Dawgg

To try and complicate a fairly simple equation to justify the continued mismanagement of the Buffalo Bills franchise is even more ludicrous. The bottom line: For years, the Bills front office has drafted poorly and misallocated free agent resources. Hence, the playoff drought.

That's in your head only. Pat himself played fine the year after Ted Washington left. In fact, I remember posts from you back then stating that the Bills were correct in letting Pat Williams walk. Determining whether or not a player is a disruptive force is a fairly straight forward exercise, as the truly disruptive players are great regardless of scheme. Pat Williams is one of those players. So is Ngata. Even if we took your asinine example seriously and agreed that Pat Williams had an off-year when they switched over to a 4-3 (though the real reason is injury-related), he was absolutely dominating in the 2 years following in that 4-3 defense. But you can go ahead and keep being a homer and justifying Whitner's sub-par play. Par for the course.

Even Bunkley would have been a far better pick than Whitner at #8. Irrespective of the author's conclusion, the reasoning behind the article was very sound.

I'm not gloating. I'm a frustrated fan who is sick and tired of watching the front office mismanage the team. I would love to have been wrong about the Whitner pick but unfortunately, I am not.

Look Dean, I don't disagree with that statement. Perhaps Ngata would not have enjoyed the same level of success if he were drafted by Buffalo, given that (a) the scheme is different and (b) Buffalo coaches are somewhat inept. Having said that, it's hard to ignore the basic fact: Ngata is a superior player. McCargo played on a line with Manny Lawson and Mario Williams. Most teams had a second round grade on him. This was all apparent in 2006, when Marv bungled the first round of the draft. Most Bills fans just refused to see it. http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/colle...s30trotter.html

You just lost all credibility with that comparison.

Dean will defend Whitner until the end. Facts be damed! He defended McCargo until the very end. He will do the same for Whitner.

Your continued efforts to reach for excuses to defend Whitner's sub-par play speaks for itself.

Exactly!!!! He's been very solid for the Falcons this year.

McKelvin was a good pick at that stage. He's a competitor. I love watching him play, he gets fired up and has a cockiness/bravado about him that this team desperately needs. Most importantly, he has the capability to make momentum-changing plays, unlike #20.

You're right Scott certainly doesn't have much versatility. That he's playing better than Whitner despite that lack of versatility is further indictment on Whitner's uninspired play. Fact of the matter is, you will stand by Whitner no matter how poorly he plays. I want to see him succeed just as much as the next guy, but it is what it is...

By YOUR standards, he had his first bad game as a Bill. He has had a number of sub-par efforts during his tenure here. Considering where he was selected, he has been fairly average (and that's being generous). Bryan Scott is a better safety than Whitner. And that's just sad.

I was constantly ridiculed for criticizing the Whitner pick. 3 years later... look where we are today.

Preaching to the choir, my friend! Tell that to all the Donte apologists on this board?

He was acquired using one of the draft picks Marv surrendered to move up and grab John McCargo. It's nice to see that the Bears got an NFL caliber player in that trade... because the Bills sure didn't!

I sure hope it's the injury. Tight ends are my major source of concern with Donte. He's the best athlete we have at safety, yet Bryan Scott, who we picked up off the street, seems far more effective in covering tight ends than Donte is.

Well, Donte, it would help if you actually made a play once in a while to help your defense.

Once again, the Bills traded up to get a mediocre player. Marv was one of the worst GMs ever.

Absolutely.

It all starts up front, Rich. I would argue that with the addition of Ngata, Ray Lewis has seen a quite the rejuvenation in his career. Sure, he plays with a good supporting cast, but he is a very, very disruptive player in his own right. His presence would surely make players like Kelsay and Poz more effective. That's not to say that the Bills D would become as fierce as that of the Ravens, but the impact would be significant. Ngata is the type of impact player you take in the Top 10. Contrast that to Whitner, whose main impact has been his playoff guarantee and Thursday night movie nights at his house... I'll take Ngata

... and he was paid like Steve Hutchinson and Eric Steinbach.

Tell that to Ramius, C. Biscuit. Dean, etc....

Which is evidence enough that the front office's decision making was very flawed from the start. To pass on a blue chip DT for a non-playmaking safety is a bad business move and a worse football move. To trade up for an oft-injured, overrated DT in McCargo is grounds to get fired. Yet every single member of the front office received promotions and raises. It's the fans that are left to suffer

This is a fairly stupid argument. By your logic, teams should always trade up because the odds are against them in the second round. Your blanket statement assumes all front offices are created equal. Are you telling me that the likelihood of a Matt Millen pick busting is the same as that of AJ Smith? Absolutely not. The 2006 draft was one of the deepest in years. Passing on a trade in favor of drafting Whitner was a bad strategy.

Perfect example. Whitner certainly doesn't play like a first round pick, let alone a top 10 pick. As you said, even Bryan Scott makes more plays. The 2006 draft set this franchise back many years, all thanks to Marv and the bozos in the front office.