Lurker

Mike Williams is Stevie Johnson's replacement (more of an upgrade than a dollar-for-a-buck, as well). And, oh by the way, that kid Watkins is kinda good...

Nor do I. All of the 'local' ownership prospects under consideration (Pegula, Golisano, Jacobs) are great business guys who would most assuredly not "dump the existing front office" as their first managerial decision. They would take the time to study the organization and when they feel comfortable in their knowledge of who's wheat vs. chaff, then make personnel changes. That would be 2016 at the earliest. The only people who fire and hire on a whim are that segment of the fan base that live to hear the sound of their own voices...(or Donald Trump).

Agreed. TSW is full to overflowing of knee jerk blather with little substance behind it.

Man SDS, my 16 pages are full and I'm only into page 2 of this thread. You've got to change your policies...

Excellent. Doug Whaley continues to move quickly to jettison the moribund culture of 'good enough' that this team has operated under for far too long...

Because fair and balanced is the last thing he wants to be...

Mods...please change the title of this thread. Since when are Mike Rodak, Bryan Fischer, Will Brinson et al "experts" in anything? They're cheap labor at content conglomerates until proven otherwise, IMO...

I could have potentially married a super model, but finally stopped holding out for one to ask me out on a date...

That's the fundamental calculus that makes this a winning move, IMO.

Say what you want about Kiper, but his comment is still pretty eye-opening: "He is one of the best I have seen in 36 years of doing this [scouting]." http://www.tigernet.com/update/player/Watkins-selected-No-4-NFL-draft-Bills-15876

It was on like a MOFO... Whaley's aggressiveness makes me think he's already thinking about how to get back into round one next year...

Guys (plural)... http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/feed/2011-01/2011-nfl-draft/story/falcons-trade-up-for-julio-jones-in-draft-shocker-with-browns "The Falcons really coveted a receiver in the first round because they were eager to move up from the 27th spot. It was a blockbuster deal. In exchange for getting the sixth pick, Atlanta gave the Browns five -- five! -- draft picks: their 1st- (27th overall), second- (59th) and fourth-round (124th) picks this year and their first- and fourth-round picks in 2012."

Not that surprising.

The usual suspects that B word about the team not being aggressive now B word about this pick, and the cost it took to make it...go figure. I'm happy to see a front office that has the balls to do something it believes in. The Ebron pick that was the 'conventional wisdom' probably would have resulted in the conventional results...nice player but not special. We now have a special guy in a pass-first league with enough complementary assets surrounding him that he doesn't have to carry the whole passing game on his back. The 2nd and 3rd pick will determine how this 'calculated risk' will be judged. Get two more instant starters (OL, TE) and next year's number one becomes less of a gamble, IMO.

Too funny...

As many as the Lamp-arazzi on TSW can crank out...

That statement should be the official TBD motto. SDS could incorporate it into the header, right under Ralph's picture...

These kind of responses (not yours personally, but the collective 'BTG is cheap' posts) make me scratch my head. When Blase bought the Sabres they were a financial mess with the stench of insolvency still hanging heavy in the air. To just spend for the sake of spending was silly, and any good business person would do what he did--operate on a budget until the cash flow improves. The Briere fiasco was a miscalculation, but IMO, the other big hoo ha--Drury singing with the Rangers--was something of a FU to the team that wasn't on ownership. The Bills would be an entirely different kettle of fish as many posters have pointed out--it's the golden goose that only 31 other guys have laying eggs for them. With a mandated salary floor and the ability to print money based on the underlying asset value of the franchise, I doubt very seriously as to Golisano being a spendthrift NFL owner.

TP is that most unusual of billionaire...totally liquid. Rather than having his wealth tied up in hard-to-move business assets like most rich people, he was given a check for $4.7 billion (with his share at $3 billion) by Royal Dutch Shell when he sold his company. That gives him a BIG leg up on virtually any other bidder, and I'm sure the NFL really likes that from a "sign here" perspective. His blue collar background is neat as well--fits in perfectly with the fan base: http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/print-edition/2011/05/06/terry-pegula-of-east-resources-inc.html?page=all

Seems to be a pattern...Timmy Graham, James Waker and now Rodak. Those big network salaries sure do attract the talent...

Since TP lived in Orchard Park for a number of years in the 80's and 90s and had seasons tix to the Sabres for 18 years, I suspect he can drive around WNY pretty well

That was the knock on Kyle Williams as well... http://grantland.com/the-triangle/the-all-22-all-stars-kyle-williams-the-underestimated-monster/

Well, if Howie does buy the Bills, expect the team to suck for 15 years while he sits on his assets (as in Niagara Falls, NYC, etc). Oh wait, I've seen that movie already:. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Islanders Initially the team made numerous trades and increased their payroll in an effort to assemble a better team. In one transaction, youngsters Todd Bertuzzi and Bryan McCabe were traded for veteran Trevor Linden. However, after the Islanders finished 12 points short of the playoffs in 1997-98, Milstein and Gluckstern decided to run the team on an austere budget in an attempt to make a profit. They also complained about the condition of the Nassau Coliseum and made noises about moving the team elsewhere. They began trading or releasing many popular players to avoid paying their salaries, including star scorer Zigmund Palffy, team captain Linden, former rookie of the year Bryan Berard, and rugged defenseman Rich Pilon. With the loss of so much talent, the result was predictable. The Islanders finished with 58 points in 1999 and 57 points in 2000. Attendance, which had been in a steady decline over the past few years, fell off even further to under 12,000 per game. At the same time, Milstein bid hundreds of millions of dollars in unsuccessful attempts to purchase the National Football League's Washington Redskins and Cleveland Browns.

Let me translate the draft-speak: What they said: "We're taking Carr at #4" What they mean: "All you teams drafting 5-10 that want a Watkins or a Robinson, please give us a call. We'd be happy to swap picks for a nice return."

Wait? I thought that thread said more about TG's maturity than Manuel's? Must have misread it....