hondo in seattle

As has been said maybe a million times in various threads, Hackett has a lot to learn. Spiller would be more effective in a different offense run by a different OC. He'd also be more effective if we had a better OL. And, finally, he'd be more effective if he was stronger and hit "holes" (as much as the OL creates them) with decisiveness. Mods, can we merge the Hackett-is-a-failure thread?

Mostly true but we had 600 yards passing in the past two games. Someone is getting some receiving yards, just not Williams.

I hope EJ learns and gets better. But for now, I agree with this. Orton is throwing for 300 yards a game. You can talk about QBR and passer efficiency rating but sometimes you just need production. Though production w/o turnovers would be much better!

I've seen some good Bills assessments from the Globe before (after the SB years, let me add in deference to House). They seem to cover the NFL pretty well. But it's kind of funny to read: "Corner Leodis McKelvin has excellent ball skills..."

I like this plan because his ideas on building a NFL winner are repeatable. He built the Bills into a team that could get to the SB every year. Got Carolina to the NFC Championship game in his 2nd or 3rd year. Then built the Colts into a SB winner. Polian also loves Buffalo. (Btw, I was reading parts of his book in the bookstore the other day - he spends most of the book reflecting on his time with the Bills. Great stuff).

6.0 YPC carry a couple years ago. Maybe we can trade Hackett????

If I recall, we had a run of maybe 6 games when Fitz was the starter where we averaged close to 30 points per game. And it was amazing - partly because Fitz was the QB. Any coach who can get 30 points per game with a Fitz led offense and a weak OL is a genius! But Chan couldn't sustain it. So in the end I don't think Chan was a genius. And I don't think Hackett is entirely unqualified to be an OC. I even sympathize with Hackett for the guards and QBs he had to work with last year. All the same, I do fault him for misusing CJ. Chan may not have been a genius but he did use Spiller better than Hackett. Let's see if Orton gets the passing game going and if that, in turn, starts to open up the run game, making CJ more productive.

It's true that it took Chan a while to learn how to use Spiller. But he did learn. Hackett has not. At least not yet. You would think he'd study the tapes and figure out the problem. The stats you cite show Spiller getting about 600 total yards offense less under Hackett (1st year) than under Gailey (last year). That's a significant drop. Worse, maybe, are the stats you leave out. Let's look at CJ's yards per carry: 2011: 5.2 2012: 6.0 2013: 4.6 2012: 3.5 In Spiller's last two years with Chan, he ran for more than 5 yards per carry! That's awesome productivity that he hasn't been able to match under Hackett.

It's almost anticlimactic now... but this is a day worth celebrating!

So Khan says we need to upgrade the stadium experience. So do McNair and Rooney. Today, I suspect, other owners will say the same. Of course NFL owners want us to either upgrade our stadium or, preferably, build a new one. It's all about branding. Every stadium reflects on the NFL brand. Why wouldn't other owners want us to upgrade our stadium when it costs them nothing?

I'm not certain I've seen Orton make any throws EJ couldn't make. I am certain that Orton was more consistent with both his throws and decisions than EJ has been this year.

Severe desperation often results in the sacrifice of principle. I'm in.

So I guess we lost to the Lions in Detroit by like 20 points.

It's not entirely irrelevant. In his best games this year, EJ was efficient but not very productive. Sometimes you need your QB to throw for 300 yards. Yesterday our backs were not very productive against a good Lions D, but Orton was. I doubt if EJ - at least at this point in his career - would have put up 300 against the Lions.

While I'm far from a Hackett apologist, I wonder how much the deficiencies of the OL effect Hackett's play-calling. Does he call low-reward plays over and over because they're also low risk? Does he want to call better run plays but doesn't believe the OL can execute? I'm just playing devil's advocate. We didn't have a great OL under Gailey yet Gailey's offense created run lanes for the backs. I believe I've heard Marrone use both.

Which proves that a one game sample isn't enough to go on - something I think we all understand. Still, it's more encouraging to see a 300 yard game than a 100 yard game. Especially when the new QB is a veteran and not a rook. Orton was expected to play like a vet and, after a while, he did.

I wish Hackett could figure out how to use him. But since that's not happening, maybe he has some trade value. But it would tough to watch him get 1,000 yards for some other team. Lynch made the Pro Bowl three times with the 'Hawks and was an integral part of their Super Bowl season. We gave him away for a 5th rounder. I really don't want to get into the habit of dealing running backs with the potential to excel.

Do the police - or the Bills - know he outed himself?

A lot of people are dumping on CJ this year. How is it that Chan Gailey could coax 1200 rushing yards at 6.0 yards per carry out of CJ? The same Chan we were all so happy to see sent packing? CJ is not an all-purpose running back. He's not a strong runner, not a great blocker and doesn't have great vision. But he has speed and can be very elusive once he gets going. Chan knew how to take advantage of his skills. Hackett & Marrone clearly do not. But we won anyway because our D was strong and when the running game faltered, our passing game made the difference for the first time in a long time. That's something worth celebrating.

Orton had 300 yards passing in his first game as a Bill. EJ has never yet thrown for 300 in the NFL. I like EJ but we might be 5-0 if Orton played the last three games. And I think we'd be 2-3 if EJ played this one. But as Ohio says, the DEFENSE won this game. Great to see the six sacks and a good Detroit offense held to 7 points. Awesome game.

Good info. I stand corrected. The photo and caption comes from a Washington Post article, "A look back at Howard University's homecomings." But I'll trust your personal, first-hand experience. It's hard now not to wonder if Wright plagiarized it.

Yikes, not this again! I'm not sure who first designed this logo but I'm guessing it really was Wright. It seems Howard's only been using their charging buffalo logo since 2002. We've been using a charging buffalo since '74. Here's a photo of Howard's prior logo (this pic is from 1996): #32 is Howard running back, Aray Williams. (http://www.washingto...ry.html#photo=4) Wright's daughter said this: “As an artist, he considered this his greatest accomplishment. He told me that the legacy he left behind was the Bills logo, that he left a footprint for the world." (http://www.buffalone...chievement.html) It's hard to believe Wright would have been so proud of it had he simply copied it from some kid at Howard.

What did Lyons do at Xerox? I'm hoping it was a lot of statistical analysis.

He'd be luckier if the Bills had a better OL. But I doubt if he's feeling like complaining.

I should think about this more but for now I'll go with Dennis Shaw. How many starting QBs throw twice as many INTs as TDs? Btw, I think only starters should be nominated. Our practice squads and 2nd teams have been full of awful, anonymous players over the years. Honorable mention to Jerry Crafts (who, as I recall, was only a part time starter).