FLFan

You do not need to be a shrewd judge of talent to see that Incognito is average at best, and probably not even that. As for the "better team" who was not satisfied with him, Buffalo outrushed Miami last year, 1720 to 1643 yards and had better yards per carry at 4.3 vs. 3.7. They also gave up fewer sacks, (34 vs 38) and Buffalo outscored Miami as well. Miami had a much better defense than Buffalo, accounting for the few more games they were able to win, but lets not get carried away with Miami's offensive line under the "great" Sparano. Perhaps Richie was actually part of the problem with their subpar line?

I agree with you. The Bills could no doubt have picked a more impact player in that draft position, but that is water under the bridge. The only question now is are they a better team with him or without him? I think they are far better off with him, but if he hits free agency someone will overpay and he will be gone. Whitner will be in demand. Then we will be trying to find a replacement instead of focusing on another position of need.

I agree. This is not a financial decision to make but a productivity one. Evans was not particularly productice this year and I do not think he is guaranteed a spot in this team next year - he will have to earn it. This is looking like the deepest position on the team, assuming Parish recovers, which should not be an issue. Easley being fully recovered and productive would be a bonus.

This is a great move. Well done Buddy and Chan!

Only one problem with the Dolphins implementing an agressive, pass oriented offense - they have a mediocre quarterback.

I can hear it now.... Hardy makes the Ravens roster next year and catches a touchdown pass, and 3, 2, 1 "how could the Bills be so stupid, what inept management, the Bills crappy coaches could not get him to play, etc, etc etc,"

Why is anyone even taking this troll seriously?

Michael Vick was not a free agent and not available last year. The Eagles traded McNab not Vick and I guess we see why now. Adams and Faneca would have been nice additions in retrospect, but 1. who said either was interested in coming here and/or the Bills did not try? 2. Faneca is really only intersting as a starter in retropsect given the injuries. Why would he have come as a backup? The Bills are obviously committed to Levitre and Wood. Incognito is not even worth conversation.

I do not care who is playing or who is not or what the draft implications are. Here's to starting the new year with a victory. I hope the Bills crush the Jets. Go Bills.

Excellent post. It was more of the same in Washington this year. The teams are trending in different directions right now and Shanahan has lost control of the team with his antics. Gailey has his team following quite nicely. I am quite happy he is in DC and not Buffalo. As for the ultimate results of rebuilding efforts in both cities, we will see, but my bet is the Bills are better next year than the Skins by a clear margin.

What is the basis for assuming the opposite? Do you know that the Bills did not make an offer or at least approach him on staying? It all speculation so save the "where's the proof" arguement until you have some to offer yourself.

I was never a fan of Shanahan nor in favor of bringing him to Buffalo. It is also too early in the rebuilding process of both clubs to make definitive judgements on how Gailey and Shanahan will ultimately fair, but living in the DC area I do get a healthy dose of all things 'Skins. In my opinion, Shanahan is a disaster so far. No doubt Haynesworth is a jerk, but to say this has been well handled belies lack of knowledge of the three ring circus the situation has been allowed to become. From the beginning, Shanahan made it a test of wills and ego. (hint - he has a very large one) The right thing to do probably would have been to just cut him loose, but that was not happening given what Snyder has paid him, and that he was Snyder's big purchase to begin with. Lack of RB? Well who is to blame there. Portis has not played close to a full season in years, yet the only potential replacements brought in were similarly over the hill players who did not even make the team. Now the handling of McNab is beyond rediculous. This team is no better on any front than last year. They are paying the price big time for the foolish decisions on trading away draft choices, making poor draft choices, and relying on big time free agents like fat Albert. No coach was going to fix this overnight, but what is clear to me, is that I like Gailey's approach much better, and I like the kind of inspired play and dedication he able to get out of the talent base he has. Meanwhile, Shanahan has lost control of the team. Gailey is 10x the offensive coach that Shanny Jr. is for sure, and is certainly outperforming Shanny Sr in this respect as well, with a 7th round career backup as starter rather than a potential future hall of famer who they spent a high 2nd round draft choice on. We will see where these two clubs go next year and beyond, but I am happy the Bills ended up with Gailey instead of Shanahan so far.

You make the mistake of being logical in reposne to this and other posts that just want to bash the bills FO for yet another "mistake". There was no downside to claimimg Merriman, unless its your money. There is still upside - this has not played out yet. People that do not see this are just being contrary for no good reason, IMO. I am disappointed we will not get to see him play in a Bills jersey this year, but my bet is this guy's career is far from over, whether he plays for the Bills next year or not.

What is your problem? Did they spend your money? They took a gamble on a player at a position of need who when healthy has been dominating. So it has not paid off this season so far - so what? Are they any worse because of it? It still remains to be seen if he can recover and if so, whether he will sign here.

If this is true its too bad, but certainly not the end of the world. There was no downside to giving him a try. I do not understand what people are complaining about relative to this signing. I mean, really, whats your point? Are the Bills spending your money? So Buddy Nix takes a $1.7 mil gamble on a player who if healthy could be a big help. Worst case, they are no worse off than before. Best case, he does recover and becomes a major contributor. I would not write off the Bills ability to resign him either, assuming he does recover, but even then so what? How are they worse off than before.

This has nothing to do with Spiller. This guy is a FULLBACK. Obviously signed for special teams, but please, rant on.

but the Panthers have Jimmy Claussen!

In hockey maybe, but not football. Trade deadline deals in the NFL are actually rare. It is much hardre to bring in a player mid-season in the NFL and get him up to speed to play. Players actually have more value at draft time, when teams are actively shopping for picks, trying to move up, etc.

I am not a huge fan of Johnson like some others here but I do think he has shown some potential. The drop on the goal line on the pass thrown behind him by Fitz was maddening - he should have had that - but the TD catch he made later in that drive was very impressive. This was not garbage time - they were still in it.

I agree with your sentiments on the Bills track record, but Merriman might be worth the risk. He clearly has not been healthy. A drop off in the year after a major knee injury is to be expected, and he has had an achilles problem this year. He did perform very well in the year after the steroid controversy. I think it is mostly about contract with San Diego, and the fact that they have viable options. The Bills do not. Why not take a chance, assuming a contract agreement could be reached which minimizes the risk? Are we worried about wasting a bit of RW's money? We are so bad at LB right now, SM at 75% of his former ability would be a huge upgrade. Sometimes you do win the lottery - "Hey, you never know."

To answer the question, probably not, but I think the Bills should make a play. This seems to be more about contract dispute than injury. Worth the risk in my opinion. Perhaps even worth a future conditional draft pick to keep him from being an unrestricted free agent. This would be complicated, but given their current linebacking corp, a big potential win.

I suspect the Bills will make at least one more player move during the bye. They have been getting Howard ready to play tackle, and Urbik at guard, so Green getting cut would not surprise me. Maybin is useless but he gets the year I think. McCargo is a very likley candidate as well. They just signed an OL and a DL to the practice squad which makes me think these areas being targeted.

Thanks Dan for the post. After reading through this topic I was just about to post pretty much the same thing. First, to John, major props. Good article and excellent work getting through to Mr. Wilson for an interview. He obviously respects your work or you would not get the access you do. That's a great deal more than can be said by the other "journalists" who cover the Bills, locally and nationally. I think your tone and questions were fine - respectful and informative. Second, many of the postings on this thread are truely sickening. For most of these people, I would not call them fans any more than I would refer to them as decent human beings. It has been clear for some time that RW is not well. He rarely, if ever, appears in public anymore. He does not attend league meetings or games. Despite this some people continue to believe that RW is somehow the puppetmaster behind every personnel decision the team makes, pulling every string to fatten his wallet while the poor fans suffer. This is the worst kind of crap. Ten years from now, when the Bills are long gone, perhaps the people of WNY will realize what they had and lost.

Incognito was not released - he was a free agent. Do you know whether the Bills offered him a contract? I don't. Cameron Wake was signed by Miami in 2009 when he was a free agent coming out of Canada. Many teams had him on their radar actually, including the Bills, who offered him a contract. He chose to play in Miami. http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3844396 Rant on.

Absolutely right. Incognito was not cut as some people seem to believe - he was free agent. I cannot blame him for wanting a chance to start. Who knows if the Bills offered him a contract or not. None of us certainly do.