eball Posted July 25, 2012 Author Share Posted July 25, 2012 These guys are backups, depth players. What are they supposed to "step up" to? I realize you just want to critique my posts, but seriously? Troup has contributed nothing in two years -- he's not even a backup at this point. Carrington, while at least seeing the field, has hardly distinguished himself. This defense relies upon a deep rotation of players who can actually, you know, contribute. For a GM to admit his 2nd and 3rd round picks from two drafts ago are on the hot seat -- and thus calling his own decisions into question -- is something I rarely see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBD Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 These guys are backups, depth players. What are they supposed to "step up" to? Contributing players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RealityCheck Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 I guess I am used to Buddy's candidness by now. It seemed like a typical Buddy Nix interview to me, honest and direct. The big picture that he stuck to in his interview was the importance of winning football games now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 Sounds like fairly benign and obvious stuff. Don't see the big deal here The "big deal" is that GMs rarely will publicly admit their failures (or potential failures) two short years after drafting a player. By specifically calling out Troup and Carrington (Nix was not asked about them; he was only asked a generic question about "2nd and 3rd year players"), Nix sent the message he will not give "his" early draft picks excessive time to develop. That's pretty significant, and far from "benign and obvious." Not only 2nd and 3rd year players but 2nd and 3rd round draft picks. It's good that Nix is publicly calling out these guys. Nix is definitely straightforward for an NFL GM. And I think we all appreciate that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Armchair GM Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 eBall...pay no attention to the man behind the 6_Pack, or the Mario Bro's nemesis, Weo...ario. You made a great point! Most GM's talk in circles and hide behind the "smoke screen." Nix has been more than honest, which as a player and fan, I appreciate. In any successful organization, accountability is key...and when the guy in charge displays that as a value, things can only get better. Here's my take, fwiw... Spencer Johnson has the best chance...I know I'll take some heat for that...but wait, he's back to a position that he excelled in, which was the reason we made the move to pick him up. In Minn, he was a beast rotating in with the Williams'. After that, it's a toss up, but I love the fact that we have more than 1 or 2 guys battling it out. I think it's a win win with Troup, Carrington, Heard, and Johnson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-2/Transcript-Nix-Williams-Gilmore-at-Training-Camp/2d4cf4ec-5a7b-4cd9-81b8-8c32f40e768c Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Fong Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 that draft was not a strong draft at all. I'm willing to give them a Mulligan. The two drafts since have been solid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CardinalScotts Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 Agreed. I read comments from even some of the local Buffalo writers who are already handing the job to VY and shake my head. VY is not picking up this offense quickly, and there's a very good chance Thigpen wins that job -- which scares me. I'm honestly pulling for VY to have a great camp and preseason, because if Fitz goes down it doesn't look good. based on actual real games not PRE SEASON Thigpen has played well over his career. If we are going to base things on preseason a lot of players look terrible playing with guys who are NFL players Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 I realize you just want to critique my posts, but seriously? Troup has contributed nothing in two years -- he's not even a backup at this point. Carrington, while at least seeing the field, has hardly distinguished himself. This defense relies upon a deep rotation of players who can actually, you know, contribute. For a GM to admit his 2nd and 3rd round picks from two drafts ago are on the hot seat -- and thus calling his own decisions into question -- is something I rarely see. Look, he overdrafted these guys--plain and simple. "Calling them out" won't make them any better than they are so why do it except to deflect from the fact thet they were poorly drafted? I don't see where Buddy is admitting anything--he's making it seem that these 2 guys are dogging it or holding back from being as good as he thought they were on draft day. Buddy picked a 3rd ranked NT for a 3-4 defense that they were woefully unprepared to run and have quickly dumped. Oops! For the record, many of of us have been "calling out" the Troup pick for quite some time, so we don't need Buddy or you to point out that this kid "has hardly distinguished himself". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 Modrak wasn't released until immediately AFTER that first draft with Nix as GM. I can't help but think Modrak was still allowed some influence on that first draft while Nix transitioned into his new role as GM and started to put his own stamp on the scouting department. In part, keeping Modrak around was probably simply to keep him in-house with any team draft insights until the draft was over, but I still can't help but think it was essentially Modrak's draft board that was in-play on draft day that year. I really don't know, but it was not a stellar draft, for sure. Actually, Modrak was fired in May, 2011. http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/05/04/bills-fire-longtime-personnel-executive-tom-modrak/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted July 25, 2012 Author Share Posted July 25, 2012 Look, he overdrafted these guys--plain and simple. "Calling them out" won't make them any better than they are so why do it except to deflect from the fact thet they were poorly drafted? I don't see where Buddy is admitting anything--he's making it seem that these 2 guys are dogging it or holding back from being as good as he thought they were on draft day. Buddy picked a 3rd ranked NT for a 3-4 defense that they were woefully unprepared to run and have quickly dumped. Oops! For the record, many of of us have been "calling out" the Troup pick for quite some time, so we don't need Buddy or you to point out that this kid "has hardly distinguished himself". You're in such a hurry to argue with me that you're missing the point. Whatever; I've attempted to be civil with you to no avail. You're just a pretty miserable individual. Feel free to simply stay away from any threads I start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattsox Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 Agreed. I read comments from even some of the local Buffalo writers who are already handing the job to VY and shake my head. VY is not picking up this offense quickly, and there's a very good chance Thigpen wins that job -- which scares me. I'm honestly pulling for VY to have a great camp and preseason, because if Fitz goes down it doesn't look good. VY isn't going anywhere, unless he becomes a detrament to the team or is Injured. I guarantee he Makes the team otherwise!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 Here's my take, fwiw... Spencer Johnson has the best chance...I know I'll take some heat for that...but wait, he's back to a position that he excelled in, which was the reason we made the move to pick him up. In Minn, he was a beast rotating in with the Williams'. I think you are right. Spencer Johnson is a very good fit for the Miami 4-3 that Wannstedt runs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tommy Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 You're in such a hurry to argue with me that you're missing the point. Whatever; I've attempted to be civil with you to no avail. You're just a pretty miserable individual. Feel free to simply stay away from any threads I start. I don't usually like to get involved in any arguments on here, but this is one case where I need to jump in. I agree 100% with what eball has said, and he's right...other people are trying to twist things and argue about something else, and they are missing the point. Buddy Nix is a refreshing change from the typical GM, and I for one feel lucky to have him. I love the blunt honesty and openness about the team; he's the kind of guy you can rally behind because he'll tell it like it is. Also, Armchair GM, I agree with you about Spencer Johnson having a chance to really step up this year. As you said, he'll finally be back in his "original" position as a DT in a 4-3 defense, and this season should be a good chance for him to step up and be a valuable member of the DT rotation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 You're in such a hurry to argue with me that you're missing the point. Whatever; I've attempted to be civil with you to no avail. You're just a pretty miserable individual. Feel free to simply stay away from any threads I start. I got your point. Disagreeing with it doesn't make me miserable. In fact looking at the way you respond to those who disagree with you or make cogent arguments against your point of view (your response to joe 6 pack is another gem) makes you look pretty miserable whenever someone rocks your homer boat even just a little. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CSBill Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 (edited) From transcript yesterday at camp: On which young 2nd- and 3rd-year players he expects to start making a larger impact this season: "You are probably referring mainly to (Torell) Troup and (Alex) Carrington and it is time for both of those guys to do it. It is their third year. Injuries have been a big factor with Troup. If he can stay healthy I think he’ll be a factor. And Carrington is now in a position inside where he can get as big, he’s a big guy anyway, but he needs to get as big as he wants to and be able to carry it, so I think all that will help them. But those are the main two probably." I would have asked Nix at this point: "Why did you draft these guys from low-level schools to begin with. Haven't they really performed pretty much where expected, coming from where they did?" Anyhow, I hope both contribute this year--doing so would give us great depth. I think they both have shown flashes of potential, but time to produce. Edited July 25, 2012 by CSBill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrDawkinstein Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 (edited) I continue to be impressed by Nix in his honesty and matter-of-fact approach to this football team. He's not shying away from the Troup and Carrington picks coming out of his first draft as GM, and publicly acknowledged these two players in particular need to make an impact in camp. It was refreshing to hear, because many have labeled Troup a bust and Carrington really hasn't done anything to distinguish himself. Comments like this reassure me that unless the production is evident during camp and preseason, the Bills won't hesitate to "cut bait" and admit failure despite these being two of "their" early round draft picks. Great post, eball. Agreed 100%. Buddy has been a fan's dream come true as GM for multiple reasons. It looks like he knows how to put a team together, and he is great in the media. We should all enjoy his time in Buffalo, and I also look forward to Whaley taking over in the future. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- that draft was not a strong draft at all. See below. Nix took the team over in January 2010, 4 months before the draft. All he had to go on was Modrak (and staff)'s scouting reports. A LOT of the guys from that draft still have that "Modrak-stench" to them. Guys who are drafted too early due to being over-rated and who you think might turn out ok, but end up soft, injured and disappointing (see: Wang, Easly, and Troup). Modrak wasn't released until immediately AFTER that first draft with Nix as GM. I can't help but think Modrak was still allowed some influence on that first draft while Nix transitioned into his new role as GM and started to put his own stamp on the scouting department. In part, keeping Modrak around was probably simply to keep him in-house with any team draft insights until the draft was over, but I still can't help but think it was essentially Modrak's draft board that was in-play on draft day that year. I really don't know, but it was not a stellar draft, for sure. YUUUUUP! It's been like night and day since the FO got flipped and Whaley was brought in. Edited July 25, 2012 by DrDareustein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted July 25, 2012 Author Share Posted July 25, 2012 I got your point. Disagreeing with it doesn't make me miserable. In fact looking at the way you respond to those who disagree with you or make cogent arguments against your point of view (your response to joe 6 pack is another gem) makes you look pretty miserable whenever someone rocks your homer boat even just a little. I will never apologize to you or anyone else for being a "homer" for my favorite football team. I think the content of my posts speaks for itself. Please put me on ignore so I don't continue to eat away at your sensibility. And yes, you are miserable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobChalmers Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 These guys are backups, depth players. What are they supposed to "step up" to? As top of the round 2nd and 3rd rounders - both from 3 years ago - they ought to be starters or they were bad picks. Buddy's just saying he's getting ready to admit they were bad picks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrDawkinstein Posted July 25, 2012 Share Posted July 25, 2012 I got your point. Disagreeing with it doesn't make me miserable. In fact looking at the way you respond to those who disagree with you or make cogent arguments against your point of view (your response to joe 6 pack is another gem) makes you look pretty miserable whenever someone rocks your homer boat even just a little. Yet no one in this thread gets your point, other than trying to be a prick. So what does that say? Are you saying you dont like Nix as a GM? That he is wrong to be calling out Troup and Carrington? What IS your point? It's not like Buddy does the entire draft process by himself. And anyone with half a brain can see the changes in personnel since Modrak and Co. were let go. So what is your point? What's done is done. There will always be some mistakes. It's an imperfect world. And even more imperfect when you have a moron staff your first year. He's trying to motivate some guys the day before camp starts. It's good to see him be candid and open in the media like that, instead of just getting the usual GM-speak. What more do you want? I will never apologize to you or anyone else for being a "homer" for my favorite football team. I think the content of my posts speaks for itself. Please put me on ignore so I don't continue to eat away at your sensibility. And yes, you are miserable. :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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