yungmack

Excellent analysis. BTW, even after all its success, SD still doesn't seem to go chasing the biggest free agent signings.

Jauron had absolutely no understanding of the "no huddle." Simply not huddling is meaningless by itself. What makes the No Huddle work is the SPEED with which the team lines up for the next play...which means the QB has to read the situation quickly and call the right play..and the rest of the O has to be smart enough to react rapidly to that call. In other words, the essence of the No Huddle is to move so fast from play to play that the D cannot properly defend against the O. At heart, it is very much the Two-Minute Drill played across the entire game. And the QB has to be the one deciding on the plays, not a coach on the sidelines. As Jauron apparently understood the No Huddle, the essence was simply not to huddle. Speed and quickness played no part in his formulation. From the very first possession of the NE game, I was going "WTF?" The O was wandering around the field, taking it's jolly time getting to the line, with Edwards clearly waiting for the play to be called in. The Bills O used up as much time between plays as if they'd actually huddled, thus giving the D plenty of time to get back to the line of scrimmage and to prepare for the next play. His approach not only eviscerated the concept and the advantage of the No Huddle, it made the O look confused, aimless and laugable.

And WHY is Cowher held in such high esteem in the first place?

All of whom are locks for the HOF.

Kemp wasn't a senator...he was a congressman.

Well, one rumor that keeps coming up year after year is the Chargers moving back to LA. There's also been talk about both the Rams and Raiders returning. And of course, the Bills, Jax and a couple of others are perennially mentioned as moving to LA. The SF Bay Area has two teams; NYC has two. And DC has two in the general area. So two in LA isn't at all a stretch. There are more people living in the metro LA area than in all the other western STATES combined (if you subtract California itself from that group). In any case, I don't think Roski's plan will happen but the Anshutz/Liewicke proposal is another matter.

Good insight. I was going to start a new thread on this very topic. I noticed that all three are throwing much tighter spirals, with more zip, and with very good accuracy. It could be that it's just the normal progression that comes with daily practice, but I think Gailey must have a lot to do with it. In any case, the QBs are looking better (go back and look at the videos from earlier OTAs to now)

2010 would be a great year for him to croak...because the estate tax this year is ZERO. In 2011, it jumps back up again.

From what I recall, the NFL wants TWO teams in LA. And right now, there are two competing stadium groups, one out to the east of the city (that's been covered on TSW) and a recent proposal for one in the area of Staples Center, which would put it right between downtown LA and USC/Colosseum, right off several freeway points and with a Metro stop immediately in front of it. This is a booming section of Los Angeles. The money behind this proposal is Philip Anschutz and that is serious money. So I'd say this one has the best chance of really happening this time. Oh, and Al Davis has the "rights" to the LA market, so he'd have to approve and be paid. Now that's ironic!

You're correct. However, there was a spurt of "Nix ain't gettin' 'er done" criticism when Whitehurst was traded. My guess is that came from the "usual suspects" who always believe every other team in the league is smarter, stronger, sharper, faster, better informed than the Bills front office.

Instead of woo-hoo money, the Pats big enticement has been the high likelihood that you'll get a Super Bowl ring. Only now that those days seem to be more in the past than in the future, players want their "reward" in cash.

I seem to recall the Bills were able to pin the opponent pretty far back due to Moorman having a fantastic year. I think special teams led the league in downing punts inside the opponents 20.

Most third down attempts, the most plays from scrimmage...Those are incredible stats; I had no idea the Bills D was on the field that much. That explains a lot about this team, including maybe the change to 3-4.

There's a bar about two blocks from my house that has enough HD screens to carry all the games. And they put out a pretty good spread to nosh on. So, with the Bills playing all their games this year at the same time, I think I'll take the walk to the pub, keep the $300 bucks in my wallet and avoid having a houseful of people every Sunday.

Thanks for the research. One area of your work that goes against my admittedly less-than-perfect memory is that the D often had difficulty getting off the field, giving up way to many third-and-long first downs. Are you saying that this was not the case? I agree with your feeling that the Bills are going to be a very good D this year but with one big IF. That is, if they can comfortably execute in the 3-4 by the start of the season. It's a fairly big change in terms of personnel, attitude, assignments and position/assignment.

You really think you could have, huh? I suggest you look up the Dallas record both BEFORE and AFTER Gailey. Then find the quote from Jerry Jones about what a huge mistake he made in firing Gailey.

I have to believe that our opinion -- or the opinion of a substantial number of people around here -- that our O line stinks, is incorrect. If it was truly really bad, Nixley would definitely be making all sorts of moves (trades, shuffling players, signing FAs, etc). Because that's NOT happening, because there's no particular sense of panic, management and coaches must feel pretty good about what they have. And because they are far, far more experienced at judging and coaching football players than I am, I'm going to trust that they know what they're doing. Of course, I fully expect that tiny, vocal minority of perpetual pessimists who can't stay away from posting at TSW will dismiss what I've just written because they seem to believe that all coaches and management with the Bills are idiots who don't know nearly as much about football as their critics do.

LaMonica...

I have no idea if Evans is a 1 or a 2 in the mind of another team. But we could do a little "imaginative thinking" about it -- something we're all pretty good at around here. So let's go through the teams in the league with a need at receiver. Can you name one or two who would jump at the chance to grab Evans if the Bills offered him? And would any of those teams want him as a 1 or would they want him as a 2? Finally, what do you think the Bills would get in return for him? The answers should give us at least a pretty fair idea of what our own opinions are about Evans.

Yeah, the Bills had plenty of problems last year. And the year before that. And the year before that. That's why Jauron is long gone. And here's what's happened since he was shown the door: UPGRADE at GM; UPGRADE at HC, coaching staff, strength and conditioning; UPGRADE at Offensive Coordinator and QB coach (in Gailey); UPGRADE IN GENERAL in thinking, attitude and approach on both sides of the ball; UPGRADE UNDERWAY in scouting department and front office operations; UPGRADE on defense with change to 3-4; PLUS the core players from last year have a year's experience under their belts; And SEVERAL KEY PLAYERS are returning from injury. Considering the above, and considering Bills were in a position to win in something like 14 games last year going into the 4th quarter, how in the world does a rational person come to the conclusion that the Bills are WORSE this year?

Let me see if I've got this right. The front office at OBD sucks because they're not out signing every player available in free agency, or trading for "might be availables" like Gaither. And the front office sucks because it's dumping players from the previous year and replacing them with free agents. Damned if you do and damned if you don't. Sounds like too many Bills "fans" can't make up their minds.

You were bitching because hot dogs were $2? Wow!

What is it with this man crush some of you have on Gaither? Stop and think for a minute: why would a team be ready and willing to get rid of a guy who was a high draft pick just a couple of years ago? That should be a huge flashing red light that something ain't kosher with the guy.

Maybe because they're lifelong students of football and professionally accomplished evaluators of talent and you're not? Neither am I so I think I'll put my trust in Nixley. For now.

There's no home room in pre-school.