Bills torn a new one, here comes the expectations of a 5-6 win season

[Mace]

Again, they know about those void clauses. They likely didn't do it because Marcell would have refused to re-sign.

But we shall see if it was a mistake. Even if they had inserted it, they weren't going to take back any money for this incident.

They "likely", they "know". Prudent organizational move was to force a void clause. Maybe Dareus would have paid attention closer. Or again, he'd be on someone elses hook for up to 360 passed tests until 2019. Or maybe he'd still earn the same money, just not guaranteed.

If they had inserted it, they weren't going to take back any money ? Oh you lost me there. If Lane Johnson's clause will cost him guaranteed money, Dareus' clause wouldn't ?

That clause means salary, bonuses and agreements are still earnable and contractual, but not guaranteed. That frankly, saves a lot of money if he goes down again.

There's absolutely no reason not to force this clause and no reason for Dareus to not agree to the same contract with a void clause unless he knew he couldn't manage the terms.

It allows both sides to maintain the faith and uphold their end.

They made a mistake.

[SpikedLemonade]

The team wants to put on a show but those in the know, know we are really screwed right now. 6 wins looks to be the tops we can do, it's really sad actually.

I wish I had said this 3 months ago...wait...I did.

[Goobylal]

They "likely", they "know". Prudent organizational move was to force a void clause. Maybe Dareus would have paid attention closer. Or again, he'd be on someone elses hook for up to 360 passed tests until 2019. Or maybe he'd still earn the same money, just not guaranteed.

If they had inserted it, they weren't going to take back any money ? Oh you lost me there. If Lane Johnson's clause will cost him guaranteed money, Dareus' clause wouldn't ?

That clause means salary, bonuses and agreements are still earnable and contractual, but not guaranteed. That frankly, saves a lot of money if he goes down again.

There's absolutely no reason not to force this clause and no reason for Dareus to not agree to the same contract with a void clause unless he knew he couldn't manage the terms.

It allows both sides to maintain the faith and uphold their end.

They made a mistake.

Sure there is a reason: Marcell probably wouldn't have signed it and they would have lost him. Again they know about these types of clauses.

[IlluminatusUIUC]

They "likely", they "know". Prudent organizational move was to force a void clause. Maybe Dareus would have paid attention closer. Or again, he'd be on someone elses hook for up to 360 passed tests until 2019. Or maybe he'd still earn the same money, just not guaranteed.

If they had inserted it, they weren't going to take back any money ? Oh you lost me there. If Lane Johnson's clause will cost him guaranteed money, Dareus' clause wouldn't ?

That clause means salary, bonuses and agreements are still earnable and contractual, but not guaranteed. That frankly, saves a lot of money if he goes down again.

There's absolutely no reason not to force this clause and no reason for Dareus to not agree to the same contract with a void clause unless he knew he couldn't manage the terms.

It allows both sides to maintain the faith and uphold their end.

They made a mistake.

You don't get anything in a contract negotiation for free. If you want Marcel to give up and accept this void clause, what are you giving him in return? Keep in mind he's already one of the highest paid players in the league.

[Skooby]

Pure speculation here, throw a little more money on the table for a clean out is always worth it especially with a guy who had known problems then.

[Goobylal]

Pure speculation here, throw a little more money on the table for a clean out is always worth it especially with a guy who had known problems then.

Doesn't matter how much more money you throw at him, he likely doesn't sign the deal if it has voidable guarantees. And again, to think that the Bills "forgot" or didn't know about voidable clauses is silly. It's not like they came up with the contract on the spot and had him sign it. It was obviously a drawn-out process.

[Ingtar33]

I took one look at the schedule when it was released and struggled hard to see more then 8 wins on it. I think 8 is our ceiling this year; if they can get to it, it will be a fairly ok season all things considered.

If they can do better then they should be able to ball with playoff teams, and the future is bright (even if we don't get to the playoffs).

If they do worse then it's just more of the same from this squad; either underperforming, or undisciplined and taking a lot of penalties, or poor coaching, or poor/overrated talent, or tyrod turns into poop.

[Mace]

You don't get anything in a contract negotiation for free. If you want Marcel to give up and accept this void clause, what are you giving him in return? Keep in mind he's already one of the highest paid players in the league.

He gets the same contract and the chance to earn it, it's just not guaranteed if he gets suspended for substance abuse. What idiot telegraphs his potential for substance abuse to an employer investing that much money in him ?

They had a tool they could have used and didn't. I find it ridiculous. I find defending not using it to be ridiculous too. Because he just got suspended again and has to have and pass around 360 unannounced drug tests between now and 2019. Good luck with that, he's getting close to the banhammer.

[Mace]

Sure there is a reason: Marcell probably wouldn't have signed it and they would have lost him. Again they know about these types of clauses.

They didn't use a tool appropriate to be used. They made a mistake because in your view, they are experienced and know what they're doing. So, in your view they made a mistake on purpose.

Still ends the same. They made the mistake.

[Goobylal]

They didn't use a tool appropriate to be used. They made a mistake because in your view, they are experienced and know what they're doing. So, in your view they made a mistake on purpose.

Still ends the same. They made the mistake.

Again, if they demand he accept the void clause, he likely plays out his contract and walks at the end of last season. Since we can't see the future to know if he'll miss more than the 4 games (or maybe that's enough for you), we can't say right now that it was a mistake to re-sign him/not include the void clause.

[Historian]

A couple thoughts:

First of all, I did not know you could go to rehab for smoking pot. As far as I know, it's natural and non-addictive, as opposed to alcohol, cocaine, pain killers, etc. Can any of the dope smokers clear that one up for me? Is he there to get cured of the munchies that it produces?

Second, My guess is that Williams got cut and Darius didn't due to the huge financial hit they would take. He has potential too. when he's on, he's the next Warren Sapp. Unfortunately, he has been more of a headache lately. Williams on the other hand, probably had weight benchmarks he had to hit by certain dates. When he weighed in for the Giants game, he probably was way behind, and the Bills were having none of it, despite how well he played last year.

Third, as Ingtar mentioned, the schedule is killer. THREE trips to the west coast, where they never play well. (Haven't won in Seattle since 2000, Oakland since 1965, and never beat the Rams in the Coliseum, or Anaheim) I penciled those three in as losses back in April. Two annual losses to the Patriots, as well as beatings by the Steelers, Cardinals, and Bengals. 9-7 MAX is about what I figured, assuming TT stays healthy, and they don't do anything stupid.

I for one, appreciate Sully. While the rest of the writers are doing puff pieces about the team in order to maintain access, he tells it like it is. He's been here through thick and thin, and has witnessed the poor decision making first hand. All this while watching a division opponent, who has traditionally been a laughingstock, win four Super Bowls.

At some point this organization needs to take a long hard look at itself, and try to figure out why they have been irrelevant for almost TWO DECADES, in the era of free agency.

It's football guys, not neurosurgery.

/endrant

[Goobylal]

Williams was also a dirtbag in college, which is why he fell to the mid-5th round. And how do you come into camp 40# overweight, and then not only not lose weight, but gain it? Shows you his lack of commitment and character. But even if Marcell was being paid like Karlos was, they wouldn't have even thought once about cutting him. Pot is in a completely different category from other drugs/alcohol.

[Skooby]

Williams was also a dirtbag in college, which is why he fell to the mid-5th round. And how do you come into camp 40# overweight, and then not only not lose weight, but gain it? Shows you his lack of commitment and character. But even if Marcell was being paid like Karlos was, they wouldn't have even thought once about cutting him. Pot is in a completely different category from other drugs/alcohol.

The things I heard about Karlos wouldn't allow slack at all, he's not trustable. Fat, stupid and suspended was the trigger.

[Bill Cody]

I was expecting 6 wins long before reading that article.

Still, that article is nothing but a ***** session. The Bills are misbehaving, Ryan's a loudmouth, the team is inconsistent in how it deals with behavior issues, the team sucks and has sucked for 15 years.... blah blah blah.

I know, some of you will say that's ironic coming from me and you wouldn't be entirely incorrect. But I'm a disgruntled fan on an unofficial message board. This article by a (supposedly) real journalist was actually published by a (supposedly) real newspaper. WTF?

LOL

[Goobylal]

The things I heard about Karlos wouldn't allow slack at all, he's not trustable. Fat, stupid and suspended was the trigger.

But what was the last straw? We knew about the fat, stupid, and suspended weeks (or more) ago.

[gebobs]

Carbos Williams

[Mr. Pink]

Carbos Williams

Maybe they should have kept him and tried him out to play Guard opposite of Incognito!

He's gaining the size for it and since he's a RB, his footwork should be good.

[elroy16]

A couple thoughts:

First of all, I did not know you could go to rehab for smoking pot. As far as I know, it's natural and non-addictive, as opposed to alcohol, cocaine, pain killers, etc. Can any of the dope smokers clear that one up for me? Is he there to get cured of the munchies that it produces?

Second, My guess is that Williams got cut and Darius didn't due to the huge financial hit they would take. He has potential too. when he's on, he's the next Warren Sapp. Unfortunately, he has been more of a headache lately. Williams on the other hand, probably had weight benchmarks he had to hit by certain dates. When he weighed in for the Giants game, he probably was way behind, and the Bills were having none of it, despite how well he played last year.

Third, as Ingtar mentioned, the schedule is killer. THREE trips to the west coast, where they never play well. (Haven't won in Seattle since 2000, Oakland since 1965, and never beat the Rams in the Coliseum, or Anaheim) I penciled those three in as losses back in April. Two annual losses to the Patriots, as well as beatings by the Steelers, Cardinals, and Bengals. 9-7 MAX is about what I figured, assuming TT stays healthy, and they don't do anything stupid.

I for one, appreciate Sully. While the rest of the writers are doing puff pieces about the team in order to maintain access, he tells it like it is. He's been here through thick and thin, and has witnessed the poor decision making first hand. All this while watching a division opponent, who has traditionally been a laughingstock, win four Super Bowls.

At some point this organization needs to take a long hard look at itself, and try to figure out why they have been irrelevant for almost TWO DECADES, in the era of free agency.

It's football guys, not neurosurgery.

/endrant

In terms of going to rehab, the non-addictive part means absolutely nothing to me. People get addicted to eating sofa cushions, shopping, yoga, etc. In Marcell's case, I doubt it has much to do with the physical addition of pot and more so the crutch it provides. I'm just guessing based off of experiences a few friends have had and also my experience of having to stop smoking after doing it everyday for a couple of years. For me, it was easy to just stop, but no one's experience is the same as the next person, so again, I'm just guessing here.


I can't get on board with the, it's football, not neurosurgery. Yes, football is easier than brain surgery, but the neurosurgeons aren't competing against the 31 other top neurosurgeons in the world. Apples to oranges.


Lastly, going through the schedule to pick out wins and loses is close to pointless, IMO. I bet 90% of Bills fans and 100% of neutral observers thought the Bills would lose to the Colts last year. I think they'll win between 5 and 11 games. Five if Tyrod, Sammy, Clay, Glenn, Richie, Woods, Gilmore, Darby, Kyle Williams, Hughes, and McCoy all get hurt and 11 if they all stay healthy and the defense takes a big step in the right direction.

[gebobs]

I can't get on board with the, it's football, not neurosurgery. Yes, football is easier than brain surgery, but the neurosurgeons aren't competing against the 31 other top neurosurgeons in the world. Apples to oranges.

The only reason it's in the policy is because it's illegal. It's not performance enhancing for an athlete, that's for sure. And it's being legalized or at least decriminalized, rightly so IMHO, just about everywhere. The reason why the NFL doesn't follow suit is because they want to provide a squeaky clean illusion. That's their prerogative but how is the image tarnished if a player is sparking up in the privacy of his home? It's an overreaction and the policy should be changed. Unfortunately, any change may be perceived as tacit approval, so it's not likely going to happen any time soon.

I think they'll win ... 11 if they all stay healthy and the defense takes a big step in the right direction.

I hope your employer doesn't have a similar testing policy, my man. :-)

[IlluminatusUIUC]

Maybe they should have kept him and tried him out to play Guard opposite of Incognito!

He's gaining the size for it and since he's a RB, his footwork should be good.

You know he's bad when he's cut from the only team that's having an actual fullback battle in camp