JohnC

I hope you don't take this personally but you are a freaking ignoramus. You are criticizing me for taking a position that you are ardently supporting. Where is the logic in your response? I, as much as anyone, has been advocating for doing what you have to to get a qb. That doesn't mean that what you want to do can be done. So if you can't accomplish what you want to then you seek other options. Your response to what was originally posted makes absolutely no sense. To your credit at least you are consistent. I'm just curious? What are the annual fees to the "Idiot Club" you belong to.

When I watched the play and the replays I also didn't see it as a vicious hit. But it was a hit on a vulnerable player. When we watch the game and the replays we don't get a sense how fast the game is and how the players are instinctively reacting. My sense is that this was not a dirty play or rather an intentional dirty hit. I didn't watch the whole game because the Sabres are at times a tough watch. What I notice is that with Okposo playing with Mittlestadt it has given him more room to get his shot off. If Mittlestadt makes Okpo a more effective player then that is like adding an extra player to the roster. Just with a glimpse of Mittlestadt I like his game and you can see the potential. If the Sabres can get Nylander to make a quantum leap forward then there is hope.

With all the teams that have qb needs and adding teams that have fading veterans to the want list I don't see Rudolph lasting to our pick in the second round. As I stated before if the staff believes that Rudolph can develop into a franchise qb then use your second first round pick for him. Let's be clear I wouldn't use our first first round pick on him because the value isn't there but I would with no hesitation use our second first pick on him. Without question I would love to get one of the top four qbs. But if that can't be accomplished keeping your picks and working from there isn't a bad situation to be in.

If the Bills don't trade up they should use their second first on a qb like Rudolph or Jackson. If the Bills really believe that Rudolph can be a franchise qb then why wait and lose out? This scenario is not a bad scenario for us. We keep our picks and fill needs. I have heard Bucky talk about the draft a number of times. His philosophy is don't reach for a qb and build up your roster. In general that isn't a bad approach to take. But the Bills are in a position to get a qb with their assets. So if it could reasonably be accomplished then they need to seize the opportunity.

The ideal is not a Buffalo experience.

Interesting selections. How you drafted brings up an issue that is hovering over the Bills. If a qb such as Mayfield starts sliding do you passively wait and hope he is still there? Or do you become proactive and deal with a six to nine team to take away the risk that the Dolphins or another unsuspecting team might jump ahead and grab Mayfield? If you believe, as I do, that it is absolutely critical that the Bills come out of this draft with a high end prospect then you should be aggressive in securing your qb.

You are a hater!

Am I pathetically uncool if I don't like the music?

Gunner, You did such a fine job in evaluating the qbs that I felt guilty receiving your work product. So I decided to send you a humongous check as compensation for your service. If you don't receive the check within a week then blame either the US or English Postal Service. As usual my intentions were noble in nature.

My impression of Elway is that he isn't viewing the upcoming season with a long term perspective. I think he believes that his window to win is now and is starting to close. If he did select a qb I think he would prefer either Rosen or Mayfield who are more ready to play sooner. In this draft if Elway bypassed a qb he could either select an elite positional player or trade down and get more picks to address other needs.

Maybe Paxton Lynch can give him some tips on what not to do? One of the reasons why I don't think that the Broncos are going to draft a qb with their high first round pick is that Lynch has shown a commitment to his profession this offseason that he hasn't shown before. Elway may try to salvage what up to now has been a mistake.

If you think a bad draft sets a team back consider the multi-year set back that happened with the hiring of a corpulent and loquacious huckster coach? I'm not going to bother trying to argue with you over the importance of DBs. You are too hardened on that issue. Almost as hardened as I was on the Taylor issue. Although I have a more legitimate excuse for my obstinacy: family mulish genes

There are no guarantees with prospects. But typecasting players and comparing them to failed players is a lazy way of evaluating players. Sometimes players fail because they are simply not good enough. And sometimes players fail because they are not put in a position to succeed. If you draft a player like Allen you can't immediately throw him onto the field and expect him play well. RG III was a talented player who because of the way he was handled and with his lack of receptivity to coaching didn't fulfill his potential. Few evaluators will say that Allen is a finished product. That is understood. On the other hand most evaluators acknowledge that he has stunning physical talent that needs to be harnessed. This certainly is a player worth investing in. If you get too fixated on a weakness you miss out seeing the overall strength.

If there is a position that you are going to draft on potential it is the qb position. And if there is a position that will require development and investment in good coaching it is for the qb position. There are qbs in this draft such as Rosen and Mayfield who will see the field sooner rather than later. Allen is certainly not one of them. So what! The team that drafts him does so with the realization that he needs a year or more before he should be a full time starter. When you see a qb with abundant physical attributes the next obvious question is does he have the makeup to learn and the work ethic to fulfill his potential. Too many people take a snapshot approach to evaluating players. Their attitude is what you are is what you will be. That static view toward evaluating players is so outdated and limiting. There are no guarantees on almost all players. If you are afraid to fail you will never succeed.

Bill, From a record standpoint I don't expect the Bills to be as good as last season. From the start I have believed that this was a major rebuild endeavor. When the new regime took over good players were dispatched and big contracts were shed in order to start the process of not only rebuilding this roster but also restructuring the cap in a smarter way. The first year success of participating in the playoffs was in my view a surprise and a fluke. That accomplishment was a tribute to the HC and his staff getting the players to buy in what they were espousing. I, as with you, desperately want to come out of this draft with a high end qb prospect. Getting Mayfield for a reasonable expenditure would be terrific. However, there is a good chance that the chips won't fall in our favor and allow us to get a deal done. If that happens then I'm not going to be in a state of despair. With the number of high picks a good fall back response is to use the picks to bolster a thin roster. Getting AJ was a reasonable option transitioning from the Taylor era. Is he better? The best way to answer that question is that he is different in that he is more of a conventional qb who can run a pro offense. Ultimately, I consider him to be a reasonable backup when this team gets a legitimate franchise qb. You have consistently been a harsh critic of Whaley. History has proven you to be correct. His patchwork approach to assembling a roster was an approach that was going to keep this franchise entrenched in the middle of the pack. His passivity on the qb issue was an act of malfeasance. With his type of tactical thinking the best that could be hoped for was keeping this team in the category of being a fringe wild-card team i.e. a category that applies to 70% of the teams. At least with the McBeane tandem you can see a blue print implemented with some strategic thinking and action. That more coherent way of doing business is what makes me optimistic.

The limb you are daring to go on is on the verge of snapping. Get off of it right now before you hurt yourself! Is the qb you are speculating about either Rosen or Allen?

There is another aspect to the trade up scenario that hasn't too often been mentioned that involves the perspective of the teams wanting to move down for more picks. One the one hand there isn't a team that is as good of a candidate to move up that has more ammo than us. On the other side of the equation teams that might want to move down such as Denver and the Colts will be competing with one another for bidders for their draft spot. The dynamic/incentive is that because those teams are competing with each other to complete a deal with a prospective team it will lower the price. Think of it as a supply/demand issue. I just don't see a deal being consummated until the day of the draft because it would be foolish for us to jump the gun because there is a chance that more teams than expected in front of us will eschew qbs and take positional players. That will only enhance our bargaining position if we decide to go in that direction. It's very probably that a qb or two on our wanted list will slide. The lower they slide the better the deal for us.

You make a good point that it's not just about the qb but also the overall roster. So there is an intermediate solution to this issue: trade up but only as far as it takes to get one of the top tier qbs. Instead of trading with the Giants for the two spot it would make more sense to deal with the Colts at the six spot. The assumption is that there will still be on the board one of the top tier qb prospects. If all of them are taken then keep your picks and use them to bolster the roster. In every draft there are unexpected twists and turns. I wouldn't be surprised if a number of the top drafting teams decide to pick for other positions resulting in some qbs falling down the board. My point is that this isn't an all or nothing gung ho strategy for a qb. I'm confident that this regime that has demonstrated good judgment will make their calculations and come out with a smart decision.

We know that he damaged property and while naked was enraged and had to be restrained. That is known and is in the police report. We don't know why.

We know what happened but not why. Whatever the reason I'm hoping that he is now well. He struggled last year. That was obvious. But what wasn't publicized was that he played with an injury all season long. If any player is going to have a major turnaround it is him. He playing up to what was expected from him when he was drafted will be a big unexpected bonus.

If the Browns had functional qbing last year they would have easily won four more games. I'm not a fan of Tyrod Taylor and am glad he is off of our roster. However, if he provides the Browns with an average level of play at his position and with the addition of players from the draft and free agency this Great Lake team can take a quantum leap forward. As I and some others have said before the Browns have a better core of young players than the Bills do. In my view the big mistake that the Browns made this year is that they kept Hue Jackson. They should have moved on and started fresh. That was an owner decision; it was a mistake.

Why do you believe that Allen will still be on the board at the twelve spot? If Baker slipped I could understand it but not Josh Allen. To be clear Baker is one of my favorite prospects. I would prefer him over Allen.

I don't see Cleveland trading their second first round pick at the four spot. They already have an abundance of picks and plenty of cap space. With their two high first round picks they are going to go for elite talent rather than get a quantity of good talent. Their owner has instructed the new GM that now is the time to start emphasizing winning games rather than focus on the future. The fan base is too fatigued and exasperated with the process.

This team is unwatchable. I simply can't watch a whole game. People can critically analyze the units but the essence of the problem is that this team sorely lacks talent. It's as if the players are aware of their deficit compared to the opposition and simply play to hang on. The player I feel sorry for is Eichel. His scintillating talents are being wasted. I hope that his frustration won't build up to the point where his spirit is crushed and wants out. The former GM traded away a first round pick for Lehner, a player that the Senators weren't going to keep. That was malfeasance.

The speculation is that some teams that are expected to take a qb won't do so. Denver is one of the teams. The Jets would probably take Rosen over Baker. The one board on the NFL Network had Cleveland taking Darnold, the Giants taking Allen and the Jets taking Rosen. If that holds up then at six the Colts would be in a good position to deal. Of course this all speculation.That is why the Bills won't make a deal until they see how the draft unfolds.