Now let's give Beane some.

I don't disagree and don't claim the guy's the worst QB to ever don a Bills uniform. I just haven't seen enough in him to put him at the other end of the spectrum and envision him as a strong starter.

EJ had some good drives with us, too. So did JP and Trent Edwards. All these guys in the NFL have good enough arms that they can put together good drives. But can they do it consistently? NP had a truly miserable passer rating of 38 last season. There's just no evidence that he can deliver consistently. The only guy I can think of who looked as bad as NP did his rookie year and then developed into a good NFL QB is Steve DeBerg. And DeBerg never became that good. But in the end, I hope you and all the NP supporters are right.

How do you evaluate his potential? As the old saw goes, "The best predictor of future performance is past performance." NP had a 38.4 passer rating last year. What we've seen thus far doesn't provide a lot of fuel for hope. But I'm with you 100%. Sometimes QBs get better. Jim Plunkett looked like a dud/bust/journeyman until his 30s when he became a Super Bowl MVP. It happens. I just have no confidence that Peterman is another Plunkett or Aikman, though I really hope I'm wrong.

Five picks in one half. Maybe it was just a case of rookie nervousness. Or maybe he's just that bad. I wouldn't be okay with Peterman as the starter.

That's the thing. It seems like SP combined his love for Peterman with news reports and media speculation and pretended he had inside information.

Beane's already rhetorically asked, 'Who doesn't love Kyle?' and then added they'd love to have Kyle back. If he's truly done, it's because he's decided to retire.

It's hard to read between the lines but I didn't get the sense that Beane was eager to overpay to move up when interviewed the other day. And I have no clue what he thinks of Rosen and Darnold. Personally, I don't watch enough college football to be confident either is worth the price.

Some NFL QB coaches don't teach mechanics at all. Instead they focus the QB on understanding the offense and then understanding the defense he's playing against. Somewhere I read that Daboll was this kind of QB coach with the Jets back in the day. He was brilliant with X's and O's and film study but brought nothing to the table regarding mechanics. Though you'd expect Dorsey - an ex QB - to have a good knowledge of mechanics and be able to teach it.

I get the sentiment. But I'd hate to pay a premium price for another disappointment. So many 1st round QBs fail to work out. What makes you so confident that Darnold is The Guy? I'd personally rather spend a lot of draft picks on a lot of players than package draft picks to move up.

It scares me to think that we have all these draft picks and might waste some of them, packaging them and trading up for a QB who doesn't work out. In general, I really dislike trading up. And yet I want to find a good QB as much as anyone. And that leaves me conflicted.

It's interesting that we made the playoffs yet have as many holes to fill as in any previous season during the drought. Having a boatload of draft picks helps but Beane has his work cutout for him if the Bills are going to return to the dance.

I agree with this. Hand size might be something worth looking at but it's hardly a critical consideration. Other attributes are far more important. I would expand on #1 above: #1a. Accuracy. Is his completion percentage high because the QB is accurate with all his throws or because receivers are wide open? (Less separation/tighter windows in NFL). #1b. Arm Strength/Zip. Can he throw with velocity? In college you can loft balls to wideouts because defenders don't have NFL recovery speed. NFL QBs have to be able to throw on a rope. I might also add: #7. Anticipation. Can he make the throw before the receiver's final cut? Tyrod tends to wait for WRs to come open while elite QBs make the throw before then. #8. Leadership.

So slow down the speed of the game. Create playing surfaces and shoes that make it more difficult for players to accelerate. This wouldn't be a cure-all but could be part of the solution.

I get your respect for Bruce but I think OJ is one of the top five players at any position ever in the history of the NFL. His talent was other-worldly. Despite my admiration, I wouldn't pose for a pic with him and I don't believe his name should be honored anywhere. It's disrespectful to the families of his victims. Hernandez and Simpson are both best forgotten IMHO.

We have a boatload of draft picks and a sophomore HC who seems to have the team moving in the right direction. These two facts alone argue for more wins, not fewer. The big wildcard is the QB question. Who'll be under center? Tyrod? A rookie? An uninspiring journeyman? But, as I recall, we were +12 in "toxic differential" which might be a better predictor of W-L record. Yeah, I agree the 2017 squad "over-performed." So the question to ask is: Can McD keep getting squads to play above their talent level? Or was this a one-year trick? Being a jaded Bills fan, I'm not super confident in the future. But I do think that maybe we've got something good going here.

Can't blame a guy for wanting to receive the salary stated in his contract. As for declining production, I personally blame it entirely on Rico. I do hope though the Bills renegotiate a more team-friendly contract.