Matt in KC

Offense Thad Lewis is a pleasant surprise; I really like the kid. While EJ seems like he has a much higher "ceiling", I'm very curious to see how Thad will develop as well. My hat is permanently off to Fred Jackson. Today's game is the perfect of the stats not telling the story. Do you think the Bills would ever put a player like him on the wall? Kudos to Stevie for the few flashy plays he made today! I hope he and Thad (and EJ) get more in synch though. I too love Robert Woods. I was surprised he wasn't targeted more this week. He definitely seemed to have chemistry with EJ, but not really with Thad. Misc thought: McClain was inactive Sunday. Does anyone know who would have played if Legursky got hurt? Defense Kyle Williams played the fumble perfectly. He tried to scoop it up and make a play, but made sure he recovered it when that didn't go just right. If there is any question, he has to make sure the Bills get the ball, which he did. I thought Kyle played very well. Other have posted they think he's hurt. Unfortunately, I agree. Something is a little off, but I'm not sure what it is. I think Dareus has been playing his best ball to date as a Bill. The LBs continue to let us down. Lawson had some good plays at the very start of the season, but I'm seeing him out of place more and more, including giving up long runs. (I'll have to re-watch to call out which ones. I know there is an unpleasant thread about Mario Williams, but I'll add here: I was uncomfortable with his hustle in the 2nd and 3rd quarter, but wow did he turn it on in the 4th! He just looks slack, like he's jogging when the play isn't near him, but lights up often enough he's "worth the money" in my book, you know, since it's not my money.... DBs I've been very happy with Aaron Williams this year, but didn't think he looked very good this game. I didn't really notice Ron Brooks, which is great for a DB, since I heard he played a lot, especially in the second half. I saw Byrd knife in on a number of plays. I can't wait for him to hit full speed. I still hope we re-sign him to a reasonable contract. Gilmore is playing okay, not great, but is MUCH better than our other options (Rogers, Duke Williams etc.). Robey looks really good, the best nickel CB we've had since K. Thomas IMO, and he's still young and improving. What a great find! Special Teams Marcus Easely is excellent an excellent gunner. It would be well worth a roster spot to have another "Easley" on the left side. If we had this, we'd be talking about being a top ST unit. I too thought the Carpenter kicked short on purpose. With another Easley, that would have been the right call. By organizing my thoughts into O/D/ST, did I break the "no particular order" directive?

I completely agree, except I think it's Smith's fault, not Reid's. Smith just will not throw the ball to a receiver that looks covered when he makes the throw. Bowe's bread-and-butter is to out-muscle his opponent and make the catch. Smith will keep throwing to Avery because the speedster is open, Kansas City's franchise QB is not yet on the roster.

Adrian Peterson Arian Foster LeSean McCoy Matt Forte Jamaal Charles Alfred Morris Marshawn Lynch Okay, so which one/s is Fred better than?

I have the utmost respect for Josh Reed and Shaud Williams, and their contributions to the team. I think Levy was a very good coach and all of the comments about the talented "loaded" team he coached only exist because of the success they had under him. Bruce Smith would have stood out on any team, but the others were put in a position to play to their strengths and realize their potential (in broad strokes). Lee Evans was a winner. The team let him down more than the other way around.

Me too! I ended up trading Bowe for Eli Manning after watching the Chiefs play. I think Donnie Avery has at least as much value as Bowe!

Actually, there have been several surveys over the years showing 10-30% of native Americans find it offensive. The 10% survey was administered recently by the Redskins (or whoever Snyder hired). How much is enough to take their offense seriously?

Was it my lead in saying "I know I don't have the whole story" that made you think that? There is an argument to be made for "making an example" of non-performers, but more likely, they saw something from McClain and validated Legursky also looked better than Brown. I forgot they brought on McClain, which is most of what I was missing. I think watching him for a week in practice is still a flimsy basis for releasing Brown. http://www.buffalobills.com/

This is pretty much what I think as well. Romo against Phili this week is much better than the other options. I don't think you're going to do much better than him for a QB1 without giving up a lot.

I know I don't have the whole story, but based on what I do know, this is a mistake. I've never bought into the whole "addition by subtraction" line I hear so often. I can accept Legursky is better than Brown (though I was traveling and haven't seen most of the game yet). But, who is backing up Legursky who is better than Brown? Not having a backup, and risking playing someone even worse that Brown, is not something I can endorse.

I'd play CJ and Sproles.

Me too. I was on the field in DC, in 1999 for pre-game warm-ups and then in the press box for the game. It was awesome! Bruce Smith walked right past me shortly before the game, and I swear he looked 2 feet taller than me (I'm 6 ft).

I made the wildcat reference earlier in the thread. That's what he did as a QB. I think Smith was a decent 3rd-4th WR, an asset on special teams, and seemed to be a good veteran presence. He might be worth a roster spot based on the specific competition and salary pressure. This year I preferred the young guys over him. All that said, there's no way he should be our starting QB from what I've seen. I'd much rather play Thad. I'd even rather give Tuel another shot if Thad goes down. I think Smith only qualifies as an emergency QB for a part of a game.

I hate to say it, but I think Geno has the most upside. But, I have Dalton as my backup over Geno. For me, it's more about fit with my starter and when I might realistically play him, i.e. on my starter's bye week. i've been watching Pryor and could play him week 9 against Phili instead of Dalton against Miami.... Who is your starter?

http://www.buffalobills.com/team/roster.html No, he's not. And he never did more than a little wildcat at QB. He certainly hasn't shown as much as Thad.

Bills Daily says the following:

Thanks. 5) As critical as I am of Colon, Leguski looked much much worse in preseason. I was wrong about Branch, I'd be thrilled if I was wrong about Leguski too, but I think we are in BIG trouble if he ever plays in a real game.

Did anyone notice the off-target long snaps? Also, there was one punt where Powell shifted over ~2 feet to his left prior to the snap. I don't know if he has been lining up off-center and just realized it, or if there was some sort of shift based on how the defense was lined up to rush.

Bill = Black; Matt = Blue; Bills = Black and blue ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) Obviously, it was a shame that EJ went down. What sucks too is that he had time to run out of bounds. He is young and unpolished, but I sense that he is going to be very good. I don't mind if the guy takes an occasional hit, but he just looks like he hasn't adjusted to the speed on NFL defenders, which is very dangerous. Given what we saw of Tuel, he needs to be much more aware and careful. 3) Aaron Williams played like the Aaron Williams I remember. He was beaten like a drum, turned around, and smoked all night. At one point an announcer called him "our best corner." Just a pitiful performance. I thought Aaron played alright given he was asked to change positions. He never looked lost or far out of position. I'm thrilled the kid is on our team and am excited to see him continue to grow. 4) Mario Williams played as well as he did in the 4.5 sack game. Almost constant pressure and he forced several plays. Mario definitely seems to be a "blood in the water" kind of player who almost looks bored sometimes (not much in this game) until we start really attacking and running stunts and getting pressure. After that he looks like he's going twice as fast the next play. Mario owes both his sacks to Kyle Williams, and the Browns' inability to stay on him (instead of sending 2 after Kyle). 5) Colin Brown threw a nice block on a 3rd and 6 run in the 1st quarter. Then, he promptly gave up 2 brutal sacks. What a mess. Colin is about what I'd expect from an NFL backup. I hope someone gets in his ear about staying low and playing with leverage. I think he's big and quick enough for a guard. He just stands up too tall or lunges enough that his protection breaks down faster than for the other linemen. 6) Robert Woods plays like a polished professional. It is SO easy to forget that he is a 21 year old kid!!! Nothing but high hopes for this player. I agree, RW is awesome. I love his tenacity and focus. He is really locked in every play, playing just as hard if he's blocking on the other side of the field as for a pass that might come to him. What an excellent 2nd round addition! 7) You imagine me sipping champagne from your boot, For a taste of your elegant pride. May be going to hell in a bucket, babe, But at least I'm enjoying the ride. At least I'm enjoying the ride. At least I'm enjoying the ride.! I love you Dead lyrics in these weekly posts. It reminds me to put my Bills criticism in perspective and that there's a lot more to life. 9) I'm saying that there must be better punters on the street looking for work. The best part of Powell's game was his ability to go after returners who were of course streaking down the field. I think we had it so good with Moorman for so long we're all a bit warped. I think Powell has been absolutely atrocious, a real liability. And yet, when I look at his stats he's a mid-range punter on pretty much every stat. What am I missing? Is Easley's excellent coverage making him look better, and if Easley doesn't get there we're in trouble? That's what it looked like last night. I would love love love for us to have another Easley as a gunner coming from the left. 10) Dareus played very well today. I could see the effort he was putting into his game. The kid hurried up to scrimmage, and appears to be in 10 times better shape than I have seen him in since he has been on the Bills. Dareus looks like he's arriving mentally and physically. He's moving so much better than last year and is really starting to look energized. 12) Tuel? Someone forgot to tell me that he has no arm. In terms of arm strength, he made Fitz look like Drew Bledsoe. He looked horrible. So, do we add a QB today I think if we don't that's an indication the Bills are pretty sure EJ can return for the Bengals. 13) Hughes, Kiko and Alonzo all had big games. You wouldn't know it from the score, but it's true. I think you mean Lawson. I can't believe LB was our weakest unit last year the way these guys are playing. Talk about an overhaul! Lawson has been playing great and is a huge asset, as is Kiko, another draft choice who does not at all look like a lost rookie. We really should keep trying to draft these guys that are already veterans! 15) GO BILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GO BILLS!!!!! Kyle Williams - Kyle is a beast. But here's what I think most teams have figured out: he studies film and guesses the snap count. This makes him a menace when he's right with his burst and strength, but can be conned into jumping offsides when they change it up.

Thanks for the reply. Woods was my waiver pickup. I'm happy with my team, but am a player short and need one of my bench/development/hope guys to come through this week. I'm starting: Eli Manning Arian Foster Matt Forte Victor Cruz Calvin Johnson Jordan Cameron Chiefs I have Bowe, but just traded him to get Manning. I also have Pierre Garcon, but he's on a bye week; Percy Harvin on IR; Finley coming back from concussion; Daryl Richardson says he's not starting...

Feel free to use/recycle this thread for your own Flex player questions and opinions... Who would you play this week? It's a .5 point per reception league Robert Woods - Returning the Bills WR core to respectability... Jermichael Finley (against DET) - Returning from concussion... Willis McGahee - Returning... I was leaning toward Woods, but with thunderstorms in the forecast, I'm just not as confident. I figure Fred and CJ are dinged up, and Haden on Stevie most of the game... Chandler and Woods will be a significant part of the offensive production tonight.

Kudos to Branch! I was wrong about him in preseason when I thought he might be cut. He was jogging and looked sluggish when all the young guys were flying around trying to impress the coaches and make the team. I think he just felt secure and is one of these vets that could launch into an Iverson-esque "practice" rant under the right conditions....

Where did you hide it? I almost registered there to chime in, in part to apologize for the immature Bills fan/s that stormed their thread . Hopefully some of their more insightful posters come over here. I'd love to invite mature opponents' fans to post ahead of each game. (Perhaps an aggressively moderated thread to keep it civil and intelligent?)

I never saw this yesterday. Thanks for bumping it and linking to it from another thread, Hopeful!

I would make the trade. Or, keep Cameron and give up Graham. I have Cameron and he's been great. J. Thomas is no slouch either. Other considerations: I assume the other guy is desperate for a QB. Is he a real threat to you? Is he in your division and do you play him 2 more times?

So someone post a link to this thread in theirs. It will be like we're all looking in a mirror. . . .