SectionC3

Good point. I think it was Funchess who destroyed Darby in the PS a few years ago (could be wrong), but the bills intentionally left Darby alone that night so the beating could deflate his ego.

As I see it there are two ways to do this. Either build everything but QB and fill that position last, or strip down the offensive skill positions, keep the lines as intact as possible, and hope that the QB acquired through the draft can make the skill positions better. I completely agree that a complete tear down is a terrible idea. It will take three years to replenish the roster under that scenario and, in the meantime, we risk getting the new QB killed.

Am I missing something on the quality of the WR corps? In my view the corps (in part due to Watkins's injury) was poor last year. But I wonder how it has improved since then. Also, in typically "Billsy" fashion, our top two WRs are best suited to slot duty. And we have invested heavily in TE and FB. But I'll trust the process.

That's the one. No argument from me on your perspective, either. I just hope McBean doesn't befall the same fate as his predecessors.

A fair point. But probably the exception to the rule.

Any update on STH numbers for this year?

Normally I don't. Nor do I watch. And it remains my preference to hear the gnawing of cheese to this morning's spin.

That last sentence is absolutely right.

The headline captures the essence of why today's news is so frustrating. Boldin wasn't going to contribute much this year, but the fact that he quit on the team suggests that not all is well at OBD. And if that's the case, instead of "middling" the year with a "middling" QB, we should see whether peterman has any promise. But we won't. And we still will chase a QB next year. And we will be right back on the hampster wheel.

Our WRs were bad last year (Watkins's absence played a big role in that), but I'm having a hard time seeing how we have improved at that position. What am I missing?

Not sure how you came up with that one. I never wrote anything to that effect. And w/r/t your "someone else would" premise, you still haven't responded to the point about ST sales. Its possible the number was publicized and I missed it, but if there was good news to share on that front it probably would have been released. The guess here is that sales are down - both for STs and individual games.

So I take it you don't cut a STH check every February/march. And for what it's worth, I didn't complain like I have some "special right" -- whatever that means. As a guy who was cut some big checks for a long time, I am a stakeholder and I am entitled to be frustrated with the direction of the team just like anyone else. Don't like that answer? Pay for 20 tickets a year to help the team stay local. But don't castigate me or anyone else for putting their money where their mouths are.

Has the team released its season ticket number for this year? I haven't heard a thing, which means it's probably down. So I wouldn't be so sure about that.

Good. He deserves so much better than this nonsense.

Id rather listen to him gnaw on a tremendous hunk of yancey's fancy for three hours tomorrow than hear the spin. Boldin wasn't going to do much for us this year, but his retirement is another chapter in the clown show this franchise has become. I hope for the best for McBean, but these guys seem perilously close to losing the locker room.

Not as annoyed as I am after a decade plus on a pair of season tickets and more hampster wheel nonsense.

That was my first thought. Then I thought about Boldins obvious inability to play outside. So I'm not sure of the catalyst for the retirement. In any event, it seems odd to me that his desire to promite social justice is the only impetus for retirement. I suspect he probably had those views before signing, saw the "show" against the eagles, and realized that he could better spend his time pursuing his (incredibly admirable) social goals as opposed to slugging through a mediocre campaign here. Finally, maybe there is a bright side. Boldin's departure might make it easier to sit Tyrod. I'm not on the peterman bandwagon yet, but another game like the last one might put me there. Anyone with eyes who watched the eagles game realized that Tyrod looked awful, anquan looked shot, and peterman ... made types of throws we haven't seen around here since Bledsoe or maybe Flutie. This. Can't get the QB you tank for killed. Mike Schopp should read this.

Fugly. That is all.

I'm part of the madden generation. Not sure if you're targeting me, but there is nothing ridiculous in my analysis. For what it's worth it appears to be the path our team is taking.

So I'll pose the question: suppose that the NYJ and SF draft 1 and 2 next year, that neither team likes a QB in the free agent class/trade class, and that there are only two franchise QBs in the draft. Do you really expect either of those teams to trade out of their respective spots? Along those lines, I know a guy who rented in the Main-Seneca building downtown. It recently was purchased by a guy whose redevelopment plan relied on the purchase of the parking garage next to the baseball stadium and adjacent to the seneca one tower. The developer was "going to" purchase the garage -- he assumed he would get it -- until Doug Jemal came along. So much as the developer shouldn't have assumed he would get that garage, we shouldn't assume we will be able to trade into a position to draft a ranchise QB. What this really comes down to is if cousins plays lights out, or if somebody falls in love with garrapolo, and if we aren't in position to draft one if the top QBs, it's reasonable to suggest that a team in position to so draft might like the idea of cousins + the bills' draft bounty better than darnold, etc. and no draft bounty. A team in that position that takes cousins might come out of next year's draft with six good new starters -- free agent QB, two bills firsts, two bills seconds, and own second. That might be our best path to a franchise QB -- without tanking this season.

Why is that?

You miss the point. Assuming the redskins don't tag him again, the better cousins plays the better shape we're in. He might be the key to the whole "thing."

Does that change the fact that a good year from him helps us? What if Kyle Shanahan prefers him to Josh Rosen next year, signs Cousins, and wants to deal out if the two slot? With our draft capital, win for us if we believe in Josh Rosen (and can get him at 2). Another point - says cousins (or garrapolo) is a "B+" QB and singable by bills in FA. Would you rather have "B+" and a shot to build fast with our draft capital? Or would you prefer to spend the capital in a shot at an "A" QB and see what happens from there. I might take the former option, but ultimately I'm undecided myself.

Makes sense to me. And if SF feels the same way, and drafts top 2 next year ... to paraphrase Young MC, there's one more QB you won't be getting.

What if there are two "can't mss" QB prospects and the two teams at the top of the draft want those QBs and refuse to trade out. Then what? All the better if SF has a top two pick this year. But what if cousins has a down year and SF prefers a draftee to him? Point of the thread is that the bills have options that improve if the FA QBs play well.