Polian critical of Bills not drafting a QB

[JohnC]

 

Year after year, many posters have made better draft decisions (in terms of their posts of course) than the Buffalo Bills. This my friend is the ugly truth.

Being an NFL Executive does not (as you well know) automatically make one a good decision maker on draft day.

None of us know more about football than Marv Levy, but a huge majority would have drafted a better player than Donte Whitner with the #8 pick in the stacked 2006 draft so yes, there are posters here who do understand football.

The Donte Whitner picked left me speechless. My first response wasn't anger so much as it left me befuddled. I was searching for some rational for it but couldn't come up with anything that made sense. That particular odd pick was a good representation of the Levy/Jauron era.

 

No franchise in the league other than Buffalo would have considered Levy as someone to lead their football operation. No franchise in the league other than Buffalo would have considered a marketing person such as Russ Brandon to lead their football operation. No franchise in the league other than Buffalo would have considered Buddy Nix to lead their football operation.

 

The Bills during this peculiar period became the Davis Raiders of the east. At least now under Whaley whether you agree or disagree with the football decisions there is a rational to what is being done. Instead of being an outlier franchise we have become a normal/conventional franchise. That is progress.

 

The shame of the Donte Whitner pick was that he was unfairly vilified because of the spot where he was drafted, something he had nothing to do with. He was a solid player who played hard and was loyal to whichever team he played. He has carved out a long and prosperous career. I'm happy for him.

[KingRex]

The Donte Whitner picked left me speechless. My first response wasn't anger so much as it left me befuddled. I was searching for some rational for it but couldn't come up with anything that made sense. That particular odd pick was a good representation of the Levy/Jauron era.

 

No franchise in the league other than Buffalo would have considered Levy as someone to lead their football operation. No franchise in the league other than Buffalo would have considered a marketing person such as Russ Brandon to lead their football operation. No franchise in the league other than Buffalo would have considered Buddy Nix to lead their football operation.

 

The Bills during this peculiar period became the Davis Raiders of the east. At least now under Whaley whether you agree or disagree with the football decisions there is a rational to what is being done. Instead of being an outlier franchise we have become a normal/conventional franchise. That is progress.

 

The shame of the Donte Whitner pick was that he was unfairly vilified because of the spot where he was drafted, something he had nothing to do with. He was a solid player who played hard and was loyal to whichever team he played. He has carved out a long and prosperous career. I'm happy for him.

Bless his memory and bless his heart, I laid the major blame for this move which did not work on the owner Mr. Ralph. We fans owe him a lot because he brought the Bills here and more important kept them here when he could have made a lot more $ if he had moved the team to LA or simply sold it. However, he adopted our community and his fellow fans in a huge way.

 

Ironically, imho the biggest Mr. Ralph football draft decision was actually the seemingly minor choice of not drafting (or somehow other way) of acquiring a potential replacement for Jim Kelly a year before they drafted Todd Collins as his replacement.

 

Mr. Ralph's biggest error which I identify as the main football reason we are 0-for the last decade and a half for not even making the playoffs is that by not acquiring and developing a replacement for Kelly in 1984, the Bills had to reach for and draft Collns in the 2nd which was a round earlier than many saw him being picked.

 

Even worse, Mr. Ralph made a bad football judgment that like it or not, only he could make that when Kelly's contract ran out and he would have been an unrestricted FA, Mr. Ralph violated both the letter and spirit of the salary cap rules by entering into a handshake agreement with Kelly to reward him with a big payment in his next contract. When it turned out that this next contract never happened, RWS paid Jimbo a million bucks apparently to avoid a lawsuit enforcing the handshake deal.

 

What should the Bills have done in the 1984 draft to get the "new " Jimbo? Who knows? Its a lot of theoretical woulda/coulda/shoulda.

 

However, on the face of it the Bills picked Greg Bell in 1984 with their 1st round pick. A good player who had a rookie year with the Bills deemed Pro Bowl worthy. However, in an NFL where RBs often get hurt, Bell was an LA Ram by 1988 and the Bills had moved on to Thurman Thomas as their RB. When they picked Bell a QB by the name of Boomer Esaison was still on the board. Could you imagine a K-gun which was then turned into an E-gun after Kelly was forced into retirement.

 

In 84 with their second pick the Bills chose WR Eric Richardson. Still on the board if one is looking for someone to back-up Kelly was a young QB named Jeff Hostetler (the woulda/coulda/shoulda bonus if we had picked him to sit on the bench behind Jimbo is that he would not have been the QB who beat us in our first SB and Hostetler rather than Frank Reich would have been asked to lead us to victory in the greatest game ever played.

 

Further on in the draft if we had been smart enough to draft a back-up for Kelly a year earlier is that perhaps we would have passed on drafting Rodney Bellinger or Sean McNanie to pick-up another eventual SB winning QB named Jay Shroeder who was still on the board when we made either of the two critical Bills picks above.

 

We (meaning Mr. Ralph as ultimately only he could make the illegal handshake deal with Kelly and only he could authorize or sign the huge checks to sign and welch on his word with Flutie, to overpay Rob Johnson, perhaps make a stupid investment in Billy Joe Hobert, but overall mismanage the QB situation for a decade and a half and still have it up in the air today.

 

The Whitner choice di turn out to be foolish, but the QB mismanagement issue to me is the real travesty in how Mr. Ralph and his chosen flunkies mismanaged this team and myriad drafts.

[K-9]

... What should the Bills have done in the 1984 draft to get the "new " Jimbo? Who knows? Its a lot of theoretical woulda/coulda/shoulda. ...

Should have just ended it there.

 

All the other bs in your post aside, do you honestly believe you draft a replacement QB for your HOF QB 13 seasons before he retires? What, Hostetler or some other carefully groomed replacement would have ridden the pine for 13 years and then assumed the mantel of starting QB? You honestly believe that?

 

GO BILLS!!!

[John from Riverside]

 

I love fans who think they understand the NFL better than Bill Polian. They insight and depth of analysis they bring to the table is always precious.

Polian has not been the GM of the bills for a long long time

 

meanwhile

 

Doug Whaley has been the "boots on the ground" that has rebiult this roster (which is loaded with talent now)

 

I think I will take Whaley's judgement over Polians at this stage

 

And why are people acting like he did NOTHING to fix these things....

 

OL HAS BEEN ADDRESSED.....the problem is the draft picks didnt pan out....lets face it....who know that Kujo was going to be SO ineffective in his rookie season...there is NOBODY here that thought that

 

And QB.....WHAT GOOD DOES IT DO TO DRAFT A QB IN A WEAK DRAFT THAT IS NO BETTER THEN WHAT YOU HAVE ON THE ROSTER.....or even worse....might not even be AS GOOD as what you have on the roster

 

Whaley played that perfectly...he knew the team wasnt picking top 5........so he brought in 2 veteran qbs because he knew it was a weak draft.

[JohnC]

Polian has not been the GM of the bills for a long long time

 

meanwhile

 

Doug Whaley has been the "boots on the ground" that has rebiult this roster (which is loaded with talent now)

 

I think I will take Whaley's judgement over Polians at this stage

 

And why are people acting like he did NOTHING to fix these things....

 

OL HAS BEEN ADDRESSED.....the problem is the draft picks didnt pan out....lets face it....who know that Kujo was going to be SO ineffective in his rookie season...there is NOBODY here that thought that

 

And QB.....WHAT GOOD DOES IT DO TO DRAFT A QB IN A WEAK DRAFT THAT IS NO BETTER THEN WHAT YOU HAVE ON THE ROSTER.....or even worse....might not even be AS GOOD as what you have on the roster

 

Whaley played that perfectly...he knew the team wasnt picking top 5........so he brought in 2 veteran qbs because he knew it was a weak draft.

NYC Bill devotedly follows Bama football. (As a tribute to the Crimson Tide he wears a Bear Bryant hound dog hat when he goes out.) He came out after the draft and stated that he was not enamored with the pick. Joe Delamilleure (sic) stated on WGR that he would never have drafted Kujo because he felt he was simply too slow for the fast paced d-linemen he would face. Is Kujo salvageable? Maybe.

 

With respect to the qb issue (I agree with your position) Whaley was smart in not reaching for a qb when he was not in a position to select the caliber of qb he wanted. I was hoping that we would have selected Hundley with a fourth round pick but we didn't have it because of a trade made last year. Even with Hundley or Petty it must be acknowledged that both are developmental qbs who wouldn't be ready to compete or contribute this season.

 

I don't know if Nix or Whaley was most instrumental in the drafting of EJ in the first round. In my opinion it was simply a mistake.

Should have just ended it there.

 

All the other bs in your post aside, do you honestly believe you draft a replacement QB for your HOF QB 13 seasons before he retires? What, Hostetler or some other carefully groomed replacement would have ridden the pine for 13 years and then assumed the mantel of starting QB? You honestly believe that?

 

GO BILLS!!!

The shame of our qb situation has to do with the post-Kelly era. The HOF has been gone for a full generation. The organization still hasn't been able to come up with a suitable replacement.

 

I'm very confident that if Polian was the GM after the Kelly era he would have found a capable replacement in a reasonable amount of time because he would have made it a priority. The long-term lingering qb deficit would not have happened on his watch.

Edited May 9, 2015 by JohnC

[K-9]

... The shame of our qb situation has to do with the post-Kelly era. The HOF has been gone for a full generation. The organization still hasn't been able to come up with a suitable replacement.

 

I'm very confident that if Polian was the GM after the Kelly era he would have found a capable replacement in a reasonable amount of time because he would have made it a priority. The long-term lingering qb deficit would not have happened on his watch.

I'm not one to deal in conjecture, especially in hindsight, so I can't argue what Polian would or wouldn't have done since Kelly hung them up. But I'm confident he wouldn't have drafted Kelly's replacement in 1984 with the idea that he would be ready to take over after Kelly's retirement after 1996!

 

GO BILLS!!!

[RealityCheck]

Who again did Polian want the Bills to draft? I am tired of the use of pronouns in reference to the draft. Yes, the Bills need a QB, but who EXACTLY? It's about specific players, not generic positions being thrown around as if guys can just be pulled out of hat. Until Polian returns as GM, I could care less what he has to say. He has no skin in the game which makes him another blip-vert puking Max Headroom in my book. Besides all that, I am excited to watch his HoF induction. Go Bills!

Edited May 9, 2015 by RealityCheck

[Lurker]

While Polian was GM of the Bills (1986-92), he drafted a total of one QB--the immortal Brian McClure...

 

1992 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 27 John Fina T Arizona 2 55 James Patton NT Texas 3 83 Keith Goganious LB Penn State 4 111 Frank Kmet -- Purdue 5 139 Matt Darby DB UCLA 6 167 Nate Turner TE Nebraska 7 195 Kurt Schulz DB Eastern Washington 8 223 Leonard Humphries CB Penn State 9 251 Chris Walsh WR Stanford 10 279 Barry Rose WR Wis.-Stevens Point 11 307 Vince Marrow TE Toledo 12 335 Matt Rodgers -- Iowa 1991 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 26 Henry Jones DB Illinois 2 54 Phil Hansen DE North Dakota State 3 82 Darryl Wren DB Pittsburg State 5 138 Shawn Wilbourn -- Long Beach State 6 166 Millard Hamilton WR Clark Atlanta 7 194 Amir Rasul -- Florida A&M 8 222 Brad Lamb WR Anderson (Ind.) 9 249 Mark Maddox LB Northern Michigan 10 277 Tony DeLorenzo -- New Mexico State 11 305 Dean Kirkland -- Washington 12 333 Stephen Clark -- Texas 1990 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 16 James Williams DB Fresno State 2 42 Carwell Gardner FB Louisville 3 69 Glenn Parker T Arizona 4 100 Eddie Fuller RB Louisiana State 6 154 John Nies P Arizona 7 166 Brent Griffith G Minnesota-Duluth 7 170 Brent Collins -- Carson-Newman 7 181 Fred DeRiggi NT Syracuse 8 208 Marvcus Patton LB UCLA 9 238 Clarkston Hines -- Duke 10 265 Mike Lodish DT UCLA 11 292 Al Edwards WR Northwestern State-Louisiana 1989 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 3 82 Don Beebe WR Chadron State 4 109 John Kolesar -- Michigan 5 137 Michael Andrews -- Alcorn State 6 164 Sean Doctor -- Marshall 7 173 Brian Jordan DB Richmond 7 193 Chris Hale DB USC 9 249 Pat Rabold -- Wyoming 10 276 Carlo Cheattom -- Auburn 11 305 Richard Harvey LB Tulane 12 332 Derrell Marshall -- USC Brett Young -- Oregon 1988 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 2 40 Thurman Thomas RB Oklahoma State 3 65 Bernard Ford WR Central Florida 5 123 Zeke Gadson -- Pittsburgh 5 135 Kirk Roach -- Western Carolina 6 150 Dan Murray LB East Stroudsburg 7 177 Tim Borcky -- Memphis 7 184 Bo Wright -- Alabama 8 204 John Hagy DB Texas 8 213 Jeff Wright NT Central Missouri State 9 235 Carlton Bailey LB North Carolina 10 262 Martin Mayhew DB Florida State 11 289 Pete Curkendall -- Penn State 12 309 John Driscoll -- New Hampshire 12 316 Tom Erlandson Jr. LB Washington 1987 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 8 Shane Conlan LB Penn State 2 29 Nate Odomes DB Wisconsin 2 33 Roland Mitchell DB Texas Tech 3 60 David Brandon LB Memphis 3 78 Jamie Mueller RB Benedictine 4 109 Leon Seals DE Jackson State 7 171 Kerry Porter RB Washington State 8 209 Bruce Mesner NT Maryland 9 227 Keith McKeller TE Jacksonville State 11 283 Howard Ballard T Alabama A&M 12 311 Joe McGrail NT Delaware 1986 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 16 Ronnie Harmon RB Iowa 1 20 Will Wolford T Vanderbilt 3 77 Leonard Burton C South Carolina 5 111 Carl Byrum RB Mississippi Valley State 7 168 Bob Williams -- Penn State 7 178 Mark Pike DE Georgia Tech 7 180 Butch Rolle TE Michigan State 8 202 Tony Furjanic LB Notre Dame 9 222 Reggie Bynum WR Oregon State 10 251 Guy Teafatiller DT Illinois 11 278 Tony Garbarczyk DE Wake Forest 11 282 Billy Witt DE North Alabama 12 313 Brian McClure QB Bowling Green State 12 331 Derek Christian -- West Virginia

 

[YoloinOhio]

Who again did Polian want the Bills to draft? I am tired of the use of pronouns in reference to the draft. Yes, the Bills need a QB, but who EXACTLY? It's about specific players, not generic positions being thrown around as if guys can just be pulled out of hat. Until Polian returns as GM, I could care less what he has to say. He has no skin in the game which makes him another blip-vert puking Max Headroom in my book. Besides all that, I am excited to watch his HoF induction. Go Bills!

i assume he wanted them to take anyone from Grayson to Hundley. I personally think Bryce Petty is terrible and am glad he is on the Jets.

He's sending red flags to the #startpetty crowd in NJ

 

@Cnimbley: Petty is not having a good practice, he's way off target. He really needs to learn to use his lower body when throwing. Too much arm #Jets

[Rico]

While Polian was GM of the Bills (1986-92), he drafted a total of one QB--the immortal Brian McClure...

 

1992 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 27 John Fina T Arizona 2 55 James Patton NT Texas 3 83 Keith Goganious LB Penn State 4 111 Frank Kmet -- Purdue 5 139 Matt Darby DB UCLA 6 167 Nate Turner TE Nebraska 7 195 Kurt Schulz DB Eastern Washington 8 223 Leonard Humphries CB Penn State 9 251 Chris Walsh WR Stanford 10 279 Barry Rose WR Wis.-Stevens Point 11 307 Vince Marrow TE Toledo 12 335 Matt Rodgers -- Iowa 1991 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 26 Henry Jones DB Illinois 2 54 Phil Hansen DE North Dakota State 3 82 Darryl Wren DB Pittsburg State 5 138 Shawn Wilbourn -- Long Beach State 6 166 Millard Hamilton WR Clark Atlanta 7 194 Amir Rasul -- Florida A&M 8 222 Brad Lamb WR Anderson (Ind.) 9 249 Mark Maddox LB Northern Michigan 10 277 Tony DeLorenzo -- New Mexico State 11 305 Dean Kirkland -- Washington 12 333 Stephen Clark -- Texas 1990 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 16 James Williams DB Fresno State 2 42 Carwell Gardner FB Louisville 3 69 Glenn Parker T Arizona 4 100 Eddie Fuller RB Louisiana State 6 154 John Nies P Arizona 7 166 Brent Griffith G Minnesota-Duluth 7 170 Brent Collins -- Carson-Newman 7 181 Fred DeRiggi NT Syracuse 8 208 Marvcus Patton LB UCLA 9 238 Clarkston Hines -- Duke 10 265 Mike Lodish DT UCLA 11 292 Al Edwards WR Northwestern State-Louisiana 1989 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 3 82 Don Beebe WR Chadron State 4 109 John Kolesar -- Michigan 5 137 Michael Andrews -- Alcorn State 6 164 Sean Doctor -- Marshall 7 173 Brian Jordan DB Richmond 7 193 Chris Hale DB USC 9 249 Pat Rabold -- Wyoming 10 276 Carlo Cheattom -- Auburn 11 305 Richard Harvey LB Tulane 12 332 Derrell Marshall -- USC Brett Young -- Oregon 1988 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 2 40 Thurman Thomas RB Oklahoma State 3 65 Bernard Ford WR Central Florida 5 123 Zeke Gadson -- Pittsburgh 5 135 Kirk Roach -- Western Carolina 6 150 Dan Murray LB East Stroudsburg 7 177 Tim Borcky -- Memphis 7 184 Bo Wright -- Alabama 8 204 John Hagy DB Texas 8 213 Jeff Wright NT Central Missouri State 9 235 Carlton Bailey LB North Carolina 10 262 Martin Mayhew DB Florida State 11 289 Pete Curkendall -- Penn State 12 309 John Driscoll -- New Hampshire 12 316 Tom Erlandson Jr. LB Washington 1987 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 8 Shane Conlan LB Penn State 2 29 Nate Odomes DB Wisconsin 2 33 Roland Mitchell DB Texas Tech 3 60 David Brandon LB Memphis 3 78 Jamie Mueller RB Benedictine 4 109 Leon Seals DE Jackson State 7 171 Kerry Porter RB Washington State 8 209 Bruce Mesner NT Maryland 9 227 Keith McKeller TE Jacksonville State 11 283 Howard Ballard T Alabama A&M 12 311 Joe McGrail NT Delaware 1986 - BUFFALO BILLS RD SEL # PLAYER POSITION SCHOOL 1 16 Ronnie Harmon RB Iowa 1 20 Will Wolford T Vanderbilt 3 77 Leonard Burton C South Carolina 5 111 Carl Byrum RB Mississippi Valley State 7 168 Bob Williams -- Penn State 7 178 Mark Pike DE Georgia Tech 7 180 Butch Rolle TE Michigan State 8 202 Tony Furjanic LB Notre Dame 9 222 Reggie Bynum WR Oregon State 10 251 Guy Teafatiller DT Illinois 11 278 Tony Garbarczyk DE Wake Forest 11 282 Billy Witt DE North Alabama 12 313 Brian McClure QB Bowling Green State 12 331 Derek Christian -- West Virginia

 

Two.. I guess Matt Rodgers wasn't quite immortal enough.

[Kelly the Dog]

While Polian was GM of the Bills (1986-92), he drafted a total of one QB--the immortal Brian McClure...

 

Well I guess this list shoots that theory. Good work.

[1billsfan]

I would be against adding another layer of authority in the management structure of the team. From what I read he was interested in the position while his family was adamantly opposed. They collectively felt that it was time for him at his stage in life and family situation involving the grand kids that he should be lightening up the load instead of adding to the load. He said that while he was enticed by the offer he felt that he owed it to his family that had sacrificed for him to decline the offer.

 

Based on Polian's comments regarding the team's draft I agree with you that if he were in a position of authority he would have insisted and acted on upgrading the qb position. He would have been very much proactive either through the draft or through trade deals to address that long term issue that has plagued this franchise.

 

Anyone who watched him on ESPN commenting on the Bills' qb situation would have noticed the conviction he had and the sadness/disappointment that nothing much has been done to change the situation.

 

What is this magic pixy dust that Polian would have had? SPECIFICALLY which QB would Polian thought the Bills should have drafted and which round should they have drafted them in? ...or in his opinion, the "past 1st round selected" QBs Petty, Grayson, Hundley and Manion are ALL going to be great QBs and the Bills will be sorry by not drafting one of them? Also, I missed the NFL team that was willing to trade it's franchise QB this offseason. But I guess Polian's magic pixy dust would have made that happen.

 

Bill Polian is no better than a snake oil salesman at this point, because he's making what he thinks are these huge monumental statements, yet they are truly empty and meaningless without specific names.

 

Getting the QB position right in the NFL is part luck, part science, part coaching, part talent around the QB, part giving the QB time to adjust. The only guys who can brag about being smart are the guys who put names to predictions and second guessing. That's it. Polian is a blow hard for making those non specific comments on what the Bills should have done. But that's ESPN for you, a whole lot of nothing burger for the intelligent NFL fan.

 

Doug Whaley is the man with the true NFL pixy dust now. If fans can't see that by now then I don't know what to tell them. My prediction is that either Manuel or Taylor will make Whaley look like a genius or the Bills will actually be in a great position to trade for Brees next year since he's a year older, has a gigantic QB contract and the Saints drafted his replacement in Garrett Grayson this past draft.

Edited May 10, 2015 by 1billsfan

[Lurker]

Two.. I guess Matt Rodgers wasn't quite immortal enough.

LOL...he was so good that NFL.com didn't even list his position.

[YoloinOhio]

 

What is this magic pixy dust that Polian would have had? SPECIFICALLY which QB would Polian thought the Bills should have drafted and which round should they have drafted them in? ...or in his opinion, the "past 1st round selected" QBs Petty, Grayson, Hundley and Manion are ALL going to be great QBs and the Bills will be sorry by not drafting one of them? Also, I missed the NFL team that was willing to trade it's franchise QB this offseason. But I guess Polian's magic pixy dust would have made that happen.

 

Bill Polian is no better than a snake oil salesman at this point, because he's making what he thinks are these huge monumental statements, yet they are truly empty and meaningless without specific names.

 

Getting the QB position right in the NFL is part luck, part science, part coaching, part talent around the QB, part giving the QB time to adjust. The only guys who can brag about being smart are the guys who put names to predictions and second guessing. That's it. Polian is a blow hard for making those non specific comments on what the Bills should have done. But that's ESPN for you, a whole lot of nothing burger for the intelligent NFL fan.

 

Doug Whaley is the man with the true NFL pixy dust now. If fans can't see that by now then I don't know what to tell them. My prediction is that either Manuel or Taylor will make Whaley look like a genius or the Bills will actually be in a great position to trade for Brees next year since he's a year older, has a gigantic QB contract and the Saints drafted his replacement in Garrett Grayson this past draft.

polian and his son were fired in Indy in large part because they failed to draft and develop a suitable QB to take over if Manning went down. He has never effectively evaluated/developed a QB he didnt draft in the 1st round.

[thewildrabbit]

First, my take is Polian wanted to see the Bills take a shot on obtaining a franchise QB in some regard, and even if that prospect were a late round pick or undrafted free agent. I don't think any Bills fans are still holding out hope that Jeff Tuel is the "one" being developed into that franchise guy. A lot are questioning as to why he is even in the mixture of competition in competing for the starting job.

 

This sort of reminds me of the 2010 off season QB competition with Fitz, Edwards, and Brian Brohm. Then when Gailey stated that all three were about the same it gave the impression that he knew what he was talking about. Needless to say that even Interim HC Perry Fewell was smart enough to start Fitz over Edwards the previous year.

 

So the Bills start the 2015 off season with EJ, Matt Cassell, Tyrod Taylor, and Tuel as the QB's. I don't see the interest in Taylor because if he were a top backup QB I don't see Ozzie Newsome letting him leave. He became expendable when the Ravens signed Matt Schaub, and the Ravens have three other unknown QB's Keith Wenning-Bryn Renner- Jerry Lovelocke.

 

Bottom line here is that the Buffalo Bills still don't have a viable developmental QB that even has a shot at becoming a legit franchise QB. (aside from EJ who should be given the most chance this year IMO)The bigger issue is that I doubt anyone in the entire org even knows what a true developmental QB looks like. The Bills don't have either their Brett Farve or Aaron Rodgers.

 

 

Lastly, for the fans that can't let the Donte Whitner pick go...the guy is still playing in the NFL from 2006. Then he made the pro bowl with the 49ers so what does that tell you about that Bills coaching or defensive scheme back then. Marv didn't like greedy Lawyer Milloy, and there was a huge hole at Safety after Levy sent him packing. That same year the Bills did draft Kyle Williams. Hey, at least Levy didn't draft Aaron Maybin, and how long was he in the league? The Bills wasted a lot of money on a guy who had one decent college year and looked good after he bought his P90X DvD's.

[Kelly the Dog]

First, my take is Polian wanted to see the Bills take a shot on obtaining a franchise QB in some regard, and even if that prospect were a late round pick or undrafted free agent. I don't think any Bills fans are still holding out hope that Jeff Tuel is the "one" being developed into that franchise guy. A lot are questioning as to why he is even in the mixture of competition in competing for the starting job.

 

This sort of reminds me of the 2010 off season QB competition with Fitz, Edwards, and Brian Brohm. Then when Gailey stated that all three were about the same it gave the impression that he knew what he was talking about. Needless to say that even Interim HC Perry Fewell was smart enough to start Fitz over Edwards the previous year.

 

So the Bills start the 2015 off season with EJ, Matt Cassell, Tyrod Taylor, and Tuel as the QB's. I don't see the interest in Taylor because if he were a top backup QB I don't see Ozzie Newsome letting him leave. He became expendable when the Ravens signed Matt Schaub, and the Ravens have three other unknown QB's Keith Wenning-Bryn Renner- Jerry Lovelocke.

 

Bottom line here is that the Buffalo Bills still don't have a viable developmental QB that even has a shot at becoming a legit franchise QB.

 

Gary Kubiak's new team, the Broncos, offered Taylor more money than the Bills did. Kubiak was Taylor's OC.

[moshermw]

First, my take is Polian wanted to see the Bills take a shot on obtaining a franchise QB in some regard, and even if that prospect were a late round pick or undrafted free agent. I don't think any Bills fans are still holding out hope that Jeff Tuel is the "one" being developed into that franchise guy. A lot are questioning as to why he is even in the mixture of competition in competing for the starting job.

 

This sort of reminds me of the 2010 off season QB competition with Fitz, Edwards, and Brian Brohm. Then when Gailey stated that all three were about the same it gave the impression that he knew what he was talking about. Needless to say that even Interim HC Perry Fewell was smart enough to start Fitz over Edwards the previous year.

 

So the Bills start the 2015 off season with EJ, Matt Cassell, Tyrod Taylor, and Tuel as the QB's. I don't see the interest in Taylor because if he were a top backup QB I don't see Ozzie Newsome letting him leave. He became expendable when the Ravens signed Matt Schaub, and the Ravens have three other unknown QB's Keith Wenning-Bryn Renner- Jerry Lovelocke.

 

Bottom line here is that the Buffalo Bills still don't have a viable developmental QB that even has a shot at becoming a legit franchise QB. (aside from EJ who should be given the most chance this year IMO)The bigger issue is that I doubt anyone in the entire org even knows what a true developmental QB looks like. The Bills don't have either their Brett Farve or Aaron Rodgers.

 

 

Lastly, for the fans that can't let the Donte Whitner pick go...the guy is still playing in the NFL from 2006. Then he made the pro bowl with the 49ers so what does that tell you about that Bills coaching or defensive scheme back then. Marv didn't like greedy Lawyer Milloy, and there was a huge hole at Safety after Levy sent him packing. That same year the Bills did draft Kyle Williams. Hey, at least Levy didn't draft Aaron Maybin, and how long was he in the league? The Bills wasted a lot of money on a guy who had one decent college year and looked good after he bought his P90X DvD's.

Taylor was an unrestricted free agent. Not sure how one can misconstrue the meaning of that (see below). The Ravens had no choice because Tyrod wanted a chance to start and it wasn't going to happen in Baltimore with Flacco all but calling the shots with his big salary. He turned down twice the $ from Denver for the same reason.

 

 

Unrestricted free agent[edit]

Unrestricted free agents are players without a team. They have either been released from their club, had the term of their contract expire without a renewal, or were not chosen in a league's draft of amateur players. These people, generally speaking, are free to entertain offers from all other teams and to decide with whom to sign a contract

[thewildrabbit]

Taylor was an unrestricted free agent. Not sure how one can misconstrue the meaning of that (see below). The Ravens had no choice because Tyrod wanted a chance to start and it wasn't going to happen in Baltimore with Flacco all but calling the shots with his big salary. He turned down twice the $ from Denver for the same reason.

 

 

Unrestricted free agent[edit]

Unrestricted free agents are players without a team. They have either been released from their club, had the term of their contract expire without a renewal, or were not chosen in a league's draft of amateur players. These people, generally speaking, are free to entertain offers from all other teams and to decide with whom to sign a contract

Sure the Ravens had a choice. Like I said, If he were a top backup QB then I don't see Ozzie Newsome letting him leave at all. Ozzie keeps his good players, and its a big reason why they make the playoffs / super bowls.

 

Some backup QB's are making upwards of 5+ mill per nowadays. He got 1.2 mill per from Buffalo with a chance to earn 7 mill if he becomes a starter. I think the big reason he took the Bills offer is because Rex has had past interest in him, and he does appear have a legit shot against EJ & Cassell from what Rex is saying. Hence my comparison to Gailey in 2010. In Denver he knew he had no chance to start.

 

Still, the guy has to be better then Tuel to get an actual backup spot, and he is no big deal in my view. 6'1 208, and drafted in the 6th round of the 2011 draft. In his four year career 19 of 35 for 199 yards 0 TD's 2 INT's. Basically a short, running QB with accuracy issues. A Russell Wilson he isn't. JMO

 

https://tommeltonscouting.wordpress.com/2011/03/22/tyrod-taylor-qb-virgina-tech-scouting-report/

[YoloinOhio]

Sure the Ravens had a choice. Like I said, If he were a top backup QB then I don't see Ozzie Newsome letting him leave at all. Ozzie keeps his good players, and its a big reason why they make the playoffs / super bowls.

 

Some backup QB's are making upwards of 5+ mill per nowadays. He got 1.2 mill per from Buffalo with a chance to earn 7 mill if he becomes a starter. I think the big reason he took the Bills offer is because Rex has had past interest in him, and he does appear have a legit shot against EJ & Cassell from what Rex is saying. Hence my comparison to Gailey in 2010. In Denver he knew he had no chance to start.

 

Still, the guy has to be better then Tuel to get an actual backup spot, and he is no big deal in my view. 6'1 208, and drafted in the 6th round of the 2011 draft. In his four year career 19 of 35 for 199 yards 0 TD's 2 INT's. Basically a short, running QB with accuracy issues. A Russell Wilson he isn't. JMO

 

https://tommeltonscouting.wordpress.com/2011/03/22/tyrod-taylor-qb-virgina-tech-scouting-report/

this makes no sense to me. It's TTs choice, not the Ravens. He was a UFA. Did you expect the Ravens to overpay for a backup QB even though they had cap issues, huge needs elsewhere, and a very durable established starting Qb? That would be terrible roster management. Even if they did try to overpay for him, he may have still left because he wanted a chance to play.

[eball]

Sure the Ravens had a choice. Like I said, If he were a top backup QB then I don't see Ozzie Newsome letting him leave at all. Ozzie keeps his good players, and its a big reason why they make the playoffs / super bowls.

 

Ozzie is a top tier GM; he has earned that reputation. Your presumption, however, that (a) he doesn't make mistakes or (b) the fact the Ravens didn't re-sign TT means he's not a viable option are a little much. As Whaley has explained, teams have to slot cap $$ to their position "groups." When a team has a QB being paid near the top of the market, they're not going to be able to afford a top $$ backup. And Flacco never gets hurt. We have no idea what discussions Ozzie had with TT to try and retain him, but we know that Kubiak -- the guy who saw TT every day -- wanted him to backup Peyton in a big way. And they have Ostweiler.

 

TT was in demand. He chose the Bills because of his opportunity. Many of us believe that was a better option for the Bills than to draft one of the 2nd or 3rd tier QBs in this draft.