Walker to LT; Butler to RT

[BillsVet]

Got it. So we should have reached for an OT at #11, or reached at #28 for an OT. I guess you would have then had more ammo to trash the FO. Regardless of the situation, its a win-win for you, because you can trash the front office for something.

 

Just because you don't see the plan doesn't mean the FO doesn't have one. Again, what if the plan is to move Langston to LT for a season until Bell gets ready? If one of your deemed "good" teams made this same move, you'd be praising them for "having a future plan and not having to reach in the draft to fill a need." But since its the Bills, that automatically means the move is bad and sucks, right?

 

There you go again drawing my conclusions for me. I like the Maybin pick, and how can anyone not like Eric Wood? But the front office made the Peters trade so late in the draft process that it prevented them from keeping their options open. Of course, there were/are some alternatives on the market at the time. We'll see if Pace and Levi Brown are capable of playing like they did, but I'm not comfortable with a guy who's never played the position long term having to do so in his 8th season. If the Bills like Walker so much at LT, it stands to reason they'd have dealt Peters last off-season when it became clear he was an issue.

 

I like the Demetrius Bell story, but it's nothing more than hope-at this point. He hasn't played one NFL snap after two seasons at a low end D1 program and a year of not dressing in the pros. It'll be interesting to see him get some playing time in the pre-season, and I won't rule out his ability long term, but I need to see something first from a former 7th rounder. Potential means ain't done anything yet.

[VOR]

There you go again drawing my conclusions for me. I like the Maybin pick, and how can anyone not like Eric Wood? But the front office made the Peters trade so late in the draft process that it prevented them from keeping their options open. Of course, there were/are some alternatives on the market at the time. We'll see if Pace and Levi Brown are capable of playing like they did, but I'm not comfortable with a guy who's never played the position long term having to do so in his 8th season. If the Bills like Walker so much at LT, it stands to reason they'd have dealt Peters last off-season when it became clear he was an issue.

 

I like the Demetrius Bell story, but it's nothing more than hope-at this point. He hasn't played one NFL snap after two seasons at a low end D1 program and a year of not dressing in the pros. It'll be interesting to see him get some playing time in the pre-season, and I won't rule out his ability long term, but I need to see something first from a former 7th rounder. Potential means ain't done anything yet.

Wait, you think that the Bills didn't plan on potentially trading Peters and thus didn't keep any options open? At least as far as the draft goes? Doubtful at best.

 

And all of the rookie OT's drafted this year haven't played one NFL snap yet. But Bell has had a year to learn the playbook, be in an NFL strength and conditioning program, and get acclimated to the NFL. That puts him further ahead than any rookie. And he has great size and bloodlines. What he lacks is experience.

[Bill from NYC]

What he lacks is experience.

 

He is gonna need that NFL strength program because at one point he was said to have benched 225 only 9 times. That isn't good when you are facing Richard Seymour.

He could develop. It is possible, but it isn't something we can count on to any extent at all. I have a feeling that we will be screaming for a LT when the 2010. If Jauron is gone we will probably get one too, instead of a first round DB.

[Flbillsfan#1]

Holy crap.

 

There really needs to be a screening process on this site to weed out the mentally challenged people.

I don't think we need that. We find the postings of mentally challenged people like yourself amusing.

[Ramius]

He is gonna need that NFL strength program because at one point he was said to have benched 225 only 9 times. That isn't good when you are facing Richard Seymour.

He could develop. It is possible, but it isn't something we can count on to any extent at all. I have a feeling that we will be screaming for a LT when the 2010. If Jauron is gone we will probably get one too, instead of a first round DB.

 

This was kind of my point. If the Bills have high hopes for Bell, they have 2009 to evaluate him. So after this season, they can address how Bell looked. If he's shown some real promise, perhaps they pencil him in as a starter. If he's shown that he'll be nothing more than a backup, they you look for a LT in free agency or early on in the 2010 draft. At least, that's how i would address the situation with Bell.

 

Or maybe Langston Walker plays decent at LT and we keep him on.

[Ramius]

There you go again drawing my conclusions for me. I like the Maybin pick, and how can anyone not like Eric Wood? But the front office made the Peters trade so late in the draft process that it prevented them from keeping their options open. Of course, there were/are some alternatives on the market at the time. We'll see if Pace and Levi Brown are capable of playing like they did, but I'm not comfortable with a guy who's never played the position long term having to do so in his 8th season. If the Bills like Walker so much at LT, it stands to reason they'd have dealt Peters last off-season when it became clear he was an issue.

 

I like the Demetrius Bell story, but it's nothing more than hope-at this point. He hasn't played one NFL snap after two seasons at a low end D1 program and a year of not dressing in the pros. It'll be interesting to see him get some playing time in the pre-season, and I won't rule out his ability long term, but I need to see something first from a former 7th rounder. Potential means ain't done anything yet.

 

And there's your mistake. You assume that the Bills never had a contingency plan in place if they had to trade Peters and then all of a sudden were caught with their pants down when they traded him. I highly doubt this was the case.

 

Perhaps the Bills went into 2009 hoping they could re-sign Peters to a long deal, and if not, Walker would be a serviceable holdover until 2010, when they can either a)plug in Bell/Scott/another young guy, or b) acquire someone via FA or the draft.

[spartacus]

Well, that would have been a better reply. But the problem is that Wood and Levitre are strictly interior guys, and if Butler struggles at RT, the Bills would want to move him inside, back to RG. That would leave 2 interior positions for the rookies. And since the Bills love Hangman and he's a proven veteran, they're not going to start a rookie over him (at least not this year) at center. So that leaves just LG. And since Levitre is being groomed for that position and Wood is being groomed at RG, moving Wood to a new position wouldn't make the most sense. That's not to say they wouldn't consider it and that it wouldn't work.

 

Levitre has played as much T as Butler has. they both played in college and neither has played in the NFL.

 

maybe he should get the shot at RT

[Thoner7]

My only discrepancy is that The Bills could have parlayed their picks/Peters trade differently and acquired Oher instead of Wood. While I like Wood, Oher at LT and leaving Butler and Walker at their 08 positions just makes more sense than using Wood at G and moving both Walker and Butler to new positions. I also feel that Oher would out perform Walker at LT. The Bills always preach continuity and this draft is just the opposite. Going by their record however continuity doesnt seem to work so maybe this is a good move.

[VOR]

He is gonna need that NFL strength program because at one point he was said to have benched 225 only 9 times. That isn't good when you are facing Richard Seymour.

He could develop. It is possible, but it isn't something we can count on to any extent at all. I have a feeling that we will be screaming for a LT when the 2010. If Jauron is gone we will probably get one too, instead of a first round DB.

I'd be curious to learn what Bell benches now, a year into the S&C program. But there is no guaranteed on any rookie OT being able to handle LT immediately, even Jason Smith. I didn't like Oher, and he project to RT anyway. Ideally Bell gets some PT in late-game blowouts, with Fitz in at QB.

[vincec]

Oh, Jesus.

Holy crap.

 

There really needs to be a screening process on this site to weed out the mentally challenged people.

 

Well, these are compelling, well reasoned and intelligent opinions. Hey, I got one too... "Up your nose with a rubber hose." That should make sense to someone at your level.

[Thurman#1]

I do not disagree with these moves. However, doesn't anyone find it disconcerting that the Bills talked to Walker and Butler AFTER the draft to see if they would be ok with these moves? What if Walker said I can't play LT or didn't want to make the switch? Holding my breath these OL moves will work out.....

 

 

 

The Bills were most likely desperately hoping to get Jason Smith. When he wasn't available, that's when they knew they would have to make those switches.

 

They talked to them out of politeness. Neither guy was going to say "no."

[Thurman#1]

Wait, you think that the Bills didn't plan on potentially trading Peters and thus didn't keep any options open? At least as far as the draft goes? Doubtful at best.

 

And all of the rookie OT's drafted this year haven't played one NFL snap yet. But Bell has had a year to learn the playbook, be in an NFL strength and conditioning program, and get acclimated to the NFL. That puts him further ahead than any rookie. And he has great size and bloodlines. What he lacks is experience.

 

 

 

And perhaps talent. We just don't know.

[Thurman#1]

And there's your mistake. You assume that the Bills never had a contingency plan in place if they had to trade Peters and then all of a sudden were caught with their pants down when they traded him. I highly doubt this was the case.

 

Perhaps the Bills went into 2009 hoping they could re-sign Peters to a long deal, and if not, Walker would be a serviceable holdover until 2010, when they can either a)plug in Bell/Scott/another young guy, or b) acquire someone via FA or the draft.

 

 

 

I think we all knew that Walker was the contingency plan. However, some contingency plans are better than others. For instance, when we drafted Mike Williams we expected him to be our LT. We almost immediately discovered that he couldn't do that, so we went to our contingency plan, which was to play him at RT until he was ready to be our full-time LT. How did that contingency plan work out?

 

Some contingency plans, I don't know ... suck. Our contingency plan at LB last year was Ellison. We wanted to get somebody to replace him this year, but nothing definite worked out. The contingency plan? Another season of Ellison unless somebody beats him out, but that's somewhat unlikely with our current personnel. But it's all OK, because we have a contingency plan in place. Right?

[Thurman#1]

My only discrepancy is that The Bills could have parlayed their picks/Peters trade differently and acquired Oher instead of Wood. While I like Wood, Oher at LT and leaving Butler and Walker at their 08 positions just makes more sense than using Wood at G and moving both Walker and Butler to new positions. I also feel that Oher would out perform Walker at LT. The Bills always preach continuity and this draft is just the opposite. Going by their record however continuity doesnt seem to work so maybe this is a good move.

 

 

I have some sympathy for this idea, but I think the Bills, and many other teams, thought of Oher as a RIGHT tackle, not a left tackle, and that's why we didn't pick him up.

[Thurman#1]

Well, these are compelling, well reasoned and intelligent opinions. Hey, I got one too... "Up your nose with a rubber hose." That should make sense to someone at your level.

 

 

 

Vinnie Barberino! Nice one.

[OCinBuffalo]

Does it matter to anyone that there are a number of false comparisons/ignored major changes here?

 

Last year's apples aren't this year's oranges:

 

Apple: C Fowler/Preston vs. Orange: Hangartner

There's no way to tell whether Hangartner will be great. But we KNOW that Fowler was horrible and that Preston is a backup at best. In all cases, Hangartner will stop the C position from being the absolute liability that it was last year = there's no place to go but up. With the removal of the massive need for help going inside, that leaves more help going outside, by definition.

 

Apple: TE Royal vs. Orange: Fine/Schouman/Nelson

Royal is gone because Royal is a "show up every 4th game" player. I don't think anyone here would dispute that fact. In fact, we still don't have a confirmed TE threat. But, I almost guarantee one of the 3 replacements will fill that role. As such, the pressure on the LT and RT to contain an end rusher for the full time it takes for WR routs to develop will almost certainly diminish somewhat. Certainly it won't be every play, but they won't be able to ignore the TE like they have. And, more importantly Trent won't have a need to ignore the TE either. You can also make the same argument for the RBs catching the ball....screen plays, and HB draw plays, etc.

 

Apple: Opposing D vs Orange: Opposing D

I welcome opposing defenses trying to attack our offense from the edges = less people up the middle and we have Lynch/Jackson, TO/Evans, TEs that can play, and Josh F'ing Reed( and Steve "Steal" Johnson). None of those players are afraid to make catches in the middle of the field. Last year, they could stack the box, AND, were able to single cover the non-Lee Evans WR. This year, Trent steps up in the pocket and TO catches 3 TDs a game if they do that. More importantly rushing from the edges and leaving the middle of the field open, especially if there a LBs in there = 5-7 yard pass plays in the middle of the field.

 

If we are in the hurry up, that, also by definition, reduces the effectiveness of a speed rusher after the 4th or 5th play. Finally, we are certain to do a lot more 3 WR sets, which in turn means a lot more rushing 4 and dropping back into coverage. When you consider the fact that every opponent knows that our RBs and TEs can catch the ball, that means 5 receivers on the field, I doubt they will just leave a guy open. That means 5-6 blockers against 4 DL. The only way they can blitz is if they drop DL into coverage, and I will take a DL or OLB trying to cover our skill positions players every day of the week.

 

There are other aspects, but I think the general point has been made. There's no way you can compare last year's line to this year's in what amounts to a vacuum, although I am sure there are always those that will try.

[K-9]

Levitre has played as much T as Butler has. they both played in college and neither has played in the NFL.

 

maybe he should get the shot at RT

 

Arms are too short. A KILLER attribute to have as a tackle in the pros where you can't, like Levitre did in college, get away with superior athletic ability against less gifted collegiate opponents.

 

GO BILLS!!!

[BillsVet]

And there's your mistake. You assume that the Bills never had a contingency plan in place if they had to trade Peters and then all of a sudden were caught with their pants down when they traded him. I highly doubt this was the case.

 

Perhaps the Bills went into 2009 hoping they could re-sign Peters to a long deal, and if not, Walker would be a serviceable holdover until 2010, when they can either a)plug in Bell/Scott/another young guy, or b) acquire someone via FA or the draft.

 

Of course, the fall back option was use Walker at LT. I wouldn't disagree with that. But you're talking about a franchise that drafted Hardy in the 2nd and expected him to take pressure off Evans. The same one that lets guys like Clements, Fletcher, and Milloy walk out the door without having a replacement on the roster. All of those guys were replaced by draft picks who weren't selected for more than a month after they were let go.

 

There's a continued drive to marginalize the LT position and act as though an average guy can get the job done. I've always believed the easiest way to make the playoffs is to win your division. And in the AFCE, with three teams running the 3-4 and rushing faster LB's, it's best to have an athletic LT who can be left alone. It's not an easy proposition to find someone that has the strength and foot speed to keep 250#+ OLB's off your QB's back. NE, NYJ, and MIA have spent high picks on LTs either in the first or second.

 

Pass blocking at RT is different than LT, given that a TE normally lines up on the right side. I think you're going to see more TE's line up on the left.

[tennesseeboy]

Bottom line is the offensive line is one HUGE question mark going into the season. No area on the team is as questionable and no area can be as determinative as to the success of the team. We'll know what we have before the first third of the season.

[Flbillsfan#1]

Bottom line is the offensive line is one HUGE question mark going into the season. No area on the team is as questionable and no area can be as determinative as to the success of the team. We'll know what we have before the first third of the season.

I think the line will play better & better as the year goes on, they get used to each other & the Rookies get experience.