BLeonard
04-26-2013, 12:58 AM
I'm gonna preface this by saying, I don't watch hardly any College Football, so this isn't gonna be a "I like his hand size," "I like his scrambling ability" kinda deal, because frankly, I haven't seen much of the kid. I haven't seen enough of any of them to know if I think he was the right pick or not. It's not my job to, that's the Bills' Front Office's job.
Again, this is just things that I like about drafting EJ Manuel at #16.
2 Extra Picks: By trading down, the Bills Front Office turned what was 6 picks into 8. Personally, I don't think any one player drafted is going to be good enough to get the Bills into the playoffs in 2013, as they simply have too many holes. Trading down, getting 2 extra picks and still getting your pick of the litter at the QB position is something I tip my hat to the Bills Front Office for. Don't overlook that 7th round pick, either... That pick is only 8 spots lower than the pick that the Bills gave the Seahawks in the Tavaris Jackson trade. So, essentially, the Bills dropped 8 slots in the 7th round of the draft for Tavaris Jackson, who still might see playing time this year.
Finally getting a QB: Pretty much everyone agrees that this year's QB class wasn't the greatest in history, there was no clear #1 and that all of the QB's had flaws. But, at the very least, the Bills FINALLY pulled the trigger on a quarterback. I'm pretty sure 99% of Bills fans would have been irate if the QB position wasn't addressed in this draft. I'll give them credit for, at the very least, addressing the position.
Getting THEIR QB: This is the biggest one. Now, again, was Manuel the best QB to snag at that spot? I don't know. But, obviously, the Bills felt he was, because HE WAS THE FIRST QB TAKEN. Let's face it, there were some fans that wanted Nassib, there were some that wanted Manuel, there were some that wanted Geno Smith, etc, etc. No matter who the Bills picked, a segment of the fanbase wasn't gonna be happy with it. Again, I'm not even sure about how happy I am with the actual selection. What I AM, 100% happy with is the following:
NO MORE EXCUSES!
Buddy Nix and company got to "smell everyone's breath," and all those other cutesy-ass phrases that he likes to say when talking about football players. The Bills Front Office had EVERY SINGLE QUARTERBACK AVAILABLE TO THEM when they were on the clock at 8 and again when they were on the clock at 16. They chose EJ Manuel. So, if he turns out to be a bust, it is, without a shadow of a doubt, 100% the fault of the Bills Front Office. No more of this "The best QB's were taken by then" or giving reasons on passing on a QB in the later rounds, such as a Colin Kaepernick or Russell Wilson.
That's what I like about taking the first QB in the draft. Had they not and another team got team got a QB and he turned out great, they'd still have the excuse of "we didn't have a chance to draft so-and-so." This is, without a shadow of a doubt, the Quarterback that the Buffalo Bills Front Office wanted. Hopefully, it works out for the best. But, if it doesn't, the blame falls squarely on the shoulders of the Bills Front Office. Even those that still support Nix and his group won't be able to deny it.
-Bill
Again, this is just things that I like about drafting EJ Manuel at #16.
2 Extra Picks: By trading down, the Bills Front Office turned what was 6 picks into 8. Personally, I don't think any one player drafted is going to be good enough to get the Bills into the playoffs in 2013, as they simply have too many holes. Trading down, getting 2 extra picks and still getting your pick of the litter at the QB position is something I tip my hat to the Bills Front Office for. Don't overlook that 7th round pick, either... That pick is only 8 spots lower than the pick that the Bills gave the Seahawks in the Tavaris Jackson trade. So, essentially, the Bills dropped 8 slots in the 7th round of the draft for Tavaris Jackson, who still might see playing time this year.
Finally getting a QB: Pretty much everyone agrees that this year's QB class wasn't the greatest in history, there was no clear #1 and that all of the QB's had flaws. But, at the very least, the Bills FINALLY pulled the trigger on a quarterback. I'm pretty sure 99% of Bills fans would have been irate if the QB position wasn't addressed in this draft. I'll give them credit for, at the very least, addressing the position.
Getting THEIR QB: This is the biggest one. Now, again, was Manuel the best QB to snag at that spot? I don't know. But, obviously, the Bills felt he was, because HE WAS THE FIRST QB TAKEN. Let's face it, there were some fans that wanted Nassib, there were some that wanted Manuel, there were some that wanted Geno Smith, etc, etc. No matter who the Bills picked, a segment of the fanbase wasn't gonna be happy with it. Again, I'm not even sure about how happy I am with the actual selection. What I AM, 100% happy with is the following:
NO MORE EXCUSES!
Buddy Nix and company got to "smell everyone's breath," and all those other cutesy-ass phrases that he likes to say when talking about football players. The Bills Front Office had EVERY SINGLE QUARTERBACK AVAILABLE TO THEM when they were on the clock at 8 and again when they were on the clock at 16. They chose EJ Manuel. So, if he turns out to be a bust, it is, without a shadow of a doubt, 100% the fault of the Bills Front Office. No more of this "The best QB's were taken by then" or giving reasons on passing on a QB in the later rounds, such as a Colin Kaepernick or Russell Wilson.
That's what I like about taking the first QB in the draft. Had they not and another team got team got a QB and he turned out great, they'd still have the excuse of "we didn't have a chance to draft so-and-so." This is, without a shadow of a doubt, the Quarterback that the Buffalo Bills Front Office wanted. Hopefully, it works out for the best. But, if it doesn't, the blame falls squarely on the shoulders of the Bills Front Office. Even those that still support Nix and his group won't be able to deny it.
-Bill