BuffaloBill Posted September 7, 2010 Posted September 7, 2010 I don't get it. They scouted the guy in college, drafted him, said after the draft that he was the QB who they were taregeting, and then worked with him all through preseason and training camp (and praised his development). Pretty harsh to conclude after his first, brief, live NFL action that he's not worth developing for the future. It sure seems like either the scouts messed up or the coaches messed up. There is a reason why all the other teams went through six rounds + and did not pick the guy. If he was such a shining prospect someone would have gone after him in an earlier round. The chances of a seventh round QB seeing playing time in the NFL is tiny. Maybe some of the hype was to get the other QB's on the roster to step it up.
eball Posted September 7, 2010 Posted September 7, 2010 That's true of course due to the addition of 4 new franchise since that time. But the "apples to apples" comparison are late round picks, I think, not only 7th rounders. In other words, if the above list of players would have been 6th rounders in the 2010 draft doesn't that further prove the point that late round picks are a crap shoot? 7th round picks are not more likely to produce in the NFL than 6th round picks, after. Levi Brown and Kyle Calloway would've been taken in the 8th round or later in 1986-1993. You might be missing my point slightly; when I saw your list originally I thought to myself, "wow, there are a couple of really good players in there." Realizing those guys wouldn't have been 7th round picks TODAY strengthens the argument that a 7th round pick nowadays is even more of a crapshoot. That's all.
Punch Posted September 7, 2010 Posted September 7, 2010 You might be missing my point slightly; when I saw your list originally I thought to myself, "wow, there are a couple of really good players in there." Realizing those guys wouldn't have been 7th round picks TODAY strengthens the argument that a 7th round pick nowadays is even more of a crapshoot. That's all. I follow you--- I think, somewhat in haste, my initial reading of your post sounded antithetical to my point when in fact we are in agreement. I just really don't understand the poster that wants to declare the current front office a disaster based on initially being interested in a couple of late round picks who they then decided did not fit in with the team's plans after multiple rounds of assessments and the addition of several undrafted rookies. If coaching staffs and front office personnel around the league could 100% accurately scout and assess players pre-draft then every team would have not only their QBs of the future but of the present, as well. They wouldn't even need to play the games at that point. But, it's impossible to tell how the Bills have done with the 2010 draft class in the first week of September. That's why reasonably patient fans are cautiously optimistic about the new "regime", if you will.
Hapless Bills Fan Posted September 8, 2010 Posted September 8, 2010 I don't get it. They scouted the guy in college, drafted him, said after the draft that he was the QB who they were taregeting, and then worked with him all through preseason and training camp (and praised his development). Pretty harsh to conclude after his first, brief, live NFL action that he's not worth developing for the future. It sure seems like either the scouts messed up or the coaches messed up. Simple, I think. After watching film, they didn't think enough of the early draft round QB available. They went into the draft planning to target needs on the OL and D. I think they weren't expecting Spiller to be there to be picked, when he did they seized the opportunity, but I don't think they would have taken a QB. I think they wanted DE or LB, possibly OL. It's probably true that Levi is the QB they were targeting - but they were targeting a short list of late-round QB or UDFA. NE does this almost every year - pick up a late-round QB or UDFA as a developmental prospect (Brady, Cassel, their current backup) they feel might have a real shot. IIRC, GB and NO do this a lot as well. If the late-round sleeper is better than the developmental QB they already have, he stays and the guy on the roster goes. IF the new guy isn't better than the incumbant, he goes. I think Chan genuinely liked Levi and thought he has a real shot to DEVELOP into an NFL QB. The harsh reality is we couldn't keep 4 QB with all our other needs. Brohm (our current developmental) is clearly further along and more capable at this point. Out goes Levi. No one messed up. The plan worked exactly as it was supposed to. It's not that Levi is no good or isn't worth developing. He just lost out to the superior readiness of the status quo -- our line isn't strong enough not to carry 3 game-ready guys. It happens to QB who later succeed in the league (Warner for example). The best thing for Levi to do would be to leave with a smile and a handshake, look for something in the CFL, UFL, or Europe, play hard and keep developing, and plan for another day when he gets another training camp invite and he'll be the developmental QB who wins out.
Chas56 Posted September 8, 2010 Posted September 8, 2010 gee felluz, lets pretend that we had a lot more draft pix: 8. WR Dave Nelson 9. LB Antonio Coleman 10. G Cord Howard 11. RB Joique Bell 12. SS Dominique Harris 13. WR Naaman Roosevelt 14. FB Rodney Ferguson WOW, our 7th round pix didn't even make the PS, but we did great in rounds 8-14. there, now everyone can marvel at the genius of 1 Bills dr. Nice ~AS
disco Posted September 8, 2010 Posted September 8, 2010 (edited) Sorry, I'm just going to troll in her with some stats to help the debate. Over the last 10 years (before this year) the Bills had drafted 32 6th or 7th rounders. Number to play at least one NFL game? 29. TWENTY NINE! That's a 91% rate of making the roster. And it's #1 in the NFL. You might say that's because we suck. Perhaps it is. But of course the number 2 team in the NFL at survival rate is the Colts - 26 drafted, 22 started a game....and the Lions are the worst with just a 65% rate of making the roster. We could argue what it means, but at a basic level I'd say it says we aren't often 'wasting' 7th rounders. In Levi's case, I almost wonder if it's not what someone pointed out earlier - he didn't take advantage of the opportunity. I'm sure it's been mentioned, but his tweet about being 'pissed' that he wasn't on the roster or PS makes me wonder if he really understood he needed to earn it. Edited September 8, 2010 by disco
eball Posted September 8, 2010 Posted September 8, 2010 I just really don't understand the poster that wants to declare the current front office a disaster based on initially being interested in a couple of late round picks who they then decided did not fit in with the team's plans after multiple rounds of assessments and the addition of several undrafted rookies. Neither do a lot of us.
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