Brand J

Oh yeah, never did I say every SB win was due to Brady, of course it wasn’t. But the Pats don’t make it to all those SBs if it wasn’t for Brady. His influence on the regular season and the playoffs was greater than his HC and that’s the point. Coaches can only do so much, it’s up to the players to execute and more often than not, Brady made the plays that needed to be made when he needed to make them. And his supporting cast also helped.

Reason being he was athletically underwhelming, kept getting rotated out with Drew Henson at Michigan, and most importantly, it’s impossible to measure intangibles. It was a missed evaluation from all 32 clubs, but you can’t blame the teams. Tom Brady was an exception, no one saw his success coming. Mahomes had his own set of reasons for not being the #1 QB taken in the draft, but when the coach/QB discussion comes up, I’d say 70-75% of a coach’s success depends on his QB. It’s not the other way around, nor is it 50/50. Belichick, though a great defensive mind, would be nowhere near GOAT debate if Brady hadn’t lucked into his lap at pick 199 AND if Mo Lewis hadn’t ended Bledsoe’s tenure in NE.

Tom Brady was simply a game manager when he first took the field, true, but as a Patriots fan, I’m sure you remember the quote where your offensive coordinator said “once Tom got in the game, the offense was just different. It was like a well oiled machine.” Brady hardly made mistakes, he didn’t do things to beat the team, he kept his side of the ball clean and moving, which is all you could ask from him at that point. The argument was that Belichick has never had a QB who was even “above average” and I asked what about Drew Bledsoe? Two different QBs, yet two vastly different results.

Drew Bledsoe? Belichick went 5-11 with him in 2000, 0-2 in 2001. Tom Brady stepped in and went 14-3 his first year, same roster Bledsoe (and Belichick) had to work with. Unless you believe Drew Bledsoe wasn’t an above average QB…

I don’t think any team is giving up a first rounder for an expensive 30 year old WR coming off a down year. If there’s such a team gullible enough to make that sort of deal, Beane would jump at it IMO.

Do you think you’ll be in Buffalo next year? ”Well, yeah, I’m under contract. Unless you know something I don’t…” Bills knew what they were getting in Diggs when they sent a 1st, two 4ths and a 6th to MIN. I’m actually a little surprised the Vikings got that much considering another high profile WR had been traded just before him and it wasn’t for a 1st. Name escapes me, thinking it was Hopkins? Also didn’t have to sign him to a 4 year $96M extension when a two year money raise would’ve sufficed given his age. Bills made their own bed.

We’d be in a much better spot today, no doubt. Also have to believe Jefferson wouldn’t completely disappear in the playoffs when corners are allowed to be more physical. No one saw the sort of success that was ahead for Jefferson or he would’ve been the first receiver off the board. That was a missed evaluation by everyone but the Vikings. The draft is a crapshoot, doesn’t make sense to trade up for any position that isn’t the face of your franchise. And even that’s a huge risk (hello, Carolina). Trade down if anything, accumulate capital in the early rounds.

I did, but disputed the “sure thing” support for a trade up. Agreed with your second point.

True, so why reduce the number of chances you have on potentially hitting on very good to great players at other positions? We’re not talking about trading up for a QB here. It’s a WR.

Too bad that even the “he’s as sure as a sure thing ever was” didn’t even turn out “sure” in the end. No such thing. The draft is a crapshoot, if the Bills burn capital moving up and miss on the pick, the franchise will be set behind KC even more. If they hit on the pick, great, but now other areas that could’ve had young, cost controlled talent will suffer. Best approach has always been to accumulate picks in the “money” rounds, we just don’t do it often enough.

Diggs’s disappearing act in the playoffs is no different from every single member of the defensive line. I don’t understand it really.

For someone who “can’t tell you what the future holds,” despite the fact he’s firmly under contract the next four years, to me it sounds like he got word the team may want to do something with his contract that doesn’t benefit him. Pay cut request?

Two ruthless tormentors.

It’s a much less physical game today than when Brady played. You can’t even touch the QB in many instances, so that helps. If Mahomes wants to play for 20, he’s got the sort of game that could do it.

On the longer end, but definitely a good watch. Notable quotes: “If you sacrifice for players now, it probably won’t work out for you, but if you sacrifice for the future, the future is likely to be bright.” “Teams make irrational decisions all the time.” ”The likelihood of a player at any position being better than the one selected after him is 52%, essentially a coin flip.” What he says about NFL GMs makes complete sense, they’re antsy and make terrible trades to move up because they don’t have an eye on a future they may not be a part of. Everything is done for the “now.” Despite all the evidence we have of how moving up for players probably isn’t worth the risk, the same idiotic decisions are made every year. What CAR gave up for Bryce Young was criminal. Stockpiling 1-5 picks and/or selecting where I’m slotted would be my practice every year as GM. If I have to leave the room until the pick comes up to resist the temptation to trade up, so be it.

Beane said he traded with MIN for Diggs because he didn’t believe the team could get high enough to select one of the top 3 WRs (Lamb, Jeudy, and Ruggs). With that first rounder the Vikings picked Justin Jefferson and would have him on a cost controlled rookie contract for at least 4 years. I’ve said it before but it bears repeating: if trading up guaranteed you’d be getting a superior talent in comparison to what you could get later, I’d be all for it, but that’s not at all how the NFL draft works. Why people, including Beane, have such a fascination with moving up and losing out on other potential contributors I’ll never understand. Picking the right guy is what matters, NOT where he’s picked. With that said, trade up for the QB if you absolutely believe in him, understandable because he plays the most important position in sports. But for any other position? “That’s a no from me, dawg.” I’ll throw up if Beane trades into the top 10 for a WR, especially considering how this team needs a bevy of good talent on cheap, cost controlled contracts.

It’s funny because I had the opposite reaction after watching his pro day. I felt he was trying to throw the farthest footballs he could rather than actually trying to complete the pass by hitting his downfield man in stride. Like he was trying too hard to show off what a cannon he had. I felt he was a physical specimen of a QB, but didn’t do all the other things well enough to ever be a good QB, much less a great one. It’s funny when I look back on it now, but you just never really know how a guy will pan out based on his college tape and measurables.

Jason Kelce does seem to be as Buffalo as Billy.

I can’t remember if Josh has turned down a legitimate pro bowl invite. I believe the ones he passed on have all been as an alternate because someone else didn’t/couldn’t go.

Am I the only one who didn’t know that Brenden Rice is Jerry’s son?

It was Buffalo who had a deal in place with the Broncos at 5, not the Cardinals. But Chubb was on the board so they turned the Bills offer down (which did include a future first rounder and the 12th pick). The Bills called the Colts, but their OL Quentin Nelson was on the board, so then they tried Tampa. Tampa fielded calls from both the Cardinals and the Bills, but the Cardinals were firm in what they were willing to part with and that didn’t include a future first rounder or a 2nd round pick. Tampa tried to fleece the Bills for both 2nds AND a future first but Beane balked. He said something to the effect of “just because I have the capital doesn’t mean I’m giving it away.” Both clubs ultimately came to an agreement on both 2nd rounders (which was an overpay) and the deal was made. If only Beane knew that Arizona wasn’t willing to part with a 2nd (or first), he could’ve played his hand differently and held onto those picks. I read an article about how it all went down shortly after that draft and still remember the details. I just wish he hadn’t traded up again for Edmunds, Leonard and Warner (who they really liked) went later and were both better football players. Oh and I hated the Allen pick. I said shortly after on this board that “it was like having our choice of Aaron Rodgers or JP Losman and we went for Losman.” But like with all Bills draft picks I was going to sit back and give him a chance. Never happier to be so wrong on my assessment!

Jackson was excused for personal reasons I believe, with CJ Stroud taking his place.

Interesting story of how it came to be. It was the same song that rose to number one on Billboard’s alternative rock chart, fizzled out after three weeks, and was mostly an afterthought until a bar in Belgium played it. This perfectly encapsulates the copycat nature of society. One European soccer club uses the song, then another uses it, then it makes its way back to the states where it was created, and they get wind of what others were doing and then they use it. One by one. I’m in agreement, Buffalo needs their own anthem, not one that’s played out and heard in sporting venues all over.

I do hate when people keep bringing this up as if 1) the Bills were definitely picking McDuffie and 2) Elam was the only corner worth anything left on the board. Better corners than Elam went later, that was just a missed evaluation (as of this moment). As a matter of fact, with Tyrique Woolen’s size and speed, I’m surprised Beane didn’t pull the trigger on him in the 5th. Of course that’d mean we wouldn’t have Shakir since Beane burned a 4th rounder to trade up for Elam. We could’ve stayed pat at the pick, or traded down and got Cam Taylor-Britt in the 2nd, another corner the Bills were supposedly high on who has been a starter off the bus for the Bengals. The crime is trading up and picking the wrong player, not getting leapfrogged. I wish Beane would stop trading up for non-QBs.

Does 7 Nation get royalties each and every time time it’s used?