Logic

This. Also, Gm's don't make public statements stating that they have pulled out of trade talks only to secretly continue said trade talks. Brown won't be a Bill. Furthermore, I'd bet 2 boxes of Flutie Flakes that he'll be a Raider or a Saint.

Ya know what happens when you take a player who is long on freak physical stature and athletic attributes but short on career production? You get Aaron Maybin. This is why we can't have nice things.

And going back to the original "coach and QB" point, it seems likely that Whaley was missing BOTH of those things, thus causing the rest of the names mentioned not to matter. It also points out that collecting talent is not the same as building a team. Think of the character/motivation of guys like Dareus, Watkins, and Glenn. Not exactly "team first" guys by most accounts.

As cool as it would have been seeing Allen throw bombs to Brown, I must say this: Giving $20M per year to a 31-year-old head case diva WR is EXACTLY how you start back down the road to cap jail. Oh, and one more thing: for a team and coach that so often use bulletin board material as motivation and thrive when they feel like they're being disrespected, this whole episode should provide some nice fodder.

Ask me again on May 1st? Oh, also: trading AJ McCarron for a freaking 5th round pick should be on the list. I mean Case Keenum, who is indisputably better than McCarron, just fetched less than that. He also got a draft pick for MARSHALL NEWHOUSE (!!!) Beane's a wizard.

We get outbid for Paradis and Morse. Beane counts on a Bodine/Long competition in camp to determine starting center (barf).

Seeing the money being thrown at mediocre TEs in Boyle and Allen has me thinking the Bills may just have to draft one high if they want one. Yikes.

I agree with the bolded. If you don't have a QB and coach, nothing else matters. The following sentence you wrote: "that doesn't mean that's all you need", that's where this discussion comes in. What ELSE do you need to give the coach and QB a better chance at sustained success? I'm not convinced that once you get the coach and QB, you're ready to roll. If you want a shot at multiple titles with your coach/QB combo, you'd better have some more around them. Dan Fouts and Don Coryell = 0 championships Dan Marino and Don Shula = 0 championships Philip Rivers and multiple coaches, including Marty Schottenheimer = 0 championships Peyton Manning and Tony Dungy = 1 championship In three out of the four instances mentioned above, defense was usually lacking. So we know that that's a need as well. Simplified, I would say that a coach, QB, and at least reasonably good defense gives you a shot every year. We also know, as discussed, that you've got to protect the QB. I don't think his weaponry is as important. If you have a truly excellent QB, he'll make do with average to slightly above average receivers. You probably can't consistently roll out a WR/TE depth chart as bad as what the Bills had last year. But even that, with better protection, might have been sufficient. As it was, we saw the Bills averaging nearly 24 points per game by the end of the season. This is what's so interesting about football: There isn't just one right answer. I mean, yes, "coach and QB". But after that? Teams have done it lots of different ways, and the ongoing strategic evolution discussed in earlier posts means the roster building strategy is always changing. Doug Whaley once made a quote that I wish I could remember in its entirety, because I liked it. It was something along the lines of: Beyond QB, you need and can afford to pay about 6-8 high quality, important players. Where you spend those dollars and on what positions is up to you. I'd say the Bills have some of their 6-8 already. Tre'Davious White, Matt Milano, Tremaine Edmunds, Dion Dawkins. More are needed, obviously, so it's a critical offseason, as everybody already knows.

My question for Bills fans: If the price tag for Frank Clark is the 9th overall pick, do you do the deal? What if the Bills have already signed an OT, C, and WR in free agency? Bear in mind that Frank Clark is only 25, and consider what the Bears paid for Khalil Mack just last season. It's not unreasonable to think that a 1st would be the asking price. So what would be your answer? Personally, I'd have to give it serious consideration. If you take a defensive lineman at 9, which is a very real possibility, you're rolling the dice and HOPING he becomes a good NFL player. With Clark, you already KNOW you're getting very good to elite sack production, and he's still only 25 years old.

I'm all for getting a dope edge rusher.... But isn't Frank Clark a low character turd?

Geoff Schwartz

Absolutely. There are some really great books about the evolution of football: The Genius of Desperation by Doug Farrar and Louis Riddick The Games That Changed The Game by David Plaut, Greg Cosell, and Ron Jaworski And speaking of strategic moves and counter-moves: I'm looking forward to power run offenses and bruising running backs coming back into vogue a little bit in the coming years to counter the ever smaller, ever faster defensive players that teams are rolling out these days.

It depends so much on who is available, and who the Bills take in free agency. The most strategically intelligent choice based on the importance of the battle in the trenches to the success of football teams would be either an offensive or defensive lineman. I want the Bills to pick whichever offensive or defensive lineman they have rated the highest. Ed Oliver, Brian Burns, or Montez Sweat on defense. Jonah Williams or Jawaan Taylor on offense. It may not be sexy, but games are won and lost in the trenches. Get me a big ugly and I'll be happy.

So the Steelers give up a top 5 WR and a 1st round pick for....an average offensive lineman and a bunch of late round crap? Color me skeptical. That looks more like a fantasy trade idea from the Saints message board.

Very interesting. There certainly does seem to be a formula for winning that is not just as simple as "Get a coach, get a QB". I USED to think that was all that was needed, but the careers of QBs from Dan Fouts, to Dan Marino, to Philip Rivers, to Andrew Luck so far, even to how few rings Peyton Manning won...It's NOT just coach and QB. Get a QB, protect him. Get to the opposition's QB and affect him. That's still the gist. HOW that all is done seems to be fungible. The biggest changes I see are interior pass rushers becoming as important as edge rushers, and consequently centers and guards becoming more important than they used to be. Additionally, right tackle has become a more premium position, as more and more top line edge rushers line up on the left. Football's strategic evolution is so ***** interesting.

Yep, I agree. I think the Bills figure they likely have three of the four secure. QB, CB, and LT. They just need their edge rusher. Murphy's just a complimentary piece and Hughes is closer to the end of his career than the beginning. This explains the current rumors about the Bills having serious interest in Frank Clark. I will not be surprised in the least bit if the Bills draft an edge rusher at #9 or trade for a recently franchised guy.

I hate to EVER give Geoff Schwartz credit for anything, because he is a stubborn, arrogant goon. But he's pretty correct here:

I have "interest" in Rachel Bush. Not gonna do me any more good than the Bills having "interest" in Frank Clark, I'm afraid.

I've gotta be totally honest: Just about any young, rich athlete with a choice in the matter would rather live in Las Vegas and play for the storied silver and black and a Super Bowl winning coach than live in Western New York and play for a team with a history like the Bills have and a head coach with a career losing record. I bleed Bills Blue just like everyone else on here and I love McDermott and I will defend my city/region until the end, but c'mon...Picture being a 30 year old millionaire with no bias toward either region or team. Which one are you going to pick? Can anyone really blame this dude if that's what ends up happening?

Raiders it shall be. Antonio Brown + Vegas + Chucky. I'm sure this will end well.

If only there were MULTIPLE already-existent threads in which this could have been discussed!

I'd like to see them a take a risk on Tyler Eifert in free agency AND draft an Irv Smith or a TJ Hockenson.

The thing that drives me nuts about people knocking the city of Buffalo is that you never hear the same sort of crap about Cincy, Cleveland, or Pittsburgh, all of which are EASILY as "bad" as Buffalo. And as for the cold weather, people never seem to complain about Green Bay being "Siberia", despite the fact that I'd be willing to bet it has more snow games than Buffalo or at least an equal amount.