BillsVet

Which goes with the point that Minnesota was doing more planning-wise. But it also demonstrates that when the regular season begins, teams are constantly looking for a weaknesses. Right now there are 4 guys in the back 7 on defense who are fairly untested or have question marks about them. I expect teams to look for ways to off-set the front 4 push and how Buffalo counters this will be very interesting to watch. Talent typically wins, but there are times when coaching has to provide the margin. I'm looking forward to see how Gailey and Wannstedt on their respective sides of the ball counter.

But he's wasn't re-signed to that large contract to simply be a game manager. Sure it's one pre-season game, but Fitz has 30 starts in Gailey's offense with receivers who he ought to be familiar with by now. Say what you will about him keeping them in games, but he has a penchant for turning it over when it hurts the most. The Giants game last season was a prime example, and there simply aren't many teams who get into the playoffs with a game manager type at QB. I think Gailey's reputation as a good offensive mind will be significantly tested this year. Furthermore, it took into the fourth game of the season last year before teams figured out Buffalo's offense. No matter how good the defense is, the offense needs to carry their weight.

Now here is the civility which has driven plenty of knowledgeable posters away. You can pat yourself on the back for being wrong more often than not, yet still have the audacity to keep coming back and acting like a total d-bag. Congratulations. This board is worse with you on it. Not every Bills fan has to be a massive homer to post here. Stay classy.

Buddy's grade as a GM remains incomplete with signs pointing up and down. 2010 draft, 2010 and 2011 UFA acquisitions aren't so hot. 2011 draft looks better, 2012 UFA signings excellent at this point. Still, it's a team under Nix working on their 2nd defensive scheme, have already fired a coordinator, have some offensive personnel challenges, and went 10-22 in their first 3 seasons. It's a make or break season and nothing less than a playoff appearance is acceptable.

Kelsay's strongest trait has always been his durability, but at 33 and having missed time last season, even that is in question entering his 10th NFL season. He's a good guy and probably an exemplary teammate, but personnel decisions often involve contracts. With Williams and Anderson on board and sure to get plenty of snaps, it'll be interesting what Kelsay's role becomes. He'll probably make the team, but he's not automatic either at this point in his career. Problem is, he won't be playing his natural position and DE's typically aren't paid big dollars to be a 2 down run stopper. A lot depends on how Mark Anderson is used at RDE and whether any of the younger types develop.

I'd agree. I don't think anyone figured Buffalo would make the post-season in 2010, and the chances in 2011 weren't high given the roster. But beginning this season and for the next few it should be playoffs or bust. You don't re-sign SJ, FJ, RF, then spend big in UFA on MW and MA and not expect to make the playoffs. It's unfathomable that RW would spend that kind of cash and not expect a post-season win, let alone an appearance. It's time.

How is it that a guy goes 7 seasons in the NFL and only now realizes he has bad mechanics? Did he have any coaches, especially the "esteemed" George Cortez these past 2 seasons? Buffalo's offense is built around the short passing game, as the receivers aren't deep threats, the QB doesn't have a plus arm and the OL is built more for run blocking the pass pro. I will never forget the Giants game and seeing Fitz toss 2 INT's on passes beyond 20 yards. His accuracy downfield was among the NFL's worst, which is something I don't see changing. There just aren't many NFL QB's who magically improve in their 8th season. Beginning with the Bengals loss, Buffalo got figured out offensively. For the record it took 3.5 games: jam the receivers, disrupt their route running, and Buffalo's offense ground to a halt. Those first 3 games were more the exception that the rule scoring wise for the 2011 season, in large part to Fitz's physical limitations. And David Lee can't fix that.

How about the seven seasons from 2003-2009 when he was at his natural position and recorded all of 22 sacks, or 1 for every 5 games. Add in the 5 fumbles he forced, 3 picks, and 1 safety and that's 31 impact plays in 7 seasons. If Kelsay had signed an extension in 2010 for 3 years and 10M I think there'd be a lot less criticism, but he didn't. DE's get paid to get to the QB and Kelsay doesn't despite have a decent sized contract.

Because 2nd round picks aren't supposed to enter their third season in the NFL as backups. Easley is a 4th rounder and thus a lesser resource was used on the him, not to mention he's shiny and new not having taken a snap in a regular season game. Even if Troup returns 100% in 2012, he'll be nothing more than a rotational player behind K. Williams and Dareus. And then there's Heard and a few others who'll be challenging him for time, which could put his roster spot in jeopardy.

Bell was a fine player, until he left the Bills. Now he's an injury-prone, overrated type who never lived up to his potential despite having great athleticism for playing OLT. That, and he can't spell his name right seem to be the major complaints with his move to Philadelphia.

Ken Whisenhunt disagrees. His top 5 pick at corner may have been electric in the return game, but he struggled mightily at his feature position. No one's asking Gilmore to be an All-Pro, but trusting your rookie/2nd year corners in a division with Brady to play good ball out the gate is a risk. Perhaps not a major one, but a risk nonetheless. Perhaps Florence was totally shot, but if that were the case, wouldn't it take off-season workout to know that first? It's not like Buffalo's done much on the field yet to tell.

Statistics can be manipulated, and having almost zero pass rush didn't help matters. Their CB's were hung out to dry more often than not last season and I don't think Florence was as bad as homers are now making him out to be because Nix axed the guy. Speaking of Nix, why would he give a 3 year 15M extension to Florence at 31 only to cut him 9 months later? And Mike Lombardi on the Howard Simon Show mentioned that Williams may be best suited to an inside/nickel CB position as opposed to playing an opponents top receivers. I'm not saying Florence was All-Pro, but aside from McGee, they've got 4 CB's with 1 year or less service time in the NFL not named McKelvin. I guess they figure the pass rush will off-set this youth, but it's another risk they're taking especially with Brady in the division.

Florence must have regressed a lot since last season when they signed him to a 3 year 15M deal. Moreover, with the weak pass rush which registered 13 sacks sans the Washington game, it stands to reason CB play wasn't all to blame.

Marv Levy was not GM in 2008. Russ Brandon was the GMINO, General Manager in name only. The 08-09 drafts were run by Jauron with reports from Modrak, and not surprisingly those years were poort. Even their successful picks (Byrd, Levitre, Wood) are at positions not as highly valued, especially considering their draft slot. Buffalo paid a tremendous price for having little to no leadership from 06-09. It's why this latest rebuild had to happen. Nix has done a better job, but whiffed huge by converting to a defense for which he never stocked. Hopefully he learned his lesson, but his first draft looks like another typical bad draft the bills experiened during the decade of fail.

Very nice SDS

It's kinda staggering and I was researching this when you posted it. I wonder what those scouts outside the south think of their work when they simply don't choose players outside the SEC/ACC South states. 19 out of 22 picks with 9 of 9 of their premium picks is a heckuva trend to analyze. Nix interviewed for the Atlanta GM job, and Arthur Blank hired Thomas Dimitroff.

This. If it's a contest to collect the most players, the Bills are looking good. But team building isn't Madden and requires a different type of mindset, one that a GM is supposed to have. I think Nix is fine as a regional or national scout. But as far as developing a plan to build an entire team, he's not done it. The switching of defenses proves this ad nauseam.

01 CB 03 RB 04 WR 06 S 07 RB 08 CB 10 RB 12 CB 8 skill first rounders out of 12 drafts. The defense will be improved, but I fail to see how the offense will be improved with the same cast.

The offense is going to be more like the last 13 games and less like the first 3.

Did I miss the Bills winning 10 games and making the playoffs? I thought it was the Washington Redskins who taught us that winning UFA doesn't really mean anything? Some in this fanbase on TBD are yearning for approval so bad they'll stalk other posters who aren't delusional in just assigning a playoff berth based on off-season activity.

Unless they're prepared to let Jairus Byrd hit UFA after the 2012 season. Nothing like spending resources on DB's and RB's every other year when your OT's are among the worst in the NFL. This. Nothing like building a collection of players and not a team. Best Player Available is not always the best decision to build a team. It's gotta be balanced with needs, i.e. building a team.

The problem is, it's injuries every year, Levy, Jauron, Nix, Gailey, it doesn't matter. Are you going to say teams aren't planning for that, especially at RB and WR? The Bills backup RB was a former first rounder who should be expected to carry the load. Their contingency plan at WR was laughable at best, featuring options that shouldn't be used until all else fails. I'm referring to Brad Smith, but also to Derek Hagan, Donald Jones, and David Nelson. None of those guys were even drafted by the Bills. The TE's? This team is in the stone age with respect to the position, and they way they've built that is absurd. None of them are going to run past a LB and make a catch down-field, yet most NFL teams are looking for that type. The team did not adequately plan for a backup interior OL who could snap the ball, necessitating Levitre become a nomad on the OL when Wood went down. Their OT depth was paltry,with a rookie bad bodied rookie being their swing tackle knowing full well Bell was an injury waiting to happen. And despite being a 30 front team in 10-11, they didn't use one single draft pick on a pass rushing LB in the first few rounds. I get it that people, by their very nature, create excuses when everything doesn't work out. The 5-2 start was a mirage and reality came down in mid-season. And I'll give credit where credit is due with the signings of Mario Williams and Mark Anderson, but understand those moves were essential with the previous defense Nix championed going away. Outstanding post.

One has to ask how long will any team be able to do the same thing (short to medium passing) without a decent NFL defense stopping it? It's no surprise Buffalo averaged less than 17 points per game in their final 13 when they went 3-10. The QB doesn't have more than an average arm, the OT's aren't much in pass pro, and the receivers are generally a collection of short to medium route guys. I said it in another post, but the allocation of picks and UFA dollars to the defense to switch schemes has neglected the offense.

We all know the Bills started strong offensively last year, scoring 106 offensive points in their first three games. After that, the points declined significantly with Buffalo totaling only 215 offensive points in their final 13 games, or about 16.5 per. You have to wonder what Gailey thinks about the team loading up the defense these past few off-seasons with guys like Dwan Edwards, Nick Barnett, Mario Williams, Mark Anderson in UFA and then using 5 out of 6 1st-3rd round picks on defensive players. Of course, Buffalo has had to use plenty of resources on defense to vacillate from 43 T2 to a 30 front and now to a 43 Over in the span of a few seasons. The price has been an over-reliance on the HC to build an offense that can score regularly when the defense isn't at its best. It's hard to fault Gailey if the offense sputters, as Nix has only added Spiller, some bargain bin WR's, precious little at TE besides a journeyman, and added low cost options at OT. A NFL Offense needs more than that to score. I would think the time is now to look at upgrading the offense after the recent spending spree.

Given what teams are doing with TE's around the league, it's hard to understand the mindset behind not selecting a one. Chandler, Caussin, Brock, and Cinnibun are probably the worst collection of TE's in the NFL and offer very little in the receiving game. Chandler had less than 4 catches or less 11 out of 14 games for a team that threw the ball 578 times last year.