I'm officially starting the 2nd get Drew Bledose the hell out of Buffalo bandwagon

[The Natrix]

not really...just wanted to get a rise out of you.

...but I am starting to have my doubts. I have been thinking back to when he was in NE: The Pats never scared me. I always thought that he was overrated. I was against him coming to Buffalo, but I supported him and was pleased with his play over the first few games. But what have you done for me lately?

Drew Bledose is obviously not in the category of the elite QBs in this league.

He is arguably the least mobile QB in the League. Who is the QB that the majority of people would choose If they were starting a franchise? Mike Vick, right? I know I would. So don't these two facts tell us something? Vick is obviously the most mobile QB in the league. Can you imagine what he could do with Henry, Moulds, Price, etc? Or Favre, or McNabb for that matter (There are other QBs better than Bledsoe but I just threw these names out because it seems like they lack some serious offensive weapons around them but are still successful)

...so that brings me to another knock on Bledsoe, he needs a solid unit around him in order to be successful. Ok fine, but, ummm, if we lose PP, this year could be the best offense he will ever have around him.

Don't get me wrong, he was our best option (for the immediate future anyway) and he is the first since JK, that we can actually label as a QB.

Although I still think WestBoast is a joke because he spends so much time on a BILLS board, I have to hand it to him though: His views of Bledsoe are looking pretty accurate (ie. he gets worse as the season goes on) even if he is biased, as are we. I think we need some assessments of Bledsoe from some Arizona fans or something.


:gobills:

[BambinoSux]

I'd probably be real worried if we didn't have a balanced offense. Henry's one of the best RBs in the league this year and because of that (and our defense playing well for the 2nd or 3rd game this year) we were able to win without a great performance by Drew. I don't understand why there should be a mass exodus off the Drew bandwagon after a win. I think it's just plain silly.

[The_Philster]

We have a balance in talent on offense but a true balanced offense has a balance in play-calling as well...that's not what we have.

[Hipp]

The Bills can definately win with Drew Bledsoe. He may lack the ability to carry a team for an entire season, like some of the other guys you mentioned but there are a whole lot of worse QBs starting in this league right now. Is he as good as his early season stats would indicate? Probably not. Is he as bad as his stats today would indicate? Definately not.

[The Natrix]

I agree about the play calling phil. KG + DB = one of the biggest egos I have ever seen.

[mackey789]

this post is bogus, some people can never find anything positive to talk about. Drew is a QUALITY QB who is probably top 5 in the league. I can remember jim kelly having some horrible games and look where he is now. Give the guy a freekin break, he had a bad game. This stuff pisses me off.

[SoCalBillsFan]

Drew is our guy, he's gonna have bad games. All qb's do. I dont understand all this get out of buffalo talk. He's a good starting QB. He's not going to have a great day every time out. Newsflash: neither is any other NFL qb. All qb's go through periods like drew has had the last couple games. Get over it.

[e-mo4life]

i totally agree mackey.....according to some ppl we should get rid of Drew , well then I guess we should get rid of Travis for fumbling, and Moulds, Price, Reed, etc for any passes they may have dropped....then what the h*ll do we do?!?!?

[JayWood]

Iam sure we would have won 7 games with Van Pelt, or Travis Brown, or any rookie QB, or washed up free agent that we could have gotten. I agree this post is bogus. Drew has helped us a hell of a lot more than he has hurt us. Once again i wish people would think before they speak.

[itsandthings]

It is crystal clear for all but the blind homer:

First 6 games:

167-for-251 (66.5%), 2016 yds (8.03 yds/att), 14 TD (5.58 TD%), 5 Int (1.99 Int%), 101.3 QB Rating.

The team averaged 32.22 pts/gm in that stretch.


Last 8 games:

167-for-251 (57.2%), 1933 yds (6.62 yds/att), 9 TD (3.08 TD%), 8 Int (2.74 Int%), 76.2 QB Rating.

The team averaged 19.75 pts/gm in that stretch.


- Bledsoe was sacked at a greater rate in the first 6 games than the last 8, so his protection has actually improved.

- The Bills running game has actually been more productive as the season has progressed, so there is less pressure for Bledsoe to carry the team.

- In his prime with NE (1996-1999), Bledsoe was always a fast starter but played poorly down the stretch and absolutely dreadfully in the playoffs. He typically hasn't played well against good teams, but rather has padded his numbers with big performances against the league's dregs.

- Given his performance in recent years, it is far more likely that Bledsoe's early season performance was an aberration than to think he is slumping now. What you have watched over the last 8 games is the actual Drew Bledsoe, and that is while being surrounded by top offensive talent.


There is little doubt that Bledsoe is a class act who represents the team off-the-field in a professional, 1st-class way.

However, don't let that cloud the issue. The fact is, despite having a big arm and piling up yardage numbers, Bledsoe is an average QB who plays small in the big games, despite having a big-time arm. That has been the pattern his entire career.

The Bills should try to find a QB who can play a complementary game and build their offense around Travis Henry. Henry has improved tremendously since last year and has shown he is a franchise RB. If you are looking for the reason for Buffalo winning more games this year, it is more due to Henry than Bledsoe. Find a complementary QB and build the defense, and the team will be better off in the long run.

One guy the Bills should take a look at is New Orleans backup QB Jake Delhomme. He isn't real big, but he is athletic and has a nice arm and quick release. He has a lot of confidence and could be the next "surprise" QB to come from relative obscurity and make a big splash. He will be an unrestricted FA after this season. Remember his name.

Remember: Drew Bledsoe, great guy, but he isn't a great QB.

[TedMock]

Bledsoe is a very good, capable qb. There's no reason to even discuss the possibilities of who else we can get. He needs quality around him and he's not mobile but he's better than most in the league. One player may carry a team for a game or two but there is NO player who carries a team for a season and definately not a successful team. Others need to step up and the Bills have several more pressing needs to worry about. Bledsoe's here for the next couple of years, get used to him, embrace him and support him. He's a Bill now.

[Dozerdog]

OK Wys wannabees.

To accuratly whine about the QB situation, you need to compare Bledsoe's 2 halves to the season to the rest of the league.

Offenses are like pitchers in baseball. First time around they have the advantage. Second time around the D has more film/experience to go on.

Also, had our schedule been reversed, with the tougher D's on the schedule early, this trend might be reversed.

The weather conditions also reek havoc on a passing game.

Can you name me more than 3-4 QBs in the league getting stronger at this point in the season?

Brad Johnson, TB comes to mind, Trent Green. Anybody else lighting the world on fire?

Why else do you think bookies are making a killing on the unders this time of year???

[itsandthings]

You will find few QBs with such a dramatic drop-off in production. What's more, the running game has been there and his protection has been better, so he should be improving.

Bledsoe has always been a fast starter, but his numbers usually tail off. He is a poor playoff performer and an average QB. Henry is a top back and the offense should be built around him.

[lordofgun]

Originally posted by itsandthings
his protection has been better, so he should be improving.

You're kidding, right? Did you watch the same game I did yesterday? Sure, Drew made some mis-throws, but he had pressure in his face ALL DAY LONG. He threw quite a few balls away yesterday where he could have taken a sack, so the dropoffs in sacks can be misleading.

You're also forgetting the weather factor where much of the time he was throwing into a stiff wind due to terrible play-calling.

[Earthquake Enyart]

Stupid Bellichek showed everyone that Drew is susceptible to the blitz up the gut.

BB :chair: EE

[The_Philster]

He simply shouldn't have been throwing the ball. There's a reason the Chargers are ranked near the bottom of the league against the run...because teams run on them a lot and their pass defense is pretty good. Travis wasn't having any problems running on them so we should have had more of a 60-40 run-pass mix.

[WG]

Yeah, and other weeks he's had plenty of time and still couldn't put up more than 7, 13, or 16 points. With Drew, the perceptions based almost exclusively on yards and nothing else define him, to the point where the excuses fly whenever he's not what he was supposed to have been out of college.

He's got about all he's gonna get in this league right here, right now. The O isn't perfect, but it's been injury free and while our OL is young, it's one of the better OLs in the league. Look around, no team simply has the HOG OL of the late 80s or early 90s, or the Boys' OL of the 90s. It just doesn't happen anymore.

It was the OL in N.E. too! Now it's the weather for cryin' out loud! This man's a professional and certainly not exempt from criticism. The fastest way for him to quit taking heat is for him to have a sit down w/ Gilbride and tell him that he thinks Henry should run the ball more. Then he can also start by not losing 16 yards on a sack and start throwing the ball away. He's as bad as RJ in that regard. He's taken fewer sacks, but he's also got an incredibly superior OL than RJ had.

Last week he needed time to "develop." Gimme a break! How much time do we give a seasoned vet to "develop?!" I ask you. I thought that's exactly why we did get him, b/c he wouldn't need time to develop? If he needs to "develop", then we made bad choice. What's next, he doesn't have the proper shoe laces! Give me a break. His production over the last 8 is less than half per game of what it was in his first 6 and his TOs are near twice. its has it correctly to a T. Several of us mentioned this prior to bringing him here. Does anyone think that is a coincidence? Wys and several others just can't possibly be right, eh.

What a horrible thing that would be. Well, its said it absolutely correctly below. If you dig up my posts during the time before we got him via the trade, you'll see the exact same thing. Exactly. I actually had to look to make sure this wasn't my post. JK there its.



Originally posted by itsandthings
It is crystal clear for all but the blind homer:

First 6 games:

167-for-251 (66.5%), 2016 yds (8.03 yds/att), 14 TD (5.58 TD%), 5 Int (1.99 Int%), 101.3 QB Rating.

The team averaged 32.22 pts/gm in that stretch.


Last 8 games:

167-for-251 (57.2%), 1933 yds (6.62 yds/att), 9 TD (3.08 TD%), 8 Int (2.74 Int%), 76.2 QB Rating.

The team averaged 19.75 pts/gm in that stretch.


- Bledsoe was sacked at a greater rate in the first 6 games than the last 8, so his protection has actually improved.

- The Bills running game has actually been more productive as the season has progressed, so there is less pressure for Bledsoe to carry the team.

- In his prime with NE (1996-1999), Bledsoe was always a fast starter but played poorly down the stretch and absolutely dreadfully in the playoffs. He typically hasn't played well against good teams, but rather has padded his numbers with big performances against the league's dregs.

- Given his performance in recent years, it is far more likely that Bledsoe's early season performance was an aberration than to think he is slumping now. What you have watched over the last 8 games is the actual Drew Bledsoe, and that is while being surrounded by top offensive talent.


There is little doubt that Bledsoe is a class act who represents the team off-the-field in a professional, 1st-class way.

However, don't let that cloud the issue. The fact is, despite having a big arm and piling up yardage numbers, Bledsoe is an average QB who plays small in the big games, despite having a big-time arm. That has been the pattern his entire career.

The Bills should try to find a QB who can play a complementary game and build their offense around Travis Henry. Henry has improved tremendously since last year and has shown he is a franchise RB. If you are looking for the reason for Buffalo winning more games this year, it is more due to Henry than Bledsoe. Find a complementary QB and build the defense, and the team will be better off in the long run.

One guy the Bills should take a look at is New Orleans backup QB Jake Delhomme. He isn't real big, but he is athletic and has a nice arm and quick release. He has a lot of confidence and could be the next "surprise" QB to come from relative obscurity and make a big splash. He will be an unrestricted FA after this season. Remember his name.

Remember: Drew Bledsoe, great guy, but he isn't a great QB.

This entire trade was risk when we made it and we knew it.

What we were told:

He now has all the tools and far more than he had in N.E.

Truth: He does! He has two pro bowl WRs, a should be PB RB, good TEs, a very good OL that is improving each and every week and one that has essentially started the same 5 guys for the most part all season long w/ only minor injuries for a game or two. That's very unusual in this league.

There are no excuses.

Drew will be here for the duration of his contract. We simply cannot afford to devote any more time or resources to a QB at this point. Last year we totally neglected our DL in favor of getting him and traded away a choice selection for him.

This year, we need to focus on the D in FAcy and the draft! Bar nothing.

Drew will be fine, if, and this is a HUGE 'if', he can relegate himself to the notion that this offense should revolve around Henry. Gilbride and apparently Williams will also have to acquiesce to the same thing which is my largest concern. B/c if Gilbride decides that Henry gets 30+ carries and Drew doesn't get 40+ attempts, then that's what will happen. But Gilbride has the common sense god gave a walnut apparently.

This S.D. game should have been locked up near the end of the 3rd Q and we should have had a 10 pt. + lead, possibly 17 or so. Instead, Gilbride throws the ball routinely on 3rd and 2 and 2nd and 2 when Henry's averaging 6.5 YPC.

Drew is here for at least 2 more seasons as our starter. Barring something odd, we won't resign him. But he was too expensive to try out only for this one season.

BTW, if he's got everything he needs, then how come it appears that he's not even going to match the only two decent seasons he had in N.E. w/ what everyone said at the beginning of the year, namely that he had no OL, no WRs and no decent rushing in N.E. when it's all been better here?!

No, the problem is Gilbride first, and Drew second. Drew is usuable as long as Henry is the offensive focus. If Gilbride continues to force the same ways that he's forced over the last 10 years, then that won't happen. But if he hasn't figured it out by now, I have no idea why he's gonna change and if he does, I'll wager the farm that it's only temporary anyway.

But why Drew is and has been beyond reasonable criticism is way beyond me and that seems to continue here in Buffalo when quite frankly, he's the weak link in our offense right now, nothing else!

[WG]

Originally posted by The_Philster
He simply shouldn't have been throwing the ball. There's a reason the Chargers are ranked near the bottom of the league against the run...because teams run on them a lot and their pass defense is pretty good. Travis wasn't having any problems running on them so we should have had more of a 60-40 run-pass mix.

Excellent point Philster!!

Drew struggled against the 31st ranked pass D while Henry ran just fine against the 9th ranked rushing D and the D played outstandingly against the 7th ranked rushing O, the 19th ranked yardage O, and the 20th ranked scoring O. I'll take a 13 point defensive performance every week. Heck, if Henry gets 30+ carries each week, I'll take 20.

If our D had allowed the 21.8 PPG that it is currently allowing in the first 6 games, then we'd be 10-4 right now.

The only one who hasn't shown up over the past 8 weeks who's had plenty of opportunities is Bledsoe. He surely can't complain that we're not throwing the ball enough.

[lordofgun]

How quickly we forget how much better the offense is this year with Drew over last year without Drew.

[WG]

Very solid OL and Henry running like a pro and not like some collegiate newbie!


;)

[Drewpac]

Originally posted by The_Philster
He simply shouldn't have been throwing the ball. There's a reason the Chargers are ranked near the bottom of the league against the run...because teams run on them a lot and their pass defense is pretty good. Travis wasn't having any problems running on them so we should have had more of a 60-40 run-pass mix.

Actually, the Bills entered the game with the correct gameplan against the Chargers. The Chargers were the 31st ranked pass defense and 9th ranked rush defense. It made more sense to pass on the Chargers since that is how most teams have beaten them. However, I do agree with everyone else that the pass should have been abandoned in the second quarter when it became obvious that they couldn't stop Travis. I hate Gilbride! He refuses to adjust his gameplan because he has too much pride.

[WG]

It also should have been abandoned after Drew started 4 for 13 and 2 sacks!

[justasportsfan]

Wys, what's with your, I remember the How Drew sucks let me count the ways. Then you couldn't stop chanting how good he was for the team. Now you hate him again?

Same with Henry. You didn't like him, now you love him. Can't make up your mind can you? Just like a finfnan! :D

[Rude American]

WYS will never be happy with anybody but RJoke. Kinda sad in a way, isn't it?

[SABURZFAN]

Originally posted by lordofgun
How quickly we forget how much better the offense is this year with Drew over last year without Drew.


that's an understatement.the guy has a couple bad games and these people want to start bandwagons.i'll take drew over the QB's we had last year anyday.

[The Natrix]

Originally posted by SABURZFAN



i'll take drew over the QB's we had last year anyday.

most definitely

and I would also take this years OL, an experienced Henry and J. Reed over last year's "worst OL ever," a rookie Henry, and Germany/McDaniel

....I'm not saying the OL and Henry are solely responsible for the improvement, I'm just saying that it is easy to give Drew to much credit

I look at Drew as just another piece of the puzzle, and not as a god who can win all by himself

[The Natrix]

Originally posted by The Natrix




I look at Drew as just another piece of the puzzle, and not as a god who can win all by himself

This is where Gilbride and myself differ


BTW, does anybody really think this guy (Gilbride) has done a good job? Because if you do, you sure haven't posted it yet (although I havn't read every single post)

[don137]

Offenses in cold weather sites do not produce as much as the season gets into November and December because the elements become a factor. As a result scores are down much more in November and December than September and October. The ball will carry a little more or look like a duck when the weather gets colder. The longer the throw the more inaccurate the throw becomes because of the elements. Drew is a vertical passer so it more difficult to be accurate in the cold. The ball is harder to throw and with Drew's velocity becomes harder to catch. Now Drew always seems to press at times but with throws becoming less accurate the mistakes are more evident. It's a lot easier and more accurate to do dump it off like Brady and Pennington when the weather gets colder and more windy. Now an intelligent OC should adjust according to the conditions...

[Scott]

The drop off in Drew's numbers also coincide with our schedule getting more difficult. No Texans or Vikings to kick around in the second half.

[don137]

Originally posted by Scott
The drop off in Drew's numbers also coincide with our schedule getting more difficult. No Texans or Vikings to kick around in the second half.

We may not of had the Vikings or Texans but we had the Dolphins twice so that is a wash;)

[WG]

Originally posted by The Natrix


most definitely

and I would also take this years OL, an experienced Henry and J. Reed over last year's "worst OL ever," a rookie Henry, and Germany/McDaniel

....I'm not saying the OL and Henry are solely responsible for the improvement, I'm just saying that it is easy to give Drew to much credit

I look at Drew as just another piece of the puzzle, and not as a god who can win all by himself

Well good Natrix. Because that's exactly what Drew is. He's not a QB who can win games all by himself and never has been.

I will say this however, our team has been better as we've run Henry more for sure. I'll post some data later that may suprise you.

But you're correct, the OL coming together and playing virtually injury free this season is an astronomical difference over last year as is Henry in his current state playing much more consistently and better overall.

Also, while many of you don't want to give credit, we won 3 games this year in spite of Drew's inability to put up some points;

S.D., Miami (1), and Houston. We should have won the K.C. game, but b/c we relied on Drew and the passing game, we lost. It's that simple!

The D has improved after the first 6 games. It's a fact.

[THATHURMANATOR]

How bout this. Next year we run the ball more and have more of a balanced offense. I am confident in Bledsoe and our offense shouldn't be the problem. Hopefully if we shore up the d we will be solid on both sides of the ball..

[don137]

I believe Travis Henry and Drew complement each other. Because defenses respect Drew's arm they don't have the safeties cheat up as much like last year. As a result Travis is having a very nice season...

[Mad Bomber]

We just need a D that can stop somebody.

A few years ago we had the #1 D in the league. Then GW came in here telling us about how his D was #1.


Where are we now? #31.

[WG]

In the 8 games in which the Bills allowed the most points, Bledsoe’s 7 games with his most attempts were among them. In those games, the Bills were 2-5. In 6 of those games Henry had 82 carries in comparison to the 292 passing plays that Drew dropped back for not counting broken plays on which he may have run. That represents a 78.1% passing percentage in those games contrasted with 21.9% rushing Henry. While his Bills team record for “attempts” was broken, again, I ask the question, who cares unless wins and/or points result? In the 8 games that Drew had his fewest attempts, the Bills are 6-2. In the 4 games with his least number of attempts, the Bills are 4-0. In those 4 games Henry had 107 carries and averaged 5.5 yards-per-carry on them. Drew dropped back to pass 138 times including 14 sacks. That represents a 56.3% passing percentage and a 43.7% rushing percentage for Henry, a far more balanced approach. That is well over twice that of the 6 of those games mentioned above in which Bledsoe threw the ball the most. Meanwhile, in the 6 games in which the Bills allowed their least number of points, they were 6 of the 7 of Henry’s games in which he had the most carries.

In the 8 games in which the Bills allowed the most points, Henry had his least number of carries. In 7 of those games he had 11, 12, 12, 12, 15, 15, and 17 carries.