BillsVet

Now I know why Deadspin has a video from the Bills parking lots every week.

Meaning what? That you get a mulligan for the first year whenever anything changes? So, hypothetically, if Whaley and/or Rex gets fired in 2016 that it's not possible to win in 2017 (because it's only year 1) and everyone has to wait until 2018?

Well, when you're the GM of a football team that's 23-25 during your tenure, that probably means it's in the best interest of your future employment to be in "win now mode." Especially when you're working for people who didn't hire you. When you're a NFL HC being paid 5M+ per season and you've been the beneficiary of millions in team spending on players, just got three (well, almost) rookies to play the defense, hired your brother, and make bombastic statements not grounded in reality, it's probably best to be in "win now mode." If you're not in "win now mode" what mode are you in? I know in Buffalo there's been a lot of "Rebuilding" mode, but the latest rebuild has been going on since 2013. Or perhaps it's still the original 2010 rebuild, act 2. Hard to tell, considering they've changed coaches 3 times since 2010 and the GM has been here all this time. Maybe Terry and Kim just like to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to hopefully win. It's all just a media narrative anyway.

Hey, it's hard to win in the NFL. What can you say? I'm sure ownership would be good with spending hundreds of millions of dollars in multiple seasons on salary after spending 1.4B to buy the team waiting for NE to get old.

The 2015 19th overall pick signed a 4 year 9.4M contract with a 5.1M signing bonus. At a 5% increase, Buffalo probably needs to pay SL almost 10M with about a 5.5M bonus. I'm sure TPegs is thrilled to shell out this money. Just like I'm sure he's satisfied with his GM and HC who sold him on damaged goods that will miss the entire off-season and at least 2 games. All this for a team that's been in win-now mode since 2014 without, of course, actually winning.

Same message board you've inhabited defending this team against any and all non-homers. It really has become the post-factual era.

That's Whaley trying to separate himself from the decision making progress and blame it on RR. I thought Whaley was involved in personnel, so it stands to reason he'd be in on the decision and not simply abdicating the decision to take a guy in the first round with a pre-existing injury. I always knew Whaley learned a lot from Brandon.

Giddiness? No, it's called accountability. For a bad decision made by a professional sports team worth in excess of 1.4B. I'll bet TPegs isn't thrilled that he's got to spend money on damaged goods. Not something a successful businessman normally does.

What else could it be? Another example of the wizards of smart just being unlucky at OBD? I can't image TPegs is happy with Doug and Rex right now. After all, they made a decision on a player using the owner's money and told that owner the player is what they needed. You think the owner is going to trust them after this? It's a fiasco and an embarrassment to the team.

Outstanding mannc. 4-6 months is short term? That's just plain delusional rationale there. Taking a guy in the first round who really did have an issue that will keep him out until mid-September or as late as mid-November. Only homers would minimize this situation.

When the team is winning 41% of their games over the past 6 seasons then yes, yes I will. What kind of alternate reality do some fans live in that this is acceptable and warrants zero criticism? Because I never see you criticize a team that barely wins 2 out of 5 games. Never. So, do results matter or is it merely the emotional tug of your favorite team? Or should we support everything they do because it's your favorite team?

Some get away with being lazy in the face of objective criticism of the team. To them, it's called "fan-hood." Gotta support the team!

Another position the Bills have avoided in the draft like the plague. I think the last one they took in the 1st-3rd rounds was Kevin Everett in 2005. This as so many teams have focused on finding guys who can stretch the field and present matchup nightmares. But the Bills know better than conventional wisdom.

TT was in an offense last year that shielded him from doing the things he'll absolutely be forced to do this year. Like make the throws over the middle or be more than a 1 read QB. I remembering hearing in November that by that point 65% of his throws were near the sidelines. No one's giving him that anymore, but if he can start doing these things then they've certainly got a chance to sneak up on teams. Yes, Roman is a known entity and probably the best OC they've had this millennium. But in his final year with SF having a very talented team he wasn't as successful as 2012 or 2013. And much of that occurred because the QB wasn't as good as when he was a lesser known quantity. Keep in mind, those SF teams had excellent defenses as well. I think Kaepernick was 27-15 as starter in 2011-2013. Then went 8-8 in 2014 as teams adjusted to the read-option previously was hard to defend.

Every year fans expect the team to improve and when the season ends it still doesn't happen. Why? TT and Roman won't get away in 2016 with the same kind of football they did in 2015 where the QB's limitations were minimized. The other issue is, as in previous years, the Bills will be banking on rookies to play right away and excel. This time, they'll need immediately solid play from their 1st and 2nd round picks in a defensive scheme that's overly complicated and not digested easily by even veterans. Not to mention, they're one play away from having EJM be the starter...again.

Not a huge fan of Clayton, but there isn't anything he's said which isn't true. The schedule will be tougher and they'll be starting at least 2 rookies in their defensive front 7. Not to mention, Tyrod and Roman won't have the luxury of being unknown entities. That's not a recipe for a playoff team in most cases.

I know lists are generated to validate self-held beliefs, but it's an exercise in futility to grade people on past performance. Who are the guys that are ascending into 2016 and who are the ones descending? In terms of young QBs, it's Derek Carr, Bortles, Cousins, and Wilson. Tyrod still needs another year to evaluate whether he can start reading defenses to use the entire field. The other 4 guys, albeit with more PT, can do that better than him. The question is, does TT go the route of Kaepernick or improve his to beb an all-around good QB like Russell Wilson?

It all comes back to Tyrod and whether he can keep defenses from cheating to defend the run. The comparison which should be made is the 2013-14 49ers to the 2015-16 Bills. In 2013 Kaepernick had extremely similar numbers to the 2015 TT and SF had the league's 3rd ranked rushing offense in yards on their way to 12 wins. In 2014, SF maintained their rushing ability (4th overall) but Kaepernick slipped off and they won 8 games. Roman was OC both seasons. It's going to be interesting seeing Buffalo's offense counter what defenses do to adjust to TT. As others have pointed out, as defenses have more film of the previously unknown TT, they'll have a much better plan to stop him. Even if the Bills still succeed running the ball, they won't get away with what they did last season focusing on the low risk sideline area throws.

I wish he'd have coached EJ more on not not throwing the football like it's a dart. http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-1/The-QB-guru-on-EJ-Manuel/13361679-9d30-4b54-a3f6-c9ee0b07d4c5

They showed good initiative in signing Harvin, who represented someone to take coverage away from Watkins. I think he was actually leading the team in receiving before the injury last season and probably took time from Woods. But you need 3 WRs in the modern NFL and targets were limited because TT wasn't throwing over the middle as much. Slauson probably didn't want to play RT and they weren't looking at him as a starter at RG. For a team that's now in year 3 of "win now" looking at Slauson as strictly a RT to ensure a draft pick continues to play is perplexing. If Miller doesn't show improvement, particularly in pass blocking, it'll be another move second guessed.

Whaley doesn't typically bring in competition for his higher draft picks until it's blatantly obvious those players won't work out. Perhaps they weren't as interested in Slauson as SD, but I wouldn't expect the Bills to sign someone who'd likely put John Miller off his back and onto the bench.

Scott...you're supposed to be a real fan. And real fans support the team regardless of previous results because emotions always trump logic in fandom.

205# RBs who depend on speed and elusiveness with 7 seasons and upwards of 2k touches behind them typically don't maintain a high level of production. Thurman started slowing down around year 7 and he was a similar type back if a comparison could be made.

OK. It doesn't remove the concept that switching to new defenses has historically required further draft and UFA resources to make the transition. Not every team has a HC who is adamant they need the kind of personnel Rex, Nix/Gailey, DJ, and Greggo needed to transition to and run "their" scheme. The Bills seem to consistently close the barn door after the horse it out. If defense was the problem in 2015, they're addressing it in 2016. That's a reactive ideology that leaves them weak elsewhere. Kinda like how they loaded up on offense in 2015 after they were putrid in 2014. I think it's wise to ask if the offense will be up to the task, as others have said, because their scheme and system are there for everyone to know. Some are of the opinion that going RT and WR early would address what are also weak areas or likely could be weak in 2016.

Was he excited? Obviously.