Sunday, April 26, 2009

The 12th Man South Off Season Report By Rick

Well , here we are gang , half way through the Buffalo Bills off season . With our guys finishing this past season in such disappointing fashion , we all knew that some changes were called for , didn't we ? Well , it's changes we got . Gone are three fifths of the starting offensive line . Yeah , the line that Marv Levy put together to be the backbone of the offense . It turned out to be the tail bone . First Derrick Dockery was released , and none too soon if you ask me . What en expensive mistake he turned out to be . A hard worker in practice , from all reports , and a terrific technician in the art of line play . But , he seemed better suited for the role of spectator since he spent more time watching plays unfold than actually participating in them . The Free Agent period was soon to follow , and with it came the departures of Duke Preston , Melvin Fowler and Jason Whittle . Ah , the memories these guys gave us , huh ? It's a miracle of sorts that Trent Edwards is still alive , having operated behind this group . Last , but certainly not least , among the O - line departures was the trade of Jason Peters to Philadelphia . To be sure , Peters is among the elite left tackles in the NFL . When he feels like it . Last season he obviously didn't . Mr . Peters allowed 11 1/2 sacks in only thirteen games , the most by any starting left tackle in the league . His hold out last year single handily scuttled the plans to install a no huddle offense which might have proved to be of great value competitively and certainly fun to watch . Gone with him is a huge locker room distraction . Also lost in free agency was Jabari Greer . For my part , I'll miss him . All he did in his time with us was to develop from an unheralded rookie free agent signee , into a very capable and dependable cornerback . Best of luck Jabari , and thank you , you'll always be a Bill in my book . Oh , I almost forgot . J.P. Losman is gone too . Bye !!

Now , lets look at the newcomers . Our first Free Agent acquisition was Goeff Hangartner from the Carolina Panthers . Who ?? I have a strong feeling that he'll show us " who " . A couple of days after his signing I had occasion to watch a replay of the game from last season between Carolina and the NY Giants . Hangartner started at right guard for Carolina and more than acquitted himself well . He showed me a trait that none of the departed Bills linemen ever displayed . This guy is nasty . He displayed a real nasty streak that has him lock onto his man and keep going until he finishes the block . Sometimes he kept going after that too . If you get the feeling that I was impressed with Goeff Hangartner , you're right . Buffalo envisions him as the newest answer at Center . Not a Kent Hull maybe , but then again who is ? The good news is that while he may not be the second coming of Kent Hull , he's not Melvin Fowler or Duke Preston either . Another O - lineman signed to shore up the depth is Seth McKinney . He's a seven year veteran who has spent time with both Miami and Cleveland . Cornerback , Drayton Florence , a seven year pro came to us from Jacksonville . Just a year ago he was among the most sought after free agent corners in the league after playing for the Chargers since his rookie year . He never seemed to fit with Gregg Williams defense in Jacksonville but he's capable of providing good depth at that all important position . Now to the Big Enchilada . The Piece De Resistance of our off season . Terrell Owens . Do you believe that TO was signed by Buffalo ? We all know that he's the kind of guy you love to hate , but he is a remarkable talent . He gives our receiving corps , and the entire offense , instant credibility . Which defensive coordinator would dare to double cover Lee Evans now ? The passing game isn't the only beneficiary of his presence . Defenses won't be so quick to load " the box " at the line of scrimmage in order to stop our running game with this new found receiving threat . Marshawn Lynch , when he eventually returns from suspension , along with Fred Jackson and their new sidekick , Dominique Rhodes should love that . Terrell Owens . I still find it hard to believe .

As I write this , we've just completed the first two rounds of the Draft . We've selected four players in those two rounds and the Bills have done something that hasn't been done in some years . They've addressed needs on both defensive and offensive lines with three selections out of the four players chosen . Their first selection in round one is Aaron Maybin , a " tweener " sort of defensive end from Penn State . This guy's forte is the pass rush . To say that he's fast doesn't quite cover it . His initial move off the edge is more like a strong gust blowing by an unsuspecting tackle . He has an enormous amount of potential upside but he also carries some risk . You see , he was a starter for less than one full season at Penn State so there are some who wonder if he is just a " one year wonder " . We better hope not . I'd much rather see him be another DE like Bruce Smith than like Erik Flowers . Maybin was rated the number one DE prospect by many scouts . In keeping with that nastiness theme they've added Eric Wood , a center / guard from Louisville and Andy Levitre , a guard / tackle from Oregon State . Both of these players are reputed to be rock solid , blue collar types who would drive block their own Mother if she stood between them and the goal line . Wood is rated as one of the top three centers available and Levitre is the number one guard prospect available this year . It would seem that the Bills are changing their line play philosophy from one of finesse to just plain mean , smash mouth football . Yahoo , it's about time . I'm anxious to see them bloody some noses this coning season . These two young guys were academic All Americans as well as standout ball players . Both are slated to be guards , at this time . The other draft pick is Jairus Byrd , from Oregon , one of the top rated cornerbacks in the country . I think that Buffalo sees him as a free safety prospect . We've traded away our third and first fourth round draft choices . Remaining are another fourth and one each in rounds five , six , and seven . It's about time we had a great draft . The team is still suffering from those awful Donohue drafts . Ralph said it last season , we need more talented players . I think that we're on our way to achieving that goal .

It's not quite May yet and I'm already getting that September feeling . OTA's begin in about a week and before we know it training camp will be here . Personnel transactions are taking place , players are working out , and we fans should start gearing up too . Some of us qualify as Senior Citizens so we have to take a little extra time to gear up for the season . If we were to start too quickly , we may just strain something . So ease into it , but start getting yourselves ready for that Monday Night opening game against the Patriots . Won't it be great to see those guys go down on a Monday Night ?

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

2009 Schedule

PreSeason
Sunday 8/9 Bills vs Tennessee Titans (HOF Game) 8:00 PM
Saturday 8/15 Chicago Bears 7:00 PM
Saturday 8/22 At Green Bay Packers 8:00 PM
Saturday 8/29 At Pittsburgh Steelers 7:30 PM
Thursday 9/3 Detroit Lions 6:30 PM
Regular Season
Monday 9/14 At New England Patriots 7:00 PM
Sunday 9/20 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 4:05 PM
Sunday 9/27 New Orleans Saints 4:05 PM
Sunday 10/4 At Miami Dolphins 4:05 PM
Sunday 10/11 Cleveland Browns 1:00 PM
Sunday 10/18 At NY Jets 4:15 PM
Sunday 10/25 At Carolina Panthers 4:05 PM
Sunday 11/1 Houston Texans 1:00 PM
Sunday 11/8 BYE WEEK
Sunday 11/15 At Tennessee Titans 1:00 PM
Sunday 11/22 At Jacksonville Jaguars 1:00 PM*
Sunday 11/29 Miami Dolphins 1:00 PM *
Thursday 12/3 NY Jets (Toronto) 8:20 PM
Sunday 12/13 At Kansas City Chiefs 1:00 PM*
Sunday 12/20 New England Patriots 1:00 PM*
Sunday 12/27 At Atlanta Falcons 1:00 PM*
Sunday 1/3 Indianapolis Colts 1:00 PM*
Red = Home Game
* = Game subjectt o Flex Scheduling