2003Contenders

I could have sworn that the Giants kicked off (after kicking the go-ahead field goal) rather than punting to us for that final drive. Again, maybe I am having selective memory loss. As far as blame goes, I really have never been one to blame anyone in particular for that loss. It really was a great game: probably the most evenly matched game in Super Bowl history. Everyone wants to discount the Giants, but they were 13-3 just like we were with a GREAT defense that had held the mighty 49ers to just 12 points (I believe) the week before. Personally, I thought Kelly called a pretty good game. He completed 60% of his passes against a defense that dropped 8 and 9 guys into coverage much of the day. Based on the way the Giants were defending us, he also deserves credit for not throwing any INTs. And he made pretty sound adjustments by getting Thurman involved -- to the point where Thurman would have been the MVP if Norwood's kick had been good.

Carthon would be the worst possible choice. He has had a history of not being able to get along with the players. Saunders is intriguing for all of the reasons mentioned. His situation kinda reminds me of Marv's when he was hired back in 86. I don't know much about Grimm as a coach, but he was a tough SOB as a player. Maybe he could be the solution to the team's mental toughness issue. Could you imagine someone like Mike Williams wimping out on him?

It really was a classic game -- in my opinion STILL the best Super Bowl ever -- despite our coming out on the losing end. Think back to how well both teams played that day. No turnovers. Few penalties... and a great cat and mouse game by both coaching staffs. I have always said also that it was unfair to blame Norwood for missing that kick and resting the win or loss on his shoulders. I would say that the biggest reason for losing the game was #3 -- but magnify to say that we lost because our defense could not get off the field. That coupled with the lack of success that the offense had early on, didn't allow the defenders to catch their breath in the humidity of Florida. I also think that if the defense had done a better job on that final drive before the end of the half, we may have taken the G-Men out of playing their brand of football in the second half. One question -- as time has dimmed my memory... That final drive I believe started out on the 10-yard line. Was there a penalty -- or just a horrible run back? I'd have to say that starting out on the 25 -- or even the 20 may have meant a difference in the outcome of that drive.

JDG, That may be true, but if MM is putting all of his hopes on Kelly Holcomb, then he is even dumber than any of us thought. Personally, I want JP back on the field ASAP. I'm not convinced that he's rid his mind of that horrible game-turning interception that he threw at the goal line against Miami. Any positive progress he can make going forward would mean bigger kudos (from me at least) to MM than praying that Kelly can somehow muster a victory.

By turning down a proposed (if this report is true) long-term contract, he has ensured himself of being tendered the small qualifying offer that will be impossible for another team to best without having to give up draft picks. Thus, he has no leverage, as the Bills hold all of the cards.

MM is trying to be coy here. Either... 1. JP is fine and will start, and MM is just sending up a smoke screen for a "competetive advantage" or 2. JP's injury is more severe than they are letting on.

Considering that he'll be a restriced free agent -- and that he was a walk-on and not even a draft pick, it would take a very small tender to lock him up. It's actually pretty dumb on his part not to sign a long term deal.

I am not defending TD because I think his time in Buffalo is up -- and nothing short of a miraculous turnaround next year will ever get the fan base back. Still, I think that SOME of the criticism aimed at him is unfair, especially regarding his perceived lack of attention to the OL. Yes, Mike Williams has turned out to be a huge (literally and figuratively) bust. But, in selecting him with the 4th overall pick, TD was trying to address that need. Also, I don't think that it was until this year that we all finally came to the conclusion that MW was indeed a bust. After all, he played pretty well down the stretch last year. In fact, the whole line played pretty well by year's end. Yes, TD didn't sign any big name FAs to the OL in the off-season. But look at what was available. There is a reason that the Niners overpaid for Jonas Jennings; he was the only halfway decent LT on the market. I don't think anyone here wishes that we had overpaid to retain him, considering the 49ers' poor return on investment. What about the draft? Well, there wasn't much in the way of quality-can't-miss OL in last year's crop. Personally, I was hoping that TD would trade up to get Barnes -- but who's to say that he didn't try to do that? Remember the trouble TD had trying to throw Henry in with the purpose of trading up with Arizona? There really wasn't anyone special there when TD took Parrish. (I'm not defending the Parrish pick; just saying that there wasn't a good OL alternative at the time). Also, he did go on to draft Preston and Geisinger. Preston may even move into the starting Center job next season. And who's to say that Geisinger isn't a decent pick. I guess my point is that I can understand what Mort was trying to say. Sometimes you just have a bad year. This year we had the horrible mix of young, not ready for primetime players (JP) with too many over-the-hill guys (Vincent and Milloy). I think TD has suffered from two flaws: 1. The Richard Nixon syndrome. Nixon was so paranoid that everyone was out to get him that he put so many things inplace that actually gave his enemies ample ammunition to oust him. TD has suffered from this kind of paranoia, since losing that power struggle with Cowher in Pitt. Thus, he has remained determined not to ever name another coach that he feels will ever rise to the level of challenging his authority. In essence, he's become a victim of his own insecurities, as neither lightweight coach has panned out. 2. He's too wrapped up in the fixing today's problems without being proactive about tomorrow's. FOr the past two years the defense has carried the team, while the offense has left the defense out to dry. Thus, TD has approached the draft looking to fill up on offensive skill positions. In essence, he ignored the defense -- and wasn't smart about developing quality depth for injuries and the inevitable cruelty of father time. Thus, this year we saw an offense striving to work its way up from the bottom -- and a defense on its inevitable way down. Not a good combination. Right now the Bills are a bad team. Some of that is a product of a cyclical process -- and part of it is due to some bad decisions made by TD and staff. Imagine how difficult it will be attracting free agents this off-season, let alone a new qualified GM!

Assuming that we wind up with picks 5-8, that places us in almost the same situation we were in back in 2002, when there was no clear cut #4 pick. That also kills us in terms of being able to trade down. We might as well upset the Bengals this week and beat the Jets. Then we're picking in the early teens, getting better value for our pick -- and not paying so much money for an unproven rookie.

The problem with Sullivan is that he has no credibility. He reminds me of a message board poster on a crusade that ultimately gets banned. He simply hates the front office and always has -- so almost every article is slanted that way. Even when he does make a valid point it is hard to give him much credit for it -- kinda like the boy who cried wolf.

Jim Kelly never threw 24 picks in a season. Heck, he never threw as many as 20. Not beating up on ol number 4, because I really do like him. In fact, I've always seen him and Kelly as very similar QBs. Tough, great in the cold weather. But for as many games as Favre has single-handedly won -- he's also single-handedly lost his share of games too.

Nah, that knee injury was pretty bad. It's actually career threatening. Even if he comes back next year, it won't be until midway through the season. I find it funny that he claims that he'll be "faster".

Recall that Ralph does not like paying top dollar for head coaches, and MM still has a number of years to go on his existing contract. Even GW was not fired as has been often misquoted in the press. He completed his 3-year contract and was not asked to return. Even in Wade's case, remember that RW claimed that he essentially "quit" by being "insubordinate". We can only hope that TD's contract extension was only for one year and that RW is willing eat that final year.

I always thought that Ralph's firing Wade for refusing to fire Ronnie Jones was a bit of a cop-out. I think Ralph just wanted to clear the way for the new GM (TD) to name his own coach.

I too had been a defender of Big Mike's until this year. In fact, at the end of last season, I thought that he had managed to get over the hump en route to becomming something approximating what the team thought they were getting when they selected him #4 overall. Part of me really does think that it goes back to coaching. There are coaches like Parcells that thrive on motivating players. Then there are coaches like Marv that thrive on managing an assortment of egos and allowing these guys to motivate themselves. MM falls into the latter category -- although the recent problems with Big Sam and Moulds would indicate that he may not have that magic delegation touch. I think this team is also sadly lacking in the kind of self-motivated players, which makes the matter even worse. All of that is to say that maybe we can still see something good out of Big Mike if we get the right kind of coach in here to put the fear of God into him. I'm not talking about a poindexter with a loud horn like GW. I'm talking about a strong, tough coach that you know means business.

I'm telling you, if TD is still around, Capers comes here after he's fired. That's the guy that TD originally wanted.

Note: What do all 3 of Polian's head coaches have in common? They all had head coaching experience, even it their prior job was not filled with success. Note: What do all of TD's head coaches have in common? No head coaching experience.

Hmmm. Isn't that what MM tried to do last week with Moulds and was ridiculed for it?

From what I've heard, he loves what he's doing and doesn't want to be a HC.

You may laugh -- but take a look at Dave Wannstedt's record during his years with Miami... I think they only had one losing season, last year when everything went south for them. I'm not advocating that we try to get him, but I'd take him over MM or GW.

Willis strikes me as being the laid back type. Some people misread that to mean that he has no passion or doesn't care. I think all of the points that Fake-Fat points out pretty well dispute this. What it does point out is that Willis is content to take care of what he has in his power to take care of -- and shrugs his shoulders at the things that he has no control over. Simply put, we all know that the the root cause of practically everything that ails the offense is the inferior OL. Willis can't do anything about that... All that he can do is work to keep himself in shape and make the most of his opportunities when given the ball. The only negative to draw from this is that laid back players like Willis are usually not the source for leadership in the locker room. The hope is that the OL gets a major overhaul in the off-season and Willis becomes a leader ON THE FIELD.

Since when is a Day 2 draft pick labeled a "bust"? Indeed, there are far more players taken in the 4th and 5th round of the NFL draft that never become much more than reserves than there are players that become starters. Preston could turn out to be a diamond in the rough, so I mean no disrepect toward him. But the very fact that we are talking about this guy, a rookie drafted on Day 2, with the possibility that he could be a starter as the year winds down, actually tells us more about the lack of quality with our existing lineup -- and the serious lack of depth as well.

My personal opinion -- TD is banking on Capers getting fired so that he can bring him in to replace MM. Remember that Capers is the guy TD wanted from the get-go. The question is whether he's been able to sell Ralph on this insanity...

Poor Ralph was placed in an almost impossible position here, which is why he'd have been better off not getting involved -- and just backing whatever decison that MM and TD made, which is what it sounds like he wound up doing anyway. If he really felt that EM was in the right, he didn't have to fine him a game's check. Of course, we don't know what parameters he was working with. Was MM asking for a 4-game suspension -- and the 1-game net-out was actually a compromise? Pardon me, if I am still confused by all of this. Moulds claims that he took himself out of the game on Sunday because of an Achilles problem. He also said that he DID meet with MM. If all of that is true then he certainly has grounds for appeal. And, since MM and TD aren't talking, we have no way of knowing for sure. Maybe the Achilles thing was a spin after the fact that EM and his agent came up with -- and maybe the Monday meeting took place only AFTER MM hunted EM down when he was a no-show. This is all becomming very silly and embarrassing -- and something tells me that we haven't heard the last of this.

I could be wrong... but remind me of an instance when TO took himself out of a game -- and then refused to go back in, when no injury was involved?