Coahces and FO stance on Fitz

[Doc]

Come on! Carolina won't pick a QB unless they think we might? Every year this nonsense gets repeated. They will pick whoever they want--they are picking before us. If they don't want Newton, they won't give a crap who picks him or wants him. It's not like they have 2 top 10 picks each.

Re-read what I wrote. I said the Bills can't make the teams in front of them take a player they didn't like, but that Carolina and Denver seemed to like Newton and/or Gabbert (that could be a smokescreen on their part as well, I don't know). The point was that all the talk pre-draft can't be believed, hence the Bills talking-up Newton and inviting him to Buffalo is in all likelihood a smokescreen.

 

But if Carolina really likes him and thinks they can trade down to get him, seeing that the Bills are interested will make them think twice about doing it. Similarly another team may try to trade-up into the 2nd spot to take him.

[Beerball]

Correction, Gabbert received little attention as a pro prospect this year because he sucks; no easier way to say it really. I'm sorry. Gabbert is by far the most overhyped player in this year's draft. He has done absolutely nothing in college, and to make matters worse, he's coming off a year that was statistically much worse than his prior season (which was good, but not an exceptional season either).

Correction to your correction...Gabbert received little attention as a pro prospect from the media this year...

 

Let's not pretend that we know what the scouts have been up to or how they rate Gabbert.

[John from Riverside]

10th in TD%

10th in Sack%

15th in TDs (13 games)

16th Yards per game

17th Yards per catch

21st in Completions (13 games)

22nd in Yards (13 games)

 

 

In one year Fitzpatrick went from being an ok backup to being right in the middle of starting NFL quarterbacks in this league. This was AFTER he came in off the bench two games into the season no less. In one year he improved his QB rating by 12 points. But just keep on trying to pretend he's a bottom of the league QB with no chance of further improvements given a full training camp, a running game and a good defense like the top guys have had.

 

 

Thank you both for providing the stats....

 

Myself I try not to look at statistics and what my eyes actually tell me......which is....

 

- Fitz had NO TE to throw to.....they had a tall skinny undrafted WR in Nelson who played that spot.....and either Fitz made him look really good or the rookie made Fitz look really good.....but the fact is in the red zone I haven't felt that good about a QB taking shots at the 6 point area in a long time....we were actually TRYING to score touchdowns and not settling for field goals

 

- Before last year Johnston could not even get on the fricken field....then Fitz takes over at QB and he ties the touchdown record Bill Brooks set and outplays TO in his first year as a starter

 

- On third down Fitz looked very good

 

- Fearless and nimble....the guy also made plays with his feet

 

- The ONLY negative on Fitz is for some reason the ball seems to fall out of his hand on some throws and he is off.....I have seen the top 5 QB's in the league make those same errant throws....

 

 

Maybe just maybe instead of blaming Fitz for the losses we should be blaming our WR's for dropping passes, our running backs for not getting first downs, our OL for not opening up holes, and our defense for not being able to create turnovers, get itself off the field, or keep opponents for running for over 100 yards every game (and in come cases allowing ridiculous numbers on the ground)

 

 

Does this mean that we shouldn't take a QB with that 1st pick? No.....we are at 3 and it might be a good idea....but there is a LOT of defensive talent going to be available in the 2nd rounds on.

[K Gun Special]

Thank you both for providing the stats....

 

Myself I try not to look at statistics and what my eyes actually tell me......which is....

 

- Fitz had NO TE to throw to.....they had a tall skinny undrafted WR in Nelson who played that spot.....and either Fitz made him look really good or the rookie made Fitz look really good.....but the fact is in the red zone I haven't felt that good about a QB taking shots at the 6 point area in a long time....we were actually TRYING to score touchdowns and not settling for field goals

 

- Before last year Johnston could not even get on the fricken field....then Fitz takes over at QB and he ties the touchdown record Bill Brooks set and outplays TO in his first year as a starter

 

- On third down Fitz looked very good

 

- Fearless and nimble....the guy also made plays with his feet

 

- The ONLY negative on Fitz is for some reason the ball seems to fall out of his hand on some throws and he is off.....I have seen the top 5 QB's in the league make those same errant throws....

 

 

Maybe just maybe instead of blaming Fitz for the losses we should be blaming our WR's for dropping passes, our running backs for not getting first downs, our OL for not opening up holes, and our defense for not being able to create turnovers, get itself off the field, or keep opponents for running for over 100 yards every game (and in come cases allowing ridiculous numbers on the ground)

 

 

Does this mean that we shouldn't take a QB with that 1st pick? No.....we are at 3 and it might be a good idea....but there is a LOT of defensive talent going to be available in the 2nd rounds on.

 

 

the WR had very few drops compared to other team's with QBs with much better numbers.

 

The defense was bad. But the offense had time with the ball- they avg 1 min less per game than Indy and slightly more than a minute less than very good teams.

 

There are many reasons why the teams sucks but those two are not included.

[Mr. WEO]

Thank you both for providing the stats....

 

Myself I try not to look at statistics and what my eyes actually tell me......which is....

 

- Fitz had NO TE to throw to.....they had a tall skinny undrafted WR in Nelson who played that spot.....and either Fitz made him look really good or the rookie made Fitz look really good.....but the fact is in the red zone I haven't felt that good about a QB taking shots at the 6 point area in a long time....we were actually TRYING to score touchdowns and not settling for field goals

 

- Before last year Johnston could not even get on the fricken field....then Fitz takes over at QB and he ties the touchdown record Bill Brooks set and outplays TO in his first year as a starter

 

- On third down Fitz looked very good

 

- Fearless and nimble....the guy also made plays with his feet

 

- The ONLY negative on Fitz is for some reason the ball seems to fall out of his hand on some throws and he is off.....I have seen the top 5 QB's in the league make those same errant throws....

 

 

Maybe just maybe instead of blaming Fitz for the losses we should be blaming our WR's for dropping passes, our running backs for not getting first downs, our OL for not opening up holes, and our defense for not being able to create turnovers, get itself off the field, or keep opponents for running for over 100 yards every game (and in come cases allowing ridiculous numbers on the ground)

 

 

Does this mean that we shouldn't take a QB with that 1st pick? No.....we are at 3 and it might be a good idea....but there is a LOT of defensive talent going to be available in the 2nd rounds on.

All in all, Fitz looked better, yet the offense scored very few points per game--only 1 more than last year, in fact. Maybe Fitz isn't the problem--maybe he needs a new OC. Mr. Modkin isn't cutting it.

[Doc]

All in all, Fitz looked better, yet the offense scored very few points per game--only 1 more than last year, in fact. Maybe Fitz isn't the problem--maybe he needs a new OC. Mr. Modkin isn't cutting it.

With Fitz starting, the offense scored 19 PPG, which was almost a FG better than last year. And IIRC, they faced tougher defenses this year. Maybe a better OC is needed, but more likely, Fitz getting all the reps as the starter in the off-/pre-season, a healthy O-line with a decent RT, WR's who aren't as green, and a real threat at TE (the biggest question mark), will help.

[1billsfan]

With Fitz starting, the offense scored 19 PPG, which was almost a FG better than last year. And IIRC, they faced tougher defenses this year. Maybe a better OC is needed, but more likely, Fitz getting all the reps as the starter in the off-/pre-season, a healthy O-line with a decent RT, WR's who aren't as green, and a real threat at TE (the biggest question mark), will help.

 

 

Also...

 

...the Bills were 32nd in rushing touchdowns with a paltry 6

 

...and if you take away Fitzpatrick's rushing yards they were 30th in total rushing yards

 

 

 

Yet we never hear about the abysmal rushing game here...LOL

Edited March 30, 2011 by 1billsfan

[Alphadawg7]

Also...

 

...the Bills were 32nd in rushing touchdowns with a paltry 6

 

...and if you take away Fitzpatrick's rushing yards they were 30th in total rushing yards

 

 

 

Yet we never hear about the abysmal rushing game here...LOL

 

Hmmmm...Abysmal? 15th in YPG and 10th in YPA is abysmal? And being 24th in the league in passing is not? Also, couldnt you also say the run game stuggled and got abandoned at times because of the faltering passing game? Of course you wouldnt, because it doesnt support your argument.

 

The truth is, they both affect each other, and its interesting that our run game was 15th in the league while our passing game was 24th.

 

The funny thing is, the issues people have with Fitz are his accuracy and turnovers which lead to inconsistency...none of which are the fault of our run game or defense. No one here would have a problem with Fitz if he can take a big step forward in those areas.

 

I for one dont see this as a likely scenario and if you watch the tapes on Fitz rather than just rant about how good he is, you will see exactly what I am talking about, and I am not the only one who has seen this. When he tries to zip a ball into somewhere like a tight spot or timing pattern, his arm strength isnt good enough to do this naturally. He has to put everything he has on the ball to get the velocity needed to make the throw, his throwing motion changes, and it significantly decreases his ability to deliver it accurately. If anyone has ever played golf, its the exact same problem someone has when they step up with a driver and swing as hard as they can trying to crush the ball. When they connect just perfectly, its a thing of beauty, however, the odds of them doing so dramatically decrease and the odds of them hitting a bad shot significantly go up.

 

Fitz has this same problem. When he needs to fire a ball in on a tight timing pattern you can literally see his throwing motion wind up and really lay into it trying to get the ball there. When he succeeds its a thing of beauty (assuming SJ doesnt drop it to lose the game), but more often he completely misses, commits a turnover, or completes the pass but its so off target the reciever has to break his route and can not advance the ball ending the play/drive. These are drive killing plays that often stall our offense.

 

This isnt about hating Fitz, this is about the real flaws that exist in his game and can a guy whos been in the league as long as him actually change these or improve things like this to be able to develop CONSISTENCY that is NECESSARY to win (not yelling, just emphasizing). He brings postives to the game, which is why I would like nothing more than to see Fitz excel, but this and other flaws are the reason I am not in the opinnion that his cieling is much higher than what he did this year...and what he did this year isnt good enough to make this team a real contender.

 

I SINCERELY HOPE FITZ PROVES ME WRONG...I would love nothing more than to have the QB position settled...but rather than ranting about stats, I see real flaws in his mechanics and game that I know first hand are are very difficult to overcome no matter how much someone wishes it to happen.

 

I could go into detail and breakdowns of other actual elements in his game, but I know all its going to do its get more bashing started, people saying its not true and that I am on some kind of crusade. So whats the point...I see flaws, others dont...you are not going to change my mind, and I am not going to change yours...so simply we will just have to agree to disagree and have a beer and hope for the best

Edited March 30, 2011 by Alphadawg7

[reddogblitz]

With Fitz starting, the offense scored 19 PPG, which was almost a FG better than last year.

Right. The PPG average was skewed down by the 3 games Fitz didn't play. In those 3 we got 10, 7, and 3 I think. 6.67, less than a TD per game.

[Mr. WEO]

With Fitz starting, the offense scored 19 PPG, which was almost a FG better than last year. And IIRC, they faced tougher defenses this year. Maybe a better OC is needed, but more likely, Fitz getting all the reps as the starter in the off-/pre-season, a healthy O-line with a decent RT, WR's who aren't as green, and a real threat at TE (the biggest question mark), will help.

 

I'm not a believer that a guy who misses all snaps with the starters in camp and preseason (where no #1 QB gets all 1st team snaps anyway) is a significant deficit over the course of a remaining 15 week season of real football.

 

WR's were "green", huh? Evans and Roscoe (he played half the season) are getting a little long in the tooth and the "greenest" of the regular starters had 87 catches and 10 TDs--easily replacing last year's "leading receiver". A real threat at TE? Wow, there's an idea--good call.

 

 

Right. The PPG average was skewed down by the 3 games Fitz didn't play. In those 3 we got 10, 7, and 3 I think. 6.67, less than a TD per game.

You have it backwards. The Fitz Bills ppg was skewed up by the Baltimore and Cincy games. That was 83 points in two games, versus only 176 points in the other 11 games Fitz started. Those 2 games alone brought average scoring up to nearly 20 ppg from 16 (same as last year). In his last 5 games, the Bills averaged only 10.8 ppg.

[1billsfan]

Hmmmm...Abysmal? 15th in YPG and 10th in YPA is abysmal? And being 24th in the league in passing is not? Also, couldnt you also say the run game stuggled and got abandoned at times because of the faltering passing game? Of course you wouldnt, because it doesnt support your argument.

 

The truth is, they both affect each other, and its interesting that our run game was 15th in the league while our passing game was 24th.

 

The funny thing is, the issues people have with Fitz are his accuracy and turnovers which lead to inconsistency...none of which are the fault of our run game or defense. No one here would have a problem with Fitz if he can take a big step forward in those areas.

 

I for one dont see this as a likely scenario and if you watch the tapes on Fitz rather than just rant about how good he is, you will see exactly what I am talking about, and I am not the only one who has seen this. When he tries to zip a ball into somewhere like a tight spot or timing pattern, his arm strength isnt good enough to do this naturally. He has to put everything he has on the ball to get the velocity needed to make the throw, his throwing motion changes, and it significantly decreases his ability to deliver it accurately. If anyone has ever played golf, its the exact same problem someone has when they step up with a driver and swing as hard as they can trying to crush the ball. When they connect just perfectly, its a thing of beauty, however, the odds of them doing so dramatically decrease and the odds of them hitting a bad shot significantly go up.

 

Fitz has this same problem. When he needs to fire a ball in on a tight timing pattern you can literally see his throwing motion wind up and really lay into it trying to get the ball there. When he succeeds its a thing of beauty (assuming SJ doesnt drop it to lose the game), but more often he completely misses, commits a turnover, or completes the pass but its so off target the reciever has to break his route and can not advance the ball ending the play/drive. These are drive killing plays that often stall our offense.

 

This isnt about hating Fitz, this is about the real flaws that exist in his game and can a guy whos been in the league as long as him actually change these or improve things like this to be able to develop CONSISTENCY that is NECESSARY to win (not yelling, just emphasizing). He brings postives to the game, which is why I would like nothing more than to see Fitz excel, but this and other flaws are the reason I am not in the opinnion that his cieling is much higher than what he did this year...and what he did this year isnt good enough to make this team a real contender.

 

I SINCERELY HOPE FITZ PROVES ME WRONG...I would love nothing more than to have the QB position settled...but rather than ranting about stats, I see real flaws in his mechanics and game that I know first hand are are very difficult to overcome no matter how much someone wishes it to happen.

 

I could go into detail and breakdowns of other actual elements in his game, but I know all its going to do its get more bashing started, people saying its not true and that I am on some kind of crusade. So whats the point...I see flaws, others dont...you are not going to change my mind, and I am not going to change yours...so simply we will just have to agree to disagree and have a beer and hope for the best

 

 

As I stated previously, I no longer take your opinions seriously.

[Doc]

Right. The PPG average was skewed down by the 3 games Fitz didn't play. In those 3 we got 10, 7, and 3 I think. 6.67, less than a TD per game.

I forgot that Fitz didn't start the season ender. So the PPG were actually 19.9 PPG, almost 4 PPG more than 2009. Good call.

I'm not a believer that a guy who misses all snaps with the starters in camp and preseason (where no #1 QB gets all 1st team snaps anyway) is a significant deficit over the course of a remaining 15 week season of real football.

 

WR's were "green", huh? Evans and Roscoe (he played half the season) are getting a little long in the tooth and the "greenest" of the regular starters had 87 catches and 10 TDs--easily replacing last year's "leading receiver". A real threat at TE? Wow, there's an idea--good call.

You can believe what you want. As we've seen, it doesn't always mesh with reality. I'd rather see the QB get most of the reps in the off-/pre-season. I'm sure most people would as well. Just like I'd rather see the starting O-line be able to get the full off-/pre-season to work together. That way they get comfortable prior to the start of the season, not during it.

 

Parrish missed half the season? Who, pray tell, replaced him? How much did David Nelson play during the season? How many rookie WR's were starting by the end of the season? And yes, Johnson showed his greenness, despite his breakout season. No doubt a large part of that was getting reps with Fitz in training camp.

 

And what pot-smoking TE do you like this year?

[Hapless Bills Fan]

The funny thing is, the issues people have with Fitz are his accuracy and turnovers which lead to inconsistency...none of which are the fault of our run game or defense. No one here would have a problem with Fitz if he can take a big step forward in those areas.

 

I for one dont see this as a likely scenario and if you watch the tapes on Fitz rather than just rant about how good he is, you will see exactly what I am talking about, and I am not the only one who has seen this. When he tries to zip a ball into somewhere like a tight spot or timing pattern, his arm strength isnt good enough to do this naturally. He has to put everything he has on the ball to get the velocity needed to make the throw, his throwing motion changes, and it significantly decreases his ability to deliver it accurately. If anyone has ever played golf, its the exact same problem someone has when they step up with a driver and swing as hard as they can trying to crush the ball. When they connect just perfectly, its a thing of beauty, however, the odds of them doing so dramatically decrease and the odds of them hitting a bad shot significantly go up.

 

Fitz has this same problem. When he needs to fire a ball in on a tight timing pattern you can literally see his throwing motion wind up and really lay into it trying to get the ball there. When he succeeds its a thing of beauty (assuming SJ doesnt drop it to lose the game), but more often he completely misses, commits a turnover, or completes the pass but its so off target the reciever has to break his route and can not advance the ball ending the play/drive. These are drive killing plays that often stall our offense.

 

This isnt about hating Fitz, this is about the real flaws that exist in his game and can a guy whos been in the league as long as him actually change these or improve things like this to be able to develop CONSISTENCY that is NECESSARY to win (not yelling, just emphasizing). He brings postives to the game, which is why I would like nothing more than to see Fitz excel, but this and other flaws are the reason I am not in the opinnion that his cieling is much higher than what he did this year...and what he did this year isnt good enough to make this team a real contender.

 

I SINCERELY HOPE FITZ PROVES ME WRONG...I would love nothing more than to have the QB position settled...but rather than ranting about stats, I see real flaws in his mechanics and game that I know first hand are are very difficult to overcome no matter how much someone wishes it to happen.

 

This is a very interesting post - thank you for making it. I really like the way you focused on what you see as technical flaws. I agree Fitz doesn't seem to have the strength he needs sometimes. One thing is as a career backup, his job was to master two game plans each week (the coaching team's and ours). So it was never "on him" to play game after game all season. I'm hoping he really hits the gym and invests in himself and his game with the best coaches and trainers. I think some aspects of physical technique can be taught, you see -- it's the "head for football" and the ability to process info on the fly that Fitz has and that's so much harder to teach.

 

I see something different behind some of the accuracy issues, that's not too important - we are neither of us Bills coaches with access to all the tapes, and can agree to disagree there. The important thing to me is to discuss on the facts, or at least perceived facts. I have real issues with the play calling at times - feeling we got away from it too soon when Freddie was banging out >3.3 yds/carry. It may not be dramatic but it moves the chains. Also issues with ball control, that have nothing to do with Fitz's arm and everything to do with a number of people on the team just not practicing good ball security. That can be coached, one hopes.

 

Again, enjoyed this post.

[Alphadawg7]

This is a very interesting post - thank you for making it. I really like the way you focused on what you see as technical flaws. I agree Fitz doesn't seem to have the strength he needs sometimes. One thing is as a career backup, his job was to master two game plans each week (the coaching team's and ours). So it was never "on him" to play game after game all season. I'm hoping he really hits the gym and invests in himself and his game with the best coaches and trainers. I think some aspects of physical technique can be taught, you see -- it's the "head for football" and the ability to process info on the fly that Fitz has and that's so much harder to teach.

 

I see something different behind some of the accuracy issues, that's not too important - we are neither of us Bills coaches with access to all the tapes, and can agree to disagree there. The important thing to me is to discuss on the facts, or at least perceived facts. I have real issues with the play calling at times - feeling we got away from it too soon when Freddie was banging out >3.3 yds/carry. It may not be dramatic but it moves the chains. Also issues with ball control, that have nothing to do with Fitz's arm and everything to do with a number of people on the team just not practicing good ball security. That can be coached, one hopes.

 

Again, enjoyed this post.

 

Thanks, same to you

 

Totally agree with you on Fitzs head for the game. One of his better attributes along with his guts. Unfortunately he has not been able to capitalize on those things as much as you would like to see, but like you said, maybe with a strong off season he can correct some things that will allow him to be more effective and able to capitalize on his intellectual understanding of the game more. One thing that stands out for me though against Fitz is that last off season Fitz ended the season as the starter and was able to compete for the starting job...so he prepared to be the starter, so not sure he is going to get a whole lot much more out of this offseason than he did last year, not to mention the lock out.

 

I agree with you on the playcalling, for instance, there were times where our running game was being effective, yet we still went away from it and kept throwing even though our passing game was not working. Other times where we had been running well and on 3rd and 1 we pass for an INC and a punt. There were other times where we ran when we should have thrown. And too many times on 3rd and 7, 3rd and 8, etc we call a pass play where only 1 reciever, if even that, ran a route long enough for a first down. And lots of other head scratchers.

 

A lot of people like to say the run game was bad this year, but truth is, we were 10th in the league in rushing YPA and it had more to do with playcalling, being in 2nd/3rd and longs too often, and playing from behind so much that kept the run game from being more productive. I mean even behind a make shift offensive line full of midseason adds, we still averaged 4.3 YPA on the ground and FJ was a very solid 4.2 YPA. I think Spiller is going to turn some heads this year and what we saw in preseason is going to prove to be no fluke too.

 

So who knows, maybe with better play calling and Spiller getting more time and developing into a true weapon, our run game will be more prominent again this year behind a healthy and improving OL and that will allow Fitz (as he will be the starter I believe even if we draft a rookie, barring injury of course) to manage games better.

Edited March 31, 2011 by Alphadawg7

[reddogblitz]

You have it backwards. The Fitz Bills ppg was skewed up by the Baltimore and Cincy games. That was 83 points in two games, versus only 176 points in the other 11 games Fitz started. Those 2 games alone brought average scoring up to nearly 20 ppg from 16 (same as last year). In his last 5 games, the Bills averaged only 10.8 ppg.

So what, are we now on Olympic scoring? Throw out the high and low before calculating an average? You make some decent points that for many games with Fitz under center the offense didn't perform as well point wise. But we also DID score 30 against the Patsies and 26 against Jacksonville. If Johnson holds onto that pass, 23 against the Stealers and 19 against the Bears. While outings of 14 against the Lions, 13 against the Clowns, and 17 against the Fish in Fishland aren't impressive, they were good enough to win those games. Of those last 4 Fitz played in, we were 2-2.

 

If we can put a better team around Fitz especially in regards to OL and D, he can be a winner.

Edited March 31, 2011 by reddogblitz

[Doc]

The bottom line is that QB is the least of the Bills' needs and reaching for a QB in this year's draft would be foolish. At best you take a guy in a later round and hope to develop him (along with Levi Brown). Fitz will get the year to prove himself.

[Bill from NYC]

The bottom line is that QB is the least of the Bills' needs and reaching for a QB in this year's draft would be foolish. At best you take a guy in a later round and hope to develop him (along with Levi Brown). Fitz will get the year to prove himself.

 

Reaching for a QB would not be nearly as stupid as making a rookie cornerback the highest paid player on the team.

Seriously, I would take Newton and his issues in tow over Peterson any day. This franchise, in terms of their first round picks, is a joke. Peterson would render us to be a sick joke.

 

And btw, I would rather use the #3 on Mallett than a corner, rb, or wr.

Edited March 31, 2011 by Bill from NYC

[Mr. WEO]

I forgot that Fitz didn't start the season ender. So the PPG were actually 19.9 PPG, almost 4 PPG more than 2009. Good call.

 

You can believe what you want. As we've seen, it doesn't always mesh with reality. I'd rather see the QB get most of the reps in the off-/pre-season. I'm sure most people would as well. Just like I'd rather see the starting O-line be able to get the full off-/pre-season to work together. That way they get comfortable prior to the start of the season, not during it.

 

Parrish missed half the season? Who, pray tell, replaced him? How much did David Nelson play during the season? How many rookie WR's were starting by the end of the season? And yes, Johnson showed his greenness, despite his breakout season. No doubt a large part of that was getting reps with Fitz in training camp.

 

And what pot-smoking TE do you like this year?

Problems with reality?

 

Fitz is a pretty smart guy. Also, he started more games in 2009 than any other QB on the team. He certainly practiced with the 1st offense in preseason/camp. He missed 2 games as starter and then was the starter for the next 14 weeks of practice. Despite all of that, you are still claiming that the lack of a few reps in August and early September kept the Bills under 20 points a game? I guess you have to stick with that to convince yourself.

 

Green? Well, all rookies are "green" if you mean inexperienced. If you mean they underperformed because of this inexperience, then you are wrong.

 

Johnson played outstandingly well--especially considering his experience. When was the last time a Bills WR had that production? You're opinion is colored by your one year TO fetish. And Johnson didn't break out until almost November--so this had nothing to due with playing catch with Fitz in the summer--it was because of practice in weeks 3 to 7 and beyond.

 

Nelson played very well--didn't look to "green" to many posters here. He had about as many cathces and yards as Roscoe and more TDs in far fewer snaps. What was wrong with his play? How could he have been better? Face it, Johnson was an upgrade and when Nelson filled in for Roscoe (never much of a receiver), we didn't miss a beat.

 

Not sure about htis year's TE crop. NE got all the good ones last year.

Edited March 31, 2011 by Mr. WEO

[Doc]

Reaching for a QB would not be nearly as stupid as making a rookie cornerback the highest paid player on the team.

Seriously, I would take Newton and his issues in tow over Peterson any day. This franchise, in terms of their first round picks, is a joke. Peterson would render us to be a sick joke.

 

And btw, I would rather use the #3 on Mallett than a corner, rb, or wr.

I agree. That's why I'm advocating DL first, LB second.

[Doc]

Problems with reality?

 

Fitz is a pretty smart guy. Also, he started more games in 2009 than any other QB on the team. He certainly practiced with the 1st offense in preseason/camp. He missed 2 games as starter and then was the starter for the next 14 weeks of practice. Despite all of that, you are still claiming that the lack of a few reps in August and early September kept the Bills under 20 points a game? I guess you have to stick with that to convince yourself.

 

Green? Well, all rookies are "green" if you mean inexperienced. If you mean they underperformed because of this inexperience, then you are wrong.

 

Johnson played outstandingly well--especially considering his experience. When was the last time a Bills WR had that production? You're opinion is colored by your one year TO fetish. And Johnson didn't break out until almost November--so this had nothing to due with playing catch with Fitz in the summer--it was because of practice in weeks 3 to 7 and beyond.

 

Nelson played very well--didn't look to "green" to many posters here. He had about as many cathces and yards as Roscoe and more TDs in far fewer snaps. What was wrong with his play? How could he have been better? Face it, Johnson was an upgrade and when Nelson filled in for Roscoe (never much of a receiver), we didn't miss a beat.

 

Not sure about htis year's TE crop. NE got all the good ones last year.

You need more than smarts and the playbook. You need experience. You should know this, given the field you're in.

 

Yes, very good, "green" means inexperienced. Did you think I meant "unripe?"

 

Nelson played very well...for an undrafted rookie. It still doesn't mean he wasn't inexperienced and won't improve. Which is the point. Same goes for Jones and Roosevelt (there's also Easley, who didn't have a chance to show anything during the season). But no, let's fire Modkins because the offense scored 1 more PPG than 2009.

 

As for Stevie, his first game with Fitz saw him catch 3 passes for 66 yards and a TD. Extrapolating those yards over 16 games and you get what his season turned out to be. It took him until his 7th game to eclipse 100 yards, but again that goes back to the experience thing. And he was as inconsistent (i.e. having a few catches and yards for several games and then breaking out for a big game here and there) as you slammed TO for being last year.

 

Speaking of TO and my "fetish," oh, the irony! Suffice it to say that your claims of TO being "washed up" proved dead wrong, although you were correct that someone "had to catch all those passes." And yet, the Bills finished with a worse record that 2009. Go figure.

 

Among the other points I made was having Bell and Wood participating fully in off-season workouts, practices, and training camp, and the RT candidates on the roster will have a full off-season with the team. And no name for a rookie TE? You seemed to know all about Aaron Hernandez.