nichebiche

sorry, my bad.

you mean the Vernon Davis that played in only 10 games because of a broken leg??? the one who broke tackles and outran the defense for a 52 yard TD after coming back from said broken leg??? yeah, i'd take that guy. but, not this year with so many more glaring needs on defense....

i don't read this as a big vote of confidence for Preston, or for Everett who was mentioned in the same breath as needing to make a leap forward. i read it as Marv saying these guys need to take a big leap forward....or else they won't have a job.

Denver

Pyrite, i understand your stance in regards to not starting a rookie MLB due to the complexities of the Cover 2. however, it was made pretty clear in yesterday's press conference that the Bills will be looking for attacking LB's. while Levy did not name names, as an active contributer on this board, it has widely been discussed that Fletcher made the majority of his tackles down the 5+ yards down the field. based on how that fact cannot be argued, it seems evident that Levy was referring to Fletcher as the pursuing-type, as opposed to the attacking LB they prefer in this scheme. based on that criteria, wouldn't it make more sense to let Fletcher walk, since he does not fit the scheme and would make $7.2 mil not fitting in? i'd rather see Crowell slide over to MLB if they cannot find a better alternative. odds are good that they will draft a MLB at some point. when he is ready he can step right in. if it is this year, great. if not, Crowell stays put at MLB. either way, the rook learns. but, you argue that the Bills need Fletcher to be the one to mentor the rook. if Fletcher does not play the style the Bills desire, why would they want him to mentor the new guy??? no matter what, if the team has decided that Fletcher is not going to solve a problem, why not let him go so we can use that $7.2 mil elsewhere, like the O-Line, for example???

there is no compensation attached to the transition tag, just the ability to match any contract offer within 7 days, kinda like a RFA, except the player is guaranteed the average salary of the top 10 players at his position. if we don't want Fletcher, we don't need to complicate things. just let him sign elsewhere so we can focus on finding a LB who does attack.

there are many factors that determine value for a player. the one you describe is one for sure. the one i describe also comes into play, as do others. it just means one factor has now been eliminated from the equation. if 2 teams want Clements bad enough to get into a bidding war, the sky is the limit.

i don't think was not a vote of confidence for Pennington. instead, i think Levy wants to keep a player like Pennington motivated to continue working hard due to competition. competition is a good thing, especially for young players. there is nothing the Bills would hate to see more than players like Pennington resting on their laurels due to a lack of competition. only 2 jobs on the O-Line are guaranteed at this point -- Peters and Fowler. every other job should be up for grabs.

agreed. i actually just came to that conclusion on the other post regarding this topic before i read this. i'm allowed to change my mind, right???

you would think so, and it may be that way. but, the supply was already low enough that taking Samuel away will not increase the demand for Clements significantly. the price was going to be high either way. what i am saying is that an early signing by Samuel is taken out of the equation, thus giving the agents for Clements less to gauge a market value deal on. if Samuel were to sign early for 6 years, $50 million with an $18 mil signing bonus, that sets a clear value for Nate. since that won't be happening now, the best they can go on is to shoot high and say they want Champ Bailey money. they might get it if someone wants him bad enough. but, if the early offers don't come close to that number they can only base Nate's value on the offers that do come in, not a value that has been set by an early signing by someone who really Samuel and was willing to pay dearly for it him.

Levy answered a question about it in the press conference today, saying they agreed to it to avoid a long holdout and to ensure they had a full team in camp with the new coaching staff. they can't go back on their word now. the good news is that Samuel can't drive up the price by setting a high market value, Clements only negotiating tool is pitting the Bills up against the other 31 teams.

and the price for Nate Clements skyrockets as the undisputed best free agent CB left on the market.

from espn.com one more potential top free agent off the market. for all of you who want the Bills to open the pocketbook, you won't find much left in the cupboard. so, all this arguing over the meaning of the press conference might be moot.

is it ok to hate on Trey???

i suppose those who are jumping ship because the Bills will not spend every penny of cap space this year are the type of people who never have any extra money of the their own because they fail to think about the future. listen, what all this means is that the Bills will not be going after every big name free agent. Marv has made it clear they want to take care of the O-Line and the run defense, which should please everyone (except for those who will cry when someone is signed that they have never heard about). it seems like London is as good as gone, Nate will get the old college try, but Kelsay will be most likely of the 3 to return next year. but, to me, what was hidden in all of this is that Marv and the Bills value building a team from within. true, they may not be able to sign many of their guys this year due to anticipated big contract offers. however, by employing the cap philosophy they have chosen, they will be looking to extend the remaining players such as Losman, Evans, Peters as well as Witner, Simpson down the line well before they ever get the chance to hit free agency. as we get to next post season, i bet you will not see the Bills losing any of their own free agents that they covet, because they will have taken care to extend their contracts beforehand. anyone you see leaving will either be players who are not in the team's plans or those who do not want to be here. once the team is at that point, they'll be able to bring in an impact free agent without worrying about having to make decisions on cap casualties. by doing this year after year, the team will have been built from within, while keeping enough flexibility to make an impact move when necessary.

No. No. And No. but, we won't have to worry about it. he will be looking to go somewhere that plays man coverage. if anyone bothered to read the article, it says that he was unhappy and looked lost in the Cover 2 system. his numbers back that up. why would the Bills want to bring in a player who looked was unhappy and looked lost in the very system they run??? this is not fantasy football, people. the Bills will be looking for players that fit their system, not necessarily high-profile names that fit like square pegs in a round hole.

Today Posted By: Chris Brown | Time: 3:16 PM ET | Link DT TERDELL SANDS RE-SIGNED: For those Bills fans who were dreaming of seeing 6'7" 335 pound Terdell Sands lining up at nose tackle (one-technique) for the Bills this fall, I'm hearing he's just re-signed with the Raiders. The potential free agent was locked up for four years $17 million and got $4 million to sign. Even Oakland realized how hard it is to find a behemoth to clog up the middle for your run defense these days. --- guess that takes care of that one. time for some of you to dream of someone else clogging the middle.

i didn't realize the Raiders played the Colts in the Super Bowl. no wonder Peyton won...

that would be a great idea had we just named Wade Phillips as coach and we hadn't just spent the past year converting the roster to the Tampa-2 Def system. yes, switch gears after a year -- i guess not all ideas are good ones....

if Buffalo hasn't taken care of DT through free agency as you suggest they will look to do so via the draft, which would lead us to Branch or Okoye. if both are gone by #12, odds are good that your one of those DE's you mention, Gaines or Anderson will be there, as will Marshawn Lynch at RB. if this is the scenario, i could certainly see a trade down in the works. you'll see the Jets, Giants, Packers and possibly the Broncos vying to get their hands on Lynch, making them possible trade partners. in addition, the Rams may be players for a DE right behind the Bills at #13, so you could see teams like Pittsburgh, Jacksonville, Denver or Philly trying to position themselves ahead of the Rams, which would make them potential trade partners as well. with a trade down to pick up an extra 2nd rounder, sure, a WR at #1 is a possiblity. that would still allow them to pick an OG and take a DT, TE, LB or CB with the 2 2nd rounders.

and despite all these stats, Buffalo won more games. using the Arizona Cardinals as an organization to model after -- hmm, interesting choice.... stats like these can be deceiving. for instance, is it possible that all those points and yards came after the Cards were behind and had to play catch up? seems to me that could be possible since Arizona's Team DEF ranked #29 overall in the NFL. i wonder, why didn't they win more games??? i think i'll stick with shoring up the front 7 on defense and the O-Line. a win is a win in my book, whether it is accomplished by scoring more TD's or by grinding it out with tough defense and field goals. the Colts only won in the playoffs and Super Bowl because their defense finally showed up to play and because they were able to run the ball behind a O-Line that featured 2 Pro-Bowl starters, not because of their WR's. a 2nd stud WR should be luxury that the Bills go after only when the rest of the team is in place. that being said, i could see them taking a WR early in the draft if they have taken care of their other needs in free agency...

just because Minnesota is willing to trade for one of the best WR in the league doesn't mean that Arizona isn't laughing at them for attempting it. besides, what good would having a guy like Fitzgerald do for the Vikings if they don't have a guy who can get him the ball??? dumb rumor!!!

that thought is only entertaining because there is no way Peterson drops to #12.

message board fights are fun!!!

he's a Mountaineer -- WVU.