What about Rian Lindell?

[Dibs]

Oh good lord!

Stop trying to make more out of what I’m saying that what is being said!

NEVER did I say the Bills suck, or will suck in anyway shape or form!

Never did I say WM sucks in anyway shape or form, other than saying I believe him to be self-absorbed. He comes across to ME as someone who is more interested in his own fortune and fame, than he is at getting the Bills (or any other team) to the SB. If he was on another team I’d still get that impression from him.

Does that mean I don’t like him playing for the Bills?

No, it doesn’t mean that!

Does that mean that I think he’s not going to play hard for the Bills?

No because even if he is self-absorbed that wouldn’t benefit him.

I think he is a very good RB, and could be a great one.

Do I think his attitude could affect the team?

Yes, it could. Will it? No one knows.

Maybe it was the TO comment I made, or something else that set this off, but you are way off base if you think I’m the type who cries doom and gloom all the time.

 

Jeesh!

713263[/snapback]

Don't take this the wrong because I understand what you are saying & sympathise with you. I just find it a bit amusing. You have become an example of what I was saying in my post earlier.

From one or two minor utterances or comments from you, you have been discussed about & taken out of context until the view on you is quite skewed from what you are actually about.

I thank one & all for providing me with a tangible modern example of my point.

Back to WM....It is not to say WM is being taken out of context, just that with knowledge of the fact it can be so easily done, perhaps a more open minded approach on the subject is wise.

[Oneonta Buffalo Fan]

I think Rian has overcome is "depression" in kicking. I think he will be a fine kicker for this team.

[MikeSpeed]

Don't take this the wrong because I understand what you are saying & sympathise with you.  I just find it a bit amusing.  You have become an example of what I was saying in my post earlier. 

From one or two minor utterances or comments from you, you have been discussed about & taken out of context until the view on you is quite skewed from what you are actually about.

I thank one & all for providing me with a tangible modern example of my point. 

Back to WM....It is not to say WM is being taken out of context, just that with knowledge of the fact it can be so easily done, perhaps a more open minded approach on the subject is wise.

713468[/snapback]

I see how I have proved your point.

I also have the same opinion of Edgeran James. This was before he left for AZ. If I would have said that about him on this board I may have gotten a response but nothing so drastic.

Edge is a great RB but he stated he was in it for the $, and left for AZ. The Cards are going to be a much inproved team, but let's face it, right now his best chance of getting a ring was with Indy. I know that $ attracts all the players. But if that is your only motivation for playing, then I feel your teams chances for a SB become limited.

I hope I am all wrong about WM and he sucessful with the Bills for a long time!

[Pyrite Gal]

I see how I have proved your point.

I also have the same opinion of Edgeran James. This was before he left for AZ. If I would have said that about him on this board I may have gotten a response but nothing so drastic.

Edge is a great RB but he stated he was in it for the $, and left for AZ. The Cards are going to be a much inproved team, but let's face it, right now his best chance of getting a ring was with Indy. I know that $ attracts all the players. But if that is your only motivation for playing, then I feel your teams chances for a SB become limited.

I hope I am all wrong about WM and he sucessful with the Bills for a long time!

713863[/snapback]

 

But if a player's only motovation is to maximize bucks and winning the SB is of no or limited importance to him then he is doing exactly the right thing to accomplish what he thinks is important.

 

As fan, I think that a balance can be struck and a player can find both a way to give himself a reasonable shot at the elusive goal of winning an SB and still make something like what the market will give him. Its people who advocate one extreme or the other that I think are a bit out to lunch (though certainly part of this equation and reality is that there is no reason to care what I or any other outsider thinks).

 

In general, the justification for no amount being too much strike me as foolish when overpaid athletes trot out lines about taking food out of their kids mouths, Great as it means their kid will only be 85 lbs. overweight instead of 86 lbs. overwieght.

 

However, I have little trouble with someone like a Jim Kelly etting every dime he can to buy any hope for a kid like Hunter or to rain silly baubles on his wife to east the trial of taking care of their kid while he is off on the road with the boys (the same is true IMHO for a player like Flutie with an autistic kid).

 

Alotof this comes down the the societal question of how much is too much.

[MikeSpeed]

But if a player's only motovation is to maximize bucks and winning the SB is of no or limited importance to him then he is doing exactly the right thing to accomplish what he thinks is important.

 

As fan, I think that a balance can be struck and a player can find both a way to give himself a reasonable shot at the elusive goal of winning an SB and still make something like what the market will give him.  Its people who advocate one extreme or the other that I think are a bit out to lunch (though certainly part of this equation and reality is that there is no reason to care what I or any other outsider thinks).

 

In general, the justification for no amount being too much strike me as foolish when overpaid athletes trot out lines about taking food out of their kids mouths,  Great as it means their kid will only be 85 lbs. overweight instead of 86 lbs. overwieght.

 

However, I have little trouble with someone like a Jim Kelly etting every dime he can to buy any hope for a kid like Hunter or to rain silly baubles on his wife to east the trial of taking care of their kid while he is off on the road with the boys (the same is true IMHO for a player like Flutie with an autistic kid).

 

Alotof this comes down the the societal question of how much is too much.

713905[/snapback]

Amen, Amen, and Amen!

[HAMMER07]

I thought DJ and Marv would of released Lindell by now. I always thought he only stayed around because of TD and his pride. I think Paul Edinger was recently released and I think he would be a good, bad weather kicker. If we are starting over, lets include the kicking game.

Is anyone else confused by what type of offense we are going to run? At first, it seemed like run,run and more run.  Now we read aout Steve Fairchild and  how well the QB's are throwing the long ball. How can a team with an inexperienced QB and a terrible line not focus heavily on the run???

Who here is sick of Willis???? He seems like a typical  cocky punk who doesn't seem to want to play for the team anyways. It makes me so mad that our stud running back is too good to work with the team for the OTA's. F - him. and all  the idiots from the U that train together.  I would gladly take Lionel Gates as the starter or anyone  who plays with passion and is proud to be a Bill. I don't think he is a Marv type player and I hope he  is shown the door.

For some strange reason, I have a feeling that JP is going to do much better this year. No reason for it , other  then because  Jerry (IDIOT) Sullivan wrote about it the other day.

Can't the News do better then this clown Jerry Sullivan ??? He seems like a bitter man who takes his anger out in his columns. He is like the guy who wasn't an athlete growing up and still holds in that anger as an adult. It is so hard to read his column.

My last point. John Murphy is not a good play by play man. I listen to audio of other team announcers and Murph is bad, in my opinion. Once again, if we are righting this wrong, can Murph! Bring in someone with passion and someone with energy. Make this team sound fun and exciting even if they really put us to sleep.

709891[/snapback]

 

Is that Fred Flinstone and Bam Bam in your avatar?

[TigerJ]

Exactly Dibs. People need to stop being so damn sensitive about players missing a voluntary practice and getting caught up in "Willis said he's the best, how dare he!"

 

C'mon people, just root for the Bills and stop all this nonsense of bashing our team. There are enough people bashing Buffalo already that aren't fans.

712935[/snapback]

 

I don't want the Bills to get rid of McGahee. I think he has loads of talent. He could become my favorite player if he gains 1500 yards, even with the "I'm better than everybody else" attitude. At least there would be more hard evidence to back it up.

[Mickey]

I think Rian has overcome is "depression" in kicking.  I think he will be a fine kicker for this team.

713503[/snapback]

He had a good enough year last year for us not to put too much emphasis on replacing him. At the same time, a good GM is always looking to improve the roster whenever he can. If a good prospect at PK were available, we should give him a look-see. Lindell is not good enough, like Christie was, to pretty much ignore the idea of an upgrade. All he was last year was good enough to keep his job and not much more than that.

 

Look at it this way, if we needed a 45 yarder on the last play of the game on a windy day in November, how confident would you be that Rian would nail it? An upgrade would be nice but not a priority.

[Orton's Arm]

An upgrade would be nice but not a priority.

While my opinion of Lindell is a little higher than yours, I agree with the general theme of your post: upgrade if you can. But I've noticed Marv only seems interested in younger players, and that makes sense for a rebuilding team. The older kickers I've seen mentioned as potential replacements for Lindell wouldn't be a good fit for the Bills.

 

The only way replacing Lindell makes sense is if you can find a guy who's:

- About the same age as Lindell, or younger

- An upgrade at kicker

- Proven in bad weather conditions

- Willing to sign a cap-friendly deal to play for the Bills

 

I just don't know of any guy out there like that.

[Pyrite Gal]

While my opinion of Lindell is a little higher than yours, I agree with the general theme of your post: upgrade if you can.  But I've noticed Marv only seems interested in younger players, and that makes sense for a rebuilding team.  The older kickers I've seen mentioned as potential replacements for Lindell wouldn't be a good fit for the Bills.

 

The only way replacing Lindell makes sense is if you can find a guy who's:

- About the same age as Lindell, or younger

- An upgrade at kicker

- Proven in bad weather conditions

- Willing to sign a cap-friendly deal to play for the Bills

 

I just don't know of any guy out there like that.

714065[/snapback]

 

I definitely agree and would add that many posts here seem to miss the boat in that they only look at the FG % of a kicker as a measure of his performance.

 

Making FGs and in particular making them at crunch time when the game is on the line (or the season in the case of a great kicker like Vinateri is concerned) is the most key and a high profile measure.

 

However, even when folks were calling for Lindell's head after he missed a should make short kick that was a big part of the ST implosion which played a key role in that lost (along with an ST fumble by Clements, an ineffective O led by Bledsoe, and a D which could not stop Pitts back-ups) folks failed to remember that Lindell was simply outstanding in other key parts of placekicking even in the 2004 season.

 

A big part of the outstanding ST performance that year was Lindell kicking them to the appropriate place and to the approrpriste height for kick coverage every singke time as we gave up no kick return TDs and even few long gains that year. Doing this perfectly with half the games in the tricky winds of the Ralph was simply outstanding and difficult to replace work by Lindell.

 

In addition, on the few critical times he was called upon to make an onside kick, he actually gave the Bills a chance to recover 1 of the 3 times (Baker did not make the play though he got his hands on the ball in the Pitts game and getting a chance off a bouncer is all you can reasonably ask of a kicker), missed on 1 of his 3 shots, but most impressive even recovered a surprise pooch kick himself which sealed the deal against the Fins.

 

Lindell arguably had a good but worse performance in 05 than 04 as he did improve a lot in the high profile area of making longer FGs, but he did not luck into a bunch of on field kick chances as many Bills games were not that close and some poor execution in ST tackling produced a bigger return problem.

 

Nevertheless, the ST ended up with a very good ST statistical ranking and Lindell was a part of this in addition to his improvement in high profile areas.

 

He did a very good job for a bad team last year, and a good but inadequate job in crunch time for the Bills in 04.

[PatPatPatSack]

I do agree with him on Sullivan- the guy is just not a journalist......he's more cut out for talk radio

710234[/snapback]

 

You can't kick Sully around enough for me. He's a smug smartss and has no insight, even though he thinks he does.

 

Murph on the other hand is all Buffalo. He's the real deal and getting better all the time.

 

I'll leave you guys to worry over how "team" Mcgahee is. I met him in the wine store and he seemed like a regular guy, even sort of shy. 0 attitude and real pleasant. I'm sure the players all like him. And that is what makes a team. Not what they quote to the press. I'm sure they laugh at that stuff. I'll bet that every time one of them says "I got to give 110%" he goes back to his boys and laughs about how they wrote it down!

[Mickey]

While my opinion of Lindell is a little higher than yours, I agree with the general theme of your post: upgrade if you can.  But I've noticed Marv only seems interested in younger players, and that makes sense for a rebuilding team.  The older kickers I've seen mentioned as potential replacements for Lindell wouldn't be a good fit for the Bills.

 

The only way replacing Lindell makes sense is if you can find a guy who's:

- About the same age as Lindell, or younger

- An upgrade at kicker

- Proven in bad weather conditions

- Willing to sign a cap-friendly deal to play for the Bills

 

I just don't know of any guy out there like that.

714065[/snapback]

Yeah, the Steve Christies of the world don't grow on trees. He was a heckuva a security blanket in his day. You just never had any doubt that he would make the tough kick and nail anything under 50. Automatic=Steve Christie. Some don't realize how good we had it with that guy.

[UConn James]

Let's all say it with Bills / Sabresfan --- CUT LINDELL NOW!!!!

 

I mean, the guy only made a 50-yarder that would've gone 57. And then a measley 45 yarder.

 

I stand by my comments earlier in this thread and add in a "You're an idiot."