Bill from NYC

There's no need to search, anywhere Happiness is here, have your share If you know you're loved, be secure Paradise is love, to be sure Don't you know, that it's true That for me, and for you The world is a ghetto

Point well taken, yet Bama players have been contributing quite a bit lately at the pro level.

This is just a post to express my views on the Alabama players. Please keep in mind that I am not trying to present myself as any sort of expert. There ARE experts posting here. I have however watched every game that the following players participated in while they were in Tuscaloosa, so I do feel qualified to make a few observations to those who it might interest. These players are listed in random order: 1) Landon Dickerson (OC) Landon was hurt late in the season. This of course makes him harder to rate, so I'm basing my comments about a presumably healthy LD. He was a transfer from FSU, and wound up being a leader and team captain. He is VERY smart and works very hard. His teammates love him (I'm not sure how many saw him go in for the last 2 plays in the title game). He is a brute and isn't afraid of any defender. Imo, he will be available when we draft, maybe even in round 2 (only due to the injury). Imo he would be a HUGE asset to the Buffalo Bills. Comparison: Nick Mangold 2) Jaylen Waddle (WR) If he didn't get injured, he was supposed to be the Tide's #1 receiver. He has clean breakaway speed, very good hands, and some of the best moves you will ever see. Before his injury, some of his teammates were calling him the best receiver in the world. Jaylen was impossible to cover, and could not be caught from behind. I saw a race between him and Henry Ruggs. He lost by less that a step. If he recovers from his injury, this kid will be shockingly good. I can't say enough about his moves, and all around ability. 3) Dylan Moses (ILB) Very smart player who called the signals in an extremely complicated Saban defense. He sat out 2019 due to injury and started slowly this season. He did get better as the year went on. He might be able to play all 3 LB positions, but I like him most in the middle. He's a physical player who can cover. He might slip into later rounds for health reasons. I don't know, but if he does drop, he would be an interesting selection. 4) Christian Barmore (DT) I consider him to be by far the most interesting player in this draft. This kid is a flat out beast. He is a predator and gives 100% on every play. For a kid his size he is extremely quick with his initial burst. He was impossible to run on and a very good pass rusher. Saban actually red shirted him as a freshman. He also suspended him for the 1st quarter of a game this year and wouldn't say why. Christian improved week to week and despite his paunch, seems to be in great condition. His ceiling is sky high. Could there be some risk? Maybe, but I truly hope not. He plays angry and seems very emotional. I cannot stress enough how tough this kid is. Comparison: Warren Sapp 5) Deonte Brown (OG) Weighed in at Senior Bowl at 364 pounds. You can imagine how effective he is on 4th and goal from the 1. Deonte is much improved from 2019. I thought that he would need to drop weight to do so but he actually got bigger. He looks like a player, but as a Bills Fan I have a case of Mike Williamsitis. My signature on this board was "Draft McKinney" years ago, and as many of you recall, TD drafted Mike Williams, a 700 pound RT with an ankle injury, but I digress. Would he be a good pick in the mid rounds? Probably. 6) Davonta Smith (WR) Absolutely GREAT hands, great moves, and deceptive speed with his long strides. Can grab anything near him, he's great at everything. He even blocks. Is he a diva? No way. He is a quiet, humble kid. Obviously, he is as good as it gets and he will go very early. 7) Alex Leatherwood (OT) This has to be a STACKED class for OTs. I think that AL would be at least a top 10 pick in many drafts. He is a smart offensive lineman with long, strong arms and is about equal on running and passing downs. He has all the agility he needs to be a fine NFL LT, and also has experience at RT. He too is quiet kid and i can't picture him getting into trouble. Btw, he threw the key block on Tua's game winning TD pass in 2018, while filling in at LT due to injury. He will be an asset to any team, to include the Bills. Comparison: Dion Dawkins 8 Mac Jones (QB) Another very smart player. VERY good ball placement, and great at determining who is covered and looking off him. He is calm, and focused. His teammates love him. As a freshman, he looked like a 15 year old skinny kid and sure did come a long way. He isn't the greatest athlete but he moves very well in the pocket. Not the best arm strength either but he gets the job done. The Bills have a great QB so there isn't a need, but if he drops WAY down (I doubt it), he would make a great backup. 9) Najee Harris (RB) Great vision, perfectly coordinated, strong as a bull! The kid is in fantastic condition, and is another very smart player. Developed into an exceptional receiver and he's a great blocker. Breakaway speed? No but he is everything else and would be an asset to any team, including the Bills. In summary, I'm very interested in Dickerson, Leatherwood, and yes....Barmore, knowing that DT is usually not the way to go. My thing is that if Barmore stays focused and out of trouble, he is a total game changer. He's THAT good imo but again, there MIGHT be risk.

I have seen all of both of their carries at Alabama, probably every carry. TJ was a fine player, but Najee is in a much higher class. They btw played behind the 2 best offensive line that I ever saw in Bama. The one that TJ played on was the one that flattened Notre Dame for the title, and was geared more toward the running game. Different times. Although I wouldn't hate it, I am not banging the drum to draft Najee in round 1. Frankly, I think that he will be gone by the time we select under any conditions. Of course, this is jmo. Anyway, Najee is stronger, a MUCH better blocker, and twice as athletic as TJ. He also has developed into a fine receiver. I think that he will have a very good career, despite not having real breakaway speed. He works as hard as anybody and is very smart. That said, I have never been a big fan of first round RBs., but Najee is not a CJ Spiller. Again, the team that selects him will be very happy. Once again, JMO.

I do get your point but our OL isn't THAT bad! EJ was a whole lot worse than this OL!!! 😲😨😬

Yes, no question.

Williamsville is one of the nicest towns I have ever been in. I would be interested in living there if not for the snow. It's too much for me.

Yes.

It would seem as if all of your points are accurate, especially #3 imo. I think that many teams will take advantage of the rookie cap and cut veteran players to do so. This btw will probably include the Bills

I hope that it goes well.

Spent a lifetime looking for somebody To give me love like you Now you've told me that you wanna leave me Darling I just, can't let you Baby, now that I've found you I can't let you go I'll build my world around you I need you so Baby even though, you don't need me You don't need me

Quite the poignant sentence.

Me too but it makes me also count my blessings, big time.

I never heard this. Was this really reported?

I was looking over this thread once again and am not so sure what you meant by the above. HBF, did you mean that Reid knew that his kid was drinking all of the time, or on that particular day? I know that an alcoholic can have a relapse after being 100% sober for very long periods of time. Btw, this was a very informative, well moderated thread. I'm glad that people who have some experience with addicts were kind enough to share their personal stories and I wish to thank them.

I'ma walkin' in the rain Tears are fallin' and I feel the pain Wishin' you were here by me To end this misery I wonder I wo-wo-wo wonder Why... why-why-why-why-why She ran away And I wonder, where she will stay My little runaway I run-run-run-run runaway

No HBF, I too am out of the loop for some time. I am just thinking that if a person was getting certain major surgeries, the procedure wouldn't be postponed to process an arrest that can wait.

Don't you think that it might depend on what kind of surgery we are talking about?

Well I taught that weeping willow how to cry cry cry, Taught the clouds how to cover up a clear blue sky. Tears I cried for that woman are gonna flood you big river, And I'm a gonna sit right here until I die. I met her accidentally in St. Paul, Minnesota, She tore me up every time I heard her drawl, that southern drawl. Well I heard my dream went back downstream, cavortin' in Davenport, And I follow you big river when you called.

Pass rush, or lack of blocking? Weren't the Chiefs missing 3 of their offensive linemen? Mahomes is the best there is and he is surrounded by fast, talented skill players. Even he couldn't do anything without solid protection. I make the case that not much as changed when it comes to blocking. For years on end (not recently because it has improved) I was on this board screaming about the lack of resources that were devoted to the OL. This game was a shining example of what happens when a team cannot block. Hey, the Chiefs were minus three points despite the injuries. Oddsmakers and the betting public concluded that Mahomes is just so great that he would win despite the OL being decimated by injuries. Yeah, well they were destroyed up front and got their butts kicked all over the field, Mahomes and all. This game brought back painful memories of players such as Trey Teague, Mike Pucillo, Jerry Ostroski, Langston Walker, Terrance Pennington, Demetress Bell, and scads of other horrible players that our offensive line used to consist of. It was almost like PTSD lol. The game is over and I don't care who won. Now the Buffalo Bills have a great quarterback. I hope that Beane and co. continue to devote the necessary resources to protecting him. I think that they will. 👍

It is a reasonable theory, but I am not at all familiar with the term "contacts."

Sorry, I never heard of this. Just DUI arrests and/or convictions. Of course, a huge number of DUIs cop to impaired.

I have never heard the term "DUI Contacts" and have no idea at all what this does, or even could mean.

Possibly but when you run someone on the computer, most of the time the charge that he copped to will also appear. The scenarios that you described in an earlier post are not beyond the realm of possibility, in terms of some people having influence. For instance, picture an Ivy League school in a relatively small town. Now, the school chancellor is DUI, hits a tree, and nobody is injured. The school is responsible for the economy of said town. Might he or she have enough influence to be "taken care of?" Well, I would think it to be possible. In a place like NYC, the arresting officer would be in less danger because of their unions. The NYCPBA has a very large treasury to avoid situations in which the police officer can be intimidated by a DUI assemblywoman with ties to whoever is mayor. Oh, and they try. Thank you for this wonderful, enlightening post.

I doubt the bolded, unless things have changed dramatically in recent times. For example: You are a police officer in a marked vehicle. The car in front of you swerves. You think that he might be intox and pull him over. It turns out that he dropped something on the floor and reached for it, thus causing the vehicle to swerve. Now, he can be issued a summons for something like crossing the lines in the pavement, but nothing on paper would indicate suspicion of DUI was why he was pulled over, unless the officer noted it for court records. Even at that, the motorist was never in custody and this would only explain the reason for the car stop, IF the summons went to court. I don't know if the man was ever pulled over intox and let go. I would hope that he was not. It would be horrible to unleash a stoned out driver on society, and the personal consequences for the officer would be devestating, to include dismissal and the loss of a very sweet pension and for what gain?