BarleyNY

Have you ever been involved in any way with any financial negotiation of any type?

I do like the RB roster but I guess you have a much higher opinion of the WR and TE roster, top to bottom, than I do. The right side of the OL and the help a TE will likely have to give the RT is a concern to me as well.

It is the time of unicorns and rainbows. Silly Season has given way to Focused Exuberance as fans fall out of love with their beloved draft prospects that have gone on to live their lives elsewhere and learned to love those to whom they've been wed in an arranged fashion. Good qualities are brought to the forefront while unseemly flaws are overlooked for the moment. Perhaps we can wait until players put on NFL pads before making judgements of their ability or reading too much into what coaches are saying?

Thanks. I don't see him walking either, I was just alluding to the "Bus Factor". I was pointing out that if something freakish were to happen with/to Gilmore (remote possibility that that is), then the team would need a near quality replacement to run Rex's scheme. So why gripe about paying him? The team would just wind up paying his replacement a huge contract instead - if they could even find one. Or they'd have to hope to hit on a high draft pick next year, which is not nearly as sure a bet. That's what top CBs cost in terms of contracts and/or draft picks and if your scheme requires them (and all do to some degree), then you've got to invest there.

I agree. But Taylor has to do his part to make that happen. He has to prove he can shoulder the load as well as protect himself. I can't fault Roman for keeping the reins tight last season. Here's hoping he progresses. But it's also why I've been harping on getting help at WR and TE. This receiving corps isn't good enough to really help TT succeed as a passer.

No worries. I've usually done worse sooner in the day.

It's not an article from PFF (Pro Football Focus), it's from PFR (Pro Football Rumors). They're very different sites.

The Bills have done what they needed to do so they can afford both (if necessary) so it isn't a "Gilmore or Taylor" situation. Besides, Gilmore will get paid this offseason if the Bills sign him to a long term deal. Taylor's long term deal will wait until next offseason or possibly sometime this season, if the Bills sign him to one. As for Gilmore's worth to the Bills, it's huge. Strong corner play, especially the ability to play man-to-man coverage, is paramount for the defense that Ryan runs. It puts a lot of pressure on the CBs and they have to stand up to that. There's no way I can see Gilmore walking so I expect him to get signed. People need to relax about it. His agent is just trying to maximize his contract. There's no need to worry at this point. If the Bills somehow lost or parted ways with Gilmore, they'd have to find a high quality replacement for him for Rex's defense to function properly. But I don't see that happening. He'll sign.

For the record, I think SJ was the better player last season - but not by much. This season? It wouldn't surprise me if either SJ or EW was the better player. Beyond that, SJ is more expensive than EW and does not have the potential upside EW has. He is what he is at this point and it'll only be downhill from there. I could see why a coach would want SJ for the very short term, but would prefer EW for the long term. But it isn't an either/or question. I think the Bills would be better with both. A veteran like SJ would be good to have to push EW and the other young WRs. He'd be good to have as a 3 who could step up to a 2 - and for general depth. He's not the only guy like that out there and the Bills may yet pick one up to fill that role. Probably cheaper. I hope they do because I don't have the same high expectations you do for the WR corps. I see one very talented player in Watkins, but I worry about the injury bug biting. Woods as a #2 isn't a big threat. I think he'll be solid. Nor more, no less. After that it's just hope. SJ - or another solid vet - sitting there on the roster fighting with EW for the 2/3 WR spots would make me feel a lot better. I'd feel better about EW having earned the #2 spot, I'd feel better about the WR rotation and I'd feel better when a starter had to miss time.

You seem to be changing my arguement substantially. Please stick to what I said. I'm not arguing who's better, just that there isn't a huge difference between the two and that SJ could help the Bills. Respond to that. The "played injured" card is very weak sauce. Wow, you know what a player on your team went through. How about SJ? Did you look to see if he played hurt? Every player has to suit up with injury of some kind during the season. Woods did. Johnson did. It's part of the game. Had Woods played substantially below what he previously did, then maybe injury could be a big consideration. But that wasn't the case.

That same link has Stevie Johnson rated much higher than Robert Woods. http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/wr And, again, I'm not even arguing that I think SJ is better than EW. Just that it seems dumb to say there's a huge difference and that SJ wouldn't be a big help to the Bills.

I totally disagree. SJ got 8 starts and played in 10 games with 593 offensive snaps. Woods got 9 starts and played in 14 games with 820 offensive snaps. Those extra snaps even up opportunities pretty well even with the run-first offense excuse. They look very comparable in my book for such a huge discrepancy in opinion. Beyond that, it seems dumb to think SJ couldn't help this team (regardless of whether or not he's better than Woods) since he'd easily be better than every other WR on the roster, Watkins obviously excepted. Honestly, you're comfortable with what our WR corps looks like now? How about when Watkins and/or Woods miss time?

Stevie Johnson: 10 games, 45 Rec, 497 Yds, 3 TDs, 1 Fum Robert Woods: 14 games, 47 Rec, 552 Yds, 3 TDs, 2 Fum I'm not sure how anyone can say that the first guy listed above sucks and wasn't worth keeping, but the second one deserves to be our #2 WR.

That is scary. Quality TEs are tough to find and I was really hoping the Bills would find a decent (or better) one in the draft. Clay is pretty much it right now. We need one of the other TEs to step up as at least a good blocking TE.

Not a good trade and, yes, we sure could have used him. His contract is very reasonable - 3 years, $10.5M. There may have been some issues we weren't privy to that led to the team parting ways with him, but that staff is gone anyway. He'd sure have helped last year and we could use his services even more this year.

Assume you're talking strictly draft here. I break it up like this: Early round picks - I like a combination of production against NFL quality opposition AND high measurables/metrics overall. There's no reason to favor a work out warrior without production or high producer with questionable measurables early on in the draft. Go for a guy who has both. Mid round picks - I look for quality role players - with upside, if possible. Sometimes scheme-specific starters or quality starters at less important positions can be found here as well. Or even the occasional elite talent with an injury/off the field problem. Late round picks - I favor high metrics/measurable players from smaller schools or lesser programs. Gems can be found sometimes with players who have talent, but never got the coaching they needed to excel. I look for players who've slid for other reasons as well - injury, off the field issues, drastic changes in program, etc. There is fluidity between those breakdowns and there are certainly exceptions, but that is my basic framework.

Good read. Thanks for the link.

I'd go back to the old PI rules. No grabbing after 5 yards, but the hand checks and old school shoving to gain position shouldn't be a penalty.

Also of note, just with Taylor's passing attempts and rushing attempts from TT, Shady and Karlos the Bills would average 71.5 plays a game. That's without another pass or rush from any other player. The highest average number of plays last season for any team was 69.9 (Houston). The Bills had 63.5 (20th). The teams at the top of the list were ones that ran a lot of hurry up offense by design or necessity. https://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/plays-per-game

To the OP: How can TT have almost 1,100 more yards passing on 141 more attempts, but still have more rushing attempts and yardage than last season? If he settles in and improves as a passer - which he would need to do for that to happen - then he won't be running as much. (I'm also not sure why you expect him to get an extra 85 rushing yards on 2 more attempts.)

If anyone with an extra Stanley cup banner wants to sell please PM me. A Super Bowl banner can be included in the transaction if you wish.

Outstanding

Sometimes people use those types of questions as a way to sum up and confirm someone's meaning. In your first example think of it as him saying "Okay, what you're saying is that you'd like to see the new stadium put in a location that would be more accessible to people living in Rochester, right?" Then the other person can confirm and explain why or move in to something else.

Haven't seen that in ages. It never gets old. Thanks for posting.

Thanks for the heads up in this, Proto. I will check it out.