BillsVet

I would agree, he's not the most household name in the league. Corey Webster of NYG got a similar deal and he's not widely known either. It's a big league, and some players operate under the radar.

Not trying to determine your fanhood here or beat my chest, but I've known of Hayden since he was drafted. Polian took him the year before he lost Nick Harper and Jason David to UFA. Hope you didn't take that as me talking down to you. It wasn't my purpose there.

If Bill Polian wanted to re-sign him, I'm pretty sure he's still a very good player. Same goes for almost anyone Jerry Reese, Ozzie Newsome, and Bill Belichick signs for their teams. I'll give Polian the benefit of the doubt when it comes to who to re-sign and who not to.

No. Peters is a known commodity. His 08 season was lackluster, but the skill-set is there to be an outstanding LT. OTOH, I'm not convinced of Cassel's ability to be a franchise QB. He rarely threw the ball more than 15 yards downfield and if people think Edwards' arm isn't great, they'll feel the same about Cassel. And he won't have Randy Moss and Wes Welker to throw to wherever he goes. Nor Belichick and Brady to guide him when things go wrong.

Two things could happen this offseason that would make it hard to remain a Bills fan: 1. Peters is traded for draft picks. That cements the reality that it's not about building a winner, but saving dollars. 2. Buffalo gives up draft picks to acquire another QB from the Patriots. Belichick has already out-done this team once. If, and it's a huge if, they make a trade for Cassel it's over for this franchise. Not saying MC is a bad QB, but he was in a perfect system in NE.

It's sad what this team has come to. I know Brown works for the team and can't trash everyone because the franchise has underachieved. But praising DJ for these comments is ridiculous. There's no way DJ has any respect from the fan base, at least not the knowledgeable ones.

Chris Brown, lead cheerleader for the Bills just noted on his blog section of the website how impressed he is with DJ's response to questions at the combine. It's February, which is about 7 months from opening day and nothing will change. But I've heard so much talk from OBD that it's like the drone of an old refrigerator. DJ's comments today are the same old thing we've heard time and time again. According to Brown: What was more impressive was his acknowledgement of the fan frustration about how the season unfolded. It’s clear that he feels just as disappointed as the fans do about 2008 and there’s a determination there to make things right that I haven’t seen in him before.

You can never have enough guys like Brad Van Pelt. RIP.

Supply of solid CB's on the market will be minimal. Demand will be high and the risk of tagging Greer is more than balanced by the need several teams have for a CB. As more CB's are unavailable, those left will get paid money none of think is rational. I know if I was running a team, I'd much rather have a CB with NFL experience than a first round pick who is untested. Someone with plenty of cap space (and there are several) will overpay for a guy like Greer. It doesn't make sense, but the demand to win now is the reason these guys get paid so much. Taking a calculated risk like this is not as big as some are making it out to be.

The value to tag a CB is 9.9M in 2009. I agree Greer isn't worth that kind of money, but the leverage will be with Buffalo when UFA opens up and plenty of teams looking for a CB have the cap room to take on JG. I can almost guarantee that someone would give no less than a 3rd rounder for him in trade. Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating his re-signing. But why let a guy leave when he has value on the open market. Last year, GB franchised DL Corey Williams and ended up getting a 2nd for him because DL were and always will be in demand. Rarely does a team have something the rest of the leagues wants, only to get nothing. If Greer leaves, it'll mark the 2nd time in 3 off-seasons when they let guys go without any compensation.

Asomugha will be re-signed today and Dunta Robinson was franchised. The options at CB are dwindling with these two moves. Now is the time to franchise Greer to trade him, as plenty of teams are seeing their UFA options grow smaller. Should the Bills allow Greer to leave, it's akin to letting draft picks walk out the door. Then again, it's this kind of inactivity I've come to expect from OBD.

Thanks for the update Dan in SB. IMO, the move to get Modrak into the "inner circle" and the hiring of Nix is a way to avoid hiring a GM while keeping DJ from having decision making authority in personnel. Worse than his on-field decisions has been his power to drive the personnel train. I trust that people in the front office realized DJ wasn't cutting it on personnel.

As opposed to a verbal promise given during training camp.

I would not be surprised if Buffalo thinks Derek Fine is capable of handling the job. He was injured for the first half of 08, and fits their requirement of a guy who can block first and catch second. Behind him are the undersized Schouman and the fumbler, Robert Royal on the depth chart. Not going TE in the draft allows them to address their needs at DE, C, OLB, S depth, LB depth, DT depth, interior OL depth.

As much as I'd like to decry the recent players Buffalo has re-signed or are now interested in, we've got to wait until after the first week of UFA. If at that point they've failed to address some of their distinct needs then the torches and pitchforks can come out. Washington is a straight ST'er. He's 30 in August and according to ESPN: The biggest knock on him is his inconsistent play. He doesn't have great hands and is considered as an unreliable receiver who never progressed with his route running and understanding of coverages. He is not a physical player for his size and hasn't played well through injures. I don't think he's the big WR threat to take attention away from Evans. He'll merit a look at ST if signed. That seems to be the only thing this team does right over the past few years.

The NFL is a copycat league, as evidenced by how teams are now using the tag. Using it on kickers and a second time on other players is becoming the norm as teams are averse to inking several larger contracts or letting players walk out the door without compensation. With NFL careers able to be ended or reduced in an instant (either off or on the field), giving large contracts with guaranteed money is a huge gamble. When NC left, it was anti-climactic because the Bills tagged NC without ever intending to sign him long term. That to me is the worst personnel move made during the past three seasons. Allowing him to leave without compensation was what a front office behind the curve does. Franchising players without an intention to re-sign or trade them is non-sensical.

Getting a first round pick is almost necessary. But finding starting grade players in later rounds is imperative for small market teams. SD has been doing that for a few years and always finds guys in the mid rounds. Since TD took over, there haven't been a great deal of middle round (3rd-5th) guys who are good NFL starters. TD had Jennings, McGee, Crowell to show for from 5 drafts. Levy/Jauron/Brandon show Edwards, K. Williams, and Butler. I won't grade the 08 picks yet, but that's not good enough. SD doesn't usually have huge holes to fill in the draft and free agency. I'm sure Nix' work was a big reason why.

When was the last time Buffalo ever had a coordinator up for a potential HC job? Or the last time a position coach became a coordinator? I can't recall one. The story on DJ is the people he hires. He's been through 2 DC's and 4 OC's through 8 seasons of being a NFL HC. None of them are or ever will be considered great legacies in NFL circles. Buffalo certainly needs upgrades at C, TE, DE, and OLB, but with that schedule last year finishing 7-9 is like going 5-11 against a tough schedule.

Hiring Nix was a good move for the front office. They lacked talent evaluators and he adds a wealth of experience in that area. I'm a big critic of the front office, but there's no way anyone can complain about hiring someone with a solid track record. IMO, this move, along with involving Modrak in personnel decisions is a demonstration that DJ's decisions were poor ones. Hiring Nix is also somewhat of a compromise to not having a real GM. Sure, Brandon is the "COO" but he has no power as evidenced by DJ's retention. All in all, Nix is better than not having him.

Not this year. Even optimistic fans have been down that road before. Before 07, this team spent money on Walker and Dockery while adding Lynch and Posluszny. The result was another 7-9 season. Before 08, they made the big move (for Buffalo) in acquiring Stroud and signing Mitchell. The took a top CB and tall WR. The result was another 7-9. IMO, it's going to take a whole lot in UFA for the fan base to get excited. When all the smoke clears, DJ is still the coach of the team. It'll be hard for the marketing folks to overcome that one little fact.

Thing is, this team went 7-9 in 07 with a young team and injuries. Fast forward to 08, and with ultimately the league's second easiest scheduled only managed to duplicate their previous season's final record. 2009 already looks like an uphill challenge. ATL, NO, CAR, TB, HOU, IND, JAC, and TEN. Then NE, MIA, and NYJ 2x. About the only games I'm somewhat confident are CLE and KC. It's a long ways off, but they won't have a simple schedule in 09. I like Trent, but he needs to stand and deliver. Well, maybe not the stand part (hopefully he learned from the Wilson hit) but start making plays. And the Bills need to find players who make plays, not hard workers who are physically limited.

I recall the signings of Dockery and Walker two years ago and thinking that Buffalo was working toward being a playoff team again. The previous off-season saw the likes of Fowler, Royal, Reyes, Tripplett, and others who couldn't cut it. I was wrong. Looking back, throwing money around in UFA isn't the right way to do things. Unless of course a front office knows what it's doing. That year, I believe NE signed Adalius Thomas and traded for both Wes Welker and Randy Moss. I hate the Pats, but their front office is top notch. I've haven't had the feeling Buffalo's front office has been cutting edge in a long time. I will expect the worse and hope for the best until they prove they're capable. Hiring Levy, retaining the same crew from TD's era, making Brandon COO with no power has worn me down. I'll root for the team as well, but my expectations aren't very high.

It's simple to believe in conspiracy theories. They appeal to lower educated people and explain all the problems in the world when rational thought isn't exciting enough. Conspiracy theorists disregard anything which does not support their their opinion as too simple. Indeed, Lynch is innocent until proven guilty. But early reports suggest something illegal was happening. Of course, conspiracy theorists believe the police randomly selected a vehicle because minorities were in the vehicle. Then again, the vehicle had incorrect plates on it, was running, and isolated. That is suspicious in my book. Go ahead and marginalize the use of marijuana. It is still illegal to use. But the fact that a fan favorite was at least with people who possessed a loaded and unlicensed firearm is too much for some to bear. The natural defense mechanism of conspiracy theorists is to marginalize, criticize, and demonize. So far, this board has done a fine job of that.

I'm sorry, it took 15 minutes for the conspiracy theorists to show up on a thread from a respected ESPN personality.

Conspiracy theorists attack in 3 2 1... Thanks Tim for your research into this story.