blacklabel

At this point I doubt even Richie has his sh*t straight as to why he isn't on a team anymore. First, he willingly agreed to a pay cut. Then, he flips his lid, fires his agents, demands his original contract back, then says he's "retiring due to health reasons" after the Bills told him no. In reality, homeboy straight up didn't wanna go thru training camp. I think he had every intention of sitting out for the summer and then trying to catch on with a team after the pre-season. Sadly, the death of his father has clearly impacted him greatly as he seems to be slipping down the slope more each day. Eric Wood was basically told, "Look, one more snap and you could end up paralyzed or dead" so, it's obvious he'd be here if he could be. Cordy Glenn was a solid player while he was here and I have a lot of respect for him for the illness and injuries he played through. I believe last season was a good indicator that he's past his prime at this point. Dawkins out-played him to the point where the team felt comfortable moving on without him. It's funny, because the same nitwits ragging on this OL now and saying they still need those three players were the same nitwits calling them all "slow and unathletic" while they were here.

Saw this on a Twitter feed somewhere but I agree, someone said they think Cory Carter had the punting competition wrapped up but then he got hurt which caused the FO to scramble a bit. Hence, Jon Ryan and then the new kid. Schmidt's average has been consistent in his four-year career but over the last two seasons he seemed to shank it at really bad times and his directional/pin 'em deep punts were ending up as touchbacks more often than not. McDermott prioritizes special teams and field position a lot and clearly Schmidt just wasn't getting it done anymore. However, I bet the dude is "on retainer" (i.e. on their speed dial) in case of an injury to the new kid... whom I will stop calling new kid when I know how to correctly spell his friggin' name and don't feel like Googling it at the moment.

Yes, precisely, I have a draft prospect timeline "in my head" even though I really didn't touch on any of their picks aside from Allen. The 3-year timeline is common practice in the league. You really don't know what you have in a prospect until year three, that's what they say anyway. Clearly, some prospects show their hand one way or the other before that, but, regardless, I didn't come up with that criteria for judging prospects. And what part of their plan are they not doing? They're doing exactly what they've said they would do from day one. We can make a list if that makes it easier. They said... -Any players not on board would be playing elsewhere. Check. -They would get the cap situation under control, I won't say "check" because it's still in process but they unloaded several massive contracts given to players that were no longer worth the money they were getting. -Find a franchise QB. Check. (Hey look at that, no "timeline in my head" on that one! Wow.) -Build a team in their vision. Check. We can say "in progress" on this one too, if you wanna split hairs because teams are constantly building. -Find the right players for their vision. Check. Or, again, another in progress type of endeavor but the core of their team is built around players with the same core values outline in their vision: Hard-working, team-first players more focused on helping their team win than focused on stats or personal achievements. -Build team chemistry. Check. How many disorganized/disgruntled yet talented teams have we watched over the years? Plenty. One constant about those teams I always saw from current/former players, analysts, etc. was that they didn't seem "together" and they weren't playing for each other. Now, you have a team that considers themselves family and loves playing for each other. Lemme know the next time any other team gets fired up like they just won the big one after a journeyman backup RB/special teams guy takes a three-yard dump off and picks up a first down. And they accomplish parts of these and other goals all while breaking a 17-year playoff drought. To me, I just don't see the need to nitpick and dissect every single move they make knowing how crazy the NFL can be. Not every move is a home-run, not every move is meant to be. Maybe that's what some people don't see... they see a signing of a player and if it's not a name they recognize or a position they feel is a position of need they're gonna find a way to discredit and criticize the move. Again, I'll go back to the point of sustainability. This franchise has been the definition of discord and disorganization since 2000. Wade Phillips, Gregg Williams, Mike Mularkey, Dick Jauron, Chan Gailey, Doug Marrone, Rex Ryan. Tom Donahoe, Marv Levy, Russ Brandon, Buddy Nix, Doug Whaley. What do all those guys have in common? All but two of them (Jauron & Whaley) saw three years or less in their positions. Just the fact that some people feel ready to move on from this regime because they haven't yet addressed every single issue with this team is beyond me. It's quite obvious that without sustainability at the top there is no sustainability or success to flow through the entire franchise. It's cliche at this point but these are the reasons why we constantly hear "process." Takes time. Let 'em work that's all I'm saying. If not them, then what's the alternative? People always seem so ready to dump everything and clean house but rarely present a decent alternative. I mean, we can go on and provide many other examples that show just how different this regime is than past ones. In any business, there's going to be wrinkles to work out, of course. But, given the absolute sh*tshows that were Rex/Whaley and St. Douggie/Whaley, McBeane is a breath of fresh air. These guys are held in very high regard by the Pegulas so clearly they're doing something right. To your last point on Beane being here only because he's McDermott's bud, I think the Carolina Panthers organization would disagree as they willfully employed him for 19 seasons and had every intention on handing him the keys after Gettleman but he took a chance to come here and build this team. On top of that, the guy gets nothing but praise and respect from fellow GM's and execs. Process.

I'm pretty sure he was here last year to serve in somewhat of a teaching role as he had experience in McDermott's system. I could be mistaken, but didn't they offer Johnson another one-year deal to stay here? If they didn't offer him a deal at that time, they won't offer one now. Far as I can tell they seem pretty pleased with Taron's progress.

They like Lacey for special teams and his coverage ability. Haven't read up on Orchard recently but I think if he comes here he can be a versatile piece and we know McBeane love them that versatility. Orchard can play on the edge as well as some SAM. We'll see what they think of him by the end of the day.

Right? I mean, I'm all for constructive criticism on the regime and the organization but it feels like way too many people aren't putting this sh*t in perspective. First thing, there is no winning with Bills fans. OK, some fans, not all. No matter what the team does, there will always be people who wanna whine about stuff. This organization has a mess of a cap thanks to lopsided deals given by Doug Whaley. He re-signed Glenn, Hughes and Dareus when those guys were playing at a high level. He did well in pleasing the player side of contract negotiations but neglected to draw up these contracts with an out for the team. Furthermore, had he not thrown down big money for those three players, the same crowd that's whining now would've been whining back then, all "There they go again, letting their best players walk for nothin'!" Whaley had a good eye for talent. However, he did not have a solid team-building philosophy. He took players from big time programs that always win and assumed that type of winning culture would spill over into their locker room. His contracts weren't great even though he held onto their top talent. Either way, lose-lose according to the fans. So what do these fans do? Piss and moan relentlessly for the organization to "tear it all down, clean house, clean house NNNOoooOOOOoooWWawwWWWww! SccRrrRRRreeEeeeeEEEE!" What does the organization do? They hire McBeane who proceeds to come in and do exactly that. Cleaned house of crappy contracts, cleaned house of players that weren't buying in, collected enough assets in the process to position themselves to take the kid they believe is their franchise quarterback, all while ending a 17-year playoff drought. At the end of last season, you couldn't find a drop of process in WNY because it'd been gobbled up by this fanbase. And now a few days from the 2018 season kicking off, some people don't like a few decisions and now they're barfing up the process all over the place. "We don't like this kind of process, give us a different one, wahhh!!" In the immortal words of Cousin Eddie: You serious, Clark? For real, GTFO of here if you can't suck it up and take a few lumps and let these guys do their frickin jobs. For the first time in a loooonnngggg time this organization has stability from the top down. Running the show are two extremely well respected individuals who have work ethics that are off the friggin charts. You want lazy Rex back in here? How 'bout old Buddy "I need mah sleeps!" Nix? McBeane have been parts of winning organizations as well as losing ones. I'mma go out on a limb here and say they have a better idea at how to build a SUSTAINABLE winning team. Key word: sustainable. It was great to hit the playoffs last year. Massive monkey off their backs right off the bat, how you gonna find a way to B word about that? But again, sustainability has been something they've preached since day one. In order to get that sustainability you gotta go thru a season, maybe two where you're taking your lumps while sorting out the puzzle. This season is about development and it's about them recognizing which guys are gonna be the core, the foundation for this team in the future. I ain't saying everyone needs to be on board with everything McBeane does 100%. I'm not a fan of every move they've made but I understand what they're trying to achieve and during the entire drought, I rarely if ever had a decent understanding of what the team was trying to do likely because of the lack of cohesion at the top. Can't fix everything in one year. And guess what? No team is 100% "fixed." No matter the record, there's always room for improvement. The McBeane Show has been in town for all of about 20 months and some of you are like, "Pff, they don't have 17 Lombardi Trophy's yet so they can get lost!" Please. If you can't trust the process at least respect it and let these cats do their thing. Yeesh.

This fanbase sucks.

He's kinda like Fitz, let's see if he can recognize his limitations unlike Fitz.

Different regime but he was here in 2015 on a pre-draft visit and I recall hearing that they had him targeted in round three but the Brownies took him in the second. Could be a solid rotational player.

They evaluated and said, "Foster makes the cut." Ta-da.

I still feel like they hang onto him to give him a bit more time to get in the groove. They know they really don't have any speed at WR aside from him.

Laaaaaaaaaaaame. Let the kid keep getting reps, they're gonna have to make a decision on when to make it his team anyway.

I think it's been pretty clear that this team is rebuilding/reshaping/reforming, whatever term you wanna use. Their first step was constructing a locker room with players that have the type of character they're looking for. Players that didn't wanna buy in, or players that were more about personal achievement than the team were shuffled out. After that they unloaded contracts that were killing their cap. The next step was putting themselves in position to draft who they believe is their franchise QB. They did what they had to do and pulled the trigger. In the midst of this, they lost two players they didn't expect to lose with Wood and Incognito (although you can argue that they were prepared to move on from Incognito due to them asking him to take a pay cut) and so the OL is not where they want it to be. But, I think it's also been pretty clear since day one is that they want to build their defense first, which makes complete sense. A young QB's best friends are a strong defense and a strong running game. They *could* be a top 10 defense this year if everything comes together. And McCoy, despite numerous scheme changes and different OL personnel in front of him, has managed to rack up over 1K yards in two out of his three seasons here. They knew they weren't going to be throwing the ball a whole lot with Taylor yet they still invested in Benjamin and Jones. Maybe Jones turns the corner, maybe Benjamin finds his 2014 form, maybe not. They are addressing needs based on their priority list, not ours. Perhaps they felt the players they had in the OL room would be able to step up and replace Wood/Incognito. It's been a rough pre-season for the OL but again, it's pre-season. I mean, regardless of how they wanna rebuild this thing, it's gonna take time. There are gonna be growing pains. There are gonna be a lot of busted TV remotes this year as they go flying across the living room while fans rage. It's been said since the early off-season, not many people think the Bills are contenders for 2018, but moreso for 2019 when their cap is cleared up and set to provide them with plenty of space to fill holes via free agency. I'm good with the process, it just takes patience. The one part of the process I'm not so good on right now is the constant personnel shuffling, especially with the OL. At a certain point they have to make up their mind and name their center and guards. We know the tackle spots belong to Dawkins and Mills. Who's playing interior OL then? Is it Groy, Ducasse and Miller? Is it Bodine/Ducasse/Miller? Is it Bodine/Groy/Ducasse? Bodine/Groy/Miller? Does Teller find his way in there? I dunno but they need to figure it out and name their top five and let those guys start working together. All the penalties and miscues last Sunday can be attributed to the fact that the five OL that started the game have not had a substantial amount of reps together. And then from series to series they're trying this guy here, that guy there, flipping guard spots so those players have to switch up their technique in the middle of a game. Yes, they're pros and yes they should be able to adjust but if you're playing one position for most of a game and get flipped to the other side where things are opposite, it can definitely throw you off your game. It could be a long season for us fans but hopefully it's all for the best. I just need to not see "FIRE ABSOLUTELY EVERY SINGLE MOTHERFRIGGIN' PERSON IN THIS ORGANIZATION!!!!!!!11111111" after every loss or rough game. Anyone thinking that McBeane is gonna be shown the door after this season, think again. The Pegulas absolutely love those guys and are willing to let them see their vision through for quite a long time. Let them do their work. Can't fix everything in one or two seasons.

I'm with you on that. Felt bad for the dude.

I think both players will be alright and have decent seasons. It's been said umpteen bajillion times already but Lotulelei is here to eat up space, occupy multiple blockers and free up the linebackers. That was his role in Carolina, that'll be his role here. As described by McBeane, he's a selfless player that doesn't mind doing the dirty work. He's not gonna show up in a big way on the stat sheet each week but hopefully the work he is doing allows the guys behind him to make plays. And prior to Murphy's injury, he racked up 9.5 sacks and was second overall in the league in QB pressures. I know he's still coming back from the knee and now a groin but beyond his abilities as a player, he's here because he's 100% a process type of guy. His work ethic is off the charts and he wants to win which is exactly the type of guys McBeane want in their locker room. We know yesterday sucked, honestly, not just the OL, but most of the team looked unprepared and uninterested. I gotta think a little bit of that is on the coaching with the constant switching up and substitutions. I know they wanna get a look at certain guys in certain spots but sooner rather than later they need to construct the starting lineups on either side of the ball and let those guys start gaining chemistry together. Name your center, name your QB, etc. Let these dudes start working together exclusively during practices and see if they can get it going.

Henderson, I believe, won the starting RT job in Houston. However, yesterday after that debacle, many an analyst were proclaiming the Bills the worst OL in the league. Several people chimed in with, "Houston would like to have a word" so, sounds like they aren't in any better shape than the Bills are at this point. And Kouandjio is a back up in... Denver now? And they had a pretty rough OL for several seasons. Kouandjio also couldn't catch on in Detroit which also has a less than stellar OL. I felt like Henderson could've been a pretty solid player if he had his head on straight, which he did after his rookie year here. Injuries and illness and the suspensions really derailed things for him but hey, maybe he'll turn it around in Houston.

Glenn's health had to be a major factor in deciding to trade him. He dealt with kidney issues throughout '15, had the foot/ankle issues all through '16 and '17 and Dawkins played well enough in his place to make him expendable. He played two series' yesterday and went out with a shoulder injury. Glenn's been a productive player during his career but he's reached a point now where his dependability is always a concern.

Ducasse was particularly horrible. On that play where Atkins drove him into Allen, Ducasse looks unprepared from the snap, he lifts his head up way too high, loses leverage, Atkins gets under him, literally lifts him off the ground as he walks him straight into Allen's face. Aside from the OL, it really kinda felt like the whole team went into yesterday's game seriously unprepared or went in with a mindset of playing it safe to avoid injury. Too bad for them the Bengals were 100% ready to throw down.

Keep in mind that Daboll's scheme requires the OL to be multi-faceted and able to execute a number of different blocking schemes from week to week based on their opponent. Combine that with the fact that they've been tinkering with the starting five all summer long. Dawkins has been the only "for sure" guy at his position. Newhouse has battled Mills a little bit for RT but at the end of the day it's gonna be Mills. They still haven't decided if they want Bodine or Groy at C. Because of that, they haven't decided if they're settled on Miller/Ducasse at G because if they go with Bodine at C, they may want Groy at LG or RG. At a certain point, they have to make up their minds and stick with the same five guys for a full week of practice and a game to see how they gel. Pre-snap penalties as well as in-play penalties can be a result of these guys not having enough reps together to understand how to best work with one another. Right now it's on all of them. I'm not a huge fan of Castillo but the constant switching around and not naming their best five has set them back. All the while they're trying to run multiple schemes under Daboll and it's just not coming together right now. The best way to combat a sketchy OL is the run game and a short passing game which plays to Peterman's skill set... so, at this point, unless something drastic happens, I'm pretty sure it's gonna be Peterman under center in week one.

Didn't he retire? I know he came here on a FA visit when Whaley was GM and turned down their offer so he may not wanna play here.

Philly gave Warmack a contract extension and a raise just before the season last year. They had signed him in May to a one-year deal for $1.51 million and then re-upped that deal with another one-year contract for $2.5 million... that, to me, would say they felt pretty good about him. I wonder if they have someone younger and cheaper pushing for the starting job... even so... $2.5 million for a starting guard isn't a lot.

Teller has had some issues picking up the X's and O's which is why he hasn't had any time with the ones. But if Ducasse or Miller keep playing the way they have, coaching staff won't have a choice but to let Teller get in there just to see how he does. What was up with Dawkins? I don't recall reading about him being hurt or anything. Were they resting him and just seeing what Newhouse could do at LT? It was rough. They need to get their sh!t together. I've never really felt great about the Castillo hire but we'll have to see what happens.

Holy geez... This OL is abysmal. I didn't think they'd be this bad but so far Miller has three penalties, Groy whiffed on a sack, Bodine got walked right into Allen's lap for a sack, Newhouse on the left is getting zipped by nearly every play, Ducasse can't sustain a block... Is it really Mills right now who's played the best of the OL so far? Cripes. If this carries over into the regular season, adios Castillo, who I've felt since day one was one of McDermott's "bleh" hires. What's up with Dawkins? Did I miss something with an injury or did they wanna see Newhouse out there? Damn. One way to fix these OL issues is a short, quick passing game which plays better to Peterman's skill set than Allen's.

Teller still has some developing to do. This coaching staff values experience a lot which is why they go with Ducasse. Teller will make this team but I wouldn't be surprised if he's a healthy scratch for many games. The four interior OL are Groy, Bodine, Ducasse and Miller. Having Groy start at center but being able to shift to either guard spot if needed gives them that versatility they like. If Groy wants the job though he's gonna have to do better than what he's showing so far vs. Cincinnati here. Caught nothing but air on that last Allen sack.

Benoit recently tweeted out that while he thinks highly of Aaron Donald, he said, how does a guy who's part of the 30th ranked run defense run away with Defensive Player of the Year? The ensuing thread was the first Twitter thread where every single response vehemently disagrees with his take. Several other analysts shot down his take as well. Someone pointed out how a strong run defense doesn't correlate to wins. Another point was made that some defensive coordinators don't worry too much about having a strong run D so long as their secondary is stout. Another individual pointed out that Mack was DPOY in '16 while part of the Raiders 24th ranked rush defense. It was a pretty awful take all around. A year or two ago he went up against Chris Harris, Jr. for an article. He wrote that he legitimately thought he beat Harris on several routes...until teammates told him, "Dude, if Chris didn't want you to catch any passes, you wouldn't have, he was letting you have some fun." So, he knows some stuff but I also think he's a bit full of himself and as Shaw pointed out, he definitely seemed to approach his article on the Bills with his own subjective opinion that they'd be bad this year then went and found data to specifically back that up while refusing to look at an analyze things contradictory to his own point.