hondo in seattle

How did Kiko do in 2014? So far, we've paid Kiko for two years of work and he's given us one. That's not good ROI. I like Kiko but we have a paucity of talent on offense and an excess of talent on defense. And if we can't establish a running attack in 2015, we're screwed.

I really like Kiko but Gugny is absolutely right. I think most personnel guys will privately say Kelly's hubris got the better of him on this one. In the years ahead, we may see that Shady's best years were already behind him while Kiko might develop into a perennial pro bowler. But right now I see that we traded a promising LB coming off an injury for a superstar RB. Another thought is that we didn't miss Kiko last year and - without a franchise QB - we truly need to run the ball this year. Just looking at 2015, who do you think will add more to our win column? Kiko or McCoy? I say it's McCoy.

I hope Shady tips more than twenty cents at the Big Tree Inn. I want to like my Buffalo Bills.

I can see how Philly hates it. Seems like Chip Kelly nepotism acting up again. How do you trade your most productive offensive weapon away for a LB? Any LB? Let alone for a LB who only has a promising rookie season under his belt and missed all of last season to a torn ligament! Maybe someone should go on their message boards and console them by telling them about the Legend of Kiko.

Yeah, I'm a little sad, too. I liked both Kiko and CJ. I wondered what CJ could do in Greg Roman offense with - hopefully - an improved offensive line. (Of course I'm assuming the Bills will no longer attempt to resign CJ). And watching Kiko in a Rex Ryan defense would have been a blast. Yet, I can see why Whaley made the trade.

The one thing I don't like about this is that Kiko hasn't reached his peak yet and Shady may have already passed his. Who will be the better player over the next few years?

Surprising trade, for sure. But I don't get the anger. We had a great D last year without Kiko but an abysmal O. We're not likely to pass the ball very effectively this year so it's imperative we build up the ability to run the ball. Fred's getting old and CJ is a free agent with an indifferent record. While I'll miss Kiko, this trade makes loads of sense - at least for Buffalo. I don't get the "backs are a dime a dozen" argument. Backs are like any other position - there are good ones and bad ones and ones in-between. The good ones will help you win. Lynch, for example, was a big part of Seattle's success these past two years. Most other backs would not have propelled their offense the same way. McCoy is an elite back and he'll add more to our WIN column than Kiko would.

One the one hand, it was great to see Hughes blossom hear and produce back-to-back 10 sack seasons. On the other hand, he's lining up next to three Pro Bowlers. In that scenario, he ought to be successful. Since this lineup is working, I really want Whaley to resign him. Not tagging Hughes doesn't surprise me but I hope DW gives him a contract that makes him happy. But there's a limit to everything. We just can't pay every player what they think they're worth. One in 32 teams - some team desperate for sacks - might think Hughes is worth something crazy and that's all it takes for him to leave Buffalo. You can't blame Whaley for not overpaying every FA who leaves us.

Inaccuracy can be caused by many things. Maybe the kid just has poor hand-eye coordination (inferior genetics). That kind of inaccuracy cannot be cured. But other causes can potentially be fixed: * poor timing * poor mechanics * poor poise in the pocket (which leads to poor mechanics) * bad route running by the WRs * unfamiliarity with the speed & route tendencies of the WRs * poor progressions (you're more likely to complete the pass if you're throwing to the open guy) * and so on. The QB coach last year said EJ's biggest accuracy problem was in fact poor timing. Too often EJ was accurately throwing to where the guy was, instead of where he would be. Then again, I've seen EJ cleanly launch some long balls that were off target which makes me worry about his natural accuracy.

We've been hearing about EJ's soft demeanor for a while now. We've also heard that his 'accuracy' issues were more timing issues. Both problems seem correctable... but you never know until it happens. KtD is right. A NFL QB needs to master a lot of things. Some never learn how to master them all - or even enough of those skills to succeed as a starting QB. In EJ's case, I'm hoping for the best, fearing the worst.

It was a dumb play call because it didn't work. If it had worked, Carroll would have been hailed as a bold and daring genius. And the probability of the play working was reasonably high. Nonetheless, the probability of pounding Lynch up the middle a couple of times must have been higher.

The NFL is a league of opportunity. You create pockets of excellence where you can. There are no big money QBs available. We have the cash. Why not spend it on an elite CB that will make our good defense even better? Of course, it depends on the cost. If Revis is so pricey we lose the opportunity to sign Hughes and another OG, I say no. But we'd be foolish not to check this out.

Josh McCown, Shaun Hill... I don't think we can realistically expect better at this point. We need a mediocre veteran to compete with EJ because the good vets are tied up. I'm really hoping EJ steps up this season. If not, we'll have to live a with a Dlifer-esque, game-managing veteran.

Regarding Bryce Petty, I've seen draft gurus predicting as high as the 2nd round for him, and as low as the 7th round. One man's trash is another man's treasure, I guess. I really find it hard to imagine any scenario where the majority of us here on OBD are happy with the QB situation when training camp starts. Looking at the NFL QBs who could be traded or released, and the kids in the draft, there is no consensus answer out there that we'd all agree to be excited about. It's not necessarily what I hope for but my guess is that EJ will be under center opening day.

We really don't have enough we-need-to-find-a-QB threads. Can we start more?

Cleveland beat us out for McCown because they were more desperate than us. Their only QB is in rehab and looked horrible last year. They effectively didn't have a QB until they overpaid McCown. Trading is unlikely to solve our problem. As a general rule, teams don't trade away franchise QBs. So we're screwed. But maybe not. We're probably going to field an elite defense this year. Hopefully, Crossman can keep our STs in the top five. Incognito and maybe another FA or draft pick will give us a better OL. Greg Roman will certainly improve the running game. And then we hope that we can Dilfer our way into the playoffs. I don't think it's an unreasonable hope.

This is a good point. BUT, on some of Fitz's long passes to Stevie, Fitz was grunting for everything he was worth and throwing as far as he could, hoping for the best. Or so it seemed. Maybe I'm selling Fitz short.

This would make sense. Stevie would be an economical option, and potentially - reunited with Fitz - a productive one.

I watched Locker years ago at the combine, or maybe it was some other event where he got to throw the ball with other college QBs. I was stunned at how inaccurate he was.

Fitz has been the only QB to know how to use Stevie's unique skill set. And it seemed at times Fitz was just throwing the ball out in Stevie's general direction and Stevie made the play. Most QBs like their WR to be where the play says he should be.

With McCown gone, it looks like we're waiting to see who gets cut next. Next season we're going to either start the thinks-too-much youngster who few people believe in or the discarded veteran who few people want. McCown was a hot commodity because he was the best QB available right now. The Browns won the bidding simply because they were the most desperate. While the Bills flirted with McCown, they'll go into full courting mode when someone better frees up. No matter what happens, we're going to rely on our D, ST and run game to win games.

If I was McCown: * I'd want to start * I'd want to win * I'd want to get paid. In Cleveland, he's pretty much guaranteed the first point and the Browns probably beat us on the last point.

True. But he's probably finding this a lot more fun.

I agree. Leroi knows he's earned some cred. Now he's playing with it.

Signing Bradford wouldn't excite me for these reasons (and the fact he's injury prone) but I do hope we bring in some competition. And Bradford's about as good as anyone else 'available' - though I'd hate to cough up a high draft pick for him. If we did sign Bradford, we'd have to begin the season with 4 QBs.