JohnC

Just think if Darius was subjected to the Patriot boot camp? He would either be one of the best DTs in the league or he would be due to lassitude quickly dispatched from that team due.

I consider McCoy a tremendous talent. But his signing and expenditure are an indictment of Whaley's ability to astutely structure a roster from a talent and cap standpoint. One thing the Pats have mastered is how to value positions and players. They know when to buy and when to sell. If draft picks are taken from them they make their adjustments through smart free agency selections. They are the model for the saying: Knowing when to hold them and when to fold them.

Evidently hard work is a supplement that Darius is not acquainted with.

We salute him and the Patriots. They are an organization predicated on intelligence and accountability. The Bills are an organization whose ethos is incompetence and laxity. You model yourself on those who know how to succeed and not those who function in an environment of chaos and mediocrity. Any organization that hires Rex Ryan to be its HC forfeits its right to be taken seriously. Again, congratulation to Boston Jack and the Patriots. Roger Goodell acted like a raging third world potentate in the deflategate saga. He handing over the Lombardi Trohphy to Kraft made him look small. I also salute Kraft's pithy but sharp comments when he received the trophy.

Attached link of the highlights of the game. There were countless great throws and some extraordinary catches by the receivers. James White was a difference maker in this game. A side note: Alan Branch is a talented player who has a tendency to get lazy and slide back. That's what happened during his stay in Buffalo. He goes to the Pats where there is a rigorous standard and little toleration for a lack of effort and discipline. He was an anchor lineman in this game and all season. He came up with the critical fumble. If you watch him you will notice him constantly pushing the pile backwards. http://buffalonews.com/2017/02/06/video-top-plays-super-bowl-li/

I won't say get used to it because you and all of us have no choice. Congratulations. Great game and suspenseful game. The more poised team and coaching staff was the difference in this contest. Brady and Belichick are the best of the best. Gisele is a happy person. http://www.si.com/extra-mustard/2017/02/05/gisele-bundchen-super-bowl-patriots-comeback

Last year Kyle and Ryan had an on going feud that got so contentious that the HC and the GM had to step in. Kyle had a tendency to slow the pace down and work the clock when the team had a lead. Ryan insisted on going full throttle and going for the kill and the post kill. They had forced counseling sessions between them this offseason where Kyle relented more than Ryan. The OC agreed to continue to be more aggressive at the latter stages of the game no matter what the situation was. My point here is that Ryan won out over the OC from a strategy point. In this particular game what killed Atlanta was not the problem of being too aggressive at the end of the game because it put them in a good position put the game away. It was Ryan not being aware of the situation from a field position standpoint. The qb stupidly took a sack when all he had to do was throw it away and have his team in position to kick a field goal which would have locked up the game.

I don't need to exert myself and check out the prior loony posts. There are people who believe that Rex was a terrific HC who should not have been fired. Believing Montana is better than Brady is actually a more sane opinion than the Rex devotion opinion.

Our offseason started almost a month ago. The same time it has started for the past generation. Need you be reminded?

You are entitled to your opinion. Your opinion is a distinct minority opinion. The only people who think Montana is better are his family members.

Great tension filled game. I don't care how much people here dislike the Pats and Brady you have to give them credit. Brady made so many clutch throws. One of the big biggest plays that resulted in the Falcons losing the game was when Ryan got sacked and took his team out of field goal range. It was a crushing mistake. If they would have been in position to kick a field goal the Pats would have had to score twice. The Pats got the ball back and scored a TD and capped it off with a two point conversion. I thought the rookie receiver, Mitchell, made some big plays for the Pats. There were great catches by both teams. Julio Junes made some stunning catches. And Endelman made a phenomenal catch in the middle of the field snatching it away from a defender and catching it while it was juggling around. Unquestionably Brady is the best of the best of all time.

I'll give another example. If at a game fans throw things on the court the fans will be warned to stop. If it continues the home team is subject to be penalized. I agree the refs could have exercised better judgment but from a technical sense it was the right call.

I fully agree with you that Zeke is the better player and more talented player than Dak. Zeke even as a rookie is in the lofty Peterson talent category for RBs. But I disagree (respectfully but strenuously) with you on who is the more important player for the Cowboys. Dak competently taking over the qb position when Romo got hurt was what allowed the Cowboys to have a successful season. I have no doubt (I'm sure you disagree) that if the Cowboys could have one or the other player they would take the qb. I have previously used the same analogy with the Raiders. There is no doubt Kalil Mack is an all-pro caliber of player while Carr is a good qb. If you rank the talent levels for the respective positions Mack ranks demonstrably higher. But as far as importance to the team Carr is immensely more important. Again, if you ask the Raiders which player they would prefer to keep if they had to make a choice undoubtedly it would be the qb.

I live in the Md/DC area so I am familiar with how much Cousins played. You got the story wrong. Cousin didn't get much playing time. He only got in when RGIII got hurt. When RGIII got healthy again he went back to being the starting qb. The smart thing that Cousins did even when he was used as a scout qb in practice was work hard and prepare. When he finally got an opportunity to play he was ready. Shanahan actually preferred Cousins over RGIII. But the owner's preference prevailed. So what Shanahan did was play RGIII to the point that he became a lame and battered horse. It wasn't until there was no other option that Cousins got an opportunity to play. When Gruden replaced Shanahan it didn't take him long to realize that Cousins was the better qb. It still was a challenge to convince the owner who made a major investment in draft picks (his decision against Shanahan's judgment) for Griffin. Eventually the owner had to relent and acknowledge the obvious that Cousins was a better pro qb. The point of the story is that although he didn't play much in his first few years he was working hard to prepare and be ready when his opportunity came. That is a tribute to his character and hard work. I disagree with your view on Goff. Without any hesitation I would give up a first round pick for him. When the Rams selected him they knew and planned for him to use his first year as a prep year without much playing time, if any. But I believe that he is a top shelf talent. He throws a beautiful ball, has good mechanics, is accurate and has good arm strength. However, his college scheme was not very adaptable to the pro game. Making a judgment on his prospects based on his rookie year is very much too premature and is a mistake in my opinion.

Kirk Cousins didn't play until I think his fourth year. During that time he was diligently preparing and he was doing the same in the offseason where he would attend qb camps. Aaron Rogers didn't much see the field until I believe his fourth season but he also worked hard in practice to prepare himself when the opportunity came. The LA franchise knew very well when they drafted Goff that he wasn't prepared to play in his rookie season. The preparation strategy was due to the major transition from his college offense to the pro offense. With respect to Cardale he was worth the selection at the price of a fourth round investment because of his physical tools. The Bills could have drafted Dak Prescott in the third round but what do you expect from an organization that hasn't demonstrated much of an ability to evaluate that position?

If he turned into a backup qb then the return on investment would be tremendous.

Your question and/or point is a tremendous question. My candid answer is I really don't know. Do we know really how the GM and the owner actually view the current status of this team? They haven't clearly stated anything about where they believe this team is at and where it is heading. Is this a rebuild, partial rebuild or is it better to take a incremental patchwork approach to reworking the roster. I honestly don't know. While many of us are debating the qb issue (much to your chagrin) we don't really know what the organization's candid view of TT's viability is from a short or long term view. Compare how Pegula handled the hockey franchise with the football franchise? With the hockey franchise there was a full disclosure and a full declaration that the hockey team was in a major rebuild mode. With respect to the football franchise there is a reluctance to share what the private thoughts are with respect to the direction of the franchise. That is why the qb issue is so important. How that issue is handled gives a clue on the direction the organization is going to take.

It took a lot of courage to share your story. It provokes a lot of thoughts. Thank you for that. Condolences to you and your family.

I went back and watched it. When the crowd stormed the court there was still time on the clock. Maybe a fraction of a second or so? But there was still time. Did the referees use poor judgment? I would say yes. But technically they were correct. According to the rules the home team can be held accountable for how the crowd reacts.

There is still utility to be squeezed out of it You can moisten it and use it as a plug to patch a hole in a pipe.

Addressing one side of the ball doesn't mean that you can't address the other side of the ball. I'm sure most people are competent enough to chew gum and walk at the same time.

Responding to the highlighted area: Was Derek Carr an elite prospect? No. But he has had a dramatic affect on his team. Was Russell Wilson and elite prospect? No. But he has had a major affect on his team. Was Dak Prescott and elite prospect? No. But he has had a major affect on his team. Was Kirk Cousins and elite prospect? No. But he has had a positive affect on his team and he would be a sought out player if he was on the market. Your approach to the qb position represents the self-destructive notion of: seeking perfection being the enemy of the good. Your let's wait until next year turns it to let's wait until another year and another year. Before you know it a generation has gone by and you still got nothing.

Trubisky Kizer Watson Mahomes And there is another tier including Webb and others. None of the listed qbs are ready to play right away. That's the norm. Goff certainly wasn't ready when he played at the end of the season. However, the team made it abundantly clear that they realized that fact when they drafted him. They expected some development time before he was ready to start. Was Derek Car considered an elite prospect? No. But he was a good prospect that we passed on who has in short order changed the trajectory of that once laughable franchise. Was Russell Wilson an elite prospect coming out of college/s? Country Buddy passed on him and Cousins for a track receiver who miserably failed as a pro receiver. Let's go back and review the Russell Wilson case. He was graded highly in all the categories except height. For a team that didn't have a franchise qb for a generation how is that not a worthwhile gamble? How about Dak Prescott? He would have been a good third round selection, Instead the Bills took an immature and lazy DT from Ohio State who turned out to be a lazy and immature Buffalo Bill. The Bills are in a favorable position to draft a qb this year because we have a respectable bridge qb. There is no need to immediately place a rookie qb into the fray and and have him overwhelmed. There are those who subscribe to the Jauron/Levy approach to building a roster stressing the back end of the defense. That is an antiquated approach to take. You can draft a corner in the first round and he can turn out to be a HOF player. That Canton caliber CB will have a significantly less affect on the team compared to having a good (not great) qb on the roster. It's the same old foolishness every year with the calls to select players who play less consequential positions. I'm not against that approach if you have your franchise qb in place. But if you don't your priority should be to get the qb position secured and then add the other pieces. Drafting a qb in the first round doesn't mean that you can't address your other areas of need with the rest of the draft and free agency. I'm getting tired of hearing the lamenting that using a first round pick to select the best qb on the board is sabotaging the draft. It is one freaking pick! You are not only not mortgaging the future you are acting wisely in attempting to lock down a position that will most make your team a competitive team. It's exasperating to hear the same tired song every year to direct one's efforts to patchwork a roster with multiple holes. One way to elevate a flawed roster, even if it continues to be a flawed roster, is to have a legitimate franchise qb. You can win with a flawed roster if you have a good qb. You will continue to lose with a good roster and an inadequate qb. The Bills are not a wretchedly bad team; they are a wretchedly mediocre team. They are built to be in the 7-9 to 9-7 class. If a couple of acknowledged elite prospects were in this draft they would be unattainable. Do you think Cleveland, San Fran, Chicago or NY Jets would trade away their picks if they were in position to select a top tier qb prospect? Of course they wouldn't. The Bills are one of the most irrelevant and boring franchises in the league. They are an invisible franchise not on the radar for the rest of the country. It's been that way for a long time. Why is that? Because they continue to do what they usually do.

There was time on the clock when the fans stormed the court. So the technical foul was the right call. I watched part of the game. They are well coached and play an entertaining brand of game. I wonder if Hurley has any regrets? Canisius is playing better than the prognosticators predicted. They are also a well coached team. They are not big so they rely on the three point shot. I would love to see St. Bonnie, Canisius, Niagra and UB elevate their programs and make their mark in the region. Tough challenge to live up to for this hockey and football town.

Sell.