FLFan Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 So you know, I'm not clamoring for Cousins, I think it would have been a better strategy to bring in legit competition for EJ either a younger vet (Cousins), decent vet (Vick) or rookie (mid-round pick) -- versus having 4 very inexperienced QB's in camp with only one with decent upside This was not directed at you personally - sorry if you took it that way - just in general as Cousins name keeps coming up on this board despite the fact he is not available, nor has he done anything to warrant all the love he gets. Do I wish they had a better strategy than counting on Thad Lewis? Yes I do. Vick would have been an interesting option, but who knows if they tried. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 This was not directed at you personally - sorry if you took it that way - just in general as Cousins name keeps coming up on this board despite the fact he is not available, nor has he done anything to warrant all the love he gets. Do I wish they had a better strategy than counting on Thad Lewis? Yes I do. Vick would have been an interesting option, but who knows if they tried. Agreed. I also think Vick would have been a great option, as a backup. I hate to give the Jets credit at anything, and I think their situation is a little different. But they did the right thing. They brought Vick in and they made him the backup. They didn't really announce anything and the were conflicting reports because it was the Ny media but they basically handed the job to Geno and gave him the vast majority of the first team reps. Now they have an option if Geno goes down or stinks up the joint (which I predict will still happen about halfway through the year). I'm a huge Whaley fan, but I just don't like how he has handled the QB position at all. Vick may not have come here because he probably thought he had a much better chance to start on the Jets. But he would be a solid backup to EJ, even if some fans were chirping that he should be given a chance to start. I simply don't understand the looking over your shoulder syndrome. I know people think it exists that have been in the NFL a long time. But it just seems to me if you can't handle that, and look over your shoulder and are afraid to make mistakes, you don't belong as a starting QB in the nfl anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dubs Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 My guess is there is something wrong with him real or imagined that we are not privy to- could be attitude, a medical condition, drugs, life style, asking too much money, I don't know but I would think his age/talent/experience would have him on a roster if there wasn't something. My guess too. It has to be because otherwise it makes no sense. The people that bash his play are senile. He has a bad 2013 - partly because Shiano created a toxic culture and just ruined that team and partly because he had to learn a new offense in a week with the Vikings. Prior to that he was ascending at a pretty good pace. He's young, has great physical tools, and has had success (threw for over 4k yards and 27 TDs one year, '12 I think). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CardinalScotts Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 completely agree....but then again, he wasn't with the Bears this summer and doesn't coach young QB's.... how could the GREAT Josh Freeman be available ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dubs Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 how could the GREAT Josh Freeman be available ? Great, yes. That's exactly what we are saying. He's great. It's amazing that this great QB is unemployed. Did I mention how great he is. No doubt. Sure thing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Dog Named Kelso Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 Agreed. I also think Vick would have been a great option, as a backup. I hate to give the Jets credit at anything, and I think their situation is a little different. But they did the right thing. They brought Vick in and they made him the backup. They didn't really announce anything and the were conflicting reports because it was the Ny media but they basically handed the job to Geno and gave him the vast majority of the first team reps. Now they have an option if Geno goes down or stinks up the joint (which I predict will still happen about halfway through the year). I'm a huge Whaley fan, but I just don't like how he has handled the QB position at all. Vick may not have come here because he probably thought he had a much better chance to start on the Jets. But he would be a solid backup to EJ, even if some fans were chirping that he should be given a chance to start. I simply don't understand the looking over your shoulder syndrome. I know people think it exists that have been in the NFL a long time. But it just seems to me if you can't handle that, and look over your shoulder and are afraid to make mistakes, you don't belong as a starting QB in the nfl anyway. I completely agree with this. However, I think they are more worried about another Flutie/Johnson or Edward/JP boondoggle more than anything. That was such a huge issue that I believe it has had lasting repercussions for this organization. One could argue that Brandon may be the driver of those kind of decision since he was the one here for those. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint Doug Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 True. Bills are hell-bent on ensuring EJ has no meaningful completion. Instead, they are looking to garner as many "coaches" (and weapons) as possible in attempt to help EJ. That in itself is indication the Bills themselves can be too confident in his abilities. Plus, too many cooks in the kitchen could backfire on them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkAF43 Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 My guess too. It has to be because otherwise it makes no sense. The people that bash his play are senile. He has a bad 2013 - partly because Shiano created a toxic culture and just ruined that team and partly because he had to learn a new offense in a week with the Vikings. Prior to that he was ascending at a pretty good pace. He's young, has great physical tools, and has had success (threw for over 4k yards and 27 TDs one year, '12 I think). There has to be something that is scaring teams off, I agree. It would be interesting to know why so far he's just sitting out there and no one wants him. Is his work ethic that poor? Does he have an unfounded sense of entitlement? Who knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 True. Bills are hell-bent on ensuring EJ has no meaningful completion. Instead, they are looking to garner as many "coaches" (and weapons) as possible in attempt to help EJ. That in itself is indication the Bills themselves can be too confident in his abilities. Plus, too many cooks in the kitchen could backfire on them. Too many cooks can, of course, end up hurting. But different guys provide different stuff. EJ spoke to this the other day. He says he has one QB coach, Dowling. That is the guy he listens to. That is the guy that is watching his mechanics and fundamentals and teaching him the position. Guys like Palmer, who have been around the league may provide different kinds of things. He is probably not going to be allowed to start messing with EJs mechanics. He can provide tendencies of players in the league, stuff to look for, the way Reich used to help Kelly out. I doubt Reich told Kelly how he should be throwing or setting his feet very much. I'm not saying it's going to work, but there is a lot of stuff to know about the NFL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 One thought is. for the past 14+ years OBD has given the impression that they do not need to follow what successful NFL teams do to get in the play offs year after year, after year. The guys at OBD somewhat regard themselves as the smarter guys in the room. What we see year after year is that theory is proven wrong. the handling of the QB situation for years has been a head scratcher. Whaley's approach is no different. But lets give him 5 more years to get his footing. And, the meantime get chastised by marginal talent for booing their laughable on field performances. It's not a head scratcher. They felt EJ had the tools to be a solid QB given enough time. Apparently 10 games and some preseason is more than enough time for some people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Hindsight Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 Agreed. I also think Vick would have been a great option, as a backup. I hate to give the Jets credit at anything, and I think their situation is a little different. But they did the right thing. They brought Vick in and they made him the backup. They didn't really announce anything and the were conflicting reports because it was the Ny media but they basically handed the job to Geno and gave him the vast majority of the first team reps. Now they have an option if Geno goes down or stinks up the joint (which I predict will still happen about halfway through the year). I'm a huge Whaley fan, but I just don't like how he has handled the QB position at all. Vick may not have come here because he probably thought he had a much better chance to start on the Jets. But he would be a solid backup to EJ, even if some fans were chirping that he should be given a chance to start. I simply don't understand the looking over your shoulder syndrome. I know people think it exists that have been in the NFL a long time. But it just seems to me if you can't handle that, and look over your shoulder and are afraid to make mistakes, you don't belong as a starting QB in the nfl anyway. I fully agree with this, but I don't think it is the Bills intention to not push EJ. EJ is by all accounts an incredibly hard worker. They hired two more offensive coaches because EJ was asking so many questions. He doesn't need anyone to push him, he pushes himself. With regard to the backup position, Thad played well last year. Especially considering he barely knew the playbook, the coaches or even his own teammates. The FO and coaching staff had to believe he would get better. Honestly what other choices did they have? Vick wanted to play for MM in NY as his old OC. McCown was going with Lovie. Shaun Hill maybe The problem is a lack of decent options in this league. With respect to the draft, after going all in on Sammy, the rest of the draft needed to address OL, LB and other areas and build around EJ. They bet big they would be a playoff team, the backup QB position seemed to be ok after having three guys start a game last year. Thad let them down big time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 Did anyone clamoring for Cousins actually watch him play last year? He was awful. He may be a competent back up, but no more at this point and probably ever. That said, the Redskins are not going to trade him - they have nothing behind him - nor are they going to start him over RGIII like their fans are lobbing for now since RGIII has been worse than terrible all preseason. As for Josh Freeman, don't you think there are reasons why no one wants this guy? Did anyone see him play in MN last year? I did and I agree that Cousins did not impress at all. You have the right take on Cousins. Freeman was put in a really bad position last season by the Vikings management when he clearly wasn't ready to play. He didn't know the offense and had zero chemistry with the receivers. Not sure why he's had such a precipitous decline after such a promising start to his career. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Hindsight Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 I did and I agree that Cousins did not impress at all. You have the right take on Cousins. Freeman was put in a really bad position last season by the Vikings management when he clearly wasn't ready to play. He didn't know the offense and had zero chemistry with the receivers. Not sure why he's had such a precipitous decline after such a promising start to his career. He was cut from the Giants this offseason after he couldn't call a play in the huddle in OTAs. He didn't study, showed up late and basically showed he didn't give a **** anymore. Not really a giant mystery what happened to him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 He was cut from the Giants this offseason after he couldn't call a play in the huddle in OTAs. He didn't study, showed up late and basically showed he didn't give a **** anymore. Not really a giant mystery what happened to him You know something is up when the Giants kept Curtis Painter over him. Like you said, it's a mystery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GA BILLS FAN Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 It's not a head scratcher. They felt EJ had the tools to be a solid QB given enough time. Apparently 10 games and some preseason is more than enough time for some people. At least for me it's not about giving EJ enough time or casting final judgment too early, it's about having a backup plan if things don't work out and seeing more tangible progress from EJ. Neither of those are throwing in the towel on EJ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flip Johnson Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 (edited) At this point, Freeman is much more of a project than EJ. His MNF outing last year with Minnesota was one of the worst spectacles I have ever seen. Also telling that no one in the league has any interest in him. Edited August 28, 2014 by Flip Johnson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1st&ten Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 There are reasons he imploded, his teammates seemed to turn on him, and there are reasons no one even touched him this year. I have no clue what they are but would bet they are substantial and reason enough not to pursue him. I agree. I don't know a lot about him but he seem to play pretty good his first couple years. Was he injured or does he only fit certain offenses ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Best Player Available Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 At this point, Freeman is much more of a project than EJ. His MNF outing last year with Minnesota was one of the worst spectacles I have ever seen. Also telling that no one in the league has any interest in him. Google storys of his time Tampa. he is a locker room cancer and a world class douche.i think those traits trump any talent he may have at football. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fansince88 Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 What happened to Josh Freeman such that a guy who QBed a winning team as a starter is not getting the same opportunities as a guy who last through a pass in an NFL game years ago? Not saying Freeman is a world beater, but it seems like resurrecting skills might be easier than finding skills where no one ever found them before. Or for that matter one that threw a pass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kickedface Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 jordan palmer knows the bears playbook. that's part of the reason teams do this all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts