So That Byrd Guy is Alright

[The Beef]

I'll admit I was pissed when he seemed to be milking the plantar fascia issue to start the year but he is starting to round into form and quite honestly has probably established himself as the top safety in the league.

With Pettine keeping constant pressure on opposing QB's it makes Byrd's job that much easier. His instincts are so good to begin with it almost isn't fair.

The defense as a whole is really rounding into form. The last 3 weeks the defense has given up 46 points. That's an elite mark at 15.3 a game.

You can't keep everyone in today's NFL but you have to keep your playmakers. With Kiko and Gilmore on rookie deals and the Williams' still locked in to their contracts the team has more then enough wiggle room to pay Byrd.

Byrd stands to make himself a lot of money den the stretch. Games against Glennon, Henne, and Tannehil should suit Byrd well.

If Byrd and the defense continue at this level he is going to put himself in a spot to be the highest paid safety in the league. IMO the team took a gamble and is going to lose that gamble in terms of what Byrd is asking for. With the way the game is called you need playmakers on defense that force turnovers, and Byrd is as good as it gets at the safety spot.

IMO you have to spend what it takes to keep him. Searcy is in a great spot now as a situational player, Williams is ten times better as a safety and Byrd is the engine back there.

If the defense closes out the way they have played the last 3 weeks you have to keep him. The Ravens and Steelers didn't find Polamalu and Reed disposable in their prime. I don't see how it is feasible that the Bills could see Byrd as expendable.

[better days]

I don't think Byrd is on the same level as Reed & Polamalu in their prime. They could both bring the hammer as well as getting turnovers.

But I agree, the Bills need to lock up Byrd this offseason.

[The Beef]

He's not at Reeds level, and Polamalu had a unique skill set and freedom to kind of roam and call his own shot.

However as it stands right now it is tough to say that there is anyone better in the league at his position. Once he got into game shape he's proven to be the game changer that has defined his time here.

Also I know he can get franchised again, but I don't see the logic in it. Essentially Byrd gets 20+ mil guaranteed in 2 years, what is the sense in that if you could've locked him up for 5 or 6 years and guaranteed him 25-30 million? If he gets franchised again and stays healthy he'll still be looking at a deal with 30 million guaranteed. So instead of locking him for 5-6 years and giving him 30 million in guarantees you'd end up essentially giving him 50 million giantess plus additional costs for 7 years of service.

I think Whaley and Brandon have to bight the bullet even if they franchise Him, they have to have a willingness to make him the highest paid safety in the game. Quite honestly I think he'll be able to demand 5 years for 55 million with half of that guaranteed.

To to me it's pretty obvious you are starting to see the defense turn the corner under Pettine. Teams are no longer ripping off runs at 5 yards a clip. You don't expect teams to rip off 15 yards on every third down. The defensive line is finally dictating the pace of the game, and the secondary isn't getting gashed wine the New Orleans debacle. They have a chance to carry this team down the stretch and losing the best playmaker in the secondary would be a terrible way to continue to build upon the foundation that Pettine has started to lay down.

[YardRat]

He is still only worth Top 5 safety money, and is not the best in the league at the moment. I'm still not giving him top dollar, unless he continues to duplicate the Jets game over the last 5 weeks of the season.

Earl Thomas, Eric Berry, Eric Weddle, and Kerry Rhodes, at the very least, immediately come to mind.

[JCBills]

He is still only worth Top 5 safety money, and is not the best in the league at the moment. I'm still not giving him top dollar, unless he continues to duplicate the Jets game over the last 5 weeks of the season.

Earl Thomas, Eric Berry, Eric Weddle, and Kerry Rhodes, at the very least, immediately come to mind.

Since entering the NFL in 2009, Byrd is 3rd in INTs over that span with 18, behind Asante Samuel at 24 and Charles Woodson/Aqib Talb at 19.

Among DBs, he sits 3rd in FFs with 10, behind Charles Tillman with 23 and Charles Woodson at 11.

Among all players he is tied for 8th in the same category. 28 Turnovers created in 4 seasons says playmaker.

Kerry Rhodes isn't on an NFL roster. Berry and the others are the only players you can even mention in the same sentence, and even then they don't have his level of production. Pay the man.

[Crisis]

Unemployed Kerry Rhodes is better than Byrd?

[stuckincincy]

Since entering the NFL in 2009, Byrd is 3rd in INTs over that span with 18, behind Asante Samuel at 24 and Charles Woodson/Aqib Talb at 19.

Among DBs, he sits 3rd in FFs with 10, behind Charles Tillman with 23 and Charles Woodson at 11.

Among all players he is tied for 8th in the same category. 28 Turnovers created in 4 seasons says playmaker.

Kerry Rhodes isn't on an NFL roster. Berry and the others are the only players you can even mention in the same sentence, and even then they don't have his level of production. Pay the man.

Byrd has shiny pass stats. But he's been here 5 (non-playoff) years, with well-known contract bumps in the 5th. His (delayed) play this year won them a game. Or was it two? He got top 5 safety $ and moaned.


Personally, I don't think his current money impact on the roster is worth what he brings to the table. IMO.

You may say that he's going to be an integral piece of a defense turnaround. So keep him.

There's sense to that. However, I believe he showed his stripes with the hold out, the foot. It's the $$$. I don't fault him there - it is show biz.

[Ingtar33]

We can't keep doing this. Every time we develop a strength we get cheap and let it go in FA. We created a hole on our OL when we let Levitre go... a hole which I am convinced cost us at least 2 games this year. A hole which has dragged the whole unit down from a top 5 OL to a top 15 unit. Its a hole we still need to patch in the offseason.

We've done this for the past 15 years. Fix a problem, let a player go in FA and make a new problem. We fix the problem at linebacker, and make a new problem at safety or cornerback. or if we're really unlucky, both. This is how the Bills have been managed the past 15 years, and it's how the fans have started to think too, as some of the posters in this thread exemplify.

You KEEP your talent. That's how you get to the playoffs. You don't develop a probowl player and let him go. Imagine where the bills would have been had we done that with Daryl Talley or Andre Reed... what if the old bills were managed like this team is? Thurman Thomas would have been here 3 years, then the team would have spent it's first round pick on a running back and let TT go in the offseason. We never would have gone to the superbowl managed like that. Thats how the perennial losers are managed. And guess what, we are perennial losers. We traded Lynch for a bag of peanuts... next to Adrian Peterson he's been the best back in the league since he left, we replaced him with Spiller, who, while fun, has proved he's not an every down back. We moved one superstar for a very good third down back who isn't even the best back on the roster (i still think Jackson is better). And we still haven't sniffed a playoff game.

Imagine you're a chiefs fan, and Berry's contract comes up and you have this debate "well he doesn't put up numbers like Byrd"... THEY can have that debate!!! That's how good Byrd has been. And i guarantee you the chiefs will spend every dime they have to resign Berry. They wouldn't even hesitate to do so.

[GvilleBills]

I agree with the spirit of your post. But Free agency as we know it today wasn't a factor to those Bills teams until late.

[GvilleBills]

Then Butler over paid out of loyalty, and the Bills got into cap hell.

[JoeMama]

He is still only worth Top 5 safety money, and is not the best in the league at the moment. I'm still not giving him top dollar, unless he continues to duplicate the Jets game over the last 5 weeks of the season.

Earl Thomas, Eric Berry, Eric Weddle, and Kerry Rhodes, at the very least, immediately come to mind.

Thank the gods it's not yours to give.

If this franchise has any sense, they'll give him a generous contract and lock him up another 4 years.

[YardRat]

Thank the gods it's not yours to give.

If this franchise has any sense, they'll give him a generous contract and lock him up another 4 years.

You don't think top 5 money is generous?

[JoeMama]

You don't think top 5 money is generous?

We've been over this.

The highest paid player at any given position tends to be the guy who was signed most recently.

Even if we make Byrd the highest paid FS this offseason, he won't be the highest paid FS in 2 years.

It's a timing issue.

[kscdogbillsfan1221]

We've been over this.

The highest paid player at any given position tends to be the guy who was signed most recently.

Even if we make Byrd the highest paid FS this offseason, he won't be the highest paid FS in 2 years.


It's a timing issue.


exactly. case in point is joe flacco. does anybody truly think he is a top 5 qb? he's paid like one, but because of timing

[Ingtar33]

I agree with the spirit of your post. But Free agency as we know it today wasn't a factor to those Bills teams until late.

I know.

I was using it as an example to highlight how stupid this type of management is. Doing that back during plan B was impossible for the most part. That still doesn't invalidate the point. You have to keep your talent if you want to win in this league.

Like it or not, Byrd is one of the best 3 or 4 safeties in the league. His contract is up, he will get paid no.1 safety money. That is how the system works. We will have to pay him like that. If we don't then we'll just be creating a new hole we need to fix, and if we're lucky we'll fix it in 3 years. If we're lucky. Until we got Kiko, linebacker had been a position of weakness ever since we let Fletcher and Spikes go. That's what? 7 years? It took 7 years a good FA signing and striking gold in the draft to fix that mess. How many draft picks were wasted trying to fix that position? Until this year Fletcher was still an elite probowl level linebacker. We could have had those services for 6 years... but instead we opened a hole in the lineup that took 3 gms and 7 drafts to fix.

[The Beef]

I can't blame Bird for no playoffs in his 5 year career. Going to war with Trent Edwards and Ryan Fitzpatrick isn't a great way to judge a safety.

Thomas and Berry are both great, you're splitting hairs trying to prove their value over Byrd.

As JoeMama pointed out, it's a timing issue. The longer you wait to pay for elite players the highest the contract is going to climb. Take the hit now because the longer you wait the higher that price tag is going to jump.

The team has 2 other contracts working in their favor to pay Byrd. They don't have a QB eating up 18-20 mil a year, and they won't unless EJ really pans out. Also the teams (arguably) best defensive player, Alonso is on a rookie deal. Factor in that the team entered this year well under the cap and the cap itself will likely see a significant jump after the next TV deal after 2014.

You can't take his holdout personal, it was business. When he's on the field he has never dogged it. His "injury" seemed questionable but for all of the "leaks" that came out before the the trade deadline, you never heard any of those coming from a Bills' source/player questioning the injury. Teammates understand a holdout, but when the bullets are flying I don't believe a guy like Kyle Williams would hold his tongue if he thought one of his guys was selling him out with a phantom injury.

I just don't see how the team can let him walk. He's a turnover machine and he does it with great instincts, not by taking risks. You rarely see Byrd on the went end of a highlight because he tried to jump a route or gets caught out of position because he's looking into the backfield.

Letting him walk would be just as bad as when the team let Pat Williams walk. Pettine's scheme would help cover up some of up some of the warts, but I'd rather let him coach up All Pro level players over a replacement level guy like say Jim Leonhard.