1B4IDie

I No one works for bleacher.

Thats awesome you think Poz is the bomb-diggity and Spikes is a roll player. Cool dude! You're a good poster for the most part but sometimes you're just like a dog with a bone. Just drop it.

The article I read was Smerlas bashing Spikes and that is all it did. I didn't see the balance. http://bills.buffalonews.com/2014/03/14/fred-smerlas-gives-fair-warning-brandon-spikes-questions-character-commitment/

I love Smerles as a Bills player. I've listened to him on Boston radio and I'm not really going to sweat too much over Smerles' opinion. I'd be more concerned with what Pepper Johnson thinks than Fred Smerles.

This is a big boy thought try not to get hurt: The Bills can do an excellent job signing free agents that will help them out in 2014 AND they can net out worse because they lost Byrd. Not to mention Free Agency IS NOT OVER. If they add Wilfork and Spikes they may even net out positive.

Schwartz coaches his players to play dirty and nasty. I like dirty and nasty IF it leads to more wins. I'd love to see Wilfork and Dareus take turns stomping on Brady's head and ankles. Like Suh did in the past. I'd love to see Spikes eye gouge Geno Smith while he is down, like Spikes did in the past. With a win that would make my day! Kick them when they're down and step on their package while you're at it! Why would you not want your defense to be feared? Much better than the keystone cops defense we usually put out there.

Besides almost ending Favre's career Moats really hasn't made on an impact on Defense or Special teams. He is Just a Guy. Carrington was out all of 2013 so if the comparison is year over year then he is a wash too. Byrd is a 3 time Pro Bowl Free Safety that had 22 interceptions over 4 years. Chris Williams and Rivers are former first round picks that haven't lived up to their draft status. Good news is the Bills didn't draft and are not paying them a lot of money. They should be able to contribute in 2013. If not then you didn't risk much. Graham is more than a special teamer. He made huge defensive plays in the Ravens Super Bowl win and playoff run. Given that teams spend most of their time in a Dime/Nickle Graham should have an immediate impact taking at worst Justin Rogers place in dime or Robey's place in Nickel. (Hopefully the 'Fins play Justin Rogers a lot!) Again Chandler and Carpenter are not in the equation either since you are comparing Year over year. So is Byrd > Chris Williams, Rivers, and Graham. Hell yeah Byrd is better than all three. Will Byrd's loss be substantial? Well to your point we have been 6-10 with a 3 time pro bowl safety that had 22 Interceptions. Will the Bills be 5-11 without him? Doubtful. Did picking Derek Anderson, Mark Sanchez, Jake Delhomme, Matt Schaub, Vince Young, Matt Cassel, Mark Brunell (NYJ), John Beck(Was), Tim Tebow, Kevin Kolb, John Skelton, Ryan Tannehill, Chad Henne, Ben Roethlisberger, Geno Smith, Mike Glennon clutch victory from the hands of defeat? Possibly. Can any pedestrian Free Safety create interception from QBs like the list above? Sure, maybe not 22 but they'll be some picks. So did the Bills Net out worse? Sure. Is it so bad that people should piss, moan, and cry endlessly? No, its not that bad imo. Did they pickup players that can help in 2014? I think they did. What Bills fans clearly cannot do is look at this Free Agent class for what it is and look forward. Instead we need to drag this free agent class into a discussion of how the Bills have missed the playoffs for the last 15 years.

Very good break down. Seriously thanks for posting this is the kind of info that raises the discussion. Thank you. Byrd's contract is back loaded contract in terms of cap commitment to the franchise which is why he will not play out this contract. The players always get the signing bonus money upfront so in that regard you can call it front loaded but generally when someone calls a contract backloaded it's from the perspective of the team and their cap cost. At least that's my understanding. If you notice his base salary increases every year. The cap load if he is on the roster increases and the dead money decreases. Meaning they can cut Byrd in 2017 when Brees retires and not have a 30 year old Free Safety that costs 11mil toward the cap. Which I believe Byrd being cut in 3-4 years is an extremely high probability. Byrd might be ok with that because as you pointed out he got over 50% of the contract already (in your terms front loaded.) In 3-4 years Byrd is a free and if he can still perform he can sign a new contract and get those two most important things a signing bonus and guaranteed money. Obviously significantly smaller than his current contract or the numbers that are on paper for 2017-2020 but more than zero. That's how the NFL works and why the average salary per year is nonsense in the NFL. We're saying the same thing in terms of frontloaded and backloaded just from different perspectives. Still Byrd would make more in Buffalo in the first three years. It is then cheaper for the Bills to keep a 30+ year old (slower) free safety in the last three years of the contract. Which again Byrd may want to get cut and get a 3rd contract if he fills the team won't keep him throughout. (3rd Not counting the franchise year) Look at Nnamdi Asomugha he renegotiated his contracts multiple times and had many contracts each time getting more money in his pockets today and not worrying about what his base salary would be at the end of the contract. Those numbers are fantasy numbers. Look at Julius Peppers giant contract he didn't play that out. You think Mario is not gonna get cut or reno before 2016? The answer is Yes. There are two things that are most important guaranteed money and signing bonus. The rest is pixie dust and good wishes. BTW the contract expires in March of 2020 ;-)

I'm surprised he is not a Patriot already. This is the kind of guy the Pats love a discarded disgruntled vet that everyone thinks is over the hill and then they squeeze out the last fee squirts of usefulness

Thanks for spouting the same uninformed BS as up thread. Good stuff. Up thread we ready established that the Bills offered Byrd more in the first 3 years then the Saints and that there is no way Byrd plays out that backloaded contract. So Byrd turned down more money from the Bills for less money from the Saints. So the missing fact that no has is what the guaranteed money was that the Bills offered Byrd. Right now that info is not public. If it comes out at significantly less than 28M then l'll concede but it looks it had to be in the same ballpark.

And they re-signed Chandler. Not bad at all.

I forgot is 30 mil more than 28 mil? Because if it is then you proved my point that the Bills offered more and Byrd turned down a higher paying contract. Again we don't know the Bills guaranteed money. We need that number for an honest comparison.

I found this an interesting post so I went back and looked. The Bills are 10-7 in the 17 games where Byrd had at least one, picking 16 different QBs. Of the 22 career interceptions. 10 interceptions came in the 5 games where he had two interception Jets, Carolina, Houston, Arizona and Jets Again. Below is a list of QBs that he picked, and it is true that most notably, Brady is not on that list. QB Derek Anderson, Mark Sanchez, Jake Delhomme, Matt Schaub, Vince Young, Matt Cassel, Mark Brunell (NYJ), John Beck(Was), Mark Sanchez, Tim Tebow, Matt Cassel, Kevin Kolb, John Skelton, Ryan Tannehill, Chad Henne, Ben Roethlisberger, Geno Smith, Mike Glennon

Its a Tim Graham twit, I mean Tweet. Yeah the Bills have missed the playoffs for the last 15 years, therefore anything that they have ever done or will ever do is utterly hopeless and doomed to fail because they have missed the playoffs for the last 15 years.

Time Graham has no idea what the contract that was refused by Byrd looks like. There are only two things that matter in an NFL contracts. Signing Bonus and Guaranteed Money. Average 7.5 Mill a year means nothing, Byrd only counts for 3.5 Mil against the 2014 Cap for the Saints. Because all the money was put into the signing bonus for 2014. The 3 Year 30 mil number even if it is all unguaranteed money will be more money in Buffalo than in the first 3 years of the Saints offer. Again its still irrelevant because all that matters is the signing bonus and the guaranteed money. If anyone thinks that Byrd will be playing under this contract in 2020 you're either clueless or gullible.

Well according to Byrd he wanted out, evidenced by the fact that he did not sign a larger contract with the Buffalo Bills but instead signed a smaller contract with the New Orleans Saints.

Which Playmaker did the Bills miss out on in the 2014 Free Agency?

Hey, in case you guys didn't know the Bills have missed the playoffs for the last 15 years, therefore anything that they have ever done or will ever do is utterly hopeless and doomed to fail because they have missed the playoff for the last 15 years.

THERE IS ZERO RELATIONSHIP WITH THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THE BILLS OFFERED BYRD AND BYRD SIGNING WITH THE BILLS. The Bills were likely the highest bidder in the Byrd sweepstakes. So what does adding up the contracts of the 2014 Bills Free agent signing have to do with signing Byrd? It wasn't a choice the Bills made "Well I have 9 Mil that I can spend. Should I spend it on Byrd or a handful of other players?" It is clueless to think any decision like that was made by the Bills FO. If Byrd would have agreed to his contract offer, this free agents at their same contract would have still been brought in. The two are not closely related. The Bills have more than enough money under the cap for Both. Byrd wanted out. He wanted to play for a proven winner. The Bills are not a proven winner. Get over it, Byrd is gone.

If you don't know who is my avatar, I feel sorry for you.

What are you babbling about? What does anything you just said have to do with the players they signed in 2014? You're but hurt about Poz and lil' Donte leaving? Really? And players that left over a decade ago ? Really that's your focus? You know you're in trouble when this piece of work agrees with you. Thank you. The Pats in fact are having a terrible 2014 free agency period so far. 1.) I don't think you're familiar with Legursky at all or Williams. 2.) I wouldn't apply any money to Byrd because he wouldn't sign his tender or any offer he was presented. 3.) must draft a safety in the first 3 Rounds? really? When did Free Safety become such an essential position? Oh that's never. Take an old corner and have him play centerfield like everyone always addresses the position. Think about it, What specific win did Byrd have a huge impact? He got his picks against bad teams with bad quarterbacks. If there were WAR in the NFL I don't think his WAR would be very high.

The Bills have brought in two former first round picks, 1 at LB, 1 at O-Line, re-sign a clutch kicker, and brought in a Buffalo Native, Super Bowl champion at DB. With more signings possible in the future. I'm really happy with the Free Agents and think they will strengthen the team and improve the Bills chances of winning. I really don't get all the pissing and moaning around here. Byrd wanted to be free. Get over it.

Watching the saints DBs, they are definitely coached to go low. Like target knees. It's borderline dirty, they never try to form tackle they all just go helmet first at knees. I wonder how Byrd is going to adjust to that system.

I said Tuesday at 9 PM, want do I get. I was off on the numbers though.

"Hey Jairus down in here in New Orleans you don't really need the whole Canadian Tuxedo. You can leave that in Toronto"