Bills sign Manny Lawson - OLB

[ThunderGun]

Per Twitter...

[Bangarang]

https://mobile.twitter.com/RavensInsider

[psubills62]

Wouldn't mind that, if he can regain his San Fran form.

[The King]

Very sound move

[mikemac2001]

Makes sense i like it

[DraftBoy]

34 here we come.

[nolimit]

34 here we come.

How you think shep will play in pettines 34 def? Is Mario going to fit this scheme?

[clumping platelets]

CHAMPIONSHIP!!

[cookie G]

He gets to reunite with his college teammate Mario.

I wonder if they go after McCargo now.

[justasportsfan]

that makes our offseason grade an A+++++++++

[ServoBillieves]

He gets to reunite with his college teammate Mario.

I wonder if they go after McCargo now.

We can only pray my friend.

[Bangarang]

The guy has a reputation for being very good at covering TEs. That's good enough for me.

[Pinkerton Security]

Super athletic OLB, never quite lived up to his potential but a solid 3-4 player.

[alnilla]

Ran a 4.43 it says at the combine 5 or so years ago

[Mski]

Ran a 4.43 it says at the combine 5 or so years agowas drafted the same year as mario... so it was 7

[Mahdi]

Wouldn't mind that, if he can regain his San Fran form.

His San Fran form was not impressive. Was supposed to be a pass rush threat and never panned out.

[CleveSteve]

Super athletic OLB, never quite lived up to his potential but a solid 3-4 player.

He was miscast in Cincy as a 4-3 OLB IMO. It's a tribute to his ability that he was able to cover so well having been a college DE.

[Mski]

i'm okay with him not being a pass rusher that everyone expected out of college, as long as hes solid against the run, and can cover a TE

[SpikedLemonade]

Ran a 4.43 it says at the combine 5 or so years ago

Before his ACL injury in 2007.

He is not good in pass coverage.

[swiper]

The guy has a reputation for being very good at covering TEs. That's good enough for me.

Does this signing officially mean that Bryan Scott goes back to strong safety then?

[blackonyx89]

Wouldn't mind that, if he can regain his San Fran form.

Or like his earlier days.....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mA81lFNLjI.

[Mahdi]

Not sure why we don't go after Victor Butler then. Why Manny... There's also Connor Barwin

[jamze132]

Color me impressed.

[swiper]

Color me impressed.

Crayola didn't give me that color.

[Jan Reimers]

I hate to say it, but another in a long line of disappointing underachievers. But we probably got him fairly cheap.

This kind of signing is one of the many reasons we haven't seen the playoffs since Bill Clinton was in the White House.

[Bangarang]

I hate to say it, but another in a long line of disappointing underachievers. But we probably got him fairly cheap.

This kind of signing is one of the many reasons we haven't seen the playoffs since Bill Clinton was in the White House.

Yeah, it's the Manny Lawsons of the world to blame for us not going to the playoffs.

It isn't because we've employed guys like Trent, Losman and Fitz to play the most important position for us.

[mjt328]

He never lived up to his First Round draft position, but he's been a solid starter in the league for a few years now. I actually thought he would have been a decent acquisition two years ago when Cincinnati got him instead. From my understanding, the Bengals benched him last year after the emergence of Vontaze Burfict.

He's definitely a better fit in the 3-4 than the 4-3, but I don't think that will tip us off about the Bills defensive plans. He's played in both, so they might just like his versatility. I wouldn't be surprised if they lined him up occasionally at defensive end. That's what he played in college.

We needed veteran linebacker help really bad, and he fits the mold. He's nothing special, but he should be able to contribute and will most definitely be a starter for us next year. In my opinion (not knowing the price tag), this was a solid signing.

[THATHURMANATOR]

So is this guy any good or not?

Do we like him or do we hate him?

I can't tell.

[DraftBoy]

How you think shep will play in pettines 34 def? Is Mario going to fit this scheme?

Lawson in the Jarrett Johnson role with Mario as Suggs. Suggs played with his hand down a lot which Mario prefers.

[mjt328]

So is this guy any good or not?

Do we like him or do we hate him?

I can't tell.

Well, he's probably not going to be a difference maker.

He is a solid veteran that should fill one of our numerous holes. Since we don't know exactly what scheme Pettine is assembling for next year, it's hard to say which one. He's played OLB in a 3-4 and on the strongside in a 4-3.

Bottom line - we let one solid linebacker go (Barnett) and brought in another. There will likely be some cap savings in that move. We might see some marginal improvement in play over last season, but it's not a major upgrade.

Signings like this are nice, but nothing to really get excited about. It's probably along the same lines as us grabbing Erik Pears, Kraig Urbik or Kirk Morrison in past years. Bottom line, this team is not going to get better until it starts drafting better on a consistent basis - and gets the right quarterback.

[kingJofNYC]

Washed up, but they have no one else, worth a look.

[Bangarang]

http://www.buffalobills.com/media-center/videos/Manny-Lawson-on-Fitting-in-Bills-Defense/fef182e3-53e9-4444-bbe5-cae50348807b

Lawson on how he fits in with our defense. He pretty much confirms we'll be running a 3-4. Told his agent that he wanted to sign with a team that runs a 3-4.

[JoeMama]

Get your trophy handling gloves ready. We're gonna be hoisting a Lombardi for sure.

[Skooby]

If we only clone him to make .500 ball possible.

[Scumbag College]

Not a thrilling signing but the Bills have the worst LB corps by far in the NFL. Depending on what the Bills do in the rest of free agency and the draft he should be a starter, even if it's by default.

[coastal]

It's warm body from here on out.

[stuckincincy]

If you follow the B'gals, he's no loss to them.

I watched him play in all his Cincy games save the black-outs. Didn't do much, especially in light of CIN's decent DL. Can't cover passes well.


Some folks might be confusing Lawson with (injured) OLB Thomas Howard...

[Mouldsie]

Good signing

[Mahdi]

If you follow the B'gals, he's no loss to them.

I watched him play in all his Cincy games save the black-outs. Didn't do much, especially in light of CIN's decent DL. Can't cover passes well.


Some folks might be confusing Lawson with (injured) OLB Thomas Howard...

BB.com says he is great in coverage. Scouting sites say he is can't cover...

[Pinkerton Security]

Before his ACL injury in 2007.

He is not good in pass coverage.

Care to back that statement up with anything other than personal opinion?

[Mouldsie]

I would like to get Connor Barwin in here next

[Mahdi]

what happened to the Greg Jennings thread someone posted?

[Buddo]

I think it's a decent signing. Plugs a hole, and interestingly enough, nobody had a clue about it, until it was done.
Apart from the 'Bills contact agent for "x" ' stuff, it would seem that OBD is in full on stealth mode.
Except when Buddy is speaking to Dominick, of course. ;)
I wouldn't be at all surprised, if we don't see another signing come tomorrow, that nobody had a clue about.

[gr8slayer]

Guy is FAST, but that's about it. Not much potential as a starter here.

[Mike13]

He never quite lived up to the Jason Taylor comparisons.
Still he is a solid player.

[YardRat]

what happened to the Greg Jennings thread someone posted?

Somebody moved it too spam.

[Mahdi]

Thanks

[X-Era]

4 years 12 mill for Lawson... 4.6 guaranteed

Very solid signing

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/9047503/buffalo-bills-sign-free-agent-lb-manny-lawson

[jimbohastle51]

I really like this signing. Especially at 3mil a yr. He didn't break the bank and will excel in this hybrid D where he will play DE and OLB.

[X-Era]

I really like this signing. Especially at 3mil a yr. He didn't break the bank and will excel in this hybrid D where he will play DE and OLB.
I do too. I think he will compete for a starting job but isn't going to be given the spot. I think at worst he can be a situational rusher and a guy who can at least keep up with the quicker TE's speed wise. It's the sort of player that makes a team strong. Not elite, but strong.

[The Jokeman]

He's just a guy to me. I can't say he's better or worse in what we had in Barnett. If we go by tackling numbers he looks worse. Yet if go with the 3-4 he fits better but honestly Lawson is far frome great even in that defense. I don't get why we're adament running a 3-4 as our D-line has three solid starting guys for a 4-3 in Mario, Kyle and Dareus and Anderson is a solid nickel DE and Kyle Moore (if resigned) showed he might be an okay two down DE. In terms of LB, I was content with Nigel at SLB in a 4-3 but now that we have Lawson it looks like the plan is to shift Nigel to ILB (assuming Mario plays OLB too) which is okay but again not playing to our D-line strengths as feel we have a gaping hole at NT in a 3-4 at all and not sold on Kyle playing there or Troupe ever making an impact on this team. So now we have a hole two holes at DE and NT.

[kishoph]

I'm going to go with if he fits into Pettine's plans, which it seems like he will from what he said, then I'm happy. I'm tired of the team trying to fit square pegs into round holes.

[tampabay25690]

Good signing

I agree
Upgrade over Barnett IMO

[coastal]

Upgrade over Barnett
Where do u see Pettine plugging him in?

[justasportsfan]

I'm as excited with this signing as I was with Kawika and Barnett. Meh!

[Jan Reimers]

Yeah, it's the Manny Lawsons of the world to blame for us not going to the playoffs.

It isn't because we've employed guys like Trent, Losman and Fitz to play the most important position for us.

Read my post next time. I said the Lawson signing was one of the MANY REASONS for our failures. Since I was commenting specifically on Lawson, I didn't go into things like our poor drafts, idiot coaches, or the complete wastes we have employed at QB for several years now.