yordad
07-18-2008, 07:02 PM
I am trying to create an article that will update the average fan of the multiple changes that have taken place to the Bills team over the course of the past year. I don’t know how much the avid message boarder will get out of this, but take it for what it is worth. I know the national media at large would benefit greatly, because it seems most don’t even know what is going on. I did something similar to this last week, but I think this has a lot more information and the format should be easier to follow.
Front Office- I’m sure everyone and their uncle knows Levy stepped down as GM of the Buffalo Bills. But, it wouldn’t be an “An Off-Season of Change” article without mentioning it. He was in effect replaced by Russ Brandon. Brandon is now the “Chief Operating Officer“, and over sees everything; he just didn’t get the GM title. Only time will tell how good a job he is doing, but my personal opinion is he is doing fairly good so far. Many other members of the front office received higher job titles and probably increased responsibilities.
Coaching staff- There were several changes to the coaching staff including two very notable ones. First, Steve Fairchild left. Turk Schonert was promoted from QB coach to offensive coordinator. This was received by Bills fans with much skepticism, but Turk has said much of what we Bills fans want to hear. He’s promising to utilize the player’s strengths and mix up the plays more. Specifically, quick passes for Trent, rollouts, play action, shifting Lee Evans for favorable matches, along with passing to our capable RBs. He also says he will allow for more flexibility in play adjusting at the line via audibles. It is all talk for right now, but it is what we want to hear, and it sounds promising.
Another significant change was made following the retirement of our O-line coach. McNally decided he was done coaching, for now. Sean Kugler was promoted from assistant O-line coach to O-line coach. Last year he worked primarily with the tackles, and as we know, those tackles did pretty good to say the least.
Both of these coaches are demanding, in-your-face style coaches, and many fans think that is exactly what we needed.
QB- Trent Edwards is now the man entering camp. He is reportedly getting the offense tailor made to his strengths. If true, this alone could have a significant impact for the Bills offense. As a rookie he appeared to have a lot of what it takes to be a solid pro. He also reportedly packed on 10 pounds of muscle. If he progresses in his sophomore campaign, Bills fans could find their team in the thick of the playoff hunt. If he falters, or gets injured, a very capable JP Losman will be waiting in the wings, eager to up his Free Agency value (he is an unrestricted FA at year’s end).
RB- Lynch’s off season/off field problem sounded alarms throughout Buffalo. Warning alarms with Bills fans and police sirens, that is. But, he got out of it relatively unscathed. He did have some injury problems as a rookie, and he does have a pounding running style. The Bills are a running team so his load is a concern. If Lynch stays healthy, he is a BEAST. He runs the ball with great strength, good moves, and excellent vision. He doesn’t have great speed, but it is adequate. The Bills promise to use him more as a receiver.
Behind Lynch we have a very talented backup in Jackson. His emergence last year prompted the Bills to cut an ineffective and injured Anthony Thomas. Although not quite a burner, Jackson is the fastest RB on the Bills roster, and he has very good hands coming out of the backfield. Look for him to be utilized as a very viable third down option.
Wright and Omon are the third and fourth options at this point. Barring injury to the top two, they will likely only seen time on special teams (STs). Reports from camp suggest Wright is improving significantly, and Omon, the rookie, had an extremely productive college career.
The Bills also aim to employ a FB this season. But, for a philosophy that promotes flexibility and versatility, I can’t predict how often one will be utilized. Especially since the FBs on the roster seem to be one dimensional blocker types.
Indications are this will be a position of strength.
WR- The Bills first release of the off-season was that of Peerless Price. Price who was once a prolific Bills starter, was nearly completely ineffective during his second Bills go round, so he should be no big loss. The inconsistency of Lee Evans has this position on the “questionable” list. But, he has a lot of talent, and has proved he is a huge play threat every time the ball is snapped. The addition of the highly talented, huge, rookie WR Hardy has Bills fans optimistic about the future for this position. How fast Hardy can contribute will be a huge factor in the progression of Edwards and the Bills offense. He should excess in the red zone were the Bills have been anemic in recent years.
Reed and Parrish will likely be used in their more natural roles as slot receivers. Reed is an excellent blocker, and Parrish is blazingly quick. Relatively speaking, these guys will be great #3 and #4 WR options.
The wide receiver squad will be rounded out by any of a number of hopefuls. These hopefuls include Steve Johnson, the Bills 7th round draft pick and fan favorite. But Jenkins excelled on STs last year. The camp competition will be strong, but both of these two might make the final roster.
Extending Lee Evan’s contract is a big concern entering this year, the final year of his contract.
TE- This looks to be one of the weakest positions on the entire team. They didn’t get much production from this position last year, despite the propensity of Edwards to check down. Royal is projected to continue being the starter, and he was fighting injuries last year. Hopefully his anticipated return to health will equate to more production. Many fans anticipated an upgrade here, but we may have actually downgraded. We lost Gaines who was a bit of a fan favorite (although I couldn’t figure why), and we added another journeyman in Courtney Anderson. We also added Derek Fine, who isn’t likely to be much of an offensive contributor anytime soon.
The bright spot at TE this off-season has been the “emergence” of Schouman. He was put on IR last year after looking promising in a game or two as a starter. He has developed chemistry with Trent through spring and summer workouts, and could be a surprise. Let’s hope his “emergence” continues when the pads go on.
OL- The line will have all the starters returning from last year for the first time in quite some time. Butler is entering his second year as a starter. And surprisingly, the Bills had their highest yards per carry rushing behind Butler. Walker was better then advertised last year and was a pleasant surprise at RT. LT Peters became a Pro Bowler for his stellar pass protection. The Bills would like to get better run blocking out of this unit, especially highly paid LG Dockery, and C Fowler.
Although the Bills didn’t upgrade the center like most fans wanted, this unit as a whole should only get better barring injury. All starters are young, and with the recent extension of Butler, they are all signed long term. Peters is holding out, but he is signed for three more years and has little bargaining power.
Behind the starters is huge depth concern. The Bills better hope they don’t bite the injury bug again this year.
Also worth noting, the Bills seemed to have abandoned the zone blocking as last year progressed.
DT- The Bills projected defensive upgrades this offseason start upfront and in the middle. We cut Tripplett, and traded for Marcus Stroud, formerly of the Jags. He is coming off injury, but if he stays healthy, he is a “HUGE” upgrade. Also entering the rotation will be Spencer Johnson, formerly of the Vikings. These two will combine with stay-ons Williams, who recently signed an extension, and McCargo. Both are young players who have showed flashes of their huge potential. The Bills plan to stop using a designated nose guard, and instead plan to utilize left and right tackles. The defensive coaching staff reportedly believes their 4 DTs can all be interchangeable.
This unit should be vastly improved and could turn into the strength of the defense.
DE- This unit use to be a strength, now it seems like it's weakness. I’m not trying to make excuses for them, but maybe the lack of rotational talent on the D-line interior hindered our DEs ability to make plays. The improved interior rotation might give our DEs more opportunity to pin their ears back and help provide them with more one-on-one matchups. Last year Schobel had 10 more solo tackles then the year before, which is a significant increase for a veteran DE. And, out of 60 starting DEs in the league he was in the top 1/4th for tackles. Hopeful he doesn’t have to support the run as much and he can make opposing offenses start game planning for his pressures like they used to. With Mitchell behind him, he can take more chances.
Our LDEs, Kelsey and Denney, were battling injuries throughout the year. They should return fully healthy.
Also we lost Hargrove, which actually will probably not be a big loss, if any. He will be replaced with the rookie Chris Ellis on the roster. Ellis might give Schobel a blow from time to time as is being touted as a pass rush specialist.
This is an aging position on the Bills defense. While they aren’t over the hill, look for the Bills to infuse some young talent here next offseason, possibly via high draft pick, much like the Pats did by drafting LB Mayo.
LB- This unit is posed to put the Bills back on the elite LB map. The addition of Mitchell (253 lbs) beefs up that WSLB position. A position that gave little production last year. Ellison (229 lbs) should provide quality depth. I know Ellison only played in 12 (39 tackles) games last year, but if you extrapolate his tackle production out into 16 games (52 tackles), then compare his production to Mitchell’s (76 tackles), you will find Mitchell was over 46% more productive ((76-52)/52= 46.2%). Not that this is the only thing Mitchell contributes, but is his production continues, he will be a welcomed addition. Plus, of course, he is fresh off a Super Bowl win.
The return of Poz should give the LB unit the makings of a stellar defense. All good defenses have a solid center piece. If you extrapolate Poz’s total tackles (22) for his only two full games starting into 16 games (22 x 8), he would have had 176 tackles. For comparison, Patrick Willis led the league with 174. Digi will provide excellent experienced depth.
Crowell is a stud (nuff said?). He quietly led the entire AFC in tackles by an OLB. He actually had more tackles the Brian Urlacher. Considering Urlacher is a perennial Pro Bowler and plays MLB (a position that generally gets a lot more tackles) that is saying something. At this point, he is a free agent after this season and would be a huge loss if he left. Look for him to make the pro bowl this year.
Haggan and Wire are gone for good.
Rookie Alvin Bowen was a tackling machine in college. He has good speed and is intense. Expect him to contribute heavily on STs.
Safeties- With a front seven likely to be much improved, our safeties should be free to play… well… safeties. Whitner proved this off-season he is willing, and able, to lead this team off-field. Let’s hope that transitions onto it. Simpson is back from injury, and I believe a case could be made for this being one of the youngest, most talented safety tandems in the league. George Wilson provides adequate depth at free. Strong depth looks shallow and is up for grabs. It is between Scott and Wendling, and could come down to special teams play (although they both could make the final roster).
This unit will have to produce more big plays. The excuses are gone, and the training wheels are off.
CB- These starting positions are likely to be amongst the most highly contested and debated matches all training camp and all preseason. That debate will likely continue all year actually. The Bills cut Kiwaukee Thomas, and made no attempt to sign Webster. It looks like we have several average ones, with no real standout. Some think McGee is best. Some think Greer is best. Many believe McKelvin will soon be the best. I have even heard reports of Will James and Youboty starting.
Look for Greer and McGee to start the year with McKelvin likely to crack the starting unit at some point. Youboty’s spot isn’t a lock and it is being reported Cleveland is showing interest in making a deal for him.
Training camp will also have two more drafted rookie CBs, a returning veteran, and probably an undrafted guy or two. One thing is for sure, the Bills have solid CB depth.
This position might be a surprise position. No CB looks good when they have to cover a WR for over 4 seconds every play before the ball is thrown, especially with us sliding Whitner into run support half the time while starting guys like Leonhard. This position, not too unlike safety, is likely to benefit greatly from the better front seven.
ST- The Bills lost several contributing special teams players. Wire and Haggan are gone. Wendling and Jenkins could join them. But, Fine, Bowen and others could and should step up in their absence. Now that Ellison’s value on defense has decreased, he could also be a STs standout. His strengths seem tailor made for it. Stellar returners McGee and Parrish might be joined, pushed or replaced by McKelvin. Moorman and Lindell are as good as it gets.
The Bills are poised for a play-off year. And the play-off starved fans are as hungry as ever. This season should be very fulfilling.
The Bills have changed a lot over the past off-season. I believe they have made a significant change for the better. I believe they turned the corner and changed into a winning team. A playoff team. Thoughts?
Front Office- I’m sure everyone and their uncle knows Levy stepped down as GM of the Buffalo Bills. But, it wouldn’t be an “An Off-Season of Change” article without mentioning it. He was in effect replaced by Russ Brandon. Brandon is now the “Chief Operating Officer“, and over sees everything; he just didn’t get the GM title. Only time will tell how good a job he is doing, but my personal opinion is he is doing fairly good so far. Many other members of the front office received higher job titles and probably increased responsibilities.
Coaching staff- There were several changes to the coaching staff including two very notable ones. First, Steve Fairchild left. Turk Schonert was promoted from QB coach to offensive coordinator. This was received by Bills fans with much skepticism, but Turk has said much of what we Bills fans want to hear. He’s promising to utilize the player’s strengths and mix up the plays more. Specifically, quick passes for Trent, rollouts, play action, shifting Lee Evans for favorable matches, along with passing to our capable RBs. He also says he will allow for more flexibility in play adjusting at the line via audibles. It is all talk for right now, but it is what we want to hear, and it sounds promising.
Another significant change was made following the retirement of our O-line coach. McNally decided he was done coaching, for now. Sean Kugler was promoted from assistant O-line coach to O-line coach. Last year he worked primarily with the tackles, and as we know, those tackles did pretty good to say the least.
Both of these coaches are demanding, in-your-face style coaches, and many fans think that is exactly what we needed.
QB- Trent Edwards is now the man entering camp. He is reportedly getting the offense tailor made to his strengths. If true, this alone could have a significant impact for the Bills offense. As a rookie he appeared to have a lot of what it takes to be a solid pro. He also reportedly packed on 10 pounds of muscle. If he progresses in his sophomore campaign, Bills fans could find their team in the thick of the playoff hunt. If he falters, or gets injured, a very capable JP Losman will be waiting in the wings, eager to up his Free Agency value (he is an unrestricted FA at year’s end).
RB- Lynch’s off season/off field problem sounded alarms throughout Buffalo. Warning alarms with Bills fans and police sirens, that is. But, he got out of it relatively unscathed. He did have some injury problems as a rookie, and he does have a pounding running style. The Bills are a running team so his load is a concern. If Lynch stays healthy, he is a BEAST. He runs the ball with great strength, good moves, and excellent vision. He doesn’t have great speed, but it is adequate. The Bills promise to use him more as a receiver.
Behind Lynch we have a very talented backup in Jackson. His emergence last year prompted the Bills to cut an ineffective and injured Anthony Thomas. Although not quite a burner, Jackson is the fastest RB on the Bills roster, and he has very good hands coming out of the backfield. Look for him to be utilized as a very viable third down option.
Wright and Omon are the third and fourth options at this point. Barring injury to the top two, they will likely only seen time on special teams (STs). Reports from camp suggest Wright is improving significantly, and Omon, the rookie, had an extremely productive college career.
The Bills also aim to employ a FB this season. But, for a philosophy that promotes flexibility and versatility, I can’t predict how often one will be utilized. Especially since the FBs on the roster seem to be one dimensional blocker types.
Indications are this will be a position of strength.
WR- The Bills first release of the off-season was that of Peerless Price. Price who was once a prolific Bills starter, was nearly completely ineffective during his second Bills go round, so he should be no big loss. The inconsistency of Lee Evans has this position on the “questionable” list. But, he has a lot of talent, and has proved he is a huge play threat every time the ball is snapped. The addition of the highly talented, huge, rookie WR Hardy has Bills fans optimistic about the future for this position. How fast Hardy can contribute will be a huge factor in the progression of Edwards and the Bills offense. He should excess in the red zone were the Bills have been anemic in recent years.
Reed and Parrish will likely be used in their more natural roles as slot receivers. Reed is an excellent blocker, and Parrish is blazingly quick. Relatively speaking, these guys will be great #3 and #4 WR options.
The wide receiver squad will be rounded out by any of a number of hopefuls. These hopefuls include Steve Johnson, the Bills 7th round draft pick and fan favorite. But Jenkins excelled on STs last year. The camp competition will be strong, but both of these two might make the final roster.
Extending Lee Evan’s contract is a big concern entering this year, the final year of his contract.
TE- This looks to be one of the weakest positions on the entire team. They didn’t get much production from this position last year, despite the propensity of Edwards to check down. Royal is projected to continue being the starter, and he was fighting injuries last year. Hopefully his anticipated return to health will equate to more production. Many fans anticipated an upgrade here, but we may have actually downgraded. We lost Gaines who was a bit of a fan favorite (although I couldn’t figure why), and we added another journeyman in Courtney Anderson. We also added Derek Fine, who isn’t likely to be much of an offensive contributor anytime soon.
The bright spot at TE this off-season has been the “emergence” of Schouman. He was put on IR last year after looking promising in a game or two as a starter. He has developed chemistry with Trent through spring and summer workouts, and could be a surprise. Let’s hope his “emergence” continues when the pads go on.
OL- The line will have all the starters returning from last year for the first time in quite some time. Butler is entering his second year as a starter. And surprisingly, the Bills had their highest yards per carry rushing behind Butler. Walker was better then advertised last year and was a pleasant surprise at RT. LT Peters became a Pro Bowler for his stellar pass protection. The Bills would like to get better run blocking out of this unit, especially highly paid LG Dockery, and C Fowler.
Although the Bills didn’t upgrade the center like most fans wanted, this unit as a whole should only get better barring injury. All starters are young, and with the recent extension of Butler, they are all signed long term. Peters is holding out, but he is signed for three more years and has little bargaining power.
Behind the starters is huge depth concern. The Bills better hope they don’t bite the injury bug again this year.
Also worth noting, the Bills seemed to have abandoned the zone blocking as last year progressed.
DT- The Bills projected defensive upgrades this offseason start upfront and in the middle. We cut Tripplett, and traded for Marcus Stroud, formerly of the Jags. He is coming off injury, but if he stays healthy, he is a “HUGE” upgrade. Also entering the rotation will be Spencer Johnson, formerly of the Vikings. These two will combine with stay-ons Williams, who recently signed an extension, and McCargo. Both are young players who have showed flashes of their huge potential. The Bills plan to stop using a designated nose guard, and instead plan to utilize left and right tackles. The defensive coaching staff reportedly believes their 4 DTs can all be interchangeable.
This unit should be vastly improved and could turn into the strength of the defense.
DE- This unit use to be a strength, now it seems like it's weakness. I’m not trying to make excuses for them, but maybe the lack of rotational talent on the D-line interior hindered our DEs ability to make plays. The improved interior rotation might give our DEs more opportunity to pin their ears back and help provide them with more one-on-one matchups. Last year Schobel had 10 more solo tackles then the year before, which is a significant increase for a veteran DE. And, out of 60 starting DEs in the league he was in the top 1/4th for tackles. Hopeful he doesn’t have to support the run as much and he can make opposing offenses start game planning for his pressures like they used to. With Mitchell behind him, he can take more chances.
Our LDEs, Kelsey and Denney, were battling injuries throughout the year. They should return fully healthy.
Also we lost Hargrove, which actually will probably not be a big loss, if any. He will be replaced with the rookie Chris Ellis on the roster. Ellis might give Schobel a blow from time to time as is being touted as a pass rush specialist.
This is an aging position on the Bills defense. While they aren’t over the hill, look for the Bills to infuse some young talent here next offseason, possibly via high draft pick, much like the Pats did by drafting LB Mayo.
LB- This unit is posed to put the Bills back on the elite LB map. The addition of Mitchell (253 lbs) beefs up that WSLB position. A position that gave little production last year. Ellison (229 lbs) should provide quality depth. I know Ellison only played in 12 (39 tackles) games last year, but if you extrapolate his tackle production out into 16 games (52 tackles), then compare his production to Mitchell’s (76 tackles), you will find Mitchell was over 46% more productive ((76-52)/52= 46.2%). Not that this is the only thing Mitchell contributes, but is his production continues, he will be a welcomed addition. Plus, of course, he is fresh off a Super Bowl win.
The return of Poz should give the LB unit the makings of a stellar defense. All good defenses have a solid center piece. If you extrapolate Poz’s total tackles (22) for his only two full games starting into 16 games (22 x 8), he would have had 176 tackles. For comparison, Patrick Willis led the league with 174. Digi will provide excellent experienced depth.
Crowell is a stud (nuff said?). He quietly led the entire AFC in tackles by an OLB. He actually had more tackles the Brian Urlacher. Considering Urlacher is a perennial Pro Bowler and plays MLB (a position that generally gets a lot more tackles) that is saying something. At this point, he is a free agent after this season and would be a huge loss if he left. Look for him to make the pro bowl this year.
Haggan and Wire are gone for good.
Rookie Alvin Bowen was a tackling machine in college. He has good speed and is intense. Expect him to contribute heavily on STs.
Safeties- With a front seven likely to be much improved, our safeties should be free to play… well… safeties. Whitner proved this off-season he is willing, and able, to lead this team off-field. Let’s hope that transitions onto it. Simpson is back from injury, and I believe a case could be made for this being one of the youngest, most talented safety tandems in the league. George Wilson provides adequate depth at free. Strong depth looks shallow and is up for grabs. It is between Scott and Wendling, and could come down to special teams play (although they both could make the final roster).
This unit will have to produce more big plays. The excuses are gone, and the training wheels are off.
CB- These starting positions are likely to be amongst the most highly contested and debated matches all training camp and all preseason. That debate will likely continue all year actually. The Bills cut Kiwaukee Thomas, and made no attempt to sign Webster. It looks like we have several average ones, with no real standout. Some think McGee is best. Some think Greer is best. Many believe McKelvin will soon be the best. I have even heard reports of Will James and Youboty starting.
Look for Greer and McGee to start the year with McKelvin likely to crack the starting unit at some point. Youboty’s spot isn’t a lock and it is being reported Cleveland is showing interest in making a deal for him.
Training camp will also have two more drafted rookie CBs, a returning veteran, and probably an undrafted guy or two. One thing is for sure, the Bills have solid CB depth.
This position might be a surprise position. No CB looks good when they have to cover a WR for over 4 seconds every play before the ball is thrown, especially with us sliding Whitner into run support half the time while starting guys like Leonhard. This position, not too unlike safety, is likely to benefit greatly from the better front seven.
ST- The Bills lost several contributing special teams players. Wire and Haggan are gone. Wendling and Jenkins could join them. But, Fine, Bowen and others could and should step up in their absence. Now that Ellison’s value on defense has decreased, he could also be a STs standout. His strengths seem tailor made for it. Stellar returners McGee and Parrish might be joined, pushed or replaced by McKelvin. Moorman and Lindell are as good as it gets.
The Bills are poised for a play-off year. And the play-off starved fans are as hungry as ever. This season should be very fulfilling.
The Bills have changed a lot over the past off-season. I believe they have made a significant change for the better. I believe they turned the corner and changed into a winning team. A playoff team. Thoughts?