Michael82
03-09-2009, 10:52 AM
Forked from: If the Bills signed... (http://www.billszone.com/fanzone/showpost.php?postid=2843755)
The Bills have indicated that getting Jason Peters signed to an extension is one of their offseason priorities. At this point, I think that it should be their highest priority and believe that it will be. How much more money they will have to spend on free agents at this stage will be determined by what the parameters of Peters' extension appear that they are going to be.
Having signed T.Owens for roughly the same amount of money that they were offering to L.Coles, it is likely that the remainder of the Bills' signings this offseason will fall into the "lower-case" category and that, depending on what it looks like it will take to get Peters' re-signed, there may be a couple of positions where they will feel that they will have to try to fill those spots from within (much to the consternation of their fan-base).
From everything that has come out of OBD, it is fair to say that the Bills are aware of the fact that they still have several positions still to fill this offseason: a pass-rushing DE, two TEs, LG, back-up interior lineman, back-up running back, OLB. Even if they do not succeed in filling every one of these positions with veteran free agents and high round draft picks, I would consider this offseason a success if they addressed them in the following ways:
1.) Pass-rushing DE: There really isn't a free agent DE still out there who can do more for the Bills than the players that they already have on their roster. As a result, I believe that the Bills will draft a young pass-rusher with their first pick in the draft and expect Chris Ellis to step up his game in his second season in the league to address this issue. I think that the return of A.Schobel, improvement by Ellis, and the addition of a rookie with pass-rushing ability (even if he doesn't have a great first season) will probably be the best that they can do to address this pressing need.
2.) Tight end (2): With only three TEs on the roster, the Bills need to bring in two TEs just to have the minimum number that T.Schonert said that he wants on the roster going into camp. The Bills have indicated that they are looking to draft at least one TE. If they use their first round pick on a DE, I believe that whether they choose to select a TE with their pick in the second round will depend on whether the interior offensive lineman that they want is still available at that spot. If he is, I think that, having added T.Owens, the Bills will opt to go for the interior offensive lineman first. While the Bills would prefer to draft a more well-rounded TE, like Pettigrew, or one who has shown that he is a willing blocker, like Nelson, I think that they would settle for a pass receiving TE, like Coffman or Ingram, in the third round if they had to. I would be shocked and disappointed if they did not select a TE in the first three rounds of the draft.
I believe that the other TE that they add will probably be a "no-name" veteran TE better known for blocking or special teams play if he is known at all: a T.Massaquoi or J.Stupar type of player is likely. As long as the Bills use one of their picks in the first three rounds of the draft to bring in a young, talented TE with the potential to develop into a solid receiving option I would not be unhappy if they were to make this kind of move to fill what would, essentially, be the fifth TE spot.
3.) Left Guard: To me this is the most important position that the Bills still have to fill and will determine whether their offseason is truly successful or not. While D.Dockery didn't play up to his contract and was only slightly above average last season, having let Dockery go this offseason, IMHO the Bills created a huge hole in their lineup that they cannot afford to address with a sub-standard player. Thus far indications are that the Bills realize this and are trying to fill this hole with potentially the best possible player that they can at the least possible cost.
Inquiring about the availability of Brian Waters costs the Bills nothing, but it shows that the Bills are willing to explore the possibility of trading for a Pro Bowl quality player to fill their need at LG if they can get him at a reasonable price. While I seriously doubt that KC GM Pioli, having been given a gift by B.Belichick, will deal a player of Waters' caliber to an AFC East rival of the Pats without extracting an exhorbitant price, nevertheless, I think that the Bills should try to pursue a trade for Waters until such time as it is clear that either KC will not trade Waters at all or their price for Waters is ridiculous. It is possible that the Bills have already determined that this is already the case and have determined to move on, but I would hope that they would still keep a line of communications open with the Chiefs, just in case KC should change its mind.
Similarly, I think that it is a good idea for the Bills to have brought in Kendall Simmons and made inquiries about LeCharles Bentley. Both were Pro Bowl caliber players before suffering serious injuries. If fully recovered and able to play at a high level again, both have the potential to give the Bills quality play at the LG position. The question is whether they have fully recovered from their injuries and are still capable of playing at a high level again. And, that is something that only the Bills' doctors can say for sure. As much as I would hope that one of them would be fully recovered enough to give the Bills Pro Bowl caliber play and would be willing to sign with the Bills, I have to leave it to the Bills' doctors and front office to make the call on whether to sign one or both of these two players or not. If they don't sign one or either one of them, I have to believe that, having shown interest in them when others haven't, the Bills have decided that they are not worth signing. While some fans might not have enough faith in the Bills FO to be satisfied with trusting them to make this call, the fact that the Bills are willing to look at these two players to see if they can get a former Pro Bowl caliber player to address their need at this position rather than immediately jumping on a player who has not reached that caliber of play tells me that they are at least trying to find a player who can give them a high caliber of play. And why would they look at that guy if they weren't interested in getting him if they determine that he can regain that previous form?
Would I be upset or disappointed if the Bills didn't get either Waters, Simmons or Bentley? Yes and no. Disappointed, a little. But, I wouldn't be upset because there are still some other free agent OGs available who could give them above average play. Mike Goff and Pete Kendall are both getting up there in age, but both have played pretty well the last couple of years and still have a couple of years left in the tank--enough time for the Bills to develop a rookie to step into the starting lineup. And, there may be a couple of others that I don't know as well who could give the Bills at least as much as they got out of D.Dockery last season.
But, the Bills do have to bring in one of them. Be it Waters, Simmons, Bentley, Goff, Kendall, etc., they have to bring in a veteran LG to fill the spot vacated when they let go of Dockery. With Owens only available for a year and Jauron on a very short leash, the Bills cannot count on starting a rookie at LG if they want to win this season. If they draft an interior lineman early in the draft and he ends up winning a starting job as the season goes on, that's one thing. But, to count on a rookie to step in and start from Day One would be foolish in the extreme--and that I would not be happy about.
4.) Back-up interior offensive lineman: There are a number of ways that the Bills could address this need and they may try one or all of them: 1.) bring in a cheap veteran or re-sign D.Preston; 2.) draft a rookie that they expect to be able to develop into a starter and let him spend a season as a back-up; 3.) with D.Bell developing at the OT position, use K.Chambers as the back-up OG, Bell as the back-up OT, and Butler as the backup center. I would not be at all shocked if the Bills opt to do just the latter two if they sign a quality starter or are able to trade for Waters. While I suspect that doing that would have a lot of Bills fans howling about the lack of depth, etc., I would not be upset if they were to do that at all, especially if they use their second or third round pick on a highly rated interior lineman.
5.) Back-up Running Back: The Bills have already shown that they are concerned about Marshawn Lynch being suspended for the beginning of the season and that they would like to get the best veteran they can to back-up Fred Jackson during the time that Lynch has to sit. The problem is that it is going to be hard to convince a guy to come in and be the second stringer for, let's say, four games and then be the third stringer for the rest of the season when he can sign with another team and be one play away from starting the whole season. The Bills have already brought in D.Foster and K.Jones and Jones decided that he would rather take his chances in Chicago than be in the situation that Buffalo has to offer. I would like to see the Bills bring in Rudi Johnson and would be happy if the Bills could sign either Foster or Rudi. But, with the Bills signing Owens and having more pressing needs, they may not be able to offer any of the competent FA running backs enough money to entice them to agree to come to the kind of situation that they would be in with the Bills.
In that case, the Bills might just have to go with the RBs that they already have and maybe wait to see if someone more experienced gets cut in training camp or before. While that would leave the Bills pretty thin at RB, I could live with them not addressing this need in free agency, especially if they were to add a running back late in the draft or as a UDFA to give them added depth during Lynch's suspension. And, I could see the Bills opting to go this route.
6.) Outside Linebacker: The Bills have shown a desire to upgrade their linebacking corps since L.Coles turned down their offer to him. They have brought in several familiar candidates: J.Winborn, C.June, F.Keiaho, J.Babin, M.Peterson; and all have left without signing a contract, despite the Bills' aggressive approach to addressing the position. But, I have to wonder whether, having just committed that money to T.Owens, the Bills will continue to be as aggressive as they have been in recent days in trying to address this position. While they could still try to bring in some more linebacking candidates or sweeten their offers to one or more of the linebackers that have already visited, it wouldn't shock me at all if they decided to abandon their attempts to bolster this position in free agency.
While the Bills' pursuit of free agent LBs indicates that they are not particularly happy with the play that Keith Ellison gave them last season and want to get better at the position, the money that they can afford to spend on upgrading the position is now more limited since they signed Owens. While there hasn't been much demand for June, Keiaho, or Winborn, if they weren't satisfied with what the Bills had to offer before they committed $ 6.5 million of their money to Owens, it is hardly likely that they will be satisfied with what the Bills will have to offer them now or that the Bills will feel that they can afford to offer them more now.
At the same time, having bolstered their offense with a weapon like Owens and with DiGiorgio and Bowen returning from injury, the Bills may feel that they can afford to go with essentially the same LB corps that they had last season because their offense will be more potent than it was last year. Given the other holes in their roster that the Bills still have to fill, it would not surprise me at all if the Bills were to come to this conclusion.
My preference would be for the Bills to sign either C.June, Mike Peterson or F.Keiaho, in that order. If they could get one of these three players and still re-sign Peters and fill their other needs with quality players I would be ecstatic. But, now that they have signed T.Owens, I don't expect them to be able to do that and, if they are able to do it, it would be the cherry on top of the whipped cream on top of the sundae. I don't see it being critical to the success or failure of the team this season, but I do think that it could help to put the the hump that they need to surmount.
If the Bills re-sign Peters; draft a pass rushing DE, an interior offensive lineman, and a talented TE; sign a quality LG, a decent veteran RB and a blocking TE; I will consider their offseason a success. If they are able to add a Pro Bowl caliber player at LG and/or bolster their LB corps with one of the three players cited, I would be absolutely delighted. Will they be able to do all of these things? I don't know. But, I do see them making an effort to do them and hope that the signing of T.Owens will convince one or more of the players that they have shown interest in that the Bills will have a chance to compete for a playoff berth this season if they join the team. We'll just have to see what happens, though.
I'm sorry, but if the Bills use the Terrell Owens signing as a reason for not finishing up what they are doing in free agency, I will be pissed off! We need a starting LG and a LB really bad. Plus we could use a backup RB. I expect the team to still sign either Cato June or Freddy Keiaho and a starting Guard. I think we'll fill the backup RB position with either DaShaun Foster or a late signing after the draft. I don't expect them to do anything else in FA, but we still need 2 starters badly right now.
As for DE and TE, I'm fine with us waiting until the draft to take care of those positions. The market is very dry for both those positions and the draft options are a lot more intriguing. I understand the other stuff you were saying, but I don't think we need as much as you are saying. Once our OLB and LG are taken care of in FA, we really don't need to spend anymore money, unless we can find a good SS for cheap. As far as a TE, I wouldn't waste my time. We have two very capable TEs in Derek Fine and Derek Schouman, plus we'll draft a pass catching TE in the 2nd or 3rd round.
The Bills have indicated that getting Jason Peters signed to an extension is one of their offseason priorities. At this point, I think that it should be their highest priority and believe that it will be. How much more money they will have to spend on free agents at this stage will be determined by what the parameters of Peters' extension appear that they are going to be.
Having signed T.Owens for roughly the same amount of money that they were offering to L.Coles, it is likely that the remainder of the Bills' signings this offseason will fall into the "lower-case" category and that, depending on what it looks like it will take to get Peters' re-signed, there may be a couple of positions where they will feel that they will have to try to fill those spots from within (much to the consternation of their fan-base).
From everything that has come out of OBD, it is fair to say that the Bills are aware of the fact that they still have several positions still to fill this offseason: a pass-rushing DE, two TEs, LG, back-up interior lineman, back-up running back, OLB. Even if they do not succeed in filling every one of these positions with veteran free agents and high round draft picks, I would consider this offseason a success if they addressed them in the following ways:
1.) Pass-rushing DE: There really isn't a free agent DE still out there who can do more for the Bills than the players that they already have on their roster. As a result, I believe that the Bills will draft a young pass-rusher with their first pick in the draft and expect Chris Ellis to step up his game in his second season in the league to address this issue. I think that the return of A.Schobel, improvement by Ellis, and the addition of a rookie with pass-rushing ability (even if he doesn't have a great first season) will probably be the best that they can do to address this pressing need.
2.) Tight end (2): With only three TEs on the roster, the Bills need to bring in two TEs just to have the minimum number that T.Schonert said that he wants on the roster going into camp. The Bills have indicated that they are looking to draft at least one TE. If they use their first round pick on a DE, I believe that whether they choose to select a TE with their pick in the second round will depend on whether the interior offensive lineman that they want is still available at that spot. If he is, I think that, having added T.Owens, the Bills will opt to go for the interior offensive lineman first. While the Bills would prefer to draft a more well-rounded TE, like Pettigrew, or one who has shown that he is a willing blocker, like Nelson, I think that they would settle for a pass receiving TE, like Coffman or Ingram, in the third round if they had to. I would be shocked and disappointed if they did not select a TE in the first three rounds of the draft.
I believe that the other TE that they add will probably be a "no-name" veteran TE better known for blocking or special teams play if he is known at all: a T.Massaquoi or J.Stupar type of player is likely. As long as the Bills use one of their picks in the first three rounds of the draft to bring in a young, talented TE with the potential to develop into a solid receiving option I would not be unhappy if they were to make this kind of move to fill what would, essentially, be the fifth TE spot.
3.) Left Guard: To me this is the most important position that the Bills still have to fill and will determine whether their offseason is truly successful or not. While D.Dockery didn't play up to his contract and was only slightly above average last season, having let Dockery go this offseason, IMHO the Bills created a huge hole in their lineup that they cannot afford to address with a sub-standard player. Thus far indications are that the Bills realize this and are trying to fill this hole with potentially the best possible player that they can at the least possible cost.
Inquiring about the availability of Brian Waters costs the Bills nothing, but it shows that the Bills are willing to explore the possibility of trading for a Pro Bowl quality player to fill their need at LG if they can get him at a reasonable price. While I seriously doubt that KC GM Pioli, having been given a gift by B.Belichick, will deal a player of Waters' caliber to an AFC East rival of the Pats without extracting an exhorbitant price, nevertheless, I think that the Bills should try to pursue a trade for Waters until such time as it is clear that either KC will not trade Waters at all or their price for Waters is ridiculous. It is possible that the Bills have already determined that this is already the case and have determined to move on, but I would hope that they would still keep a line of communications open with the Chiefs, just in case KC should change its mind.
Similarly, I think that it is a good idea for the Bills to have brought in Kendall Simmons and made inquiries about LeCharles Bentley. Both were Pro Bowl caliber players before suffering serious injuries. If fully recovered and able to play at a high level again, both have the potential to give the Bills quality play at the LG position. The question is whether they have fully recovered from their injuries and are still capable of playing at a high level again. And, that is something that only the Bills' doctors can say for sure. As much as I would hope that one of them would be fully recovered enough to give the Bills Pro Bowl caliber play and would be willing to sign with the Bills, I have to leave it to the Bills' doctors and front office to make the call on whether to sign one or both of these two players or not. If they don't sign one or either one of them, I have to believe that, having shown interest in them when others haven't, the Bills have decided that they are not worth signing. While some fans might not have enough faith in the Bills FO to be satisfied with trusting them to make this call, the fact that the Bills are willing to look at these two players to see if they can get a former Pro Bowl caliber player to address their need at this position rather than immediately jumping on a player who has not reached that caliber of play tells me that they are at least trying to find a player who can give them a high caliber of play. And why would they look at that guy if they weren't interested in getting him if they determine that he can regain that previous form?
Would I be upset or disappointed if the Bills didn't get either Waters, Simmons or Bentley? Yes and no. Disappointed, a little. But, I wouldn't be upset because there are still some other free agent OGs available who could give them above average play. Mike Goff and Pete Kendall are both getting up there in age, but both have played pretty well the last couple of years and still have a couple of years left in the tank--enough time for the Bills to develop a rookie to step into the starting lineup. And, there may be a couple of others that I don't know as well who could give the Bills at least as much as they got out of D.Dockery last season.
But, the Bills do have to bring in one of them. Be it Waters, Simmons, Bentley, Goff, Kendall, etc., they have to bring in a veteran LG to fill the spot vacated when they let go of Dockery. With Owens only available for a year and Jauron on a very short leash, the Bills cannot count on starting a rookie at LG if they want to win this season. If they draft an interior lineman early in the draft and he ends up winning a starting job as the season goes on, that's one thing. But, to count on a rookie to step in and start from Day One would be foolish in the extreme--and that I would not be happy about.
4.) Back-up interior offensive lineman: There are a number of ways that the Bills could address this need and they may try one or all of them: 1.) bring in a cheap veteran or re-sign D.Preston; 2.) draft a rookie that they expect to be able to develop into a starter and let him spend a season as a back-up; 3.) with D.Bell developing at the OT position, use K.Chambers as the back-up OG, Bell as the back-up OT, and Butler as the backup center. I would not be at all shocked if the Bills opt to do just the latter two if they sign a quality starter or are able to trade for Waters. While I suspect that doing that would have a lot of Bills fans howling about the lack of depth, etc., I would not be upset if they were to do that at all, especially if they use their second or third round pick on a highly rated interior lineman.
5.) Back-up Running Back: The Bills have already shown that they are concerned about Marshawn Lynch being suspended for the beginning of the season and that they would like to get the best veteran they can to back-up Fred Jackson during the time that Lynch has to sit. The problem is that it is going to be hard to convince a guy to come in and be the second stringer for, let's say, four games and then be the third stringer for the rest of the season when he can sign with another team and be one play away from starting the whole season. The Bills have already brought in D.Foster and K.Jones and Jones decided that he would rather take his chances in Chicago than be in the situation that Buffalo has to offer. I would like to see the Bills bring in Rudi Johnson and would be happy if the Bills could sign either Foster or Rudi. But, with the Bills signing Owens and having more pressing needs, they may not be able to offer any of the competent FA running backs enough money to entice them to agree to come to the kind of situation that they would be in with the Bills.
In that case, the Bills might just have to go with the RBs that they already have and maybe wait to see if someone more experienced gets cut in training camp or before. While that would leave the Bills pretty thin at RB, I could live with them not addressing this need in free agency, especially if they were to add a running back late in the draft or as a UDFA to give them added depth during Lynch's suspension. And, I could see the Bills opting to go this route.
6.) Outside Linebacker: The Bills have shown a desire to upgrade their linebacking corps since L.Coles turned down their offer to him. They have brought in several familiar candidates: J.Winborn, C.June, F.Keiaho, J.Babin, M.Peterson; and all have left without signing a contract, despite the Bills' aggressive approach to addressing the position. But, I have to wonder whether, having just committed that money to T.Owens, the Bills will continue to be as aggressive as they have been in recent days in trying to address this position. While they could still try to bring in some more linebacking candidates or sweeten their offers to one or more of the linebackers that have already visited, it wouldn't shock me at all if they decided to abandon their attempts to bolster this position in free agency.
While the Bills' pursuit of free agent LBs indicates that they are not particularly happy with the play that Keith Ellison gave them last season and want to get better at the position, the money that they can afford to spend on upgrading the position is now more limited since they signed Owens. While there hasn't been much demand for June, Keiaho, or Winborn, if they weren't satisfied with what the Bills had to offer before they committed $ 6.5 million of their money to Owens, it is hardly likely that they will be satisfied with what the Bills will have to offer them now or that the Bills will feel that they can afford to offer them more now.
At the same time, having bolstered their offense with a weapon like Owens and with DiGiorgio and Bowen returning from injury, the Bills may feel that they can afford to go with essentially the same LB corps that they had last season because their offense will be more potent than it was last year. Given the other holes in their roster that the Bills still have to fill, it would not surprise me at all if the Bills were to come to this conclusion.
My preference would be for the Bills to sign either C.June, Mike Peterson or F.Keiaho, in that order. If they could get one of these three players and still re-sign Peters and fill their other needs with quality players I would be ecstatic. But, now that they have signed T.Owens, I don't expect them to be able to do that and, if they are able to do it, it would be the cherry on top of the whipped cream on top of the sundae. I don't see it being critical to the success or failure of the team this season, but I do think that it could help to put the the hump that they need to surmount.
If the Bills re-sign Peters; draft a pass rushing DE, an interior offensive lineman, and a talented TE; sign a quality LG, a decent veteran RB and a blocking TE; I will consider their offseason a success. If they are able to add a Pro Bowl caliber player at LG and/or bolster their LB corps with one of the three players cited, I would be absolutely delighted. Will they be able to do all of these things? I don't know. But, I do see them making an effort to do them and hope that the signing of T.Owens will convince one or more of the players that they have shown interest in that the Bills will have a chance to compete for a playoff berth this season if they join the team. We'll just have to see what happens, though.
I'm sorry, but if the Bills use the Terrell Owens signing as a reason for not finishing up what they are doing in free agency, I will be pissed off! We need a starting LG and a LB really bad. Plus we could use a backup RB. I expect the team to still sign either Cato June or Freddy Keiaho and a starting Guard. I think we'll fill the backup RB position with either DaShaun Foster or a late signing after the draft. I don't expect them to do anything else in FA, but we still need 2 starters badly right now.
As for DE and TE, I'm fine with us waiting until the draft to take care of those positions. The market is very dry for both those positions and the draft options are a lot more intriguing. I understand the other stuff you were saying, but I don't think we need as much as you are saying. Once our OLB and LG are taken care of in FA, we really don't need to spend anymore money, unless we can find a good SS for cheap. As far as a TE, I wouldn't waste my time. We have two very capable TEs in Derek Fine and Derek Schouman, plus we'll draft a pass catching TE in the 2nd or 3rd round.