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Sep 6, 2005
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Contract Disputes: Stevie Johnson

As Bills receiver Stevie Johnson approaches the final 60 minutes of his rookie contract, the question of whether he’ll remain with the team soon will become an even hotter topic in one of the league’s coldest climates.

Joe Buscaglia of WGR radio in Buffalo reports that Johnson asked for a contract worth $7.5 million per year during negotiations with the team. Per Buscaglia, the Bills have made no offers during the past month.

In September, Buscaglia reported that the two sides were more than $2 million apart annually.

If the Bills and Johnson can’t work out a contract by late February, the Bills will have to decide whether to use the franchise tag to limit his mobility. But since that would entail giving Johnson a one-year, guaranteed salary of roughly $9.5 million, the Bills likely are reluctant to make that kind of a commitment, given their apparent reluctance to pay him $7.5 million per year on a long-term deal.

Agent C.J. Laboy commented on the situation with Sal Capaccio of WGR. “We were approached to do a deal prior to the season starting,” Laboy said. “When it became clear that the two sides were too far apart, we agreed that it would be best to shelve negotiations and allow Stevie to focus on the season. Stevie never wanted his contract status to be a distraction to him or his teammates. At that time, the Bills turned their focus on getting [Ryan Fitzpatrick's] contract done, which they ultimately did. A week or so after Ryan’s deal was done, the Bills wanted to re-open negotiations, but when it quickly became apparent that we wouldn’t be able to get a deal done, Stevie decided that it was best to wait until the end of the year before talking about his contract again.”

And Laboy seemed to confirm the range of Johnson’s expectations. “Stevie was more than willing to do a discounted deal with the Bills because of his loyalty to the organization for giving him his chance in the NFL, his loyalty to his teammates, and his love for the city of Buffalo,” Laboy said. “Any reports of Stevie asking for 10, 9, or even 8 million dollars a year are completely false and misleading.”

Ultimately, Johnson may have to test the market in order to determine whether someone else will offer more than what the Bills have offered, and whether Johnson is willing to leave Buffalo.

Through 15 games, Johnson has 964 yard receiving, 109 yards short of his career high in 2010. He also has 72 catches and six touchdowns; last year, he caught 82 passes and 10 touchdowns.

But untimely drops continue to plague Johnson. Last year, he had a game-winning score in his hands against the Steelers, but somehow dropped it. Earlier this season against the Jets, he dropped another pass that could have delivered a win over the Jets.

Still, Johnson possesses the kind of name recognition that could prompt a receiver-needy team to overpay for his services on the first day of free agency, in order to generate offseason excitement and headlines — and to sell tickets and jerseys.
 
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Analysis of S.Johnson vs current top WRs and former top Bills WRs

Receptions:
R. White 211
Welker 202
Wayne 178
B Marshall 162
C Johnson 162
Fitzgerald 161
Colston 157
STEVIE 154
Nicks 150
Bowe 147
G Jennings 143
B Lloyd 141
Garcon 135
M Wallace 131
S Smith(CAR) 119
D Jackson 101

Yardage:
Marshall 2778
R white 2616
C Johnson 2557
M Wallace 2439
Fitzgerald 2399
Welker 2366
Lloyd 2314
Wayne 2242
Bowe 2228
Jennings 2214
Nicks 2168
STEVIE 2037
Colston 2021
D Jackson 1931
S Smith 1862
Garcon 1709

TD:
C Johnson 27
Jennings 21
Bowe 20
White 18
Wallace 18
Nicks 17
STEVIE 16
Welker 16
Lloyd 15
Fitzgerald 14
Colston 13
Garcon 12
Wayne 10
Jackson 9

I checked Lee Evans and Eric Moulds stats and picked out their best back to back seasons to compare them to Stevie these 2 years.

Evans(2006,07) 137 catches 2141 yards 13 TD
Moulds(1998,99) 132 2362 16
Stevie 154 2037 16

Moulds once signed a 6 year, $42 million deal with the Bills
Evans last contract with Bills was a 4 year, $37 million extension.

For what its worth, Stevie is in position to record back to back 1000 yard seasons if he has 36 yards on sunday. Moulds never had back to back 1000 yard seasons although he did have 4 of them over 7 years. Evans never had back to back 1000 yard seasons either and had only 2 total during his time with the Bills.
 

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Sep 6, 2005
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The vultures are circling already....

Report: Buffalo buyers quietly preparing for chance to acquire Bills

Posted by Mike Florio on June 15, 2012, 2:35 PM EDT
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With a 93-year-old owner whose family has no plan to keep owning the team once the current owner takes a meeting with the Great Owner in the Sky, a new owner of the Buffalo Bills eventually will emerge.
Ed Kilgore of WGRZ-TV reports that multiple groups already are working behind the scenes to get in position to make a play for the team whenever Ralph Wilson’s tenure as the only owner in team history ends.
Wilson, who according to John Eisenberg’s excellent Ten-Gallon War (which tells the story of the rise of the AFL from the perspective of the two pro teams that landed in Dallas) initially was going to enter the league as owner of the “Miami Seahawks,” won’t sell during his lifetime. When his lifetime concludes, the groups preparing to make a bid include multiple groups that would keep the team in Buffalo.
“[T]here are at least two or three groups who not only have the financial portfolio to buy the Bills, but who want to keep the team in Buffalo for many years to come,” Kilgore writes.
Whether that happens may depend on getting a new facility to replace Ralph Wilson Stadium, which was opened in 1973.
Still, this should be regarded as good news by Bills fans who fear that, once Ralph Wilson passes, L.A. interests will swoop-and-scoop the franchise that has resided in Buffalo since the AFL launched in 1960.
 
Apr 19, 2008
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Pretty disappointed with Mario blaming the refs for the lack of penalty calls against Austin Howard.

“Pass blocking doesn’t consist of illegal hands to the face just about every play, which, when somebody tells you that, and you’re five yards away from it, and you walk away like you don’t see him telling you you’re getting punched in the face every time, then that dictates somebody like myself having to take care of that on my own,” Williams said, via Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com. “It’s not something that’s really going to dictate something, but what are you going to about it? You’re getting off the ball and getting punched in the face, literally — not by accident — just about every other time, and that’s a penalty, last time I checked, unless they changed it with the new CBA or something. Last time I checked, that’s a penalty.”

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...hinks-replacement-officials-did-horrible-job/
 
Sep 6, 2005
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New stadium to be proposed for Buffalo

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At a time when the Bills and the powers-that-be in Erie County and the state of New York are trying to hammer out a long-term lease that would keep the team in its current stadium well into the future, the possibility of a new downtown stadium has landed on the outer reaches of the radar screen.

On Tuesday, a proposal will be made to the Buffalo city council’s Community Development Committee that would replace Ralph Wilson Stadium with a mixed-use facility. The new venue possibly include a Super Bowl bid for Western New York.

According to the Buffalo News, the folks supporting the project have yet to line up support from the NFL, the Bills, or the various public bodies that would have to buy in, via a breaking of the taxpayer piggy bank. But this could be the kind of creativity necessary to secure the future of the franchise in Buffalo.
 
Sep 6, 2005
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Buddy Nix says he wants to draft a QB this year

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Ryan Fitzpatrick might feel like he’s the Bills quarterback of the future, but the fact his boss keeps talking about finding one suggests he isn’t.
For the second time in a week, Bills general manager Buddy Nix went to great lengths to explain the need for a long-term answer at quarterback, saying he needed to find the answer this offseason.

During a regular segment on WGR, Nix said he wanted to draft a quarterback in April.

“Let me be as honest as I can,” Nix said, via Tim Graham of the Buffalo News. “I think we really need to address it this year. The thing we can’t do is you can’t create one. You can’t go out, thinking ‘I’ve got to make this guy a player.’ If you do, then you’re going to be in a bigger mess. We don’t want to do that. We try to guard against that.

“But we do need another one, and we need to do it this time.”

When Nix talked about it previously, he didn’t offer such a hard-and-fast timetable.

But he said drafting a quarterback didn’t necessarily mean using his first pick on one. He said he didn’t see a can’t-miss prospect such as an Andrew Luck in this class.

“You’ve got guys spread out all over the league that have been successful that didn’t go with in the first round or the first five or 10 picks,” Nix said. “That is the hard part, now.

“If you got a [Andrew] Luck, an RG3 [Robert Griffin III], a Cam [Newton], those were the buzz guys every year, and it proved to be accurate on those guys. But I don’t see one of those yet in this draft. That may develop later on, but there is a lot of good players in the draft, a lot of good quarterbacks.”

For all the guys he named, there are also guys such as Christian Ponder, Jake Locker and Blaine Gabbert, all of whom were drafted in the top 12, and all of whom were obviously overdrafted, some by several rounds.

The Bills can’t make that kind of mistake, or they’ll be even further behind than they already are.
 
Apr 19, 2008
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Thoughts on firing Chan Gailey? I don't understand why Buddy Nix didn't get fired too. I feel like this just sets us back now.

Reports are Syracuse coach Doug Marrone is interviewing.

I'm thinking we should also look at signing Alex Smith. The draft looks pretty weak for top end QB talent.
 
Sep 6, 2005
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Russ Brandon takes over in Buffalo


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When Bills CEO Russ Brandon met in Detroit on Monday with 94-year-old owner Ralph Wilson, it was believed that Brandon would getting his marching orders from Wilson.

As it turns out, Wilson gave Brandon the ability to give marching orders.

Per multiple reports, Brandon will become the team’s new president, with full authority to do anything and everything that needs to be done in connection with the football operation. Also, Buddy Nix will remain the G.M., but eventually Nix will yield the title to Doug Whaley, an assistant G.M. who is believed to be on various short lists for G.M. jobs elsewhere.

Brandon will essentially be operating as a surrogate owner, like Mike Holmgren recently did in Cleveland.

The move comes at a time when it previously wasn’t clear who would was calling the shots in Buffalo. Finally, we know the answer, which officially will be announced at a noon press conference.

And the answer will remain accurate until the Wilson family sells the team and a new owner takes over and inevitably cleans house, Jimmy Haslam-style.
 
Sep 6, 2005
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New Bills President Russ Brandon said of his conversation with owner Ralph Wilson, “He told me he was passing the torch to run this franchise in totality. He has granted me full authority to run this franchise with zero restrictions and zero limitations. Obviously, I’m honored and humbled in his confidence in me to lead this organization into a new era and provide a clear direction and winning pathway into the future.”

Russ Brandon bringing “Moneyball” to Bills


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The Bills can not sell winning tradition, or good weather.

So they’re going to start looking for efficiencies in the market.

Bills president Russ Brandon said Tuesday he wanted to steal a page from baseball and implement a “Moneyball”-style analytics department.

“We are going to create and establish a very robust football analytics operation that we layer into our entire operation moving forward,” Brandon said, via Tim Graham of the Buffalo News. “That’s’ something that’s very important to me and the future of the franchise.”

The Bills aren’t the first to use advanced stats to assist their evaluations, as not every team feels compelled to announce they’re marching boldly into the 21st century.

But it is an important step, and one that could shift the future of the franchise.

Brandon said he’d work on the plan with general manager Buddy Nix, assistant GM Doug Whaley and football administration senior vice president Jim Overdorf, his contracts and cap guy.

“You know, obviously, I’m old-school in more ways than one,” the 73-year-old Nix said with a laugh. “It’ll be something I’ll have to get used to because I go a lot on feel and what I see.”

This isn’t to pick on Nix, there are a league full of “football guys” who don’t trust any degree of change to the routine they’ve enjoyed for generations. They rely on their eyeballs and instincts, and sometimes both can deceive. And they also will scoff loudly at “numbers guys,” the same way newspapers used to scoff at “that internet thing” as a means of self-delusion in the guise of self-preservation.

Using numbers is simply adding a tool to the toolbox, no different than transitioning from sweep-second stopwatches to digital in hopes of making a more accurate measurement.

Taking a closer look at the numbers might prevent the Bills from making an emotional “I know it when I see it” mistake like paying quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick during a 4-2 start in 2011, and realizing later their eyeballs and instincts cost them millions of dollars and cap space.

Any effort to add a level of analysis is smart for the Bills, who need to upgrade their talent base across the board.
 
Sep 6, 2005
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Bills are celebrating the 20th anniversary of The Comeback.

Click the last link at the bottom to view a photo gallery from the day.

Buffalo News commemorates 20th anniversary of The Comeback


Steve Christie gets mobbed after kicking the game-winning field goal in overtime to beat the Oilers in The Comeback. (Photo: James P. McCoy/Buffalo News)

By Tim Graham

Twenty years ago today, one of the most transcendent games in NFL history took place in Orchard Park.

The Buffalo Bills rallied from 32 points down in the third quarter to shock the Houston Oilers -- and the world -- in Rich Stadium.

Buffalo's unfathomable overtime playoff victory is known simply as The Comeback. That it happened without Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas and Cornelius Bennett was even more astounding.

The Buffalo News is commemorating the anniversary today with a collection of stories, columns, photographs and multimedia features.

I encourage you to pick up a copy of this morning's paper to see the production in its entirety and leaf through it by hand. For those who can't wait, here are the links:

* Senior columnist Jerry Sullivan has the centerpiece, a thorough review with 10 players, coaches and executives quoted.

* As he does for our Bills coverage now, Buffalo News reporter Mark Gaughan recaps The Comeback with his Quarterly Report.

* Sully also offers a riveting first-person recollection from the stands, where he watched The Comeback unfold.

* Buffalo News reporter Jay Skurski writes about the fan experience of the game, which didn't sell out and wasn't shown on local television.

* Readers submitted letters, sharing their memories from The Comeback.

* Oilers quarterback Warren Moon spoke to me about the game, saying "The thing that stands out most is that it won't go away."

* News media columnist Greg Connors interviews former Bills radio announcer Van Miller, who said "I've done a lot of stuff, but nothing compared to that game. You know, it changed the lives of a lot of people."

* We also share Larry Felser's column that ran in the paper the morning after the game.

* At the "Sully on Sports" blog, Sullivan has posted audio from some of his interviews. He also has outtakes from quarterback Frank Reich, receivers James Lofton and Andre Reed, special-teams ace Steve Tasker and executive Bill Polian.

* Be sure to check out James P. McCoy's photo gallery from The Comeback.
 
Sep 6, 2005
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Polian thinks Moneyball won’t work in NFL


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The Bills plan to import Moneyball concepts to the NFL. Plenty of NFL people are skeptical.

Our take was/is/will be that baseball’s pitcher-vs.-batter nature is more conducive to such measurements. Football, in contrast, is 11-on-11 controlled chaos, with plenty of good and bad things happening once chaos overcomes control. Great players who command extra attention make their teammates look better. Likewise, no amount of film review can account for the question of whether a player properly or improperly fulfilled his actual assignment on a given play, and whether the play was designed in a way that gave the player a realistic task.

But there’s a bigger problem with Moneyball. As former Bills, Panthers, and Colts G.M. Bill Polian explains it to Buffalo Business First, the primary impediment to the successful use of analytics in the NFL comes from the league’s business model.

“As a practical tool, Moneyball does not work in the NFL because there are very few undervalued players and no middle class because of our salary cap,” Polian said. “There is no middle class in football because the minimum salaries are so high, and because of the salary cap, a player will reach a point where you can’t keep him. They go. They’re going to get big money elsewhere.”

Still, in any given year there are decisions to be made about who should be paid and who shouldn’t be paid. Some great players get more-than-great money on the first day of free agency for reasons unrelated to football. The smart teams concede the March press conferences to the big-spending owners, opting instead to get good players at a cheaper rate.

But that has nothing to do with analytics, unless a team chooses to use statistical analysis over old-fashioned film study to identify the best players. And that get us back to our original point. Obsessive-compulsive review of stats overlooks the reality that, when the ball is snapped, all hell often breaks loose. Having the right mix of quality players and veteran leaders and youngsters who don’t get overwhelmed on the big stage guided by competent coaches is the way to turn unquantifiable factors into the hard numbers of points scored versus points allowed.
 

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Nix and Fitz next out the door plz. Alex Smith is no better than Fitz.

I agree that without a quality QB coach who the Bills don't seem to have (David Lee)... a college coach who has already moved thru three NFL teams without sustained success. Alex Smith's development / sudden improvement I think had alot to do with Jim Harbaugh who we all know had a distinguished QB career for a lengthy period. Can't understand why the Bills are getting panicy at QB...Fitzy isn't that bad. Just replace the coaching with performance based backgrounds. No point shuffling thru guys who will just be passing on comments to make the QB feel better about himself.
 
Sep 6, 2005
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Doug Marrone’s looking for experienced coordinators


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The Bills introduced new head coach Doug Marrone at a press conference on Monday and, as you’d probably expect, Marrone didn’t offer many specifics about what he’ll do to get the Bills back to being a winning team.

There was no discussion about players or what they’ll do at quarterback, for instance. You wouldn’t expect that during introductory remarks, of course, so that’s not much of a surprise.

Marrone did talk about his high regard for analytics dating back to his days as the Saints’ offensive coordinator and made it clear that he saw himself as taking a CEO-style role with the team. Marrone said he won’t call plays on offense, but will be on the headset with everything in all phases of the game will flow through him. That’s probably why he’s looking for a particular type of coordinator to run things on both sides of the ball.

“No, I will not call plays. But everything will go through me. I will be on the headset and will be managing the game and those game management decisions which can affect play calling will be handled by me,” Marrone said. “The coordinators will need to have thorough NFL experience, especially on the defensive side of the ball.”

Experience isn’t everything when it comes to coaches, something the defense’s performance under recently deposed coordinator Dave Wannstedt in 2012 makes clear. For a guy taking his first job as an NFL head coach, it’s still probably wise to prize experience for the rest of the staff.
 
Sep 6, 2005
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Ex-Jet lauds Pettine, says Bills might have better players now


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When the Bills hired defensive coordinator Mike Pettine after his four-year run with the Jets, it brought immediate credibility to Doug Marrone’s staff.
It might also be enough to make their defense better than the Jets’ according to one former Jet.

ESPN analyst Damien Woody told Tim Graham of the Buffalo News that Pettine will make a “night and day” difference, considering a set of defensive personnel that might be better than New York’s. Woody played offensive line for the Jets for two years while Pettine was defensive coordinator under Rex Ryan.

“Buffalo has some weapons,” Woody said. “Buffalo has some nice pieces to make things happen. If you look at Buffalo’s personnel and match it up to the Jets, I wouldn’t say I would take the Jets defense over Buffalo’s.

“They underachieved. There’s no question about it. But I think part of that has to do with scheme and coaching. You get the right coach and put them in position, they have a real chance to jump up and be a factor.”

The Jets have been the one team in the division to have any amount of success against the Patriots recently, including a 2010 postseason win. And while Pettine worked in the shadow of Ryan, Woody said that might be deceiving.

“A lot of people assume that it’s all Rex, and Rex is the mastermind,” Woody said. “But Pettine had a lot of input. He knows that defense just as well as Rex does.

“You know Mike Pettine’s going to be hungry because he wanted to get out of the shadow of Rex and prove himself. Ultimately, he wants to be a head coach. So he’s going to be a highly motivated guy, a guy that’s been schooled in that defense.”

With the money they spent on defensive ends Mario Williams and Mark Anderson last year, the Bills failed to see a return on that investment. Getting a motivated Pettine might get them closer to it.
 
I'm not willing to write off the Bills just yet but in saying that... I'm not expecting them to storm the AFC East embassy with the Pats the team still to beat and the jury is out on the Fins spending spree still. It's gonna be interesting how they go in the first six weeks with four of their games @ home. Bills not a team to be counted on on the road where they are 8-24 in the last four seasons.

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I'm not willing to write off the Bills just yet but in saying that... I'm not expecting them to storm the AFC East embassy with the Pats the team still to beat and the jury is out on the Fins spending spree still. It's gonna be interesting how they go in the first six weeks with four of their games @ home. Bills not a team to be counted on on the road where they are 8-24 in the last four seasons.

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I'll just let you know, Buffalo has a sort of Port Adelaide 2011 feel about them. New future so optimism, but the quick snipets coming out would make an educated person see flashing red lights and warning signs.
 
I'll just let you know, Buffalo has a sort of Port Adelaide 2011 feel about them. New future so optimism, but the quick snipets coming out would make an educated person see flashing red lights and warning signs.

Can you please provide a summary of these snipets? Are you are alluding to the report about the Bills offence being quite "simple" to pick up. I believe it is prudent for new staff, with a predominantly inexperienced core on offence, to keep things as simple in short term but enable scope for variations/complexity to be attached at later stages.

I think you will find a large portion of Bills fans quite reserved in endorsing the team's future until we start seeing some significant cultural renovation and improvement on-field. Any excitement around the promotion of Doug Whaley to General Manager was quickly hosed down when he signed football (that could be won) with what looked like his left foot.

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Sep 6, 2005
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Jim Kelly has cancer, prognosis for recovery is good


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Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly has revealed that he has cancer.

Kelly, who played for the Bills from 1986 to 1996, said in a statement released by the team that he expects to make a full recovery.

“This past couple of weeks has been difficult for me and because of the nature of social media I thought it would be best to share with everyone what has been going on with my health,” Kelly said. “I was recently diagnosed with Squamous-cell carcinoma (cancer) of the upper jaw bone. I have undergone tests which have shown that the cancer is isolated to my upper jaw and has not spread to other parts of my body. Surgery is scheduled for June 7th and doctors have told me that the prognosis for my recovery is very good. With the excellent medical care that I will be receiving and the loving care of my wife Jill and my daughters Erin and Camryn and the support of my entire family and friends, I am extremely confident in my road to recovery.”

We credit Kelly for helping to raise awareness by addressing his health matter publicly, and we wish him well in his recovery.
 

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