OK--HOW DO WE FIX THIS TEAM?

[DaBillzAhDaShiznit]

What are your honest opinions on what it will take to keep this team on track and headed for the playoffs next season?

My thoughts?---Not in order of importance really:

1) Get Losman up to speed and start him from day 1. He is the starter as of NOW. The guy has a huge upside and I want to hear that he moved in with Sam Wyche and Tom Clements so they can get him ready. Backup QB will be an adventure. I think Matthews hangs on (he's cheap and now familiar with the system) and we bring in another young guy for third string. NOT ZOLMAN!

2) Get the RB depth chart solidified. Trade Travis for what you can get and sign the best backup RB we can afford. The RB depth chart is not in good shape with Travis out of the mix...and we all know Travis is not going to be happy as a backup. The guys we have are not capable backups.

3) KEEP this entire coaching staff. They are working well together. One blessing in disguise for not making the playoffs is that our guys will not be highly sought after. Hopefully.

4) Sort out your WRs. Who is going to be here? Is it possible that we go into 2005 without both Moulds and Reed? Moulds could be a cap casualty and Reed has just not panned out. I would look very seriously at other options. I do like both of these guys but I am not convinced that they are the best available talent. Moulds is a keeper if we can afford him, but there are some questions with him...he is on the downside of his career at this point.

5) BOLSTER the OFFENSIVE LINE! We desperately need a marquee player on this line. I Do NOT feel we need to gut the OLINE. IF we can keep Jennings, I think one more very solid tackle or guard could make this line very solid. I would prefer a left guard, but would be fine with moving Jennings inside and getting another tackle. This doesn't seem realistic to me...for the money JJ will be asking we can't afford to move him inside. Is Marcus Price our new starting tackle? I would be OK with that if he has a good guard next to him. I like the young depth on the Oline (Smith & Tucker--not Pucillo), and I think our TEs are set.

6) A solid kicker. Lindell will be out.....you can take that to the bank.
I have no idea who/where we will find him, but you can burn your Lindell jerseys.

I am feeling good about the defense, but I would still like to see a young speed rusher in the lineup.

SO--what are your thoughts?

[mybills]

Get rid of Drew & Lindell. Everything else will fall into place! :D

[carybillsfan]

I don't think we make the playoffs next year, hope I'm wrong. But we need DrewDrew and lindell to go. Get a real tight end one that can block and catch. We need a play making receiver, he doesn't have to be a stud wr but a guy who can make things happen from the slot ex. Randel-El, David Patten, Stokley, Parker, etc. Right now we have nobody. We also need a team leader, someone to carry this team on their shoulders. Hopefully Losman will step up but I'm not sure he has the right attitude, I want to see him screaming at receivers when they make a bad play, take control of the game not be just a pawn out there.

[jamze132]

I think that with JP starting and Lindel in a sewer, we could get a tayste of the playoffs. Even if we don't, it's ok. JP will have that much more experience. Everyone sees that Peyton's little ******ed brother is coming along. We just need to get JP in there and keep it basic. And I think we should someway, somehow draft Nugent as our kicker.

ps Why the hell did we get rid of Chisty?

[The_Philster]

ps Why the hell did we get rid of Chisty?injury

[Devin]

Even if we don't, it's ok. JP will have that much more experience. Everyone sees that Peyton's little ******ed brother is coming along.

sorry just thought that was really funny.

:rofl:

[Iehoshua]

What are your honest opinions on what it will take to keep this team on track and headed for the playoffs next season?

My thoughts?---Not in order of importance really:

1) Get Losman up to speed and start him from day 1. He is the starter as of NOW. The guy has a huge upside and I want to hear that he moved in with Sam Wyche and Tom Clements so they can get him ready. Backup QB will be an adventure. I think Matthews hangs on (he's cheap and now familiar with the system) and we bring in another young guy for third string. NOT ZOLMAN!

I agree. He's had a year to observe. We didn't spend a 1st round pick(along with everything else we traded to get it) on him to warm the bench. If Bledsoe doesn't want to be a backup, we trade him.



2) Get the RB depth chart solidified. Trade Travis for what you can get and sign the best backup RB we can afford. The RB depth chart is not in good shape with Travis out of the mix...and we all know Travis is not going to be happy as a backup. The guys we have are not capable backups.
Not sure what kind of trade value Henry is going to command. I'd prefer to keep him as the backup but if that isn't feasible, and I doubt it is, then get what we can.


3) KEEP this entire coaching staff. They are working well together. One blessing in disguise for not making the playoffs is that our guys will not be highly sought after. Hopefully.
I agree we should keep the coaching staff. You may say we should have went for it on the 4th and 1 instead of kick, but I disagree. Any other NFL HC would have made the same move. Keep the staff.


4) Sort out your WRs. Who is going to be here? Is it possible that we go into 2005 without both Moulds and Reed? Moulds could be a cap casualty and Reed has just not panned out. I would look very seriously at other options. I do like both of these guys but I am not convinced that they are the best available talent. Moulds is a keeper if we can afford him, but there are some questions with him...he is on the downside of his career at this point.
I do not want to see Moulds go. Reed should be gone. We can draft or sign someone to do what he does better.


5) BOLSTER the OFFENSIVE LINE! We desperately need a marquee player on this line. I Do NOT feel we need to gut the OLINE. IF we can keep Jennings, I think one more very solid tackle or guard could make this line very solid. I would prefer a left guard, but would be fine with moving Jennings inside and getting another tackle. This doesn't seem realistic to me...for the money JJ will be asking we can't afford to move him inside. Is Marcus Price our new starting tackle? I would be OK with that if he has a good guard next to him. I like the young depth on the Oline (Smith & Tucker--not Pucillo), and I think our TEs are set.
I think our line was underrated. No unit is above an upgrade however.


6) A solid kicker. Lindell will be out.....you can take that to the bank.
I have no idea who/where we will find him, but you can burn your Lindell jerseys.
As stated in another thread, if you can't make a 28 yard chipshot in those conditions during the biggest game of the season, you have no business being a kicker. Lindell sealed his fate and should be axed.


I am feeling good about the defense, but I would still like to see a young speed rusher in the lineup.
I think we could do well with what we have but if a speed rusher would happen to fall in our lap then I think it would be an upgrade to put on the other side of Schobel.

[FTG]

I agree with pretty much everything you said.

[TigerJ]

1) Get Losman up to speed and start him from day 1. He is the starter as of NOW. The guy has a huge upside and I want to hear that he moved in with Sam Wyche and Tom Clements so they can get him ready. Backup QB will be an adventure. I think Matthews hangs on (he's cheap and now familiar with the system) and we bring in another young guy for third string. NOT ZOLMAN!
I don't disagree, though I'm not as anti-Bledsoe as many. I actually believe Buffalo has a pretty good chance of making the playoffs with Bledsoe next season and only an outside shot of doing so with Losman starting, only because of experience. Long term, I know Losman is in theory the kind of QB that is more in vogue in the NFL and may be better equipped to compensate for modern aggressive defenses.



2) Get the RB depth chart solidified. Trade Travis for what you can get and sign the best backup RB we can afford. The RB depth chart is not in good shape with Travis out of the mix...and we all know Travis is not going to be happy as a backup. The guys we have are not capable backups.
I think for the most part it's going to sort itself out. I agree Travis Henry is history. I don't necessarily agree that Shaud Williams can't be a capable backup and role player on this team. Joe Burns is ready for the scrap heap IMO. I don't know enough about the guy the Bills just signed to provide some depth. The Bills will bring in some more competition, but don't expect much different. The guys they bring in will be undrafted free agents, NFL Europe types etc.



3) KEEP this entire coaching staff. They are working well together. One blessing in disguise for not making the playoffs is that our guys will not be highly sought after. Hopefully.
Can' agree more.



4) Sort out your WRs. Who is going to be here? Is it possible that we go into 2005 without both Moulds and Reed? Moulds could be a cap casualty and Reed has just not panned out. I would look very seriously at other options. I do like both of these guys but I am not convinced that they are the best available talent. Moulds is a keeper if we can afford him, but there are some questions with him...he is on the downside of his career at this point.
I agree on Moulds. The Bills have to look at his cap numbers and his production and decide whether production is going to justify cost. Reed has probably outlived his welcome in Buffalo. I think when Buffalo started throwing to Sam Aiken in the Steelers game, was pretty much the Reed death knell.



5) BOLSTER the OFFENSIVE LINE! We desperately need a marquee player on this line. I Do NOT feel we need to gut the OLINE. IF we can keep Jennings, I think one more very solid tackle or guard could make this line very solid. I would prefer a left guard, but would be fine with moving Jennings inside and getting another tackle. This doesn't seem realistic to me...for the money JJ will be asking we can't afford to move him inside. Is Marcus Price our new starting tackle? I would be OK with that if he has a good guard next to him. I like the young depth on the Oline (Smith & Tucker--not Pucillo), and I think our TEs are set.
Left tackles tend to get big contract offers when they hit free agency. Whether or not JJ stays will depend on his priorities. If he wants the most money he can get, he's history because some team will overpay for his services while Tom Donahoe will not. If he likes the Bills organization and is willing to be paid well and fairly, then he'll probably stay. Pucillo is garbage. Smith might have a little upside, but he's not irreplaceable. I expect Donahoe to have to replace Jennings, and I think he'll try to get one decent interior lineman in the off season. That may be a guard or a center. The new interior guy will be pencilled in as a starter and the line shuffled as necessary.



6) A solid kicker. Lindell will be out.....you can take that to the bank.
I have no idea who/where we will find him, but you can burn your Lindell jerseys.
That bad kick versus the Steelers was a killer and may have been enough for the team to decide it's time to switch again.



I am feeling good about the defense, but I would still like to see a young speed rusher in the lineup.
I think this is too much to ask for at this point. There is limited cap room and lots of other stuff to do, so this might have to wait another year.

[Iehoshua]

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/recap/NFL_20050102_PIT@BUF


Bills' owner Ralph Wilson remained upbeat.

"We had a bad day and it didn't work out," Wilson said. "I'm really looking forward to next year, because we have something to build on."

While I agree, this statement worries me a bit. I hope to God he doesn't and expect us to stick with some of the garbage currently on this roster...

[Jan Reimers]

I agree with most of your points, except the RB depth issue and the WR puzzle. Assuming Travis is history, I think Williams and Burns will be more than adequate backups for Willis, who will get the bulk of the carries, anyway. Burns could return more full time to RB, with Lawton backing up Shelton.

Moulds, whose hands seem to be slowly turning to stone, can probably give us one more decent year, with Evans becoming the de facto number 1 guy. Aiken will be a very good 3, Smith a 4, and someone like Haddad a 5. Reed should be on someone elses' roster.

[helmetguy]

Make the entire OL lose about 20 pounds apiece. I mentioned it to Jim Ritcher on his Wall of Fame day and he pretty much agreed. His response was that the current line seemed built for running the ball between the tackles (a la Henry). With McGahee being the feature back, a lighter, quicker line would allow the offense to spread defenses laterally; allowing for more counter-type running plays. It also opens up lines of sight in the passing attack THROUGH the LOS instead of OVER it.

[Iehoshua]

Make the entire OL lose about 20 pounds apiece. I mentioned it to Jim Ritcher on his Wall of Fame day and he pretty much agreed. His response was that the current line seemed built for running the ball between the tackles (a la Henry). With McGahee being the feature back, a lighter, quicker line would allow the offense to spread defenses laterally; allowing for more counter-type running plays. It also opens up lines of sight in the passing attack THROUGH the LOS instead of OVER it.

Interesting and astute observation...
:up:

[DaBills]

Monster DE and Ronnie Lott-type safety.

[JediCrow]

my first post!!! Hello to all.

Flutie, come back!!

[DaBills]

my first post!!! Hello to all.

Flutie, come back!!

Uh-oh.




Welcome to the Zone. Better go put on your helmet after that comment.


:dance:

[Mudflap1]

I don't think Drew should necessarily go. Yes, he had a bad game yesterday, and he hasn't been the model of consistency since he's been here, but he's been much better this season than last, and better than the last 8 games of 2002. He's also IMPROVED over the course of the season instead of digressed, which means with another year under his belt with Wyche, Mularkey, and Clements, he might improve some more.

I don't believe Losman will be ready. True, he'll need a lot of experience and a learning curve in order to eventually be a good quarterback, but when he was in this year, he made Kyle Boller look like Y.A. Tittle. I don't think he'll be hot-to-trot by the beginning of next season. If Bledsoe struggles next year and we are in the tank, then play Losman and let him grow. This team is too close to make major changes.

Trade Henry for what you can get. I think someone like Miami, Oakland, or San Francisco might trade for him and cough up more than he might be worth. I like Shaud Williams, but getting another RB is a smart move.

Get a third wide receiver that can contribute. Maybe Aiken's the guy, but he needs to step up more.

Get a tight end who can catch. Doesn't have to be spectacular, but solid. Can you imagine how much better off we'd be if we had a guy like a Jason Witten or Dallas Clark?

Get another guard. If Jennings wants a lot of money (more than he's worth), let him walk, get another tackle. He's not bad, but we could seriously upgrade on the left side.

Get another speed rusher, that was a good call. I would also seek another nickel/dime DB. Jabari Greer blows and Rashad Baker is inconsistent. Other than that the defense is in pretty good shape.

Lindell, gone. 'Nuff said there.

This team is not far off. The difference between them and the teams like Pittsburgh is depth. The Bills need to be able to sustain injuries and still have productivity. They also need a few more guys in a couple key positions mentioned above that can contribute and be factors.

Remember, while we are all frustrated for good reason about yesterday, the Bills played their first meaningful football in January since 1999. They also started off badly, but finished with a winning record with a new coaching staff. They have a good defense, a growing offensive line and running game, a young quarterback to groom, a star running back, awesome special teams (sans Lindell), and two good wide receivers. There is a lot to be optimistic about.

Jon

[DaBills]

This team is not far off. The difference between them and the teams like Pittsburgh is depth.

I agree with a lot of that. The difference between the Bills and a playoff-caliber team is playmakers, not just depth. We don't have enough. WM on offensive is about the only one I see now. Jury is out on the WR corp. Moulds appears to be playing himself out of the playmaker role.

On D, I'd say the impact guys are Spikes, Clements and Sam Adams over Pat Williams.

Impact on ST is Moorman.

[Mr. Cynical]

Make the entire OL lose about 20 pounds apiece. I mentioned it to Jim Ritcher on his Wall of Fame day and he pretty much agreed. His response was that the current line seemed built for running the ball between the tackles (a la Henry). With McGahee being the feature back, a lighter, quicker line would allow the offense to spread defenses laterally; allowing for more counter-type running plays. It also opens up lines of sight in the passing attack THROUGH the LOS instead of OVER it.
Good points. If they do that, it also means JP should start (among other reasons). A lighter, quicker line is not a good thing for a statue who needs 4 tons of cement to block rushers up the middle.