ThurmasThoman

youre very full of yourself, for someone who's not really saying much. your position: the concept of an "elite/franchise" quarterback is a joke, and it can't be defined. the reality: we haven't won a playoff game in 16 years, since we last had a franchise quarterback, fitzpatrick has never had a winning record in his career, and either a manning, brady, brees or rothlisberger has pretty much won every super bowl for the past decade, and if they didn't win it, they were playing in it. your position:the running game is going to make a comeback in the NFL, because the league is cyclical. the reality: the super bowl champions had the 32nd ranked running attack in the league last year. new england was 20th. i will continue to use facts - you keep talking in a condescending manner about how you have vastly superior knowledge of how the league works that one day maybe the rest of us will be privy to. you can't define an elite quarterback? but if you woke up tomorrow and read the buffalo news that we had cut fitzy and signed drew breese, i bet you would reply to a thread that said we had just acquired a top 5 qb in the league and were considered super bowl contenders.

giants 32nd running attack in the league last year with a qb that had "m-a-n-n-i-n-g" stitched on the back of his shirt. thats how i would define that.

im talking a little more insight than the typical doom and gloom. some legitimate "what are the questions going forward." not the woe-is-me crowd.

this is really cool. Ive always wondered about natural grass vs. artificial, just based on how much it hurts to get tackled on both! the high school i went to recently switched from grass to turf, and there were a lot of stories and op ed pieces in the local paper about it (its a small town, not much else to talk about.) basically the school said they did a lot of research, and statistically, there are LESS injuries on turf than on grass. my college had an artificial turf field, and i played some intramural flag football on it. it seemed like playing on a track. i was amazed at how little "grass" there was. well, either way, the bills field looks amazing in HD on my tv a thousand miles away - i hope its not bad on our guys joints though.

Lets bring some pessimism back to these parts! Since the Mario signing, and the Anderson signing to a lesser extent, I think it's safe to say that the overwhelming majority of us have at least allowed ourselves to imagine grabbing a 6 seed next season, and for one glorious weekend, being part of the NFL playoff conversation. It would definitely be fun, and there's little doubt in my mind it can happen. Hell, I've said it in many threads, and I'll say it again here: New England is old, and on a decline, despite making the super bowl. We could easily WIN the division outright next year, and host a playoff game (or 2?) at the Ralph. But let's look deeper than that. What are you worried about with this club? And please - take the "They're going to move to LA" talk to another thread. Theyre not moving. Personally, my biggest concern is at quarterback. Ryan Fitzpatrick is amazing - my favorite player on the team by far, and the first professional athlete since John Starks of the 1998 New York Knicks that I can 100% root for and feel like he's not just doing it because "it's his job." He's a great underdog story, a good interview, seems like a funny guy, and the story that after home games he goes back to his house with his wife and grills with his neighbors is awesome, and shows why buffalo is the most bad ass team in the NFL. But. In the back of my mind, im fairly certain that he is not a quarterback that can win a super bowl for this team. As hard as it is to admit, when you look at the list of super bowl winning quarterbacks in the league right now (the Mannings, Brady, Rothlisberger, Breese, et. al) Fitzpatricks name doesnt belong up there by a long shot. With that being said, what really worries me is this: We have acquired the talent now to not be a perpetual 6-10, 7-9 team - but rather the perpetual 10-6, 11-5 team. The one that loses in heart breaking fashion in the divisional round, or maybe the conference finals if we have a lights out defense and amazing drafts the next 2 years. We won't be drafting in the top 3 for a LONG time. Essentially, we have absolutely no way to ever aquire an elite QB to go with this defense. So my biggest concern - we are now the San Diego Chargers East. The team that looks great every offseason, but just can never. get. over. the. hump.

the old gunslinger. lol. best part of jim rome is he's so respected in the sports world by players and coaches alike, that he absolutely RIPS on anyone that deserves it, and doesnt worry about "losing" an interview. matter of fact - after stevie got benched against new england, he was ripping on him. and then when he interviewed him about his contract status at the super bowl, he brought up the benching, his antics, and asked him what was up. he puts athletes on the spot, doesnt necessarily brown nose them. its just funny because everyone (rightfully) criticizes ESPN for a laundry list of things, and jim romes radio show is the absolute antithesis of espn. it's informed, its funny, you can get a good opinion and take on a big game coming up that night. he will put himself out there and make predictions and then own up to being wrong. lol - last year when he picked buffalo to beat philly in game 7, then had alvie edit it so it sounded like he picked philly. callers like you guys that hate him were calling in so furious. everyone else was laughing. great show.

lmao. kristie allie... umm... global warmi...

jim rome ALWAYS shows buffalo love. always has, always will. crazy to see there are people that dont like him. honest question for those that dont like him: do you listen to ALOT of sports radio, or do you just tune in every now and then and catch it in passing. because jim rome is truly head and shoulders above the competition on the radio. dan patricks show looks like amateur hour compared to him. caller to dp: "hey dan, rob from louisville, 5'8 240 *ding* just wanted to say i think louisville is going to win." dp: "thanks rob" caller to jim rome: "hey rome, rob from louisville, 5' *EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH*" rome: ive said it before, if i leave this show up to you callers, ill be off the air in a month - no more callers for the rest of the month. get me to break alvie. EXACTLY i think a lot of the people that have problems with rome are expecting more of a television show style. day time talk radio is completely different. most listeners are catching it on their lunch break, a commute to a meeting, while filing paper work for 20 minutes, etc. its not meant to be viewed, its meant to be background discussion (unless youre a clone, in which case, its your life.) if you listen to it for a half hour a day, youll get all his inside jokes (that he does repeat ad nauseum if you listen for 3 hours,) within a week and then the show gets so much better and takes on a life of its own. when that college player texted his girlfriend last year "time to die," and they started dropping that guns n roses clip for every team that lost the night before for like a week straight, man i would be cracking up an hour later trying to explain it to people. hey brady - TIME TO DIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. good stuff man. everyone should give him a chance. truly the only personality in sports that can make you genuinely laugh.

freddie runs wayyyyy more like thurman than cj. freddie can make things happen in space between the hashmarks, and can create chaos in the middle of the field for defenders. cj has an amazing burst if he can get to the edges, but his yards up the middle come from more of a push than finesse. thurman/freddie - they elude. cj uses his speed. cj reminds me of mcgahee.

to be honest - im still in shock we signed mario williams and mark anderson. draft a freaking punter for all i care, i just cant wait to go out with all my displaced-buffalo friends to our local wing spot, get some hot wings, drink a few beers and talk about the upcoming season while watching the first round. i dont watch college football, im not a talent scout, and all of my opinions on the draft come from hoping we draft someone ive heard of (andrew luck) at a glamour position. i trust buddy to do whats right! i just know itll be a fun night. go bills!

well, if that happens in orchard park this year, we have the talent to win a super bowl ourselves!

wtf?? how about we ban whoever insulted him and invite him back? if what you say is true, 3 things im sure of: 1) im sure whoever it is that insulted him can't contribute much to this board and wouldn't be missed 2) you never leave a forum, you just turn into a lurker 3) it would be nice to have an informed opinion on this board - maybe he just has a new pseudonym? either way, thats awful. knowledgeable bills fans should have a place to congregate - and this seems by far and away to be the best on the web. with the season we're about to embark on, i cant imagine not having a place to come and type out my thoughts, and share them with like-minded individuals. isnt that the freaking point of internet message boards? come back tim.

ESPN is not for us you guys. the whole "blogger" section on each respective division, is in response to internet forums. OF COURSE we are going to know more about the bills than a local blogger. we have up to the second info on the team. we knew which freaking restaurant mario williams would be eating at when his plane touched down here. i know ripping ESPN is fun, but honest to god, its more fun to follow the team strictly on here and *gulp* billszone.com, and watch the games yourself, come on here for analysis than it is to read an espn.com RAPID REACTION. remember. remember, remember, remember: ESPN is selling a product - and that product is ESPN. ESPN makes money when you watch the commercials that are on ESPN. ESPN does NOT make money when you learn something pertinent about your football team, and then switch over to CBS to watch the bills. I know i am beating a dead horse/talking to myself/preaching to the choir... hell, if i open up a new tab in google chrome, my most visited site is, according to its detailed record keeping - espn.com. but try to keep some sanity for yourself and use it for what it is. "general sports knowledge for dummies." it is not "the 2012-2013 buffalo bills almanac"

wtf? man, im proud to be a bills fan whether 0-16 or 16-0. i look forward to the games every week. i can't help but get excited. even for our finale last season, heading in at 6-9, i was excited for the week leading up to it. when the nfl shield pans across the screen, and that deep voice starts reading the disclaimer, and then you get the fly in shot on the stadium... man, every week, all 16 games, every year, its always too good to be true. how can you not like that in prime time??? under the lights, the entire country watching, the analysis, the pressure, the fact that its actually more fun to have 4 or 5 drinks at 9pm and go to bed after, than it is to do it at 1pm on a sunday, and be hungover and tired at 5pm. the fact that you can go with your wife and your friends to a bar, and watch it at night, and get dinner. i have never NOT had fun watching a prime time game (well, the first 3 quarters at least.) i mean, honest to god, does any fan of an NFL team not get that schedule, and immediately scan it to see what games are in prime time?? what is this? your SUPERIORITY complex??

Has your March Madness bracket long since been crumpled up and thrown away, the selection of "DUKE" in the Champion box a reminder of why wagering is one of the 7 deadly sins? Did your Super Bowl square get you a 0-0 box and leave you 20$ lighter? Well this is the thread for you. Correctly pick which of the Bills next 16 games will be broadcast to a national audience, and win fame and fortune beyond your wildest dreams. Home: jacksonville kansas city st. louis seattle tennessee miami new england new york jets Away: arizona cleveland houston indianapolis san francisco miami new england new york Im going to say new england at buffalo buffalo at houston and a LATE SEASON (hoping for snow) new york jets at buffalo - possibly the last monday night game of the season (NFL banking on it being for a wild card slot.) what say you? as an aside, it is AMAZING how easy our schedule looks to me right now. maybe im just high off these free agent signings, but im trying to talk myself down from 12 wins, and failing miserably.

personally, still waiting on his ascension.

exactly. people say "id rather lose as many games as possible to secure a high draft pick." but unless youre picking top 2-3, it really doesn't make things that much easier to be picking 10th instead of 20th. long story short - id rather go 7-9 than 6-10.

great great post, and i couldn't agree more. i have been saying to anyone who will listen for awhile now that a) i fully expect the bills to win the division this year and contend for a super bowl title and b) the patriots run has BEEN over im glad the mario williams signing has people on board with these sentiments.

lmao. gotta bring him back though. he's the heart and soul of the team.

there is no amount of money that we could offer mario williams that would be overpaying. there are moves that change the course of not just sports teams, but sports leagues. the chicago bulls drafted mj the cleveland cavaliers drafted lebron the lakers traded for shaq the giants got eli the colts drafted peyton some moves are bigger than x's and o's. bigger than dollars and cents. some moves change the direction of organizations. this is one of those moves. this gets hundreds of millions of people that watch football to stop saying "the buffalo bills lol" and start saying "the buffalo bills!" this makes some 20 year old college football player sitting in his dorm room right now playing madden, make buffalo his "go-to" team cause of mario and stevie. that same 20 year old that could be sitting in his dorm room with the next great qb, watching pro games on tv, seeing the ralph at capacity.. to turn and say "man, someday we should be playing THERE." these are the kind of moves that get us 4 prime time games next year. 2 at home. there is no amount of money in this scenario that constitutes as overpaying. on thursday morning, we were the buffalo bills. now, we're The Buffalo Bills.

freddy is great, god i hope he keeps his explosiveness. he reminded me of thurman... the way he could get a ball in the midst of 8 defenders, and turn it into a 16 yard gain. spiller.. hes got speed if he can get the corner... but hes not elusive, per se. either way - great problem to have. i love that were debating our running back depth chart, instead of asking "where can we find a running back????"

this is how green bay fans must have felt when reggie was a free agent. why would a such a dominant defensive force... a league superstar... a game changer - choose siberia? but he did. and they won a super bowl because of it, and it changed their franchise from something that was a relic of days-gone-by in the league, a dinosaur, into a VIP club. a team that now doesnt NEED free agents. a place people would be lucky to play. with some of the best fans in the game, and a yearly expectation that a championship is their right. people think this signing isn't important. it's everything.

exactly. this is a game changer right here if we can pull this off. it says, right now... RIGHT NOW... the buffalo bills want to win. and nothing will stand in their way. it changes the way we look at the season. no more optimists and pessimists, just fans. the team is committed to moving forward, the "rebuilding" is wrapping up. plug in some holes, flesh out the depth, and set the bar high. players in training camp will be saying "playoffs or bust." games will be sold out and expensive. prime time games will be hosted. today is an important day, maybe the most important (in terms of historical significance) since the music city miracle. lets hope it goes better.

LMAO! couldn't sleep last night - woke up at 4am with mario on my mind. left my wife in bed to spoon a pillow as a furiously scanned the internet, message boards, and my phone for any and all news related to a 27 year old guy named mario, and where in the country he might move to. sports make you do weird things.

i cant handle the critiques of buffalo like that. its not even in good fun. "patriots beat writers" didnt even exist til 10 years ago. id be willing to bet an all expense paid trip to buffalo for 2 that that guy never watched a patriots game until the mid to late 90s.