Kelly the Dog Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 lots of Merriman quotes here That got me pretty excited. I'm not expecting it, or predicting it, let alone counting on it, but I would not be surprised if Merriman is a killer this year as a pass rusher. I was one of those that watched him every play last year when he was in, and on one leg, with one shoulder, he was very good, without getting the sacks. If he feels well and can push off and run on that foot, our D Line will be ridiculous.
sllib olaffub Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 It's an interesting thing to ponder: How good is Merriman at 70%? Or 80%? Is he better than anyone else we have in those instances? Maybe for recognition. What I'm leading up to is: Mario Williams, Kyle Williams, and Marcel Dareus are going to be taking up blockers. Mario and Kyle are going to have a C, LG, and LT plus a running back, probably, back to help. That leaves a RG, RT, and TE for Dareus and Merriman. My guess is the opposition will give the double towards Dareus - he's just too good, and going into year 2 with all the experience he's had, plus a season of conditioning - HE IS GOING TO BE QUITE A BIT BETTER THAN KYLE WILLIAMS BY THE TIME HE IS DONE DEVELOPING!!! - Merriman is going to be left more or less with a RT or TE to contend with, in most cases. If Merriman is as good as he is most often considered (and, wouldn't he have been every bit as highly regarded as Mario Williams when Merriman was in his prime?) then even not at 100% he should be good enough to beat a one on one most of the time. That's all we need.
Reed83HOF Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 It's an interesting thing to ponder: How good is Merriman at 70%? Or 80%? Is he better than anyone else we have in those instances? Maybe for recognition. What I'm leading up to is: Mario Williams, Kyle Williams, and Marcel Dareus are going to be taking up blockers. Mario and Kyle are going to have a C, LG, and LT plus a running back, probably, back to help. That leaves a RG, RT, and TE for Dareus and Merriman. My guess is the opposition will give the double towards Dareus - he's just too good, and going into year 2 with all the experience he's had, plus a season of conditioning - HE IS GOING TO BE QUITE A BIT BETTER THAN KYLE WILLIAMS BY THE TIME HE IS DONE DEVELOPING!!! - Merriman is going to be left more or less with a RT or TE to contend with, in most cases. If Merriman is as good as he is most often considered (and, wouldn't he have been every bit as highly regarded as Mario Williams when Merriman was in his prime?) then even not at 100% he should be good enough to beat a one on one most of the time. That's all we need. Even an average DE will look good with Williams, Dareus, Williams and Whogivesash*t.
Beerball Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 That is a nice article. I wish football started in a couple weeks!! Yeah, I also put it in the MW thread and shoutbox. It probably deserved its own thread but sometimes the mods here shut them down for no good reason. That got me pretty excited. I'm not expecting it, or predicting it, let alone counting on it, but I would not be surprised if Merriman is a killer this year as a pass rusher. I was one of those that watched him every play last year when he was in, and on one leg, with one shoulder, he was very good, without getting the sacks. If he feels well and can push off and run on that foot, our D Line will be ridiculous. You see him at DE or OLB Dog?
billsfan89 Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 I would actually like to see Merriman play some OLB in rush downs and DE in passing downs. But the guy has to look good and healthy in camp. Honestly I could see him being the comeback player of the year or a late camp cut/IR. I will give it to Merriman the guy played well last year in the few games he played. Didn't light up the sack stat but he actually set the edge against the run and the play at the Rush OLB position went down a lot after he got hurt.
DreamOnDan Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 I've been screaming this since Williams was first brought to town but every here seems to think its going to be Kelsay and Merriman will only come in on passing downs. Personally I think thats BS, the first few weeks of the season Merriman was doing an amazing job of setting the edge in the run. I personally think it'll be Merriman and Williams starting with Kelsay as depth. If Merriman is fully healed, there is no doubt in my mind he starts over Kelsay. He's a much much better pass rusher and personally I think he is better at setting the edge. lately I have been thinking that merriman will play ROLB and kelsay will start at DE, then on passing downs they will either take kelsay or k williams out and line up merriman at DE. Sounds pretty nice to me. what do you think?
Reed83HOF Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 Yeah, I also put it in the MW thread and shoutbox. It probably deserved its own thread but sometimes the mods here shut them down for no good reason. The Mods are real around here
Dr. Fong Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 (edited) I might be over stating it, but if Merriman could come back as even 75% of the player he was in his prime and stay healthy the whole season then the Bills could have a Super Bowl level defense. I know that's a huge if, but it is the off season. Edited March 16, 2012 by Dr. Fong
Kelly the Dog Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 Yeah, I also put it in the MW thread and shoutbox. It probably deserved its own thread but sometimes the mods here shut them down for no good reason. You see him at DE or OLB Dog? Definitely as a DE. It won't be much different than he always pkayed, especially on passing downs. I would ease him in and have Kelsay play run downs at RDE and Merriman on pass downs there. If he is close to being healthy we could wreak havoc. Also, with Merriman in there with Barnett, those are two emotional,fiery vocal guys. Both Williams and Dareus to some extent, work hard but are not rah rah. That would be a terrific mix of leadership IMO.
Rob's House Posted March 16, 2012 Posted March 16, 2012 I do not see this as an injury bug, it is the residual effect of roids...we all know that, it is common with all athletes who over did it in the roid era. It's unlikely steroids would have had the deleterious effects many attribute to them. Not only would it likely take years of heavy steroid abuse to have that kind of effect, but a highly touted athlete of his stature would have access to the right people & info that it's unlikely he would have used them in such a way as to have that kind of impact over a relatively short period of time.
frogger Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 I could still see him playing Sam LB, at least on first downs, then put his hand down on passing downs. He hasn't been absolutely horrible covering. He'll more than likely be moved around and asked to blitz from all angles.
d_wag Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 The Merriman extension has been nothing short of a disaster. And now he's got a roster bonus due. With Mario in the fold and Kelsey and Carrington expected to stick around he might be on the way out. Of course, pro football being a bottom-line business, Merriman understands that there’s no guarantee he’ll be part of the Bills’ 2012 playoff push. On Monday, the organization must decide whether to pay the former Pro Bowl player a $1 million roster bonus or allow him to become a free agent. Merriman has played just five games since the Bills claimed him off waivers from the San Diego Chargers and underwent season-ending surgery on his Achilles tendon last October. The pass-rushing menace who led the NFL with 17 sacks in 2006 – the same year the Houston Texans made Williams the No. 1 overall pick in the draft – believes he has finally overcome a series of health problems that sent his career on a downward trajectory. “People have seen me play on one leg for going on three years now,” Merriman said. “So it’s gonna be a good season. People talk about our switch to a 4-3 [defense], but that’s not a factor. For the people who know football, the difference between a 3-4 and a 4-3 is whether my hand’s down or I stand up – that’s all it is. I want to stay. Whether I stay or not, honestly, that’s almost impossible to figure out.” sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ms-silver_mario_williams_stevie_johnson_bills_031612
Chandler#81 Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 He'll be a Bill this year unless they do an injury settlement. $1M is nothing in today's pro sports and , yes, the POTENTIAL for superstar play from him still exists. I expect him to be announced as a starter in the opener. Just hope he doesn't throw his shoulder out with his dance....
maddenboy Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 the only, ONLY benefit of the Merriman signing was, is, and always will be the "street cred" we got around the league. It got us Barnett, it helped us get Super Mario, and it basically told the league that we werent just gonna sit around and hope to get lucky for the next 25 years. But with Mario on board, and Nix in the front office, the Merriman experiment is over. I bet they could cut him and re-sign him for the league minimum about three days later, when he realizes that nobody wants his ass. And that would light a nice fire under his ass.
papazoid Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 (edited) Meanwhile, Gailey was predictably conservative about predicting a return to Pro Bowl form for veteran edge rusher Shawne Merriman, who is recovering from Achilles tendon surgery. “I don’t know,” Gailey said. “I mean, the setback was not good. Now how far does he have to go? I don’t even know how far back he is, and I don’t know how far he has to go. I don’t know where those two ends are. He got hurt again. So now we’re back to square one or below square one maybe.” Gailey said Merriman will get the chance to prove he can come back. “Yeah. The key is for us to get him healthy. Let’s get him healthy and let’s see what he can do.” If he can come back, Merriman will not play outside linebacker in the 4-3 scheme. “I’d rather him not. I think we’d rather him be a right defensive end rushing the passer all the time.” 1/1/2011: Signed a two-year, $10.5 million contract. The deal contains $5 million guaranteed, including a $1.5 million signing bonus, $1 million worth of first-year workout and reporting bonuses, and $3 million of his second-year base salary. Another $8 million is available through incentives, although $1 million is considered "unlikely to be earned." 2012: $4 million, 2013: Free Agent http://www.rotoworld.com/player/nfl/3171/shawne-merriman $4,000,000 base salary 2012 500,000 prorated bonus $1,000,000 roster bonus 250,000 workout bonus $5,750,000 cap value 500,000 dead money $5,250,000 cap savings if cut http://www.nyjetscap.com/Bills/bills2012.php Edited March 17, 2012 by papazoid
Fixxxer Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 Nix won't get his hands dirty for a million, he won't toss Merriman to the curb at this point. He had surgery and is trying yet again to come back, if he can't then he will be released.
FluffHead Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 He will be back...they didn't cut his season short to have a surgery so that he would be healthy for some other team this yr... And whenever Chix comments on shawne it certainly sounds like they expect him on the roster
C.Biscuit97 Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 PErsonally, I'd roll the dice on him contributing anything for 1M. Of course, I'm much better at spending other people's money. If Merriman does get cut, he has a future as a shady college recruiter.
ThurmasThoman Posted March 17, 2012 Posted March 17, 2012 (edited) PErsonally, I'd roll the dice on him contributing anything for 1M. Of course, I'm much better at spending other people's money. If Merriman does get cut, he has a future as a shady college recruiter. lmao. gotta bring him back though. he's the heart and soul of the team. Edited March 17, 2012 by JohnnyGold
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