Doc Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Not for nothing, but Byrd is a far better player than Williams. As Dorkington said--it's a big reward for one season of decent play. Damned if you do... He'll most likely be moved to Byrd's spot so we'll see how much, if any, of a dropoff there is. For 2/3 the price.
JPS Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Thought: we blame Russ for Byrd leaving. Do we give him credit for extending AWilliams? Both.
Cash Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 My first question is, is this a true extension, or did they rip up the last (ultra-cheap) year of his rookie deal? I.e., is Williams now signed through 2017 or 2018? If the 4yr/$26mil figures are true, then I think it's a reasonable signing for the Bills either way, but it's especially good in the latter case. To my untrained eyes, Williams played better last year without Byrd, because it seemed like he was used more as a deep/center field FS type before Byrd came back. Even if I'm wrong, he still played pretty well all last year, and it's pretty likely that he'll get better with more experience. The Bills aren't paying a super-cheap price, but Williams would have to be an idiot to accept a super-cheap contract extension right now. The Bills are gambling that he becomes an above-average starter or Pro Bowl-level player, in which case his extension will be an absolute steal in 2-3 years. The current pay scale for safeties is probably about to change drastically. The cap just went up a lot, it's projected to keep going up for the next 2 years, Earl Thomas got a TON of attention for his role in Seattle's Super Bowl run, and Byrd and Thomas are up for new contracts in the next year. Williams' average $/year would put him 10th right now, but by 2016, he might be out of the top 20. Will he be a top 10 safety by then? If so, he'll be seriously underpaid.
Fixxxer Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Great news and well deserved. I think this kid can get better.
K-9 Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Good work Doug! But to read this board, Doug isn't even in the room. You better be thanking Littman and Overdorf because, well, they are the puppeteers afterall. GO BILLS!!!
C.Biscuit97 Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Amazing. The guy goes from getting cut by half of the board after 2012, getting stupid comments on his twitter, to becoming a baller, re-signing and fans being excited. Good for AW and once again, the Bills are taking care of their own (cue the fans to point out the 10% of the time the Bills don't).
HamSandwhich Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 (edited) This deal is going to look like a heck of a bargain after 2014...That's my prediction at least... Hopefully he doesn't hold out? Great move by the Bills!!! Edited March 5, 2014 by HamSandwhich
MikeSpeed Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Good Move. This contract has nothing to do with Byrd. That being said I think Byrd will sign the first contract that will even be close to what the Bills were offering. He just doesn't want to be in Buffalo IMO. AW should not change position though. He is suited for the SS position and seemed to thrive there. Find another Byrd-esque player to fill the FS spot.
Mr. WEO Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 (edited) Damned if you do... He'll most likely be moved to Byrd's spot so we'll see how much, if any, of a dropoff there is. For 2/3 the price. That was my point. It's not clear that Williams is a "bargain" Byrd. Whatever one feels about Byrd personally, there is little doubt he was a top FS. A Williams has played 2 seasons at SS---and 6.5 million isn;t a bargain yet. Check out A William's wiki page: "He was then resigned to a REASONABLE deal because he is a TEAM PLAYER. His resigning allowed for him to replace the greedy Byrd. The long term deal will keep Williams with the Bills for the next four seasons.[4]" Edited March 5, 2014 by Mr. WEO
WhitewalkerInPhilly Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Guys: Be amazed at my genius!!! http://forums.twobillsdrive.com/topic/164782-would-you-rather-have-aaron-williams-or-jairus-byrd-long-term/ My OP: "Aaron Williams will be heading into the last year of a four-year deal this year. Who would you rather sign long-term-- Williams or Byrd? I honestly believe that the Bills won't pay both guys, so I don't believe "sign both" is a viable answer. A few years ago, the Steelers made Mike Wallace a great offer; he turned it down; and they gave the same deal to Antonio Brown. Do the Bills do the same thing with Williams-- i.e., give him what they were willing to pay Byrd, and then tag/trade Byrd? That is the way I am leaning." congrats on calling it. honestly, I like the move. a williams really turned a corner last year and was all over the field as ss. the offer seems extremely reasonable and channels the 'next man up' mentality that you find in winning franchises. while I would have loved byrd back, it's good to see the money set aside to pay him more than he was worth used to keep 2-3 players.
MarkyMannn Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Not for nothing, but Byrd is a far better player than Williams. As Dorkington said--it's a big reward for one season of decent play. Before I gave AW 4 years / $26m, I would have signed Byrd to 4 years / $40m..............assuming Byrd wanted to stay here
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Great move. He is 23, was calling coverage for the d last year, and had a bigger year for the team than did Byrd. Same picks more PBU and tackles per game. And he is only going to get better. Head to head right now if I had to choose, I'd take aw over jb. There is no way the bills are going to pay 16 million per year at safety.
NoSaint Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Joe Buscaglia @JoeBuscaglia 20s According to @MikeGarafolo, it's a 4-year, $26 million extension. Average of $6.5 million per year. thats a really good deal for a guy that struggled two of his three years. I think it will play out pretty fair long term as i think he will keep getting better but it definitely wasnt playing hardball. (for perspective the possible offer to byrd last year in the low 7s rumored)
Fan in Chicago Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 (edited) Joe Buscaglia @JoeBuscaglia 20s According to @MikeGarafolo, it's a 4-year, $26 million extension. Average of $6.5 million per year. Very good signing. Aaron has put his head down and played hard. He did not have the talent to play CB but he got paid for being versatile and doing well as a S. Good work, FO esp on the heels of the Toronto game suspension. Now sign Carrington, Byrd and we can call it quits on keeping our own. Edited March 5, 2014 by Fan in Chicago
Big C Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 congrats on calling it. honestly, I like the move. a williams really turned a corner last year and was all over the field as ss. the offer seems extremely reasonable and channels the 'next man up' mentality that you find in winning franchises. while I would have loved byrd back, it's good to see the money set aside to pay him more than he was worth used to keep 2-3 players. Yeah, and also look what happened there. Wallace has failed to make a difference and Brown has really upped his game.
GunnerBill Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 I think it's terrific news. He is not a Byrd's level yet, but he played great last year, looks much more natural at safety and I think could be playing at a pro-bowl level given another year at the position. Now it's about finding him the right partner.
bmur66 Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 Thants great. They extended A A Ron the heat seeking missle. He was very impressive last year when he played in his natural position. He even stepped up as a corner when needed. Good move.
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