The other prediction I nailed on the head was on Aaron Schobel.  After a very poor 2008 season, I predicted a comeback season of sorts for him and guaranteed he would again reach double digits in sacks, and he did.  But for every ying their will be a yang.  Boy was I off about Terrell Owens, I did predict that he would attain 1,000 yards.  Although I didn’t say he would achieve 1,300 yards or anything like that, he was still 171 yards off of my initial prediction, that one hurt.  The other prediction which confused me for most of the season was with how poor Buffalo’s special teams was.  What made it worse was their ability to find different ways to suck from week to week.  My Bad!

But I still take great comfort in the Fred Jackson pick.  So with a look forward to 2010, let’s look at what the Bills can do to be fantasy relevant.  First they can trade Lynch.  Yes, he is very young.  But sucking when you are young will only translate into more sucking as you get older.  It has been very tough for people to accept that in some cases, some players were just made for the college game and just could not translate their skills to the pro game.  I believe Marshawn can still be successful, but has a very long way to go as an every down back.  Instead of recreating the Flutie/Johnson hysteria, why not just deal Lynch, and draft your complementary back?  Also, what more does Jackson need to do to prove his worth?

Jackson will once again rush for over 1,000 yards.  In fact (uh oh prediction time) do not be surprised to see him attain something in the 1,200 yard range on the ground.  What makes Jackson equally dangerous is that he is just as good catching the ball out of the backfield and getting yards after the catch.  With Jackson playing in Buffalo and some still believing that Lynch is the second coming of Thurman Thomas, you may actually still be able to get Jackson at a nice bargain basement price.  Especially depending on what Buffalo does on draft day.  The one knock on Jackson has always been his lack of TD’s.  Well, you can really knock that one up the Bills as a whole.  But in Jackson’s case it does not carry as much weight as some might think.  In 2008, Jackson was virtually an unknown to opposing teams when Buffalo was inside the 5.  Marshawn would typically get those touches.  In 2009, play calling in Buffalo was at an all time worst, one series comes to mind.  Jackson ripped off a nice run, maybe 10-15 yards.  Buffalo was now getting close to the goal line.  Buffalo then calls three pass plays in a row?  Great job Buffalo.  Oh yeah, they didn’t score.

I will say it now, it does not matter who Buffalo brings in at QB or Receivers, please steer clear of Lee Evans.  Some may try and sway you with the argument that he has the best long ball ability amongst all wide receivers, just don’t believe the hype.  Evans is good, but unfortunately it doesn’t translate in Fantasy Land.  Evans is a stellar number two receiver who, due to circumstance, is seeing number one receiver double and triple teams.  The offensive line is still being rebuilt, so it is time to take a pass on Lee Evans, and maybe pick him up on the waiver wire if the match-up dictates it.

Even though I am not a guy who buys too much into the concept behind sleepers I will throw one name out there, Shawn Nelson.  This guy showed some serious skill, and should only benefit by having a good offensive minded coach coming in to mentor this team.  Nelson has all the tools and is poised to break out.  Hopefully the team will realize that they are lacking in weapons and therefor Nelson should become more of an option on offense.  Personally the offense should center around Jackson and Nelson, and why not?  They are both the “safety” throws for QB’s and should see much of the touches on offense.  Although Nelson wont see Pro Bowl numbers, it is not out of the realm of possibilities that he can put up numbers that show a move in that direction.

On defence Jairus Byrd will take a step back production wise.  His performance is just to hard to repeat.  But, one guy who could see more playing time is another guy who I predicted would make a big impact, Drayton Florence.  Drayton played hard and due to injuries ended up starting some games.  I am not sold on Leodis McKelvin as of yet, and Buffalo should seriously consider starting Florence in his place.  Another guy who I am very high on who could have a great 2010 season is Kyle Williams.  With the Schobel retirement still up in the air, and no real defensive ends on the roster that can handle a conversion to the 3-4 system, Williams could find himself playing at one end of the line.  Williams has been a pleasant surprise and is in fact one of the more steady and reliable members of this defensive unit.

My last pick make some noise in 2010 will be…Aaron Maybin…oh my god what am I saying?  Before I get jumped all over there will be some stipulations to this.  Maybin needs to prove in training camp that he deserves the starting OLB spot on the 3-4 defense.  Provided that Buffalo does not fill this spot and allows him to compete, he could make some noise.  The knock on Maybin is that he is undersized to be a defensive end, but to big to play linebacker, in essence, he was a tweener.  But playing on the outside of the 3-4, Maybin could end up finding himself in the one position that he may be NFL ready for.  Maybin does have great pass rushing skills, and is still an above average athlete.  Making the transition may prove to be a little difficult.  But, if Maybin puts in the work, this could actually be the most logical spot for him.

The second option as to why Buffalo could not be seen making an offer to any top flight free agents is that we are rebuilding.  Before every fan jumps up and down as to why Buffalo has yet to make a splash in free agency, it is important to understand the dynamics of rebuilding.  Buffalo lacks two starting tackles, two starting linebackers, one quarterback, two wide receivers, one defensive end, and one nose tackle.  Not to mention that they could still stand to make improvements on some of the players they currently have as I still am not convinced Terrance McGee is a solid starting cornerback or Keith Ellison is anything but a quality backup linebacker.  But, Buffalo will be spending the better part of two to three years rebuilding this team that has been desperate for a face lift for some time.  For the next few years Buffalo does not actually have to focus on drafting for need because, well, they need almost everything.

Why sign a player to a four or five year contract when, as a team, you already know that at least 50-75% of that contract will be spent on a rebuilding and losing team?  Honestly, why invest that kind of money on one player when you already know you will be fielding a losing product?  Also, going into this uncapped season, why spend the moon when the threat of a lockout looms.  Although I don’t believe that a lockout will happen, there still is the potential for one, so why get stuck with assets that you just can’t use.  Although many have been very critical of Buffalo’s unwillingness to spend money on their own product, in this case I do tend to agree with having a reserved approach in this free agency period.

Not only did Buffalo have no real shot at a Karlos Dansby or Anquan Boldin (via trade), but why would they want them?  Yes it would be nice to have these super stars in Buffalo, but wouldn’t it once again defeat the purpose of rebuilding.  Dansby will be 29 this year, which means by the time Buffalo is ready to be competitive he will be 32 or so, was that really a solid investment?  Boldin is a year older than Dansby!  It is not that Buffalo is going out of their way to be terrible, but they need to hit rock bottom before they can finally begin to float back to the top rather than stay suspended in lower level mediocrity (if they were to make the free agency splash).  By signing these free agents it would make Buffalo better, but by how much?  Karlos Dansby, Aaron Kampma, Gary Brackett would all make Buffalo better, but they would not allow Buffalo to finally move forward as a team.  The only way to achieve this is to pass on the temptation of high profile free agents and stay committed to building and developing our young players.  Free agency for Buffalo cannot be about finding a superstar to appease fans but about filling roster spots in order to be able to field a team in 2010.

There is one other concern with free agency this year.  All the really good players are restricted.  Brandon Marshall, DeMeco Ryans, Elvis Dumervil, Marcus McNeill, Thomas Davis are all restricted.  For a team that is on the cusp, signing a restricted free agent is not a huge deal.  Losing the 25th pick in the draft is not a huge loss if you get a quality player out of it that still has youth on their side.  But Buffalo can ill afford to waste any of their draft picks, which is too bad because I could build a defense entirely on this years crop of restricted free agents.

But regardless, Buffalo is in a good place right now, and although they are not “players” in the free agency game, they are holding interviews and visits to bring in the quality (maybe not flashy) free agents this team needs, as they can ill afford to spend $50 million on one player when they still have 12 more to find.

Donte Whitner came to Buffalo from THE Ohio State, and although reviews were mixed as some felt it was a reach with the 8th overall pick in the 2006 draft, expectations were still very high.  Donte seemed poised and up for the challenge as he showed tremendous ability in run support and, although not a play maker, was decent against the pass as well.  But for some reason, as with many young players, Donte hit a wall and has not seemed to be able to show improvement.  There has been a stop in the progression in his skill set.  Donte is still a fierce competitor as well as an above average tackler, but his ability to play the pass has dwindled to the point that Buffalo replaced him during the 2009 season in an attempt to find someone who could help against the pass.  To an extent Whitner is roughly the same player he was when he came into the league, and that is not a good thing.  The 2009 season showed the world that Buffalo is filled with players like that (Trent Edwards, Chris Kelsay, Ryan Denney, Marshawn Lynch, to name a few).

On the other end is Jason Campbell, who was a 25th overall selection of the Redskins in the 2005 entry draft.  Campbell is an interesting prospect as he has gone through a lot of uncertainty during his tenure in Washington.  Although he was billed as the Redskins proverbial “Next One,” Campbell failed to garner the fan support or the coaches support early on.  Campbell has grown though, and has become a decent NFL QB, although not elite or even a great one for that matter.  But he still is a quality starter at the QB position.  Washington has stumbled over the last three years as they only posted one winning season (9-7) and have gone a total of 21 – 27 during that span.  In the case of the Redskins it has not been Campbell’s fault as he has improved his QB rating, completions, attempts, completion percentage, passing yards, and touchdowns, in each of the last three seasons.  While he will never be a 4,000 yard, 40 TD guy, he most certainly can grow into a calm leader on the field who has a rifle for an arm.

Not all is golden with Jason Campbell as he does have some qualities that can be detracting.  He fumbles, a lot.  Last year, along with his 20 td’s he also felt the need to accompany that with 15 int’s.  Also, as solid as Whitner is against the run, he has his negative qualities as well, like 4 career INT’s.  I know I said he isn’t a play maker but, this is almost as bad as Chris Kelsay’s sack totals every year (2006 sort of excluded).  Whitner also can get beat, unless it is against the run where he is (again) solid.

So why would Washington want Whitner and vice versa with Campbell and Buffalo?  This deal makes a ton of sense as both teams are severely lacking in each of those respective positions.  Since the untimely and unfortunate death of Sean Taylor, Washington has needed to fill that hole at SS.  Whitner would fill an immediate need and it is possible that a change in scenery could bring out the inner play maker that Buffalo fans had desperately wanted to see.  On the other side of the equation, Buffalo needs a strong armed QB who can remain calm and take a hit.  To some extent, none showed more ability to do so in 2009 than Jason Campbell who was sacked 43 times.

If this deal where to happen my only request would be to unload Trent Edwards as well.  It has already been painfully established (on live T.V.) that he does not posses the arm strength to make it work in Buffalo.  Unless he goes on a BALCO bender I really don’t see that changing in our lifetime.  The key to this deal is change, as both players (and Edwards) really could use a change of scenery.  Whitner came from a winning program and has grown increasingly frustrated with the lack of results that have come out of Buffalo.  He still has the potential to be a starting safety and a change of scenery could help him reconnect and then expand on the player he use to be.  Campbell on the other hand is relatively under appreciated for what he has been able to accomplish in Washington along with the train wreck that is Dan Snyder.  With a running attack that needs some revamping, an offensive line that was terrible, suspect wide receivers (for the most part), it is Campbell that somehow is being credited with most of the blame.  With Washington holding the 4th pick in the draft some believe Sam Bradford will be the eventual successor.  Even though this is just a rumor, it still is something that Buffalo should be very eager to do as Campbell would finally be the arm AND talent they have been looking for to fill the void, at least temporarily.

With this in mind, it throws my entire feelings toward drafting an offensive lineman in the 2010 draft.  Buffalo can now draft a lineman and still add a veteran for leadership and mentoring.  So who to pick?  I have chosen, in my opinion, the best all around athlete at this position, Bruce Campbell out of Maryland.  At 6-7 and 310 pounds, Campbell has the size to compete in the NFL.  He is a junior coming out of college so he will still have some strength that he must add.

Buffalo already will have two second year guards and a relatively unknown center, so adding a rookie LT really wont disrupt too much provided Buffalo can find a veteran RT via free agency.  The only concern with Campbell is his history in dealing with injuries, but Buffalo, along with their new head coach, have shown a commitment to strength and conditioning by revamping that entire department within the Bills organization.

Although their are sexier picks available like Sam Bradford, Anthony Davis, or even Carlos Dunlap, I believe Campbell is the smart investment with the ninth overall pick.  Buffalo was going into this draft already short a LT, and with the sudden retirement of Brad Butler Buffalo needs to realize that filling one starting OL spot can be done.  But, filling both with quality starters is almost impossible.  Besides, it is better to have a fully functioning OL for 2011 when they can (and should) find their QB of the future, Jake Locker.  Well, one can hope can’t they?

This leads me to my main focus, it is the one subject that is brought up every draft, but is only uttered again if a player goes bust.  I am talking about the process of “reaching” for a player.  Widely considered the biggest draft bust in the history of the NFL, Ryan Leaf had a terrible NFL career.  But, even though he is a huge bust, I hesitate to consider him the worst bust in recent memory.  The reason for this is simple, he was projected to go that high and had the talent, up until that point, to match.  A player I would consider a bigger bust would be Akili Smith, who did not have the same level of talent and was a reach when Cincinnati decided to spend a high draft choice on him.

So when we look at Buffalo I think about the many reaches that worked or didn’t work.  In 2003 Buffalo employed the strategy of taking the best player on the board.  With that mindset they ended up taking injured-but amazing running back Willis McGahee.  This worked out very well for them, but at the same time they already had a fairly productive running back in Travis Henry.  Buffalo ended up missing out on TE Dallas Clark (a position Buffalo still hasn’t filled until hopefully last years draft choice Shawn Nelson).  Buffalo also missed out on the one guy I thought was the best running back in the draft, maybe because I love Penn State, Larry Johnson.  But, McGahee had dropped from several peoples draft board and some thought he may even go in the second or even third round.  Ultimately, Travis Henry was jettisoned from Buffalo and McGahee would eventually decide he no longer wanted to be a Buffalo Bill, great job.  As for Dallas Clark, well I am sure we all know by now.

In 2004, Buffalo did a great job with the drafting of Lee Evans, filling a much needed void.  In this case they were able to match need with quality.  But then Buffalo did something shocking.  They already had a quality QB in Drew Bledsoe who was only 32 years old at the time.  But Buffalo decided to trade for another first round pick and chose QB J.P. Losman.  Yes, in hindsight we can obviously say Losman was a bust, but that isn’t what I am addressing.  Losman was a reach, and worse than that, we traded for the right to reach for him.  At this point Buffalo still had several holes in their lineup that they could have filled.  In Buffalo’s attempt to reach for Losman they passed on guys who I still remember I was high on like guards Chris Snee, Jake Grove or my favorite player going into that draft and still to this day, linebacker Karlos Dansby.

In 2006 Buffalo drafted safety Donte Whitner.  The pick shocked many but didn’t disappoint.  He was a slight reach but proved to be a very good player through his rookie season.  But Buffalo decided to go the same route as in 2004 and once again traded for a second first round pick.  This time they decided it was time to reach for a defensive player, DT John McCargo.  Yes Buffalo’s defensive line needed help, but, John-freaking-McCargo?  Buffalo passed on some pretty hyped up players in positions of serious need like TE Mercedes Lewis, DE Mathias Kiwanuka, and my favorite from this draft LB DeMeco Ryans, and the logical selection I thought which would have been tackle Winston Justice.

Finally in 2008 Buffalo did it right by selecting Leodis McKelvin with their first round pick in the draft.  Unfortunately they couldn’t get it right in the second round.  Buffalo was on the clock and decided to go wide receiver.  Lee Evans has needed help since he became a Buffalo Bill, and finally the Bills front office was going to reward him with someone who would take away some pressure.  That was the thought at least.  Instead of picking highly ranked DeSean Jackson or Eddie Royal, heck even Malcolm Kelly was there, Buffalo decided to pick the giant James Hardy.  The hope was he could be a threat much like Moss has been in his career.  The difference that Buffalo did not account for is that Moss has intangibles that make him one of the greatest receivers of our time.  Heck, hasn’t Matt Jones proven you need more than just height.

These are not “after the fact” examples as most draft boards had the players I have mentioned as alternatives, ranked above the players the Bills took unnecessary risks on.  Even worse, as in 2004, Buffalo wasted a pick on a QB they didn’t actually need instead of drafting an offensive lineman or London Fletcher’s eventual replacement.  The reason I bring up the ghost of drafts past is to show the importance of filling holes and not just drafting the “sexy” pick.  The other thing it is important to do is to not reach.  Reaching is a GM’s enormous ego getting in the way of common sense.  It is a GM saying to every other scout, GM, Owner, Commentator, Fan, and Coach, “I am smarter than you and you don’t know a thing.”  The end result is less Marquees Colstons and more Akili Smiths.

In the fantasy world we see it all the time, only we call it our “sleeper” pick.  Sleepers and reaching are one in the same.  I am sure some of you fantasy owners have seen it before, the dude that decides he is going to be way smarter than everyone else and picks Chester Taylor in the first round because he has a hunch that Adrian Peterson will go down with an injury in week one and then who will look like the idiot then?  Hmmmmm?  Hmmmmm?  We have all seen that guy, and we all hate having him around.  It’s the same in the NFL draft, that is why Raider fans can’t wait for Davis to kick the bucket, and why Colts fans are rewarded with winning season after winning season.

So approaching our mock draft I have to keep things in perspective and weigh the options logically.  I have to ask myself some very key questions:

1.  Can I fill this via free agency?

2.  Can I fill this via trade?

3.  Will adding youth to the position I draft hurt the team or possibly make it better?

4.  Is the best player available one who will fill a spot this year or next year?

5.  What position is ultimately the only position I will have the most difficulty filling via draft or trade and has the highest rated player left on the board?

The reason I ask these 5 questions is simple, I need to make sure I don’t screw it up.  I am a firm believer that this is not the year Buffalo should draft a LT with their first pick.  I do believe this line needs a veteran to help mentor and lead this very young line.  I also believe that Buffalo switching to the 3-4 makes drafting a DE impossible as their are no DE’s worthy of the 9th overall pick that can ultimately play the 3-4.  Also their are no defensive ends worthy of a 9th over all selection who can be converted to linebacker to play in the 3-4.  Buffalo also needs a WR, but with the ninth pick of the draft that is an impossibility.  Buffalo may have a chance at a QB with Jimmy Claussen and Sam Bradford possibly being passed over by teams with a much more serious need.  But Buffalo has been down this road before, and this team is not ready to have another rookie QB standing behind centre.  Buffalo is also not ready to ruin the career of yet another young QB.  Since neither is a Manning type lock, maybe Buffalo should go the unconventional route and pick up a linebacker.  If Urlacher, Zach Thomas, and Ray Lewis have taught us anything, it is that top flight middle linebackers can change the face of a defence, a locker room, and a franchise.

Buffalo should try and solidify their already thin linebacking.  It has been a far too overlooked position and could finally be the perfect mixture of need finally meeting with available talent at the ninth overall pick.

On defence Buffalo is in a tough spot as DE Aaron Schobel has yet to decide his commitment to returning to the rebuilding Buffalo Bills.  Chris Kelsay has shown he should not be a starting DE and is far over payed for the skill set he has displayed.  Buffalo will be moving to 3-4 this off-season and with both of Buffalo’s starting DE’s from last year possibly not returning (Schobel retiring, Kelsay may be released) it is possible that Buffalo could look at locking up a DE in this years draft.  Buffalo also has had one giant hole over the last several seasons at linebacker.  This will be particularly worse once they move to the 3-4 as they are already very thin at this position.

So which direction should Buffalo go.  The popular consensus has been that Buffalo should either choose a QB (if available) or to finally acquire the LT that will anchor this line for the next ten years.  But that is not the direction I think the Bills should go.  Buffalo already has one of the youngest offensive lines in the NFL, by acquiring yet another young lineman, Buffalo will just be risking stunting their lines growth for yet another season.  Buffalo desperately needs veteran leadership in this area and should use free agency or seek a trade to fill this void.  Buffalo also needs to understand that filling the QB position at this time will be counter productive as well.  Buffalo’s line should play better this year but will still be young and learning on the job.  Attempting to bring in a young QB in the hopes of grooming him for the future will be pointless as Buffalo has yet to find their QB for 2010.  Also, Buffalo’s last two picks at QB didn’t exactly bare ripe fruit either (Losman and Edwards).

With this pick Buffalo should choose a linebacker.  More importantly they should pick an inside linebacker.  The ideal pick for Buffalo should be Rolando McClain, a 6-4 and 256 monster of an inside linebacker out of Alabama. As Buffalo rebuilds it will be important for them to take a page from the New York Jets, to build a solid defense and then work on the offense.  McClain is a great fit as a 3-4 inside linebacker and would work well in that system.  He has a large wingspan and covers a lot of ground.  The thing I am most impressed with is that he seems to rush the passer, play in coverage or play the run with the same high skill level and intensity.  The 2010 draft features a few very highly rated defensive prospects, but it is my feeling that McClain could end up being the most NFL ready and productive player of this draft class.  Although he does not have top end speed, he still shows great instincts and leadership, despite his age (20), to make all of the necessary plays.

McClain is a solid pass rusher and would help in the event Aaron Schobel did decide to retire.  I do realize there are other players fans may want to see Buffalo pick ahead of McClain, but McClain could very well carry the best return on Buffalo’s investment.  But with that said Buffalo would have the option to possibly take DE Derrick Morgan out of Georgia Tech.  Although Buffalo’s Georgia Tech ties are already running high, I would not bank on this pick.  Morgan is not ideally suited to be a 3-4 DE, nor is he suited to be a 3-4 linebacker which pretty much leaves him as a very talented role player, which is not what Buffalo should be wasting it’s pick on.

Some draft boards have predicted that somehow either Sam Bradford or Jimmy Clausen will fall to Buffalo at the 9th pick.  This is very far fetched as I find it hard to believe that St Louis, Washington, Cleveland, and maybe Oakland and Seattle will somehow all pass on one of these individuals.  With that said, it did happen to Matt Leinart, so stranger things have happened.  But Buffalo should steer clear.  Buffalo has far too many holes to fill to waste a pick on a player that wont be ready or at least shouldn’t take the field behind such an inexperienced line.  QB really should just not be an option at this point unless they are trading for one or signing one out of free agency.

Anthony Davis and Bruce Campbell are two other names that come up a lot.  Davis is a very talented OT out of Rutgers.  But with that said he is projected to be a mid round pick and not a top ten choice.  This would be a reach for Buffalo should they choose to go with Davis.  Campbell is an OT out of Maryland, Campbell is by far the most intriguing prospect as he is by far the most athletic OT in the draft.  He can run 4.9 and could anchor this line for years to come.  My belief, is that if Buffalo didn’t need to fix their run defense and ensure they have a defense that can keep them in games, this would be my choice for Buffalo’s first round pick.  But this would only lead Buffalo into more problems as they require veteran leadership on the line and not another young body.

So I stick to my decision, Buffalo should go with Rolando McClain.  The best part is, I am most likely the only one to even suggest Buffalo goes in this direction, but that is fine by me.  I was one of the first to hype up Fred Jackson over Marshawn Lynch and look how that turned out.  But if Buffalo chooses not to go in the direction of McClain, I think the best choice would be for them to go with Bruce Campbell, who has the size, strength and athletic ability to truly excel for the Buffalo Bills.

As things will no doubt heat up in the off-season, Buffalo fans who have been largely disappointed with the hiring of Chan Gailey should be at the very least a little impressed at the new Bills Head Office and Coach’s ability to diagnose the issues with this team and proactively work to resolve them.  Gailey may not have been the first or even the twentieth choice on many people’s lists to become the new head coach of the Buffalo Bills, but he is doing something us fans have rarely seen from a coach lately; take command.

Buffalo had lead the league in injuries in 2007 and yet they continued to employ the same strength and conditioning coach.  It would stand to reason that even though they lead the league in 2009 in injuries, if Dick Jauron was still coach, no changes would be made in this area.  But Gailey was able to come in and put an emphasis on what the areas of concern are and I for one am impressed with what he has done in his very short time at One Bills Drive.  It is important to mention that much of this is possible because of the clean sweep approach that Buffalo took at the end of the season.  But still, Great Job coach Gailey.

Now, to find out if he can still coach.

But with every glimmer of hope comes the sad underlying truth.  One way to look at this report is that “Buffalo is inquiring about one of Philadelphia’s QB’s in order to fill this position of need on their own roster.  The other way to look at this is, “oh man, Buffalo is looking at one of Philadelphia’s QBs to fill the starting role on their team…crap.”  Here is why it is important to keep a level head about these things in Buffalo.  Philadelphia has three QB’s right now Donovan McNabb who’s contract is up very soon and will be looking for an extension although he is winding down and playing through the last few seasons of his career.  Philly also has Michael Vick, a great talent who has never truly put it all together, but can really change the fortunes for this team and help them win games, just not the Super Bowl.  Then their is Kevin Kolb, a first round draft pick who has barely played at all.

McNabb would be great, but it would be a terrible fit in Buffalo.  Buffalo has been consistently fielding a below average offensive line.  McNabb has shown recently that the years of taking all of those hits are finally catching up with him.  He has no chance of being durable in Buffalo.  Heck, their hasn’t been a healthy QB in Buffalo since Drew Bledsoe or Doug Flutie.  So with that in mind, Buffalo would invest in a Pro Bowl caliber QB that will most likely play 9-10 games in any given season with them and may not even re-sign.

Vick would be my choice to come over.  Yes, I have been thoroughly critical of his play on the field throughout his career (that’s right I don’t criticize him for his personal transgressions because I already did it enough with his playing ability).  I do believe that he has a problem making all of the necessary throws at the NFL level.  Vick also has difficulty reading much more complex defenses and will obviously never be confused with either of the Mannings.  Vick also will waste the talents of wide receiver Lee Evans.  But, Vick also has intangibles that can help restore Buffalo to respectability.  What better assistance can you give a young offensive line, than a QB who would love nothing more than to roll out and scamper around avoiding pass rushers on his own?  What larger holes can running back Fred Jackson have (please please please don’t go back to Marshawn) with defenses worrying about Vick taking off with the ball?  How much better will TE Shawn Nelson get as he becomes the primary focus of Vick himself?  Let’s not forget that, while with the Falcons, Vick used Alge Crumpler as his primary weapon and Crumpler became a force at TE.  Since Vick’s departure Crumpler has gone M.I.A.  This would also negate Buffalo having to find a suitable replacement for Terrell Owens this season as Vick prefers to utilize his TE and running backs as his primary targets.  Also, since Vick is left handed, Buffalo needs to worry more about the right side of the offensive line than they do the left side, as the left side will no longer be his blind side.  Last I checked Buffalo does have a decent right tackle.  Finally, Chan Gailey made Kordell Stewart look good, think what he could do with Vick?

All of this seems fairly positive, and it is, but Buffalo fans do need to worry.  Yes, new GM, new attitude, new personnel.  But old habits die hard.  What if Buffalo is targeting Kevin Kolb?  Kevin-freaking-Kolb.  It is not that far fetched.  He would cost significantly less for cost effective Buffalo, and right now he is just a tinge better than Buffalo’s current QBs that it wont start a controversy.  Buffalo will then go into P.R. mode and tell us that he is a former first round pick, he learned from McNabb, yada yada yada.  Rob Johnson learned from Brunell, Fitzpatrick learned from Carson Palmer, heck Jim Sorgi learned from Manning.  All of this adds up to one thing; IT DOES NOT MEAN I WANT THEM AS THE STARTING QB OF MY FOOTBALL TEAM.  Kolb is no different.  Kolb would have to leave Philadelphia where he has seen some success in his brief playing time, and he would have to learn a new offense.  He would have to get acquainted with new players and a new staff.  Not the easiest thing to do, ask Rob Johnson.  Kolb has yet to master his own offense or the confidence of his own coach, why should Buffalo settle for that?  If Philadelphia was really stuck on Kolb’s future they would have moved McNabb already or at the very least they will this off-season.  But that doesn’t seem likely.  Montana made way for Steve Young, Favre was replaced by Aaron Rodgers, Warner was let go for Bulger.  These are all guys who won at least one Super Bowl and are for the most part hall of famers, something McNabb is not, so what does that really say about Kolb.

Even though these are just mild conversations, it is great that Buffalo is willing to put themselves out there to try and make some waves around the league.  Buffalo is finally showing respect for themselves and for their fans by wanting to fill the QB role with a finished product as they are finally realizing they have really dropped the ball when it has come to scouting and developing a QB.  Buffalo is also showing that they finally recognize what their holes are and are actively pursuing options to fix them.  Unlike the past several seasons where they would not admit they even had holes on their roster and instead would try and convince the fan base that there were no problems to begin with.

It will take time for the scepticism to go away, and even though this is a small gesture, it speaks volumes about the direction GM Buddy Nix desires this team to go.  A word of advice Mr. Nix, feel free to trade Marshawn Lynch, please.

The Bills started the most different offensive line combinations than any other team in the NFL.  In addition, Buffalo also played roughly one game with it’s opening day starting linebackers in tact together.  They also spent portions of the season shifting around their secondary due to injuries to their starting cornerbacks as well.

It all starts with the offensive line.  As they continuously were forced to start different line combinations and sign a new lineman every week, Buffalo could only find two players who lasted the entire season.  The unit was already handicapped going into the season as they were young and inexperienced, but now had to face new players coming in and out of the lineup from week to week.  They had no chance to form any cohesiveness which is essential on the offensive side of the ball.  Eventually starting QB Trent Edwards would go down due to injury forcing backup Ryan Fitzpatrick into action.

Buffalo second largest area of concern this season when discussing the impact of injuries would be with the linebackers.  Buffalo employed a 4-3 scheme calling for the use of three starting linebackers.  Unfortunately they were also unable to remain healthy and would also employ a carousel approach to filling the starting lineup.  In three seasons middle linebacker Paul Posluszny has only been able to complete one of them injury free.  Billed as the anchor for this defense for years to come, Posluszny was supposed to be a player to watch this season.  Unfortunately that never came to fruition as Posluszny suffered a devastating injury, again.  He did end up playing in 12 games but the hope is that these are just freak accidents that wont carry over throughout the rest of his career.  At this point Posluszny is more Dan Morgan than Zach Thomas; talented but mostly injured.  On one side of Posluszny is Kawika Mitchell, a talented linebacker signed by Buffalo from the New York Giants who were fresh off of a Super Bowl Victory.  Mitchell has been able to stay healthy for most of his career and had not missed a game since 2004 where he missed only one game.  But in Buffalo when it snows, it’s a blizzard.  Mitchell was only able suit up for 5 games before suffering a devastating injury that ended his season.  The last linebacker, although he was more of a starter by default, was Keith Ellison.  Ellison only was able suit up for 8 games throughout the past season.

What did this leave Buffalo with?  A wealth of problems.  Going into the season Buffalo was going to be without backup MLB John DiGorgio who was injured.  Buffalo needed to depend on their “depth.”  Unfortunately Buffalo’s depth ended up injured as well as Marcus Buggs and Nic Harris ended up on the reserve as well.  Buffalo had to go to their last resort in converting safety Bryan Scott into their weak-side linebacker.  Surprisingly enough he played fairly well, but hopefully Buffalo doesn’t convince themselves that this could be a season long fix for next year.

The secondary was a pleasant surprise this year and at times was fairly solid, but they also had their share of injury concerns.  McKelvin was only able to play in 3 games this year before he was derailed by injuries.  This allowed Drayton Florence the opportunity to step up and filled in very well.  Terrance McGee was able to play in 11 games although at times it seemed like his name always appeared on the injury report.  Jairus Byrd didn’t get to start until week 4 and had to be shut down for the last 2 games due to injury as well.

After the dust settled, Buffalo had an astounding 20 players on the injury reserve, with roughly 13 being starters at some point in the season.  No team can expect to make the playoffs, let alone win, with results like that.  But again, who or what can be held responsible as we are always told that injuries are a part of the game?  I would nominate Buffalo’s strength and conditioning program (or whoever developed it, I really hope they didn’t just buy a bunch of P90X videos in order to save money in this area) as well as their lack of technique and fundamentals.

Strength in conditioning is a relatively new premise to professional sports.  Even into the 90’s player’s work out regimens and diets were never as closely scrutinized as they are today.  Buffalo appears to be behind in this area.  Someone once told me “…if something happens once, it’s luck.  If it happens again, it’s a coincidence.  If it happens a third time, there is a problem.”  Well, what if it happens more than 20 times to more than 13 of your starters?  Yes, injuries are a part of the game.  But, in the modern game so is conditioning and nutrition.  I find it very hard to believe that Buffalo just had bad luck this year.  If their coaching staff was unorganized and unprepared, why wouldn’t their strength and conditioning be any different?

Bills players were hurt early and often and although some of the players on the IR were mid season signings who may have shown up to the team out of game shape, that still doesn’t explain the obscene amount of players left on the IR that started the season with Buffalo.  But again strength and conditioning can only do so much, but that is where technique and fundamentals.  The art of making a proper tackle, or how to fall after getting hit, essentially how to brace for impact.  With so many young players on this roster, Buffalo coaches did not seem to either get through to them or teach them NFL ready technique or fundamentals.  Proper footwork, understanding how to utilize leverage instead of brute force, proper tackling technique; these are things that seemed to lack from the Buffalo Bills this season.

Would a better strength and conditioning program have made a difference?  Would better fundamentals and more focus on technique prevented injuries?  Maybe, maybe not.  But in a sport where every game is must win, no team can afford to end the season with 20 players on the IR and expect a positive outcome; see Detroit (15) and Tampa Bay (15).  Oh Yeah, and before I get all the responses about New Orleans having roughly 16 guys on injury reserve; how many of them were starters?  Exactly!  Go AFC! Go Colts!

Reeves is a decent NFL coach and it will be interesting to see how that dynamic between him and coach Gailey would work out.  It has been a long time since Reeves has taken a back seat to someone else and will only be in charge of one facet of the game.  But, Gailey would be better served to surround himself with experienced coordinators and former head coaches, as any additional input could only help as it has been sometime since Gailey coached an NFL team.

In the coming days or weeks, Gailey will be putting his staff together, Reeves would be a welcomed addition and at his name alone would help to bring some stability to what has been perceived as a lackluster hire in Chan Gailey.