BillsVet

Bills opponents have options: either run for 200 yards or pass for 300. It's all about which one is easier for a particular team playing Buffalo. Of course, some teams may try for both, which isn't out of the question either.

About 20 more Fitz passes and we'll get to 75 easy today.

We're mad as hell and we're going to take it anytime because we're afraid the team will move.

1 TE left - Derek Fine. We'll be scouring the street free agents again real soon. It's what this team is built on, SFA's and UDFA's. Keep's costs down.

It's a perfect storm: DJ, a weak-armed QB, bad game-plan, DJ, nothing at OT, bad OL play, penalties, DJ, and unimaginative play-calling. Were it not for that INT or great kick returns, this team won't be moving beyond midfield. Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse...

Here we go. Defer again.

So that's why Draft was signed as a street free agent and was without a team for multiple weeks. I figured 31 other teams forgot he played in the NFL. Sorry to be sarcastic, but street free agents are never the answer. The time to fix glaring personnel problems is when UFA begins. Unfortunately, the Bills are in spend-less mode and go into every season with little depth.

Not really. By virtue of the owner's advanced age, the Bills cannot make long term plans at GM and HC. Sure, they've got to have a HC and team on the field, but it's not necessary to put together a competent front office. The team's priority right now is to make sure the team is financially as attractive as possible to sell. It's why DJ remains a HC in this league, while several other more accomplished coaches are fired. To send DJ packing would mean paying two men as HC, which isn't helping the bottom line for this year or potentially in the future if the owner were to pass.

My goodness, the Bills finished 2-8 last season and that "magical" 5-1 start. Despite the 31 hardest schedule in the league, they could not make the playoffs. Sure the schedule doesn't look daunting, but DJ is capable of losing to any team in this league. See Cleveland, 10-11-09.

Washington gets a LOT of attention for their dysfunction, but because Buffalo is a small market with Montgomery Burns for an owner, no one really cares. WAS, OAK, BUF, and CLE are the worst franchises. It's not surprising they have some of the worst coaches as well.

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.