Estro

Didn't the Bills have him in for a visit before he signed with denver, or is that just my imagination?

Strength is very important for NFL offensive lineman, but strength alone means nothing. Ducasse's footwork is sloppy and his playing speed is not close to NFL ready. I would be very uncomfortable spending a high draft pick on a guy who repeatedly got abused at the Senior Bowl. He stood out at UMass because he got away with just relying on his strength. I would be very surprised if Ducasse ever develops into a quality NFL starter. As poorly as the Bills have drafted in the past you have to give them credit for the Levitre and Wood picks. To find 2 quality G's (capable of starting as rookies)in the same draft is rare. I know the jury is still out on both of our 2nd year G's, but I happen to like both of them a lot.

I remember a lot of talk from the draft pundits about Vladimir Ducasse as a late 1, early second round prospect in the draft. A lot of fans on this board seemed to like Ducasse a lot and some wanted him in the 2nd round. I got a chance to watch Ducasse a little bit in the Senior Bowl and also on some youtube clips. I couldn't believe the guy could be rated as a 1st or 2nd round prospect, as much as he struggled in the Senior Bowl. I thought maybe it was just a bad day, but even on his youtube clips he looked awfully slow to play tackle in the NFL. When the Jets switched him to G I thought it made sense because I saw him as a total bust as a T, but after watching him at G on "Hard Knocks" it looks like he sucks there too. Dude can't move at all. Ducasse was reportedly getting whooped so bad in Senior Bowl practices at left tackle that he pleaded with the coaches to switch him to G. It pleases me that it was the Jets that ended up nabbing him in round 2. The guy flat out sucks.

I'm a big fan of Mallett. Like his pocket presence and love his arm (good fit for Buffalo). I had the chance to breakdown Locker in 2 games of his, and I too came away much less impressed than expected. Not to say he's bad, I just don't buy into the hype at this point. He has a lot to prove in the passing game this season to be considered a 1st round QB IMO let alone the top pick overall. That dude from A&M doesn't impress me at all. Haven't seen much of him at all, but his highlight film is less than impressive. Seems to make all of his throws off balance and gets very little velocity on the ball. He looks like a system QB to me.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/08/26/matt-leinart-benched-for-saturday-could-be-done-in-arizona/ If the rumor about being shipped to Seattle is true, it would just be further proof that Pete Carroll is not a quality NFL head coach. With Seattle's combo of weak talent and poor coaching (I have no confidence in Carroll as an NFL head man) they're my darkhorse pick to have the leagues worst record.

I'm not a big fan of an 18 game schedule. I think a 16 game season with the playoffs is grueling enough as it is. Adding another 2 games will take it's toll on players health and you'll see a lot more injuries over the course of the season. This will dilute the talent across the league. There has been talk of teams needing to increase the 53 man roster so this will further dilute the talent across the league. I believe rosters will increase to 57-58 players if they do agree to an 18 game schedule. I thought a 17 game regular season, with each team playing one neutral game site was an interesting idea. It also falls in line with Goodell's outlook for increasing a global audience, assuming most of the neutral game sites could be internationally hosted games. All in all I'm not a big fan of the games in London etc., but we already lose 1 per year to Toronto so why not have the other 31 teams go through the same thing. In the end I think the 17 game regular season will be the compromise.

Always wondered how people got these......any word?

Heading into the 2010 College season I have Mallet rated as the #1 pro QB prospect. Coming back to Arkansas for another year was a good move on Mallet's part and I think he should have another strong season. What I like most about Mallet is his arm strength, and his pocket presence. He has the ability to fit the ball into very tight spots and his arm would be more than welcomed in Buffalo. His ability to step up and slide in the pocket in order to keep his eyes downfield for a split second more is also impressive. The major concerns are his low completion percentage. Many people say his low completion percentage can partly be attributed to poor WR play and a lot of dropped passes, but you'd definitely like to see his completion % climb into the mid 60's. I believe last year it was in the mid-high 50's which isn't very good. I had the chance to chat with Russ Lande (former NFL Scout, now w/ SportingNews.com) leading up to the 2010 NFL draft and he believed Mallett would've been a sure fire 1st rounder and the 2nd best QB in the draft not that far behind Bradford. Interestingly, Lande also added that Jake Locker would be a huge project for a 1st round prospect. Locker has obvious athletic talent and a great build, but when it comes to throwing the football and reading defenses he has a long way to go. I know there is a ton of hype surrounding Locker heading into this season, but I believe Mallet will end up as the better pro QB.

I noticed the kick coverage, particularly on punt coverage looking slower, too. Moorman had some punts with decent hangtime and the coverage units were still 15 yards away from the punt returner when he caught the ball. Definitely looked slower than in years past.

I really enjoyed watching the gruden camps prior to the draft this year. Figured I'd link the Spiller segment for anyone who never got a chance to see it. Spiller seems like a pretty cool guy, pretty funny too. His speed, acceleration, agility and creativity in the open field, coupled with Gailey's ability to scheme an offense should account for a minimum of 6-7 TD's this season.

Better off betting it on 5dimes.com. They have the Bills over/under set at 5 regular season wins. This way if they go 5-11 you get your moeny back as opposed to losing.

Kareem Jackson got a hell of a deal by the looks of it. More guaranteed money than the 5 players that were taken ahead of him. I always wonder how stuff like that happens. This is one of my biggest gripes with NFL rookie contracts. Whoever drafts in slot #20 next year will have a tough time getting their player signed because Houston way overpaid (in guarenteed money) for #20 this year. And Bradford getting nearly 20% more in guaranteed money than Stafford did just last year. At this rate guaranteed money is going to be jumping up $10 million per year for the #1 pick and the increases are exponential. By 2014 you're looking at $100 million guaranteed for the #1 pick, if things continue as is. Time for a change. Carson Palmer received $16.4 million guaranteed after being selected first overall in 2003. JaMarcus Russell received $29 million guaranteed 4 years later (in the 2007 draft). A jump of 76.7% in just 4 years. Fast forward another 3 years to Sam Bradford's $50 million in guaranteed money. A jump of 72.4% in now just 3 years. In just 7 years the guaranteed money paid out to the #1 pick has more than tripled. Things have gotten totally out of hand, and the NFL no longer has a sustainable model for paying high 1st round picks. It's clearly becoming more of a nuisance than help to possess these top 5 picks. Can you imagine if it triples again in the next 7 years......$150 million guaranteed.......what the hell?

There seems to be 2 opinions when it comes to Lynch: 1. Big deal, he's not at a voluntary minicamp. There are lots of players around the league who do not attend voluntary mini camps, I don't see why it's a big deal. 2. Lynch's numbers and play on the field last year were well below average. Another poor year and Lynch, a former high 1st round pick, can certainly be labeled a bust. With a new coaching staff and a chance to have a clean slate why the hell would Lynch not want to be there to give the new regime a good first impression of him? I totally agree with #2. The guy was out of shape and looked terrible hitting the holes last year. In watching Lynch live last year, a handful of times, I actually thought he was a liability on the field. Indecisive hitting the hole, poor in pass blocking , and dropped way too many dump off passes. The guy is being paid millions and he sucked it up last year. Why not get your a** to Buffalo for 3 day (4.5 hours of team practice total) to set the tone that you're serious about making solid contributions this season. I like the fact that NIX set the precedent this offseason that just because a player is unhappy in Buffalo does not mean we will trade them away for less than what they are worth. Why reward a player for basically being a malcontent and not showing up to a job that pays you millions with 100% effort everyday? I don't care if it's voluntary or not, Lynch is showing the new regime exactly what we all already know. He's not 100% dedicated to improving the Buffalo Bills. The difference between guys like Lynch and Freddy J is like night and day.

The Rams will not and can not afford to take a QB with a high #1 next year. Neither can the Lions who have to give Stafford a fair chance to develop. You can also argue that the Bucs will give Freeman at least another year to develop into a solid starter. That's 3 teams who won't be picking a QB and that will probably be picking in the top 10 of next years draft. The problem is that there are at least a dozen other teams that would take a QB with a high #1 and the Bills are certainly one of those teams. If the Bills are not in the top 5-6 of the NFL draft they probably won't have a shot at Locker or Mallet. And to be honest I see the Bills making another run at 6-10/7-9 so in the end I don't think they'll be in a position to select either.

Due to my intrigue in the NFL Draft and NFL college scouting I plan on getting the College Gameday package this season and taping all of the elite QB's games so I can have my own informed opinion. I'm also hoping to get to see 1 or 2 of the top QB's live this upcoming season. Next years draft should be loaded with talent in the 1st round. I also happen to think that Adrian Clayborn (DE, Iowa) is an absolute beast. I believe he would've been a sure fire top 15 pick in this years draft and with a solid season next year he should be a top 10 pick. At 6'3" he'd fit ideally into a 3-4, and he's good vs. both the run and pass. He really opened my eyes in last years Orange Bowl, and he's another player I'll be following closely.

Let me add, that Locker seems to possess more of the traits that Gailey would look for in a QB than Luck or Mallet. From an athleticism standpoint Locker is the clear cut #1, follwed by Luck (a distant 2nd), and Mallet 3rd. I don't have enough info on Luck to have an informed opinion, but I think Locker will need time to develop and grow comfortable with the pro passing game. At times he struggles to read defenses and he isn't consistent enough in the passing game to trust handing over a franchise to him in year 1. Mallet may lack the athleticism of Locker, but I like his pocket presence and his understanding of the passing game is clearly ahead of Locker's. I think Mallet is a guy who can come in and be the #1 immediately and perform at a high level. Add in the fact that he has great arm strength and I think he'd be a great fit in Buffalo. I'm more of a Mallet fan than Locker fan, but they each have a year left so a lot could change.

I think once the dust settles Locker will be the 2nd QB taken in the 2011 draft. I'm betting on Ryan Mallet (Arkansas) or Andrew Luck (Stanford) outperforming Locker this season. I happen to think Mallet will be a better pro passer than Locker, who still has a lot of developing to do in the passing game. Nonetheless next year has the looks to be a great year to draft a QB. I plan on keeping a close eye on all 3 QB's throughout the season to see who I prefer.

Opinion or fact?

To early to tell, but at this point I like Troup + Carrington over D. Williams. I was not high on Williams as a prospect so to give up a #2 and #3 for him would've been risky IMO. Time will tell.

As I recall the Bills were deciding between 2 players with the 12th pick: Marshawn Lynch or Darelle Revis This was the draft year before we nabbed McKelvin so had we taken Revis we probably would've gone in another direction in 2008. Shoulda woulda coulda. That's what happens when you reach for needs. RB at the time was abysmal. We had A-train, and that was pretty much it. I can understand why they went with Lynch, but looking back Revis would've been the better move long term. There's one scenario where we all probably wish Juaron won out and got his DB.

Demaryius Thomas and Dan Williams make the most sense to me. Although I believe Bryan Bulaga, Dez Bryant and Jared Odrick could also be candidates. I'm leaning Dan Williams because of what the Bills ultimately did with picks #2 and #3, but if the Bills were targeting best player available rather than needs I could be wrong. Demaryius Thomas seemed to be the #1 WR on many draft boards, so it could have just as easily been him. Personally I'm happy the trade up didn't materialize. The Bills have too many holes to give up draft picks and I'm happy with more bodies and more competition in camp.

One of the most frustrating parts of the draft for me, is that once it's over you never get to hear any of the inside war room stories. What players did they covet that were already off the board? What teams did they talk to about moving up/down? What players were they targeting in certain trade scenarios? It's obvious why teams would protect this information. If the player they targeted ends up sucking, they come out looking better by never mentioning him as a target. If he becomes a Pro Bowler down the road, they can always say that they were indeed trying to get him in the draft. The second reason to not disclose this information is that it may tip their hand on their intentions for next years draft. Anyhow we all know (if Buddy is telling the truth) that the Bills were attempting to trade back into the late 1st round. Will we ever find out the player they were targeting? Probably not. So we're left to speculate. Here's my take: Immediately after pick #25 (when the Broncos selected Tebow) word comes that the Bills were devastated about missing out on Tebow. It's since come out they weren't targeting Tebow, but they probably were calling teams around this spot about a possible trade up. Normally if you're interested in say spot #25 you'll start sniffing around several selections before. If we are to take Nix at his word (the player they wanted was off the board, thus no trade up) it means they were targeting one of the following player: Demaryius Thomas, Bryan Bulaga, Dez Bryant or Dan Williams. Because Nevergiveup mentioned both Demaryius Thomas and Dan Williams as dark horse picks at #9, I'm assuming one or both of those players were the target. Thomas was taken at #22, so he was off the board so this would make sense. Dan Williams, however, was still on the board at #25 as he was picked at #26. However, it's possible the Bills were looking to move up to #25 to take Williams, but lost out to Denver. They then start dialing up the Cardinals, who didn't listen and nab Williams themselves. Obviously it's all specualtion, and we'll probably never know the answer, but the fact that we targeted 2 defensive players with our next 2 picks, makes me think it was indeed Dan Williams. Add in that Nevergiveup clearly stated that Williams would be a candidate at #9 for the Bills and you have to think the Bills would've been aggresively trying to trade up for him at #25.

After assessing Maybin's game I'm of the belief that he's ill suited to play OLB in the 3-4. If we ran a 3-4 defense heading into the 2009 draft there is no chance Maybin would have been the pick because he does not fit in a 3-4 well. His outside speed rush is handled rather easily by NFL OT"s and he has yet to develop any type of counter moves to prssure the QB. Add to this the fact that Maybin is very slow to diagnose plays and is not good in coverage and I think he'll struggle big time at OLB. Nix and Gailey will give Maybin a fair shake and hopefully he can contribute. I just don't see it panning out.

The Patriots just turned the 91st pick into a 2nd rounder next year, which will be another strong draft. Add in the fact that the trade was with Carolina, who will probably finish middle of the pack and it will probably be a top 50 pick next year. The Patriots now have 2 #1's and 2 #2's, as i predicted they would by days end.

Eric Norwood