CosmicBills

I'm not advocating for Weiss to be hired by the Bills (at all), but to say he's not a good coach because of what's gone on at Notre Dame is not entirely fair. Notre Dame changed it's academic policies and shot its program in the head, not foot. Notre Dame can't recruit the best players because they can't get them through the admissions board. This is a policy that changed when Lou Holtz left (or perhaps in the last year of his tenure there). No top HS players want to play for Notre Dame. Think about it. The best HS players in the country come from Florida, California, and Texas. Do those kids really want to travel to 1000 miles to South Bend where the girls aren't as hot as they are at UF, USC, UT (not to mention they're way smarter) only to play in a place where they won't have as much talent around them. Not to mention the campus is in the middle of nowhere. Yes, Notre Dame has CBS TV rights. But they just can't compete with the packages USC, UF, Texas etc etc can offer. The fact that Notre Dame gets the caliber players it does is astounding. They have lost every major recruiting battle the past decade to USC, UF and UT. And it's going to keep getting worse until Notre Dame goes back to letting athletes in.

The point is the Bills ARE interviewing Perry as we speak. So they cleared that hurdle the moment they made him their "interim" coach. It's why April was passed over.

Actually, they wouldn't. A big reason why I think Perry was promoted over April was precisely to avoid that. If the Bills hire Shanny now, they can make a compelling case that they gave Perry more than an interview. They gave him the job.

I have never bought into the "Ralph cares more about money than winning" line of thinking. And I tend to believe him when he says he's willing to throw up to $10 million at a coach this time around. That being the case, I don't feel Buffalo is as undesirable a location as people around here and in the media are making out to be. I think Dallas and Washington will be the top two locations for coaches because of the history of those clubs. Remember, these top coaches we're talking about (Cowher, Holmgren, Dungy, Shanahan) are football guys first and foremost, and even though we despise both those organizations, the Cowboys and Redskins are two of the most storied franchises in the league. The chance to make their mark along side of the likes of Landry and Gibbs would be a hard opportunity to pass up. Buffalo is respected in the NFL as having a passionate fanbase. Coaches love to work for those types of clubs too. Especially knowing that the first coach to bring Lombardy home to Buffalo will in essence be sainted. But still, from a nostalgic, historical perspective, Buffalo can't compete with the luster of a Dallas or Washington. So, if Shanahan leaves without a contract (which I suspect he will), I don't think it necessarily rules out Buffalo. I do think Dallas and Washington will scoop up two of the top coaches, but that would still leave Buffalo with a wealth of options. And once the situation in Dallas and Washington are cleared up, then I think Buffalo jumps to the top of the list of desirable coaching spots.

Actually, the move to get Brohm was done specifically to attract a high caliber HC to the team. Brohm was the third QB taken in the '08 draft and many draftnicks felt had he come out in '07 he would have been the number 1 QB taken. he's got talent and there's the potential (key word, POTENTIAL) that he could be a franchise type QB ... and most of the high profile coaches don't want to go to a team without a franchise type QB on the roster. This is, and always has been, a QB league. As many have said over and over, you need a stud QB to win. There are exceptions, but they are few and far between. Belichick has a losing record without Brady. Cohwer needed Big Ben, Shanny needed Elway, Dungy needed Manning, Marv needed Kelly. The list goes on and on. And big time coaches KNOW this. They don't want to risk their reputations and go to a team that doesn't even have the potential of having that type of player on the roster. This is NOT to say that I believe Brohm to be the answer (I don't) or that the Cowhers, Shannahan's and Dungy's of the world would think that ... but they would certainly be more open to the possibility of Brohm being a diamond in the rough than the two current turds we have under center right now in Fitzcraptic and Edwards. So I think it was a great move by the front office to at least give the illusion of having a franchise type QB on the roster in order to lure a big time coach to the club -- it also speaks volumes about how they rate the upcoming crop of QBs in this year's draft. And of course, excellent post as always Bill!

It's a fine line and people always get their panties in a bunch when people say "root to lose". I think that's the phrase or mentality that makes people say "you're not a real fan then!" A guy who's rooting for his own team to lose BECAUSE he wants/believes that it will ultimately lead to a better future doesn't make them any less of a fan. It's like with your kids. You never WANT them to get hurt or experience pain, but sometimes you know that those experiences are the only way for your kid to grow and learn. So you never WANT your kid to get hurt, but sometimes he/she needs to in order to mature. Personally, I don't actively root for the Bills to lose. Ever. I go into every game hoping for a win because when the ball is teed up, I get excited and just want to see them do well. But, at this point in time, when they lose, I take it WAY better because I see the positives that can come from it. In any season, loses in Weeks 1 through 5 devastate and affect me more than a grown man should admit to. Same can be said about loses when the team is in playoff contention later on in the season. But losses when the team is out of contention (like now), and when the team is in desperate need of a regime change AND a cornerstone / franchise type player that (may) be found in the draft? Those I don't mind as much. So for me it's win-win. If the Bills win, then I'm a happy guy because my team won. If they lose, I'm a happy guy because, as ICE says, it's better for the team's future in '10 and beyond. But it is ridiculous, in my opinion, to say you're not a fan if you're rooting for a better future for your team -- even at the expense of it's present. Just my two cents.

I've been super hard on Poz this season, more so because I feel most people on this board idolize him for factors that don't pertain to football (he's a blue collar kid, played at Penn State and is white). I feel he is highly overrated by some on this board, but certainly not a bad player. He's just average. Today, to my eyes, he was above average to good. Ignore the number of tackles he had in the stat column (tackles are the most worthless statistic in football because they don't tell the story). But he made a handful of solid, solid plays and certainly was a big part of the equation that limited Jones-Drew to a below average day. However, he also made some glaring mistakes: biting on (several) play action plays, one of which led to a TD pass, getting run over by Gerrard (I know Gerrard is a big and mobile QB, but the dude is a MLB. He shouldn't get flattened by a QB. Ever) ... Poz is the 2nd best LB on the team (behind Mitchell), but that's not saying much considering the Bills have (in my opinion) one of, if not the worst LB corps in the NFL. Still, today was not a day to say Poz sucks. He didn't suck today. He was good. Nothing more. Nothing less.

I do! Then again, Marino thinks there's no way Shanny would ever come to Buffalo. And I for one don't want to match wits with an intellect as powerful as Dano's. Then again, that post was 100% speculation ... I swear.

That's SUCH a loser's mentality. I honestly hope you don't approach your own personal life or business with that mentality.

I know it was a flub, but in his press conference Jauron just said: "It's always bad to win" ... not joking.

Sure, the Titans may have gotten the yards they needed. But you have to TRY to stop them. I don't want to play for a guy who doesn't even give you a chance to win. Allowing them to kick that FG was Jauron saying he doesn't have the balls to compete nor the faith in his guys to get the job done.

Seriously? Stop. Stop. Stop. You can't justify it. You're making yourself look silly. If you assume your defense can't make a stop on 3rd and 16 then you should just forfeit!

I feel bad for Jauron. I do. He's a nice guy. But he also has no business being a head coach in the NFL. ... And he knows it.

The point your missing is that it was a call symptomatic of the Jauron era. Aka: ball-less. While you're right that it isn't a black and white issue on it's own, but when you look at the man making the call it's a HORRIBLE decision but typical. He plays not to lose rather than to win. Not giving your defense a chance to make a stop on 3rd and 16 and keep it a one possession game is playing NOT to lose. Hence, it was the wrong call.

I was one of the many who felt that the moment Dick wasn't fired at the end of last year, '09 was going to be a lost and wasted year. I'm all for Dick being fired (at any time). But it honestly doesn't make a difference if you do it now or at the end of the year. Either way, this team is at most a 5 win team this season.

Hahahaha. 3rd and 14 and no one wants to tackle.

Not sure about his knee, but his pride is on life support.

... Okay, that's why Poz is a below average LB. You HAVE to make that tackle. Scott gets a (slight) pass because he's playing out of position. But come on.

Hey, I'm not a fan. I think he's the most overrated player on the Bills' roster by fans. Mainly because he's a white guy from Penn State who has some wheels. But he's not an awful LB. He's just not a playmaker. I'd be happy with him staying at MLB next year assuming they get rid of Ellison. Bills should just stop drafting Big 10 players. Most overrated conference in football.

He's not awful ... he's just average. Maybe a little less.

Wow. GREAT call.

TO has to stay in bounds there.

... and a LT, RT, DT, QB ... That's 7 new starters (okay, let's say 6 as they may only need 2 LBs). So ... what's that? 4 more "rebuilding" years to get those 6 starters?

I'm on your side on this one. I have my complaints about Poz (he's overrated, makes far too many tackles 5 yards down field) ... but Poz being slow? Not one of 'em. Poz is very athletic and quick. He just lacks good ball instincts.