BillsVet

Way to throw cold water on the optimists. Fine post.

You're aware that players do not seamlessly transition into defenses? Terrence McGee admitted that it's frustrating to learn a new defense, especially one so different than the T2 where corners have the short zone coverage. And while the safeties have some talent, Whitner isn't particularly adept at anything and Byrd had a good season in pass coverage and not much in run defense. Scott is a nice depth player, and Wilson seems to be emerging for a SS. Then again, strong safeties are somewhat being phased out if they can't cover.

Reason has never been a strong suit around these parts, although it is frequently confused with negativity. Those questions/points are valid concerns entering a season. Let's face it, 32 teams have a question mark at a position and/or coach. The teams with more of them generally sink to the bottom of the standings and Buffalo remains one of those franchises, even if some don't like hearing it.

You have to love Bills fans who take solace in not being the worst NFL team record-wise. Apparently results are optional when moral victories can be counted. And boy do people pull a Magellan when in pursuit for any signs of a positive. Taking an honest and objective look at this team is almost an extinct species around here simply because it may yield a disappointing result. Most of the roster has two years or less experience, the marquee positions of QB, LT, NT, and pass rushers are all huge question marks, and the coach hasn't done the job this decade. But sure, they'll be better than last year.

If that stadium fit 100k fans and was filled every gameday, it wouldn't prevent the team from leaving. There remain a host of external issues not relevant to fan support that move teams. Regardless, supporting a failing franchise which cannot attract proven front office and on-field talent will not keep that team in WNY. It's going to take much more than just fans filling seats where season tickets cost $450.

Darn you Ozzie Newsome! Just give us Gaither for spare parts and we'll all be happy.

Last year, it was about this time when preliminary season ticket totals were announced: 2009 Season Ticket article In 2008, they released some season ticket numbers in May: 2008 Season Ticket article It's reasonable to believe Bills fans have decided to play wait and see about this team. Nix and Gailey inspire little and 2010 will most likely be a rebuilding season. Besides, after 10 years of unfulfilled hope preached from Russ and the marketeers, why wouldn't fans be hesitant to purchase seasons?

Being a Jets fan and coming onto this board must be entertaining for you, huh? Any football fan with half a brain cell would like having the problems NYJ supposedly is having with Revis, Ferguson, Mangold, et al. Then again, they've actually drafted impact players the past few years, and now those guys' contracts are coming due. It happens. In three drafts, NYJ took LOT Ferguson, C Mangold, CB Revis, ILB David Harris and TE Dustin Keller. And while they busted on Vernon Gholston, they traded for Kris Jenkins, found their man at QB, and took Shonn Greene during the 2009 offseason. The Jets will have issues signing everyone, but their recent history on draft day shows they know what they're doing and can replace players.

All of these teams had either A) an outstanding HC and/or GM or B) their QB having a career season. I'm not ready to believe they'll rebuild in one season, and even Nix acknowledges that it can't be done in one year. No one knows how the myriad of rookies will perform, and many of them will be counted on to contribute instantly. Most picks outside the first round need time, especially those playing positions like LT, NT/DT, pass rushers, WR, and QB. That, and their division foes are all better. Is it completely unreasonable to believe they will be mediocre to poor in 2010? EDIT: Bolded inserted comments

Buffalo is getting younger all over the roster. The coaching staff is talking about "teaching" and practicing hard, so having a guy who gets multiple days off each week doesn't exactly fit. Most of us know that the guy has earned his reputation, but young players might not see it that way. The fewer exceptions a team makes for it's players, the better.

Nice thing about the 3-4 is it allows LB's to make plays, but Buffalo's will rely on Stroud to make the transition to DE and a rookie in Troup at NT. Those guys need to keep OLineman from getting into the second level and let Posluszny and Davis make the tackles.

Buffalo's got a few guys up for contracts coming up soon, one of whom is Paul Posluszny. He inked a 4 year deal in 2007. To date, I haven't heard anything about him demanding a new deal either, though Buffalo would be wise to extend his contract sooner rather than later. It'll be interesting to see what the Bills do with Posluszny and others with the current CBA expiring after the season ends. Teams know there will be football again, though they're not re-signing guys at the clip as in previous off-seasons. If one removes the CBA issue, this is one guy I don't think Buffalo can afford to let go via UFA. I'm also confident he'll thrive in a 3-4 ILB role.

Nix indeed mentioned that a QB can't do much (paraphrasing) when he's on his back. In a continued effort to defend everything Bills, some here have said that Nix/Gailey know their roster and must figure the OT's are better than we've seen. We'll see come September, but I don't ever envision D. Bell or Meredith ever being an average to good LOT. On the other side, Cornell Green was among the league leaders in penalties and turns 34 before opening day. Gailey will attempt to build a run first offense with a poor OL in a pass happy league without a anyone beside Evans that's a proven receiver. So it'll be interesting to see what he does when team's stack the LOS with 8 or 9. The NFL is a very different league than when he last had success in 00-01 with MIA.

Banking on street free agents, UDFA's, and guys signed from other team's practice squads to be solid starters is like buying a lottery ticket with your final dollar and hoping you'll make enough to pay the rent. Sure, there's a chance you could get lucky, but the odds are stacked against you. Then again, getting lucky is the new strategy at OBD.

I think Curtis Painter is more like a 7th grade modified level QB compared to Peyton Manning.

It's a rebuilding year plain and simple. I heard Terrence McGee this afternoon talking about not liking the new defense-at first. So there are a lot of things to learn, and not even mini-camps, OTA's, and training camp will be enough. I'm sure that they'll get the new schemes down, but usually it takes a season. McGee himself struggled adapting to the T2 in 2006, but became a reliable CB thereafter. I agree, optimism is fine as long as it's grounded in reality. On that most fans can agree, but there seems to be no basis for much of the optimism here, aside from the fact that the GM and HC are new. Somehow, new has always translated into better. For me, there's too much uncertainty surrounding this team with ownership to get overly hyped up. The lease is up in 2012, and it's not hard to get out of it before then. Sometimes teams have to hit rock bottom to move up.

Can someone tell me again why GB stashed Meredith on the PS to begin the 2009 season last year? And, why didn't GB call up Meredith when GB had to re-sign Mark Tauscher and start Chad Clifton at LT? He's a project player who doesn't have the weight to work at RT and the agility to play LT. This isn't college anymore, regardless of which conference he played in. Starting OT's rarely come from the practice squads of other teams.

I am. Did you know that before Bill Belichick had Tom Brady, his career coaching record was remarkably similar to Dick Jauron's after his last 5 NFL seasons in? If only Buffalo could have given bad luck Dick better players. Oh, I forgot DJ got to pick the players too! And to think, Ralph Wilson felt the need to re-sign DJ.

It's not hard to look good when Dick Jauron is your predecessor at HC. Of course Gailey appears competent, he's being compared to one of the most mediocre coaches in recent NFL history. This is a HC who hasn't had much NFL success in about a decade. Playing to potential sounds really nice, but this team is loaded with youth. When you rely on rookies and 2nd year players, there's a learning curve and growing pains. By my count, 6 positions on offense and 4 on offense feature rooks or sophomores who'll start or be counted to contribute. Gailey can't coach all those guys up in one off-season no matter how many fans here want to re-write his resume.

Nix has already said you can't do it all in one year. I'm paraphrasing of course, but the point is this is a 2+ year rebuild and results probably won't be there very quickly. The OT starters and depth are very poor, but offensive lineman don't sell tickets either. While some fans are gushing about Spiller, I bet every personnel guy at OBD realizes that the OL is again a huge question mark with marginal talent. Last year plenty of fans on this very board glossed over the details of moving guys, trading Peters, and starting rookies. We know how that worked out. And it's happening all over again thinking project players like Bell, Meredith, and Wang are going to be dependable starters.

Let's wait for Spiller to play a season, Byrd to follow up his rookie season, and McKelvin to play a second full season. And for the record, Buffalo's been weak on both the OL and DL. All of the aforementioned guys play off the line.

Every upper echelon NFL team has difference makers, particularly at the hard to find positions of QB, LT, pass rush, and NT/DT. Teams like IND, NE, SD, GB, MIN, NO, PHI, et al feature multiple players who are at or near the top at their positions. Buffalo has some nice players here and there, but no one I'd classify as an All-Pro. They failed in the 4th quarter for several reasons, not just because DJ was their coach. From a talent perspective, they're average to bad across the field and that will remain one of the contributing factors to losing games. It's an ensemble cast with no stars in 2010.

You really think it's that simple?

How do injuries happen w/o DJ being the HC? Gotta feel for the kid, given that he's a developmental player and needs all the work he can get. Still don't see Buffalo going after a Gaither or Jammal Brown.

Teams with a new GM, HC, new offense, completely new defensive scheme (T2/C2 to 3-4), 3 QB's, i.e. no QB, no proven #2 WR, no depth on the OL, no proven LT, rookie NT, no proven OLB pass rushers, rookie DC, rookie OC, and Ralph don't go from 6-10 to 10-6 in the AFCE. Competitive is a relative term when used in the aforementioned context. One could argue Buffalo wasn't in the playoff hunt in either December 08 or 09. After all, how many playoff teams did the Bills defeat from 2005-2009? Not many.