This is not an exercise designed to assign any draft “grades” for this 2013 Buffalo Bills class. I learned a valuable lesson to never do that back in 2006, when 24 hours after the Bills completed their draft I marked them with an “A”, citing this class of Donte Whitner, John McCargo, Ashton Youboty and Ko Simpson would take their defense to heights they hadn’t seen in years. No one should ever assign a grade for a crop of prospects before they even take the field and since ’06 I haven’t either.

Instead I have a series of thoughts on this latest Buffalo draft I’d like to share. Overall I was pleased with this draft, thinking the team had a plan set in stone and stuck to it.  A lot of Buffalo’s hope came to fruition because of the rise of Tavon Austin, who became a player the St. Louis Rams had to have.  I saw two reports that said Austin was at the very top of the Bills draft board and maybe he was, but I don’t think Buffalo would’ve drafted him.  Much to the credit of Buddy Nix the Bills were able to leverage the Rams interest in Austin and their fear the Jets would take him with the next pick to swing a deal and pick up an extra draft pick in the top half of the second round.

It continues to amaze me how forthcoming Nix is with the media during draft season.  Nix may tell a little white lie here and there but once again, he was truthful with almost everything he said and there weren’t many secrets.  Nix said the team needed to get a franchise quarterback and going by them taking the best on their board, maybe they did.  He said the team needed wide receivers and they took two within the first three rounds.

Nix even said the team wasn’t likely to spend a high draft pick on a guard despite Andy Levitre leaving and not only did that happen, but the Bills didn’t take a guard at all.

Final Thoughts On Bills 2013 Draft Class – continue reading…

Courtesy of the Buffalo Bills media relations department, here’s the transcript of fifth-round rookie Jonathan Meeks’ conference call with the media following his selection in the fourth round of the NFL draft this Saturday. One item I definitely didn’t know—he’s friends with Stephon Gilmore.

Q: Talk about growing up in Rock Hill (South Carolina) and are you familiar with Stephon (Gilmore) at all?

A: Yeah that’s one of my real good friends. We grew up competing against each other throughout high school and college and we kept our relationship even when he went to the NFL. I will be honored to play with him.

Q: Has he texted you yet?

A: I’m not sure; I haven’t checked my text messages yet. I’m pretty sure that he has.

Q: You made a pre-draft visit to Buffalo, Talk a little bit about the contact with the Bills during this process.

Transcript: Jonathan Meeks Conference Call – continue reading…

Courtesy of the Buffalo Bills media relations department, here’s the transcript of fourth-round rookie Duke Wiliams’ conference call with the media following his selection in the fourth round of the NFL draft this Saturday.

Q: Where would you say your coaching staff had you lining up most, free or strong (safety)?

A: We had interchangeable safeties and mostly strong safety though. I played about…it was like 50-50. I lined up towards the line of scrimmage a little bit more than other safeties did.

Q: Can you speak to how competitive it is at Nevada?

A: It’s real competitive. These last couple years we’ve had some great football players come out, make an impact and contribute in the next level. These last couple years we had (Colin) Kaepernick , a lot of guys know him, we had James-Michael Johnson come in and make an impact. We have a lot of talent up there in Nevada.

Transcript: Duke Williams Conference Call – continue reading…

Why the heck not.

Refusing to learn a lesson after last night’s ridiculously crazy round one of the NFL draft, I’ll take a stab at a mock draft for rounds two and three this evening with an emphasis, of course on what the Buffalo Bills may do with their three slated picks.

Before proceeding I’d like to take a minute and give some props to two guys that really nailed down yesterday’s first round for Buffalo.  Chris Brown over at the Bills official website completely nailed down the selection of E.J. Manuel.  Granted he had Manuel going eight and Buffalo ultimately was able to get him after trading down, but clearly Brown was onto something locally before anyone else.

Credit should also go to WGR’s Joe Buscaglia, who put some of the early Thursday clues together and by late afternoon produced his final mock draft that had the Bills selecting Manuel in a trade-down with the St. Louis Rams. It was a change from Wednesday when he had the Bills taking Ryan Nassib, but for me Joe deserves mucho credit because he had the Rams trade for Buffalo’s eighth pick pegged in a previous mock as well. Clearly Joe was on top of his game and I think he’s a rising star in this business.

For the record, I did have the Bills tabbed as trading down and taking a quarterback in my mock draft, but I had the deal with Minnesota and Buffalo ending up with Matt Barkley. I’ll have to revisit this draft in a few years to determine if I’m happy to be wrong.

If there was a lesson to be learned with mock drafts, Bills fans, it’s in future years you should start paying a lot more attention to those reporters locally than the jokers like Mel Kiper and Todd McShay. I teetered between humor and embarrassment for McShay; having to listen to him second guess countless picks and bash the Bills selection of Manuel on ESPN after the draft.  Oh well.

But I digress.  Here’s a quick second-round mock draft and the third round as well up until the Bills make their pick.  (One last note—I don’t have the Bills taking a linebacker on the premise they’ll get a deal done with Karlos Dansby after the draft is over.)

NFL Mock Draft- Rounds 2 & 3 – continue reading…

Picks that surprised me: I wish E.J. Manuel well, but Bills need to be patient with him. Needs major work with mechanics.

— Adam Caplan (@caplannfl) April 26, 2013

I had to sleep overnight on the Buffalo Bills taking E.J. Manuel in the first round last night because frankly, I was a bit too stunned to collect my thoughts.  That’s not in any way criticism towards Manuel.  I actually love the pick, especially after a trade down.  I simply couldn’t believe Buddy Nix pulled the trigger on him over Ryan Nassib, Matt Barkley or Geno Smith.

Manuel becomes the first quarterback in the entire history of the franchise to be selected with the team’s first pick in any draft year.  That includes Jim Kelly, Jack Kemp, Joe Ferguson and anyone else.  That’s pretty amazing, if you ask me.

I’ve spent several hours reading fan and media reaction from the pick and feelings over the pick vary wider than the Pacific ocean.  That baffles me.  Most fans and media, myself included came into Thursday night wanting the Bills to make a splash—and boy did they ever.  If you ask me the Bills did exactly what they should’ve set out to do. They spent countless hours, days and resources on identifying their top quarterback prospect and with the way things played out, there’s no denying Manuel was the top graded quarterback on the board.

How can he not be? I love that he was the first quarterback taken.  We don’t have to hear any coach talk from Nix or Doug Marrone saying he’s the guy they wanted all along, not knowing if that’s really truly if Nassib, Barkley, Smith or someone else was off the board.

Best of all, they acquired an extra second round pick while accomplishing what they came into the draft primarily looking to do. It was a God send to the Bills that Tavon Austin was on the board at eight.  Sure, it would’ve been exciting to simply take Austin and grab one of the other quarterbacks today, but now the Bills already have who was obviously their top guy and they can use two good picks today on a wide receiver, cornerback, linebacker, safety or tight end.

Thoughts On E.J. Manuel – continue reading…

Courtesy of the Buffalo Bills media relations department, here is the complete transcript of E.J. Manuel’s conference call with the media following his first-round selection in the NFL draft Thursday night.

Q: What is it like? To be the first quarterback of the board and coming to Buffalo—the challenge and the excitement that you face here?

A: Yes sir. I am just so excited. I am so proud to be a Buffalo Bill. I am just proud of family, all of my teammates at Florida St. and my coaches who helped me get to this point. I am just extremely proud and happy right now.

Q: Can you just speak to your relationship with Bruce Smith? I know he and your dad are pretty tight. Just his influence on you.

A: Most definitely. Bruce (Smith) gave me a lot of advice moving forward from high school to college. Now that I am a Buffalo Bill…he actually called me about Buffalo. Not saying I was going to go there, but just giving me some facts and some background on the team before I went up and met with those guys. I know Bruce is extremely excited and he sounded just as excited as I am.

Transcript: Manuel’s Conference Call With Media – continue reading…

Courtesy of the Buffalo Bills media relations department, here’s the full transcript of last night’s press conference with head coach Doug Marrone, general manager Buddy Nix and the media following the first-round selection of E.J. Manuel in the NFL draft last night.

Q: What do you like about QB E.J. Manuel and why is he the guy?

Buddy Nix: As you know we did a lot of work on these guys. We felt like we knew them about as well as you could from a distance. This guy to us has got the upside to be whatever you want him to be. All these quarterbacks had good qualities. We said that from the start. This is a guy that can do both. We are not talking about…how Coach Marrone and his staff use him is his business. It is up to him now. The guy is capable of doing both.

Q: You draft a quarterback in the first round. You like him to have a chance to be one of the five or six best quarterbacks in the league if everything goes right. Did you feel that this guy had the best chance to do that?

BN: Obviously we did. We, again, we liked some things about all of these guys. We think this guy has a chance. We researched him every way you can and we just feel good about the upside.

Transcript: Nix & Marrone On E.J. Manuel – continue reading…

Tonight, finally is the NFL draft. Thank God, because I can’t take the million smokescreens flying around the internet, radio and television screens daily anymore.

My personal opinions on how tonight should play out for the Buffalo Bills may mean nothing, but that’s not going to prevent me from venting in this allotted blog space.

Here are five scenarios that could play out tonight, and how I feel about each of them.

My best case scenario: The Bills trade down with either St. Louis or Minnesota, who quite possibly move up for Tavon Austin.  Buffalo would pick up an extra early draft choice, and still get one of the two quarterbacks I think long-term would be best served for this franchise— Matt Barkley or E.J. Manuel. They can get also get the best receiver and either cornerback, linebacker or tight end with the extra draft pick.

NFL Draft: Five Bills Scenarios – continue reading…

ESPN’s Chris Mortensen created a lot of watercooler talk this morning with his overnight tweet surrounding the Buffalo Bills and their eighth overall pick.

The Bills’ 8th slot may be generating most pre-draft buzz: Tavon Austin or QB? Or trade back & pick between Nassib & Barkley? @espnnfl

— Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) April 25, 2013

Granted I’m no Mort, but I’ve heard the same exact thing from a source. Enough in fact, that I had the Bills trading all the way down to Minnesota in my final mock draft published two days ago. In that scenario, I got Buffalo moving down and taking Barkley at pick 23 with wide receiver Robert Woods at 25.

I truly think Tavon Austin being available is the key piece to the Bills being able to move down.  The Vikings and definitely the St. Louis Rams would love to take him, but know the New York Jets with the ninth pick (and 13) are legitimate threats to beat them to the punch.

If you’re going by the often-used NFL draft value chart, St. Louis moving up from 16 to 8 would net the Bills the Rams second-round pick (46), giving the team picks at 16, 41 and 46 over the first two rounds.  The probable cost of Minnesota moving all the way up to eight would net Buffalo both of Minnesota’s first-rounders (23 and 25) with the Bills throwing their fourth (105) back to the Vikings.

Austin being available promotes a deal that makes plenty of sense for both sides, whether it’s St. Louis, Minnesota or someone else.  There’s no way a talent like Austin is falling into their laps and for the things he does, there’s no one else comparable to him in this draft.

Assuming Buffalo truly is taking a quarterback early, it’s a also a logical move for the organization.  At 16 or 23 they should have at least one quarterback between Geno Smith, Ryan Nasisb, Matt Barkley and E.J. Manuel available to them, and quite possibly more than one.

Or the Bills could simply keep their pick and take Austin themselves. I just can’t see them going quarterback at eight and letting a trade down option die on the table.

Again, Austin being on the board at eight could be the key to Buffalo’s evening.

There’s already been a million NFL mock drafts posted on the internet.  There’s now a million plus one, but that one comes from Mike Mayock.  Thus, we all pay attention.

Mayock is arguably the business’s most respected draft analyst and perhaps more importantly, puts out just one mock draft per year.

Mayock doesn’t do trades in his mock and has the Bills staying put and passing on a quarterback.  Instead he has Buffalo tabbing West Virginia wide receiver Tavon Austin.

“The more I thought of Austin and the hole the Bills have at receiver — with nobody but Stevie Johnson — the more I said, ‘They’ve got to generate some touches for an explosive playmaker,’ and that’s who Austin is. Forget 173 pounds. It doesn’t matter.” Mayock wrote.

Mayock Gives Bills Austin In Mock Draft – continue reading…

Sadly, one of the all-time icons in the Buffalo sports journalism field has passed away.  Reports circulated late this afternoon that legendary columnist Larry Felser has died at the age of 80.

According to the Buffalo News, Felser passed away in the Beechwood Continuing Care facility in Amherst after a brief illness.

Buffalo-born, Felser was a stalwart who made a name for himself writing for the Courier Express for 12 years before joining the Buffalo News. He covered the Buffalo Bills from their inaugural season in 1960 all the way until his retirement in 2001.

He continued to write a weekly Sunday column for the Buffalo News until 2012.

Felser’s accomplishments and accolades are too many to list, but the News laid out a few in their report today.

From the News:

“Felser was inducted into the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame in 2000. In 1984 he received the Dick McCann Memorial Award for distinguished reporting of professional football. The award is presented by the Pro Football Writers of America. Felser had served as the youngest president in that group’s history.”

On a personal level and I’m not just saying this, Felser is the best columnist I’ve ever read.  As a youth growing up in Buffalo I looked forward to reading and digesting his work as much as possible. I’m pretty stoked to say I literally grew up wanting to be the next Larry Felser and while I failed miserably, it wasn’t from a lack of having the right idol to want to emulate.

Felser will be missed by many colleagues at the Buffalo News, long-time national media members and scores of former Bills players. I’m sure we’ll hear some of their stories and accounts, and I look forward to sharing a few in the coming days and weeks.

Rest in peace, sir… you were truly a legend.

I’ve refrained from critiquing or even offering much thought on anyone else’s opinion regarding how the NFL draft plays out tomorrow night, particularly when it comes to the Buffalo Bills. I realize my observations and opinions, just like anyone else not sitting in a NFL “war room” is simply guesswork.

But the rumors floating all over the net on draft eve today is driving me crazy, and forcing me to break my silence.  ESPN’s Sal Paolantonio is reporting that the Buffalo Bills are worried that the New York Jets or Jacksonville Jaguars will “poach” Ryan Nassib from them if the team passes on him with the eighth pick or trades down Thursday evening.

Report: Bills worried Jets will poach Nassib dlvr.it/3H46fg

— Rotoworld Football (@Rotoworld_FB) April 24, 2013

I’m not going to rehash Nassib’s credentials and debate if he should or shouldn’t be the Bills choice when they’re on the clock. It’s been done ad nauseam everywhere, including this blog.

But let’s make this really, really simple, folks.  If the Bills are in love with Ryan Nassib they will take him with the eighth pick and not worry about what critics will say. If they elect to draft another player or move down to pick up additional picks, I’m confident Buddy Nix and Doug Whaley are keenly aware of potential consequences and therefore, aren’t “worried” about losing him to another team, as multiple reports so eloquently are putting it.

In fact, if the Bills truly love Nassib and he’s their guy, they’re probably more worried about a team leapfrogging them at eight to snag him…. as opposed to what happens after passing on him with their first pick to begin with, comprende?

Thank God this process is nearly over.

This was excruciatingly difficult, even more so than previous years. In the end, I decided to go “California Dreamin” with my final 2013 NFL Three-Round Mock Draft.

You’ll know what I’m talking about soon, if you don’t already.

In a matter of days, if not sooner I’ll be the subject of great ridicule after being incredibly off on my annual mock, joining the likes of pretty much anyone else who offers their mock for public consumption and ends up woefully wrong when surprise picks and head scratchers litter the real draft in New York City beginning Thursday.

Setting myself up for additional disaster is my inclusion of trades this year.  For those keeping score, I’ve conducted seven projected trades through my three rounds of mocking and yes, one of those deals is a major one involving the Buffalo Bills.

Each year we hear Buddy Nix, or whoever is the Bills general manager is tell media and anyone who will listen they’re open to offers and willing to move up or down the draft board.

It seems every year the Bills would prefer to move down in the first round, and this year I think it’s finally going to happen as I sense Buffalo can find a willing trade partner this year in the Minnesota Vikings.

Final 2013 NFL Mock Draft (3 Rounds) – continue reading…

With just a few days left before the NFL draft, the Buffalo Bills are still looking into free agency to help bolster the defense.  Adam Schefter reports the Bills are hosting free agent linebacker Karlos Dansby today and Tuesday.

Former Dolphins LB Karlos Dansby is visiting Buffalo today and Tuesday.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 22, 2013

Dansby has been a starter for all nine of his seasons in the NFL, including the last three with Miami, where he set a career-high in 2012 with 134 tackles.  Dansby was cut when the team signed free agent Danelle Ellerbe shortly after free agent began in March.

Dansby’s best days are likely behind him but at 31 he still has gas left in the tank.  Dansby isn’t the game-changer he used to be in Arizona, which led to him signing a five-year, $43 million deal including $22 million guaranteed with the Dolphins in 2010.  However, Dansby is still productive and would be a nice addition to a defense that’s already added linebacker Manny Lawson and defensive linemen Alan Branch in free agency, especially because he’s seasonably experienced in the hybrid defense the Bills plan on running.

This isn’t great news for Bills incumbent inside linebacker Kelvin Sheppard.  If Dansby signs Sheppard will likely find himself in danger of losing his starting job.  Sheppard was a third-round pick in 2011 and the Bills still like him, but this could be an indication the organization hasn’t seen his career progress the way they’ve hoped, at least through his first two seasons.

Report: Bills Hosting Dansby – continue reading…

The NFL official released their 2013 schedule Thursday evening, an incredible event considering every player and fan knows months ahead of time exactly what opponents they’re going to play.

Anyway, here’s a couple of interesting notes regarding the hand Buffalo was dealt.

I’m willing to bet Russ Brandon pushed hard to have as few December games at Ralph Wilson Stadium as possible.  And with good reason—the Bills have had eight blackouts over the past three seasons, and I’m not counting the pair of Russ Salvatore saves either.  Brandon certainly got his wish this time around as the Bills will play just once at the Ralph in December, against Miami on December 22. In fact, when the Bills face the New York Jets on November 17 in their second-to-last game in Orchard Park, it will only be their eleventh contest.

Atlanta drew the Toronto “home” game in Week 13 on December 1.  That’s probably good for the league as the Falcons are likely to be a good Canadian draw, but not so much for Buffalo, who surely would’ve rather see this game be against Kansas City.

The Bills got kind of screwed when it comes to facing teams coming off their bye.  Buffalo is forced to play three times in a six week span against teams with an extra week of preparation, including two on the road.  They’ll have a road game at Miami in Week seven followed traveling for another contest against New Orleans after their bye.  They’ll be at home to face the Jets after their bye in Week 11.

Buffalo won’t be hosting a prime time game in 2013. Their lone game under the lights comes in Week five when they travel to Cleveland on Thursday night. Something tells me that game may not shatter ratings records.

On paper, I’d consider Weeks 4-10 as the roughest patch of their schedule.  Buffalo will face Baltimore and Cincinnati at home while traveling to Miami, New Orleans and Pittsburgh during that stretch.  Sandwiched in is the prime time road game in Cleveland and a home game against a Kansas City Chiefs squad that could be much improved from last year.

Buffalo plays consecutive road games in Florida late in the season; at Tampa Bay on December 8 and at Jacksonville on December 15.  They played Miami the following week in a third straight game against a team from the Sunshine state, but that one is at home.

According to a source I spoke with close to Nick Barnett, interest in the former Buffalo Bills linebacker has heated up over the last week, with at least four teams around the league reaching out to him.

The source says that the Buffalo Bills are not among the teams that have called Barnett, making it very likely his time in Buffalo is over for good.  Barnett was released by Buffalo on February 11, but many have speculated the team may try to bring back the 10-year veteran at a reduced rate.

Barnett was due a $3.5 million base salary in 2013.

He spent the past two seasons in Buffalo and led the team in tackles both years.  He had 130 tackles to go with three interceptions and three sacks in 2011, and racked up 112 stops with two sacks last year despite playing much of the season banged up and in an unfamiliar position in Buffalo’s defensive scheme.

Barnett was regarded as one of the higher rated linebackers in this free agent class but has yet to catch on with anther organization.  Overall this has been an extremely slow and tentative free agent market, particularly for older veterans and Barnett, like many other talents out there are being forced to play the waiting game.

The source says Barnett is unlikely to sign anywhere until after the NFL draft is over.

Source: League Interest In Former Bills LB Warming Up – continue reading…

As we draw closer to the 2013 NFL draft, I thought it may be fun, or at least a somewhat enlightening to plot scenarios for each potentially highly touted quarterback in this rookie class and how, where or if they may fit into the Buffalo Bills draft plans.

For the purpose of this exercise, I’ve used what a vast majority regard as the top seven prospects this season while offering apologies to fans of Matt Scott, Landry Jones, Zac Dysert and Jeff Tuel, among others.

It’s worth disclaiming that most of the information is that of personal opinion and conclusions, and doesn’t necessarily reflect what Buddy Nix will do when the fun officially begins in about 15 days.

The following is a little information about each incoming rookie and why I think he’s a possibility to be playing in Buffalo for 2013 and beyond—or not.

Breaking Down Bills QB Draft Possibilities – continue reading…

#Bills GM Buddy Nix on Kolb: “He should be a strong candidate in the competition for the starting quarterback position”

— Buffalo Bills (@buffalobills) April 8, 2013

The Buffalo Bills finally made it official Monday morning, announcing that free agent quarterback Kevin Kolb has signed with the team.  While the Bills didn’t announce the terms of the contract, numerous recent reports indicate the deal is for two years and potentially worth $13 million.

The team will formally introduce Kolb to the media at a press conference today slated at 1:15pm.

Buddy Nix commented on Kolb’s signing via the team’s official Twitter account saying “He should be a strong candidate in the competition for the starting quarterback position” and “”He’s a player we had targeted since he became a free agent … we think we’ve added a good one”

Kolb’s signing should not impact the strong possibility of Buffalo selecting a quarterback with their first or second round draft pick later this month.

We’ll have a full transcript of Kolb’s presser for you later this afternoon.

One of the most often talked about… and if his career turns out well one of the biggest future examples of how little Pro Days truly mean, Jarvis Jones, is in town to visit with the Buffalo Bills today according to a report from Pro Football Talk.

LB Jarvis Jones is visiting the Bills on Friday, per league source.

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) April 5, 2013

The Georgia linebacker had two of the most productive college seasons of any player in the country last year.  In 26 games Jones accumulated 155 tackles, including 44 for a loss to go with 28 sacks.

With the primary worry about Jones being diagnosed with spinal stenosis that ended his career at USC three years ago, Jones checked out fine medically this winter.  However, his stock allegedly slipped again after a “poor” pro day at Georgia when he ran just a 4.92/40-yard dash.

Like many of this year’s prospects, talk has varied on where Jones may go in the draft.  Most consider him one of the top 5-10 players in the draft while others don’t think he should even be off the board in the first round.

Report: Jarvis Jones Visiting Bills – continue reading…

A couple of quick Buffalo Bills notes on this Thursday afternoon.  First, the team announced the official visits of four prospects; quarterback Geno Smith, safety Kenny Vaccaro, wide receiver Ryan Swope and linebacker Kevin Minter.

Of course, the big name on campus is Smith, who many feel will be the first quarterback off the board on April 25 and could be gone by the time Oakland selects with the third pick.  Minter and Vaccaro are regarded by most as mid to late first round prospects while Swope is expected to be drafted somewhere between the third and fourth rounds.

This is the third time the Bills have seen Smith.  They attended his West Virginia Pro Day and also had a private workout with him.

It’s also worth noting that ESPN’s Mel Kiper has released his latest mock draft.  In related news, I think Mel Kiper may have officially lost his mind.  In Kiper’s mock he has the Bills selecting North Carolina guard Jonathan Cooper with the eighth overall pick.

I think talk of taking any guard that high is silly for Buffalo.  That especially holds true when the current depth chart consists of Brad Smith as your second receiver, Leodis McKelvin as your second cornerback and either Kevin Kolb or Tarvaris Jackson starting at quarterback.  What the heck, Mel…. If you’re going to guard at least give the Bills Chance Warmack, who he has going to Tennessee two picks later.

I don’t know which direction the Bills are going in when the draft finally rolls around, but I’m pretty confident Andy Levitre’s departure isn’t going to be addressed with the eighth overall pick.  These final few weeks is when draft speculation hits overdrive, which makes the anticipation for April 25 nearly unbearable.

The Buffalo Bills got a free agent visitor in today and took advantage of the situation to sign him, inking defensive linemen Alan Branch to a one-year deal worth $3 million.  Adam Shefter of ESPN had the story first and moments later Branch’s agent confirmed the news before the team did as well, making it official.

Shefter added that Branch could earn another $350k in upside money.

“Buffalo had me in their sights,” Branch just said at an impromptu press conference announcing his deal. “I feel they had me in mind from the beginning … this is perfect for me”

After laboring around the league for years in Arizona after being a 2007 second-round draft pick out of Michigan, Branch began to blossom over the last two seasons in Seattle.  He started 31 games over the last two years, recording 64 tackles and four sacks during that span.

Bills Sign Branch To One Year Deal – continue reading…

NFL teams sure tried putting a monkey wrench in this latest round of mock drafts floating around the internet with all these quarterback transactions.  Since we last convened, the Raiders landed Matt Flynn in a trade while Carson Palmer seems locked into going go Arizona.  Jason Campbell signed with Cleveland, which propelled a Colt McCoy trade to San Francisco.  Of course, the Buffalo Bills went out and signed Kevin Kolb to a two-year deal last week.

Still, I mostly don’t buy it.

I don’t think any of the recent barrage of quarterback moves has much effect on this draft. Unlike most I still see two teams picking in the top eight going with a quarterback.  Arizona is the one team I believe that may have looked at quarterback in the first round early but have backed off.

This is my second-to-last mock draft. I’ll throw one more together the week of the draft, something that by now surely everyone is ready to have over with so the endless speculation ceases.

Lastly, I’d like to give my standard disclaimer that the selections I’ve made, including Buffalo’s are picks that I see teams making, not necessarily picks I’d like or endorse. To be perfectly honest as you’ll see in my explanations that accompany the selections, I’m not a big fan of either player I have going to the Bills in rounds one or two and would’ve made different selections if it were me running the show.

3 Round NFL Mock Draft (Take Three) – continue reading…

Being today is April Fool’s Day and Twitter being such a huge vehicle for phony news to travel, you knew it was only a matter of time before an athlete or media outlet tried to fool fans into a story.  Former Buffalo Bills linebacker Nick Barnett wasted little time getting a jump on the day, tweeting out at around 8:30am that he had re-signed with the Buffalo Bills.

Great morning!! Great to be a Buffalo Bill again wanna thank all those who never lost faith in me!! Thanks Buddy Nix #billsmafia

— NickBarnett (@NickBarnett) April 1, 2013

Knowing Barnett and what today likely has in store, I sent Nick a text that went unanswered as well as a team source trying to get confirmation.  I spent a solid half hour, like many of you I’m sure in limbo wondering if Barnett was pulling a prank, and sure enough it was.

Even thou I would love to be apart of the Bills organization this has been a April fools joke! Thanks for being good sports #billsmafia

— NickBarnett (@NickBarnett) April 1, 2013

For what it’s worth, he did fool Bills running back Fred Jackson. Jackson tweeted him a congrats note, which them prompted Barnett to confess he was merely joking.

Lets The April Fools Madness Begin – continue reading…