bladiebla Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I always wondered if the Evans trade wasn't tested on us here last offseason. That original thread popped up and contained a very firm discussion on why we should trade him. Not much resistance was given in that thread as it drew in a couple of the let's trade Lee guys. True resistance to the idea only came when word started to leak that we were indeed shopping him. Maybe Buddy reads here or has someone monitoring the boards for fan mood, etc. Ok might be a bit farfetched but remember this is the socialmedia age, any serious business monitors and manages it's related socialmedia in one way or another. If only they'll listen to the senator this year.... 19-0 baby!
NobesBLO13 Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I loved the country boys from day one. Buddy's accent is a bit more thick. Chan and Buddy are a straightforward tell you like it is type guys. Buddy is the comedian amongst the two and Chan at times doesn't want to joke at all but either way they've stuck to what they say this whole time. Chan said Stevie if you get flagged for excessive celebration again I'm going to sit you down the rest of the game and he did.That's why I know Freddy will have his contract restructured before training camp because that's what he said he will do. The draft will be interesting to watch this year. (country accent) Make it dew what it dew Buddeh... Great post.
LynchMob23 Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I was meaning to start a thread on this but I rarely start topics. The irony of Buddy Nix is that he's often been characterized here as a hick. He's also been characterized as being asleep, and too old. In truth, Buddy is very media savvy and this is reflected in his comments all the time. "Believe me we are seeing the same thing you guys are seeing… " "I keep telling you guys and you never believe me…" "It IS harder to get free agents to Buffalo… " And over and over… Buddy reads the papers, listens to the media, understands the frustration of Bills fans and doesn't have the pompous attitude of some NFL execs. He doesn't say thing like "if you start listening to the fans you'll be sitting with them." Buddy obviously has his finger on the pulse regarding this team and its media and fans and he cares what we think. Buddy Nix is steadfast in his beliefs and confident in his abilities but he does not dismiss those who care deeply about this team, nor those whose profession it is to cover this team. One of my favorite quotes on Buddy arrived last week post Mario - Gil Brandt (the Godfather of the draft and modern scouting) was talking about him on Sirius Radio. Every pro day Brandt went to, Buddy was there scouting players. He said in reaction to that "Buddy might nap, but he never sleeps - that guy goes everywhere!" I think because of his bluntness and honesty in general (and sense of humor) people look to make fun of him, when all he's doing is trying to make this team better. Go Fig.
thewildrabbit Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I love nix and all, but I still hate that first draft. But I have loved the guy since then. I realize you guys just can't stop all the gushing about Nix because of the Mario signing, (btw,I love the signing) but Nix as the Buffalo Bills GM is only as good as his record shows....so far, 4-12 to 6-10. Some reality... NFN, the guy sounded like a hick his first year, at one of his first pressers he stated to a bunch of media types "he wasn't the smartest guy in the room". His first free agency period he stated boldly " I'm going to get some sleep", which resulted in a bad bunch of FA signings that year. Nix is characterized as being asleep and too old because he has made some really stupid statements in the past. For me, its been a tough two first years because it shouldn't take 3 years to find a pass rusher, 3 years to fix the O line, 3 years to stop the run. It still remains to be seen if the later two will even be addressed and fixed. At this point it also remains to be seen if Fitz can become a winning QB, all he has proven so far is he can't do it alone, with one WR. Upgrading that O line is imperative to allowing Fitz the time to throw deep, opposing teams have already shown they can shut down that short quick passing scheme. Gailey hasn't proven he can field a winning team with a scheme that will work for 16 games. All I can say is Nix is finally making things happen this year that should have happened his first year. Signing Mario Williams to a 100 million contract doesn't guarantee a winning season or even a playoff appearance, a pass rusher is only one fix. Although, signing super Mario is more then just a band-aid, like Nix has done in other areas of the team. This was a big fix to a big problem that has plagued the team since 09. I'll love the guy when I see a winning season, when I see that proverbial baby.... P.S. more reality, I look at the Miami Dolphins and see a mess of a team that just fired their HC after going 6-10, and yet that team with a nobody at QB swept the Bills last year.
BigBuff423 Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 This is Buddy's vindication. After the CJ pick in his first draft many people were ready to run him out of town and then after the lack of FA last year people were getting even angrier, despite the fact that he was working with strigent limitations due to the work stoppage, and now he brings in arguably the biggest and most important FA in Buffalo BILLS' history. I can't say I've always understood his logic when it comes to the Draft, namely the Troup and CJ pick, but I will say I gave him a wider berth than many on this board. That's not to my credit, it's just that I believed a wiser and older gentleman was needed to restore this franchise to football glory....and I truly believed his resume with San Diego, once I got to know more about him, bought him a few years and now I'm glad to see his "plan" coming together. He did say they wouldn't go out and buy high priced FA and that they would pay their own players and build through the Draft, but he has done that except he did just get a high priced FA....although I think Buddy saw the need and how close we "can" be to becoming legitimate contenders and jumped at the opportunity to make a true difference on this team....also, he did say during his initial presser when he was introduced that you can't necessarily listen to fans, but I do believe (as evidenced by his statements recently) that he pays attention to the fan base, important to listen but not necessarily react....seems that's what Buddy is doing....kudos to him and the FO and let's hope the Draft and maybe another FA will yield great results and a good year for 2012!!!!
CodeMonkey Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 It took guts for Nix to go all in with Williams. I hope he did it for the right reasons though, and not to appease the fans. Like Marv said, "If a coach starts listening to the fans, he's going to wind up sitting next to them.". The same would be true for GMs.
Sisyphean Bills Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 It took guts for Nix to go all in with Williams. I hope he did it for the right reasons though, and not to appease the fans. Like Marv said, "If a coach starts listening to the fans, he's going to wind up sitting next to them.". The same would be true for GMs. True. Understanding your market is one thing, but the cynic would note it's not the same as building a championship contending team. (BTW, I'm the one that's been saying for a decade they need a pass rush... )
JPS Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 Be honest. What did you think when you got the voicemail from the Bills "Ha, this is Budduh Nix, the new genral manager of the Buffalo Bills"? I had a WTF moment. And a laugh.
Dorkington Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 Losing on Mario right away wouldn't have been bad, in fact we would have expected it. It would have been fine given we had time to pursue other options. But man, if we lost out after three days, and after all sorts of FAs signed elsewhere. We would have committed mass suicide.
Dat Dude Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 From Peter King's article... It didn't hurt that it was 70 degrees and sunny when his fiancée came in and they toured the city. "Almost like it was destined that he come here,'' said Nix. "A couple times during the process I thought, Why'd we get into this? The downside was huge. If we lose him, I don't know how long it'd take for our fans to recover. They wanted him so bad. But you know, you've got to step up to the plate to have a chance to get a hit. Buffalo's got an inferiority complex. That's why it was so important we get Mario.'' Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/peter_king/03/19/signings/index.html#ixzz1pc6j4VYt nice piece !
jimmy10 Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 (edited) I always wondered if the Evans trade wasn't tested on us here last offseason. That original thread popped up and contained a very firm discussion on why we should trade him. Not much resistance was given in that thread as it drew in a couple of the let's trade Lee guys. True resistance to the idea only came when word started to leak that we were indeed shopping him. Maybe Buddy reads here or has someone monitoring the boards for fan mood, etc. Ok might be a bit farfetched but remember this is the socialmedia age, any serious business monitors and manages it's related socialmedia in one way or another. If only they'll listen to the senator this year.... 19-0 baby! I'm not sure they're floating trade ideas on message boards, but somebody in the PR office certainly keeps an eye on twitter, social media, etc. That even came up in one of the recent articles linked on the front page of TBD, about how the PR folks monitor twitter to see what kinds of rumors are floating out there (and what players are saying). I doubt Buddy Nix or Russ Brandon are personally checking out what we have to say, but some young flackeys/interns almost certainly are. Edited March 20, 2012 by jimmyo
shoretalk Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I realize you guys just can't stop all the gushing about Nix because of the Mario signing, (btw,I love the signing) but Nix as the Buffalo Bills GM is only as good as his record shows....so far, 4-12 to 6-10. Some reality... NFN, the guy sounded like a hick his first year, at one of his first pressers he stated to a bunch of media types "he wasn't the smartest guy in the room". His first free agency period he stated boldly " I'm going to get some sleep", which resulted in a bad bunch of FA signings that year. Nix is characterized as being asleep and too old because he has made some really stupid statements in the past. For me, its been a tough two first years because it shouldn't take 3 years to find a pass rusher, 3 years to fix the O line, 3 years to stop the run. It still remains to be seen if the later two will even be addressed and fixed. At this point it also remains to be seen if Fitz can become a winning QB, all he has proven so far is he can't do it alone, with one WR. Upgrading that O line is imperative to allowing Fitz the time to throw deep, opposing teams have already shown they can shut down that short quick passing scheme. Gailey hasn't proven he can field a winning team with a scheme that will work for 16 games. All I can say is Nix is finally making things happen this year that should have happened his first year. Signing Mario Williams to a 100 million contract doesn't guarantee a winning season or even a playoff appearance, a pass rusher is only one fix. Although, signing super Mario is more then just a band-aid, like Nix has done in other areas of the team. This was a big fix to a big problem that has plagued the team since 09. I'll love the guy when I see a winning season, when I see that proverbial baby.... P.S. more reality, I look at the Miami Dolphins and see a mess of a team that just fired their HC after going 6-10, and yet that team with a nobody at QB swept the Bills last year. One thing that Buddy said recently about the team he inherited was that he knew it would take time to turn the mess around. To argue that he has been unsuccessful thus far because of the team's record is frankly an unfair judgment because we all know how bad the team was. Frankly, the drafts that have occurred since Buddy has been in Buffalo are finally building a team. We will now have to see if the building blocks are going to work but since Day One all we have received from Nix is honesty and an apparent effort to build a winning team.
Captain Hindsight Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 One thing that Buddy said recently about the team he inherited was that he knew it would take time to turn the mess around. To argue that he has been unsuccessful thus far because of the team's record is frankly an unfair judgment because we all know how bad the team was. Frankly, the drafts that have occurred since Buddy has been in Buffalo are finally building a team. We will now have to see if the building blocks are going to work but since Day One all we have received from Nix is honesty and an apparent effort to build a winning team. I think this team is far more complete than it was 3 years ago
eball Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 Thanks for starting this thread; I read Peter King's column yesterday and planned to start one but got too busy with <gasp> work. Those comments by Buddy show just how smart and insightful he is. I agree with just about everything guys have posted in this thread, and I'll add one more thought -- how great is it that Whaley is learning from Buddy as well? This is our GM-in-waiting, and he has now had the benefit of learning in the Steeler organization and from a guy like Nix. I really believe the Bills are in very good hands, now and for the foreseeable future -- as long as there is a succession plan in place for Mr. Wilson.
Mr. WEO Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I think the fact that Buddy Nix is Buddy Nix, the way he looks and talks, is what prevented him from getting a GM job a decade or two earlier. GMs usually have to be somewhat the face of the franchise even if they don't get on TV all that much. They have to schmooze agents and players, and marketing, and running the rest of the organization. If Nix looked and talked like, say, Brandon, he probably would have had a GM job a long time ago. Part of the reason it's working good now for the Bills is that Brandon is the guy doing half the GM job and Nix is doing just the football part of it, what he is good at. It's a shame, too, because listening to Buddy Nix at the podium is a much better experience than listening to 90% of the GMs around the league, and it's probably the one thing that kept him from getting a job for so long. Well, I can't claim to have listened to 90% of the GMs around the league. But are you really suggesting that Buddy's career as a GM has been cut short by.....his accent?? That would come as a surprise to owners (the guys who hire GMs) like Jerry Jones, Tom Benson, Jerry Richardson, Bob McNair, Bud Adams....I would think that even Shahid Kahn would say your theory is ridiculous. Drafting Dareus was a no brainer. Convincing Ralph to break the bank on Williams was a good move, but probably wasn't really heavy lifting (no one else was ready to make Williams, coming off an injury year from a team that got better without him, the highest paid defender in the league). We are still left with inexplicable decisions like agreeing to Chan's suggestion we bring in George Edwards to run a new defense that Buddy didn't have the proper talent for and that Edwards was completely unqualified to run. Buudy has to field a winning team this year, otherwise the reasons he couldn't get a GM job until he was 70 will be more apparent.
DanInUticaTampa Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I think this team is far more complete than it was 3 years ago I agree, but I think this season will be the moment of truth as to whether their work has paid off or not. I like these guys, but so far we haven't seen a good season, though the team has made strides. I have good hope that we make the playoffs this year. If Mario was on the team last year, we would have won at least 2 more games if not more. And with Kyle, and other healthy players, that should give us another fast start. Just have to draft well.
Malazan Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I love nix and all, but I still hate that first draft. But I have loved the guy since then. That first draft, they hadn't had time with the team. Impossible to know what you really have when you don't trust the previous regime.
DanInUticaTampa Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 Well, I can't claim to have listened to 90% of the GMs around the league. But are you really suggesting that Buddy's career as a GM has been cut short by.....his accent?? He didn't say accent. It is how he says things. He is very blunt and very forward. Business leaders usually have more finesse when they talk. They sugarcoat things for PR reasons and to get deals done. You could argue that the way he talks hurt us earlier. I can imagine a free agent going to one bills drive and him saying "this team is a mess, we got a lot of work to do, we aren't winning a lot of super bowls anytime soon, but we want you to help us turn it around." I can imagine aj smith handling all the deals and just using nix as an evaluater. Though I think there is more reason than the way he talks as to why he hasn't been a gm before, but I think how he says things might be a big.reason. I never seen a gm be so forward as he is
BobChalmers Posted March 20, 2012 Author Posted March 20, 2012 I agree, but I think this season will be the moment of truth as to whether their work has paid off or not... I believe Nix agrees with you. THIS is the season they believe we should be in the playoff hunt to the end. That belief is why they justified the big FA expenditure on Mario. Obviously if we get screwed (yet again) by over the top injury counts, there's only so much to do. Barring that I'll be very disappointed by anything less than 10-6.
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