BillsVet

I hope Walker's got a minor sprain, but I believe he's going to miss time, perhaps as much as two weeks. It will tell me a lot if Peters showed up and was ready to go with what's happening, but I doubt it. I think Bell could be decent down the road, but let's not get carried away. He benched 225 nine times at the combine, and is probably a practice squad guy at this point. If he's starting or serving as a primary backup, this teams has serious issues and would hope the Bills have the presence of mind to avoid this.

Quinn Gray...(in Belushi voice) dead!!! Niedermayer!

He hasn't exactly faced decent competition. Freeney left early, and defenses will know that if he's starting, the weakness on the OL is a rookie 7th rounder at the most important line position. Everyone talked about game planning, or lack thereof with Pittsburgh on their part. Once the season starts, the starting QB better grow eyes in the back of his head. He's a project now first string on the depth chart. Before the Peters and Walker issues, I figured he'd be PS material until he gets stronger. It's good to hear Walker may not be as bad as we first thought, but they are extremely weak at tackle. Chambers, Bell, and Estes are their only healthy tackles as this point.

Indy's got serious issues at QB behind Manning.

Bobby A...what's happening tonight?

I can see Wright getting the axe (or is it ask Deion?) but Omon is a pick from this year's draft. Maybe I'm putting too much into that, but Hall's a UDFA, and teams don't normally cut draft picks in favor of UDFA's. Then again, who cares. Whomever is third string RB isn't seeing the field unless it's ST's.

Ahead of Wright and Omon?

That's kinda like saying John McCargo hasn't been good, but at least we "found" Kyle Williams. It's not okay if a first rounder busts (and by no means is Leodis even close to a bust) but finding an average player later in the draft at the same position your first rounder plays is no consolation.

Didn't you watch the opening tonight? The time is now...last year's history according to the NFL intro to the game. Wilson was forced into the starting safety role, and was had a gift wrapped one from Romo. Outside of that I'm not so sure he's more than a depth/ST player.

George Wilson ain't even close to being a starting level player in this league. At least McKelvin's young

I don't know what's worse: Chambers becoming the starting RT by default a 7th round rookie as the starting LT They have three healthy tackles, provided that Estes (!) is all right.

That type of clock management hurts...the Denver game in opening week last year was one shining example. Still, it's 17-0 in preseason. We'll see what happens if a similar scenario occurs during the regular season.

The waiver wire will be utilized, but we're scraping by at tackle and the season hasn't started. Demetrius Bell is completely unproven, and Chambers is not starting grade for an entire season. Have to wonder if Peters has a voodoo doll at home. J/K.

so are the Colts players Buffalo's backups may be playing in Week 1 more than we'd like

first down, but the bills OL was free of injury last year...this year may be another story. Sure hope not.

They may need to pass to set up the run this year more than I expected.

Marshawn's okay

take away Losman's scramble there and it's 8 carries for 24 yards

Schefter has nothing tonight, but he's still gotta appear as though he's an "insider."

I wouldn't call it amazing...some ups, some downs. There's one guy playing out of position and another new starter in Chambers.

The more things change...well, it's early.

don't like seeing runs for loss or 1-2 yards. A major issue that I hope doesn't continue tonight.

Again, we're going with the "Jason Peters is an idiot" theory to explain why he's not practicing. Actually, agents are hired to obtain the largest contract-as you well know. Peters knows he's underpaid. Parker does too. So does the Bills' front office. If Peters truly was embarrassed, he would have fired his agent, reported to camp, and agreed to play 2008 at his current salary. That this continues is a testament to their resolve, which may or may not grow after today's game. Parker's success is a product of his ability to wring more money out of teams by leverage his client's participation. I don't agree with it, but it's successful and Peters knows full well who's representing him and their strategy. To claim he's a loyal knuckle dragging stooge is blantantly misdiagnosing the entire situation. My question to you is: How does an underpaid premier NFL player obtain a new contract when they have 2-3 years remaining on their current deal?

With all the comparisons going on between the current situation and others, I can't help but look at what's changed since last year at OBD when Schobel got his deal. First, Brandon's handling GM duties in as COO. It's obvious he's one of the few that Ralph trusts, so much so that RW promoted someone from within who's not a classic GM type. At this point, I've got to believe Brandon, like anyone new to a management position, wants to prove himself in a job that some didn't understand why he was elevated to. Second, the Bills, like any business, probably had a figure in mind for what they wanted to pay players this year. It's certainly takes into account what they paid to their picks, and free agent signings. I really don't believe a mega deal to Peters fits into their plans for 2008 and paying Peters didn't fit into it because he's got those 3 years left on the current contract You have to wonder if he's going to wait until a regular season game when teams begin planning much more in depth, or just calls it quits after the pre-season.

For all the speculation concerning Peters' absence, Brandon's immersion into the front office is the only big change. Could it be that Brandon is further attempting to prove himself on the personnel side by taking a hard stance in this situation? It's speculation, but having been in positions when new people move into a new job, the first instinct is to show they're not a pushover. Or it could be that the Bills have budgeted a certain amount for salaries, and a new Peters deal won't wash considering they've committed to re-signing Evans. I believe it's a combination of both, especially considering RB is heading the front office, and wants to keep salaries down to prove he's capable to act as a GM type.