jahnyc

The o-line needs an overhaul, and I hope that the front office does not try to convince us that CK and Richardson will improve the o-line next year. We need to sign at least one guard in free agency (a quality starter, not a Williams type) and possibly a right tackle as well.

Need to move on. Whether or not he could be a decent starter if healthy, he was not healthy this year, and the Bills cannot count on him being healthy next year.

Don't we also have some carryover capy money from the prior year or is that included? Also, since we do not have a first round draft pick, we should be spending less for signing our draft picks (a relatively small savings).

For some reason, I thought that we would not be on the hook for any of Williams' salary going forward if he was not on the team after this year. Buffalo News notes that if Williams is not picked up via waivers by another team, the Bills will have more than $5 million in dead cap money from Williams in 2015. That is ridiculous.

The Ebron thing scares me. How could he have been the pick if Watkins was gone? The one thing that is certainly true is that last year's group of WRs in the draft was outstanding. I have never seen a first year group of wide receivers perform so well so early. I remember many thought Moulds was a bust because it took a few years before he began to dominate.

Have to agree with Sully on this one, at least at this point. Of course we will need to see how Watkins develops (Kouandjio as well), but it does seem like some bad decision making and assessments were made, including the drafting of Kouandjio with our second round pick.

I may be in the minority on this, but during his time with the Bills, I thought Chan Gailey was very good at planning and structuring the offense, particularly considering the lack of offensive talent on the team at that time. I would welcome him back with Cowher.

I think many of us would agree that it may not be objectively "fair" to fire Whaley and Marrone after only two years, but there are many factors impacting this situation that are not typical. New ownership likely has the desire to take a fresh look at the organization and make whatever changes are needed. It is their team and they paid a lot of money for it. If the Pegulas bring in a respected football consultant and the consultant makes recommendations that include hiring a new GM and a new head coach, I am okay with that. Let an expert do the evaluation and make that determination.

I would not promote Schwartz to head coach. If the new head coach and GM think he is a quality defensive coordinator and they wish to keep him, so be it. Same with the other coaches on defense.

Some thoughts below: 1. Our offense play calling was poor against the Dolphins, but what I found more troubliing was that the offense seemed unprepared for a scenario where they had to throw the ball because they were behind. The formations used were ineffective in protecting Orton, and they seemed to continue to run the same routes from early in the game that could only result in short gains. 2. The o-line play is poor, and many predicted that this would be a signficant weakness this year because of the failure to address it in any meaningful way during the offseason. Signing Chris Williams was a bad move, and we knew it would not work out. Why the Bills thought otherwise is a mystery to me. I appreciate that they used some draft picks to try to improve the o-line, but if they thought any of them would be ready to contribute, then the scouting for these players was poor. They got lucky with Henderson, but I am not sure he is playing particulary well now. 3. I like Watkins, but I am not yet convinced he is so much better of a prospect than some of the other wide receivers taken later in the draft to justify trading away next year's first round pick. There was a graphic during last night's game showing the performance of four other first round wide receivers, and they all were playing at a high level as well. Other wide receivers taken after the first round last draft are also performing well. By the way, I have understood that the Bills were going to take Ebron if Watkins was unavailable. Not sure he is having such a good rookie year. 4. Still strongly believe that we need a consultant to review the coaching staff, GM, scouts and other footbal personnel. Hope this happens beginning at season end. 5. I would be okay with starting over with a new head coach and GM at this point. This is one of the few times over recent years where I have felt that the problem was coaching and not talent. 6. Tough to judge Whaley, because,I do not know what he is responsible for from prior years. Was he responsible for Manuel? What about Hughes? Whaley's performance this year has been inconsistent. The trade for Watkins and signing of Williams are negatives. Signing Graham and drafting Preston Brown were great moves. Not addressing the o-line, or at least not addressing it well, is a big negative. 7. I really enjoy watching the defensive line play. It will be great to have Alonso back next year. 8. I still have not figured out what expertise Marrone has. If he has been helping with the o-line, it is not working. If he is helping with the play calling, he is overmatched as well. What does he bring to the table? 9. If we interview and hire a new head coach and GM, I think it will be a bit easier this time to find strong candidates. While I understand we seem to do this every couple of years, which is a negative to any prospective candidates, we have new owners and it is not unreasonable for them to select their own "people" to manage and coach the team. Plus, candidates will know that ownership is new, stable and committed, with no possibility of relocation. Add to the mix a team with at least some talent, and I think there will be potentially more interest in these positions. Maybe the lack of a first round pick or a quality QB will hurt, but hopefully the other factors will out weigh these considerations.

We have a bunch of tough games left (Denver, Green Bay and New England) and we need to beat Miami on Thursday night to stay in the playoff picture, but no matter how things play out for the remainder of the season, I am thankful that the Bills will be staying in Buffalo. The offense has played poorly overall so far this season, but we still have a winning record, and that has made the season more enjoyable than many recent seasons, particularly without the black cloud of an ownership change and possible relocation of the team hanging over our heads. Clearly, it is always frustrating to lose the way that we seem to lose all too often and I do think we need to hire a new head coach and possibly a new GM, but at least I have some hope that things will improve over the long term.

The offensive play calling is awful. I agree that the Bills are winning in spite of poor coaching and play calling on offense. I really have had enough with the runs up the middle for little or no gain. The Jets are strong against the run and poor against the pass, and we ran up the middle time after time with little success. What is so hard about mixing things up with play action? With regard to the defense, it is good to see that half-time adjustments were made. Schwartz is doing a solid job with the defense.

Richardson and Henderson should not be starters at this point. No idea what to do at guard other than insert Urbik, but at tackle, move Pears or Hairston to RT.

The front office knew the guard play last year was poor and did not do enough to address it in the off season. We all knew that Williams was going to be a bad signing, and it was. Having a rookie at RT, who has not graded out well recently, and two very below average guards is not a recipe for success on offense.

I think a lot of this will depend on how much influence Brandon retains with the Bills organization post- sale to Pegula. I expect that Brandon will strongly back Whaley and Marrone, but I am not sure whether this will matter, particularly if they bring in a consultant to review the football side of the team. I do think it would be a mistake to bring this group back for another year. We need some fresh perspectives and energy, and I am not convinced that Marrone and Whaley are above average in their respective positions (not even sure they are average). No good reason to wait.

The guard play is the big issue right now. It needs to be fixed, but other than maybe putting Urbik back in the line-up, it does not seem we have many good options at this point.

I think he is a great addition to the overall coverage of the Bills by the press. I also like the frequency of his reports/stories.

One game, but he looked decisive and quick.

If the Bills end up with a winning record this year and make the playoffs, Whaley will survive, even with the benching of EJ and whether or not he was responsible for drafting EJ. Since I doubt Pegula will make any moves mid-season, we will need to see how things play out.

Seemed like they were only running up the middle. With Spiller, why not have more runs to the outside? The play calling made no sense, and it doesn't help that EJ can only complete the short passes.

I don't know if EJ can develop or will develop, but he was really bad today. Watt's interception was a killer and a terrible play by EJ.

I think the Dougs have been a bit all over the place in terms of the good and bad. Some of the good: improved overall talent and depth, great trade to get Hughes, and good free agent pick ups with Corey Graham and Dixon. Some of the bad: poor handling of the back-up QB situation, inability to address the OG situation, and having Hackett as the OC. Good luck trying to assess all of this as well as whether EJ will develop into a quality QB, whether Doug M. is a quality head coach, and whether Sammy Watkins was worth trading up for. Seems like a very mixed record with not enough information to figure out whether we are on the right path.

Why is there so much sensitivity with the criticisms of EJ? We have been going through this same drill since Jim Kelly retired. I thought Rob Johnson was going to be a very good QB for the Bills. I was wrong. Ultimately, the coaches will make the determination, and you really cannot blame the fans and their negativity for QBs not working out in Buffalo. None of these guys had any real success after leaving Buffalo (i.e., Collins, Johnson, JP and Edwards). I understand that he has not played a full season yet, but EJ shows a number of characteristics that are worrisome. Holds the ball too long, does not seem to have pocket presence, and he is not decisive. The difference yesterday was the QB play. Both defenses were effective against the run, but Rivers found a way to make plays. Our defense is above average, but it is not dominating. Going forward, opposing teams will try to shut down our rushing attack and let EJ try to beat them. EJ will need to be more than a game manager if the Bills are to make the playoffs. He will need to be able to give the team confidence that if they get behind by more than a touchdown, he can bring them back.

If Orton is the better QB now, then he should play. I have no idea whether this is the case, but the team is decent enough in other areas where we should play whomever is going help the team win now and not next year.

Pegula will sail through the process with the NFL. I am sure he has already been vetted, otherwise the Trust would not have moved forward with him. In any event, the last thing the NFL needs now is any more bad press. The Bills potentially leaving Buffalo would have been another PR problem for the NFL.