Happy Days Lois & Clark Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 http://ledger.southofboston.com/articles/2...ts/sports02.txt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayzer32 Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 You know what else is a waste? The Blosox making the playoffs. Just prolonging their agony as Yankee bitches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 I love the Bills! I hope McGahee turns into the next Marshall Faulk (in his prime). That being said, Willis McGahee was a wasted draft pick. How nicer would it be right now to have a blue chip offensive linemen or defensive linemen with a year under his belt, than a running back coming off a serious injury, whose biggest contribution thus far has been causing friction with a top notch running back, already on the roster. If Willis turns out to be a stud (or if he brings back some incredible return in a trade), I will be the first to praise him. To paraphrase somebody, "wrong pick, wrong draft, wrong year". This was the kind of pick that a team coming off a Super Bowl victory makes, not a team fighting to stay out of last place in their division for the last 5 years....sorry! GO BILLS!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharp Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 here's hoping willis goes out and kicks some patsie azz sunday. go bills! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBob Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 I love the Bills! I hope McGahee turns into the next Marshall Faulk (in his prime). That being said, Willis McGahee was a wasted draft pick. How nicer would it be right now to have a blue chip offensive linemen or defensive linemen with a year under his belt, than a running back coming off a serious injury, whose biggest contribution thus far has been causing friction with a top notch running back, already on the roster. If Willis turns out to be a stud (or if he brings back some incredible return in a trade), I will be the first to praise him. To paraphrase somebody, "wrong pick, wrong draft, wrong year". This was the kind of pick that a team coming off a Super Bowl victory makes, not a team fighting to stay out of last place in their division for the last 5 years....sorry! GO BILLS!!!! 52924[/snapback] Opinions are like.......well you know, and I don't much give a crap about those of a writer for the Patriot Ledger. Surely, one can just as easily call their pick of Ben Watson a waste, albeit in hindsight. BTW, I've seen this said about a blue chip offensive or defensive lineman instead of McGahee, but who would that have been? The Bills wanted Kelsey, and decided to gamble that he would be there when they picked second. They got him anyway. So I'm not exactly sure who we should have picked, but I would like to know who this high impact guy would have been. With a bit more time, the pick will prove quite worthwhile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Opinions are like.......well you know, and I don't much give a crap about those of a writer for the Patriot Ledger. Surely, one can just as easily call their pick of Ben Watson a waste, albeit in hindsight. BTW, I've seen this said about a blue chip offensive or defensive lineman instead of McGahee, but who would that have been? The Bills wanted Kelsey, and decided to gamble that he would be there when they picked second. They got him anyway. So I'm not exactly sure who we should have picked, but I would like to know who this high impact guy would have been. With a bit more time, the pick will prove quite worthwhile. 52949[/snapback] I see your point, but to me, if you knowingly use a first round draft pick on a guy with major health concerns, who you know will likely not contribute to your team for at least another year, maybe two, it just seems like a waste. Again, I am not denegrating McGahee, like everyone else, I hope he turns out to be the real deal. Even if he does though, I ask again, was running back really our most pressing need in the first round of the 2001 draft? Travis Henry was coming off a Pro Bowl season, and it seemed like we were set at running back. Hell why not trade the pick for a vetran? TD loves to make headlines, why not try to trade the pick for the eteranally miserable in St Louis, Orlando Pace? Sadly, pre-TD, and 4 years into his tenure, the Bills weaknesses remain, offensive and defensive line, as well as special teams. If you are building your franchise around a guy with no mobility (remember this was 2003, before TD conceded and drafted Losman), it only makes sense that you have to have a great offensive line. Mike Williams is not as bad as some here make him out to be, but he is not as good as he should be either. Is Chris Villareal a huge improvement over Rueben Brown? Is Mike Pucillo still on the roster? TD and Tom Modrak are supposed to be great at evaluating talent. So far, all I have seen is that TD is a great PR guy, and a shrewd business man, the jury is still out on bringing in legit talent. Can the Bills really afford to be taking unnecessary gambles with their top pick? Sorry, maybe I am just tired, but after suffering through 2003, this past weeks bye week was the first time since they started having bye weeks, that I was relieved the Bills were not playing. I guess I am just getting tired of losing, and excuses....GO BILLS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOKBILLS Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 BTW, I've seen this said about a blue chip offensive or defensive lineman instead of McGahee, but who would that have been? 52949[/snapback] Well...the only possible answer to that question on the O-Line would be Kwame Harris in San Fran who went 3 picks after Willis...Harris Started 5 Games at RT as a Rookie, and is the Niners Starting LT this year. From the limited accounts I have read Harris has struggled a bit thusfar, but it seems most Scouts feel he has the athletic ability and size (6-7-310) to be very good in time. I do believe he came out as a Jr., so he's only 22 years old... Time will tell if Harris turns out to be a great LT, but it's tough to say the Bills could not use a young OT Prospect instead of Willis, especially with Jonas Jennings in the last year of his deal...We'll see...but this is definitely another one that could come back and bite TD... B) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillnutinHouston Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 IMO, by the second year after you've picked your 1st rounder, the guy needs to be in the starting lineup, unless you are 2-time SB champions. When you have Wire, Shelton, Teague and Campbell on the field ALL the time, but your 1st rounder on the bench, it's no big mystery why you aren't winning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njsue Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Willis will just have to answer that on the field tomorrow. I have got that feeling that the bills will win. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Well...the only possible answer to that question on the O-Line would be Kwame Harris in San Fran who went 3 picks after Willis...Harris Started 5 Games at RT as a Rookie, and is the Niners Starting LT this year. From the limited accounts I have read Harris has struggled a bit thusfar, but it seems most Scouts feel he has the athletic ability and size (6-7-310) to be very good in time. I do believe he came out as a Jr., so he's only 22 years old... Time will tell if Harris turns out to be a great LT, but it's tough to say the Bills could not use a young OT Prospect instead of Willis, especially with Jonas Jennings in the last year of his deal...We'll see...but this is definitely another one that could come back and bite TD... B) 52965[/snapback] They passed on OG Erik Steinback, who started 14 games with Cincy (missed 2 because of injury) and made the All-rookie team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frez Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 So far he is a wasted draft pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Guest Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 I love the Bills! I hope McGahee turns into the next Marshall Faulk (in his prime). That being said, Willis McGahee was a wasted draft pick. How nicer would it be right now to have a blue chip offensive linemen or defensive linemen with a year under his belt, than a running back coming off a serious injury, whose biggest contribution thus far has been causing friction with a top notch running back, already on the roster. If Willis turns out to be a stud (or if he brings back some incredible return in a trade), I will be the first to praise him. To paraphrase somebody, "wrong pick, wrong draft, wrong year". This was the kind of pick that a team coming off a Super Bowl victory makes, not a team fighting to stay out of last place in their division for the last 5 years....sorry! GO BILLS!!!! 52924[/snapback] You know what, I'm not even going to speculate on whom we should have drafted but let's face it, WM was a wasted pick. We didn't need another RB we needed help elsewhere. Plus, we're not using the guy, so what was the point to using a 1st rounder on a guy taking 10-15 snaps a game in his 2nd year. As it stands right now, we need massive help, we have no 1st round pick next year (which looks like Dallas will have one very high pick) and you're just not gonna get much value in return if you trade with TH or WM. That pick was blown, big time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albany,n.y. Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 So, as defined by a bunch of you, Jim Kelly was a wasted pick-He did nothing for the Bills until the 4th season after he was drafted. People are forgetting that Henry was still a huge ? at the time Willis was drafted. As a rookie Henry had been arrested and was on probation, and had missed the last 3 games of his rookie year due to injury. He followed that up with a decent 2nd season but fumbled 11 times! Off the field he was still so irresponsible financially that he had to sign an extension in order to get some much needed $. He needed a lot of growing up to do in April 2003. It wasn't until AFTER McGahee was drafted that Henry started to show he could hold on to the ball and that when injured he became the ultimate warrior, playing with rib and leg injuries that most players would have landed on IR with. Henry is probably a lot more mature than when we drafted McGahee. The McGahee pick made a lot of sense, especially if the team thought that McGahee would be a 3 year project, since most medical opinions are it takes 2 years to be fully recovered, back to top speed, from McGahee's injury. In April 2003, I viewed Henry as a potential ticking time bomb who may never grow up. Much to his credit, he has changed a lot since then & will either be our featured back for years to come, or if McGahee shows enough to anticipate his return to superstar status by next year, Henry will yield good value in a trade. Finally, show some damn patience! I'd rather have to wait 3 years & get a star in the 1st round than get another Eric Flowers. People forget that Eric Moulds was being called a "wasted pick" at the same point in his career that McGahee is at & he wasn't comming off a major knee injury. And...the writer is an idiot, lots of factually inaccurate stuff in the article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albany,n.y. Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 Fact check on article: 1) Compared him to Edwards: Truth-Edwards almost had to have the lrg amputated and at the time of the injury his career was just about declared over-Nobody ever compared the severity of McGahee's injury to that of Edwards. 2) No other NFL team was willing to take the gamble: BS! There was talk of teams right below us such as Oakland & Tennessee taking McGahee before the end of the 1st round. The consensus was Al Davis would have taken the gamble if McGahee was still on the board when the Raiders picked #1. Willis would have not been available much longer. 3) Buffalo had one of the better backs in the NFL-see my post above on a back that was comming off an 11 fumble season. 4) McGahee told reporters that bhe wanted to be traded-Wrong again Patriot slug, it was his agent, not Willis who said that. Find me one quote directly from McGahee asking to be traded. 5) McGahee got $2.5 million from an insurance policy. Not true, unless they settled, because as I have previously read, at the time Willis signed, the policy pays only if McGahee doesn't play in a set # of NFL games & retires due to the injury. If the policy is still in effect, to date he hasn't received his $2.5 million. Gotta love a reporter who doesn't let the facts stand in his way of a good story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unko Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 patsies suck :I starred in Brokeback Mountain: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike in Syracuse Posted October 2, 2004 Share Posted October 2, 2004 The "Patriots Ledger" is nothing more than an compiliation of written masturbation for Pat's fans. It has as much objectivity and insight as the Iraqi Information Minister. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 So, as defined by a bunch of you, Jim Kelly was a wasted pick-He did nothing for the Bills until the 4th season after he was drafted. 52996[/snapback] Albany, that is just plain silly. At the time Kelly was drafted, we didn't know that he would opt to play in the USFL instead. We needed a "qb of the future" at that time. And, back then (1983) it was much more the norm that a QB (1st round or later) would ride the pines for at least a year, if not more, before he was ever a starter. That is not the norm now, but then it was. Plus, in 1983, we had two 1st round picks, and were an extremely awful team. In 2003, theoretically, we were a team on the verge, only a player or two away from being one of the NFL's stronger contenders. I don't believe that running back was one of those positions there was a huge concern about. Christ, come to think about it, we had just singned Olandis Gary as a free agent to back up Henry. Gary, in effect would never have a chance of making the roster, and was traded to the Lions in the pre-season. True, the Lions released him this past week, but he didn't even have a chance of earning a roster spot in Buffalo, after McGahee was drafted. I almost forgot about that. That McGahee pick looks even worse... Also, I think you are way overstating the uncertaintly thing about Henry after his second year. Yes, he had his run in with the law, and yes he pissed away his money. However, TD jumped on that as an opportnity to lock Henry up for an extra two-years, at a bargain price. We all know how much TD loves a good bargain. Plus, on the field, Henry was coming off a 1400 yard season, and was voted to the Pro Bowl. The fumble thing is way exaggerated too. True, Henry had 11 fumbles that year, but if memory serves me, 7 of those came in the first 6 weeks of the season. Ahman Green got shipped to Green Bay because of a "fumbling problem". It seems like Green Bay is dealing with his problem just fine... Hey, I hope like everyone, McGahee turns out to be great, better than Henry. You still can't convince me though, that this was a sound choice for the Bills at the time. It may ultimately pay off, but we shouldn't still be wondering at this point. It was an unnecessary gamble. IMO, TD drafted McGahee as trade bate (either he or Henry), and knew/knows damn well that one of these guys would be/will be gone. It was a thinking ahead kind of move. He did the same thing when he drafted Josh Reed. However, that was a second round pick, and we knew that we would have Peeless Price for at least that season. Reed was a great college player, and worth the gamble of a second round pick. Sometimes it seems like TD prepares so well for the future, but ignores the present. To me, you just don't do that in the first round. Mike Doss, a very highly regarded safety (remember we didn't have Lawyer Milloy at the time of that draft) would have been a more sound choice for the Bills at that time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fezmid Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 Albany, that is just plain silly. At the time Kelly was drafted, we didn't know that he would opt to play in the USFL instead. I thought Kelly said that he'd never play in Buffalo? I could be mistaken (was only 8 at the time), but that's what I seem to remember... As far as WM being a wasted pick because he "hasn't done anything," umm... Didn't he almost win the Jaguars game in week 1 for us? Didn't he have something like eight straight carries at the end of the game that, barring the CV penalty, would've won the game for us? Not bad for a "backup" runningback. CW PS: It sucks when you automate your work for Sunday morning, but your manager calls and wakes you up anyway to confrim that everything is working. *sigh* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 Nanker says, "The Patriot Ledger is a waste of 35¢ and a piece of stevestojan to boot." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAMIEBUF12 Posted October 3, 2004 Share Posted October 3, 2004 if we don't start using him,they are right Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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