Pete Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 Cribbs was a home run threat his last two years with the Bills and was really developing into a top notch 3 down NFL back when he bolted for USFL
Dibs Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 Seriously? The wall is to honour the all time greats. How does one even momentarily contemplate considering a player who only played for 3.5 years with the Bills?
hondo in seattle Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 Stop it ... Bell, Lynch, McGahee, Henry. No way. They are all several rungs below our top four of Gilcrest, Simpson, Thurman and Cribbs. Gilcrest was the best Football Player in the CFL ever, he should have been in the NFL in his prime. He was the best football player in the AFL from 1962 to 1965, making the All Star team every year. He was the best runner, blocker, tackler, kicker, hitter, talker, fighter, mauler, and complainer of all time. Simpson was a Heisman winner who almost won it twice!. He was voted the best football player of the 70's decade. Period. Thurman was the best all around running back to play in the modern era. Cribbs has the least stats of this group, and is a rung or two below the other three. He still is far better than the rest. Bell, Lynch, McGahee, Henry, Miller, ... they do not get honorable mention. Wayne Carlton, Jim Braxton, Roland Hooks, Kenny Davis, and Freddy Jackson have all contributed more to the Buffalo Bills than the group you are naming, even if they had less talent. I don't disagree. I wasn't attempting to put the group I named on some equal pedestal. I was just naming a few names to show how fortunate we've been with RBs. We've had some talented backs over the years including those that you mention: Carlton, Hooks, Davis, etc. That's exactly why Bell doesn't stand out. The other point I was making is that our history of RBs seems stronger than our history of QBs. There's only two I'd place on the good list since I became a fan: Fergie and Kelly. I'd like to add Fitz to that list someday. While I've been reasonably pleased with the gentlemen carrying the ball for the Bills, the guys throwing the ball includes names I'd rather forget: Shaw, Dufek, Ferragamo, Manucci, Mathison, Collins, Johnson....
Arkady Renko Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 I agree that there aren't many blockbuster player trades, but not sure which player you're talking about (Bennett or Dickerson). Bennett had not played a down in the NFL. He was the second overall pick in the draft but wouldn't sign with the Dolts. What would have happened with Eli Manning if the Chargers didn't trade him immediately but kept trying to sign him into October and then gave up and then wanted to trade him? Of course a LB isn't a QB, but basically the Dolts were trading the 2nd overall pick in the draft. Dickerson was 3 seasons removed from the all time single season yardage record (yes, in 16 games, not 14) and led the league in rushing 3 of his first 4 seasons ('87 was his fifth season). The Dolts were desperate to get rid of the second overall pick and get the value they would have gotten on draft day for him. They got the best running back in the league when top running backs had much more value than they do today. The Lambs got a decent running back and a ton of draft picks that they wasted away. Also, you used to think you had the player indefinitely back then considering the lack of true free agency.
todd Posted October 21, 2011 Posted October 21, 2011 There are players I'd put up there before Bell, not that he wasn't a good player. I'm just a year or so age-wise from being able to remember Greg Bell play. BUT...every youtube Bills video I watch (BillCody1960 = GOD!!!) from the Bell's time has him looking like a hall-of-famer. Today I was watching the Bill-Cowboys 1984 game and Greg Bell dominated leading us to a huge upset of the shi*-boys. Simple Question: Does Greg Bell get due credit?
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