John Adams

Small? He's pretty tall for a corner. You should talk to JSP.

Yeah. No issues with those picks! A 2 down Ngata or a character and knee issues Bunkley. I'd be excited by Bunkley and also worried to death. Ngata would have me cowering under the bed. I'm pretty at ease with Whitner. It's a solid, no issues, fills-a-need pick.

Lots of good lineman in this draft. Ronds 2-3 are filled with prospects. The problem is: they all take a couple years to harvest. Whitner will play in 2006.

So, who should they have picked at #8? You're an experienced NFL GM, let us know.

Who would you have picked? Please go on record. Go be a Titan fan. They're thrilled with the Young pick.

His combine speed from ESPN lists him as 4.45. Either way, he's fast. Ngata was picked 4 picks later and is widely believed to be a 2 down player. the Bills didn't need that.

You made my point perfectly. Thanks for the hindsight analysis.

Now you're really making some sense. Here are last year's starting safeties: Troy Polumolouluoluo 5-10 212 Bob Sanders 5-8 206 (a giant!) Roy Williams 6-0 226 (OK, he's bigger) Darren Sharper 6-2 210 So Whitner is the same size as one, bigger than another, and yet he's "undersized." Keep talking: you're getting better and better.

Duh. Of course Thurman was a steal, and letting Odomes and Ballard go was right. But all those decisions were questioned. As the basis for questioning this draft, you selected three questionable decsions from the past, but ignored other questionable things that worked out. Be honest: you've been wrong on things like this before. Whitner might have been a reach at #8, but he's not a real question mark. He's a solid 3-down baller who is fast (4.45) and a special teams' player. He is a leader with no baggage. Who would you have taken that would have had more impact and had fewer questions?

Undersized? Get a grip: he's 5'101/2 and 205 lbs. Same as Reed. There are 4(!) corners that are 6'2" or taller in the NFL. His size is fine.

That's nice logic. I thought the Bills would take a terribly risky pick and take Ngata. I like this safer pick, now that we have him. If the Bills had selected Ngata, I'd have a huge aching pit of worry in my stomach. With Whitner, I have none. It's a good pick. Oh, and the guy at NFL.com (Maylock?) had the Bills taking Whitner at #8, in an article just yesterday. You probably know more than him though. Tell us: who would you have picked? Please go on the record.

Where's the 2nd rounder crap come from? And again, who would you have picked at 8? Go on the record.

Thurman thomas was a waste of a pick too. Him and those crappy knees. Letting Howard Ballard and Nate Odoms go was a terrible mistake. Drafting Bledsoe will solve our problems. Lofton is over the hill. Marv Levy never coached anywhere. No receivier from Kutztown can make it in the NFL. Please, be selective in your ability to predict the past with such accuracy.

No. What I'm saying is that the Bills picked the best player for them, when he was available. One and maybe two other teams were after him in the next 5 picks, so the Bills picked him up and took no chances. Maybe you didn't get this: rating someone 20th doesn't mean that's where he's picked.

Yeah. (-5) lbs is smaller. That's VABills-type math.

Problem is: you don't know what you're talking about. There are 4 corners in the NFL that are 6'2..none over 6'2. Whitner is 5'10" and 204 lbs. Here's an exceprt from a front page story on ESPN right now. My Webpage

Who was the better pick? Bunkley (knees and character), Ngata (2 down limitations), and Leinart (arm strength) all have bigger question marks. Whitner fills an immediate need.

Yeah. I would rather have Ngata--a 2 down player. Or Bunkley's knees and character. The Bills filled a need with a starter at Safety and Special teams. Done and done.

ESPN was talking about it. So was Whitner.

ESPN had Whitner rated as the 20th most-talented prospect. The only players ahead of him who could have helped the Bills were Bunkley (character and knee injuries), Ngata (2 down player with questions), and Justice (falling fast in this draft). Looks like Marv picked the sure thing: serious ball hawk who fills a need-position and plays special teams. Check one Bills' need off the list.

Would you rather have the Vince Young question marks or the Whitner sure thing? This kid is a starter on 3 downs right now. Plus he's a special teams' hawk (remember who's drafting here, OK?). The Bills need players, not question marks like Bunkley and Ngata. Those guys might turn out to be better NFL players, but the Bills don't have the luxury of taking risks: they suck too badly to take a chance. I don't love the pick at 8, but it's not the end of the world. He's a good kid, and a starter. He'll get right to work helping the Bills.

So what should the Bills have done? Draft a 2 down Ngata or Bunkley? Get a grip. The Bills need guys who can play EVERY down. Whitner will. Right now. And he'll play special teams. And he doesn't have Bunkley's baggage. It's a good pick. Just not a sexy one.

What guy on the board would be a no-questions starter for the Bills at #8? Ngata and Bunkley are both projected, AT BEST, to be 2 down guys their first year. Whitner will start from the beginning and he's a special teams terror. I'm not sure there was one other guy could have helped the Bills this much right now. Offensive lineman will come in rounds 2 and 3. The draft is deep at O-line, although the only stud was Ferguson.

Good call. thank God Coy won't be starting!

The Bills filled a position of desparate need. Ngata and Bunkley both had question marks--Triplett helps fill the D-line hole. Whitner does not have question marks--he's a fast strong hard-hitting safety who will maul on special teams. The Ravens would have nabbed him at 12, so taking him at 8 might not have been so bad. If the Bills had an offer from Detriot, AZ, or St. Luois, then they could have risked the trade, but it sounds like they got one of the only impact players (for them) available at that pick.