CosmicBills

It's not over yet ...

Yup. I like Kellythefairandbalanceddog's draft day plan better by the minute.

Great throw. Bring in Brohm

Fitz is going to get someone killed. He's throwing balls that shouldn't be thrown and his receivers are paying the price.

He doesn't suck. He's average. Nothing more. Nothing less. Not worth a big contract. And not worth all the praise he gets on here from some.

Absolutely right. But I'll also add this. As recently as 8 months ago (maybe 6), the Bills were still constantly thrown around on LA Sports Talk Radio as being in the mix for teams moving to LA, the caveat being that it would happen only when Ralph dies. But as this recent uptick in chatter started about in LA, the Bills dropped off that list. The reason, in my opinion, is because the local media in LA believes that the move to LA is going to happen soon. As in a year or two away. Whether that's true or not who knows. But it's interesting nonetheless.

Plans for ... midnight ramble. Of course no one is going to build it till they get something to put in it. The point was there are two serious parties discussing it.

Actually there is. The proposed stadium is a retractable roof so they can host the Final Four, BCS, MLS and concerts. The downtown proposal is public. The one in the Inland Empire is private. Both are trying to win over the league for a team. The downtown stadium has the inside track. As Dean pointed out, this has been a reoccurring debate/theme/concept in LA since they lost the team but over the past 12 months there's been a massive uptick in the amount of "chatter" about both these stadiums.

Now that I live out in La-La land, I hear LOTS of rumors on Sports Talk radio every day about the city getting an NFL team. I'm by no means an expert, but here's the bullet points of what I keep hearing from the local talk shows. 1. A stadium IS going to be built. They just had a meeting about it last week. There are two conflicting plans. One calls for a new "event" center in downtown LA where they will build a NFL stadium that can also host a BSC bowl game, Final Fours and potentially a World Cup down the line. It's a huge complex like Indy's new one. There is also an NFL stadium being built outside of the city in the hopes of luring a team, but I haven't heard much about that in a few months. 2. The vast majority of local sports guys and journalists believe that the NFL has already agreed to put a team in LA within 2 years. Hence all the urgency to build a stadium. There's nothing to substantiate these claims though. Just "inside reports". 3. No one believes the Bills are the target. The most likely teams (again, according to the LA Sports scene) are the Chargers and the Jags. The other day on the program I listen to the most, they were saying that their sources inside the league offices are reporting the NFL doesn't want a repeat of the Cleveland disaster or any backlash from fans -- especially when it will come (most likely) off the heels of a massive labor stoppage and possible lost 2011 season. That being the case, they want to move San Diego to Orange County (half way between LA and SD) and treat the Chargers like the Angles. The Los Angeles Chargers of San Diego. If that fails, the Jags are the backup choice since there's no real history there with the fans. Bottom line, they believe that the NFL won't uproot a team like the Vikings or Bills because of the history. I tend to agree. Take it for what it's worth. Which isn't much ... but that's the LA side of things.

I love this plan. When you came up with it the other day in the other thread, it sounded fantastic to me. And, strangely, it's something that would actually work (in terms of whoever has the number 1 pick being willing to give it up for that). I think it would be a bold, bold move that, if successful, would be the foundation for a long Super Bowl run. And if it fails horribly (meaning Luck sucks), what's the worst that happens? We still have a team on the outside of the playoffs looking in. (also, phone is broke ... getting a new one!)

I tend to agree with Mike below -- that the game has changed to such an extent that the weather isn't as big of a factor as it once was. Sure, it matters when there's a freak storm like Cleveland v Buffalo a few years ago. But that's rare. And besides, the Super Bowl is played in warm weather / no snow. And the point is to win the Super Bowl ... But also, I don't mean to imply that RBs aren't important or that the running game itself is useless. It's just not AS important as it was for the first 60 plus years of the NFL. And, further more, the main point is that since RBs are a dime a dozen these days with teams not willing to spend huge chunks of their cap on them, you can find a very good, even great back, from anywhere. Throw a rock at the combine in April and you'll hit six or seven. Every year. So even if elements are more important than Mike and I are saying, which is very possible, you can still find a good enough back to win in the snow and rain without picking in the 1st round.

I wouldn't have. That's the point. The only time you draft a RB in the first round is if he's the missing piece for a Super Bowl run. You could argue he was a big boost for the Vikings. He's one of the best backs in the league. But how many Super Bowls have the Vikings won with him? Yeah. RBs don't win Super Bowls anymore. This isn't the 80s. It's 2010. It's a pass first league now. You need to manage the cap and allocate more room for WRs, QBs, TEs, and Pass protectors (and conversely DBs and Pass Rushers) which limits the amount teams can afford to spend on RBs. Taking a RB in the first round, let alone HIGH in the first round means you're locking up a large portion of your cap to one player at one position that is quickly becoming a two man job. That's why it's far more prudent to find a RB anywhere BUT the first round since they're cheaper and easier to get away from when they get hurt or run out of tred on their tires. The people that don't understand this are the old timers who don't understand that the game has changed in the past 5 to 10 years. Old timers like the ones running this team.

I agree with you. But the only way you can find those "right" free agents is if you have a competent front office and scouting department. The Bills do not. Bringing in Free Agents to Buffalo has NEVER been a problem. This team has shown time and time again that it will spend the money to get the players they want. Despite the "Ralph is cheap" talk, it's all BS. He isn't cheap. He makes moves. He just makes the wrong moves. This team has a piss poor front office and has since BP left. Nix is a mess, TM must have pictures of Ralph feeding off the blood of Christian babies because he should have been pink slipped years ago, Whalen brings me hope, but he's not running the show yet.

But see, I think that you're standards are far too low. 9th pick or not, he is NOT having a good year as a RB. 1 TD, less than 500 yards rushing. That's JV numbers. RB is the position with the fastest learning curve. Players come right in from college and perform. Spiller hasn't. Some of that is because he simply isn't seeing the field. Some is because he is having a tougher than normal time adjusting to life in the NFL. That's not opinion. That's the facts based on his production.

You're right. I bet they'd be MORE willing to trade it all in for a ring. Because that's all anyone remembers. Winners. How is a player's greatness cemented? In championship rings. End of story. If you think otherwise, then you're living in fairytale land.

No. It didn't make sense. That's the whole point. It was an absolute catastrophic f*&k-up that highlights an even bigger problem in the front office. One that no one is talking much about because they aren't seeing the forest through the trees. It's a problem that will set this team back another few years -- maybe longer. I said it when they made the pick and the actions after the fact have born out that truth. Look at the evidence ... if they picked Spiller because they were afraid of losing Marshawn, that's fine. But then why didn't they trade Marshawn when his value was the highest? They could have moved him during the draft and paved the way for Spiller to get more reps in camp and the preseason and smooth his transition to the NFL. But they didn't. They kept Marshawn and, according to multiple reports, made no effort to move him during the pre season. Then, when GB, a legit super bowl contender got bit by the injury bug, Marshawn's value was at it's peak. Again, the Bills did nothing. They didn't act. Why? Many thought they were playing hardball. But then when they dealt Marshawn to the Seahawks for a sack of nickles and a couple of jock straps we learned that they hadn't even contacted the Packers about a deal. That's criminal by this front office and shows just how terribly managed this club is. Still, even if you want to make the argument that hindsight is 20/20 and that maybe the Bills DID make efforts to move Marshawn earlier (which even the Bills denied at the time), you can't forgive how poorly managed Spiller has been since he's been on the team. I could forgive the pick, forgive the failure to get the best value for Marshawn, I could forgive all of that if Spiller was being properly developed. But he isn't. He gets less than 10 carries a game. Less than 15 touches a game. That's INSANE. It's poor management, poor coaching and poor development. That speaks to the bigger problem, the underlying one. Namely, this front office, from Wilson to Nix on down, has no clue how to build a winning football team in the modern NFL. The winning teams know that the days of a workhorse RB are over. Anyone who takes a RB in the top 15 is living in the stone age. You need 2 RBs to maintain the workload in the NFL today. The shelf life of a modern RB is too short to risk only having one on your roster and it's too short to tie up a large amount of your cap space in one position. Teams have moved from high profile, top picks at RB who anchor their teams to finding CHEAPER, just as talented players in later rounds, free agency and off the scrap heap. Look at Hillis. Where did he come from? Freddie came from NFL Europe! MJD was a 2nd rounder. The fact that this new front office with it's first pick in a rebuilding year chose a RB at the number 9 pick was a clear sign that they don't have a clue. They're dinosaurs -- and not just because Nix is old. It's the mentality that's old. And it's a shame because it means with these jokers in charge, things aren't going to get better until they clean house AGAIN. But let's, for the sake of argument, assume I'm wrong in that above statement. Let's assume that it's not dinosaur thinking to take a RB that high in the draft. There are exceptions to that of course, like if your team is just one player away from a legit Super Bowl run -- which clearly the Bills were not. Still, if you invest all that money and all those resources into a number 9 pick at RB then you have to play him. You just have to. The only way you don't play him is if he's a total bust and your team is in contention for the playoffs. The Bills were never in contention for the playoffs. They were never in contention for anything this year. Picking Spiller was bad. But sitting Spiller is criminal. This is the bigger problem. It's not the pick itself, it's what the pick represents. It represents that the new front office of Nix and company are clueless as to how to build a winning football team. The way they handled the Trent situation, to the Spiller pick, to the Green signing, was an absolute embarrassment and gives me zero faith in their abilities to build a winning franchise. THAT'S the problem that no one is talking about. The Spiller pick was just a symptom of a larger issue.

What sucks is there won't be football in 2011. Which will slow everyone's learning curve/chemistry down. And make it harder.

Actually it's not. RB is the position with the shortest learning curve and rookie RBs have traditionally had a high rate of return in their rookie year. Almost no matter where you take them. 2nd RD RBs (MJD comes to mind) have been as productive as 1st, even 3rd and 4th rounders. Hell, even UDFA like Freddie. Which is why the RB position is the most overrated position in the modern NFL. You can find them ANYWHERE for cheap. The days of the single work horse RB are over. It's a tandem now. A cheap tandem. Which is why picking a RB with the number 9 pick, no matter how good he is, when you already had 2 Pro Bowl caliber backs on the roster and multiple gaping holes at several key positions was a catastrophic f*&k-up for the front office. But they made the choice, so we have to deal with it. But then to take the 9th pick and NOT play him is even worse. The kid should be learning on the field, especially when your team is a miserable 4-10 and has no shot at the playoffs. CJ Spiller has been a huge disappointment in his rookie year. There's no other way to color it. He needed to come in and be a game breaker from day one to validate the pick by the front office. He didn't. Don't make excuses now. That doesn't mean he won't become a good back. But it's not a good sign that he is taking this long to adjust when RB is the easiest position to adjust to in the NFL. As history has repeatedly shown.

Absolutely true (but for the part about me being smart of course) No, I know I sound like an ass or a grinch on here right now. I should stop. And I will. I promise. Call it boredom being stuck at home right now. I'm hard on Fitz, but I also try to give credit where it's due so I'll say again, he's NOT the problem on this team. Not in the least. I just don't think he's the answer either. That's all.

Why should they be? It's professional SPORTS. The entire point is to win a championship every year. No team shows up to get second place. Thinking small leads to being small. It's true in life as it is in sports. We've done enough of that.

Sure, they're definitely not losers. But they ain't winners either. Any one of them would trade away all the other AFC titles for one super bowl ring. Without hesitation.

They don't play for second place.

Winning the Super Bowl is all that matters. End of story. If you don't win the Super Bowl, you haven't won anything. I'm sorry, thinking otherwise is a loser mentality. And that's the mentality that has existed at OBD for far too long. And yes, you're right about Washington, Minny and Seattle.