hondo in seattle

The players (outside MW) aren't getting a lot of criticism for the simple reason that most of the performed well under Schwartz. Did they suddenly get old and stupid? Or did the coaching change have something to do with the drop in performance? When you try to analyze what went wrong last season, coaching is the obvious place to start.

I voted for TT as starter. Not in free agency, nor in the draft, is there a guy I'd rather have run this offense. TT did well for his first year as a starter and I want to see how far he can take his game in '16. And - with respect to all those who don't think EJ deserves to wear a Bills uni - I voted for EJ as backup. Despite his 10 minutes of infamy in London, I think in his career so far he's played like a competent 2nd stringer. I would, though, like to see the Bills acquire another QB to compete with EJ.

As mentioned in the NFL Network video, Rex needs better buy-in from the players. Does bringing in Cro - if the price was right -make sense from that point of view? Cro clearly believes in - and understands - Rex's D. Does Rex need a few players like that to get the D on track?

I don't disagree with hardly any of this. I'm just arguing against the point that a HC's future success is necessarily defined by his past W-L record. Belichick, despite all the qualities you see in him, failed with the Brownies. Levy did good things with the Bills despite failing in KC. If you look at yards/game, Rex has a great track record running defenses. If you look at pts/game, the record is mixed though I think his Ds were twice #1. He is kind of like both Belichick and Levy - both did some good things in their first HC opportunities but not enough to leave with a winning record. Like Belichick (who has Brady), Levy, and most other coaches, Rex wins when he has the right players, and loses when he doesn't. Could the second time be a charm for Rex, like it was for Levy and Belichick? I'm not confident, but I am curious.

Ruth Smeeth, one of the two MPs, used to be the director of an anti-racist organization called HOPE not hate ("For a modern, inclusive Britain"). Speaking out against a racist name is consistent with her established values - which I see it as a good thing.

Good post. Can you imagine a modern sports team picking a skin color as a moniker? San Francisco Yellowskins Atlanta Blackskins Boston Whiteskins These names wouldn't be accepted. Can't see why we should accept 'Redskin' either. And I'm not sure why the sins the British Empire committed in the past should prevent two MPs from taking a moral stand in the present. I think they make a valid point: "exportation of this racial slur ... directly contravenes the values that many in Britain have worked so hard to instill." Don't we want lawmakers to stand up for higher principles - to move civilization forward?

By that logic, the Bills should have never hired Marv Levy (31-42 at the time) nor should the Pats have hired Bill Bellichick (36-44 at the time). Both had worse winning pcts than Rex in their first gigs as NFL HCs and few would have said they were destined for greatness. Sometimes HCs learn and get better. Sometimes HCs are in disadvantageous positions with weak rosters. Personally, I see enough bright spots - and enough blemishes - in Rex's record that I can't feel very optimistic nor suicidally pessimistic. At this point, I'm solidly in the wait-and-see camp.

I wonder why any young man with NFL aspirations would choose to play FB in college?

Deja vu... I feel like I've read this BN article once before a long time ago.

“Obviously, I just played fullback in college, but actually at the Senior Bowl, I was playing a lot of H-back, fullback and they even had me out at slot receiver. I think I adjusted to it very well, so I think I can do more than just play fullback.” http://bills.buffalonews.com/2016/02/25/scouting-combine-notebook-gronkowski-can-do-more-than-play-fullback/

If the only people allowed to speak or act were the perfectly pure and virtuous, the world would be in trouble. Good causes need imperfect supporters.

C'mon, MGK, you know better than to source a few friends and then represent that as typical. And when you say you don't see a dip in jersey sales, do you actual monitor jersey sales? What are the numbers? According to a Cal State professor, 67% of Indians do feel the name is offensive. Your friends are in the minority. http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2014/06/04/67-percent-native-americans-say-redskins-offensive-155143 The National Congress of American Indians (the nation's largest intertribal advocacy organization) says the name is offensive. The American Indian College Fund, National Indian Child Welfare Association, National Indian Education Association, National Indian Youth Council, National Native American Law Student Association, Native American Journalists Association, and Native American Rights Fund have all said they think the name should be changed. The tribal councils of the Cherokee Nation, the Comanche Nation of Oklahoma, the Oneida Indian Nation of New York, the Navajo Nation, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe - among others - have all said the name is offensive and should be changed. The Inter Tribal Council of Arizona agrees. So does the Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes. I'm glad the Brits are raising the issue. The days of making excuses for racial epithets are ending.

Was Bucky Gleason just a little premature when he said a couple weeks ago the Bills should release Shady? http://bills.buffalonews.com/2016/02/09/bills-best-served-by-cutting-their-losses-with-mccoy/

"Carucci tweeted that someone with McCoy that night could be charged, but McCoy won’t be." http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/02/25/report-no-charges-for-lesean-mccoy/ If the stories are true, the cop who initiated the fracas ought to be charged. BTW, I just noticed that this was the OP's 6th post ever. And it's generated 116 pages so far!

I respect your point of view but his performance last year was scary bad. As you say, "maybe he now realizes..." Then again, maybe not. Every contract is a gamble but how big a gamble are we willing to make on a guy who played poorly last year essentially by choice? We currently have no cap money for FAs and draft picks. Under these circumstances, do we really want to commit millions to a maybe?

They're even covering this in the UK: https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/lesean-mccoy-case-may-hinge-182100384.html

PFF had Tyrod at #10 based on his performance last year. Everyone has an opinion. Some people back up their opinions with their favorite statistics and complicated algorithms. But no one really knows how well TT will play in 2016. Will he grow with the experience? Will he suffer a sophomore slump? Will a full preseason as the established starter allow Roman to build a passing attack better suited to his skill set? Stay tuned.

I'm not convinced Shady gets suspended if no charges are filed given the differing accounts provided by the eyewitnesses. Yes it would seem the video shows McCoy violating the Personal Conduct Policy, but circumstances matter. After being embarrassed by Brady in Deflategate, I'm not sure Goodell would be enthusiastic about inserting himself in a questionable case.

For the sake of the Bills, I hope this is the true story.

After 100 pages we're still exactly nowhere.

Good luck to Jim!

"... no longer a viable running threat." Kind of sad to read those lines. Reminds me that everything that exists, without exception, is subject to decay.

Shady is not an exemplary human being but he tends to get into small-time trouble rather than big-time trouble. He's not snorting coke, waving guns around, or beating up his girlfriend as far as we know. Is a headache? Yeah, sometimes. Should we cut him? Not based on what I know.

I don't share the negativity toward Goodwin that my brother Bills fans seem to have. I wish him well in his Olympic pursuits. I hope he medals. If he comes back to the Bills after his long jumping stuff and fails to earn a roster spot because he was too focused on long jumping, so be it. I don't blame the guy for wanting to represent his country and pursue Olympic glory. On the other hand, if he earns a roster spot with the Bills again, I'll cheer for him as hard as I cheer for any other Bill.

As you say, judging team performance requires the accumulation of many statistics. But let's roll with points per drive since you brought it up as a better stat than yards or points allowed. Here's Rex's standings as a DC and HC... Baltimore 2005 #10 2006 #1 2007 #23 2008 #1 New York 2009 #1 2010 #5 2011 #6 2012 #13 2013 #17 2014 #24 Buffalo 2015 #14 Rex has been able to deliver results when he has the right players for his scheme. 3 out of 11 years as DC or HC, his D was the best in the NFL in points allowed per drive. It's still disappointing Rex wasn't able to do more with the players he had last year. And it's worrisome that he hasn't fielded a good D since 2011. Maybe GunnerBill is right and Rex has failed to keep up with the evolution of offensive football. Incidentally, the Bills were #1 in pts allowed/drive, #2 in yards allowed/drive, and #7 in turnovers/drive, and #1 in overall drive success rate under Schwartz in 2014 (according to Football Outsiders). It wasn't all about the sacks. http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/drivestats2012