2003Contenders

Yea, the real moron here was the ultra-liberal and hypersensitive girl at USC that KNEW about the inside joke and decided to twist it for her own agenda. Here's the whole story

Matt Millen? I know he crapped the bed in Detroit, but prior to that he was an outstanding analyst.

Larry English

The team is having their draft luncheon today, and I imagine the Bills official site will post a transcript or video of what transpires. Modrak is not one to blow smoke, so we may get a better gauge of how the team has players ranked based on his comments. For example, last year, he referred to McKelvin as a top ten player. The year before that he couldn't say enough nice things about Lynch. I expect that he will break down the strengths and weaknesses of the various DE/OLB that I've seen us projected to take at 11. He may also give us an indication of whether or not the team would seriously contemplate taking a TE (Pettigrew) or OL that high.

Well, to be fair, it was Sam Wyche that banged the drum for drafting JP. Recall that JP held his pre-draft workout on the same day and on the same field as Eli Manning. Wyche and a few other scouts came away from that workout believing that JP had superior physical skills. The book on JP at the time was that he was arguably the most physically gifted QB in the draft, but he was highly erratic and guilty of making some of the most idiotic plays at times. Five years later, the book hasn't changed. He's likely viewed as a coach killer around the league.

I'd be fine with that pick. He fills a position of need and isn't a reach. Here is how I look at it: I view (or, rather project) Cushing to be a major upgrade over Ellison. Is there another player at another position that would appear to be such an upgrade? I have worries about all of the DEs that I keep seeing us take in most mock drafts -- and I really think #11 is too early for Pettigrew. Of course, Chris Brown is the same guy that said that he just had a gut feeling that the Bills wouldn't take Lynch back in 2007. Of course, Brown only tells us what the Bills want him to tell us -- and there is no downside to reporting this information. If the Bills really do see Cushing as a possibility at 11, that is fine, because it is doubtful that he would go in the top 10. I suspect that they have SEVERAL players ranked fairly closely in that 11-20 range, which is why I would love to see them trade down.

The flips side of the coin is that IF Trent Edwards pans out (and that is admittedly a big IF at this point), we may look back on the 2007 draft as one of the best ever: Lynch, Poz, Edwards.

Well, Williams and Butler were both 5th rounders. Ellison was a 6th rounder. Schouman was a 7th rounder, and there is some positive buzz about Bell, who I believe was a 6th rounder last year. Jason Peters and Jabari Greer were both undrafted as was Fred Jackson. All of these guys have been/potentially will be starters.

Well, in all fairness, we do not know the particulars of the offer. It was reported that the Bills and Peters were about $3M per year apart, which at the time I read with optimism. That is, if they are $3M per year apart at the start of negotiations there is a reasonable middle ground. The clincher, of course, is the guaranteed portion of the contract. And that, I bet, is where the disparity is right now. Peters is probably looking for something in the $30 M range.

1. Size. He's one of the few guys in the draft this year that is a genuine 4-3 DE and NOT projected to be a 3-4 OLB in the NFL. 2. He gave Alabama's LT Smith fits. This happened BEFORE Smith hurt his draft value. 3. Scouts see a great deal of upside and believe what he did in college was only a tip of the iceberg. To summarize: potential.

Considering the number of holes that they have to fill (especially if they do part ways with Jason Peters) the team can put everyone's fears to rest by taking the best available player, especially with their first selection. If that best player happens to be at a position that does not need attention (say, CB) then they should trade down (assuming they can find a trading partner). Pretty simple, huh?

I don't think it matters too much, to be honest. Regardless of whether the Bills finished in 1st or last place in 2008, they would still have to play those 6 division games -- in which we went 0-6 last year. The year before that the team went 4-2 in the division and finished in 2nd place. So, who knows? The truth of the matter is that the team only got beaten badly in one of their 9 losses last year, the one against the Cardinals -- the eventual NFC Super Bowl representative. With just some minor improvements the team should win at least half of their division games; they should at least NOT be 0-6 again. Outside the division, it's anybody's guess.

Based on what Modrak said a couple of months back -- and assuming the team's evaluations haven't changed, I would expect them to grab Orakpo in a heartbeat.

The Broncos were smart to announce their intentions of trading Cutler by draft day. It created a frenzy and a bidding war. If the Bills really feel that they can't sign Peters long-term, they should do the same.

Yep. Hindsight is NOT always 20/20. That is, there are many flawed recollections of Williams' tenure in Buffalo. He was actually pretty darn good as a rookie, helping keep Bledsoe on his feet well enough to break some of the team's single-season passing records. I also remember Williams receiving heaps of praise after that magical 2-0 start in 2003, which consisted of blowouts against the Pats and Jags. That was followed by the Miami melt-down, where the offense couldn't score (and Gilbride called that now infamous Travis Henry pass play down around the end zone!) That game proved to be the beginning of the end for a lot of people, including Gregg, Gilbride, Bledsoe and Big Mike. I don't recall ever thinking again that Big Mike was going to be a perennial All Pro tackle.

Why the negativity? Why don't we give the guy a chance? I can't see that he's done anything to deserve your scorn? So what if his primary background is in marketing? Butler was a scout by trade -- and did a decent job acquiring talent (until he didn't care anymore and botched the last couple of drafts), but (with all due respect to the departed) he was also a HORRIBLE business manager -- which placed the team in a tough position financially. Has everyone forgotten the cap hell he left behind? Donahoe tends to be vilified here -- and he deserves it for 5 non-playoff seasons and two bad coaching hires. However, he did a very good job of cleaning up the salary cap mess and placing the franchise back on solid financial footing. I think his biggest problem is that -- whether it is true or not -- he was at least perceived as an autocrat. Thus, Ralph responded by hiring Marv (and then Brandon) as consensus builders. I think it is unfair to suggest that Jauron's staying on board shows that Ralph doesn't have Brandon's ear. The reason given for keeping Jauron on hand is that the team wanted to maintain a level of continuity. If that is true, it stands to reason that the entire inner circle was involved in the decision to keep Jauron on hand. If it isn't true -- and everyone is just saying the politically correct thing to cover for Ralph's financial decision to keep Jauron and forgo having to pay him his contract on top of a new coach's contract, I don't see how you can suggest that is Brandon's fault. I am not saying that Brandon will be the next Bill Polian, either. I simply have not seen enough to make me believe that he is the answer one way or the other -- and neither have you.

That article was from nearly a month ago.

Look, I am happy that he is no longer the starting Center for the Bills. However, I DID want him to return as a backup. The team really has zero depth now along the interior of the line. What happens if, God forbid one of our guards or our ONLY center goes down for the season? I know the draft is approaching, but the way I look at it, the team probably needs to invest a quality pick on both a guard and a center.

Trade us their two first round picks to move up to 11 and they can have him.

Yea, I am starting to get the feeling that the Bills will take Pettigrew too. The pick will seem almost anti-climatic, as it won't be a great shocker, nor will there be any fear of him NOT being there, since he will certainly NOT be drafted in the top 10. He definitely fills a major need, and appears to be a safe pick. I can't say that I would be jumping for joy with the pick, but I wouldn't be furious -- as I was when the team selected Whitner #8 back in 2006. (I'm not busting on Whitner, because I do like him -- I just wouldn't have selected him with the #8 pick.)

How did that work out for Cleveland with Tim Couch, Houston with David Carr or (so far) Oakland with JaMarcus Russell? That doesn't even count tons of guys like Leaf, Akili Smith, and Joey Harrington that were top 5 picks. It is all a crap shoot.

That's why, in the final analysis, I think Peters WILL get what he wants.

I think that Mayock may be perhaps overrating him because he is something of a bit of a rarity in this year's draft: a genuine bona fide DE that can play LDE in a 4-3. Mayock sees that as a precious commodity. If we were a team like New England that was set with most of our positions and didn't have needs at TE, OL and LB -- not to mention a real pass rush specialist than can compliment, spell (and eventually replace) Schobel, then I wouldn't mind adding a guy like Ayers to the mix. For example, he would probably eventually make the overpaid Kelsay expendable. If we didn't have those other glaring needs, in fact, Ayers would probably be an enticing choice. I think he will turn out to be a good all around player, but he is not the pass rush specialist that this team needs right now.

I am choosing to remain optimistic about this whole thing. There is a great deal that differentiates this off-season as it relates to Peters from last season. For one thing the two sides are at least talking. Last year the stance that OBD was taking is that Peters was currently under contract, and they expected him to honor the existing contract. This year they have made an attempt to reach out and off him a more reasonable pay increase. Now, this may still be well below the market value that Peters and his agent(s) perceive ($3 M per year according to Gaughan). However, at least negotiations are in the works, and if the disparity is between, say, $9 M and $12 M a year, you have to figure that there is a middle ground somewhere. With this in mind, I see no reason why Peters and his agent(s) should make this more contentious than it needs to be. After all, Lee Evans set a nice precedent last season by showing up for all of the workouts and slowly working to get a contract extension that didn't actually see the light of day until after the start of the regular season.

So what would Jauron do if Stafford somehow fell to #11?