Anyone else still finding it hard to get excited about FA or the Draft

[Alphadawg7]

I'm not even going to point out the sheer hypocracy of your post in questioning WHO was it that decided to kick a 47-yarder into the wind and WHO decided to call a roll-out pass that resulted in a fumble.

 

Defend Jauron all you want. The stats don't lie and they tell you that he is a career loser. This team had enough talent and a weak schedule to get a playoff spot last year and Dumb Dick screwed it up epically. If you sleep better at night trumpeting the same garbage that Ralph Wilson does about the "lack of talent" then good on you.

 

The rest of us will just look forward to 2010 - the non-Dick Years.

 

Please explain to me how our schedule was so weak? Our division turned out to be one of the toughest in football with all 3 of the other teams were in the running for a playoff spot until the last game of the season and NE didnt even get in with a 11 win season...

 

The only "weak" part of our schedule were our first 4 games, which we won. I love how people like to call our schedule weak based on the 2007 versions of the teams we played instead of the 2008 verision of those teams. We lost to BETTER teams in most of our losses...NE, Jets, AZ, Mia were all better teams with more talent...We lost at SF but played without many key starters critical to our success and with a incumbent back up QB.

 

I say again, we DONT have the talent level on this team to compete...when the Jets were 9-3, how was Farve playing? Answer: Pretty good. When they tanked how was he playing: Awful. It starts and stops at the QB position. Last year, how many games did Mia win? Answer: 1...What happened this year? They got Pennington who won comeback player of the year who played solid QB all year and they WON the division. There wasnt a lot of NEW talent on that team that wasnt there last year other than Fasano and Pennington.

 

So I dont care how much someone cries about DJ, we can NOT win without better play from the QB position. To do so, we need a DOMINANT D to make up for the short comings at QB, which we do not have...

 

Less talent means struggle to beat bad teams, which we did, and lose to better teams, which we did...

[Virgil]

I totally agree. I do not think Jauron is a great coach by any stretch, but our QB play has been mediocre to poor for years. Are the Cardinals and Steelers in the Super Bowl because of their great coaching? NOT AT ALL!!! They have gotten at least very good quarterbacking from Warner and Big Ben, if not great quarterbacking a lot of the time. Both guys are leaders, play with confidence and win games. They also have a lot of very good receivers around them to throw to. Hopefully, the talent level on our team at all positions other than RB will improve substantially. That is the only way we will compete in our division and in our conference for that matter.

 

Edwards needs to step up bigtime. He needs to start acting like a leader, stop missing so many games with injuries, and start throwing darts all over the field like an NFL Quarterback should do. A little bit of swagger out of Mr. Stanford would not hurt either. Jay Cutler is no better throwing the ball than TE, but he has that swagger that says I am "The Man". Trent needs that in a hurry.

 

But isn't this the same old crap we have to spoon feed ourselves every year to keep us going next year? I mean no disrespect with this, but every team is one or two plays away from a playoff record usually. Yet Buffalo consistently doesn't make those plays. As for Trent, he's proven more that he's injury prone than anything else. And the fact that even RW and DJ are starting to believe that they need to do the exact same thing and hope the coin falls a different way is upsetting. Isn't the the definition of insanity?

[John from Riverside]

This is actuallly the first time I have felt that way ever about the bills.....

 

I am hoping something will happen to change my mind.

[TheLynchTrain]

Please explain to me how our schedule was so weak? Our division turned out to be one of the toughest in football with all 3 of the other teams were in the running for a playoff spot until the last game of the season and NE didnt even get in with a 11 win season...

 

The only "weak" part of our schedule were our first 4 games, which we won. I love how people like to call our schedule weak based on the 2007 versions of the teams we played instead of the 2008 verision of those teams. We lost to BETTER teams in most of our losses...NE, Jets, AZ, Mia were all better teams with more talent...We lost at SF but played without many key starters critical to our success and with a incumbent back up QB.

 

I say again, we DONT have the talent level on this team to compete...when the Jets were 9-3, how was Farve playing? Answer: Pretty good. When they tanked how was he playing: Awful. It starts and stops at the QB position. Last year, how many games did Mia win? Answer: 1...What happened this year? They got Pennington who won comeback player of the year who played solid QB all year and they WON the division. There wasnt a lot of NEW talent on that team that wasnt there last year other than Fasano and Pennington.

 

So I dont care how much someone cries about DJ, we can NOT win without better play from the QB position. To do so, we need a DOMINANT D to make up for the short comings at QB, which we do not have...

 

Less talent means struggle to beat bad teams, which we did, and lose to better teams, which we did...

 

Um, lets see....Ferguson, Jake Long, Camarillo showed up, Devon Bess ,a new Ricky Williams, Joey Porter coming back into his own, Akin Ayodele....to name a few.

 

Yeah, some of those guys were players that were there before and floundered, but guess what? New FO and new coaching staff turned them from marginal talents or over the hill stars into essential team players or superstars, respectively. What's that? Good coaching and talent evaluation.

 

The Dolphins opening day roster had 35-40 new guys that were not there last opening day. Parcells ripped that team apart, brought in guys he knew would work in his system, and kept the ones he knew Sparano could mould.

 

I'm sure him or any other top-flight talent evaluator/coach in the league could do the same to the Bills. Whitner would look like a superstar, we'd bring a stength and conditioning coach in to stop our players from getting hurt, ect.

 

It's all about the FO talent.

[Alphadawg7]

Um, lets see....Ferguson, Jake Long, Camarillo showed up, Devon Bess ,a new Ricky Williams, Joey Porter coming back into his own, Akin Ayodele....to name a few.

 

Yeah, some of those guys were players that were there before and floundered, but guess what? New FO and new coaching staff turned them from marginal talents or over the hill stars into essential team players or superstars, respectively. What's that? Good coaching and talent evaluation.

 

The Dolphins opening day roster had 35-40 new guys that were not there last opening day. Parcells ripped that team apart, brought in guys he knew would work in his system, and kept the ones he knew Sparano could mould.

 

I'm sure him or any other top-flight talent evaluator/coach in the league could do the same to the Bills. Whitner would look like a superstar, we'd bring a stength and conditioning coach in to stop our players from getting hurt, ect.

 

It's all about the FO talent.

 

I totally agree with you that is all about FO talent...100%...and Parcells did have an impact on that team...however, the BIGGEST change though was still Fasano and Pennington. Most the players you mentioned were already on that team, and the ones you say stepped up were catching passes from Pennington. They would have been no where near as effective without him, which is why they stunk last year.

 

Do you honestly think they would have won the division with one of those bumbs like Beck starting if they dont get Pennington? You can not deny the massive impact Pennington had on that team...they dont win 5 games without him in my opinnion.

[Bmwolf21]

So, the overly dramatic cries about DJ get tiresome to be honest. Do I think he is a great coach...NO, but he is not nearly as bad as the fans want to make him out to be.

As do the attempts to paint DJ as a victim of circumstance or how "he would be a winner if only..."

 

I'm not even going to point out the sheer hypocracy of your post in questioning WHO was it that decided to kick a 47-yarder into the wind and WHO decided to call a roll-out pass that resulted in a fumble.

 

Defend Jauron all you want. The stats don't lie and they tell you that he is a career loser. This team had enough talent and a weak schedule to get a playoff spot last year and Dumb Dick screwed it up epically. If you sleep better at night trumpeting the same garbage that Ralph Wilson does about the "lack of talent" then good on you.

 

The rest of us will just look forward to 2010 - the non-Dick Years.

[Alphadawg7]

As do the attempts to paint DJ as a victim of circumstance or how "he would be a winner if only..."

 

 

 

LMAO...dont take my points about DJ as support...I dont particularly like him, but I just dont see him as bad as others. I just find it interesting how everyone wants to make countless excuses for Trent and make outlandish claims about how we dont win because of DJ...

 

All I here about is Trents potential...well lets look at that word...Potential means you s*ck now, but are expected to grow and be good.

 

Get over the 4-0 start...it was against terrible teams. His overall body of work after that was the quality of a bad backup. Doesnt mean he wont someday be good, in fact, I am hoping he does. But, no matter how many excuses you want to make, the collective play of JP and Trent led to us missing the playoffs...

[PushthePile]

Does anyone find it hard to believe that fans who have no interest in the offseason, log into TBD during the offseason? Some of you who spout your negativity and threaten to stop being a fan, are here on a daily basis. I understand everyone's distain for the coaching, and realize that he has a losing record. Get over it! The owner and coach are staying the same, and no amount of whining is going to change it. DJ has more than his share of bad playcalling but the team did do some nice things throughout the year. As far as you clowns who are already making predictions for the upcoming season, take that garbage somewhere else. It's blatant self -pity and embarassing. Buffalo has a NFL team and many larger markets don't, so start there if you need something to be proud of. Some of you act like we are the Pittsburgh Pirates and have no shot before the season starts. I know the record of the team over the past ten years and obviously it's poor. The bills have been in the playoff hunt a few times over that span and weren't quite the doormat some believe. Everyone's entitled to have an opinion but some don't know when to quit crying. The ones who do nothing but bash the team now will be the ones who mourn the loudest when they are gone. Go have your Bill's memorial somewhere else or let's talk football.

[Bmwolf21]

LMAO...dont take my points about DJ as support...I dont particularly like him, but I just dont see him as bad as others. I just find it interesting how everyone wants to make countless excuses for Trent and make outlandish claims about how we dont win because of DJ...

 

All I here about is Trents potential...well lets look at that word...Potential means you s*ck now, but are expected to grow and be good.

 

Get over the 4-0 start...it was against terrible teams. His overall body of work after that was the quality of a bad backup. Doesnt mean he wont someday be good, in fact, I am hoping he does. But, no matter how many excuses you want to make, the collective play of JP and Trent led to us missing the playoffs...

I'm not making excuses for Trent. He's done some good and some bad, and has a lot of work and growing to do to be a franchise QB.

 

Yes, there are talent deficiencies in certain areas of this team. But to point at two games and single out two players for blame when the head coach put them in a position to fail rather than succeed is unfair and inaccurate.

 

Oh, and Dick sucks.

[Virgil]

Does anyone find it hard to believe that fans who have no interest in the offseason, log into TBD during the offseason? Some of you who spout your negativity and threaten to stop being a fan, are here on a daily basis. I understand everyone's distain for the coaching, and realize that he has a losing record. Get over it! The owner and coach are staying the same, and no amount of whining is going to change it. DJ has more than his share of bad playcalling but the team did do some nice things throughout the year. As far as you clowns who are already making predictions for the upcoming season, take that garbage somewhere else. It's blatant self -pity and embarassing. Buffalo has a NFL team and many larger markets don't, so start there if you need something to be proud of. Some of you act like we are the Pittsburgh Pirates and have no shot before the season starts. I know the record of the team over the past ten years and obviously it's poor. The bills have been in the playoff hunt a few times over that span and weren't quite the doormat some believe. Everyone's entitled to have an opinion but some don't know when to quit crying. The ones who do nothing but bash the team now will be the ones who mourn the loudest when they are gone. Go have your Bill's memorial somewhere else or let's talk football.

 

oh please have pity on us pathetic fans who wish to be better and are still smarting from the way this past season was handled oh merciful one

[AJ1]

I'm not even going to point out the sheer hypocracy of your post in questioning WHO was it that decided to kick a 47-yarder into the wind and WHO decided to call a roll-out pass that resulted in a fumble.

 

Defend Jauron all you want. The stats don't lie and they tell you that he is a career loser. This team had enough talent and a weak schedule to get a playoff spot last year and Dumb Dick screwed it up epically. If you sleep better at night trumpeting the same garbage that Ralph Wilson does about the "lack of talent" then good on you.

 

The rest of us will just look forward to 2010 - the non-Dick Years.

 

The continuation of 'Zombie Ball' for another year has sucked all potential excitement from me. I don't give a rat's ass for Free Agency, the draft, camp, preseason or 2009 in general. I will likely devolve to 1984 - 1987 interest level where I barely checked the score on Mondays.

[Dibs]

That there is little consensus forming is sort of a buzz kill, since it may be an indication that this team is not "just a player away." I've seen suggestions for DE, TE, C, T, DT, LB, WR, G, QB, and S as needs in skimming the board.

Luckily reality isn't effected by the consensus of message boards.

[BillsVet]

If Ralph would step back and spend a few bucks more on real football people, this team would win AND he make more cash.

It's freaking bizarre when you think about it.

 

Investing in a coach and front office executives isn't mandated by the percentage the CBA requires are spent on player salaries and Ralph doesn't find the best talent evaluators. But it'd be a great investment to find the people who can find the players. As much as I'm not crazy about Mike Schopp, he raised an interesting topic today. Schopp was talking about why should John Guy still have a job as pro personnel director. The FA crop since 06 has been short on talent and long in terms of dollars spent. I would think all the money wasted on Dockery, Walker, Tripplett, Royal, P. Price, Fowler, Reyes, et al might make RW think about the guy running that part of the front office.

 

I can't imagine how much better Buffalo could be if they invested wisely in Pro Personnel and perhaps College Scouting. But in the name of "continuity" the Bills have chosen to keep the same bad decision makers. If RW is fine with wasting money on Walker and Dockery, fine. That alone tells me he doesn't care anymore. And that's no surprise to most of us.

 

It makes you wonder what it would take to be fired in Buffalo. Never mind the joke of a HC, what about free agent acquisitions? Guy's record stinks, but apparently he's still good enough to keep his job. Only in Buffalo. Only Ralph Wilson.

[Flbillsfan#1]

Does anyone find it hard to believe that fans who have no interest in the offseason, log into TBD during the offseason? Some of you who spout your negativity and threaten to stop being a fan, are here on a daily basis. I understand everyone's distain for the coaching, and realize that he has a losing record. Get over it! The owner and coach are staying the same, and no amount of whining is going to change it. DJ has more than his share of bad playcalling but the team did do some nice things throughout the year. As far as you clowns who are already making predictions for the upcoming season, take that garbage somewhere else. It's blatant self -pity and embarassing. Buffalo has a NFL team and many larger markets don't, so start there if you need something to be proud of. Some of you act like we are the Pittsburgh Pirates and have no shot before the season starts. I know the record of the team over the past ten years and obviously it's poor. The bills have been in the playoff hunt a few times over that span and weren't quite the doormat some believe. Everyone's entitled to have an opinion but some don't know when to quit crying. The ones who do nothing but bash the team now will be the ones who mourn the loudest when they are gone. Go have your Bill's memorial somewhere else or let's talk football.

If we had no interest we wouldn't be on this board. There have been only a couple people who have threatened to stop being fans, & they were ridiculed mercilessly. The negative people on this board (I am one myself) have every right to be negative about this team. I prefer to think of it as bitching rather than whining, & you & your 43 posts have NO business telling others on this board where to take their garbage.

[Bill from NYC]

If we had no interest we wouldn't be on this board. There have been only a couple people who have threatened to stop being fans, & they were ridiculed mercilessly. The negative people on this board (I am one myself) have every right to be negative about this team. I prefer to think of it as bitching rather than whining, & you & your 43 posts have NO business telling others on this board where to take their garbage.

 

Nice to see that we can agree on something.

[Flbillsfan#1]

Nice to see that we can agree on something.

Now that JP is gone, it was bound to happen sooner or later. We will probably agree on other things before next season is over.

[Bill from NYC]

It makes you wonder what it would take to be fired in Buffalo. Never mind the joke of a HC, what about free agent acquisitions? Guy's record stinks, but apparently he's still good enough to keep his job. Only in Buffalo. Only Ralph Wilson.

 

All true BV, but I was hoping you would address what I said about the economic state of the league. I am curious as to what you (and of course others) think.

My hunch is that some other teams are going to be reduced to our level due to this economy. Our fanbase is the same.....diehard nuts like us. Working people, more than corporate bigwigs who don't care as we do (and yes, I am generalizing).

 

If Ralph had a clue about anythibg beyond profit (and I truly believe that he knows all about making cash even at 90), a winner could be built in Buffalo.

Am I making sense.

[Sisyphean Bills]

Luckily reality isn't effected by the consensus of message boards.

Are you implying that the Bills are "a player away" from being Super Bowl contenders?

[Bill from NYC]

Now that JP is gone, it was bound to happen sooner or later. We will probably agree on other things before next season is over.

Allow me to begin :

 

 

Putting Dick Levy aside (I know, it's not easy), I am more concerned about the defense than the offense. Walker and Dockery need to slim down and fire out on running plays. Bring in a center and a tight end (not a tall order for most teams), switch to a REAL smashmouth offense, and the offense would be at least average imo. When I say "average," I am not at all talking about stats. Imo, the most important stat other than of course points for a Buffalo offensive team should be TOP.

 

The defense sucks. It makes me nuts that they can't stop teams on the ground. Why the f^%9 did they build a defense for a cold weather team that is small, and can't stop the run? My friend R.Rich is gung ho on a pass rusher, and he is certainly correct, but if they draft this guy Raji, or a BIG DT who can clog the middle, this team will instantly improve. If they were to take a chance on Cody from Bama, I would be fine with it (sorry Rich).

[BillsVet]

All true BV, but I was hoping you would address what I said about the economic state of the league. I am curious as to what you (and of course others) think.

My hunch is that some other teams are going to be reduced to our level due to this economy. Our fanbase is the same.....diehard nuts like us. Working people, more than corporate bigwigs who don't care as we do (and yes, I am generalizing).

 

If Ralph had a clue about anythibg beyond profit (and I truly believe that he knows all about making cash even at 90), a winner could be built in Buffalo.

 

Am I making sense.

 

It's obvious economics will dictate how much people will pay to see games. Dallas is a huge market and home to plenty of large companies, but I'm sure well-off fans are re-thinking the idea of forking over 30k to buy a PSL and the cost of season tickets at Jerry's Palace. Look at the way PSL's were greeted for the Jets and Giants. It's no guarantee that we'll see as many sellouts in 09, because most clubs sold season tickets before things got bad in 08.

 

Jerra Jones arrogantly assumed that he could name his price and it wouldn't matter. This economy will force people to make hard decisions to either hold on to their money, or pay big dollars for football tickets. I think fans in markets like Buffalo are better prepared, because we don't pay PSL's or feel as much of the bad economy and things already aren't good here. With low cost tickets, fans will still go to games, but how many is anyone's guess for 09. I suspect RW's increasingly bad product will eventually cause even the die-hards to rethink spending their hard earned money for a lackluster product.

 

The NFL is quickly becoming a corporate league, and limited to the elite earners of society. I don't think the fans will walk away now, but teams that can't produce will see their fan base go a little more quickly as patience erodes. I for one see this as the biggest effect. Teams like Detroit, Buffalo, Oakland, and Cincy who make up the NFL Minor League will be hurt by playing during bad economic times and offering a bad product.

 

My guess is season tickets sales will dip 10-15 percent in 09 for Buffalo. They'll naturally blame the economy, but the truth is RW hasn't given this fan base a legit product since the late 90s.