SouthernMan

Just had to make travel plan changes, and realized I'll be in Buffalo the weekend of the opener. Are there any spare tickets available (need only 1) with TSW group?

I'll never understand why there's such concern with carrying a ball 25 times a game. Spiller is young and in top physical shape. If each carry averaged 5 seconds, that's only 2 minutes or so of actual ball carrying over the course of 3 and a half hours. Yeah, I realize there's blocking assignments, pass patterns, etc. There's also substitutions and change of possessions when the defense goes out. Carrying the ball 25 times might be pushing it? There are guys working contruction, for example, in far less physical condition, working at a steady pace for hours before a break. How about those guys playing rugby, running all over and getting battered for extended periods of time? The NFL ball players have sports drinks, cooling fans, cool towels, trainers, and everything else available to keep them conditioned. I just don't see how 25 carrys for Spiller is about the limit of his ability.

Think how much more you could save if you cancelled your internet service! Just a thought.

After watching him get manhandled in his preseason "opportunity" it's clear that his days as a Bill are numbered. I wouldn't be shocked if he's cut following the Colts game. Unless he starts practicing as a holder for placekicking, he's as good as gone. Aaron we hardly knew ye. Good riddance. More wasted 1st round money that could have been used for a skilled and proven free agent or two. Pack your bags Maybin - you're goin' home.

I too find it inappropriate and outdated. Probably never get changed. I'm also offended at the South Carolina bumper stickers and motto. As a lifelong dick, I'm offended by their chant, "Go Cocks!"

It's so obvious that the Bills' problems start with their personnel department. The bad choices are further compounded by all the great players they've skipped over who could have helped. Ironically, they've done a reasonably good job in later rounds and free agency. If only they'd make good choices with all their first rounders we might have a good team. BTW - excellent point to poster who commented on the wasted 1st round money that prevents re-signing productive players who leave in free agency. It kills me that our run game has been a joke since the departure of big Pat, Ted, Sam, and others who used to plug holes. Pat is still a force with the Vikings. Look no further than the Patriots for the model of how a front office and personnel dept should be run. They find amazing players in later rounds, sign productive FAs when necessary, and parlay departing FAs into additional draft picks. How many times in the past 10 years have they had multiple first round picks? All while remaining a playoff team. Meanwhile, the Bills are converting their D-line into linebackers (or attempting to) and a journeyman castoff from the Dolphins is poised to be slotted ahead of last year's high draft pick and bust, Aaron Maybe. I will not be the least bit shocked if he doesn't make the 53 man roster.

And Alex Van Pelt broke most of Dan Marino's passing records at Pitt. So what? I'd have to sift through all Spiller's games to accurately evaluate his prowess, but my big gripe with college ball, and a big reason why I rarely watch it, is the imbalance of talent outside any team's conference or division. You can be sure that outside of the SEC, Alabama will have a handful of UBs to humiliate in 2010. I know a lot of you will disagree, but for me, college ball is like comparing the WNBA to the men's league. In college, there are stars who are men amongst boys - they usually get drafted. Then along side them are a bunch of future shoe salesmen and phys ed major sports trainers. That's why the college draft is such a crapshoot. Such disparity betwen talent levels all on the same field. What were Spiller's rushing accomplishments against top defenses? I have no idea. I obviously haven't watched him play, but I've seen his highlight reel. What I saw was a pretty fast runner, but I saw a lot of missed tackles too. I just have serious doubts that he'll be everything we expect him to be. I question how he'll stack up to NFL defenders who are much faster and better tacklers than the opposition he faced in college. I hope he's great. I just think there were positions to be filled with greater need and that the running back spot could have come later in the draft.

How 'bout, "the guy who's sitting at home and will be about as worthless as Maybin was last year" Spiller. BTW - I predict he'll be a bust. Way overrated. Not saying he'll suck, but I don't think he'll be one of the elite backs in the NFL, as you would expect with that high a pick. Hope I'm wrong. They weren't really deperate for a return man with McLovin, McGee, Parrish, Jackson, handling those duties just fine. They already have two 1000 yard rushers on the roster. IMO, RBs are a dime a dozen and can be found in later rounds. I'm not going to look it up now, but I'm sure there was a linebacker in the #9 spot that would've served better than one of our converted defensive linemen, and helped the defense immediately. The NFL should have a set entry level rookie salary scale based on draft position, and let the players and their agents negotiate after the original contract is up, after say, a 2 year audition. Sure would eliminate the wasted money for overpaid dead wood like Mike Williams and Maybin, among others. That money could be shared with the "underpaid" FAs and later rounders who may have been late bloomers, but have since proven themselves on the NFL field. I'd like to think Berman would say, "and there goes Spiller the Tiller, tearing up more turf than John Deere". We can only hope.

Yer right. I believe age, ie-maturity, becomes a factor as well. When you're 20 years old, you're pretty much always in party mode - or at least a lot of us were. As you establish yourself, have a nice home with all the creature comforts, the tradeoff of the "live" experience vs. the HD big screen viewing from the La-Z-Boy, becomes less of a factor. For me, the real tie-breaker is that at home, there's zero chance of some a-hole spilling beer on me, using foul language in front of one of my young family members, and I don't have to risk getting into a scuffle after asking them for the 20th time to please sit down and stop blocking our line of sight, so we can enjoy the game from the over-priced seats we've paid for. I'll always love the commraderie and the carnival atmosphere that's part of the live experience, but there are some elements I can do without. And let's face it, HD on a big screen, with the bonus of pausing and skipping unending commercial timeouts, with the roast cooking in oven, and nap time 5 minutes after the last piss? Hard to compete with.

Can't believe I'm defending him, but in all fairness, can you blame him for not wanting to be in WNY year 'round? The fans in Buffalo are unforgiving, and quite frankly, love to have a whipping boy. That could be a whole 'nuther thread - a list of Bills whipping boys that fans have practically run out of town. Glenn Parker comes to mind immediately. A big thanks to Chuck Dickerhead for the assist on that one. Seem every year there's some player the fans choose to beat to a pulp. Whether or not they truly deserve the fan's scorn is debateable. Rob Johnson was the incredibly fortunate beneficary of a team (Da Bills) getting overly excited after a few good preseason performances, and maybe a regular season one. They rewarded him a ridiculous contract, and then the whole Flutie thing erupts. Johnson was never going to be very good. Everyone from Wade Phillips to Jon Gruden through they could somehow reset his f'd up mental clock. As dedicated as he was tp physically improving himself, the timing issue was one that couldn't be resolved. Bledsoe and Losman both had similar timing issues. One thing for sure: Johnson had a lucky horseshoe up his ass. When he need to, he performed like a season pro (those aforementioned Jags games that led to the big payday), the Colts game that put him in the starter position in Music City, and then, to beat all, he gets himself a superbowl championship ring with the Bucs. In a nutshell, a guy with 5th round talent, ends up with a HUGE multimillion dollar salary, and then rubs it in the face of 4-time superbowl losers like Jim Kelly, by winding up on a team that wins it all. I want him next to me in Vegas. Anyway, for all the bashing Johnson received in the local media and the sports talk shows, if I were him, I don't think I'd want to hang around such a hostile environment either. But as previously noted, he did a lot of charity work in WNY for which he never sought out publicity. How many of you have done the same? Crumby player? Sure. But it's all water under the bridge. Can't hate the guy for being so damned lucky.

It's your right to dislike whomever you want, but a lot of the guys mentioned are by most account very decent people. I absolutely couldn't stand china doll Rob Johnson as a player, and I thought he had was lacking in personality and likeability. I tried to like JP. Both were not up to the standards set by Kelly, et al. That said, these were both players who were loyal to WNY during their tenure, and did loads of charitable work on behalf of the community. I don't personally know Robert Royal, mentioned earlier, but my understanding is that he's a wonderful person. Though these, and others, may not have met the lofty expectation as players for some fans, I hope you all consider that they are human beings with feelings, and didn't do anything beyond fall short of yours and their own goals as players. If a player gives his all and doesn't cut it, how can I fault them personally? At least they tried (are you listening Billy Joe Homework?) But if they're just a total dick & prima donna, I have no use for them. There are others - Lynch comes to mind - who haven't done a thing to earn my respect as a person. As a player, he's alright, 3rd stringer, but if he were cut tomorrow, I wouldn't miss him. What's he done from a civic prespective - anything? BTW - Fina, mentioned by someone here, was one guy who changed my opinion quickly. I was at training camp in Fredonia several years ago, and after practice, the players were signing autographs. I had bought one of those souvineer Bills logo balls at the vendor wagon thingy. I approached both Fina and Hull to sign the ball, that was intended for my mancave sports den. They were a couple of douchebags, each giving this go F yourself look as they reluctantly signed the ball. Why, 'cause I wasn't 10 years old? I used to be at one time, you know! It ain't the 10-year-old's weekly allowance and tooth fairy money that's providing you that rather nice standard of living. Anyway, like a lot of jocks who've been spoiled since demonstrating above average athletic skill as children, they both seemed like jerks, regardless of the contributions to the team.

I predicted this possibilty several years ago when PSLs and so forth started become the norm. My thought was that when times are good, teams in cities with healthy economies will thrive, but if things go sour, luxury items will be the first to go. This is especially true in the corporate world. Layoffs (or Force Reduction) are one of the early knee-jerk reactions to poor company performance, but right along side that is the elimination of things like high-priced boxes and unneccessary perks that don't directly generate revenue. Buffalo's housing market might be a good indicator of things. When the rest of the country was experiencing skyrocketing market appreciation and new construction, conservative old Buffalo was just plodding along with home prices remaining relatively low and fairly slow growth in the area. Now, when Florida, much of California, Vegas, Atlanta, and all the other boom towns that experienced artificially inflated housing trends are in panic mode, good old Buffalo, or at least the suburban areas like Amherst, OP, Hamburg, etc...have seen a steady rise in pricing. WNY also has some of the lowest foreclosure rates in the country. A lot of the average shmoes in the boom towns who couldn't get enough of the 5000 sq ft homes, granite countertops, and 3 car garages, are now in the middle of bankruptcy proceedings. I know - I do work with a lot of them. Meanwhile, the uphip conservative types with their 3 bedroom cape cod homes in Cheektowaga have a crib that is paid for and can spend their weekends golfing, fishing, AND can afford to fill the seats at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Maybe they can't handle the luxury boxes, but they can go to games. I don't know if it's really hit the NFL yet, but I think it's only a matter of time before the ripple effect of the Rockefeller wannabe, $2.00 millionaires is evident. Aren't the Jets already stuggling to sell PSLs or some other such rippoff? This is one of the reasons I scoff at the idea that the Bills could move somewhere anytime soon. Where are they going to go? What city is so immune to the current economic conditions that fans and corporations will show up in droves to shell out thousands for "the rights to buy a seat"? That's like these airlines who promote their affordable fare, then charge extra for a seat. WTF? Do you ever get the feeling everything is a racket these days?

You too? Except that pussies like you and that other guy walked it. Big deal. I swam the entire length of the Amazon, doing the butterfly stroke no less! Yeah, that's the ticket. I can almost see this guy portrayed by Homer Simpson, just about to cross the line, joyfully exclaiming, " I did it, I did it", only to have a vicious croc drag him under with a death roll. DOH!

After Spiller signs that lucrative rookie contract, the goldiggers will be all over him. I doubt he'll ever have to be jacked again!

That doctor sounds like a quack, or at least one that doens't want to reschedule his golf game. Amputation for a 2nd broken tibia? Just a little extreme, doncha think? Look, I'm not an Orthopoedic doctor, but I have played both Milton Bradley and Hasbro versions of Operation, and I'm telling you, we'd never saw off Cavity Sam's limbs for a busted leg. BTW - anyone here know the status of EW? I know he participated in some light workouts, but is there any talk of full participation in training camp or preseason contests?

The avatar was just supposed to be eye-catching so I could find my own posts. Nothing funny about farts I suppose. I've since removed the fart reference. Everyone is so damned sensitive. There's barely been anything I've said in this entire thread that should be taken seriously. I'm a funny man - a comic!And I'm sure that Lacrotch1015 was just as offended as you with the "short bus" comment. So again, my apologies to both of you.

Race card? Black man? What the hell are you talking about? Who's black? Me? You? Why are we combining card games with motor racing on a football message board? I don't even know where we're supposed to be racing to. This is so stupid. Easy question and answer: Is Affirmative Action based on the content or character or the color of skin? The answer is obvious. That's my beef. It's no more right than when whitey won't hire a minority because he's different. Enough politicizing. My apologies if I offended. Glad we're both Bills fans. If I see you at the game I'll buy you a beer (or a malt liquor if you prefer). BTW - I'm mixed (as if it matters)

I have to disagree. Lynch is one of the few whose past performance can't be blamed so much on poor schemes. I don't think Gailey's offense is suddenly going to make him hit the holes faster. Lynch has great leg strength, and when he finds an opening and gets a head of steam, can carry defenders for plenty of extra yardage. The problem is his initial hesitation upon getting the handoff. He does that "stop, with his legs spread wider than shoulder width, and look for the hole" move. His problem is quickness. He may be fast. He may be powerful. But he's not quick or shifty. The NFL is too fast for that crap. While he's scoping out a lane to run in, defenders are converging. Apart from that, outside of a season ending injury to Spiller, I don't expect much more than relief duty from Lynch. Jackson outplayed him (and has a better knack for finding the seems), and the Bills didn't draft Spiller with the 9th overall pick just to return kickoffs. I still think when the right offer comes along, Lynch is out the door. No takers at the moment apparently, but he may be one torn ACL (from another team's running corp) away from being shipped out. Besides that, he's kind of a jerk.

Good call . I guess I'd have to qualify it by saying post NFL-AFL merger for it to be true.

Three 3rd year guys who ought to be ready to turn the corner: James Hardy, Demitrius Bell, and Steve Johnson.

Ooooh - big money man. I assume lucid thoughts and fluid writing don't play a big part in your weekly earnings. God bless Affirmative Action. SMD,B

There's a great trivia question..... What NFL coach has the highest win percentage for 2 different NFL franchises? "Wade Phillips" of course. Dallas and Buffalo. Another in a series of brilliant decisions by Ralph. If Special Teams coach Ronnie Jones was an issue, Wade would have made changes of his own volition soon enough. Ralph got so hung up on a couple of special teams screw-ups that he totally lost sight of the incredible defenses Wade commandeered and the overall win-loss records. Wilson got so involved in micromanagement, he didn't see the big picture. And our reward has been a team that is now on it's 4th head coach since 2001, hasn't sniffed the playoffs during that period, and by most accounts, still in "rebuilding" mode. Meanwhile, Dallas has a stellar defense and is talking superbowl, with their rebuilding period behind them, under the guidance of Wade Phillips. Perhaps the wiley Wade Phillps would have ditched Jones, but instead, used the Ronnie Jones thing as an easy way to exit, stage left, and get out from the shadow of overbearing meddler, Ralph Wilson.

That certainly does explain, at least in part, why Bill Cowher chose to hold off coaching this year. They were very private about her illness. I don't remember hearing a thing about it. Then the question is, where does he end up? The Panthers? Why, because Cowher lives nearby? Is John Fox on the hot seat? What other teams are likley candidates for his services? With his kids grown, I think it's a fair bet that the ultra-competative Cowher will end up coaching soon. Prediction: after more than 35 years of NFL coaching, Belichick is ready to chill in the broadcast commentators chair for a couple of years, leaving Cowher to take the reigns in New England. Would be just our luck.

The malaprop was deliberate, and the post was meant as humour. And sorry, but when I read...... "I have been to every Bills and Jets game kick out of 3for assault 1Philly and Bills game almost lost my life and yet I do it with pride!" ......It makes me wonder if riding on the short bus for all those years had some emotional impact on the poor soul. BTW - Vigina is approximately 2300 miles from Penix. Look it up Thurman!

Your loyalty is commendable, but my brain is still recovering after reading that post. I'm not even going to attempt to decipher the "been to every Bills game" statement. I can overlook the grammar and spelling, but I'm guessing you weren't a Geography major at Oxford. Not sure what your brother told you, but even at it's farthest point, no place in Vigina is much more than 600 miles away from Buffalo. Here's some info that might be useful to you: The Greenville Correction Center is only a little over 500 miles from Orchard Park. That's the equivilant of about 4000 miles on the Laroc1015 scale.