Tipster19

If we do land up trading Jason Peters and we get a 1st rd pick somewheres in the 20's then I'd like for us to draft UConn's RB Donald Brown. That guy reminds me awful lot of Chicago's RB Matt Forte.

The bottom line is this. It looks like more and more that we are going to have to trade this Peters. I was against it but it's getting out of hand. Start wrapping your minds around us taking OT Michael Oher at #11 and getting the most most compensation that we can for Peters. This draft has enough comparable DEs for us to choose from in the mid 1st rd to all the way to our 2nd rder. Another alternative is for us to trade for someone like Aaron Kampman. I'm not happy about using our 1st pick again to fill another hole that we created but between Peters' questionable motivation after he's signed and him getting to the point of holding us hostage, it's time for us to really explore and brace ourselves for other reasonable solutions. If what I fear unfolds and we do take Oher, or even OT Andre Smith at #11, then what would you like the Bills to do with the picks they get for Peters? I realize that this is an open ended question not knowing what the compensation will be but figure somewheres in that Philly area of the 21st pick as a barometer.

I think that will be one of the more exciting drafts this year with all the coaching changes and realignment of players. I also believe that Russ Brandon has more confidence and is willing to reshape our direction. Lombardi incorrectly states that we are picking 12th but other than that I find his insights and predictions very interesting. Last year he made some bold statements and they were pretty accurate. It seems that he has some credible inside information at times. http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/2009/0...sunday-edition/ http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/2009/0...-make-a-splash/

So did Cleveland last year. Here's another player/team to keep an eye on. They traded for DT Corey Williams last year when they switched defenses and he had a terrible year. Ex-GM Phil Savage made this trade and now he is gone. Mangini has no commitment or obligation to Williams and has gone on record as saying that just about everyone on the roster is available for the right compensation. Williams was great when he was in Green Bay playing in a 4-3 defense.

I can appreciate your take on the safe pick but at #11 I think that we got to take the shot at a pass rusher. Hopefully our boys have done their homework and pick the right one. Everything you just said here is exactly my sentiments. I'd like to add DT Alan Branch's name to that list from 2 drafts ago. I just read where he has to step forward this year or he'll start to be considered a bust pick. I think that he will answer the challenge and produce this year, it seems that he has the right attitude. Once again good points but if anything happens to Schobel and Kelsay and/or they just don't produce, you'll be sorry for not taking a DE when we had one of the first opportunities to do so. One other thing, people talk about Philly and Atlanta taking Pettigrew with their 1st pick (#21 & #24) but now that Denver has a second 1st rder then why wouldn't they at #18?

No, you're absolutely correct, Denver is switching to the 3-4 also. I read a little something a few weeks back and they're fine with Dummerville, they like his speed a lot. It's Jarvis Moss that might be an odd fit for them and I actually posted about that. I'm trying to keep tabs on that situation, maybe during the draft something breaks loose over there.

I'm not suggesting to trade most or our 1st and 2nd rders but some of our picks for a couple of veteran players from other teams? New England has made quite a successful program with veteran players and we have a decent core of players. Adding a couple of key players could make a big difference in our success IMO. If TE Tony Scheffler is valued somewheres around a 4th rder then I believe that this would be a great addition for us. I also think that Green Bay's DL Aaron Kampman can be had for the right value. I would think that a 3rd or 4th rder might be sufficent. They are changing from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4 and he might not be effective in this scheme. If Parrish is expendable and we get a 3rd or 4th rder for him then I'd be all for this trade off.

That's funny that you think that we would have to take on his contract. I just heard Jim Miller on Sirius radio on the way home from work just now talk about if Larry Johnson got traded the team who trades for him would have to rework his contract before they consumated the deal. I was being sarcastic. It was a weak attempt at some humor. That's funny! LOL! Hey thanks a lot IHFO, that was awful nice of you to think and say that. I appreciate that, and yes you're right, I was only fooling around when I suggested that trade.

First off I would like to thank you for making the time and effort to share these insights with us. Based on some of these overviews it makes me think that Maybin is the pick for us. If the Bills have any reservations about him then I'd be satisfied if we got Brian Cushing. We need a good LB, especially with speed. I guess Tyson Jackson would be a good solid pick also. I could see him being an alternative for us if we didn't take Maybin. Thanks again.

Oh, I thought you were talking about Jason Peters there for a minute.

Fair enough.

I was really making a point more about value rather than their ages but that's ok, I think you get the picture.

Last year the Bengals probably could have gotten Dallas' two 1st rd picks for WR Ocho Cinco but instead chose to pass. Now this year Cincinnati would be lucky to get a 2nd rder for him. If we can't resolve this Jason Peters then we better be careful that we don't lose his value by ridding of him a year too late. I still believe that we re-sign him just before the draft and I'll also want to go on record as saying that I don't think that we should trade him if we can at all help it. What I think might be a reasonable solution for all parties involved is that we give him a incentive laden contract that will allow him to make the money that he is looking for. This would make him satisfied and motivated and we don't lose face or throw our money away. If the Bills don't want to trade him and can't resolve this by draft day then I think that we should draft the best possible OT with our 1st rd pick. The Ravens and Eagles did just that in past drafts. In 1996 the Ravens drafted OT jonathan ogden when they already had OT Orlando Brown and then they did it again in 2001 when they drafted TE Todd Heap when they already had TE Shannon Sharpe on the roster. The Eagles really outdid themselves when in the 2002 draft they took CB Lito Sheppard in the 1st rd and SS Michael lewis in the 2nd rd. Great picks but they already had CB Troy Vincent, CB Bobby Taylor, CB Al Harris, S Blaine Bishop and SS Brian Dawkins. I guess that's why they're birds of prey.

I actually created this thread accidently but when I started reviewing Brandon's past decisions, I was impressed. Let's not lose sight of our past experienced GMs/football personnel people (Donahoe/Levy) didn't make an imposing DT a priority but brandon did it alsmost immediately. In his first draft the guy came up with a solid draft. Not bad. I know that some are going to say that it's mostly prospects with potential but truth be known, a good percentage of these players never got off the ground due to either injury (Fine and Bowen) or having a better player(s) (Peters/Bell, Reed/Johnson, Schobel and Kelsay/Ellis) in front of them. I'll concede Cox and I'm not too impressed with Omon either. One other thing, Brandon has done all this and kept us in a great cap situation. Not bad for a rookie PR guy. Btw, I like that T19 thing. It's much easier to hunt and peck. Thanks.

Why, Johnson would substitute for Lynch's suspension, we could then draft Curry and then take OT Michael Oher/Andre Smith with the #11 pick. Aren't you clever. Thanks for being courtious. I'm just screwing around. The guy makes a post and people want to slap him around. The guy came up with an idea, regardless if people agree with it or not but he shouldn't be ridiculed for it, he's a Bills' fan and came on this forum to talk about it. I'll fade his heat, I'm used to it.

Be nice! Trading with Kansas City isn't a bad idea at all but if we had to trade him then I would love to get their 1st rder (#3) and RB Larry Johnson. Now we're talking!

I alluded to Dockery but I didn't expand on it but I do agree wholeheartedly with your insight on it. I don't believe the signing of Dockery was Brandon's doing but I do know that his release was. I think that Brandon has a little Polian in him. What I'm referring to is that Brandon doesn't strike me as having any fear to make a tough decision. Man, I can only imagine the crap I'm going to hear about this comparison! I would like to elaborate about my suggestion for trading up with the Rams. First I really don't believe as much as I hope that this scenario were to materialize. It's really comes more from a fan who has had to watch his favorite team draft from outside of the top ten draft prospects. It's from a fan who had to watch his team miss out on the blue chip players in the last several years and have to select from the next tier of players available. Desperate and hopeful? Absolutely. Realistic? Not really. I will say that some of the basis is that if we can't come to terms with Peters before the draft then I think that we better resolve him during the draft. If it gets to be where we should trade him during the draft then I would really want to maximize his value. I think that we can all agree that no matter what OL we would take in the draft, none of us will be confident or comfortable with him being able to replace Peters. I believe that the next best thing to do would be to try and make another position of ours a strength. Nothing would be more better or exciting than for us to replace one blue chip player with another blue chip player. Thinking along those lines led me to conjour up a scenario on how we could get ourselves in the position to be able to draft LB like Aaron Curry. I would think that if we traded Roscoe Parrish for a 3rd rder and also traded Peters and our original 3rd rder in this year's draft to the Rams then this would be close to but not quite the right compensation for them. In this case I would be willing to also throw in next year's 2nd rder to complete this trade for the #2 overall pick so we could draft Curry. I'll agree with you on another thing also. you're right, I don't know how to build an NFL team, I never did it before but I'm sure having a blast trying to though. Draft time/Free Agency/Pre-season is my time of the year. I love this sh--!

One loses sight of that. Thanks for pointing that out. Why such venom? The changes over in Denver has been real positive, huh. I'm not saying that Jauron is the end all answer, what I'm trying to point out is the timing of a change if it needs to be done. When was I excited when we hired Jauron or after our three 7-9 seasons?? And yeah, I stand by what I said, I am excited and think that Brandon is doing a great job. Stability will get us to the next step in my opinion. Thanks. Your envy is flattering but why don't you get a little more optimistic yourself? Too bad some of the fans can't be.

Great points. I would like to say that the difference with Parrish compared to McKelvin, McGee and Hester is that he plays offense and the other 3 play defense. Once you return a punt or kick-off and you're a defensive player, you get to rest. I remember when the Chiefs tried to incorporate Dante Hall into the offense as a part time receiver and he pretty much failed. A lot had to do with him getting worn out. He was also doing both returns though.

He would be a 3-4th rd pick??! I respect your opinion on my whole take but aren't you stretching Curry's ability, or lack of, a bit? I was listening to Wake Forest HC Jim Grobe on Sirius radio a couple of weeks back and that is the one thing that he emphasized that he regretted and that was that he never used Curry to rush the passer. He felt that he hurt the kid's draft stock but under no circumstance does that mean that Curry can't. He went on to say that there's nothing that Curry can't do on the football field. Grobe absolutely adores Curry and btw, Grobe sounds like he's one heck of a guy himself, I bet the players love that guy and playing for him.

While Peters may be making it uncomfortable he's under contract so I would have to say that the Bills have the leverage. He can force the hand but the Bills have his rights and trade him to whoever they want to and there's nothing he can do about it except to quit football and I don't think even Jason Peters is that stupid and that's saying something. If he keeps this up then I think that I would like to see the Bills trade him to a team that won't redo his contract and where he will be miserable. Hey, that sounds like Buffalo!

Here's Kelsay's contract numbers. On 2/26/2007 he signed a four-year, $23 million contract. The deal included an $8 million signing bonus and initial roster bonus of $3 million. For 2009 he is scheduled to make $3 million and in 2010 he'll make $3.7 million. In 2011 he will be a FA. Free Agent You're right but mostly because they play a 3-4 defense. That's because he was hurt most of last year. I think that it was a groin pull or something like that.

Well, I meant to put in a disclaimer and forgot. When I was going thru the chronicle Tim Russert was coming up and I wasn't going to pass him. Brandon gets no credit for this. I was simply honoring Tim, that's all.

He was officially given the reins on 1/12/08. I know that he has been with us much longer but you and I both don't know what kind of liberty or free rein he truly had up to that point. I'm counting what he has done since he has been officially the COO. I'm talking about moving up to get LB Aaron Curry at the #2 spot. We would be using Peters and whatever draft picks outside of the #11 pick we need to do this. At #11 we take an OL and then realign our OL to accomodate. Curry is a blue chipper and would solve another area of great need for us while we still maintain our OL at an acceptable level.

It was late and I was tired but let me elaborate on the comment. Jauron isn't expensive and regardless of what people might think at the time Jauron provides stability. Bringing in another coach would have been an unknown X factor. Would signing or luring a coach from another team been better? Maybe but would you risk yourself on making this type of move being brand new to your position? It's a big move and it wouldn't have stopped with just the HC position. Many, if not all, of the coaching staff would have been replaced. That would have been a lot of change for a brand new GM, especially when it's your first gig. If the replacement(s) failed, then what? Who would be responsible then? Brandon would be. That's where the career suicide remark comes into play. If he were to set this franchise back even further, who, including us, would be interested in hiring him as a GM? C'mon, this fanbase is willing to run people out of town if they complain about the chicken wings. I could hear it now, "Oh Ralph hired a PR guy, that's what we get for being cheap, this FO is a joke, that's what we get for hiring a nobody, I wish we still had Polian, good, Brandon sucked anyways, good riddance!" and blah, blah, blah. Oh wait, these kinds of remarks are already being said. Listen folks, Brandon is not doing a good job, he's doing a great job. Expect more changes, especially in the draft, to come. I wouldn't be too surprise if Brandon does make a move on one of our DEs (Kelsay?) but I would imagine that it would depend on what could be done with the Peters' situation and what the draft can afford us. I'm still thinking that we get Kalimba Edwards after the draft and he and the draft pick would be the replacement for Kelsay. I believe that if Jauron is not making the grade he'll be replaced, maybe even during the year if things fail miserably. Sometimes it's best to take a wait and see attitude so the proper assessments can be determined. Brandon went on record at the end of the year as saying that our season was unacceptable, so why doubt him? Replacing a HC isn't like replacing an assistant or a player. It's changes the whole complexion of an organization. I saw Brandon demanding accountability and I see Jauron responding to it. If I'm an owner that is what I would be looking for from my GM and other employees and Brandon is providing that.