folz

I think Dan hit it on the head. I really felt the same way, that they were going to go for it, which is what actually made Philly jump. They were going to hard count a few times to see if they could get them to jump and if they didn't (knowing Philly would be in freeze mode), surprise them by actually hiking the ball and running the QB sneak. I really think that's what would have happened had Philly not jumped.

Not to pile on on Leodis, but I noticed on quite a few Eagles running plays that the wide receivers were handling him quite easily on their down field blocks. There were at least three times that a running play was coming right at him and the WR knocked him on the ground, successfully pushed him away from the play, etc. Gotta get tougher against the run Leodis. And I like Reggie Corner, but boy did he look slow covering the slot today. He seemed to be consistently running behind the offensive player by about 3 or 4 steps (granted, the Eagles have a lot of speed on their team).. But all in all a great team victory today to hold on for the win. It's crazy that WR and CB both went from positions of strength to severely lacking depth due to injuries.

Point taken...should have said accuracy/completion percentage (meaning both). His completion percentage is up 7.1% thus far from last year, some didn't think he could improve that much. And I think his accuracy has been great too. How many times are his passes behind the receiver, or sailing too high over the middle, etc. Very rarely. He's hitting guys in the hands or the numbers, putting it out in front of them so they can run after the catch.

Honestly, I'm not trying to rub it in to those on the opposite side of the off-season Fitz accuracy debate (I'm glad we're all on this ride together, it's been a long time coming for all of us), but those discussions crossed my mind as I looked at Fitz's stats (especially the people who were so sure that Fitz could never better his, at the time, career 58%). Sure it's only 3 games so far, but Fitz is completing 64.9% of his passes (and that's with a bunch of drops too---Jones, Martin, Smith, that I can remember). Go Fitzaccurate!

That field goal going through and Moorman jumping onto Lindell's shoulders (two guys that have been here for a lot of those loses to the Pats) So many great plays, but three that stood out for me because they totally changed the momentum of the game: 1. The David Nelson catch down the left sideline where he lost his helmet and came up yelling, pumping up the crowd. 2. The George Wilson pick (stopping the Pats when it looked like another easy TD coming) 3. The Scott interception (same reason as #2) Post-game: 1. Freddy Jackson and another Bill (didn't see who it was) running up and down the field with the Bills flags waving. 2. Fitz and Freddy pushing and shoving each other screaming. 3. David Nelson jumping into the stands where the chefs sit and celebrating with the crowd. 4. Nelson's post game tweet "That was for YOU Buffalo. You deserve it." Pre-game: I read somewhere that before the game, Jim Kelly was standing near the tunnel waving the Bills flag... wish I was there to see that.

That's awesome! So glad teams passed him over in the draft and he chose Buffalo over NE as an UDFA. Gotta love this kid! Keep it up David!

After Mangini gives the Bills 40% chance to win, Rob Parker responds: "0% chance (the Bills will win)...NO WAY NO HOW!" Eat some crow Rob Parker (whoever you are)

Apparently, not only is Kyle Williams a defensive stud, but he miraculously caught a touchdown pass in week 2 against the Cowboys, a game he wasn't even playing in. I wonder if he walks on water too? Forget the Pro Bowl, just enshrine the guy in the Hall of Fame now! http://fantasynews.cbssports.com/fantasyfootball/story/15617525/week-3-start-em-and-sit-em Wide receiver Start 'Em Santana Moss (at DAL): In five games with Grossman as his starting quarterback, Moss has 33 catches for 368 yards and three touchdowns. Included in those outings is last year at Dallas when Moss had eight catches for 72 yards and two touchdowns. The Cowboys secondary remains a work in progress, and they have allowed two touchdowns to wide receivers this year with Plaxico Burress in Week 1 and Kyle Williams last week. Moss might not score this week, but he's averaging seven catches for 74 yards with Grossman. He's almost a lock for at least seven Fantasy points in a standard league. [if you click "Kyle Williams" in the article on the site, it is linked to our Kyle---not the young SF receiver]

Nice catch Kzoo...sweet play by Wood. Nice to see our guys being the aggressors.

Outside of Brady, who never seems to throw picks, a lot of the best QBs have been high risk/high reward guys... look at Kelly, Favre, etc. they might throw 2 or 3 picks in a game, but you also knew they could bring their team back to win the game. Compare that to a Trent Edwards or Rob Johnson...whose interception percentage was spectacular, but if the team got down was there any chance they would lead a big comeback? My heart was definitely in my throat on a few of those passes (TD to Chandler, near INT in endzone that Jones swatted away), but this offense is starting to have that 90s Bills swagger, where you never count them out and that's due to Fitz taking those risks. I'll take that any day over a guy who's afraid to let it fly, so we go three and out more often than not.

I almost posted about Fit's "girl scream" after I first heard it on mic'd up last night (lol)... But, ya know what, it just makes me love him that much more...Levitre said it best... "sounds like a little kid on the playground"...he's having fun (and playing great). When did it ever look like Trent was having fun? What a breath of fresh air. Scream all you want Fitz!

In the WGR article about Drayton Florence this morning (http://wgr550.com/Bills-Florence-has-no-regrets/10744503) the writer says: "According to some at One Bills Drive morale is the lowest it's been there in years. Employees mope around hoping things will finally get better. " I know morale is low at Two Bills Drive right now, but really? Morale is the lowest it's been in years at One Bills Drive? Employees moping around? I'm thinking this is just a reporter talking out of his ass based on Florence's tweets, or whatever. That's a pretty bold statement if he's just guessing or just taking one person's word for it. What do you guys think? Could One Bills Drive be as down as Two Bills Drive right now? I hope not. But how is this guy to judge the morale of an entire organization? Of course even if it were, a good showing tonight could change that. Go Bills!

I agree with the OP and "Loyal" I wrote a fairly long post about this (with the quotes from Gailey) in the other Lee Evans thread if you care to read it... http://forums.twobillsdrive.com/topic/132896-evans-traded-to-baltimore/page__st__440

Look guys...I've always liked Lee and I still think he is a good receiver and I'm sad to see him go. And yes, I was hoping we might get a player for him rather than a draft pick...but nobody was going to give us their starting right tackle for him and considering it was just a draft pick (and also considering recent history) a 4th rounder was pretty good value for a receiver his age who had a couple of down years. But this trade has NOTHING to do with Ralph and Overdorf being cheap, or Buddy being stupid and old or any of that. We have a pretty straight shooting coach, who isn't afraid to cut bait (see Trent Edwards) if someone isn't working out the way he wants them to in his offense. It doesn't mean Lee sucks or is over the hill, he just isn't the right type of receiver for Gailey's offense. Here's what Gailey has said about Lee recently... August 2nd: Reporter: "What's it going to take to make Lee the weapon that he could/should be?" Chan: "We've gotta get him to become a better underneath receiver. We gotta give him things that he can do and let him work on those things that will make him better as a short receiver...we know he's got the deep threat he's always had that and we gotta help him get better in the intermediate and short areas." August 10th: Reporter: "What does Lee mean to your offense?" Chan: " Lee has made a bunch of big plays here through the years...and...um...he still made some big plays for us last year. As I said earlier, we gotta do a better job of getting him more effective in the short and intermediate area. We know what he can do deep. We gotta do a better job of helping him get better there." Most coaches asked about their #1 receiver who their team can't live without would be hurling every superlative they could think of at the press. But that doesn't sound like what Gailey had to say. There is no way this trade goes down just to save some money if Gailey thought it would severely hurt the team. I think as others have said, he wants to give the young guys who fit his system better and will be around for the long haul a chance. And anyone watching the games last year could see Evans and Fitz didn't have great chemistry or something. Stevie will be fine. Sure he'll get doubled more early in the season at least, but that opens the door for one of the other guys to excel. Nelson really proved something to me last year. roscoe was on fire before getting hurt. Jones and Naaman seem to be coming on and played well last year when given the opportunity. And then there is Easley and Buster who I admit are still question marks. If Roscoe or Nelson or Jones, or whoever, is running wild because they're doubling Stevie, then defenses will have to switch it up and then Stevie will get his. There was also what Wandstedt said about Gailey's offense in Miami when they didn't have the best O-line, that Chan went with a short passing game (see that they are practicing screens alot this camp) to compensate. I think short and intermediate is the key for this year. Get the ball out quick to fast, elusive guys (Roscoe, Spiller, Smith, etc.) and let them make something happen, make guys miss and pick up the yards that way, rather than bombs to the endzone. And Lee doesn't fit that scheme well. As to Drayton's twitters, it sounds like he and Lee were probably good friends and it sucks to lose a friend...but, you don't think all of the young guys on the offense aren't excited about the opportunity (Smith, Nelson, Spiller, Jones, Roosevelt, Easley, etc.)? And if they start producing, Lee the friend will still be missed, but Lee the player won't be so much. There might be some short term anxiety in the locker room due to this trade. But I don't think it will linger for more than a week or two. I'll miss Lee and I wish him nothing but the best...but I'll trust the coach on this one until proven otherwise. The sky is not falling.

Look, I'm not some big Donte supporter. At the start of last season, I thought G. Wilson should have been starting instead of him. I don't expect the team will retain him and I wouldn't either with the kind of money he wants, but I've said this before in another Donte thread a while back... I think some fans were maybe watching Donte with biased eyes last year...ok, he isn't the greatest coverage saftey around and everyone remembers the 2 or 3 big plays last year where it appears that he was the one who blew the coverage (which he may have been)...but honestly guys, he had 140 tackles last year (96 solo) with 7 passes defended, 1 sack, 1 Int, and 1 FF. And if you go back and watch the games, his tackles weren't him getting dragged 5 yards like some posters say, he was really popping guys. He was one of the only guys (with maybe Kyle) who actually made opposing players pay last year. Seriously, go back and watch the games. He had a really solid year last year, not elite, but solid. Obviously it looks like we'll be turning the page on Donte and no, he never did live up to his draft pick...not that its his fault that the Bills reached for him. But the guy didn't suck last year like a lot of people post...he is no where near elite status, but he actually had a really solid season last year on a bad defense. Ok, let me have it...

I'm going to have fun this year watching you guys come around to Fitz the way I did last year. For those of you still saying he's no better than a backup in this league, have you looked at a list of the current starting QBs recently? Can you really say that all 31 other QBs and at least one backup somewhere are all better than Fitz? After watching last season, I can't fathom that. Seriously, would you trade him straight up for Sanchez or Henne? And that's just in our division. Franchise guys are REALLY hard to come by...and sometimes a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. Flame on... A little perspective: There are 23 Hall of Fame QBs from the modern era (1945 til now). 23 over 66 years... add in Favre, Brady, and Peyton who are locks and we have 26 over 66 years. Figuring a 10 year career avg., that means at any given time there are maybe 4 Hall of Famers playing (and 28 teams without a HOFer). We were lucky to have one. I hope we eventually get another, but 13 franchises have never had a hall of famer at QB. Sometimes it seems like posters think there are a few of them in each draft...if that were the case, then there would be like 132 to 198 Hall of Fame QBs instead of 23. Just because a guy isn't Brady or Manning doesn't mean that he sucks.

What the pundits don't know... They thought they saw old, uninspired hires, but Nix is the fix and Chan is the Man <We finally got some real football guys to run things> Unlike us fans who saw the day to day of the last dreadful decade, the Pundits aren't aware yet about the change in culture that is happening at One Bills Drive (the tougher, stronger, hard work, chip on their shoulder players being brought in; and the us against the world, loyalty, camaraderie, chemistry that is building not just among the players but throughout the entire organization, thanks to Chan and Buddy). And the Pundits still don't know that Fitzmagic is no illusion!

Couldn't be happier with this pick...Go Bills! I guess the team is serious about the hybrid too, think about it: Dareus-Williams-Edwards Dareus-Troup-Williams Dareus-Troup-Williams-Edwards Williams-Dareus-Troup-Edwards Carrington-Dareus-Williams-Edwards etc. And throw Kelsey and Johnson into the mix and all of a sudden the coaches have a ton of options, for every scenario, and to keep offenses guessing. If Troup and Carrington come on in their second year, we could have quite a D-line. And I Love that we got a guy who's mean, aggressive, and nasty--on the field, but not off. Welcome to Buffalo Big Man! This was definitely best case scenario for the Bills. Now let's kill the rest of the draft. Get 'er done Buddy!

I don't know if this is what Sullivan is talking about or if he asked a similar question later, but in the conference video on BuffaloBills.com you can hear a reporter ask, "So, if you knew either of the first two picks was a QB, would you know who your pick was gonna be?" And Buddy answers, "Yes, we would." When I first heard that last week, I took it to mean they weren't looking for a QB at #3 because even if a QB was selected at 1 or 2, the Bills would still know who they were picking (it wouldn't influence their decision). But, I guess it could mean they assume Cam will be taken, so they aren't counting on him and are already planning to go elsewhere...or they know Gabbert isn't going at 1 or 2, so he'd still be there (although I really don't think they're going Gabbert...especially after hearing from NGU). Long story short you can probably read almost anything into these types of vague statements...I still hope it means they're going Defense though. We'll know soon. Go Bills!

Nice find...reminds me a lot of the late 70s early 80s unis. Love em...so glad we're getting rid of those crappy unis from the last handful of years, they never grew on me. And I like going back to the white helmets. Fact #7 - In February of 1984, the Bills announced that they were switching their helmet color, going to red after wearing white headgear since 1962. While the color changed, the charging buffalo on the side and blue facemasks both remained. It was speculated that the color switch was to help quarterback Joe Ferguson distinguish his receivers from opposing defenders, especially the three division opponents (Dolphins, Patriots, and Colts) who also wore white helmets. Ferguson threw 25 interceptions in 1983 and 17 in 1984. http://www.ssur.org/history/BuffaloBillsHistoricalFacts.htm

I'm glad the team is giving every scenario its due diligence... There may or may not be someone there that they would want to trade up for... but at least now they have an idea if someone is there that they want, what the likelihood of making it happen is or what it might cost. Doesn't mean they'll pull the trigger...And we have no idea who it is they might be interested in...might not even be a QB.

Nice work OP, but a few thoughts... I don't know if you can call Greg Bell a bust...He ran for over 1,100 yards his rookie season and went to the Pro Bowl, had a decent second season, and then was part of the trade that brought Cornelius Bennett to the Bills. He also had two great seasons with the Rams, earning comeback player of the year award. If I remember correctly, injuries and a bit of ego got in his way, but the kid was a player...even if it only equated to 4 productive seasons. I think you have Willis McGahee too high...and Jeff Burris too low. Burris was a very good, starting corner for 10 years in the league (even if only 4 of them were with the Bills). I think Spiller (I expect him to bust out this year) and Wood (now at center), will move up that list, but I understand why you have them where they are for now. And Mike Williams has to be #48...For me Maybin is like the Flowers pick...but the Williams pick hurt the team much more in the long run.

I don't know if its been discussed much, but I keep looking at the fact that the Bills don't have a #2 QB right now. So, if we draft a QB in the first or second he has to be the number two. Why? If you draft a guy that high, expecting him to eventually take over, you need to start getting him his reps. And he's not going to do that at #3 (if we were to bring in a FA or whatever). So, we need a guy that can play year one if Fitz were to go down. So, I don't see the Bills drafting a project QB. I think (if they choose a QB early) they have to go after one of the guys that is more pro-ready. I'd be real nervous, despite his talent, drafting Newton after that interview. How long before he'll be able to pick up and then master an NFL offense. Maybe he can, but it looks like it could take a while. Compare Newton's answer about dissecting a play "We'd just call #34" to Ryan Mallet at the board talking about every possible outcome of the play and what the defense might be doing...that was impressive. I'm not sure about Gabbert at 3...probably prefer to go defense...but if the Bills went that way, I'd trust them. But, I think I'd rather take a chance with our 2nd round pick on guys like Dalton, Ponder, Kaepernick (or Locker or Mallet if they were to fall) then take that big a chance with our first pick.

A look down memory lane...or nightmare alley. I know this has been done before, but I was bored and curious to look at it again after reading the "A little perspective...5 years later" thread. They usually say you can't judge a draft for 3 years...so I decided to look at the drafts from 3 years ago and then going back to the oldest draft from which at least one player is still on the team. So that encompasses 2003-2008. So we are talking, as far as decision making goes, Ralph, Donahoe/Greggo, Donahoe/Mularkey, Marv/Jauron, Brandon/Jauron, and Modrak throughout. 2008 Rnd 1 Leodis McKelvin still have hope for him, has shown a few flashes, but definitely has not lived up to the bill 2 James Hardy Busted as a Bill...no longer with the team 3 Chris Ellis No longer with the team 4 Reggie Corner Another player I thought showed some promise but has disappeared of late 4 Derek Fine No longer with the team 5 Alvin Bowen No longer with the team 6 Xavier Omon No longer with the team 7 Demetrius Bell Jury is still out on how good a LT he can be, but even if he ends up a backup, not bad for the 7th round 7 Steve Johnson Too bad all of our picks weren't 7th rounders this year as that seems to be the only place we did well...Steal! 7 Kennard Cox No longer with the team Except for Stevie and Bell (and possibly Leodis if he can put it all together) this was a dreadful draft...by next year 7 out of 10 draft picks could no longer be with the team 2007 Rnd 1 Marshawn Lynch Traded, no longer with the team...decent not great back with off-field issues 2 Paul Posluszny I'll say solid LB, hopefully still with upside...but not as good as we thought we were getting 3 Trent Edwards Fail...no longer with the team 4 Dwayne Wright No longer with the team 6 John Wendling No longer with the team 7 Derek Schouman No longer with the team 7 C.J. Ah You No longer with the team Wow, this is ugly...only one player left from this draft and even he hasn't quite lived up to expectations 2006 Rnd 1 Donte Whitner Solid player, but not worth where he was drafted...may not be with the team next season 1 John McCargo Somehow he is still on the team, but has shown nothing...trading up to get him really hurt 3 Ashton Youboty I still think he's an excellent player, but injuries really stalled his career...may not be around next year 4 Ko Simpson May have been worth millions (in his own mind), but he is no longer with the team 5 Kyle Williams Love the guy...a steal in the 5th round 5 Brad Butler Good/solid OL, but injuries and career choice took him away from the game 6 Keith Ellison Gotten a lot of playing time over the years... never thought he was as bad as most fans thought...not bad for a 6th rounder but definitely a backup 7 Terrance Pennington No longer with the team 7 Aaron Merz No longer with the team Scary as it looks, this was probably one of our better drafts in this stretch. Williams is a beast, Whitner has been solid, Butler was solid while he was here, ellison got a lot of playing time (for good or bad), Ashton was good when not injured...nothing special (well Kyle maybe) and a couple of busts, but at least we got a lot of starts out of this group 2005 Rnd Name 2 Roscoe Parrish Finally got to show his talent last year before injury...like the guy 3 Kevin Everett We'll all remember Kevin and wish him well for what he went through, but as a player prior to the injury, hadn't clicked 4 Duke Preston No longer with the team 5 Eric King No longer with the team 6 Justin Geisinger No longer with the team 7 Lionel Gates No longer with the team Roscoe's all ya got here and we've gotten about a half season of good play out of him (although that may be on the coaches, not Roscoe) 2004 Rnd 1 Lee Evans Good to very good WR...solid pick 1 J.P. Losman Oops...I like J. P., but can't say anything but he was a bust...especially to have traded up for him 3 Tim Anderson Got some work out of him 4 Tim Euhus Long gone 7 Dylan McFarland No longer with the team 7 Jonathan Smith Fast Freddie has flown Ouch again...only Lee 2003 Rnd 1 Willis McGahee Mercifully gone from the team...never as good as he or the media thought he was 2 Chris Kelsay I know a lot of you don't like him, but he's been a solid guy for a number of years 3 Angelo Crowell Good LB...got a few good seasons from him...then injuries 4 Terrence McGee Has sured up one CB spot for the better part of a decade, but seems to be slowing down 4 Sam Aiken Good ST player...never hit as a wideout...no longer with the team 5 Ben Sobieski No longer with the team 6 Lauvale Sape No longer with the team 7 Mario Haggan No longer with the team Kelsay and McGee (and Aiken on ST) were the only guys we got solid production from for a number of years, Crowell was solid while he played, McGahee was another Donahoe disaster And of course, the year prior to this (2002) was the Mike Williams pick. Wow, this was actually a lot worse than I even thought it would be. 6 Drafts, 46 players selected, only 14 still with the team and by next season there may only be 9. And these guys are all like 24 to 30 years old...should be in the prime of their careers (if they had been good picks/players). And it's not like the guys no longer with the team have gone on to play great for someone else or anything. Out of all of those picks, the only ones of value (or possible value) have been maybe Kelsay, McGee, Lee, Kyle, Donte, Roscoe, Crowell, Ellison, Butler, Poz, Marshawn, Stevie, Bell, Leodis. That's 13 of 46 and I'm sure we could all debate (and have) how good each of them actually are. But those are the best players we drafted over that 6 year stretch. How many could be considered studs or stars, or excellent, or at least very good? Maybe Lee (had some real good seasons but hasn't been consistent over his career), Kyle Williams, Stevie (looks like it could happen). That's it...kind of 3 out of 46 (or 6.5%). I figured I would conclude that the Mike Williams, McGahee, Losman, McCargo mistakes (high picks wasted, picks wasted trading up) would have really been our downfall...but those wouldn't have seemed as big of gaffes as they were if we had been hitting on a number of our other picks...but we struck out on about 72% of our picks over that span (and that's if you're counting all 13 of the players I listed above not striking out). It's amazing we were even able to average 7 wins a season over that stretch and not be 2-14 every year. C'mon Buddy...build us a team, please...this is just pathetic. Haven't we suffered enough? Go Bills!

Let's throw out all of the stats for a moment...as we all know a lot of factors go into how an individual's stats end up... so, for just a minute lets not think of stats. 1. Fitzpatrick will be our starter next year. This is not in doubt as Chan loves him and even if the Bills take a QB at 3, I don't think Chan will want to start any of them year one since most of them didn't play in a Pro-style offense and will need to learn a lot. So, since Fitz will be our general next year, at least, can't we stop tearing the poor guy down and start rooting for him? 2. If the FO feels that there is a possible franchise QB on the board at their pick, they will not pass him up...nothing we say pro- or anti-Fitz will make any difference to the FO...if a guy they like is there, they will take him and start grooming him behind Fitz (to step in if Fitz doesn't keep improving or if the player picked is just better; or for the future if Fitz keeps playing well). 3. Regardless of stats, anyone who watched last season should be able to see that Fitz took a huge step forward in his own progression as a QB from the year before. Going into last season I was not a Fitz supporter. In fact, I thought of him as the last/worst option for us at QB. I was so wrong. Fitz totally won me over last year with his heart, his smarts, and his overall play. The kid is a gamer. He may or may not be the long term answer; he may have plateaued and we've seen his best or he might keep improving. We won't know until next year, but tearing him down won't get us Cam Newton, Andrew Luck, or any other QB anyone is wishing for. That's up to the FO and a bit of fate. Fitzpatrick is the QB of the Buffalo Bills right now, so let's root for the guy and let the future play out as it will. Go FItz! Go Bills!