JohnC

In general it does take time to make a fair assessment on draft selections. But that certainly doesn't mean that on particular picks you can't make a conclusive judgment on a particular player. Shepperd can't play in this league. He has no football instincts. That's why he is off the roster. That might not be clear to you but it is to the Bills' organization. It didn't take the Bills long to conclude that Aaron Williams couldn't be a starting CB in this league. Not only did the new regime come to that conclusion so did the prior regime. Why do you think that Williams was shifted to the safey position? It certainly wasn't because he showed much promise as a CB on a team needing additional CBs. Don't be surprised if this second round Nix selection gets cut. This is a player we took instead of Kaepernick. Nix is a good guy but as a GM he is out of his depth. His record is a testament to his performance. Why do I focus a lot of attention on him? He is the primary decision- maker in the football operation. Who is most responsible for the roster and the team record? If you think he is doing an exemplary job then you are entitled to your opinion. I don't. If you believe he has had in general prior good drafts then that is an opinion I strenuously disagree with.

Aaron Williams is going into his third year. He has demonstrated that he can't play the position he was drafted for. It didn't take the new regime long to come to that obvious conclusion. With respect to TJ Graham need I remind you that he was taken instead of Russell Wilson. Will Graham turn out to be a good player? I can't say for sure. But what I can say with confidence is that the qb that should have been taken by the Bills in that round was passed over for a project track receiver. Added note: Even Nix has admitted that he waited too long to take a qb in last year's draft. He wouldn't say which one. Take a guess.

The hindsight argument when applied to drafted players is a nonsensical argument. You can't fairly evaluate a draft selection when it is made. To make a fair assessment you have to wait a few years and then make your judgment. Overall, Buddy Nix's prior three drafts have turned out to be mediocre. Do I like his first picks in his prior drafts? Yes I do. But is that how you judge his draft record? I don't. Buddy Nix's is the person most responsible for building the roster. That includes personnel decisions regarding free agency, drafting, HC hires and contracts. If you want to criticize Gailey, then who hired him? Nix did. If you want to criticize Fitz, then who gave him the oversized contract? Nix did. In the era of the cap and player movement three years is not an insignificant period of time to judge a GM's performance. His record is 16-32. His team has for the most part been incapable of beating a team that has a winning record. Against two very good teams last year the Bills were embarrassed (San Fran 45-3. Seattle 50-17). That is a humbling measuring stick. A few years ago Seattle hired a new GM and HC. That was around the same time that Nix was hired by the owner. Tell me which team is more advanced when both franchises started the rebuilding process at the same time? Just ask yourself why is there such a wide desparity between the two franchises? If the GM isn't the most influential person in a franchise then who else is?

Of course coaches and scouts have input in evaluating players. How else are you going to evaluate and rank players? There is no other way of preparing for the draft and then making your picks. My point is simple: Nix's draft record in the prior three years has been mediocre. Sheppherd was a third round pick who was a bust. His primary problem had little to do with the scheme he played in. He simply had inadequate football instincts for a position that required good instincts. London Fletcher doesn't have imposing physical skills. What has made him one of the best MLBs in the game for a decade or more is his great football instincts. Sheppherd simply was lost on the field. The next Nix high draftee who is in jeopardy is Aaron Williams, a second round pick. The accumulation of high draft selections that haven't developed into contributing players has weighed this franchise down. I don't believe I am being unfairly harsh (as some may believe) in declaring that Nix's overall draft record is mediocre. For me it it is very obvious.

You are absolutely right that I am taking a jab at Nix and his overall draft record. Shepperd was a third round draft pick who was less than mediocre. He simply couldn't play, regardless of the scheme. The Bills and the Colts were both trading two ineffectual players. Odds are that neither player will be making the roster of their respective teams. Not all high draft picks work out. That's the nature of the business. But when you have a high rate of faillure for your higher picks it is not surprising you end up with a record of 16-32 and an inability to beat teams with winning records. Don't be surprised when Aaron Williams, a second round pick, either doesn't make the final roster or becomes an inconsequential backup and ST player. Chalk that up to another Nix wasted high pick.

The scheme issue had little to do with him being traded. He couldn't even play in a simple Wanny scheme. The major problem with Shepperd is his football instincts were atrocious. He couldn't anticipate the play or follow the ball. The MLB is supposed to be the most active player responding to the ball. If you watched the games he was one of the most invisible players playing the most visible position on defense. Systematically the new staff is weeding out non-productive players, of which there were many. Chalk his departure to another one of Nix's high draft choices being wasted. On the positive note the roster is being cleansed of the ineffective players; on a negative note the cycle of having to fix what you thought you already fixed continues.

The trading of Sheppard had little to do with the scheme he played and the changing defensive scheme of the new regime. It was primarily due to the fact that Sheppard was an ineffectual LB. His instincts in diagnosing plays were dreadful. Usually the MLB is the most central player responding to the ball. Sheppard could not adequately respond to the ball and to the play. For a player playing the most visible position he was usually invisible. When he was drafted I thought this former SEC player was going to be a good player. He had the physical makeup to play but he lacked the instincts required to play this very demanding position. The bottom line is this is another Nix high draft choice that hasn't worked out. Having to constantly go back and refill the hole that you thought you already had filled has kept this franchise muddling along. I'm hoping that a change of scenery will prove beneficial to Sheppard and wish him the best.

You are the type of person who goes to the casino and tells the blackjoack dealer that he doesn't like the card that was dealt so he should deal him another card that he likes better. That's when the floor manager tells the security goons to throw this lunatic patron arse out of the premises and forever outlaw hm from coming back.

Buddy and the staff knew in advance who their favored qb prospect was in advance. There was no debate in the room as to which qb was going to be taken. Of course the coaches and the scouts are involved in the process. How else are you going to put together your board and your draft strategy? It's a collaborative process. Ultimately he has the final say. On this particular qb pick he and the staff spent a lot time and effort in researching this pick. Determining who was most influentical in selecting EJ is impossible for us as outsiders to know. There is no doubt that Marrone and the OC had a significant input in the decision, and so did the scouts. It doesn't matter to me whether the GM has an autocratic or delegator style of management. There are different styles of management that both succeed and fail. The GM is the boss of the football operation. He is the one who is most responsible for the construction of the roster. If there is a conflict in opionions in the draft room he is the decider.

There isn't a team in the NFL that isn't aware of his immense physical talents as a receiver and also his heavy character baggage. Probably the majority of teams interviewed him to get a feeling as to whether he was a redeemable player and person..Not one team took a risk drafting him at all. What does that tell you? Is he worth the risk of taking as an UDFA? Why not. If he falters then you cut him. Even if the odds work against you there is nothing wrong betting on a long shot talent.

The hiring of Buddy Nix was strictly an owner decision made without his interviewing any other candidates outside of the organization. If you are aware of any outside cadidates interfiewed by the ower then I would be very interested to know. http://www.nydailyne...rticle-1.434184 http://www.huffingto...o_n_408492.html http://www.eastauror...aspx?artno=1226

Buddy Nix is a Ralph Wilson hire. Russ Brandon gave the owner a list of candidates for the position. The owner selected Nix without interviewing anyone else.

These are my thoughts: Rosie O'Donnel has a better chance of winning Miss America as the Bills do at winning the SB anytime within this next generation.

How does this year's UB's recruit class look? Are a lot of players returning? Is patience running short on Quinn?

The GM heads the football operation. He hires the HC. He organizes the scouting department the way he wants to. He hires the head of college scouting and the head of pro scouting. The simplest way of describing it is that he is the CEO for the football operation. You are correct that he doesn't act as a dictator when making decisions. The operation is too far flung for anyone one person to control. What he does or supposed to do is actually more important i.e. He establishes the process and the criteria that his football people (staff) follow when making decisions. The building is his. The environment is the environment that he creates just as the control freak Donahoe created his own oppressive environment when he was running the operation. If Nix isn't the person most responsible for the team then who the heck is? If Gailey was a mediocre HC who influenced bad personnel decisions then who hired him? I get tired of the people not being held accountable for their miserable record. If the boss who runs the operation isn't most responsible for the sluggish performance of the franchise then who is?

If the Bills have a strong conviction on a qb then they should simply take him. But if the Bills believe that their favored qb or qbs will be available at a lower range then I have no problem with them making the maneuver. Are there risks? Of course. But you don't take a calculated risk unless you have a fallback position. The latest rumor is that the Rams are considering trading up to the Bills spot in exchange for their two mid-level first round picks. Supposedly they like Austin. If that is the case then for sure one of the three qbs they are honing in on (Nassib, Barkley and Manuel) will be there. I would certainly snatch up that deal and walk away with a chesire cat smile. The object of the draft is to make your team better overall. If making a deal improves your roster more compared to simply making your single pick then you have to seriously consider it. Managing risks are part of the draft calculation that ever GM has to factor in when making draft decisions. If anyone is risk adverse then they shouldn't be sitting in the draft room and participating in the drafting process.

In hindsight if Flacco would have been taken with their first first round pick it still would have been a superb pick. In hindsight if Kaepernick would have been taken with our first round pick a couple of years ago it still would have been a superb pick. In hindsight if Wilson would have been taken with our first round pick last year it still would have been a superb pick. In hindsight if the Dalton would have been taken with our first round pick a couple of years ago it still would have been a superb pick. I'm not adverse to trading down in the first round and then making a qb selection. This is a draft when every team knows that the Bills are desperate for a qb. That certainly isn't a conducive environment to outsmart the other GMs who are well aware of who you are targeting. Trusting Nix to smartly maneuver in the draft is like trusting T.O. to manage your finances. It raises the chances for a bad outcome.

You are astute!

What makes this year's draft very challenging for the Bills in their pursuit of a qb prospect is not the interest in them in the first round but the interest in them in the second round. There are at least four teams or more (other teams moving up in the second round) who will be honing in on the same qb prospects, So if you don't reach in the first round then there is a good probability that your wait strategy will result in your preferred qb prospect being off the board. In hindsight would it have been a bad approach if the Bills reached on a Kaepernick, Wilson, Dalton or Brees in the first round and found their franchise qb or continue on their self-defeating conventional approach of following their board and taking less important position players and ultimately lesster talented players. Go back and review who we took instead of who we could have taken. Instead of having the most important position settled we continue on this never ending quest to nowhere. If the Bills take Barkley with their first pick at the eight spot the organization is going to be lambasted by the critics. So what! It's time this archaic organization exhibited some intestinal fortitude and do what it needs to do to become a relevant franchise in the NFL. Until the qb position is staffed by a capable talent this team will continue to be irrelevant and boring.

I have a different take on your position. What has sunk this franchise more than anything else is not being willing to take a risk on good qb prospects who have certain liabilities associated with them. Kaepernick, Dalton and Wilson were quality qb prospects who were far from being perfect prospects but should have been more seriously considered out of the first round. The players that Nix selected in the rounds that they could have been picked so far turned out to be inconsequential players compared to what could have been very good players at the most impactful position in the game. You are absolutely right that none of the qbs in this draft are in the same category of Luck and RGIII. That will also be the case next year. And if there is a sterling qb or two in next year's draft odds are that we won't be in position to select one of them. I have repeatedly stated (apologize for the irritiating repetition) that it is better to take a risk on a qb prospect and fail then not to take a risk on a qb prospect and lose out at the chance to get a capable qb. The Bills are in a desperate bind because of a risk adverse mindset of waiting for the unflawed qb. There aren't any in this draft. The John Elway and Luck type qbs come along once in a decade and sometimes generation. Is Barkley or Nassib a Brees type qb or a Pennington type qb? Is EJ Manuel a qb with the most upside in this year's draft? You won't know unless you try. Trying and failing is certainly better than not trying and losing out.

If I recall correctly he was the person who made the argument for Ralph Wilson to get into the HOF. He stressed the point that RW's main contribution to the NFL was as one of the primary founders of the AFL and had a lot to do with the merger of the NFL and the AFL. . After he retired from the News he used to be a regular guest on Empire Sports with Howard Simon. I always liked his insights on football. He could be a tough critic but he expressed his views without anger.

As you noted when Barkley played against Luck he was never over matched. It was a toe to toe sling fest. In last year's game against Oregon he was constantly under assault. In almost every case when under extreme pressure he instinctively slid away from the pressure and got the ball to the receiver. You can't teach that pocket presence. The ultimate question is whether Barkley is closer to a Brees type qb or a Pennington type qb? I lean more towards a Brees type player than a limited Pennington type player. What is very surprising is that while many people question Barkley''s arm he does throw a nice long ball. If the Bills are going to run a WC offense then why not select a qb most suited for that type offense?

You have this zany belief that this organization's historical failure is due to the fans. When your team is owned by an incompetent and out of touch owner you get what you get. Blaming the fans for the decisions the organization makes is not only foolish but also weird. Without a doubt you take being an apologist for this mediocre organization to another level. Simply odd, very odd.

Kaepernick was considered to be a second round value qb. Russell Wilson was considered to be a third round value qb. Drew Brees was considered in the range of a lower first to high second round value qb. Would you be critical (in hindsight) if any of these players were drafted with a high first round pick? If any qb in this draft is taken with our first round pick and the player turns out to be a legitimate franchise qb then the pick will be well worth it. I'll go as far to say that a 20-45 ranked player on the draft board who is a qb and who turns out to be a franchise qb will be more impactful for his team than any player ranked in the top ten and playing another position.