2020 Our Year For Sure

When Buddy had unquestioned authority and he needed a MLB, he drafted Kelvin Sheppard. This year we get Kiko Alonso. Two players who couldn't be more different from each other, both on the field and off. We had a different philosophy in this draft than we have in the past-- we went for guys with athleticism and a chip on their shoulder as opposed to smarts and character.

I don't think Buddy's been in charge of this team ever since Ralph stepped down and Russ stepped up. For whatever reason they wanted him to be the face of the organization to the media for awhile. But I will always believe that it was Brandon that hired Marrone. When the hottest coach on the NFL market chooses the Bills, you can bet that his prior relationship with the President had something to do with it.

It's not just a WCO. How will Kolb do with the run n shoot elements? K-Gun and New Orleans offenses will be part of what we're doing. Offenses built to attack deep. I suspect the short passing game will be a means to an end to open up the vertical game.

Look at Donnie Henderson getting his guys ready to go, I love it. Does Duke Williams start at SS?

Good post LV, I'm starting to lean this way too. If necessary you can always alter your offense some in order to cater to what Manuel does well and is ready for.

He's so good in his routes that it doesn't matter to me if he has lacks elite top end speed. He's always a deep threat because he can beat just about any CB you put in front of him. There were times he got open deep and Fitz couldn't get him the ball.

He's not a lock. He showed nothing last year outside of straight-line speed. It's clear they don't just want speed, they want versatility. For example, Goodwinn isn't just really fast, he's also a good blocker, a good route runner, and catches the ball well. Those areas were all question marks for Graham coming out of school, and continue to be. He had 7 drops and 31 catches last year so he dropped over 20% of catchable passes. He was acquired without this coaching staff's seal of approval so we don't know how high they are on him. Nelson and Jones weren't released, their contracts expired and the Bills let them go. Dickerson and Easley still being here certainly doesn't make them locks to make the roster.

No, he played poorly even for a rookie. Dropped passes, failed to memorize the playbook and where to line up, route running is still a concern as it was coming out of school. And playing for a coaching staff that emphasizes versatility he needs to show he can run precise routes and be useful in more ways than just fly patterns. He has a lot to prove and a lot of talented, versatile players to compete with.

What is your favorite color?

I don't think that Graham was able last year to dispel the questions during the draft process about his hands. He had 7 drops and 31 receptions while Brad Smith had 0 drops last year (though only 14 catches). I think that if this coaching staff was super high on Graham they wouldn't have prioritized adding two wideouts early in the draft the way they did. If we have Stevie and Woods and we're in love with Graham, it would make sense to look at a different position in the 3rd round. It doesn't seem like the coaches are 100% sold on him is all I'm saying. It's true they want speed but they also want versatility and precise route running. Graham has a lot to prove. A lot of guys make their biggest improvement from year 1 to year 2 and the early word on Graham is good, so we'll see if he can answer some of the questions about him. I wouldn't say he's a lock though, he needs to show significant improvement over last year. There's a lot of talent at WR.

Earlier in the offseason I was down on Brad Smith but now I think he can be a useful 3rd or 4th WR. He was the better receiver than Graham last year. Gailey had Smith practicing as a quarterback-- allowing him to focus solely on being a WR will help him. And in an offense that'll have west coast elements, his ability to run with the ball will create yards after catch. I could see the WRs being Stevie, Woods, Smith, Goodwin and Rogers (if he doesn't raise more character concerns), with Graham potentially getting the axe.

This makes it sound like they're not too far apart. It's very unlikely that 7M is the Bills' upward limit, both sides are playing the game. It looks like they'll meet at 8M or a little more, which seems a good deal for each side. It's taking a little longer than we would like because Parker is good at this.

At that first OTA or minicamp or whatever it was reported that first team reps had Dareus at nose tackle with Branch at DE. It confused me some because I thought part of the reason for signing Branch was to put him on the nose and allow Dareus to play his natural DE position he played in college. Correct me if I'm wrong, I don't see Marcel as a space-clogging NT, but more an athletic penetrating lineman. I wonder if playing out of position might hurt his chances for a breakout year. Obviously Pettine knows what he's doing a whole lot better than I do, I'm just wondering what thoughts are out there.

I'm pleased with our hire of Marrone but I do think Lovie deserves another HC job in the NFL. The guy went 10-6 last year. As will always be the case with a defensive HC in today's NFL, the OC he's paired with is of vital importance, but he's a good football mind and a good leader, I see no reason why he can't continue to have success. Norv I'd want no part of.

What is the point you're trying to make here? Every coaching hire and player acquisition represents a risk. From a certain point of view you could say a GM's job is nothing more than taking on a series of calculated gambles. I haven't seen anything out of the ordinary in this department, outside of maybe Nate Hackett.

Awesome! I'm getting the feeling this team will have a lot of fight to em.

How do people figure we'll be worse than last year? Based on 6 wins last year and an improvement in coaching on defense I'll say about 8-8.

:lol:

#1 in your cyph!

He's too damn tall.

Well said! I wish we could at least start a fresh thread for a major signing. Kevin Kolb gets signed and it gets merged with pages and pages of pre-signing chatter, making it nearly impossible to find the initial reactions when the news broke. And yeah if you're on a mobile device forget it- that thread is not for you.

I'm not sure about the bolded. In the beginning of the season the Bills should do whatever gives them the best chance to win games. If they find themselves at 2-6 then yes, we're not going anywhere, throw the kid in and let him get ready on the field. Kelly makes a great point about mental toughness. Some guys make mistakes and lose their confidence, for other guys mistakes only make them better. EJ seems at this point to be more of the latter, and because of that, he should start if he's about even with Kolb on the field. But if Kolb seems to give us the best chance to win he should get the job in the beginning. It's all about how they look in camp.

Competent scouts are able to do so. That's why Manuel was a first round pick. However there are wannabe scouts in the media blasting the pick, calling Manuel "inconsistent." Maybe the lack of talent around him is part of the reason why these incompetents see it that way. They watch tape but are unable to separate the prospect from the situation the prospect is in.

I'm excited about this kid, he comes out of nowhere to shut down running plays. He's fast and he loves to hit, plus the Bills' scout (bb.com video) said he has CB cover skills. He has a chance to be a special player and I wouldn't be surprised to see him start opening day. If he does fulfill his potential and we're able to sign Byrd, watch out.