hondo in seattle

When dumpster diving, you look past the blemishes. But this write-up - which includes some analysis from PFF - is pretty complimentary. Nice find, Big Cat.

It's great TT#1 is an optimist when it comes to the Bills. However, his former talent as a running back doesn't necessarily come with a Ph.D. in psychology nor an innate understanding of coaches. I'm not sure Thurman can guess Rex's future coaching effectiveness with any more accuracy than we can. I'm confident this upcoming season will be interesting. I'm not confident it will be good.

Yep. Maybe Rex fired him because Rex is an idiot. Or maybe he just learned something unfortunate about Dunbar (drug use, alcoholism, or something like that). Or maybe he discovered that Dunbar was working against him behind his back. Or maybe a better DL coach just became available and Rex needed to make room on the staff. Or maybe Dunbar had health issues he needed to address - but wasn't - so Rex wanted to force his hand. Or maybe Dunbar just got into a fist fight with Rex's brother and one of them had to go. Or maybe... We have no idea what's behind this decision so I don't know how any of us can soundly pass judgment.

Good find! I liked Pettine's Powerpoint presentation. One slide explains why he favors the 3-4.

No one will sign Johnny to be a starter because he's just not that good. Not to mention the looming suspension, poor work ethic, alleged substance abuse issues, toxic PR problems, etc. No one will sign Johnny to be a backup/developmental project because no backup is worth that many headaches. So Johnny will go to rehab, pretend to be rehabilitated, and next season catch on with some desperate, naive team willing to give him a 2nd chance at the NFL.

What are the chances he never plays again? Personally, I think they're small. But if it did work out that way - what a great cautionary tale for the NFL's future instant millionaires.

I hate being a realist when realism seems like pessimism. But watching what Rex did with the D last year, and now watching the exodus of quality backups with no influx of talent to counterbalance it, it's hard to be optimistic right now.

And we're not going to win without them if we replace them with players who are even worse. What positions have we upgraded this offseason so far? Making the roster worse than '15 doesn't sound like a sound plan for creating positive changes in the outcome.

The offseason isn't over yet but so far it looks like our bench has been decimated. If we have an injury bug again this year, we're screwed.

Maybe you're right. But Bill Belichick disagrees with you otherwise the Pats wouldn't have offered Hogan $12 million.

I'm not enjoying the off season. We're losing some valuable backups - not to mention MW - and too spent to sign anyone.

Scott is probably right but maybe - just maybe... * Rex pulls his head out of his butt and shows us why some people label him a "defensive guru." * Roman gets his system really going and Shady rushes for 1800 yards. * TT - with the advantage of his 2015 experience - takes a big leap forward this year and establishes himself as a top-tier QB. * Tom Brady suffers a season ending injury. Without a few maybes and ifs, we're extending the steak.

I'm thinking the roster will be worse but I'm hoping the coaching will be better. I'm hoping Rex and Roman will be more effective entering their second years with new systems. I'm also hoping the roster is actually better in this sense - we're healthier this year. Maybe the 11 we typically line up on each side of the ball is better this year. Maybe these are all silly hopes but I'm a fan.

I get Chandler's point of view and Sestak was an amazingly productive pick for the 17th round. But I also see OJ and Bruce as great picks. OJ was one of the best players ever. Bruce was one of the 2 best DEs ever. Any pick that nets you a generational talent is a good pick, even if it came at the top of the draft. With no offense meant toward Kelly, Cookie, or any other Wall-of-Famer, OJ and Bruce were - in my mind - the two best Bills of all time. Thus they were very good picks.

Huge roll of the dice by Houston. Regardless of how it turns out for them, it's bad for us.

Suh and WIlliams are both great players - when motivated. It'll be interesting to see if Gase and his defensive staff can bring out the best in them. Even if they can, Tannehill is still the QB. Can they score?

This is very good news!

I think it's interesting that people have strong opinions about why Marrone left. He hasn't talked much about it and all we can do is guess. It's all just speculation. My own strong opinion is this: I'm glad he left.

Is Swann saying he doesn't think Megatron deserves to be in the Hall? Or is he wondering if the Selection Committee will elect Megatron when Johnson doesn't have a Super Bowl on his resume? “Hard to say he's going to be in the Hall of Fame when his team hasn't gotten to a Super Bowl, and they don't get a chance to get into the playoffs. And that's for a lot of guys across the board. If he had broken every passing record, like Danny Fouts, who didn't win the Super Bowl, then yeah, I think there's going to be consideration.” http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/25479434/hall-of-fame-wr-lynn-swann-doesnt-think-calvin-johnson-belongs-in-the-hall

They actually predict he'll sign for about $7m/year. Still, ouch. A dreadful 2015 dropped Mario's market value from the mid 8s to the mid 5s. He should have plenty of interest though, even at age 31, which will likely find him a contract in the $7M per year range when it's all said and done.

89-87 in 11 years in the NFL. He's an average NFL coach... which I think would make him an above average college coach if coaching at that level required the exact same skill set which it doesn't. His success will depend on his ability to recruit players and subordinate coaches to his program. And his ability to relate to - and understand - younger players.

TT... 4 year, $64 million?

8-8. There are things to like about both Rex's and Roman's resumes. And things to dislike. There are things to like about this roster. And things to dislike. In mind, it adds up to relentless mediocrity. Man, I hope I'm wrong!

According to one poll in 2014, 53% of blacks thought OJ was guilty. You're right about the trend. As years go by, more and more blacks think OJ is guilty. But in the same poll, 83% of whites report thinking OJ was guilty. There's still a racial divide, and that divide has more to do with the police than OJ himself. Blacks, in general, trust police (and - by extension - the evidence they collect) than whites. Cops like Mark Fuhrman are the reason why. http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2014/06/09/majority-of-african-americans-now-say-simpson-was-guilty/ Another poll with similar results: https://today.yougov.com/news/2014/06/12/oj-simpson-case-and-race-20-years-later/

Well played? He crapped on his friends/teammates who worked hard for a winning record and playoff berth. Mario's selfish.