JohnC

There is no doubt that when Whaley and the Pegula's interviewed Rex for the HCing job a priority question was what his evaluation of EJ was. The same critical question also had to have been brought up with Roman. I'm not going to guess what their views are but if Leroi is right in his "inside conjecture" then the outlook for EJ has to be very questionable. If both Rex and Roman have negative views on EJ then eventually he will be cut or traded. But they are not going to take that dispatching action until they have another qb in the fold. That would be the prudent thing to do.

I don't know if Leroi has inside information or not. But what he is saying is very plausible. Last year on WGR prior to the season I believe that it was Paul Hamilton?? (could have been someone else) he said that the staff was stunned how inaccurate and erradic EJ was during the offseason workouts and in training camp. Supposedly the coaching staff were so spooked at his poor performances that they came to the conclusion very early on that they were in trouble with EJ as a starter. It didn't take Marrone too long to pull the plug. Part of the friction between Whaley and Marrone had to do with the lack of backup plan if EJ faltered. Leroi, let me know if what I just said is somewhat accurate!

Without words that play said it all.

Make no mistake about which qb Rex is going to favor entering training camp. It is going to be the veteran qb over the younger and more physically imposing qb. One of the primary reasons why Rex went through such a disasterous season last year is that his young qb made poor decisions (making the right reads and protecting the ball) and was an erratic passer. Do you think that he wants to go through that same ordeal with his new team? Rex would be more than willing to have a care taker veteran qb who although very much limited as a player knows how to play and manage the game. Rex is not a fool. EJ is going to be given a chance to compete with McCown or whoever is brought in. If he demonstrates that he is a better option he will be the starter. In my view the HC's bias is going to be leaning toward the more experienced qb. Whether EJ is the starter or not because of the injury factor in a long season he will be given an opportunity to get playing time.

I don't care how Orton compares to any other mediocre qb in this league. After watching him perform last year I consider him to be unacceptable as a starting qb for us. If Whaley brought him back as a starter I would strongly advocate that Whaley be fired for incompetence. I'm aware that McCown is an average to below-average qb at best. But at least he can move and is dedicated enough to work out in the offseason and come into camp fit, something that Orton didn't do.

When you compare wretched with wretched you still get wretched. When it comes to assessing Orton my eyes are much more jaundiced than yours.

The Bills are not in a position to be a SB team this year under any circumstances. They don't have the caliber of qb that would allow them to compete at that high level. At this point they don't have the caliber of o-line either that would allow this team to be taken seriously as a SB contender. If you are not in a good situation to get your franchis qb that doesn't mean that you not should try to make the best out of the challenging situation. There are no upper tier qbs available on the market and there are no qb draft prospects available to us that would alter the qb deficit. So you make do with a temporary solution and wait for a better environment to acquire your long-term qb. Maybe if Foles was availble a deal could be made. But as of yet the market is bare. McCown is a very average qb at best. Orton was a mediocre qb who was fading fast. I maintain my contention that he was the worst starting qb in the league. Don't bother using statistics on me to prove otherwise. I trust my eyes more than his stats that were boosted by the end of the game prevent defenses. His performances after his first fews games were dreadful. The smartest thing he did and the right thing he did was retire immediately after the season. If our front office was sincere in wanting him back they should be fired!

Last year Rex underwent the trauma of watching a young qb, Smith, not knowing where to go with the ball and consistently making poor decisions. In my mind he is going to prefer a very limited veteran qb who knows how to play over a more physically gifted younger qb who is still learning how to play. Whether EJ starts or not he is better off from a development standpoint playing on a team with McCown. If EJ decisively out performs McCown (if he is on the team) to win the starting job then that is a good development. The reality is that the qb position for the Bills is not going to be a strength. So as it has already been acknowledged by the organization the emphasis is going to be on the defense and a good running game. (Don't be too surprised if the Bills use their first pick to select a back.) For me all I ask is to have competent qb play instead of inept qb play.

There was talk that Jacobs was willing to fund a significant portion of the stadium costs. I assume that is quid pro quo for the concession rights for the facility (all events). Does that also include naming rights or is that part of the negotiatin discussion? When Pegula won the bid it appeared that he was negotiating against himself and that he over bid to knock the competition out of the water and to guaranette that he was going to gain the franchise. In hindsight if he could have won the bid with a $1-1.2 B then he would have been in a much better position to finance a larger portion of a new stadium and have less potential resistance from the public when the stadium debate is in full force.

The Pats have beaten us 26 out of the last 28 games, and the last victory wasn't meaningful because they pulled their starters out of the game because it meant nothing to them. We may consider them to be rivals but they certainly don't see us as credible challengers. Both the Jets and Dolphins can't be considered serious rivals because we and they have not been in many situations where a victory or defeat against one another has major implications with respect to the standings and playoffs. The interest associated with rivals is very much diminished because this franchise has been bad for a generation. During the past decade or so how many meaningful games have we played in? When a team has been not only bad but boring for a generation then don't be surprised the other fan base yawns when there is an upcoming game with us. It doesn't matter what your fan base's intensity is when the opposition doesn't give a hoot about you. That is not a recipe for an authentic rivalry. The solution is to win some games and get back in the playoff race. Then the rivalries will naturally develop instead of this immature habit of making excuses why we lose and why other teams win. Become credible on your own and then you will be taken seriously.

I was doing the circuit on itunes and I listened to some Brenda Lee and Patsy Cline songs. Both of their voices are terrific. Now have some of their pristine songs on my ipod and listen to them while working out. I may be late to the party but Maroon 5 and Rihanna are also very good.

Cleveland has an abundance of picks. They are in a good position to offer some of their surplus picks to the Titans to select Mariota. What does that mean for their troubled young qb, Johnny M? Probably cut loose. The biggest challenge Cleveland has is not allowing their volatile owner sabotage his own franchise with his fool impulsive decisions. However, when you are the boss being stupid and acting recklessly is allowed because you own the toy franchise.

You are reinforcing my point that many people have preconceived notions regardless what is known or not known. Why not wait for the report to see if it confirms or undercuts what you think about the situation? If something happened to the balls the more important issues are who was involved and what was the intent. I'm confident that very soon the investigation and the report will be made public. I predict that a lot of the fulminations and rantings were wasted on a matter that didn't rise to the level that many expected.

I apologize if my response seemed too harsh. Sometimes when reading a response the tone and context is misread by the responder (me). I always appreciate your well reasoned responses even when I disagree with some of them.

Who said it is a yes or no situation? Your response is odd and not understandable. Not trying to be mean-spirited but I don't understand your response. The underpinning of almost everything I have commented on relates to the proportionality of the responses to the as of yet unknown infraction. On this issue odds are that BB is innocent. Until the Wells report is issued no one knows for sure. I also believe that Brady is totally innocent of the shenanigans that others are falsely making. There is no doubt that Belichick is very unpopular. Much of it can be attributed to jealousy for his long term success and his insufferable arrogance. But regardless of his unappealing personality anyone who has an ounce of objectivity will acknowledge that he is by far the best HC in the history of the modern NFL.

What evidence are you referring to regarding improper handling of balls? That is why we are waiting for the Wells report. What stories are you alluding to that claimed improper handling? The stories that make claims based on speculations?

The attached link is a Washington Post article on a story regarding the Wells investigation. At this point (prior to the report) I'm not prematurely making assumptions as the conspiracy and anti-Pat crowd has a tendency to do. As I have often stated let the investigative process run its course and then make a reasoned judgment. When all and said and done Alphadog from the start has had the most reasoned and mature response on this issue. There are participants who should apologize to him for their hostility toward him and his measured responses. http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/redskins/deflategate-and-what-it-amounted-to-remains-an-open-question/2015/02/23/e01311dc-b9f1-11e4-a200-c008a01a6692_story.html

It is a shame that Broadway Joe played in an era before today's modern medicine and arthoscopic surgeries. Regardless what Joe M's stats were he threw a magnificent ball. What is often not considered when evaluating him is his football smarts and his play calling talents.

You are astute and perspicacious. Some players excel in a combine setting and others regularly make contributions on the field. I just don't see him overcoming his fragility in such a brutal sport.

As you acknowledged none of us knows the facts here. That is the point. Yet so many people have an unshakeable view of what happened before knowing what happened and who is involved. An investigation led by a highly respected attorney is on going. It is not an adversarial investigation because the organization that is under investigation is fully cooperating. Everyone who needs to be questioned is being questioned. No one is refusing to be interviewed. All tapes that are relevant are beng offered and are being examined. What more do you want? You represent the majority view of the posters. The view that has an undercurrent theme that the league is treating the Patriot organization more favorably than it would other organizations. My view is the opposite in that they get more scrutiny than other organizations because they are so successful. Because of the intensity of feelings of a loser and jeaolous fan base towards the most successful franchise in modern history little infractions are portrayed to be bigger and more meaningful than they are. There is no other fan base that is so rabidly consumed than this fan base. That in itself is embarrasing. There was little attention paid to other teams that mishandled balls and were subsequently punished by the league with a small fine. Because New England is such a prominent team a minor infraction (if that) is portrayed as if the lottery has been rigged. Repeating what I said in my other posts on this topic the revealling thing about this issue is the lack of proportionality in responses to what in reality is a very trivial matter. Note: I wasn't trying to be snide regarding your impressive achievements in law school and in your practice. You and your family have a right to be proud of what you have accomplished and respect the hard work you put in to get to where you are at. However, on this issue your thinking is sloppy and less than meticulous.

As an honor role law graduate then surely you understand that it is important to wait for the facts of this case to be determined before you make your conclusions. The investigation may be taking longer than you want but so be it. You are drawing conclusions before you even know what happened and who was involved. As you noted the NFL is a private organization and they can set their own standard. That is understood. What the NFL learned from the Ray Rice case is that expediency and sloppy work result in poor results. You want a quicker finding to suit your already establlished prejudice. It doesn't work that way. Even in a quasi-legal setting the process takes more time than you are willing to allow for. This football inflation issue has been blown out of proportion. What happens if it is determined that someone deliberately lowered PSI level? Do you want the Pats to forfeit their game with the Colts? What if it is learned that other teams have over-inflated or under-inflated to suit their preferences? Then what do you do? As a lawyer with honors you certainly know enough about the law that their are levels of infractions. If the Pats crossed the line then there should be consequences just as there was a insignificant fine against the Falcons for improperly handling the footballs in their game against Carolina. The issue for me is about the degree of the act (if that is what it is) and proportionality in the response. On this issue I find that those who are aligned with your position are totally unbalanced with their responses. This frenzied reaction to what I consider to be an inconsequential act (it anything happened) is more telling than what actually did happen.

You have no understanding of the criminal process and the role of defense lawyers. Defense attorneys are not obligated to present a defense. The standard of proof of beyond a reasonable doubt is for the prosecution to prove in court. This inflate issue that has brought out the rabid and conspiratorial responses of Bills fans compared to fans at large is a testatment to the losing mentality associated with this historically bumbling franchise. The issue for me has little to do with right or wrong as it does with proportionality. While the enraged Buffalo fans are apopolectic regarding the possible tampering with balls by the Patriots there is little response regarding the inappropriate handling of balls in the Atlanta and Carolina game. http://espn.go.com/blog/minnesota-vikings/post/_/id/11218/nfl-aware-of-game-ball-incident-during-panthers-vikings I said it before and I say it again making excuses why your team regularly losers and making excuses why other teams win is a sad display of a losing mentality associated with the home town fans. It is embarrassing.

What standard of proof do you want? Guessing in order to support your biases. It's bad enough making excuses why the Bills lose so often but now it has gotten to the pathetic point where the jealous home town crowd has restorted to making excuses while others win. Losing with dignity can be respected but losing without grace is ugly and classless.

Let me attack this issue from a broader perspective discounting the position. If an Olineman or Dlineman or LBer or CB was as brittle as Goodwin would you have him on your roster as a niche player? Of course not. We are not being theoretical in our discussion. The issue is who is ready to play and contribute, even as a specialty player. Goodwin has never been used as a full time player. He is more of a situational receiver used to go on long patterns. Yet even with his limited role and playing time he can't be counted on to stay healthy enough to contribute much. Instead of arguing back and forth over whether it is more important to have him over a ST player there is another aspect to that issue. The issue is whether another receiver can be more productive than the minimally productive receiver who can't stay healthy. My position is that I would prefer a medium range receiver who can make catches over the speed demon who can't get on the field. I believe that another productive player will make Watkins and Woods even more effective. There are players who are injury prone. And there are players who can work through their injuries and stay on the field. I'm not criticizing Goodwin's effort so much as acknowledging his lack of durability. Watkins, Woods, Hogan and Chandler do get knocked around a lot in this very vicious crash sport. Goodwin can't come close to tolerating the hits that they absorb. It's not his fault that he lacks durability. He's a fine tuned athlete who can't sustained the punishment that is inherent in his profession. What's telling is that compared to the other receivers he sustains fewer hits, yet he is still can't be depended on to get much playing time. Staying healthy enough to play is in some respect an inherent talent. He simply doesn't have it.

You don't think there is a correleation to better STs play and having more players on the roster who were good on special teams? No matter how you apportion the spaces on your roster if the player you want to utilize more is not healthy enough to play then what is the point? Watkins played hurt because he was physically able to do so, even if the injury limited him. On the other hand Goodwin is built in such a fine-tuned way that if he had a nagging injury it more than curtailed his ability to perform, it shut him down. The reality is that a player with less tools such as Hogan demonstrably outperformed the olympicly talented Goodwin because he was more durable. When all is said and done it is about what you actually do and not what you are capable of doing. Another way to look at this is that staying healthy enough to be on the field is a critical talent in itself. That is a talent that Goodwin doesn't have.