Bill from NYC

Drafting top 10 defensive backs is great. Why the hostility?

Deacon Jones, along with Reggie White and Bruce, was one of the top 3 defensive ends of all time. I was young when I saw him but he was flat out spectacular. He was the Bob Gibson of Football in terms of intimidation. I once heard him say in an interview that he would "kill a man" if he did a dance after scoring touchdown. He wasn't smiling. RIP Deacon.

This echos what many posters said about Levitre. Things could change, but the situation does not look good. I strongly doubt that the Bills could get as much for Byrd as they did for Peters in a trade.

Yes, and Tampa spent 16 million on Revis, coming off a serious injury, to play corner. Guess which situation I would rather be in?

I would absolutely NOT sign Wood to a big contract unless he has an injury free season, something unlikely to happen. What I would advise them to do is IF they suspect that his injuries are behind him, attempt to sign him during the season, before he is a UFA. With his history of injuries, it would be smart of him to accept an offer such as this. Seriously, look at Gronk. He signed for 10 mil or so per season after having one of the best years of any tight end I have ever seen, bar none. I'm sure that he is glad now to have done so, whereas his career is in some doubt at this point.

I'll take a shot..... Kiko sat with Coach Marrone, He's a new hire. Kiki said to Coach Marrone, "I'm gonna set the Ralph on fire." Talkin' 'bout hey now (hey now) Hey now (hey now) Forcing fumbles all day. Sacks on almost every play, Losing games gone away. New defensive MVP, It's looking pretty. Read about me in the "Thoughts" of Bill from New York City. Talkin' 'bout hey now (hey now) Hey now (hey now) Puttin' Brady away. Sacks on almost every play, Losin games gone away.

OK, that was funny!!!!!

Technically you are right, but some day, both lawyers will have to appear in the judge's court once again. John, never underestimate the power of a judge. When Rudy Giulliani and Donna Hanover were getting divorced they couldn't agree to terms. The judge told them to get out of her court and come back with a deal, which they did. And btw, Raoul Felder was representing Donna Hanover.

Because with the new CBA, draft picks are cheap. Warmack will NOT be paid Donte Whitner type money.

C'mon old friend.....you're certainly not comparing Levitre and Dockery, are you? Levitre has been an asset to this team from the moment he arrived in town. He doesn't make highlight reels because he isn't known for pancake blocks, but he is a top pass blocking left guard, and is no slouch on running downs. And with 10 million guaranteed, this would have allowed them to get out of the contract with little pain if need be. And please be honest.....I assume that you are fond of Glenn. Don't you think that playing next to Levitre was great for his development? With the loss of Levitre, the Bills would appear to be starting the season thin at the guard position. This is a shame because this team will be fielding a running back who is a home run threat and plays best in space, a rookie quarterback who will probably need that extra time, and a vet qb who has already had his brains beat in. Instead of keeping Levitre, they are chasing Eugene Parker and a safety, and drafted 2 more. Sorry, I cannot condone this.

My money says that the judge will order them to settle.

And Derrick Dockery. He got his 49 million dollar contract (18 guaranteed) and never put any more effort into playing football. His uniform was shiny and clean after games. He looked as if he just didn't care. I hope that this doesn't happen to MD. As I said, I always liked the kid.

This post is impossible to argue with from top to bottom. After having watched most of his games at Alabama, I expected more from him, especially on running plays. He did put pressure on qbs, but his forte imo was stuffing the middle as well as making tackles vs. the run. This is grueling work and as you say, one must be motivated to do this, talent level notwithstanding. I always liked the kid, and I hope that he produces. It would mean a lot to this team if he can get himself together and take over a few games.

This would be a wonderful scenario.

1) History tells us we will draft a corner and continue to be a losing franchise. 2) Dareus has a chance to be great or bust out. KW might be done. DT would be a likely pick. 3) FJ will most likely be finished after this year (if he even lasts), and Spiller will be a UFA soon. RB would be another dumb, but likely selection. I don't expect a blocker, pass rusher, or tight end.

I will go with 9th. But I respectfully suggest that you make this thread more fun and ask what position we will draft in round 1 as well.

Yes. I am sure that he was involved in the process. But as he gained stature, the drafts generally worsened. And when he had final say as GM, it was an utter disaster in both the draft and free agency.

The stars seemed to age all at once. Marv did little to replace them; he preferred using his best resources on defensive backs.

OK, that is too freaking funny!!! Staying with the Grateful Dead, I would also go with "Hell in a Bucket" or "Lost Sailor."

You could borrow lyrics from the great Robert Hunter and call it the "Ship of Fools."

There is no evidence to conclude that Levy would have been a great, or even a good GM, but a whole lot of proof does exist that he was, and would have been one of the worst ever. I believe your comment about Levy being influential wrt the Bills drafts of the 90's. The strong emphasis on defensive backs has his signature all over it, and in those days it was less of a passing league. He did little to replace the stars who were getting on in years, instead focusing on DBs. The drafts between 1990 and 1994 were nothing short of ridiculous. http://www.drafthist...php/teams/bills In 2006, he devoted the draft primarily to defensive backs, and hired his clone, Dick Jauron. Levy's tenure as GM set this team back many years. I respect your opinion, but the facts speak for themselves.

Yes he gambled and lost, but in a way I understand this move, however ill advised. Stats and superbowl wins notwithstanding, it's hard for me to consider Flacco a great quarterback. I am probably not correct in this assessment, it's just my gut feeling. In my decades of watching football, I have seen a slew of QBs who scared me more than Flacco. How 'bout you? Ozzie is old school, and I guess that he was thinking the same thing.Then, Flacco look the team to a SB victory, and now a team virtually has to cough up the big bucks. Period. Again, we have entered a new era. If Kap, RG111, Luck, or even a small Wilson were UFAs today, they would all come close to, or even surpass 20 million dollar per season contracts. This was the effect of the rule changes and new CBA. In all, I agree that Ozzie made a mistake this time. He missed the boat by a year or so. So yes, even the greats make mistakes.

And how about Robert Brazile on the outside? He was a GREAT player that nobody seems to know about.

Thanks. There have been disputes on this board as to the guaranteed money to Levitre. One poster claims he got more than 20 million guaranteed. All I can find is that he got a 10 milion dollar signing bonus. If all he got was the 10 million bonus and no other guaranteed cash, that was not a bad deal imo. After 2 perhaps 3 years, he could be cut if need be without taking a huge hit. Or, if his play lessens there is a chance to renegotiate as Dallas did with their RT. Otoh, it looks like Byrd will cost a fortune wrt guaranteed money. And with his agent, a holdout is likely. In summary, we lost our best blocker in order to try to keep a safety, this with a rookie QB who would have had an added advantage with Levite in the lineup. Tough to figure from where I sit, but great dialogue.

As you well know, the game has completely changed due to the CBA and the rule changes. Draft picks are very cheap these days. For instance in 2006, our very own Donte Whitner signed a bigger and better contract than Andrew Luck did in 2012 6 years later.Think about this for a moment if you will.....no coach or GM on earth (save perhaps Levy/Jauron) would rather have Whitner than a young, star quarterback. Whiter if you recall successfully held out for a while to boot. Team are going to pay a million dollars or less for a second round pick before they give 5 million or so to an aging vet. There is no getting around this. And since this game resembles the Arena League, Joe Flacco, who I consider good but not at all great), makes more than 20 million per season. In a capped league, this money has to come from somewhere. Other than the dumb Revis signing, what CBs are making the huge buck as happened not so long ago? I heard on Sirius that Joe Thomas actually lost money by not accepting an earlier offer to stay on the Dolphins at LT. My point is that it is the vets who are taking the hit. It seems to me that today, the only way to build a winning team is to draft the right quarterback,and pay him pennies for 5 years as you build a team around him. And if he is good, break the bank to keep him. This leaves very little room to spend the big bucks on older guys whose bodies have already taken a beating. And yes, there are exceptions. Andy Levitre was one.