This Is What The Bills Will Do

[LifetimeBillsFan]

We all have our opinions about what the Bills should do to improve the team this off-season, but, for those who did not read the article, this is what the Bills are in the process of doing and will do--how they are going to go about making those key decisions--"straight from the horse's mouth":

"Every man on the Bills' roster will be analyzed, scrutinized and dissected on tape and each position coach will put together a written evaluation on the players for which they're responsible. Those evaluations will then be used by the staff as they make their determinations as to what positions are capably filled and what positions could use an upgrade."

"We'll have some general ideas before then, but once we finish the evaluation of our team the rest of it just plugs in," said Jauron. "That's the critical thing for us in making the right choices in pursuing other personnel. You have to know what you need to make your team better."

"There are positions that take longer to develop and play," admitted Jauron. "That being said, we've all seen rookies at every position come in and play really productively. What we do is take the free agent market and analyze it, take the college market and analyze it, try to put them together and see how they fit, how the whole picture comes together. Some things, some positions may be deeper in the college draft and some may be shallower. We try to put it together that way rather than saying specifically that we want a veteran here for this job."
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?news_id=4564

There are two things here that should be noted and kept in mind: 1.) the grades that the players get from their position coaches are critical--coaches may see things that fans do not, such as whether the mistakes that a player is making are in an area that is learned and can be corrected or not, etc. and 2.) how the coaches view the depth of available talent at a position that they have determined is a need is critical in determining whether they will seek to fill that position through free agency, the draft or by working to develop talent already on the team--both in free agency, where signability is also a consideration, and the draft, the staff has to determine whether there is a drop-off in talent at a certain point that may give one position priority in the draft or free agency over another position that may also be a need.

I think it helps to know as much as possible about how the Bills' staff approaches things and what their thinking is as we fans toss around ideas and discuss what we would like or think that the team should do this off-season. And, I think that this article offers some helpful tidbits in that regard.

[YardRat]

#1 is the key...As fans we can analyze, criticize, pour over stats all we want watching the game from a seat in the stadium or in our living room, but in reality none of us has the information available to the staff to make a sound interpretation as to how well individual players are actually performing.

You need to trust the people in charge, and have faith that they're adept at performing the duties they were hired to do.

[kernowboy]

I think we now finally have an INTELLIGENT management team in place.

Whatever we choose to do, and there may be howls of protest initally when decisions are taken, I now have confidence that Marv and Dick have a structured organised plan that they are sticking to and will move the team forward.

I will say that next year we will be above .500 but not only that, a team that can consistently make the playoffs year in and year out, will be well on its way to fruition

[X-Era]

We all have our opinions about what the Bills should do to improve the team this off-season, but, for those who did not read the article, this is what the Bills are in the process of doing and will do--how they are going to go about making those key decisions--"straight from the horse's mouth":

"Every man on the Bills' roster will be analyzed, scrutinized and dissected on tape and each position coach will put together a written evaluation on the players for which they're responsible. Those evaluations will then be used by the staff as they make their determinations as to what positions are capably filled and what positions could use an upgrade."

"We'll have some general ideas before then, but once we finish the evaluation of our team the rest of it just plugs in," said Jauron. "That's the critical thing for us in making the right choices in pursuing other personnel. You have to know what you need to make your team better."

"There are positions that take longer to develop and play," admitted Jauron. "That being said, we've all seen rookies at every position come in and play really productively. What we do is take the free agent market and analyze it, take the college market and analyze it, try to put them together and see how they fit, how the whole picture comes together. Some things, some positions may be deeper in the college draft and some may be shallower. We try to put it together that way rather than saying specifically that we want a veteran here for this job."
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?news_id=4564

There are two things here that should be noted and kept in mind: 1.) the grades that the players get from their position coaches are critical--coaches may see things that fans do not, such as whether the mistakes that a player is making are in an area that is learned and can be corrected or not, etc. and 2.) how the coaches view the depth of available talent at a position that they have determined is a need is critical in determining whether they will seek to fill that position through free agency, the draft or by working to develop talent already on the team--both in free agency, where signability is also a consideration, and the draft, the staff has to determine whether there is a drop-off in talent at a certain point that may give one position priority in the draft or free agency over another position that may also be a need.

I think it helps to know as much as possible about how the Bills' staff approaches things and what their thinking is as we fans toss around ideas and discuss what we would like or think that the team should do this off-season. And, I think that this article offers some helpful tidbits in that regard.
This is EXACTLY what the Bills do.

Im going to paste my thread on how the Bills may evaluate us here:

Heres the sensible (hopefully Marv and Dicks) version of what we do:

QB- Nothing, KH can be a backup, he wasnt a cancer so he can stay, 3rd can be had just about any way
RB- Nothing, Willis can be great, but at the minimum is solid
TE- Maybe a youngster to push Royal. Royal made a late surge and may continue.
FB- Maybe a youngster to push Shelton. May not be necessary, but Sheltons long in the tooth
LT- Nothing, we have a stud here. Backup can be manned by any of the current prospects
LG- Depends on Gandy, hes a FA. Hes been part of a successful unit after the bye, hes an x-Bear, hes done pretty well in his new position. Youngster to push him would be nice, but I can easily see Gandy getting resigned to a modest second tier OG contract, and being handed the job next year. Take a look at our success running the ball vs. which side we run to, we are doing very well on the L side, Gandy may stay. Reyes is likely cut.
C- Fowler is a Jauron brought guy. I would love to see a big upgrade here. I honestly havent watched the middle that closely, but in the Titans game I did notice Fowler getting destroyed. I think a Mangold/Mawae type C could make this line great. But, since Fowler is a Jauron guy I could see us giving him the job too.
RG- Preston has played well, Villarial is likely going to be cut. But an upgrade here would be great. The previously stated run stats about success vs. side of the line shows our line on the right side is weak as far as run production goes. Steinbach is a LG, but a switch may be easy. Jauron had Preston as a backup, Villarial (even though he was a Jauron guy) was part of the pathetic pre-bye OL, I can see us heading in a new direction. Womack is another guy I like alot but Im not sure Jauron likes the bigger, fatter types. I think a change is likely.
RT- Pennington is a Jauron draftee and was promoted to being a starter and stayed there. He also has done a decent job, considering his youth. I could easily see Pennington getting the job outright. With Butler as a backup, we may look for either another mid to late rounder or a second tier backup just for security. I think Jaurons move to start TP telegraph what we will do next year as well
WR- #1 and #3 is set. Peerless played well in the 2nd half and was brought in by the current regime. Josh also played well. Parrish had some sparks, but also some dumb plays. I see Josh and Peerless staying and playing, Parrish may be a bubble guy. The big question is whether Peerless can be all we need as #2, I think Jauron, and especially JP may argue he is just fine due to his post-bye surge. I can also see us grabbing a early draft day guy who drops into our laps. It would be a "greatest value at the pick" type pick a.l.a. Willis. Maybe a guy who could be the new punt returner or even kick returner if Clements bolts and we dont want to risk McGee to injury. A guy like Ginn Jr might make sense, Paul Williams may be another.

DE- at RDE we are set, at LDE Kelsay and Denney are both UFA's. I can see one leaving. So that makes a LDE a big need due to the rotation theory. Jauron made no real moves, so theres no guys that would seem to be Jaurons guy to fill in. I can see LDE being a priority for a Tampa 2 style team. I can see this from either the draft or FA or both. If Freeney is allowed to leave, he plays in Tampa 2, is a Syracuse alumn, I would think we would COVET him. In the draft, I could see tweener types like Moses, Adams, Woodley fitting the Bill.
DT- Mccargo will be back from injury and we moved up to get him, Williams was a real sleeper and nice suprise, Tripplett was solid but lackluster. Hargrove was a great mid season add that helped us get better pressure. I can see the need for one more rotation type, a run stuffer would be great, but we also cant get a strict situational guy due to giving away our D to the opposing O. I think another quick DT may be a move we make.
OLB- Spikes made a late surge as a very solid player, hes not a top 5 or even 10 guy as of now, but I think he still is hampered by injury. This is a big question mark. Hes not a Jauron guy, he makes alot of money, and hes had a so so year. There is likely to be great players/prospects available in FA and the draft. Briggs, June, Adalius Thomas, Puz, Blades, and more are going to be out there. I could see us going either way, hoping TKO steps up more, or getting insurance through the draft or FA. At the other spot, Crowell will be back and Ellison proved to be pretty solid. I can see 1 OLB being a spot we look at.
ILB- Fletch is the heart of our D, and has proven yet again that hes a stud (even if the idiotic pro-bowl voters cant get it right), hes not going to command big money at his age, and Ralph is rumored to be a huge Fletch fan. I see him getting resigned. The backup/insurance could happen but I think we may be looking at a mid or late rounder or second tier guy.
CB- Even though I want Nate back I think hes gone. McGee is locked up long term, Thomas made some decent plays, and Youbouty was a Jauron draftee that will be given a shot next year. I see this being one of our biggest priorities if you agree Nate is as good as gone. We just cant afford to let our pass D get worse and remain a playoff contender. Guys like Brady will pick us apart without a strong starting CB. FA is likely to cost us heavy. I could easily see the draft being our way to fix it (in the Bills minds). Its most likely going to be an early pick due to the need to have a very good one. Guys like Hughes/Hall would seem to be fits.
S- Both are set for a long time, the rookies made mistakes but both started virtually from day one, both are Jauron draftees, and both played well enough to earn a 8th ranked pass D. We even have Bowen signed long term to be a backup.
P- Moormans not going anywhere and is a perrenial pro-bowler case closed
K- Lindell is a quandry. The team plays half its games in windy Buffalo. The kick that he admitted he could not make just cost us the playoffs. Hes made many FG's this year and even some game winners. But will Jauron and Co. after a bitter loss want a guy with a stronger leg due to the winds? I could see a change being made, the big question is, is there anyone better with a stronger leg? I just cant answer that. To me it could go either way.

I think the eval still holds pretty true.

I think the big problem we have had is specifically in who they end up targeting in FA usually. Our problem, or at least mine, revolves around not going after the best at need positions but rather being cheapos. You get what you pay for. The Bills after a decade cant seem to get this. Heres an example:

Joe Panos
Lawrence Smith
Chris Villarial
Ross Tucker
Tutan Reyes
Bernard Robertson
Marcus Price
Craig Heimburger
Kris Farris

How many more marginal starters need to parade through here before we realize that average guys arent going to cut it?

Spend the damn money or make a good draft choice and we would have been able to stick with a guy for several years!

[kernowboy]

This is EXACTLY what the Bills do.

Im going to paste my thread on how the Bills may evaluate us here:

Heres the sensible (hopefully Marv and Dicks) version of what we do:

How many more marginal starters need to parade through here before we realize that average guys arent going to cut it?

Spend the damn money or make a good draft choice and we would have been able to stick with a guy for several years!

Here's my slightly different idea .....

QB ... I'd feel more comfortable with a better backup - if JP breaks a leg we are in trouble. I'd sign Pat Ramsay as a backup
FB ... I think Shelton will get cut. Cieslak did ok but we may look to go to a 2x TE set
TE ... Royal has come along but if we do go to 2 TE the signing of someone like Dan Graham makes sense. If not Neufeld and Cieslak continue to be decent back ups
WR ... With Evans, Parrish, Reed and Price under long (ish) contracts, I'm uncertain if we go down this route either in FA or the draft. After all the Pats have done ok with smallish WRs and after a year back Peerless with be better. Rather than expend a high draft pick here, there may be merit in giving Charles Rogers or Tyrone Calico a look in camp. A big WR may be taken on Day2
RB ... I want Willis gone. Trade him after the draft for a No2 in 2008. Sign Duckett and resign A-Train and have these two headbangers lead the ground attack at least until we get to draft someone new in 2008. Willis will only become a cancer
LT ... Peters here but we need a better back up. If in the 3rd Doug Free or Mike Otto are here, they demand serious consider as they can also be given time at LG .. if the long term Peters great bulk might be better utilised inside.
LG ... I'm not the biggest Gandy fan but he did a decent job so I'd resign him and draft a LG/LT to sit behind him and given him a nudge
C ... Fowler did ok. I want Preston moved here and developed as a proper backup center and future starter
RG ... here is where we need the upgrade. Villarial is gone, Steinbach is very too expensive, Merz could be too inexperienced. I am not sure if David Diehl is a FA (conflicting articles) but if he is I'd like a run at him .. if not Kris Dielman or Vince Manuwai ... we need a roadgrader
RT .... preseason competition between Pennington and Butler.

on the D

DE .... Ryan and Aaron are signed, Kelsay and Hargrove aren't. However I see both back unless we can get a marque player like Pat Kerney
DT ... WE MUST STOP THE RUN. Despite last year I think we will do everything we can to sign Amobi Okoye (my Fav) or Glenn Dorsey. As an absolute minimum we need to draft someone like Justin Harrell. In FA, they are old or slow .. or both
LB .... I think London will go. After his season he will still expect to command top dollar and we should pay it for a 32 year old. Someone will though. TKO may follow him as he no longer is able to justify his salary. In Free Agency I would like us to sign either Boss Bailey (Lions)or better still Corey Miller (Bengals). In the draft I want Posluzny who we may even get at the top of the 2nd, or Patrick Willis. I also see us looking at a Day2 LB like Zak DeOssie (6ft4, 245lbs) who may surprise. I don't think we can get the big LB, so I think we will creatively rotate the middle guy inside and out from play to play and have him protected by a much bigger NT
DB ..... we will stick with the S. I doubt we will resign Clements but could see us picking up a young FA with starting experience like Ahmed Carroll or Mike Rumph, to challenge, push but also mentor Youboty. Rumph can also back up Simpson
ST .... remain the same.

There are no big FA signings. However it sticks to the philosophy of the team building that has been initiated, with young FAs, maybe not the massive names but guys who will come in, integrate into the team and move us forward.