bluv

But you must give the guy a chance to prove himself and develop. If we draft Quinn unless he comes in and doesn't light it up in his first 8 starts then we should be looking for his replacement in 2009. The facts are that JP was injured his rookie year and that hampered his development. He was thrown in his 2nd year and instead of playing on a team with a good D and running game he had neither and went from managing games to having to win games and he just wasn't ready BUT he did show progress in his next few games AFTER being juggled around. While I don't want to take 3-4 seasons AFTER 2005 to see if he progress (aka Joey Harrington, Kyle Bowler) but I'm all for giving him 2006 and unless he stinks it up and is the only thing holding the team back then I say play him in 2007 as well. By then he will have been given ample time to show his stuff. But his replacement will not be Brady Quinn as he will be a non factor for I guarantee that JP and the Bills will not play bad enough in 2006 for us to get the #1 pick in 2007!

To me it is better than most for at least it seems they do their homework and get better inside scoop as they don't just assume a player or team success strictly off last year performances and take into account that things don't always remain the same and that some players can and do develop and get better. Publications like ESPN in the offseasons just spout of obvious or precieved greatness and flaws of teams or spend more time with making non-stories (aka TO) into headliners.

This team wouldn't suprise if it went 6-10 or 10-6 or anything in between; anything more or less would be a little suprising. The schedule is not hard looking at it today and our team isn't as bad as some would make it out to be. I mean if McGahee is better utilized, kept on the field on 3rd downs, and a base personell and package can be found that is effective to both run and pass, the offense would be less predictable based on personell on the field. If JP picks up his play in his 2nd season and plays average like he did in his last few starts, with a faster WR core that fits his talent of getting the ball deep then that along could be a big boost right there as teams would have to keep the 8th man out the box from the threat of the deep ball. As long as the blocking and playcalling/scheming is adequate then there is too much team speed at all skill positions to be less than average if used properly. If the Offense picks up to even an average level and the D can play anywhere close to 2004 then with our schedule 10-6 is far from unreasonable. Now if JP and D still struggles, 6 wins shouldn't still be out of the question as there aren't many teams on our schedule that at this point look like world beaters. The only way we win less than 6 games, the QB play, playcalling and run D would have to downright awful. Now I wouldn't bet any money on anything for nothing is a lock. But actually I feel that the team will regroup and tease us in 2006 playing against a weak schedule and then probably let us down in 2007.

Yeah I bet people had the same complaint about OJ his first 2-3 years when he played behind so-so blocking and in a scheme that didn't fit his talents; you see what happened when the Juice was let loose! I say Willis for 2000 behind the blocking of the Electic Company part II comeback tour!

My sentiments exactly. If he comes in lighter but runs soft between the tackles and doesn't move the pile then some will say he lost too much weight and needs to add some muscle. If he comes in heavier but doesn't play like a jitterbug then some will say he is leadfooted and needs to lose some weight. All he has to do is be used right by the coaching staff and perform; that's it!

What's wrong with being a little optimistic; I guess we shouldn't even play the season and just wait until 2007! Sometimes I feel this board is full of Pats, Jets, and Dolphin fans instead of Bills fans! While I wouldn't predict 10-6, it is far from unrealistic as teams have made turnarounds every year; I mean who would have thought the Bears would have won 11-12 games last year at this time? I'll tell you this if this team comes even close to looking like an above .500 team all these naysayer will act like they also saw it coming, that all this team needed was a little direction cause they had the talent all along and then start predict Super Bowl appearances; and blah, blah, blah!

Yeah; at least RealFootball365 gives us some hope by reading their articles! Those guys at ESPN couldn't name half our starters as since we haven't been winning they don't follow the team. I mean if the Jets and Cowboys, who any 'Girls fan would tell you that their secondary sucks is rated that much higher than ours then you know somebody didn't do their homework!

No Bo was legitimate for those 3-4 years; if he had concentrated on football full time and not get injured then he would have probaly had a 2000 yard season plus been a top 10 all time RB; I mean come one he rush for 1000 yard season playing half the games without any training camp to prepare him for the season.

Anybody who says Brady is just hating; just got to give him credit. Some might try to compare him to Aikman who rode behind one of the best OL and running games to 3 championships but Brady carried that team with his arm when he had to as they never had a dominant running game (Antwain Smith); something Aikman could never do for once you shut Emmit down you shut the Cowboys down. Now currently Vick gets my nod hands down for besides his 1st year when he flashed potential, he has been stuck in neutral as far as progress goes and all his people make all excuses for his sucky passing.

Yeah; might as well kept Henry; at least he wanted to be a Buffalo Bill! Fans with atitudes like yours, everybody on the Bills would be an underacheiver unless they went to the Pro Bowl or got inducted.

Oh my god; what has this board come to? In just over 2 season ago we ran off TH who was dedicated runner who always ran hard and while not a top back was very good and a Bills fan for life and what do we do; we run him off for a flashier RB from THE U with a flashy agent. Now some who ran TH out of here even have the nerve to try and say he was better than WM after comparing numbers and are now venting personal attacks against WM when frankly, even though they won’t admit it, the only real reason they are bashing WM is because he isn’t in Buffalo attending these nonmandatory camps and is probably working out hard and enjoying his free time in a much better resort area and some of these guys act like they are choir boy Mormons. GET A LIFE and FACE THE FACTS: if he plays in 2006 like he did in 2004 and the first 5 games of last year then all this BS will be forgotten until he is traded /released or signs with another team and then all these vents will be remember, come up again as he walks out the door like previous Buffalo stars are. And to those who say he took plays off; yeah while he was sitting on the sideline due to dumb coaching philosophies. To those who say his production fell off; what do you expect when the playcalling is so bad that it is obvious when you are carrying the rock and yet the OL with their best run blocker sideline can’t impose their will. This isn’t a Randy Moss situation where he takes plays off for as a RB if you run half@$$ you will get knocked on your @%%!

Yeah if you read the ENTIRE article and not just clips as shown here he doesn't seem as bad as some are making him out to be. He even states that he hates the prefferential treatment giving to him just because he plays football. And I can understand his comments about babymamas as I have seen friends and relatives who love their kids but hate their babymamas. I guess if he was called out about making this statements during this interview he probably would have elaborated further and stated his love for his kids. We all know for a fact: that while there are definitely some good women out there, these days there are just as many women are just as much predators and dogs as the men they downgrade and aren't all innocent beings being taking advantage off! And when these types spots a guy who they might not barely even notice driving a nice car or is at a party and somebody tells them that this guy is a professional athlete, movie star, musician, they will throw themselves at these guys for they know whatever works out between them and that guy, wheter it works out to lasting relationship or a fling they have much more to benefit than to gain. And if they do become a baby mama they will be set. Come on; if Flavor Flav can get sweated anybody can! Also if women in the 80s and 90s kept having extra kids for more welfare benefits before welfare reform and scam Uncle Sam, what makes you think they want scam a millionaire? That is why I have been smart enough to not but myself in that situation as I don't want any baby mamas so I'm on lock down and hopefully my girl and I will get married soon and have a happy ending. But then again I'm not single, living on South Beach driving fancy cars with money to throw around and beautiful women throwing themselves at me either. Most on this board in that situation would test the waters themsleves so don't cast stones for it doesn't matter what race or age: most men like and fantasize about being with beautiful women and even if they eventually (and should by the way!) want to settle down they would love the opportunity to have "sewed their royal oats"! Come on I know there are a lot of guys wishing they could be Hugh Heffner for a certain stint in their lifetime. Me; I'd still wear proetction but as we all know that isn't always reliable and if they break then guess what; you might have a babymam who is up to nothing but no good!

Don't get Holcomb's Arm or JDG started bashing JP all over again; we have all been thru this discussion on this board TOO MANY TIMES! Lets decide it on the field!

Those numbers are weak for a big guy as I can hit those numbers and I'm only 5-11 237! He better hit that weight room hard and gain about 30 lbs of muscle!

As much as I try yo have a positive spin on TwoBillsDrive, how can anyone rationalize picking a 2nd round rated, undersized safety when we had 4-5 other capable safeties in a daft deep at safety talent when the biggest need for the Bills are in the trenches on both sides? Even if this guy is a Hall of famer it was still dumb for the Bills could have played there cards right and got either extra picks and still got him or a comporable player. I just don't understand which direction this team is going.

Exactly. If we can drop to maybe 14-16, pick up an extra 2nd round pick we could feel a lot of needs escpecially if some of those OL and DT who are considered good prospects but have question marks fall into the 2nd round area. We could then pick up quality at DT, OG, OT, and DE; with some of them having 1st round talent; definitely in a weaker draft. If we can find a body in the middle to stuff the run, a DE oppositie Schobel that can rush the passer; that combined with a healthy Spikes could give us some hope. I'm confident the D can rebound. On O, find a body mover at both guard positions or a definite upgrade at tackle then maybe we can turn it around on that side of the ball as well if we can establish the run.

As far as JP playing only 8 games in a 5-11 seaosn I totally agree; what a wasted season that didn't accomplish nothing! Once we were out of it and having amjor injuries that was unacceptable. The D can rebound if TKO returns to form and we add a quality DT to stop the run and hopefully find a DE that can pass rush opposite Schobel. If we can keep blockers off our LB's and let them make plays ath the LOS instead of 4-5 yards downfield we would get back into the top 5 run defenses. My dream draft would be to trade down and still pick up either Ngata or Bunkley and also acquire one of the top DEs in the 1st and in the 2nd get a quality guard. Then we could rebound next season and at least compete.

Exactly; while some of this article is creditable most of it is garbage second hand material from a guy who doesn not follow the team.

The injury to Mike Williams hurt this offense more than most realized as while he was much maligned and underachieved when healthey he was a dominant run blocker and after he went down so did our running game as McGahee productions dropped signifacantly. In the beginning of the season Peters was the designated backup LT and Jerman was the RT; once both MW and German were injured Peters was the only option. He came in and at least solidified the right side of the OL from a pass blocking standpoint. His run blocking is a step down from MW. Also the offensive coaching and gameplan was just horrible anyway for they never showed the ability to adjust and were predictable, mainly based on personell packages. I also hate when outsiders report on the our strengths and weaknesses. Now I know a lot of people on this board want to bash Gandy but he was not the revolving door like this guy made him out to be. In fact our biggest weakness is between the tackles. And how can anyone label JP a bust after 8 games? Is Alex Smith a bust as he played worse in 16 games! I hope Fairchild can call a decent game for then we can make all such people, even some on this board eat their words for the biggest problem with this team until last year was not so much talent but coaching and while most would bash Donahoe his biggest mistake was made by not hiring experience head coaches. This year with injury recoveries a key additions to the OL and DL this team can recover and at least make some noise!

I don't blame Shelton as much as McGahee's running style. Take Henry for instance; he would burst into the designed hole and follow the FB. Willis would glide to the hole and rarely 'hits' it up in there. So instead of trying to change his style why not find a gameplan that takes advantage of his strengths? And JP seemed to have better success when we spread teams out as well. Being that speed at WR is a strength why not take advantage of it? I'd just hate to be able to sit from home and call the plays based on personell like I have the past few seasons: when the FB is on the field 90% of the time it's a run; when the 3rd WR comes in we rarely run. Then combine that when they take Willis out on 3rd down, it is easy to figure out why we consistently rank as a bottom offensive club. We need an offensive identity that utilizes personell that can be productive in both passing and running to keep the D off balance vs non stop substition and overcoaching.

I hope so for I believe McGahee runs much better without a FB in his way as he is not a hit the hole, follow the FB through type of RB; I think running plays that the Colts use; those stretch runs off tackle that allow him to use his vision and have cutback options are better for him. That combined with the fact that we haven't had a receiving threat at FB since Centers or a pass catching TE, we have been forced to show our hand based on personell. I think that having a 3rd WR or even a double TE set on the field would be more productive. Really poor offensive coaching and gameplan has hurt us more the past 3 years than lack of talent or poor blocking as we have never had an offensive identity; hopefully Fairchild can change all that!

Yes he was the best player at that time based on draft analyst and on top of that he was a need pick. He just didn't pan out. So for anybody who wants to say I told you so are full of it for at the time he was considered a can't miss player and a solid pick and those naysayer just use it as another blow against TD. It's a gamble year in and year out for nobody really knows and that is what keeps us glued to this nonstopping soap opera. Every year we go thru the same thing as there is always a can't miss prospect; a year later most of these guys go under the radar unless they are All-Pros. Take Harris the DT from the Bears. While he is a decent player he is nowhere near being the disrupter he was hyped to be. And every year this plays out as while he was drafted he was considered a good pick but years later after the fact everyone points out a player taken later that turns out to be a better player. Who knows, Davis at TE might be the next Johniee Mitchell or Derek Brown but right now he is considered the next Kellen Winslow!

If you are a numbers and a stat guy then a DT of his type will look overpaid. But when our LBs are running free stuffing RBs at the line of scrimmage versus 3-5 yards down the field then you will see the difference! The same ones on this board who will criticize the Bills if they make him the 8th pick are probably the same ones that said Big Ted, Fat Pat, and Sam Adams were fat guys who takes up space and easily replaceable as well. To those who say these type don't fit our scheme; these type guys will fit any scheme; 4-3 or 3-4 for if they are hard to move and willing to sacrifice and let other faster talented players take all the glory. But the key is: they have to be surrounded by TALENTED players and you know what: we have that as we still have a great collection of LBs and if we can find a replacement for Pat W our defense will go right back up the charts. Even though the scheme will change in that it will be less blitzing and 2 deep coverage the run D will rise back to the top 5 if we add such a player like Ngata. And with this draft being strong at DE as well, we could get a good bargain in the 2nd as well for if we can add a LE that can rush the passer then our scheme will be complete. My dream draft would be that we could move down a few spots and get an extra 1st or 2nd round pick, still draft Ngata, get a top guard and top pass rush DE and who knows this team might make some noise next year as really what caused us to fall off the map last year was the fall off our defense, especially against the run and our own running game. If we get those back to top form then we can get back to JP managing the game versus having to win the game!

In this draft, I really don't see a player at our biggest need positions of DT, OT, and guard worthy of a #8 pick unless it is Da'Brick; everyone else is not that much of an upgrade over their competition that could be had in later rounds. So unless an impact player at other positions can be had, we should trade down so that we can take more of the talented but not worthy of a high pick talent that is available in this draft at those positions of need. This is why I hope we never have a real high pick in the draft for it will have to be a boom or bust player for based on his draft position he will be paid handsomely. A top 5 pick can't just begodd he has to be great. Look at MW; while he was far from being great or dominant he wasn't as bad a player as some make him out to be. But since he was picked # 4 he has to be outstanding in order to justify the pick. Then take an undrafted FA like Peters who comes in and plays OK then he is considered a gem for he is playing for peanuts. I guess #8 is as high as I want us to ever have to draft if we suck and continue to lose I'd rather trade down for I rather have a player that if he fails doesn't break the bank than a bust who will set the team back years.

With this draft being strong in both DT and OT but not great and a worthy pick at our spot besides Da' Brick, I'd either take an impact player such as Davis or Huff if available or what I hope is trade down and get more picks in a draft that is strong at the positions we have need for - just not strong enough for the ighth pick!