BillsVet

Even PR master Scott Berchtold knows enough not to admit anything when Buddy sticks his foot in his mouth and lets the cat out of bag. He doesn't have much of a filter as evidenced by his handling of two press conferences in December 2009/January 2010. And for the record, I'm not a reader of the D&C. Besides, Wawrow is an AP guy and I'm sure has sources.

The league's changed a lot since his resignation in 2004. He is a known commodity, but it's not a slam dunk he'll get the team in the top half of the league without better talent. And if they convert to a 43, it'll be difficult because they lack a RDE, SLB, and WLB, not to mention some players will be learning a new system for the third time in 4 seasons. It's not impossible that they'll improve. It's just a very tall order.

This came from AP writer John Wawrow's August article about the trade: "Nix didn't handle trade talks, leaving that job with Jim Overdorf, the team's salary cap specialist and senior vice president of football administration." Now, you can quibble about the meaning of this sentence, but when people like Overdorf survive this many regime changes, it makes me wonder who's got the power at OBD. Is he in Nix's chain of command, or does he take orders from elsewhere? Nix and Gailey took a 6-10 team, tore it down, changed defenses, and have improved it to 6-10 after 2 years. Their start is worse than Donahoe's (by a game) and Levy/Jauron (by 4 wins). They have a defense that just changed its coordinator after ranking near the bottom, and had a 1-8 streak to finish. If that's progress, it's hard to tell. More like a treadmill.

Say what you will about the player, but when Nix admitted he didn't have a lot to do with the Evans trade, it spoke volumes. New HC, GM, DC, ticket seller, whatever. It's still the same people with the marionettes. It would take a Ted Thompson/Kevin Colbert/Tom Dimitroff effort for the next 3 drafts to overcome that sort of interference from on-high.

If the GM standard is to be perfect, no one meets that nor will they. Every single GM has made mistakes, whether it be Ted Thompson in GB (Justin Harrell), Kevin Colbert in Pittsburgh, or Mickey Loomis in NO (Reggie Bush). In the transition from Bill to Chris, the team made internal decisions that hurt the organization, which I suspect is why Irsay axed the younger. He could get rid of one without sending the other out the door. To blindly say Polian's success was only because he had QB's is intellectually absurd and lacking in research. Someone, IIRC, pointed out that teams don't make the SB or deep into the playoffs with some defense. That's correct. And lost amid all this talk of Indianapolis and Buffalo, is his taking Carolina, a 2nd year franchise to the NFC Title Game in 1996. Is it a coincidence that he improved the fortunes of 3 franchises? Impossible. I'm not saying he's a saint or that he didn't make mistakes, but turning around 3 organizations is decidedly not a coincidence.

How about giving the HC confidence to call some 5 or 7 step drops? Maybe allow the QB to run play action and turn his back to the LOS? The play-calling is dictated more by the resources at the HC's disposal than we think. What is not seen is what the problem is with regard to the OL. Edge protection from good rushers is not good enough, despite the much referred to sacks allowed statistic. Fitzpatrick would be hit more frequently if it weren't for Gailey running an offense predicated on quick throws.

I think the world will end before Bill Polian returns to the Buffalo Bills. Someone made the point that he neglected the defense and I disagreed.

Is that why he drafted Bruce Smith, traded for Cornelius Bennett, drafted Shane Conlan, Henry Jones, and Phil Hansen? Walt Corey was a big reason that defensive unit wasn't outstanding, not Bill Polian.

That's the type of front office and coaching synergy that all teams set out to achieve. Now, where's that shovel? Nix, probably influenced by Whaley, probably pushed the 3-4 onto Gailey. We now see that it impeded rather than hastened the latest rebuild. I guess Buffalo really is redefining organizational ineptitude.

When were the Bills sold?

Your facts are false.

Well, wacky Jim Irsay pulled the lever. Polian's Out

For the first time since I've been back in WNY (5 years) WGR had player interviews. Drayton Florence and Stevie J both had regular segments on the morning and afternoon shows respectively. I suppose it could happen, but I wonder if the Bills priced themselves out of their previous deal. Ratings/Ad revenue probably aren't that great either owing to the team's failures on the field.

And the question we need to ask is why people refuse to come to Buffalo. It's not the weather, the small market, or even the region. No one will come here, as a HC or GM type because they do not have a reasonable chance to succeed. There is too much interference and a lack of commitment to winning. When no less than 5 coaches refused to interview or pulled their name from consideration 2 years ago, that should have made it quite obvious. The franchise's reputation is probably lower than all 31 other teams.

The fact they've picked 8th, 12th, 11th, 11th, 9th, 3rd and 10th in a span of 7 drafts says it all. If they take a WR, just pencil them in for 5-7 wins next season as well. The wheels keep on spinning...

0-8 start, 9-6 interlude, followed by 1-8. Talk about peaks and valleys. Chan ain't going anywhere, but he's not setting the world on fire either. Not getting out of AFCE without better coaching.

It appears, after two seasons that Gailey is well on his way to getting Buffalo to 15 non-playoff years all by himself. Bad coordinator selections, 1-8 finish to the season, 10-22 record with Buffalo.

Season ticket sales should drop precipitously for 2012, as they have the last 2 years. I just don't think fans are buying the excuses, hype, and half-measures as proof they're close or trying to win. And I don't think firing Edwards will be enough to convince people (along with another draft class) that anything's changed. Then again, maybe the goal is to run it into the ground.

Which begs the question, why does a team use a top 10 pick on a part time player, one who while talented, plays a position that isn't a difference maker. This pick, again of a player with talent, exemplifies the misguided team building philosophy by Nix. And it's a reason why, after 2 seasons, this team is 10-22. That's worse than Williams', Mularkey's, and Jauron's first 2 seasons.

rudderless ship

That would be called the Fairchild exit strategy. To the OP's point, I just can't see anything changing beyond Edwards being the sacrificial lamb to RW. This is a franchise that retained DJ after a 2-8 finish, so Gailey isn't going anywhere nor is Fitzpatrick owing to financial reasons. The only thing I might see happening besides Edwards' axing is Nix stepping down to give way to Whaley within the next 7-10 days.

You don't coach toughness and strength. Some guys have it and some don't. Bell is weak and susceptible to injury as evidenced by the games he's missed since the 2009 opener.

Do you get tired of saying this every year?

They don't have final say over personnel in this franchise. Littmann and Brandon are running this team, standing behind the curtain, and making the budget. Nix, Whaley, and Gailey are basically the front men for an organization run by people who don't care about anything but the bottom line. Firing Gailey or anyone has to be approved at the highest level because it affects the bottom line.

How many deep throws can Fitz under throw in a season? No wonder Gailey calls for these 5-10 yard passes.