Kipers Hair Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 I think anyone would agree, Buddy and Chan have done a pretty good job shaoing this roster into the team they envisioned before they signed up for thier tour of duty at One Bills Drive, however, how long do you think it will take until they cry uncle on the CJ Spiller choice? I don't get where he even fit's their M.O. of what they want their team to look like...he is simply a poor man's Reggie Bush and will never be anything more than this... Sure' he has done infinitely more than the Aaron Mayhem pick, but considernig all of the needs we had/have and the clear vision for a team they have - we missed the mark greatly taking Spiller where we did. I would argue that Chief's second round pick McCluster is more electrifying and is doing what we had expected from Spiller-time....
dayman Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 Say what you will...CJ can be explosive and has been on occasion. He looked great on his one TD run. He still needs to get a hang for finding yards that aren't there but the bottom line is Freddy has turned himself into an amazing RB. With Fred in front of him he isn't going to get the mojo/confidence/experience he needs to develop as soon as possible...and we're all ok w/ that b/c Fred is the man.
Dorkington Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 He's not been our main back so far, but as long as he's productive for his place on this team, I don't see a reason to ship him off for nothing. He produces match up problems for us, and that's a *good* thing.
PS 56 Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 CJ will improve as his blocks improve. He is Gailey's waterbug. You will see much more from him this season is my guess.
KD in CA Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 Nothing wrong with having a poor man's Reggie Bush as your backup RB. Waste of a #9 pick? Probably. But that alone is no reason to get rid of him -- unless he starts whining on Twitter.
rpcolosi Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 CJ is a player they will utilize in spots. Fitz will need to trust him when he's lined up in the slot, and we need to do a good job of utilizing him to chip on some downs and get the ball in open space. He's not an every down back, and thats ok. He is a guy that forces teams to account for him and has home run potential on every play. He's still learning his way, but let's not be foolish - it's game 1. Expect to see more of him, with freddi wearing teams down and CJ being able to bounce some outside runs like his TD score yesterday (which was a beautiful, beautiful run play off RT). Spiller and the words maybin/bust should never be in the same sentence. Maybin is a bust, Erik Williams is a bust. I'd even argue Mike Williams wasn't - was he what we needed from a #4 overall? heck no. But he saw the field and played adequately at RT. Maybin and flowers? there are your all time Bills busts. Right now, a good comparison of Spiller is to Eric Mould, IMO.
Peter Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 There is no need to "cry uncle" at this point. I have a feeling he will end up being pretty good (presuming he can learn about pass protections and get on the field more often). I saw the guy beat teams in college all by himself. Whether that translates into being productive in the NFL, we shall see. In the meantime, Fred is doing great and let's enjoy yesterday's big win on the road against last year's AFC West champs.
Dorkington Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 Nothing wrong with having a poor man's Reggie Bush as your backup RB. Waste of a #9 pick? Probably. But that alone is no reason to get rid of him -- unless he starts whining on Twitter. Bingo. And we have White as a good backup short yard guy if he develops.
atlbillsfan1975 Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 (edited) he has not lived up to his draft spot, yet. I could see Chan using him more and more as the season goes on. Kind of like a hidden weapon. Finding ways to get him the ball in open space and lettin ghim makes plays..ie, shove passes, screens, linning up in the slot. Chan really didnt have to break out to much of his play book yesterday. If the Bills can run their vanilla package and beat inferior teams(god i never thought i would say that) then Chan will keep saving his more creative plays. besides a lot of old ball coaches dont like showing to much to early if they can help it. I bet in the N.E game you will see a lot of different packages. Chan will want to try and out smart Belichek. I think this is when you will see more of CJ. Edited September 12, 2011 by atlbillsfan1975
1000YearFrankReich Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 I think anyone would agree, Buddy and Chan have done a pretty good job shaoing this roster into the team they envisioned before they signed up for thier tour of duty at One Bills Drive, however, how long do you think it will take until they cry uncle on the CJ Spiller choice? I don't get where he even fit's their M.O. of what they want their team to look like...he is simply a poor man's Reggie Bush and will never be anything more than this... Sure' he has done infinitely more than the Aaron Mayhem pick, but considernig all of the needs we had/have and the clear vision for a team they have - we missed the mark greatly taking Spiller where we did. I would argue that Chief's second round pick McCluster is more electrifying and is doing what we had expected from Spiller-time.... While it would seem that you'd probably want something more like Chris Johnson production out of the 9th overall pick, the truth is that kind of running back is slowing disappearing from football anyways. Having two good running backs with different skill sets is becoming much more the norm these days, and really it makes sense to spend less on two guys combined then say on one Chris Johnson (who, btw managed 24 yards on 9 carries in a losing effort Sunday). I look at offenses like the Packers, Saints, Patriots and San Diego and I see teams that utilitize lots of different skill sets without featuring many stars as the model for NFL offenses moving forward. It's better for dealing with injuries, salary caps and can allow for an expanded playbook. Spiller obviously is not taking the league by storm, but he retains the ability and potential to develop into a serious weapon for the Bills. I would definitely like to see him do a bit more with the touches he gets, but its definitely not time to give up on him yet, and I still think he will be more of a weapon for this team by the end of the year.
bbb Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 I really liked him on that one early pass play that I think went for a first down (which had been preceded by about an 8 yard run by him - although Marv Alberts said it was Freddie (poor Marv has hit the wall - he used to be so great). So, I'm expecting more of him doing that Thurman set up wide thing, and then nothing. I don't think he caught another pass. Freddie is the man, and CJ's ceiling is low. What a terrible wasted pick at #9. Ugh - we all hated it here that night, and we were all right.
billsfan1959 Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 I think anyone would agree, Buddy and Chan have done a pretty good job shaoing this roster into the team they envisioned before they signed up for thier tour of duty at One Bills Drive, however, how long do you think it will take until they cry uncle on the CJ Spiller choice? I don't get where he even fit's their M.O. of what they want their team to look like...he is simply a poor man's Reggie Bush and will never be anything more than this... Sure' he has done infinitely more than the Aaron Mayhem pick, but considernig all of the needs we had/have and the clear vision for a team they have - we missed the mark greatly taking Spiller where we did. I would argue that Chief's second round pick McCluster is more electrifying and is doing what we had expected from Spiller-time.... He certainly has ability and potential. I think Gailey is a bright offensive mind and will eventually find a way to put him in a position to translate that ability and potential into on-field productivity. I also think Gailey is the kind of guy who will cut Spiller loose as soon as he reaches the conclusion that it just isn't going to work. But, for me, still way too early to tell and I am not ready to give up on the kid yet. Apparently, neither is Gailey, who has earned my respect in evaluating offensive talent and getting the most out of what he has to work with.
GOBILLS78 Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 He's certainly explosive, but they have to put him in position to get the most out of him. He doesn't run well between the tackles. Didn't at Clemson, doesn't now. They need to get him in space so he can use his burst to the outside.
bowery4 Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 I like that Chan had CJ run between tackle on a few 2nd and short plays (not that much to lose really). After seeing the results with other parts of the team in this game. I am happy Chan is the coach. I think if at some point Fred is out and in respects to CJ’s development he has to learn to run behind his blockers and get people off of him with more than his speed. Look at Fred carry a couple of guys or slide into a small hole by anticipating it or the smoothness when he makes a guy miss. They may seem to be things that he knows instinctively but we can learn to think instinctively (at least when you are training athletically), that is part of how gifted guys make it look so easy. And after a while it becomes 2nd nature. Coach is going to get CJ there, it is taking too much time yes but he will get it. He also missed a block on a blitz PU when he and Fred were in the back field in the 3rd. That TD run was pretty though, if they gave him that on our own 40 he would have still have scored. I can’t wait until THAT happens. Sometimes it takes time to develop into a good back, it is only his second season and I am holding out hope and faith that CJ will get better.
cowtippur Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 As someone that watched a lot of Spiller throughout his collegiate career (as he ran, received, and returned all over my Wolfpack), I like him on the team. The main problem I see with him is that he doesn't run north/south but rather east/west. If you watch Fred, as we all know, he goes where the hole is and gets yards after being hit. CJ sees a hole being minimized and bounces outside, but doesn't really have the skill set or size yet to do so proficiently. All that being said, he has an excellent learning source in front of him on the depth chart if he so chooses. I believe he will learn from Fred and become a nice piece of the team. He may not turn into a featured back, but will be a nice piece.
NewEra Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 He will never be more than a situational player as long as Freds in Buffalo. He will most likely never live up to expectations as the 9th pick, but I think he can become a very valuable part of our offense. If our offense ever makes a jump to one of the leagues better units, he will play a decent role in doing so. Not sure we will ever achieve that, but if we do, I think he'll be a major contributor.
billsfreak Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 I think anyone would agree, Buddy and Chan have done a pretty good job shaoing this roster into the team they envisioned before they signed up for thier tour of duty at One Bills Drive, however, how long do you think it will take until they cry uncle on the CJ Spiller choice? I don't get where he even fit's their M.O. of what they want their team to look like...he is simply a poor man's Reggie Bush and will never be anything more than this... Sure' he has done infinitely more than the Aaron Mayhem pick, but considernig all of the needs we had/have and the clear vision for a team they have - we missed the mark greatly taking Spiller where we did. I would argue that Chief's second round pick McCluster is more electrifying and is doing what we had expected from Spiller-time.... I think Chan just needs to realize the only way that Spiller can be productive is out in space where he can use his quickness and speed. I am getting so tired of seeing him put Spiller in on short yardage and watching him dancing around behind the line instead of shooting for a hole. Yesterday, Jackson wasn't going down until at least the 3rd defender made contact on him most of the game, but on 3rd and 3 he puts Spiller in again and he gets stuffed for a couple yard loss. Happens over and over.
Coach Tuesday Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 People need to go back and look at the career trajectories of guys like Jamaal Charles and Felix Jones. Why is it so "objective" for Bills fans - either a guy sucks or he doesn't? Players do improve over time. Foreign concept around here.
bbb Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 I think Chan just needs to realize the only way that Spiller can be productive is out in space where he can use his quickness and speed. I am getting so tired of seeing him put Spiller in on short yardage and watching him dancing around behind the line instead of shooting for a hole. Yesterday, Jackson wasn't going down until at least the 3rd defender made contact on him most of the game, but on 3rd and 3 he puts Spiller in again and he gets stuffed for a couple yard loss. Happens over and over. +1!
Buffalo Barbarian Posted September 12, 2011 Posted September 12, 2011 CJ will improve as his blocks improve. He is Gailey's waterbug. You will see much more from him this season is my guess. Forget his blocking, he can't hit the hole and goes down like a fly.
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