2003Contenders

Peter, there is always a bit of PR that goes down on both sides of a trade. You could be right about the Bills' organization spewing some unsubstantiated inferences regarding Willis. Meanwhile, the Ravens are talking about what a "well-prepared" and "passionate" player that Willis is. They know that isn't true... The truth lies somewhere in between. That is, when given the proper motivation -- like when he wanted to get out on the field in 2004 and whenever he played against old roommate Jonathan Vilma and the Jets -- Willis actually showed some glimpses of being an elite back. Otherwise, he's looked BELOW AVERAGE. Yes, some of that can be blamed on poor coaching, a weak OL, and musical chairs at QB. But you know what? Good RBs overcome these inadequacies. For example, there were a number of years when San Diego was awful -- but LT still tore it up. Rather than striving to be part of the solution, Willis was actually PART of the PROBLEM! Simply put, having to deal with this motivation problem week in and week out simply became too much of a problem for the coaching staff, so they elected to move on. Right now, things seem a bit dark simply because there is no one on the team that can properly take his place -- and the calvary isn't coming via free agency either. Also, the Ravens have guys (like Ray Lewis) who will make it known to Willis what is expected. They have a better (and certainly more established) offensive line. Thus, I fully expect Willis to put up decent numbers this year for the Ravens. Thus, there will be Willis-supporters like yourself claiming to have been justified in your assessment that this was a bad trade for the Bills. However, given the circumstances, I feel that the team did what they could and landed a reasonable bounty for a malcontent player, who never lived up to expectations.

I am only aware of a single incident -- and the authorities chose to drop the case against him. Rest assured that if the Bills have interest in him, which they reportedly do, they will check into the incident accordingly. What may be of more concern regarding Lynch is his ability to carry the full load. While that may NOT be a problem, since the Bills seem set to go with a RBBC, it does beg the question of whether a part time RB is worth a mid-to-high first round pick. Of course, Reggie Bush's part time role proved vital for the Saints last season.

Brown also found his way into Jeff Fisher's doghouse in the preseason last year -- and demanded a trade, which the Titans refused to oblige. The first thing that occurs to me is that if the Lions do pick him up, I wonder what that will do for their leverage in trading Tatum Bell. Will their asking price of a 2nd rounder remain in place as there is now virtually no one (except presumably Ruben Droughens) on the market? Or will it diminish now (hypothetically) that they have Jones, Bell, Brown and Cason all on the roster? If we could pick up Bell for, say, this year's 3rd rounder we got from the Ravens, would it be worthwhile? I know Bell wore out his welcome in Denver, but Shanhan has a history of run-ins with players.

I love this crap coming from Willis... Evans was a top 10 WR last season and JP was a top 12 QB. Willis wasn't even amongst the top 20 in the league at his position. While the rest of the offense got better -- beginning, incidentally, in the game against the Houston when Willis was on the sidelines -- our hero went further south.

I think if the 2006 draft taught us anything about our front office, it is that if they see a guy they want, they won't risk trading down and hoping that he is still there. I don't know whether or not the Bills like Lynch, but if they determine that he is indeed their guy, I would imagine that they'd stay pat and take him at #12.

Or how about... "My situation in Buffalo wasn't a good one. Defenses could put 9 guys in the box, because they had no fear of me taking it the distance if I somehow managed to break through the front line of defense."

Obviously, the verdict is still out on McCargo. If he develops into a serviceable starting DT, the trade up will have been worth it.

He went to Coe College. Isn't that Marv's alma mater? Anyone know anything about him?

Funny thing is just a couple of months ago I was at that stadium wearing my authentic Willis McGahee jersey. The Ravens fan behind me kept screaming in my ear, "McGayWho?!!" I guess he knows now. For what it's worth, I was also at that stadium back in 2004 wearing my authentic Drew Bledsoe jersey...

Call me crazy, but I have not seen enough of Turner to be sold on him. And if the Chargers bothered to place that particular tender on him -- then they are going to expect the full compensation.

Actually, I think this was a win-win situation for both teams. Willis joins a proven winning team in Baltimore. He'll also be surrounded by fellow Miami alumni like Ed Reed and Ray Lewis, who will look out for him -- and make sure he is motivated to play. Thus, it stands to reason that Willis will do well for the Ravens.

I am in agreement that there are no ample replacements out there. Perhaps a combination of, say, A-Train and Dillon will be sufficient to carry us through 2007 until whomever we pick in the draft begins to emerge. After all, if by replacement you mean a back capable of matching Willis' 3.8 YPC average, well then these guys should make do just fine. I think the trade is more about addition by subtraction than it is anything else. That is, the front office simply wanted to wash their hands of Willis for once and for all. Time to move on...

Considering that the pick was a risk given his knee situation in the first place, I do not believe you can call him a bust. In fact, after the 2004 season he looked like a very good pick. Sadly, he never came close to matching the passion he showed that year. I think "disappointment" may be a more appropriate word. I know it's just semantics, but to me a "bust" is more devastating than a mere disappointment. My frustration here is less aimed at Willis than it is at TD for taking him in the first place. As I said, the pick itself was a risk -- one that was NOT worth taking, considering the other holes this team has had since then.

What a lazy and poorly thought-out article from Sullivan this morning! Sullivan says that Marv is playing his cards all wrong... He claims that bringing in these other RBs shows that the front office is desperate to get rid of Willis -- and that his trade value will decline. Well, first off, we're not talking about world class, elite RBs that the Bills are bringing in. Any one of these guys (Rhodes, Brown, Dillon) would have to be part of a RBBC. Jerry also fails to mention that Anthony Thomas is a free agent -- and perhaps the Bills are looking for a replacement for him. And, yes, Jerry, the team DOES need to be proactive in preparing for a possibility of life without Willis. It would be irresponsible to do otherwise. The bottom line is that with the dwindling market for RBs, it also HELPS the Bills' cause in terms of Willis' value to entertain the possibility of signing other RB FAs -- as Willis represents more of a scarce commodity. Sullivan talks about the lack of interest from other teams in acquiring Willis by pointing out that the Broncos signed Travis right away and the Jets were quick to trade for Thomas Jones. Well, it is true that both of those guys could be upgrades over Willis. However, Jerry fails to mention (probably because he's too out-of-the-loop to really know) that the Broncos WERE highly interested in Willis before the Titans released Travis. Suddenly, they could pick up Travis for nothing versus having to give up something in a trade for Willis. Also, the Jets were right to jump on the Jones trade -- as all they gave up was a swap of 2nd round picks with the Bears. The word we hear is that the Bills may be able to get the Ravens' 2nd round pick (and possibly an extra pick too) in exchange for Willis. That sounds like a better deal to me than what the Bears got for Jones. Also, Jerry, remember back to when TD traded Travis to the Titans. All he managed to land was a FUTURE 3rd round pick. Now, I'm not going to get overly excited because no trade has been made yet -- and we have no way of knowing what kind of compensation that the Bills will ultimately get for Willis. But, then again, neither do you, Jerry.

Wonder if there is any correlation to this and his weak showing in the playoffs this year?

Remember that the Franchise Tag entitles the Bears to TWO first round picks should any team sign Briggs and the Bears not choose to match it. That is in and of itself way too much. Thus, we (or another potential trading partner) would have to work out an alternative trade with the Bears for the right to sign Briggs. I would be willing to give up our #12 pick to make the deal, but I think we have too many other holes to fill elsewhere to consider giving up much more than that.

Yea, too bad Mort's buddy TD didn't sign Nate to an extension before he became a free agent -- and new GM Marv was forced to use the Franchise Tag.

Don't read too much into this report, as it sounds like cancellation of his Thursday trip to Detroit may have been brought about by his delay in getting to Buffalo today. According to the other Chris Brown, THIS Chris Brown probably won't even visit with the Bills' brass until tomorrow. Check out Chris Brown's Blog

I've always had the feeling that Willis rubbed Marv and Dick the wrong way when he refused to show up for voluntary workouts last season. Frankly, he's not done much since then to gain their favor.

Considering that they pick toward the end of each round, I don't think we should make the deal without getting at least their 2nd rounder -- or a player.

Agreed. Also, don't forget McGee's struggles last year. In my mind, even if AY looks like the real deal, we still need some help at CB.

1. He is a thug 2. He drops too many passes

Nah, I don't see A-Train getting much attention from other teams out there. The Bills know this, and they know that he serves as a safety net of last resort if they can't sign an upgrade. Plus, they are waiting to see what happens with Willis.

Maybe a short-term combination of Dillon AND Chris Brown. Then also invest a 2nd or 3rd rounder on a college RB for the long-haul.

I like Brown as a change-of-pace back or part of a RBBC -- just not as an every-down back. If used properly, in a Brian Westbrook type role, I think he can be a real playmaker. I just question his durability. In his career, he's only ever carried the ball more than 30 times in a game ONCE. He's also not a TD machine -- just 11 career rushing TDs. Also, aside from a that fine 2004 season in which he eclipsed the 1000 yard mark in just 11 starts, he's never cracked the 4.0 YPC mark for a season. He is, however, a pretty good receiver. For example, back in 2005, when he had to share time with Travis, he caught 25 passes for 327 yards.