Talk Bills with Buffalo Rumblings...

To win: run the ball effectively, move the chains on third downs, and limit big plays to Owens and Evans. Fairly simple formula, which is why we’re 4-8. Oh, and don’t turn the ball over, either – but that’s true every week.

T.O. has been great. His numbers aren’t great, obviously, but don’t think for one second it’s because he’s lost any of his prodigious skill. The man turned 36 on Monday, and he’s still got the body of a 27-year-old, and the playmaking ability to boot. We’re lucky to see him in person. The man is a football genius. For all of his baggage, and not forgetting that he hasn’t helped our offense get better, Owens was a smart move for this organization, and it’s fun to watch him play.

We’re bad. As in BAD bad.

Worst run defense in the league, extraordinarily inconsistent quarterback play, and arguably the worst, most injury-depleted offensive line in the league.

But we’re fairly effective at forcing turnovers, keeping games close and making plays in the passing game. Don’t count us out.

Ryan Fitzpatrick is our starting QB. He’s… not good.

Perry Fewell’s done a little better than expected. He’s a high-energy, upbeat guy, and this extremely young Bills team has adopted his personality fairly quickly. They play hard for him, and he’s had some solid game plans (along with growing pains).

Geoff Hangartner, our center, is our most veteran player. He’s been in the league since 2005. So has Jonathan Scott, our de facto LT. Kendall Simmons, our new right guard, is a veteran as well. Kirk Chambers has been around a couple of years. The only rookie left is Andy Levitre at left guard.

We’ve gotten more experienced as we’ve filled in injured spots with vet depth, but none of these guys (Scott, Simmons, Chambers) are NFL-caliber players.

We’re so bad against the run that it hasn’t mattered.

McGee has been out for three weeks. He should start this week.

Yes, he is. Easily our MVP. He’s not a home run threat, but he does everything well – return kicks/punts, run, catch passes, block. A true diamond in the rough.

Shawn Nelson is our starting tight end, and I sincerely hope you do leave him wide open, because the rook has been dying for a break-out performance.

And yes – the LB injuries are the biggest reason why the run D has struggled so much. Paul Posluszny is our only day one starter still in the lineup, and even he has missed time. Of our other two starters, Chris Draft started the season off as a UFA and Bryan Scott was our opening-day starter at SS.

Trent deserved to be benched. He was bad. That’s not to say he wasn’t scapegoated a little bit, but it’s mostly a function of bad play. The organization has completely lost faith in him.

Lynch wasn’t benched. The Bills regularly use both backs, they’re just now using Jackson more, and it’s purely because his play warranted it.

Losman – if there are fans who still wish he was around, they’re intelligently keeping quiet. They’d be publicly flayed.

I’ve heard rumors that Wood will be cleared by doctors to return to team activities sometime late August or early September 2010. He might not play next season, but recovery-wise, he’ll be OK.

Definitely no on Dockery. Yes to Walker and Peters. I was not amongst those questioning the moves on any of those players, though I do wish the Bills had been able to get JP in long-term.

Haven’t had the opportunity to find out yet, because we’ve been so banged up at corner that Whitner has been playing nickel CB, with Byrd and Wilson playing S.

Byrd is banged up too, so my guess is that when McGee gets back in the lineup full-time (this week, probably), Byrd will be a situational safety and play on passing downs, with Whitner and George Wilson playing FS/SS respectively on run downs.

Kinda early to predict, so I won’t. QB and LT are obvious needs, but the Bills have been, and probably will remain under a new GM, very much a value-based organization. Keep your eye on Rolando McClain if he declares.

Johnson had the game won. Also, I was 14 at the time, and thus my teen brain couldn’t sufficiently grasp the enormity of that decision. So no, I have no ill will towards Wade for that move.

LOL – yeah, it’s not really fascinating at all.

He’s cheap, but his career won’t take off in Buffalo. He probably would not survive a regime change.

He was a late first rounder so his contract isn’t a whole lot to stomach (pun intended). If he has a problem with being traded he’s never said it publicly and he has a new DL coach this year so at least he’s not working with the same coach he was working with. I think he has one year left on his deal next year but like Brian I don’t believe he survives a regime change (though I didn’t think he would be on the team this year either). The Bills will likely draft someone to replace him even if they stay in a 4-3.

Lynch was suspended for the first 3 games. Jackson earned his top-RB reps not because he’s better, but because he was able to adjust to the Bills’ offensive line and produce behind it faster (and now more frequently) than Lynch did.

Jackson’s 28. He doesn’t have a lot of wear and tear on the tires, but he’s 28. Does there have to be a “future” at RB? It’s the easiest-to-replace position on a football field. That’s why y’all could get away with cutting LJ.

I don’t see TO getting re-signed, only because a) he’ll get offers from contenders and b) a new GM/coach is unlikely to want to build around him.

I don’t blame you. He is the definition of badass.

We just went 250+ days without snow…. and had our first major snow storm over the last couple days. In fact the town where Brian lvies got hit pretty hard from what I hear.

I like your nightmare. But Hali can affect that coming to fruition, because Buffalo doesn’t really have an answer for a good, solid pass rusher. Our O-Line is a mess.

Nope. That’s the thing about in-season firings – things don’t really change, they just appear to. Same team, same problems, slightly different way of trying to mask those problems. That’s all.

Nice….

I thought Edwards was suppose to be good,

So did we.

Brohm has taken scout team reps. He’ll be in training camp next year to compete for a spot on the new coach’s team.

Welp… I’ve watched Thomas Jones, Ricky WIlliams, Chris Johnson, Ryan Moats and a bunch of other backs do it…. what’s the difference? LOL

I think the “Beefs” would be a better name.

With Fine it wasn’t a “OMG his knee just got destroyed” or a rolled up situation. We didn’t see anything during a game that said his knee was injured. The Bills were particularly thin at TE at the time so it must have been serious for them to put him on IR.

His future on the Bills is as a blocking TE. That’s his strong suit. They have two guys, Derek Schouman and Derek Fine, who are that kind of solid backup type. Fine probably won’t ever start in the league but he certainly could have a role going forward. The other Bills TE is the recently drafted Shawn Nelson from So. Miss. who is more of a pass-catching option and then marginal NFL talent Jonathan Stupar and Joe Klopfenstein who were both brought to the active roster after the Dereks’ injuries.