Logic

Dareus is the perfect example of a player with all the talent in the world, but who completely lacks the motivation and common sense to harness it. The level of play he displayed that led to his huge contract extension was off the charts. He had the potential to be a perennial All Pro. What a waste.

Right on. I didn't mean to bust balls, I just sympathize with the plight of the dying journalism industry and want to support the awesome people at The Athletic.

I enjoyed the article and I love the Athletic. But aren't we, um...NOT supposed to post full articles from pay sites on here?

Used to park at Kettle's all the time. Fine place to park. Never tried eating or hanging out in there, though.

Outstanding post. What Beane walked into was an absolute mess. He has done a TREMENDOUS job of turning things around in short order. If people's position is "I need to see more", then I'm okay with that. But the people whose position is "he stinks, he's not doing a good job"...well, I just can't even BEGIN to understand that line of thinking.

If we're talking Beane witchery, can we add in the fact that he just signed a player for 1.2 million that JUST LAST YEAR signed for 9 million per year? I realize said player fought through injuries last year, hence the reduced pay level on his new team, but still. Beane got a GREAT deal with Spencer Long who, if healthy, represents a starting level guard or center in this league and is a definite improvement over what the Bills had in 2018.

After seeing these contract numbers, there really shouldn't be a single Bills fan that's still upset about his signing. That is an OUTSTANDING value for a player of Long's talent (when healthy). And if he doesn't remain healthy or is unable to win a starting job, the Bills can easily cut him with no negative long term ramifications. Awesome job by Beane. Also, with these new numbers in mind, I no longer feel that Long's signing will preclude the Bills from signing other quality o-linemen.

Lots of griping about Trent Murphy in this thread. While I agree that his health struggles were disappointing, I felt he DID make an impact when he was on the field. He and Shaq Lawson had exactly the same amount of defensive snaps at 440. What I want to know from the people that don't like Trent Murphy, and Star Lotulelei, for that matter: Do they not get any credit for the Bills' #2 ranked defense? They were both on the field for between 40-50% of the defensive snaps on the season. I find it hard to reconcile our defense's success against the "failures" of these two key acquisitions.

Imagine saying "stats are for losers" and then also CITING STATS FOR A FREAKING 1T/NT in the very same post. ?

LOL. Talk about a subjective opinion being presented as objective fact. At least Star's signing helped contribute to the 2nd ranked defense in the NFL. You must have slept through the signings of Derrick Dockery, Langston Walker, Larry Triplett, Kirk Morrison, Vontae Davis, Peerless Price (second edition), Andra Davis, Andre Davis, Melvin Fowler, Mark Anderson, and Philip Gaines.

I love the fact that the Long signing actually motivated a couple of Jets fans to come over and post their opinions. As I see it, the Jets' below average GM overspent on an injury prone player who is average to good when healthy, watched him get injured, saw that he wouldn't necessarily be a good fit with the scheme Gase wants to run, and had to cut their losses. The Bills have now signed him to a much more reasonable contract with the hopes that he can return to health and, thus, effective play. Time will tell. And now, a live look at new Jets coach Adam Gase: He wasn't below average on Washington. His only below average season was in NY. Let's hope a return to good health and a better scheme fit help him return to his previously high level of play. As has been mentioned, he represents an upgrade over what the Bills had, at the very least.

That's the money line right there. If Spencer Long is even average, the Bills have found an upgrade. To have found a likely roster upgrade (let's be honest, his best film with Washington showed a player who is superior to Miller/Bodine/Groy at this juncture) in February, for such a reasonable cost, has to count as a win for the Bills. If he gets hurt again or his level of play doesn't return to what it was in 2017, then he's a good depth piece and, again, isn't tying up much cash.

I just don't think the Bills are/were in a place in their rebuild where it made sense to part with multiple 1st round picks. The Bears were a dominant pass rusher away from "finished product" as far as team building goes. The Bills...not so much. To not have 1st round draft picks in EITHER of the next two drafts, when the team is in need of as much talent across the board as it is, would not have been a good thing. Additionally, you're looking at not only two 1st round rookies instead of Mack, you're also looking at two CHEAP LABOR PLAYERS instead of Mack, who would have commanded a huge salary. Not only that, I think Beane wants to make darn sure he doesn't get the Bills into the same bad salary cap position they were in when he arrived. Paying Mack the highest contract ever awarded to a defensive player in league history could definitely qualify as a big step down that path. All in all, I wouldn't have been MAD if the Bills had traded for Mack, but I'm not sorry that they passed. Priority number 1 for the Bills is to protect Josh Allen and get him weapons. Trading all those premium picks for Mack and giving him huge money would have significantly affected their ability to achieve the "help Allen" objective.

Maybe so, but I don't think he's wrong here. I think the Bills DO look at Long as their probable starting center in 2019. Beane's recent quote about it being "easier to sleep at night if you have a veteran center" has me thinking Long will be the guy. They may draft a protege in the mid rounds, but it wouldn't shock me in the least if Long is starting at center come opening day.

Demaryius Thomas is 31 and coming of a late-season torn achilles. That's a no for me, dog.

Another factor to consider with regard to his drop in level of play last year? His offensive line coach, none other than Rick Dennison, he of the zone blocking scheme. Here's hoping a scheme and scenery change and a return to full health will pay dividends for Long.

I may be in the minority, but I think his pay rate indicates that he IS being looked at as a probable starter. I also think the fact that the Bills list him as a C/G and not just as a G means that they think he has a shot to win the starting center job. Recall Beane's recent comment about "sleeping better at night" if you have a veteran C. For those counting on the Bills ALSO getting Paradis or Morse: with the signing of Long, I sincerely doubt that's gonna happen.

I sure hope it's for depth/competition and that he's not going to be counted on as our for-sure starting center. My understanding is that he did NOT have a good year with the Jets, hence his release. The three-year deal is a bit telling. They must like him. Good signing in February, I guess. Like I said, I just hope they don't think "problem solved!" at the center position.

Absolutely. They talk all day long about concern for player safety, but then they add Thursday night games and provide woefully inadequate pensions. They talk all day long about the personal conduct policy, but then more seriously punish people for smoking cannabis or peacefully taking a knee than they do for beating a woman or murdering someone. It's disgraceful. The NFL only cares about one thing: $$$ Their hypocrisy, greed, and disregard for the lives of those who helped and continue to help build their league is truly vile, and I'm a weak football addict for continuing to stick with them.

Sometimes I wish I weren't so hopelessly addicted to football and the Buffalo Bills, because the NFL is gross, and its conduct is often reprehensible. The league's actions indicate again and again that they're perfectly fine with domestic abuse and violence. Just don't smoke marijuana or peacefully protest against police violence, by golly!

John Dorsey -- who drafted pregnant woman choker and puncher Tyreek Hill -- signed Kareem Hunt?

I'm actually fine with them signing Funchess AS LONG AS they don't count on him to be the #1 or #2 receiver. Funchess is an 800-yards-per-year guy. That's a guy that can help your team. If they were to sign Funchess to a reasonable contract but then also spend a 1st or 2nd round pick on WR, would it bother you? Rookie Foster Jones Funchess Duke Williams McKenzie That's a pretty promising WR depth chart

All this discussion and analysis about a guy's shirtless physique can only mean it's draft season.

I watched the Gase hire and the subsequent Williams and Vitt hires with a head-shaking "they can't really be going this route" amusement. I realize that no one really knows how anything will work out in the NFL, and maybe this WILL turn out to be a great hire for the Jets, but....boy, I really don't see it. Gase, to me, did not seem very good at running a team when he was the Dolphins' HC. Him venting publicly about lack of effort, his players venting publicly about wanting to get out of Miami...it just seemed like a mess. Add that to the fact that the ON-FIELD product was never more than mediocre, and was often much worse than that. Various players/coaches admitted at the end of the year that the Dolphins just never had an identity on offense. So the Jets need to rebuild from scratch, and how do they choose to do it? By keeping the same GM who, thus far, hasn't been very good, and then allowing him to hire as head coach a man who was just fired by your comparably unsuccessful division rivals. It just doesn't make any sense at all. I see this one ending very badly for the Jets. Dysfunction, mediocrity, wasted time.