hondo in seattle

Any good prospects in the LFL?

I remember Peter King criticizing us for hiring Nix as GM when there were some sharp, young, up-and-coming personnel guys like Whaley who better deserved the opportunity. Then we hired Whaley and ended up with the best of both worlds (young & old). Apparently, King likes and respects Whaley. And that's about the sum total I know about Whaley. I don't how we fans can evaluate a #2 guy. We don't know which decisions are his and which were made against his recommendations.

Incidentally, NFL.com has Geno Smith as the only QB rated higher than Dysert. He's not flying under everyone's radar. http://www.nfl.com/d...sition-input:qb Though CBS Sports has probably a more mainstream view of him, projecting him to go in the 5th with this assessment: STRENGTHS: Looks the part of an NFL quarterback. Possesses broad-shoulders and a strong frame, overall. Possesses an efficient, over-the-top release and good accuracy on in-cutting routes. Generally steps into his throws and flashes impressive accuracy when throwing on the move (typically rolls to his right). Good touch, especially on intermediate and deeper passes. Stands strong in the pocket to exhaust his throwing options. Is a good overall athlete who isn't afraid to take off and run with the ball. While not particularly elusive or fast, Dysert is more athletic than he looks and is a determined runner who knows where he has to go to keep the chains moving. Good intangibles for the position. Didn't seem fazed by hostile environments (Ohio State, Boise State) and is the first three-time captain in Miami history. WEAKNESSES: Played out of a shotgun-heavy offense in 2012 that simplified his reads and made the vast majority of his throws underneath tosses that simply don't translate to the NFL. Rarely asked to drive the ball down the field and may not possess the velocity to slip balls through tight windows. Highly inconsistent accuracy on the move, often forcing his receivers to adjust their routes. COMPARES TO: Josh McCown, QB, Chicago Bears -- Just like McCown, Dysert possesses enough natural talent to potentially warrant a top 100 selection, but he's a work in progress who has shown just average accuracy on the types of throws he'll be asked to make in the NFL. http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1631626/zac-dysert

Maybe my standards have lowered after all these years of losing but if we picked Barkley and he was only great for us, I'd be okay with that.

Our options for who will line up under center this season. TJax Aaron Corp Rookie we haven't drafted yet. Matt Hasselbeck Despite the anomaly of last year, rookie QBs - even highly regarded ones - often perform miserably in the NFL. Given that - and given our options - I wouldn't mind signing Hasselback to see in training camp what he might have left.

I have a higher opinion of DJ as a coach than many others. With Perry Fewell as DC and Bobby April as ST coach, the Bills had a good coaching staff mostly. They just needed an OC. That and some players with talent. I judge a HC not by his W-L record but what he did with the talent he did have. I can't honestly say DJ's teams played over their heads, but they didn't under-perform either. He just didn't have enough to work with. That roster looked like a 7-9 roster. Chan Gailey certainly couldn't do anything more with those players than DJ did. I think DJ had a good rapport with his team and was solid with X's and O's. Then again, I agree with all those who criticize his it's-hard-to-win-in-the-NFL attitude and couldn't complain when he was finally fired.

I live in Seattle and some Seahawks fans tell me that Jackson played credibly well in his one year here given that he was injured (shoulder, ribs). One used the word "courageous." They say his stats would have been better if he had been healthy. Even so, Seattle fans are obviously happy they ended up with Wilson under center rather than TJax. TJax isn't the answer but he might be a serviceable caretaker until we find a franchise QB.

I think they went after Manny Lawson fast & early because they thought he was by far the best fit for Pettine's defense. I'm guessing that at other positions, they don't feel like there's a huge difference between their #1, #2 and #3 choices. So they'll wait to the market cools off and then look for players at reasonable prices.

Pettine likes to creative on defense. He might have a role for a tweener like Scott.

I went to the bottom of the TBD home page and selected "Last" and was surprised by how far back it went. Some of the headlines on that oldest page read like they come from some manuscript just discovered in an archaeological ruin: Hobert hopes to change luck [1:12 PM] AP reports: "Hobert, a journeyman who was with Oakland and Buffalo, was cut by the Bills when he admitted after a loss that he hadn't studied the playbook." But some things never change... Area business leaders will keep backing Bills [1:08 PM] D & C reports: "A year ago, a committee of influential Buffalo businessmen teamed up to help keep the Buffalo Bills in Western New York." Both stories are from June 17, 1999. Nothing earth-shaking here but I was amused and thought others might be too.

The franchise tag is expected, but welcome, news. The Bills already lost McGee, Kelsay, Wilson and Barnett. Whatever we thought of these guys, they played a lot of snaps because they were better than the next guy down the depth chart. I like Pettine as DC but I don't know he has enough to work with. It would have sucked to lose both our starting safeties and 3 of 4 of our starting defensive backfield.

So let me try to understand... You actually think a Bills coach who does this work professionally and full-time knows more about NFL personnel than we TBD posters? Hmm. That's a difficult concept for me to digest.

When did the Bills ever announce that they were turning the keys over to Whaley after the draft??? This has been assumed by some. It may have even been hinted at. But it has never been stated officially and definitively. In fact, Nix says he's staying around for a while yet more. I'm glad Whaley isn't getting so impatient that he's looking at other opportunities.

I haven't live in Buffalo since 1977 when I went away for school so I haven't seen a lot of Bills games in person. But I was at Joe Robbie Stadium for this one. Never imagined I'd have to wait 20 years - and counting - to witness another playoff win.

I was taught in the army, "The leader is in the critical place at the critical time." I'd be nervous if he wasn't down there. He's not a talent evaluator but he is the President & CEO.

+1 There aren't a lot of great alternatives. I think we have to keep him. We can't put all our eggs in the TJax basket.

Different teams value different QB characteristics (ability to get the ball out quickly, leadership ability, ability to throw deep, mobility, etc.) differently. Where a team puts a guy on their draft board depends on how they value these different characteristics. I agree with many others that no where does Whaley say the Bills will compromise. He's just saying the value of a QB depends on the value you assign each trait.

I think we'll be a little below .500 in 2013 as we've been for the past several years. I think Gailey was an average-to-good OC. I think the Marrone/Hackett combination will be better but not necessarily right away. It sometimes takes a while to install a new offensive (or defensive) scheme. Furthermore, until the quarterbacking gets better, the offense won't get much more productive. And if Levitre walks, our OL will suffer. All in all, our offense may take a small backwards. On defense, I think we all expect Pettine to be a better DC than Wanny. But we just cut 3 starters and may yet lose another. While they all had problems, their back-ups aren't any better. Nonetheless, I do see the defense improving somewhat in 2013 thanks to Pettine's philosophy, preparation and more aggressive approach. Of course, free agency and the draft could change these assessments, especially on defense. However, I'm not at all confident we'll find that franchise QB we've all been waiting for. If Fitz isn't the QB in '13, it will be either TJax or some raw rookie. I don't know if I'd call 2013 a "waste" because Marrone/Hackett/Pettine will be laying the foundation for the future, but I don't think we'll be in playoff contention.

+1 Teams get most their player analyses from their scouts. They don't care much who's getting hyped by Kiper on ESPN. If thought Kipe was a good talent evaluator, they would hire him. They trust their own scouts more. Sherman is just bitter that he got drafted in the 5th round.

I get this line of thought but just can't agree. I want to avoid the scenario where the QB we draft in the 7th round is our starter even though he sucks because we just don't have anyone else. Anyone my age (54) or older has recollections of QBs far worse than Fitz behind center. Fitz was painful enough to watch. I don't want even greater pain in 2013. I'm okay with cutting Fitz - but only once we find his replacement.

So, Doc, how has the game passed him by? Can you evaluate talent better than Brandt? Show us. Although he doesn't work for the Cowboys anymore, Brandt still scouts college ball every year, using his connections in the NFL and NCAA to give him insights that we readers may lack. I for one appreciate someone who actually knows the game from the inside - unlike many other journalists. His sabre-metrics type approach has some surprises. Some people have suggested we take Glennon with #8 and Brandt's analysis is cautionary.

+1. Chan failed as a Head Coach but I don't know how much the QB is his fault. Of course publicly he supported Fitz. Most coaches will do that to boost the player's confidence. It's simple psychology (Google: "Pygmalion Effect"). We just don't how Chan privately evaluated Fitz nor how much he may have (or may not have) lobbied for someone better like Kaep. Comments to the effect that Gailey was an "offensive moron" are silly. I guess people talk like that because it makes them feel strong or smart. But when you look at Gailey's career, his offenses were often in the top ten. Even his performance with the Bills offense wasn't terrible given that he was working with a subpar QB and receiving corps. If Nix had drafted Kaep and Wanny ran a better defense, Chan might still have a job.

FWIW, in the 2010 book, "Blood, Sweat and Chalk," Chan was quoted thus... "The single wing stuff is going to become the norm in the future. Over the next 10 or 15 years it's going to evolve because the runner-thrower is the kind of quarterback that the college game is producing. You won't find a ton of the six-three, six-four, drop-back passer. They're not in college, so we're not getting them up here... Pretty soon somebody is going to find an athlete who can run and throw and just take the conventional quarterback off the field." The 49ers are not a single wing offense but Kaep is the type of running-throwing QB Chan sees becoming more prevalent in the future.

This isn't my ideal solution but... Bill Walsh created the West Coast offense while the OC at Cinci as a way to compensate for Virgil Carter's weak arm. Could Marrone do something similar with Fitz?

I know I'll get hammered for saying this but: DJ was not a horrible coach. As I recall we led the league in injuries twice when he was here. When you have few good players to begin with, and then your best players are injured, you just aren't going to win many games. The day Mike Mularkey chased Rusty out of Buffalo was one of the worst in post-Kelly Bills history.