BillsVet

Where is the homer who asks why the OP doesn't find another team if he's so dissatisfied? As if anyone complaining about a team that hasn't made the playoffs in 12 years and has now forced them to buy another bad game ticket isn't without blame.

For the record, I don't want to be right about the Bills not signing SJ. They need to build a team, not replace pieces year in and year out, or what they've essentially done since TD was fired. It takes a lot of good decisions and eventually money when you draft well to maintain a solid core of players. If the team isn't willing to pay SJ, and we don't know right now, then long term how can anyone expect anything to change? It's merely a ride on the Bills tilt-a-whirl, because they'll sign core player and let another hit UFA. And the fun's just getting started because other key players will come up for extensions in the next 2 seasons: Levitre, Wood, and of course FJ. You may not keep them all, but you oughta to get to them before their peak value to avoid paying premium and losing others. Easier said than done though. If they use the franchise tag, well, there should be a long term plan by the beginning of the regular season to retain his services for multiple seasons or they should trade him. Just tagging him to keep him this season isn't satisfactory either.

Maybe it's been said before, but Russ Brandon has become the Bills version of Baghdad Bob.

He was so effective in those first 5 games the Bills defense yielded only 2,109 yards or 422 per game. If anything, the defense improved from Game 6-16 when they allowed 348.1 yards per game and he was again on the sidelines. This concept that Merriman helped in ways not quantifiable is really reaching. For the money he was paid, he didn't do anything and his contract prevents the team from spending elsewhere.

BR didn't exactly have the best info immediately after the deal was signed: Merriman contract details 10-11 If Buddy is so amazing as a GM, how did he hand out that kind of money to a guy who'd played all of 18 of his previous 48 games and then proceeded to miss the remainder of Buffalo's 2010 season?

Nix tied up millions in Shawne Merriman, who aside from selling some jerseys, has done jack and squat now in the 15 months he's been on Buffalo's roster. As for cap space, all it takes is a signed letter from the owner to get another 21M on top of the reportedly 20-22M (before any roster cuts) to work with.

Yes, free agency is typically underwhelming, but there are some who wish upon a star that Littmann will open RW's piggy bank and let Buddy Nix go Pac Man Jones every year.

He didn't like the city of Buffalo and didn't want to be here. The Bills don't get into bidding wars. CB isn't a huge priority. Routt is overrated and his new team paid too much. You don't build through free agency. Sometimes free agents don't play to their contract, so it's a big risk to sign the higher priced ones. I don't care about Routt, but it's got to be alarming that Buffalo isn't signing as many guys as they have interest in. I think free agency will be a let-down for those believing the Bills will spend money.

There have been few contract extensions in the weeks after the regular season ended for non-playoff teams and even those who went to the SB. At the same time, the WR market does have several options prior to franchise tags being used: Colston, Bowe, V. Jackson, Garcon, Wayne, Stevie, et al. Despite the options, teams still are going to spend big money to get these players now that good WR's have become so important to offensive and thus team success.

The Bills have very little leverage unless they use the tag, which sounds unlikely given the 9.4M tender they would have to pay. In a year where the team can roll over 21M in cap room, I have little doubt anyone would accept losing SJ especially with the team so mediocre the past 12 seasons.

Mark Gaughan from the BN disagrees: Gaughan BN article They aren't required to spend it, nor does it increase the minimum for that team. I can see the Bills requesting the carry-over while ST sales are going on, then fall back and not spend it. Interestingly enough, the Buccaneers and their owner, Malcolm Glazer, requested the carry-over this week. Reportedly, they'll have 60M in cap space to work with.

The rebuild needs a large infusion of talent, especially now that they've junked the previous defense. If they don't add a dependable WR and DE in UFA, it's hard to see them improving with draft picks and low cost options off the street, from practice squads, and UDFA's. That said, I still don't expect to see any major spending in UFA - that would hurt the bottom line too significantly. Besides, 2/28 is the deadline for Buffalo to request to carry over their 21M in cap dollars. Not doing so tells me where they stand with respect to adding good pieces for 2012. Keep Johnson and sign another solid WR. Because David Nelson, Derek Hagan, Donald Jones, and Marcus Easley aren't the answer right now.

Rebuilding football teams don't have the luxury of strictly taking BPA. That is, unless they're going with a top QB, pass rusher, or perhaps LT and don't have one already. And from a supply and demand perspective, RB's with above average VORP aren't hard to find. Although someone will rebut with the below concept: Dan Williams yes, Anthony Davis not so much. If the confirmation that a top 10 pick is good because he gets decent PT when the starter is hurt, well, rebuilding in perpetuity will become common all around the NFL. NFL teams do not build around RB's at this point in the evolution of NFL offense and justifying Spiller's selection because everyone behind him in the draft wasn't good outlines the fallacy of the pick. Regardless, the Bills from 2003-2010 have been one of, if not the poorest drafting teams in the NFL. And it's occurred with 4 men as GM.

He's a victim of moving to the 40 front, in that he's best served as a 5 technique. Sure, he played DT in Baltimore some years ago, but there's a price to changing defenses despite what some believe. Edwards won't be paid what's in his contract for 2012 to be a backup. Buffalo isn't keen on having depth in certain places aside from younger, less costly players.

Does SJ make the team better or worse? If it's the former, keeping him is essential to building a football team. The italicized demonstrates the absurdity here. Derek Hagan is a journeyman, with 109 receptions for 1,221 in 6 career seasons whereas SJ's production in one season is about 80% of that. If decisions were made in a vacuum, sure you could save the cash and let SJ leave. Except it means your top wideouts become David Nelson, Donald Jones, and Derek Hagan who are 2 former UDFA's and a street FA. It appears SJ is working with the team on a deal and that's good. At this point, the team knows that they need him more than he needs them. And that's why there's ongoing negotiations.

Anyone who watched SF in the playoffs could see that outside of Vernon Davis, the niners didn't have a viable receiving threat. Michael Crabtree is OK, but they need another guy, and most quality teams have 3 guys capable of making catches. I haven't seen one player get a contract extension yet this off-season. This isn't a Buffalo thing, it's league-wide, but we'll see what happens after the period to place tags expires. If SJ goes, then yes it's clear they're not interested in winning. And that'll be especially awesome if the Bills don't request to carry over their unused cap money of 21M from 2011 to 2012. I love it when people have to show their hand and this off-season they'll have to do plenty of it. Of course, they could carry over the money and then never use it, which we won't know until the regular season after ST's have been sold.

Yes, several teams are beneath the cap, but I cannot see how the Bills have helped their situation much the past few years. When you sign players like Cornell Green, Brad Smith, Chris Kelsay and Shawne Merriman to decent contracts, it's not good cap management. Meanwhile, we're noting that Buffalo's situation is similar to other teams? Ever wonder why NE is always in good shape and their personnel so much better? The key to a successful team is an owner who supports a front office. Unfortunately, ownership is absentee, and the front office with a limited payroll is spending on players who offer little to nothing. And while I'll applaud them for keeping Kyle Williams, they've more than shown they aren't re-signing players before they peak in value and still keep players who shouldn't be around. That's how their situation is relatively similar to successful teams.

There is no minimum to spend until 2013, and Buffalo exploited that by being nearly 21M beneath the salary cap in 2011. It will be interesting to see that should they choose not to use this option how it will be explained. After all, when you've missed the playoffs a NFL worst 12 seasons in a row, it only makes sense to do as much as possible to get better players in here.

Let's state it this way: With Fitz the Bills ceiling is probably 9 wins with a solid defense. In a league where there's a premium on scoring, the Bills averaged less than 15 points per game during their 1-8 finish. If your QB is limited to a short passing game, teams are going to figure it out mighty quick, which is what happened during and after the Cincinnati game when the Bills scored 24 or more offensive points in only 3 of 12 games.

Dwan Edwards is a 5 tech DE and may be a rotational DT in their new scheme, that is if he's not released for cap reasons. Switching defenses so frequently has its cost and Edwards may be the odd man out. To the OP's point, it's imperative to win and fans won't accept mediocrity again in 2012. The HC and GM know this is the season it has to happen, hence the big swing to the 43 and firing of Edwards. It also stands to reason the Bills sign some top end UFA's with their rebuild seemingly in a very low gear. I don't expect Buffalo to be SB champs, let alone the AFC winner, but not making the playoffs is failure. No one wants to hear the Bills tried to sign players in UFA. Sweat doesn't count, only results. And aside from perhaps the aforementioned Edwards and Nick Barnett, Buffalo hasn't signed a meaningful UFA in years. The time is now and it's playoffs or bust.

There's only one problem with all of this: Nix doesn't control RW's money, Jeff Littmann does . And it's been proven time and again that BN talks out of his backside, so trusting him to talk about how they're going to spend is doubly ridiculous. The team has their back against the wall, especially with season ticket sales falling from 55k in 2009 to 37.5k in 2011. This is not the year, it's a make or break one for this franchise. Promising hope and hyping this team isn't cutting it anymore and most fans have finally figured it out.

We'll see how willing they are to go in the right direction this off-season. That is, re-signing SJ and FJ while adding some top UFA's. Just re-signing your own isn't enough and the building through the draft mantra isn't cutting it anymore. They need immediate upgrades all over the field. Buddy and Chan want to be all-in for this season. Whether Littmann allows them to be is another story.

Where does a 40 front get its pass rush from? DE's. And Buffalo doesn't have one proven to be a bonafide pass rusher with the only options on the roster being an aging Kelsay (a base end) and Carrington (another bigger base end). And whatever production from DT's is a bonus. Buffalo needs a 7 tech or 9 tech who rushes from the RDE spot. And anyone mentioning Shawne Merriman clearly is wishing upon a star. The guy is cooked and hasn't rushed with a hand in the ground in his entire NFL career. FO may be off in a few small details, but their analysis is spot-on. Buffalo needs more pass rush help immediately, has no depth at WR where former UDFA's were counted on to provide the difference, and if Johnson leaves they have nothing proven. David Nelson averaged less than 11 yards per reception, and had 50 yards receiving in only 2 of the last 13 games. He is at best a third receiver.

They loved Pears so much they desperately tried to sign Tyson Clabo last July. And they were left standing at the altar when he re-signed with Atlanta. Your history is extremely flawed. Green came in the UFA class of 2010, played 5 games and was cut around mid-season after signing a 3 year 9M contract. Langston Walker was a UFA signing in 2007, played 2 seasons as a RT, then inexplicably was moved to LT before the 2009 season opener (a position he physically was incapable of playing) and was cut to force the cheaper and unproven Demetrius Bell to start. Walker was cut because the team had already moved Brad Butler to RT, and it would have meant Buffalo would be paying multiple millions to a backup. Sound familiar? Geoff Hangartner also was cut for the same reason: he'd be a decently paid primary backup. Langston Walker and Hangartner, while not great players, were salary purges. Same can be said for Jason Peters.

-Teams using 3 receiver sets aren't exclusively vertically oriented. -Both RB's are good receivers, but they're not as good a receiver as an actual one playing the position. -No one uses 2 back sets anymore. No one.