Buftex Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Gotta say, Florence impressed me more for the way he appeared as a team leader, than he did on the field. He defitely had some good moments, but, IMO, was sub-standard last season...it may not have been all his fault, playing in an injury depleted unit, but he looked downrighht foolish out there at times...and the penalties! I think this may be an indication that, maybe, just maybe, in addition to having faith in their young guys, maybe the braintrust isn't as done with Leodis McKelvin as the fan-base seems to be. Honestly, I think the guy still has a lot of upside...if he doesn't return to Buffalo in 2013, I have little doubt he will make an impact (positive) somewhere in the leauge.
26CornerBlitz Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 http://thesidelineview.com/columns/caplans-nfl-corner/best-available-nfl-free-agents-defense Adam Caplan thinks Drayton is now the best available FA corner.
Maddog69 Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 I always liked the guy, he seemed like a leader on the team. I think he will be missed as much for his character then his play. Agreed. He is a good character guy and a leader. I think he would have been a good example for the younger guys. I would rather have them cut McKelvin, Mcgee or both. Florence is better than either one (McGee is probably slightly better when heatlhy, but he is NEVER healthy). This move is about money, not who is better. They Bills save $9m by dumping Florence. He will sign on elsewhere and I believe his leadership will be missed.
dogma+ Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Well, this leaves us with a very young defensive backfield. I understand the move. Florence is an outside corner. He's not exceptional in TE coverage or in blitzing. So that does make him a bit conventional and also one dimensional. However as much as I understand the move, I don't like it. Drayton was by far our most consistent playmaker in our defensive backfield. He forced 4 turnovers last season and had 12 passes defended. Not to mention he hasn't missed a game since his first year with us. To put that into perspective, McGee has had only 11 passes defended in his last 3 seasons combined and has missed 22 games during that time period. I would have parted ways with McGee before I let Drayton go.
DreamOnDan Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Last season he was our #1 CB, I'm fine with him losing his job in camp to gilmore but I do not like this one bit. My philosophy is to keep the best as long as you can afford it. All I can say is that I am now hoping they sign someone and use that money. Maybe Byrd, Levitre, and F Jax?
jjmac Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 http://thesidelineview.com/columns/caplans-nfl-corner/best-available-nfl-free-agents-defense Adam Caplan thinks Drayton is now the best available FA corner. He wasted no time.
hondo in seattle Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 I was upset when the Bills let Evans loose last year. This move is similar... cutting a classy guy who's got something left but on the downside of his career. I'm wondering, why now? Are we giving Drayton an opportunity to hook up with another team? Or making cap space available for an imminent signing/resigning? I'm not surprise Florence was cut, given the younger talent we have in the secondary. I am surprised at the timing. I thought Nix/Gailey/Wanny would want to watch these guys in training camp for a while before making the final decision about who needs to go (even if they suspected from the beginning Florence would be the odd man out).
Jauronimo Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 I always liked the guy, he seemed like a leader on the team. I think he will be missed as much for his character as his play. Completely agree.
Erik Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 I'm wondering, why now? Are we giving Drayton an opportunity to hook up with another team? Or making cap space available for an imminent signing/resigning? I'm not surprise Florence was cut, given the younger talent we have in the secondary. I am surprised at the timing. I thought Nix/Gailey/Wanny would want to watch these guys in training camp for a while before making the final decision about who needs to go (even if they suspected from the beginning Florence would be the odd man out). I'm thinking it's more of the former for the short term and the latter for the long term. As in, they are negotiating some extensions and know they will need the cap room down the road but instead of waiting and kind of screwing Florence over later in the off-season they just let him go now since he was probably #1 on the hit list with his salary and the depth at CB.
DrDawkinstein Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 I was upset when the Bills let Evans loose last year. This move is similar... cutting a classy guy who's got something left but on the downside of his career. I'm wondering, why now? Are we giving Drayton an opportunity to hook up with another team? Or making cap space available for an imminent signing/resigning? I'm not surprise Florence was cut, given the younger talent we have in the secondary. I am surprised at the timing. I thought Nix/Gailey/Wanny would want to watch these guys in training camp for a while before making the final decision about who needs to go (even if they suspected from the beginning Florence would be the odd man out). The answer to both of your questions is Yes. I feel the same way about bringing them all into camp and letting the cream rise to the top, but the Bills FO has other moves to make, and we are pretty stocked at CB right now. I will say this, How great is it having Nix and Whaley building a team where we have so much talent, and even more talent that needs to be re-signed, that we have to let guys like Florence go? They really are sticking to plan and vision for building a team. I cant wait to see it play out on Sundays. Go Bills!
mattsox Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Did not see that coming. Thought he would stay one more year. Sad to see him go. Seemed like a good guy. I Know he did get burned alot last season, so that's the only reason I see for him getting let go.
ShelfromNJ Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 (edited) I am glad he is gone. I was at the Bills/Giants game last year and he was horrible on coverage. The Giants were able to get a field goal at the end of the game due to two obvious pass interference penalties called on him. Edited May 4, 2012 by ShelfromNJ
Kelly the Dog Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 I'm thinking it's more of the former for the short term and the latter for the long term. As in, they are negotiating some extensions and know they will need the cap room down the road but instead of waiting and kind of screwing Florence over later in the off-season they just let him go now since he was probably #1 on the hit list with his salary and the depth at CB. Yeah, I think it is both. Give the classy vet a chance to sign with another team just after the draft and before OTAs start. Plus open up some cash to start on Freddy and the guards and Byrd. I am somewhat surprised they havent released Edwards yet. It's also a move for the future, IMO. To get Brooks and Williams on the field more and get more experience. I think Gilmore is a lock to start day one.
BillsVet Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Florence must have regressed a lot since last season when they signed him to a 3 year 15M deal. Moreover, with the weak pass rush which registered 13 sacks sans the Washington game, it stands to reason CB play wasn't all to blame.
dave mcbride Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 (edited) Opposing teams had a passer rating of 90.4 against the Bills last season, and they had a rating of 92.6 the year before that. Those are truly dreadful numbers. Yes, the pass rush was bad, but let's not kid ourselves: the corner play has sucked too. I don't know what games you defenders of Florence were watching last year, but to my eye he was dreadful - beaten like a drum on a weekly basis. The fact that the Bills gave him a pretty decent contract before the season began yet cut him just one year later suggests that they think he was utterly horrible too. As for the number of passes he defensed, remember that this stat is often a function of how often you get picked on by opposing QBs. Edited May 4, 2012 by dave mcbride
McBeane Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Florence must have regressed a lot since last season when they signed him to a 3 year 15M deal. Moreover, with the weak pass rush which registered 13 sacks sans the Washington game, it stands to reason CB play wasn't all to blame. I believe it was 10 sacks in that game, but I'm not really following what you meant with this post. I'm not necessarily disagreeing with you, I'm just confused as to what your point was. As for Florence being released, I have to say that I am not surprised but I was not expecting it to be this early. I thought he would at least make it into training camp. The only reason that I wish we kept him is because he is a very active player with regards to interacting with fans and he truly embraced Buffalo and the people of WNY. He did have some below average moments (the multiple PI's that others have mentioned) and was probably making more money than he was worth. If Buddy felt that we could get better with the cap money that we saved from this move then I am behind the move. I do wish Drayton the best of luck with the rest of his career. Truly a class player and it was nice to have him in Buffalo while we did.
nucci Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Any of our numbers guys have any insight on how much cap space this frees up for Freddy, Levitre, Byrd, etc? Not sure exactly but his contract was 3 years $15M.
roccitybillsfan Posted May 4, 2012 Posted May 4, 2012 Not by a long shot. He was probably the most consistent corner on the team. Most consistently getting those defensive holding penalties. Drove me CRAZY with all of those over the past 2 years. That should have been his middle name. Drayton "Defensive Holding" Florence. Yes he did make some big plays for us, but the penalties......well, thanks for your services DF. Wish the best for you at your next destination. Perhaps TB or Carolina.
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