BillsVet

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/fantasy-roto-arcade/wondering-what-happened-to-sammy-watkins--ej-manuel-happened--that-s-what-155456544.html This writer (and his name isn't Rodak, Graham, or Sullivan) disagrees. Manuel was plain dreadful throwing the simplest routes a QB is asked to throw in the NFL.

Question is, can Marrone and Whaley wait 3 seasons? They might only get 2 if Manuel can't cut it, which is still one more than Mularkey received in Jacksonville and Chudzinski in Cleveland.

Hard to run the ball when you're facing 8 in the box with a QB who won't attempt and/or can't complete intermediate to deep passes. In 2011, Buffalo started 5-2 and hosted NYJ in Week 9. The Jets knew Buffalo's offense was built on Fitzpatrick making quick short throws, so they jammed their receivers at the LOS and disrupted that timing. The Bills went 1-8 the rest of the way (including that game) on the way to a 6-10 season. We're already seeing a similar pattern this year. The blueprint for beating Buffalo was written on Sunday so long as Manuel refuses to attempt (and complete) intermediate or longer passes. Because he can't hurt you that way, teams are going to continue selling out to stop the run knowing he's incapable of making them pay through the air. EJ is the key. The OL was bad, but the majority of the blame should be placed on the tentative QB, who it seems the team is losing faith in quickly.

Oh yeah. And I wouldn't be surprised if every team does it considering the troubles Buffalo had. The San Diego loss cannot be analyzed as a one-off with a fresh start next week. There's much more tape on Manuel that Buffalo needs to adapt and I'm not sure they can do that with Manuel running the offense.

Yes. And reportedly that's why Marrone didn't start him in some pre-season games as I recall. But with 3 games complete, I think we're seeing why Woods had that attitude with Manuel. The guy makes their lives incredibly difficult and they're bailing him out more often than not. EJ needs to get some accuracy or else those guys are going to be more public in their demand for a change.

So many players undergo off-season surgery and to say that because Gilmore did and it affected his conditioning to this degree is a cop out. He's got 2 years under his belt playing in the NFL with, one would think, NFL staff who can advise and guide him in conditioning and returning from injuries. The pick is trending toward bust status early in his third pro season.

They don't have a long term with the Buffalo Bills if they don't make the playoffs in 2014. It's why they traded their 2015 first round pick, in hopes of accelerating EJ's development. If (and it's an if at this point) things get bad, i.e. being 2-3 after week 5, the EJ experiment at least needs to be reviewed. Regardless, the way to beat the Buffalo Bills was on display for the league to see yesterday.

High level executives don't go down on principle. And in this case, the principle is Manuel, who is undoubtedly their pick. They'll cut their losses and go with Orton if they see the season going down the tubes. Besides, which GM and HC would trot EJ out to keep up appearances if the team feels someone else gives them a better change to win?

I buy insurance that I hope like heck I don't have to use. But if I have to, it'll be there. This isn't about EJ's state of mind, because there's 52 other players banking on him to play well so they can win. The body language shown by Mike Williams and Sammy at the end should scream from the mountain tops they're not happy with the way things are going.

It may serve to save the Doug's their jobs. And if the book on Manuel is he won't throw to anything less than a wide open receiver downfield, they'll act accordingly. Executives will look to save their jobs before falling on their sword.

As the season progresses, it'll be harder for Buffalo to minimize their weaknesses. Preston Brown is getting a lot of snaps, but he's clearly a liability as a rookie. McKelvin and Gilmore are being targeted as well. Yet, the run defense is better (something Schwartz is known for). Until Manuel can complete passes beyond 10 yards to receivers not wide open or standing still, every team will stack the LOS and dare him to throw it. If he doesn't, you're going to watch Captain Checkdown v2.0 until Orton replaces him.

6.1 ypa is putrid, below even Fitz with Tennessee last year by about a yard per throw. Completing 59% of your passes when you can't or won't throw downfield is dreadful. I'd accept that if he was averaging 8-8.5 ypa, but that's not the case.

EJ's basement probably doesn't have as much alcohol as Orton's first floor. BTW, does EJ even know what Jack Daniels is?

Is Saint Doug OK with you calling on the Son in almost every thread?

Manuel is afraid to throw the ball downfield unless the target is wide open, especially if that receiver is what I'd call a "point" target. That's to say, someone standing ready to receive the ball and not running. EJ may not throw many picks, and some may chalk this up to Hackett, but I don't see someone confident to throw more than 10 yards downfield. EJ knows he's not accurate and presses when the heat is on. And his mechanics have not improved either. If there's one thing important in any sport, it's refining mechanics down until the motion of doing something becomes muscle memory. I don't see that from EJ, who never seems to place the right touch on his throws. His feel for the game still seems entirely methodical and robotic. And it's downright scary that he leaves so many WR's exposed to getting drilled. He might have only started 13 NFL games, but he still exhibits tremendous inconsistency and is a liability for the team. It may not be his entire fault, but no position determines the outcome more than your QB. And the Bills have to game plan around theirs.

The game has changed significantly since Rivers started playing well circa 2006. Rules changes make it easier for QBs to succeed earlier. That said, comparing Manuel in 2014 isn't exactly like Rivers in 2006, but it's not totally unlike either. Manuel will if he keeps throwing passes that can or do get receivers killed.

1. Game-plan adaptability as teams see more tape on them 2. Positive turnover differential 3. Improved RZ offense

The NFL is a "non-profit" and their commissioner earned 105M in 5 years. The media has it out for both he and the NFL in many respects. Not surprising that articles like this magically appear at a time like this: http://money.cnn.com/2014/09/12/news/companies/goodell-pay/

I think McNair needs to get his turf problem fixed at Reliant before he starts advocating for other markets to build new stadiums. Unless it's not possible from an engineering perspective, why can't the Bills perform a massive project in line with what Kansas City, Chicago, Green Bay, or New Orleans did? Is RWS that bad structurally and/or incapable of receiving this type of renovation?

Where and when did I write him off? I just wanted to know what I am.

Robert Woods made a phenomenal catch versus Chicago. It goes down as a completion, despite being thrown high. A screen pass that loses a yard is a completion as well, so think you've gotta look more deeply than the completion percentage statistic, say for example on throws from 11-20 yards or however ESPN breaks it down. That's a deeper analysis. Just so I'm aware, what is the official TBD definition of a "basher?" Because these debates leave people ready to bash their head in, oh, wait... We need definitions on the following terms: hater, realist, optimist, negative, etc. Until then it's hard to appropriately use recently invented terminology. For example, is one a "basher" if EJ throws for under 300 yards but has a completion percentage above 60%? Or is that a hater?

Stats lie.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RivePh00.htm Last 18 games: 5,000 yards passing, 36 TD passes vs. 11 INT's and 6 fumbles. I'll take that all day long.

My perspective and opinion was never grounded in simply being right. That kind of hubris and arrogance doesn't bring me to this board. Rather my opinion was made based on the trends, personnel, and decision making prowess exhibited at OBD over the years. Now, there is hope that things will get cleaned up and the decade plus of ineptitude will be over. And, we know the the team won't be moving either. These are things to celebrate. Not to mention Kelly is reportedly healthy, they're 2-0, Andre Reed is in the HoF, and they're improving on the field. But my happiness, contentment, or disappointment doesn't hinge on the team's fortunes as much as others. And that's okay. I would just hope a certain amount of meaningful debate could take place I took no pride in seeing things go wrong over the years. If I did, it'd be a pretty stupid investment of my time to spend 7+ years on a message board. At the same time, it's disheartening to see so much group-think, although it being a message board I expect a certain amount of it. At the end of the day obviously (to quote Marrone) we want the team to win and to win and to win. It just takes me a little more than 2 wins to get to the level some are approaching or have reached. I guess if that's negative so be it.

After the last 14 years, I temper my enthusiasm. Now, as a Yankees fan I expected them to win in the playoffs and WS in the late nineties. There was a feel to those teams, particularly from 1998-2000. Call me a doubting Didymus, but the NFL is extremely competitive and I've got to see more. And nowhere am I saying that it's delusional to think differently. But for me personally, I've been up the mountain and been dropped off enough to wait for more. Teams are smart and they adapt. It's a long season.