Rocky Landing

I'm seeing a bit of a contradiction in your argument. I understand his value as a downfield threat. And, I understand his value as a decoy, drawing out the safety. But, isn't that exactly the way he was used by Marrone, last year? Without a reliable arm throwing him those balls? And would this be why he only caught one out of nine attempts? If we have a better downfield arm throwing to him, then maybe I would agree with you. Do we? If not, and we continue to use him in this way (and, how else would we use him?), it will take two handfuls of snaps to get one big play out of him, and I don't see how that translates to making an impact when it matters. All that aside, it's an interesting discussion-- what do we want out of players lower on the depth chart? I think that some posters might think I'm nuts to suggest we should keep Lewis, a rookie who graded rather average in the draft, over Goodwin (and they're probably right). But,I feel like our lower WRs should be either reliable, versatile (Hogan is both), have unique abilities/attributes, or be an intriguing project. (Lewis is both of the latter, imo). You might consider that Goodwin's speed makes him unique. But, we have two WRs as probable starters who will make big, downfield plays, and both will be effective decoys for the running game. That is what I feel makes him redundant. And, he does not seem to be reliable, and certainly not versatile.

Playoffs. I'd like to see Fred Jackson play once in the post season in his career.

Was Hogan not above Goodwin on the depth chart all last season? He was certainly more productive, and on the field a lot more. For the record, I don't think that Lewis is better than Goodwin. He's a rookie. But, I think that we are so deep at WR, that Goodwin's talents are redundant, I don't see him working the slot, and he has not been nearly productive enough to keep him on this deep roster. Lewis is raw. But, his talents, were he to excel in TC, would be unique.

From Rex's perspective, might this more likely be Tyrod? They are both 25, and the argument could be made that Rex seems more invested in Tyrod. Were it a three-way tie, who do you think Rex would go with? Or, if it's a tie between EJ, and Tyrod, does he lose Cassel? Or hang onto the vet, and go with the "young prototype" that he prefers?

I guess I agree with all of this. But, given the choice between Hogan and Goodwin, I would rather have Hogan's short yardage reliability over Goodwin's occasional big play potential, since we already have at least two players with that type of downfield advantage in Watkins/Harvin. Some on here have made the point that Goodwin has better hands than Hogan. The stats completely contradict that notion (44% to 66%), although I understand that Goodwin has been used in a very different way, and perhaps (as you suggested) misused by Marrone. But, there's no denying that Hogan has made quite a few more first downs than Goodwin. I would consider that more valuable for someone lower down the depth chart than an outside chance at a big play. But, I would also rather have Lewis over Goodwin. As far down the chart as Goodwin would be, I think it's more valuable to have one tall wide receiver who can highpoint the ball-- as I have read, Lewis highpoint ability is one of his strengths. We got one big play out of Goodwin last season. What could we reasonably expect from him this season? At this point (and, obviously, my opinion could certainly change between now and August/Sept.), I'm more interested in seeing what Lewis has to offer, or what his potential could be.

He averaged 42 YPC last season. But, I think we could both agree that that is quite the misleading stat.

This post is puzzling to me. On what do you base your assumption that opposing teams game plan around Goodwin-- who caught one out of nine passes, last season-- and don't game plan around Hogan? Hogan was third on our depth chart last season, and was on the field a lot more than Goodwin. Not debatable??? Granted, the one catch Goodwin had last year was for 42 yards. But, that was out of ten games played. I don't think there are too many DCs losing sleep over that. If I'm a DC, I'm going to be more worried about the guy that gets thrown to a lot more. I'll take dependability over an occasional (very occasional) big play any day.

This is a troll poll.

There has always seemed to be a lot of love for Goodwin on this site, and never much for Hogan (IMO). But, Goodwin caught one ball last season. One out of the nine times it was thrown to him. Hogan, on the other hand, got significantly better from '13 to '14, and appears to have continued that trend coming into '15. I have a hard time seeing any reason why someone would consider Goodwin more valuable than Hogan, especially with Harvin, and Watkins on the roster, who are both significant down-field threats. Hogan has been far more productive than Goodwin. Regarding Lewis, I think there is good reason to believe he should make the final 53. With the amount of depth we have at WR, we can afford it, and we don't have a serious contender over 6'1". Lewis is 6'4". Whereas Goodwin's strength (speed) is extant in other players, Lewis' height makes him unique in our WR corp. And, as a rookie, I don't think he needs to "blow the competition out of the water" to be considered a worthy project. If he performs well throughout TC (and early indications are that he should, no?), then putting him on the PC would likely mean he would be gone.

Hogan, Goodwin, Lewis-- Pick two. Of the three of them, I think Goodwin gets cut.

Easley, Goodwin, Hogan, Lewis. All four of those guys aren't going to make the team. Who do you cut?

Just ask Tampa Bob.

Apparently, that was Fred Jackson's fault.

Because he might be arrested for felony hit and run?

Nothing personal, but you're Hitler...

ouch...

Ahhh, Monday. Everyone's back at work posting on fan sites...

I'm wondering if the NFL is considering further sanctions?

Other than run with a football, I seriously doubt you have any idea what a running back does. (damn.. there I go... I went for the bait...)

That's really only the case if he's not guilty, or there isn't enough evidence to either convict him, or suspend him. A hit and run involving injury is a felony in California. Not sure about Mass. But, signing him now might very likely be tantamount to giving up a roster spot.

The entire premise looks like trolling to me. Why would CJ Spiller, or any other RB, even consider being "coached" by another team mate with whom they are competing for a starting job? And, why, on God's green Earth, would we hold FJ accountable in any way for the production, or lack thereof, of another player on the roster? What Fred Jackson has been is one of the most popular players in Bills history, and, unquestionably, a respected team leader. And, he has been a consistently productive RB through some of the Bills' darkest days. I think that makes him at least a candidate for a coaching position.

I think the example you might be looking for is Matt Cassel. Took the Pats* to the playoffs, and made the pro bowl with the Chiefs, both behind a good O-line. But, as we've seen elsewhere, take away the good O-line, and he fell flat. But, I think the question of QB vs O-line is a bit of hair splitting. Carucci answers the question, "Quarterback," but in his explanation, implies both. I think, at least in the Bills current situation, we are going to need both positions to step up, or it's going to be a frustrating season.

I think it's more accurate to call it "branding."

Essentially, you're placing EJ fourth down the depth chart?

If congress succeeds in removing this line item from the military's budget, I would fully expect that either these events stop happening, or (more likely) we will hear announcers saying things like: "Please join us in honoring our military, brought to you by Oscar Meyer, and Verizon Wireless..."