BillsVet

On this board? It's more fun to some on here to malign the guy and ignore the fact that at 25 he was among the top 3 LT's in the NFL. These fans have too much invested in bashing the guy to admit they're dead wrong and know very little about the position. Idiot fans think in black and white, so a position like LT which can't be viewed that way, unless of course you cite a ridiculous "sacks allowed" statistic.

I would argue not having an outstanding GM hurts a team more than one expects. Teams without good personnel men do not draft well, forcing a reliance on UFA's who are notoriously overpaid which affects the cap hit. The Bills haven't had a good GM in forever, and it's no coincidence they've failed to do anything on the field in a decade. When I look at the Bills roster, it's thin at so many positions. For a smaller market team, it's absolutely necessary to hit on all first round picks, and stockpile as many first day picks as possible. The key is finding guys in the 2nd-4th rounds. The Bills picks from 06-08 there? Youboty, Simpson, Posluszny, Edwards, Wright, Hardy, Ellis, Corner, and Fine. That's not cutting it, because out of that group there's only one sure-fire starter for 2010: Posluszny.

I've sure made my bad predictions on the team, but believing in 2006 that he'd be bad was not one of them. No knowledgeable fan figured Levy/Jauron would succeed with their brand of football. Nearly four years later, they've failed miserably. You can't deny DJ had a lot of say on personnel from 06-08, so this is his team. He was a complete failure, and plenty of fans knew he's fail in 2006. Some people wanted to give him a chance and ignore 5 years in Chicago, but they're nowhere to be found now. I too think the interior 3 OL will be fine, but the tackles are harder to find. They'll need to find two, because I don't think Butler is durable enough to hold up, and Demetrius Bell was a fabrication.

Anyone who watched TO in the latter part of last season saw Dallas use him a lot in motion. He's had an issue (see NYJ game) getting off the line, particularly in press coverage and this mitigated TO's issues. For DJ to dictate that motion is not used speaks to a complete and utter ability to adapt. For a guy with a (EDIT: -21) career difference between wins and losses, it's amazing that he's unwilling to change in the midst of his team going nowhere offensively. Compare that with Sparano last year using the Wildcat, which most "experts" demean, but helped Miami win games. I still laugh when I think about fans who figured DJ had to change his ways because this was a do or die season. Misusing TO, regardless of the guy's age, is another in a long line of examples about why DJ needs to go.

RW can either eat the contract after the season he gave DJ or keep him and risk more fan animosity than what's already present at home games. Neither one is a good option for RW, but there can be no more conclusive evidence after this season that DJ is one of the worst coaches this decade and probably the last quarter century. I hope, but am not confident that RW knows he screwed up big time by re-signing a coach no one else wanted. It's an even bigger pipe dream to believe he'll cede some personnel control over to people trained to handle this sort of thing after realizing this. 90 year old men do not make great decisions, and RW's the poster child for it. The fact RW thought he could cover up this unpopular decision with TO shows how clueless the front office remains. Nothing less than a total restructuring will save this franchise.

It's sad we're celebrating someone, anyone with actual personnel experience. Certainly Bruce Allen would be an improvement, but TB's drafts weren't spectacular. For the Bills to succeed they need someone who hits on first rounders every year. And, they should get talent from the 2nd through 4th rounds. Still, it's very possible that RW hires a HC to appease the fans and doesn't rework the front office. This team needs someone to oversee pro and amateur scouting who knows and is experienced in personnel. I'd like to see other candidates, but Allen wouldn't be totally bad.

It's no surprise why the Bills aren't a strong team: QB, OL, and DL. Instead, they've used 5 1st or 2nd rounders between 06-08 on positions other than those I just mentioned. Whitner, Lynch, Posluszny, McKelvin and Hardy. Don't get me wrong, some of those guys aren't busts, but to win in this league you need big men. And the Bills waited until this year to draft 2 OG's. Before that, they let their best OLineman walk out the door without a replacement for this season. As constructed, this roster is a mess. It is my sincere hope that a new front office is in place, with a new HC for next season. And if they end up with a top 10 pick, it had better be at DT or OT. Of course, they'll probably be looking QB as well. Four complete off-seasons of rebuilding and we're talking draft in October. Sheesh. I wonder how many people still figure Levy/Brandon/DJ were successful now? Probably only the ones with tin foil on their heads.

It'll be interesting to monitor how the Bills market this team for 2010, given all the hype they've used to promote this team. Without TO next season, they'll have their hands full trying to convince Bills fans they're on the right path with 10 straight seasons without the playoffs. I saw the two game package deal they have going and must figure fans for a bunch of fools. Everyone knows P. Manning won't be playing in that final game, and NE will not allow another replay of the MNF debacle. Then again, how do you market a team that goes up for sale when the owner passes and in the meantime will not spend money to make long term plans at GM and HC?

How's this: Dick Jauron has the third worst career winning percentage for a HC who has more than 135 games coached. And no coach since 1980 has a worse winning percentage. I'll do the math here: 135 games is the equivalent of 8 and a half seasons. How can it be possible to be this bad for this long?

The economy isn't shifting in the right direction. Sorry to make this a debate on a non-football matter, but teams are looking to move into markets where they'll get some sort of benefit. The market itself is actually shrinking, as evidenced by the loss of population in the western and central NY region.

You make some valid points about the team and future. I believe a good deal of fans, like yourself, have seen through the mirage this franchise has become. They're doing things to increase the ticket base and not so much to improve the team. After four off-seasons of rebuilding, we're left with a 2-4 product that will need to go no less than 8-2 down the stretch to make the playoffs. That's a heck of a challenege, regardless of schedule strength. Fans wouldn't wish for the worst if the team showed potential. But with DJ leading the way and little direction from the top front office guy, it's hard to get excited for the future. Only a real GM with commensurate authority over personnel and a new HC can start the process anew. That is, if the owner allows it, which is really the problem. 10 years without a post-season appearance is inexcusable in today's NFL.

Bob Sanders has had injury concerns dating back to his career at Iowa more than 5 years ago. It's why he lasted into the second round, and Polian decided to take a mild chance on him. Sanders makes tackles behind the LOS, whereas I haven't seen a Buffalo S do that in quite some time. Not saying Whitner or others haven't, but Sanders is a dynamic player. His play at the end of the 06 season took a terrible run defense all the way to the SB. When he's healthy, he's the best S in the NFL.

Thanks Bill and hope you're doing all right. Byrd made some plays in the passing game, but he's got a lot to learn in the run game. It makes what Bob Sanders do for the Colts all the more amazing because he is a one man DB wrecking crew. If there's one position I think Buffalo won't be looking for a starter at in the draft, it's guard. I'm very much in agreement about the DT position. McCargo won't be around much longer, and Williams would be best served in a depth role. Stroud is 31, so new blood would be nice for 2010. Suh and Gerald McCoy are the early front-runners, but they could be gone early. The Bills have some winnable games ahead if they can start scoring some points. Carolina will be a big test, given their big running game.

This is an excellent point. After all these safe calls made during critical points of the game, you would think the players are tired of their coach taking them out of the game when it matters most. I know they give the company line about supporting their coach, but inside that locker room there's got to be a different story. Seeing Lynch and Owens going to the sideline in the Cleveland game makes me think the players aren't letting on their true feelings.

DJ's been doing this for several seasons and it's not getting his teams beyond mediocre. To think some fans figured he'd change to keep his job.

Kinda like in 2006 when the Bills ranked top 10 in pass defense while yielding 140 rushing YPG. People talked up the secondary and completely ignored the fact teams didn't pass versus Buffalo. No one threw for 300+ yards and that was also highlighted. The same issues which beat the Bills in 2006 are hurting the team this year. As nice as it is to win, the big picture is that the run defense hasn't improved one iota since Day 1 of the DJ era.

Hey, they won the game. Why are you being pessimistic and raising things I want to ignore? Just kidding, but yeah it's a major problem that they've got from being top half of the league last season against the rush (with the 31st hardest schedule) to being the league's worst in 2009. We're told how good Stroud, Williams, and Posluszny are against the run in the middle. I'm not so sure anymore.

Buffalo had a winnable game last week against one of the league's worst clubs and couldn't get it done. Rex Ryan made some horrible decisions, and his team's lack of discipline shown through. DJ's team didn't fare much better, with 9 penalties and the youth excuse isn't enough. For all of those fans who figured DJ would change with his job on the line, he continues to run into the pile at the end of games to set up long FG attempts. He was 1-2 in those situations, which generally isn't good enough. How many playoff teams can the Bills beat with that performance today? Not many.

The Bills are allowing nearly 180 yards per game rushing. They've scored one offensive TD in three games. Yeah, I'm glad they shut up Rex Ryan and those Jests, but it's not because they're playing outstanding football.

Keeping a level head is important with this team. How many times I've seen a good win (SD-08, WAS-07) and been let down is what I keep in the back of my head. Forgive me for questioning this team, they've left fans disappointed more often than not this decade. I'm glad one win is enough to forget all the bad losses.

42 carries for 142 yards. Longest run was 12 yards from Lynch. If Meredith is so great, why couldn't the OT starved Packers promote him when they were allowing 8 sacks against Minnesota? The OL has 4 guys starting who hadn't taken a NFL snap before this season. That's NEVER good.

It's important to give credit where credit is due: Byrd made 2 picks and the team had 5 on Sanchez. If we want to talk defense, it's important to note they've allowed nearly 1100 yards rushing in 6 games. That's abysmal and teams are going to be running much more than they throw on this defense. If the Bills can't stop the run, Byrd won't be seeing many passes, and there won't always be a Derek Anderson or rookie throwing them. No OC in their right mind would allow it.

Against Derek Anderson and rookie Mark Sanchez! Seriously, are some of you as desperate to have a safety succeed this much? And no one's answered my point about Whitner yet. When Byrd sustains this level of play against better offenses over at least two seasons, then I'll yield he's very good. The way some are talking about him you'd think Ed Reed Jr. is on this team.

Yeah, because 2-8 to finish last season couldn't get him fired. Jauron may have miscalculated the timing of this win. Last year they won in Denver in Week 16. DJ's signature win of 2009 took place in Week 6. Then again, RW's memory isn't what it used to be.

So by that same token Maybin is a bust, because we can judge a draft after 6 games, right? If so, Vince Young is a HOF'er. Byrd benefitted from playing against a rookie QB who clearly had his worst professional game at a windy Meadowlands. Honestly, are we this desperate? And if Byrd is getting picks in the same defense Whitner plays in, does that mean DW is a bust because he has fewer career picks than Byrd does?