Bill from NYC

A 3/4 defense with a strong nose might give the Bills offense problems. I am well aware that it is a passing league, but if I were an opposing DC, I would try to take away the run from the Bills, and weak guards might make me able to do so. I would try to force them to throw and then come after the qbs with blitzes. This is what I fear will happen. The Bills, with Bruce, Bryce and company had a GREAT defense but as great as they were, they would sometimes get tired because the offense was just that bad. If the Bills can find some way, ANY way to field a strong, effective OL, this team has the potential to be fairly good. If not, we are done. Jmo.

Rumor has it that he passed on hiring stellar candidates at New Era and hired Aaron Maybin and Leotis McKelvin to help him beat the competition.

Maybe so, but you were also the first to point out his flaws. You said that his arms were so long than it slowed his release. I had never heard that criticism of a qb before so I paid careful attention and it was true....he had an odd release due to the extra arm motion. EJ, for unknown reason(s), also became considerably slower of his feet than he was in college. He looked like he was running in sand. The Bills took him because they had no choice. They had passed on so many qbs that they were forced to draft him (or Geno Smith) and even at that, traded back 8 spots. Those were ugly days indeed.

That is quite the question indeed, and that is IF he could be had for only a first, which I doubt.

37 DAYS!!!

You make a fair point but imo, trading up for Watkins was even more ill advised.

I am admittedly skeptical due to years of losing and mismanagement. My fear for this particular team is that we will go back to the days of having a terrible, sub-par offensive line. I am a fan of McCarron. I watched every game of his college career and am very familiar with him. He was under drafted to be sure and has size, brains, and some talent. However, do remember that he played behind what probably was the best OL of all time at Alabama. If you ever have time, watch some you tube videos of the title game vs. Notre Dame. They were knocking down defenders like bowling pins. I think that the OL last season was surprisingly good. You never heard me complain about it, and I have been complaining about blocking for many years. I am not sharp enough to know how much of their improvement was due to the mobility of Tyrod but we will soon find out. If the OL goes down the tubes now, so will Shady and McCarron and it won't be pretty. I really hope we don't have to see yet another debacle up front in 2018. GO BILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I fully, 100% agree with you about team needs. The offense appears to have huge needs all over. That said, as you know I follow the Crimson Tide. They have a DL named Raekwon Davis. He is playing inside a lot now but he has the speed and moves to play DE imo. He is as strong as an ox and his arms are super long. I liken him to a stronger Mario Williams. I hope you keep an eye on him. So aside from Raekwon yes, I am all about offense in 2019.

I fully agree with your premise but the hypothetical deal you described seems to shortchange the Bills by quite a bit. I would want WAY more than that for going from 3 to 20. Maybe I'm too sensitive from watching Whaley get fleeced time and time again.

Many writers and sportscasters (imo) are going to go low on predictions because there is a basis for doing so. Two decades of losing does not breed optimism. I also think that people like us follow the Bills 10x more than most writers. Like you, I have been a fan for decades and probably would have a more accurate prediction than most of the media, but; I do not have high expectations for this season. How about you? Are you thinking playoffs? It sure would be great!

Well, by your numbers Prisco had us 34-62 and the actual records were 46-51. So I have 2 questions: 1) How close do you think your predictions would have been? 2) Was there any specific reason that you chose to start at 2012?

Prisco is just another idiot who thinks the Bills aren't great. Right?

So, the "problem" is not the fact that Jones is a lousy qb? OK, gotcha.

Nice touch!!!

Baltimore (imo) is pretty horrible as well I dare say. I was down there for a concert near the Harbor. When the concert ended it was an adventure.

Kyle was gentle on that play. I'm serious, he probably could have killed him if he wanted to, or close to it. I watched that replay plenty of times and I am really pretty sure that Kyle was kind enough to hold back. It was an act of mercy.

You Sir, are 100% correct. Ryan, the alleged tough guy, used a pansy ass defense in Buffalo. It was similar the non-aggressive embarrassment that Jauron used. Jauron liked to send Schobel into coverage when he was the only good pass rusher on the entire team. Amazing.

Wow! He must be really dumb!!! In fact, I don't think that this person, or any other reporter or sportscaster should have the right to say things about the Bills that fails to portray us as super bowl winners. And, this should also apply to fans. I mean enough is enough, right?

He is taking it personal because his team is certainly a bunch of losers and Coach Saban and the Crimson Tide are consistently great. Could you imagine just how depressing Saturdays are, and soon will be for him once again?

He certainly was, and I would place Mario and Bryce very high on the list.

I hate to say it but teams were able to figure Hurts out. He was really not so much of a passing threat. The other night I watched a tape of the Sugar Bowl (vs. Clemson). Hurts (imo) didn't play well. The defense won that game. In fact, Saban said that LB Anfernee Jennings graded out higher than any defensive player all season, and let's not forget the heroics by Payne. You see at Alabama, shiny superstar qbs win the games far less often than at other schools. One would have to watch them consistently to see just how true this is. When Saban was asked when he thought about putting Tua in the championship game, he said, BEFORE the Sugar Bowl (the game prior to the title game). Again, strong rumors indicated that Daboll wanted to go with Tua for several weeks. You really might like the man.

Not in a hotel.

The list of great posters on this board is long. That said, I am going to give a shout out to BADOLBILZ. Look, nobody is always correct about football but Badol comes close. The man has been on the money about the team, individual players, team management, coaches, the media, and even the draft for decades. The man is a walking football encyclopedia and his humor both in person and on this board is fantastic. He can come off a bit grouchy at times but if you tailgate with him you will find him to be friendly, classy and even polite lol. I used to go up to tailgates and get into conversations with him and Lori and these two truly knew more than reporters and most announcers. Good times.

It was much harder in those days for me to control myself and I had a mini meltdown after that pick. It was the #8 and the Raiders took a safety at #7 so I was really happy. As bad as the Bills had drafted over the years, never did I suspect that they would be stupid enough draft an undersized, average speed (at best) safety in a draft stacked with players at positions at which they had desperate need. This idiotic pick and draft set the franchise back for many years and I'm glad you posted this.

I have a feeling that you are going to like Daboll more that you might think. He didn't have full control at Alabama and there is much speculation that he wanted Tua in there for a long time. I was quite fond of his work with the Tide. He wasn't as pass crazy as Kiffen but he sure did develop the young receivers. My worry is the Bills OL, not Coach Daboll but we shall see. Harsh but I gotta take your back on those comments.