jcbillsfan Posted January 7, 2012 Author Posted January 7, 2012 (edited) BWhhaHAHahAHahaHAahAHahAHaHA....DUDE that was so funny I spit out my drink. Lock up a LT made of china who hasn't been able to stay healthy or hold of a 4th round pick rookie? yes , throw away a 27 year old emerging player. I bet you were on teh keep lee evans band wagon Edited January 7, 2012 by jcbillsfan
HurlyBurly51 Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 All I know is that we can't keep developing left tackles and then letting them go elsewhere. Sooner or later we need to solifidy the spot. Same goes for WR.
Wagon Circler Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 This would be good if one of them was also clearly the BPA. I know we need a pass rusher like crazy but we have to stop reaching with the first pick and use it to add Pro Bowl caliber talent. I would rather 'reach' for a pass-rusher at this point. Address this already! I can't watch QB's take a month to throw with nobody near them.
ajzepp Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 Bell has come a long way. I can't imagine that he walks given how inexpensive he will be. There is an interview with him I just watched on my Bills app. I hadnt' seen him interviewed in quite a while and it really was surprising seeing how much bigger he's gotten since he was drafted. He was built more like his dad when he was drafted, but now he's much thicker and more muscular and looks like an NFL left tackle. Obviously he was a project when we drafted him, but he's made huge strides over the past few years. He seemed pretty sincere in how he considers B-lo his home and he didn't use his injuries as an excuse for anything. Being a free agent, you never know what someone will offer him, but I hope he stays a Bill. Pay him a fair base salary and include incentives for if/when he remains healthy.
JStranger76 Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 I can't see him recieving anything less than 5M per year if he hits the open market, just because he plays LT, and thats just how it goes. I bet he gets a 5 year 30M contract at minimum. That's about as high as I'd go though if I were a GM.
cage Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 Sadly this would be like the Bills .... Let a top LT go in his prime ... Develop another who had flashes of promise .... Say the rookie you have on the roster showed good things when thrown into the fire .... Use a high draft pick to select another when you have many talent holes to fill. Long term QB situation and pass rushing LB or DE are far more critical needs. The Bills would be wise to resign Bell, assuming the price is right, and fill other holes in the roster. Bell and Levitre were having monster games until injury bug hit. Agree totally,... along with all the responses that precede this one. The LAST thing the Bills need to do is let Bell go and draft a top 10 LT. That would be just crazy. We clearly need more defensive studs on the field.
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 I am tired of hearing how bad the bills tackles are. Can someone either decide bell is good and pay him or decide he sux, and replace him with a good player please?
Doc Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 I am tired of hearing how bad the bills tackles are. Can someone either decide bell is good and pay him or decide he sux, and replace him with a good player please? It's not that simple. He's a very good player when healthy. The problem is, he's been unhealthy a lot the past 3 years. The Bills may decide that he's too injury-prone to allocate significant resources by re-signing him, unless it's something reasonable for the team.
4BillsintheBurgh Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 Signing Bell to a long term contract might be the smart Move. Why ? 1 he has cleary improved , when healty he has shown to be above average , with a high ceiling 2 injuries are part of football , Left tackles seem to miss several games a year. 3 They will never be in a better bargining postion to lock him up long term . Left tackles cost big bucks , to get a good one at a reduced rate is a sweet thinga 4 bell, pears , hariston at tackle puts that position in the solid catagory for the next few years thoughts? If they sign him, I think the injuries will affect the guaranteed money. I hope they can sign him to decent money but I think if they do it puts them in a bind because you have pears and hairston who are better suited for rt and that leaves you very little room to groom another lt, which is important because bell has been injury prone. So you look at trying to develop another late round/udfa prospect which takes time and if you flush the coaching staff in that timespan they may not be committed to the developmental player and let them walk. I think it's been a factor with bell and peters. In the end I think they let him walk and draft another in the 3-4-5 rounds this year for development while riding it out with Hairston and a full offseason of his development.
San-O Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 (edited) Yes, since 2004 we've focused on developing two left tackles - Peters and Bell. Peters was an UDFA and Bell a 7th round pick. If you don't understand how Bell has developed into an above average player over the past few years, I don't know what to tell you... Q: Can Bell also play RT? My thinking, sigh him to a REASONABLE contract, and also draft a tackle in the early rounds, BPA type of thing. The Bills have no RT and need O-linemen that can play tackle. Maybe the new tackle can challenge Bell and replace or move him to RT? Edited January 7, 2012 by SoCal-Surf
Mr. WEO Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 They should sign Bell if only to avoid the temptation to waste a 1st round pick on a LT. GivE him an offer commensurate with his value thus far. He's a maybe better than avg T who has significant durability issues in a position that isn't typically prone to injury.
San-O Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 It's not that simple. He's a very good player when healthy. The problem is, he's been unhealthy a lot the past 3 years. The Bills may decide that he's too injury-prone to allocate significant resources by re-signing him, unless it's something reasonable for the team. Is he not one of the most injured players over the past three years? I don't see how one of your most important positions (QB and LT on offense) can be left to chance re: injury.
ajzepp Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 Q: Can Bell also play RT? My thinking, sigh him to a REASONABLE contract, and also draft a tackle in the early rounds, BPA type of thing. The Bills have no RT and need O-linemen that can play tackle. Maybe the new tackle can challenge Bell and replace or move him to RT? I think they'll definitely draft an Olineman or three in this draft. And I think partly why Bell can be even better at LT is because of his wingspan. He's like a damn albatross, and that can be huge when trying to thwart edge rushers. He's not as stout against a bull rush type of player, but he's only just now hitting his athletic prime. He's already gotten significantly stronger since we drafted him (that was one of his main weaknesses...still is to a degree) but his frame can take more. If he can stay healthy, I think he's on the verge of becoming a very solid player. As Bill said, he's already "good", but he can be better. At RT I think they really like Pears and Hairston.
KOKBILLS Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 That's "plural". What left tackles have the Bills developed. One that I know of, Peters. Bell? What has he developed into? I mean, he ain't even average. The beginning th believe Bills fans have bought into the "dare to be adequate" mentatlity that pervades OBD. Or maybe some Bills Fans are so used to the offensive line sucking they can't recognize when a Kid plays pretty well... I'm not saying D Bell is all that, and the injuries are a concern...But I don't know what to tell you...If you don't think he's even average then maybe you need to start evaluating talent based on an easier game to follow...Maybe Soccer? Tennis?
Doc Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 Is he not one of the most injured players over the past three years? I don't see how one of your most important positions (QB and LT on offense) can be left to chance re: injury. Exactly, that's why I said the decision on Bell won't be simple. Without knowing what the future holds WRT injury, the Bills will either decide it's too risky, or take the risk. And only time will tell if they were right or wrong.
GaryPinC Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 There is an interview with him I just watched on my Bills app. I hadnt' seen him interviewed in quite a while and it really was surprising seeing how much bigger he's gotten since he was drafted. He was built more like his dad when he was drafted, but now he's much thicker and more muscular and looks like an NFL left tackle. Obviously he was a project when we drafted him, but he's made huge strides over the past few years. He seemed pretty sincere in how he considers B-lo his home and he didn't use his injuries as an excuse for anything. Being a free agent, you never know what someone will offer him, but I hope he stays a Bill. Pay him a fair base salary and include incentives for if/when he remains healthy. I saw this interview and agree with you. Also, based on his body language and how he answered the questions about whether he'll be back he didn't sound optimistic. IMO Pears and Hairston have trouble handling speed rushers off the ends. I thought Bell was doing a better job this year but was injured too much to get a true idea of his ability. I don't know, this is a tough call but right now I think it's a mistake to let him walk even with his injury problems.
ajzepp Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 I saw this interview and agree with you. Also, based on his body language and how he answered the questions about whether he'll be back he didn't sound optimistic. IMO Pears and Hairston have trouble handling speed rushers off the ends. I thought Bell was doing a better job this year but was injured too much to get a true idea of his ability. I don't know, this is a tough call but right now I think it's a mistake to let him walk even with his injury problems. Good point, he did seem to be pretty uncertain about his chances of staying. If we lose him to a huge offer from another team, that's one thing. But if we don't make him a fair, incentive-based offer then the front office is worse off than I thought. There is a way to protect our interests without letting him leave. Did you see how much thicker he was, though? This kid was a bean stalk when he came out of college.
C.Biscuit97 Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 The truth is, it worked with Jennings. He was better than Bell, but he couldn't stay healthy. The 49ers gave him more than 40 million and he was the same way in SF. I am not his doctor or his trainer, but he is small for a LT and is constantly hurt. He is quick and agile; I have never disputed this. But can his body stand up to NFL competetion? I don't know, but Bills management needs to guess right. And btw Wood is clearly another question mark. He is far from perfect. He, at his best, is not as strong as the average LT in this league. Good? Sure. Perfect? I think that you didn't really mean this. I probably should refine this. Bell is far from perfect but he is a prototype of the new NFL LTs. They aren't they hulking monsters they were before. Teams pull tackles on run plays. Long is one of the best, but he still gets beat by speed rushers far more than a top 2 LT should. This is a pass first league where teams are using a ton of spread. The days of LTs being the 2nd highest paid position on a team are done. The playoffs are filled with average LTs. It is far down on the list of needs for a championship team. But I'm sure we'll disagree forever on that point.
Chris in Syracuse Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 Signing Bell to a long term contract might be the smart Move. Why ? 1 he has cleary improved , when healty he has shown to be above average , with a high ceiling 2 injuries are part of football , Left tackles seem to miss several games a year. 3 They will never be in a better bargining postion to lock him up long term . Left tackles cost big bucks , to get a good one at a reduced rate is a sweet thinga 4 bell, pears , hariston at tackle puts that position in the solid catagory for the next few years thoughts? I love Bell and totally want him back. I don't believe Gailey likes him. He just said the other day Bell can't stay healthy when asked about his status. Two seasons ago he played all 16 games. The Denver game really showed how good he was. I think with a full offseason he can become elite. The question is do we sign him now or wait until FA starts and see what he gets offered. I think that is what they will do. I am sorry to say someone will offer him a lot of money and he will be gone. I would offer him a great contract but with incentives for staying healthy. maybe a 3mil base with incentives in the 6 to 8 mil range for being healthy. Something where if he ends up healthy he can stay and if not he can be cut with minimal cap loss.
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 (edited) It's not that simple. He's a very good player when healthy. The problem is, he's been unhealthy a lot the past 3 years. The Bills may decide that he's too injury-prone to allocate significant resources by re-signing him, unless it's something reasonable for the team. I get what you're saying but it needs to be simple. You'd like it black & white when it comes to key positions like LT. The perennial state of flux and uncertainty implies the answer is a resounding "not good enough". Edited January 7, 2012 by over 20 years of fanhood
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