The reality of the Bills Injured Reserve List

[Got_Wood]

This has become a popular scapegoat for the Bills poor performance over the past couple seasons. Too many Bills have hit the injured reserve list for them to win enough games and make the playoffs. But is this really the truth? Let's take a closer look at a couple facts that might change your mind:

 

1. Of the 15 players on the IR this season, only 4 of them were starters last season. And one of those starters was our kicker, Rian Lindell.

 

2. Included in the list of IR players this season, 5 of the players have been on IR previously in the past 2 seasons (Parrish, Merriman, Wood, Easley, and McGee).

 

3. Also included in the list of IR players, 4 players that have never played in the NFL before this season (Lee Smith, Bruce Hall, Marcus Easley, and Chris White).

 

If you look at these facts, it sure seems like that IR list doesn't mean much. In fact, what it does mean to me is that the Bills front office relied WAY too heavily on players that were an injury risk to begin with. Let alone guys you need starting at crucial positions.

 

This team flat out can't win because they aren't built to win. But it all starts by securing your best players. Stevie Johnson needs an extension. Freddy Jackson deserves to be treated with respect and given a raise. Andy Levitre needs to be locked up long term. Scott Chandler needs a new contract. All of this would be a start. The next step would be filling the biggest need positions with quality starters (DE/OLB, LT, and WR). I hope these guys prove they know what they're doing this offseason. I think a lot of fans are hanging in the balance of throwing in the towel with this franchise. I hope they change everyone's mind.

[Cheddar's Dad]

I think you're way off base with your posting. If you look at the number of players placed on injured reserve and the status of those players and add to the list players that have lost games due to injury, you can come to understand the "reality" of what all of the injuries have meant to team chemistry and continuity. Jackson, the teams best offensive player, Wood, the teams best O-lineman, Williams, the team's best defensive player. Troup, Chris White, Donald Easley, Roscoe parrish, Lee Smith, Terrance McGee, #2 WR Donald Jones. Ryan Lyndell. Buffalo may have beated Miami last week if it had the services of Lindell.

Consider left tackle and the fact that both left tackles were out for multiple games forcing the shift of our LG to center, then to tackle. How many of the receivers that started last Sunday were on the active roster at the start of the season? Do you know? Can you imagine how badly putting less talented receivers that have minimal time practicing with Fitzpatrick can screw up the timing and production of your passing attack?

 

I know you're angry. But taking the position that Buffalo should keep on winning despite the changes the team has been forced to make is completely "unrealistic". Other teams such as Jacksonville and St. Louis have also been hit hard by injuries. It is no coincidence that those teams also have losing records. That it the Reality of pro football.

[The Big Cat]

HA!

 

I stopped reading the moment you belittled the loss of Lindell, the one loss that one could easily make a case for costing not one but TWO DIVISION games...

Edited December 21, 2011 by The Big Cat

[Got_Wood]

I think you're way off base with your posting. If you look at the number of players placed on injured reserve and the status of those players and add to the list players that have lost games due to injury, you can come to understand the "reality" of what all of the injuries have meant to team chemistry and continuity. Jackson, the teams best offensive player, Wood, the teams best O-lineman, Williams, the team's best defensive player. Troup, Chris White, Donald Easley, Roscoe parrish, Lee Smith, Terrance McGee, #2 WR Donald Jones. Ryan Lyndell. Buffalo may have beated Miami last week if it had the services of Lindell.

Consider left tackle and the fact that both left tackles were out for multiple games forcing the shift of our LG to center, then to tackle. How many of the receivers that started last Sunday were on the active roster at the start of the season? Do you know? Can you imagine how badly putting less talented receivers that have minimal time practicing with Fitzpatrick can screw up the timing and production of your passing attack?

 

I know you're angry. But taking the position that Buffalo should keep on winning despite the changes the team has been forced to make is completely "unrealistic". Other teams such as Jacksonville and St. Louis have also been hit hard by injuries. It is no coincidence that those teams also have losing records. That it the Reality of pro football.

 

First of all, no we wouldn't have beaten Miami if we had Lindell. Rayner missed one field goal, and we lost by 7. Second of all, you missed my overall point. Why did we depend on Merriman at a crucial OLB position? Why didn't we have a backup plan at Left Tackle? Demetrius Bell has an injury history and has been inconsistent in the past. And our backup was a 4th round rookie?? And who is "Donald Easley"? Well if you combine Donald Jones and Marcus Easley, you have two guys that won't ever be starters in this league. Let alone the fact that Easley has never played an NFL game in his short career. Pretty big risk taking by the front office I would say. And that's the problem. A lack of planning at some of the most important positions has once again killed this team's chances of winning. Deal with it.

Edited December 21, 2011 by Got_Wood

[The Big Cat]

First of all, no we wouldn't have beaten Miami if we had Lindell. Rayner missed one field goal, and we lost by 7. Second of all, you missed my overall point. Why did we depend on Merriman at a crucial OLB position? Why didn't we have a backup plan at Left Tackle? Demetrius Bell has an injury history and has been inconsistent in the past. And our backup was a 4th round rookie?? And who is "Donald Easley"? Well if you combine Donald Jones and Marcus Easley, you have two guys that won't ever be starters in this league. Let alone the fact that Easley has never played an NFL game in his short career. Pretty big risk taking by the front office I would say. And that's the problem. A lack of planning at some of the most important positions has once again killed this team's chances of winning. Deal with it.

 

Dude, that missed field goal had implications that well beyond the FINAL score.

 

EDIT: Chip shot.

Edited December 21, 2011 by The Big Cat

[Dr. Fong]

 

 

1. Of the 15 players on the IR this season, only 4 of them were starters last season. And one of those starters was our kicker, Rian Lindell.

 

 

 

That's a worthless statistic. The more telling indicator would be how many were starters at the time they were injured.

[Billy in 4C]

The OP is right. Look at the Green Bay Packers last year who lost the equivalent players that we did this year around the same time. They limped in the playoffs but had enough depth/talent/coaching to win the super bowl. We lost 7 straight (about to be 9). We weren't built to finish the season

[DrDawkinstein]

I like how you say "only 4 of them were starters last season" and ignore what players were contributing this year when we started so hot. Very cute.

 

Fred Jackson

Eric Wood

Kyle Williams

Shawne Merriman

Ryan Lindell

Terrance McGee

Roscoe Parrish

Marcus Easley

Donald Jones

Chris White (was looking great on ST coverage)

 

That's 10 out of 15 that were contributing at the start of the season.

 

The OP is right. Look at the Green Bay Packers last year who lost the equivalent players that we did this year around the same time. They limped in the playoffs but had enough depth/talent/coaching to win the super bowl. We lost 7 straight (about to be 9). We weren't built to finish the season

 

The Packers did not build that team in 1 or even 2 years.

[BobChalmers]

First of all, no we wouldn't have beaten Miami if we had Lindell. Rayner missed one field goal, and we lost by 7.

You obviously didn't see the game. As has been explained already - being down by 10 instead of 7 forced decisions at the end that probably cost the game.

 

Why didn't we have a backup plan at Left Tackle?

 

Hairston was the backup plan - he played well enough before being injured himself.

 

You know any teams that do well after losing both their starting and backup OLT?

 

NAME ONE. You can't.

 

Btw - did you know the Packers just lost to the Chiefs? Do you know what one of the biggest factors in the loss was???

 

THEY LOST BOTH THEIR STARTER AND BACKUP AT RIGHT TACKLE.

 

Their ORT - not even their OLT - and it made their offense suddenly mortal against the lowly Chiefs.

[Got_Wood]

I like how you say "only 4 of them were starters last season" and ignore what players were contributing this year when we started so hot. Very cute.

 

Fred Jackson

Eric Wood

Kyle Williams

Shawne Merriman

Ryan Lindell

Terrance McGee

Roscoe Parrish

Marcus Easley

Donald Jones

Chris White (was looking great on ST coverage)

 

That's 10 out of 15 that were contributing at the start of the season.

 

Missed my point again. Let me re-quote myself to drive the point home.

 

Why did we depend on Merriman at a crucial OLB position? Why didn't we have a backup plan at Left Tackle? Demetrius Bell has an injury history and has been inconsistent in the past. And our backup was a 4th round rookie?? And who is "Donald Easley"? Well if you combine Donald Jones and Marcus Easley, you have two guys that won't ever be starters in this league. Let alone the fact that Easley has never played an NFL game in his short career. Pretty big risk taking by the front office I would say. And that's the problem. A lack of planning at some of the most important positions has once again killed this team's chances of winning.

 

And let me go through your list, just for fun:

 

Fred Jackson - Big loss, yes.

Eric Wood - Another big loss, and a team leader.

Kyle Williams - Probably the biggest loss this season.

Shawne Merriman - Why did we rely on a guy who hasn't played a full season in years to be our starting OLB?

Rian Lindell - Rayner only missed one meaningful kick in the game against Miami. And no we still wouldn't have won that game.

Terrence McGee - overly injury prone over the past few years. Shouldn't have relied on him to be a starter this year.

Roscoe Parrish - 2nd straight year on IR. Hasn't played a full season since 2007.

Marcus Easley - Never played an NFL game, shouldn't rely on him to be a starter.

Donald Jones - Had no business starting for this team, should be a 4th receiver on the roster.

Chris White - what? Not going to argue this one.

Edited December 21, 2011 by Got_Wood

[Got_Wood]

You obviously didn't see the game. As has been explained already - being down by 10 instead of 7 forced decisions at the end that probably cost the game.

 

 

 

Hairston was the backup plan - he played well enough before being injured himself.

 

You know any teams that do well after losing both their starting and backup OLT?

 

NAME ONE. You can't.

 

Btw - did you know the Packers just lost to the Chiefs? Do you know what one of the biggest factors in the loss was???

 

THEY LOST BOTH THEIR STARTER AND BACKUP AT RIGHT TACKLE.

 

Their ORT - not even their OLT - and it made their offense suddenly mortal against the lowly Chiefs.

 

Yes I saw the game. We would have lost anyways.

 

And your reference to the Packers only reinforces my point. The Packers had Brian Bulaga (1st round pick), Chad Clifton (2nd round pick), and Derek Sherrod (1st round pick) as offensive tackles. Even with those guys injured, they now have their own 5th round pick in Marshall Newhouse and their own 4th round pick in TJ Lang as swing tackles to fill in the positions. THAT IS HOW YOU PLAN YOUR TEAM'S DEPTH. They didn't have to use guys they just drafted in late rounds as starters because they knew how important offensive tackles were. Chris Hairston shouldn't have had to step in as starting left tackle this season PERIOD. And even Bell was a risk given his history. This front office needs to get a heck of a lot smarter, and MUCH LESS arrogant in planning this team's depth.

[The Big Cat]

Missed my point again. Let me re-quote myself to drive the point home.

 

 

 

And let me go through your list, just for fun:

 

Fred Jackson - Big loss, yes.

Eric Wood - Another big loss, and a team leader.

Kyle Williams - Probably the biggest loss this season.

Shawne Merriman - Why did we rely on a guy who hasn't played a full season in years to be our starting OLB?

Rian Lindell - Rayner only missed one meaningful kick in the game against Miami. And no we still wouldn't have won that game.

Terrence McGee - overly injury prone over the past few years. Shouldn't have relied on him to be a starter this year.

Roscoe Parrish - 2nd straight year on IR. Hasn't played a full season since 2007.

Marcus Easley - Never played an NFL game, shouldn't rely on him to be a starter.

Donald Jones - Had no business starting for this team, should be a 4th receiver on the roster.

Chris White - what? Not going to argue this one.

 

Rayner missed a CHIP SHOT in a game that could have been easily managed and won down the stretch. He ALSO botched the **** out of a kickoff that put the Jets in a position to score a touchdown RIGHT before halftime in a game ultimately decided by a single score.

 

Cut your losses and head back to the drawing board. Nobody's buying the **** you be selling.

[jjmac]

One does not have to be a starter to make significant contributions, or have his loss felt should he go on IR.

[Toshiero]

This has become a popular scapegoat for the Bills poor performance over the past couple seasons. Too many Bills have hit the injured reserve list for them to win enough games and make the playoffs. But is this really the truth? Let's take a closer look at a couple facts that might change your mind:

 

1. Of the 15 players on the IR this season, only 4 of them were starters last season. And one of those starters was our kicker, Rian Lindell.

 

2. Included in the list of IR players this season, 5 of the players have been on IR previously in the past 2 seasons (Parrish, Merriman, Wood, Easley, and McGee).

 

3. Also included in the list of IR players, 4 players that have never played in the NFL before this season (Lee Smith, Bruce Hall, Marcus Easley, and Chris White).

 

If you look at these facts, it sure seems like that IR list doesn't mean much. In fact, what it does mean to me is that the Bills front office relied WAY too heavily on players that were an injury risk to begin with. Let alone guys you need starting at crucial positions.

 

This team flat out can't win because they aren't built to win. But it all starts by securing your best players. Stevie Johnson needs an extension. Freddy Jackson deserves to be treated with respect and given a raise. Andy Levitre needs to be locked up long term. Scott Chandler needs a new contract. All of this would be a start. The next step would be filling the biggest need positions with quality starters (DE/OLB, LT, and WR). I hope these guys prove they know what they're doing this offseason. I think a lot of fans are hanging in the balance of throwing in the towel with this franchise. I hope they change everyone's mind.

 

Ok stop. Please just stop. you say' But it all starts by securing your best players.' then you say 'Stevie Johnson needs an extension.' See the Bills HAVE signed those guys, problem is they suck. Only bills fans think they are worth a damn. Stevie is NOT a great player he is a #2 at Best. So that means the bills will give him something like a 20 mill per year contract or some crap. The Bills don't have much as for as quality talent TO EXTEND. Outside of Williams, Wood, moorman and Dareus I wouldn't be heart broken if we canned the entire roster and started over.

 

Bills fans have long forgotten what quality talent really looks like

[todd]

Look, if people can't face that we're in year 2 of a rebuilding process, which is happening directly after 10 years of bad drafting (which means we start from zero), then you shouldn't bother yourself with caring about the Buffalo Bills. If reality is too difficult for you, find something else to do.

[jcbillsfan]

This has become a popular scapegoat for the Bills poor performance over the past couple seasons. Too many Bills have hit the injured reserve list for them to win enough games and make the playoffs. But is this really the truth? Let's take a closer look at a couple facts that might change your mind:

 

1. Of the 15 players on the IR this season, only 4 of them were starters last season. And one of those starters was our kicker, Rian Lindell.

 

2. Included in the list of IR players this season, 5 of the players have been on IR previously in the past 2 seasons (Parrish, Merriman, Wood, Easley, and McGee).

 

3. Also included in the list of IR players, 4 players that have never played in the NFL before this season (Lee Smith, Bruce Hall, Marcus Easley, and Chris White).

 

If you look at these facts, it sure seems like that IR list doesn't mean much. In fact, what it does mean to me is that the Bills front office relied WAY too heavily on players that were an injury risk to begin with. Let alone guys you need starting at crucial positions.

 

This team flat out can't win because they aren't built to win. But it all starts by securing your best players. Stevie Johnson needs an extension. Freddy Jackson deserves to be treated with respect and given a raise. Andy Levitre needs to be locked up long term. Scott Chandler needs a new contract. All of this would be a start. The next step would be filling the biggest need positions with quality starters (DE/OLB, LT, and WR). I hope these guys prove they know what they're doing this offseason. I think a lot of fans are hanging in the balance of throwing in the towel with this franchise. I hope they change everyone's mind.

 

 

THe bears lost two key players have not won a game in over a month . The Bills lost thier best player on either side of the ball, and a guy who was a mvp candidate

[todd]

Ok stop. Please just stop. you say' But it all starts by securing your best players.' then you say 'Stevie Johnson needs an extension.' See the Bills HAVE signed those guys, problem is they suck. Only bills fans think they are worth a damn. Stevie is NOT a great player he is a #2 at Best. So that means the bills will give him something like a 20 mill per year contract or some crap. The Bills don't have much as for as quality talent TO EXTEND. Outside of Williams, Wood, moorman and Dareus I wouldn't be heart broken if we canned the entire roster and started over.

 

Bills fans have long forgotten what quality talent really looks like

 

bull ****. If they canned the entire roster you would B word in a year because they haven't rebuilt yet.

[Cheddar's Dad]

Let me re-quote myself to drive the point home.

 

I think you should drive your point to the nearest trash dump.

[todd]

Yes I saw the game. We would have lost anyways.

 

And your reference to the Packers only reinforces my point. The Packers had Brian Bulaga (1st round pick), Chad Clifton (2nd round pick), and Derek Sherrod (1st round pick) as offensive tackles. Even with those guys injured, they now have their own 5th round pick in Marshall Newhouse and their own 4th round pick in TJ Lang as swing tackles to fill in the positions. THAT IS HOW YOU PLAN YOUR TEAM'S DEPTH. They didn't have to use guys they just drafted in late rounds as starters because they knew how important offensive tackles were. Chris Hairston shouldn't have had to step in as starting left tackle this season PERIOD. And even Bell was a risk given his history. This front office needs to get a heck of a lot smarter, and MUCH LESS arrogant in planning this team's depth.

 

Do you have any friggin clue how long it took the Packers to build that team? You're acting like it can be done in a year, which is absolutely indefensible. Step back from the ledge, big fella.

[Nervous Guy]

That's a worthless statistic. The more telling indicator would be how many were starters at the time they were injured.

bingo...or how many were starters at the beginning of the season...you know,when the Bills were "good".