gobillsinytown

I think the key to stopping them is a good pass rush. Sanchez is good but I think he can be rattled. Since they didn't seem to care about their running game by getting rid of their best backs, a strong run defense coupled by a good pass rush would be the trick. Unfortunatley I don't see the Bills doing that this year, and nobody else in the division has a stout enough defense either. I think the Jets win the division.

It's amazing to me the damage that a small amount of swelling in the spinal cord can cause. Equally amazing is how he's been able to recover. Thank God the Bills' medical staff had the cold therapy equipment on hand. At the time, Buffalo was one of the few teams that had it, although I think most facilities have the equipment and protocols now.

This is a perfect example of just how much of a roll-of-the-dice the draft really is, especially the first round. The CBS article said the Raiders have already spent over 38 million on this guy. If there is going to be a lockout next year, it's going to be over the first round of the draft. I don't care how rich the owners are, no one wants to throw 38 million out the window.

One of the things that delays the development of WR's is that they have a lot more responsibility in the pros. They have to read the coverage before the snap, and then make sight adjustments during the play. Hardy never had to do that in college. He just ran his route. It takes a long time to learn to read defenses. Some guys never make the transition. If he busts out, it's because he couldn't learn to read defenses.

An O-lineman's skills can degrade pretty quickly. One year their playing at a high level, the next year they're done. If the Cowboys let him go I think he's done.

Not sure what your point is. Nobody drafted him, so does that mean the Bills are stupid for not taking him? Or are all 32 teams stupid? Sounds like all 32 teams know something we don't.

Based on the article, the key to successful zone blocking is teamwork. One of the reasons Denver had such an effective offensive line was that he was able to have some stability along the line. It's tougher to implement zone blocking if you don't have the same guys practicing and playing together. Last year, a zone scheme was impossible with the Bills because so many guys were hurt. Let's hope that changes this year, because if it doesn't a zone scheme won't work. I'm hoping that the emphasis on conditioning/diet this year will reduce the injury rate at least at little.

Definitely. I thought last year was one of the wierdest years for confusion and discord between managment and the coaching staff. Edwards had to be wondering what the heck was going on. the OC gets fired a few days before the start of the regular season, two vetran O-Lineman are let go, and they scrap a significant portion of the offense that they had spent the entire offseason installing. I thought it was a sign that Jauron just couldn't keep things together. I was warned about that from a long time Bears fan, where Jauron had his last head coaching job. Same problems there, like he couldn't make decisions because the didn't want to tick anybody off.

Winning cures everything. If they start winning again they will be the mavericks who went against conventional wisdom. It's been done before. If not............

He's definitely got special talent on kick returns. I can see the Bills designing return plays just for him. If he translates that skill to the NFL level we could have a very interesting team next year.

I'm glad they didn't take Cody. Even on his highlight reel he looked overweight and slow. I think that's permanent. If he couldn't keep his weight down in college, how is he going to do it when he's a pro and football is a job? He was projected as a first rounder.....until that pic of his weigh in day at the combine came out.

"- We cannot discount the amount of injuries we had on our O line.....I dont ever remember seeing a team hit that badly. Now the old mgt did not help themselves by deciding they want to get rid of all the veteran guys and then compound the problem with the "hurry up" with young players that actually NEEDED that huddle. Trading Peters didnt bother me so much as not having a real plan in place to replace him.....then we cut Langston Walker when he would have been perfectly fine on the RT side. A string of injuries and bad decisions killed this team offensively." No team in recent memory had such bad luck combined with bad decisions as the Bills did last year. When a team loses a player to injury on Sunday, is calling street free agents on Sunday night, and then those street free agents are starting the following Sunday.....you know there's a serious problem. Luck had a lot to do with it, but also bad decision making at the beginning of the season. Hopefully the "bad decision making" part has been fixed, and with better conditioning I think the injuries should decline.

I saw the same thing. Berman looked completely lost (and ticked off) on several occasions. I don't get the NFL network but based on what I've seen from their web replays, they looked much more prepared. Remember though, ESPN has a lot more casual fans, so their broadcast is tailored to them. NFLN's stuff is tailored to the more serious fan.

Every NFL team considers ticket sales and profit in everything they do. However in this case if they were looking only at ticket sales and profit and going for the pure hype, I would think they would have picked: 1. Clausen 2. Tebow 3. Some other hyped up guy The reality of the first round is that it's a complete crap shoot. The odds of a first round pick actually making a contribution to the team are about 50-50. The real draft starts with rounds 2-7. If the Bills picked the right guys in rounds 2-7, they'll have a good team pretty quickly. If not, it sets them back another 2 to 3 years.

I love drama queen posts like this. It's entertainment. Follow the team because you enjoy it. If you don't enjoy following the team, there's no reason to watch them. I've been following this team through the glory years and the bad years, spent a lot of money on it, and all of it has been fun. Granted, nobody likes to see their favorite team lose, but I sure don't feel like something has been "ripped out of me" when it happens.

I had it for a year and then gave it up. Not because I'm depressed about the Bills, their drafts or their front office. I'm a fan forever as long as they stay in Buffalo. I gave it up becasue I just don't have the time now to watch that many games on Sunday.

I don't think either philosophy is wrong. The Spiller pick seems to indicate that they pick the best player available regardless of need. At least in the first round. I think rounds 2-7 will be different.

Teams seem to have two philosophies in the first round: 1. Draft to fill the most pressing need. 2. Draft the best player available, regardless of need. I can't find fault with either philosophy, considering the amount of money that a first round pick, especially a top ten pick, is going to be paid. That's why so many teams try to trade out of the first round altogether. The Bills' philosophy seems to be that in the first round they draft the best player available regardless of need. Is it the right philosophy? We'll find out. If this kid runs for 1,200 yards, catches 30 or 40 balls, and takes back a couple of punt returns for TD's, no one is going to be complaining. Ultimately I think the amount of money that first round picks are getting paid is going to be addressed in the next labor agreement...or after the lockout.

I think you should make the final step by deactivating your account here. Then you'll really be a Broncos fan. Also, Google "Denver Bronsoc fan sites", and sign up with one of them. Go Broncos!...........I guess.

"Heartbroken"? What a drama queen.

ESPN is cranking out the superlatives! Sounds like Steve Young is going to start crying.......I hope this isn't all these guys are going to talk about for the rest of the night.

Just as an aside.......Balauga seems to have fallen pretty far, considering all the hype.

All true, except for the one giant, living monkey wrench in all rebuilding programs..........Dan Snyder.

"He reminds me of a (bigger) (faster), _insert current NFL player's name here__

Excellent post. I still think the Steelers are going to want a lot more than just our #9. I would think it's going to be at least one first rounder, and then maybe next year's, and then some lower round picks. Would it be worth it?