BillsVet

They're going to sign and then stash him on the PS as a DT. But secretly, he'll be working as a guard so no one knows. That's how crafy Doug Whaley is, who learned it from his predecessor, who was even more sneaky.

Fair enough.

E...it's time to throw in the towel on EJM. I realize some posters were vocal in their support and discontinuing that would be a blow to their pride, but it's time to move on. He's never improved on the accuracy issues that have troubled him since day 1. He also struggles to adapt to on-field pressure and his footwork remains sloppy. Non-fans covering this team, i.e. reporters, have signaled his lack of improvement. Other than a blow to pride, I'm not sure why some fans continue to cling to the notion Manuel is OK.

Rex worked more in tandem IIRC with Tannenbaum, who acquired/drafted CB's to fit Rex's defense and built a run heavy offense. When Idzik took over, I don't think he listened to Rex and the result was extremely bad. That's not to say Rex is a personnel expert...he's a HC...but his strategy was better than Whaley's was in 2013-14, which was disjointed. At this point in their careers, Rex is the more proven commodity and Whaley is still proving himself. An earlier poster referred to Buffalo as a "collaborative" process. Well, that's merely a conflation of every GM-HC relationship. I don't think anyone can say this team isn't being built in Rex's image, because it sure as heck isn't Whaley's design.

First, the org chart changed this off-season and the HC no longer reports to the GM. Second, this team is being built to Rex's specifications, not the way Whaley tried in the wake of Nix's tenure. Rex wants tough defense, specifically good corner play to go along with a run heavy offense with a big OL leading the way. And so, Whaley and Rex (EDIT:) signed Incognito, traded for McCoy, then drafted a CB with their first pick and OG with their second selection (third round). I see Whaley performing his duties in a way similar to John Schneider. Carroll essentially provides guidance on what types of players he wants, and Schneider obtains options for the HC, who picks the players. It's not a shaming of Schneider, but Carroll in essence picked him as GM. Pro Personnel has been an issue in Buffalo for a long time now and I'm not sure it's been aligned properly with rebuilding a football team. But that's for another day and certainly the rebuilding should be over.

Only the most ardent homers actually thought the guy would stay healthy. Good thing Rex has more power now in terms of personnel and Whaley's essentially playing a supporting role getting what Ryan says. Back injuries typically don't go completely away for NFL players. Hopefully "Dealer" Doug has learned his lesson.

Their Program Director must be pushing the on-air talent tease every bit of news because lately that's become a big part of the morning and afternoon shows. That never used to be their MO, but they'll throw it into a break and tease a story. I haven't looked at Arbitron to know whether their ratings have flat-lined, but something behind the scenes has changed.

A fan board will never permit much criticism, but... It's rare that a team without a big dollar QB gets into cap trouble. That remains to be seen in Buffalo, but I suspect Mario's deal will be re-worked next year to free up space for others. This team is unique in one aspect: they haven't been to the playoffs in forever and clearly (with Rex's hiring) are in win-now mode minus a very good or better QB. In the next 1-2 years Buffalo is looking at a few who'll command decent pay-days. The mark of a solid GM is how they do in selecting which talent to retain and which to let go, because you can't keep them all. Glenn, Bradham and Dareus are signed through 2015. Gilmore and Woods through 2016. Not all of those guys will be retained and should hit the market. The Bills haven't been in this position since the late 90s because, frankly, they haven't had enough talent for decisions like this. The test for Whaley is how to manage the cap considering what they've given out.

Strait of Miller? Look out Magellan.

Maybe Dabo Swinney, Chan Gailey, and the recently departed Bills coaches knew more about CJ than some would give them credit for. Spiller never touched the ball more than 260 times in 9 D1/NFL seasons which seems to indicate he wasn't durable enough to be an every-down back. The guy either "needed a blow" or was constantly getting dinged up. Not much of a return on a top 10 pick, especially when he's the first pick to begin a major rebuild.

http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-2/Transcript-Bills-introduce-Tom-Gibbons-and-Chuck-Cook/ed4da251-c62f-4859-8007-f66dffba96c1 Buddy hired Gibbons and Cook, but only after Modrak was fired in May 2011. http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/05/04/bills-fire-longtime-personnel-executive-tom-modrak/

Notice how it's Whaley firing guys Buddy Nix hired? Tom Gibbons, Pro Personnel Director went in January. Chuck Cook was demoted and Whaley replaced them with his guys...Monos and Fisher back in 2013/4.

I would agree that QB's should be showing something by year 3 and it is indeed a big transition from college to the pros. It's pretty much make or break for EJM in 2015 and IIRC, the GM has said as much. If he does become the guy they envisioned when picked 2 years ago, well great. I'm interested in seeing how the QB trio fares in camp given the new coaching staff.

You're not a career-minded GM, HC, assistant, or a veteran player trying to win now though. This isn't just about EJ. It's about getting a team into the playoffs and QB play remains the big question mark. If it makes people feel good to say the guy's working hard, so be it. But at this point I've heard a lot of that and there aren't results when the real snaps are taken. And I really don't care if I'm labeled a "hater" because that's what those who can't debate will say in the face of skepticism about a player who hasn't been consistent.

EJ may not have as much time on a roster, but he's more game experienced than Taylor.

How do you find a very good to franchise level QB if you don't take one? Besides, we're told you can't evaluate QB's until they've been in the league a few seasons. Right? Isn't that the mantra preached whenever anyone remarks EJ isn't showing progress?

Kiko didn't fit their defense for 2015 and Spikes was a 2 down guy. That said, Brown was put into the lineup early, wasn't a liability in coverage and improved throughout the season.

Forget it, he's rolling. But it's interesting to see how often Sammy is used by Roman within an offense that'll be more run-oriented. If Cassel wins the job and they can use the PA pass (as we're told MC is adept at) Sammy should have plenty of opportunities.

Luck may get you a TD here, a turnover there, or a winning FG, but talent is the quality that provides consistency throughout a season. I fail to comprehend why fans consistently cite luck as the thing keeping this team from winning. And it's tiring to hear people make excuses about why the Bills haven't found a good QB, not necessarily a franchise guy. They've missed so many opportunities, particularly draft day 2011, 2012, and 2014 which gets us to 2015. Now, they're depending on a journeyman they traded low picks for (Cassel), a complete unknown (T. Taylor), and a first round pick who's shown precious little in 2 seasons (Manuel). The coaching staff is better and the skill positions are better. The question is will the QB position negate all of it.

I have a feeling his leap will be somewhat like this:

Castle? Whatever happened to Chas. Rhinegold?

As a combat veteran who has attended games where the Bills did their "Salute to Service" in hindsight, it feels insincere, considering they were paid to do so. I'm all for the NFL and their franchises being successful, but honoring the military should be something you do out of the goodness of your organization, not because someone paid you to do it.

You have an uniformed opinion.

Pro Personnel has been hit and miss the past few years and admittedly, Whaley's sample size isn't very large. I would argue however he was in transition to the GM during the winter/early spring of 2013. McKelvin and Wood are the guys who've regressed from 2013 to 2014, and both were signed in the former year. Wood has struggled more since his 2011 knee injury and it's been pretty obvious. IIRC, he admitted his level of play regressed this season and it's not fair to conflate that in the context of the entire OL, although the 2014 OL was very poor.

Perhaps I was slightly harsh, because the interior of that OL was putrid last season. Cyril Williams, Kraig Urbik, and Erik Pears aren't much to write home about. Eric Wood, from the moment he called out Aaron Maybin, has been a fan favorite. I also like how he described the Toronto series a few years ago, but it doesn't remove the fact his play fell off a little last year. He's a guy to watch in 2015 given what we hope is improved G play on that OL.