There are many, many questions regarding the Buffalo Bills as they begin their 2010 campaign. Upon the entire roster, sans C.J. Spiller and Aaron Schobel converging Wednesday in Pittsford in preparation for the start of training camp, one speedy glance at the faces on the roster and a burning question became abundantly clear.
For the love of God, who is a star on this football team?
Nearly universally around the league, each team has a player the organization simply can’t withstand losing. Take away Peyton Manning, Tom Brady or Drew Brees and are the Colts, Patriots and Saints, respectively really a Super Bowl contender? How quickly does Houston’s offense go down the drain without Andre Johnson? If Patrick Willis goes down, the San Francisco defense immediately gets significantly softer. Do the Titans have a chance to win six games without the services of Chris Johnson? I can go on and on.
Except for when it comes to the Bills.
One Glance in Pittsford Show Bills Lack Star Power – continue reading…
◊ Tim Graham from ESPN.com writes that Buffalo Bills safety Jarius Byrd and the rest of the defensive backs will not back down.
◊ Buffalo Rumblings author Brian Galliford says that Eric Wood is one “Ten Bills to Decide 2010.” Of course, Wood returning to participation at OTAs on Monday is excellent news.
◊ Bills rookie strong safety Dominque Harris is having a hard time finding reps at practice, writes Chris Brown of Bills.com
◊ WGR550’s Joe Buscaglia is reporting that Ottawa Senators forward Jason Spezza wouldn’t object to being traded. Could he possibly be dealt to division rival Buffalo?
The Daily Links – June 22, 2010 – continue reading…
The headline of this article is misleading, perhaps intentionally so. The Buffalo Bills are currently in the nascent months of yet another roster overhaul; GM Buddy Nix and head coach Chan Gailey have put together a roster that’s long on question marks and short on experience. Still, the team has competition across the entire team, and in a throw-away year meant for building a foundation, the team’s plan appears to be to try to develop some of the young talent already on the roster.
Not all of that talent is created equally, nor are any two players in exactly the same situation. As such, “boom or bust” and its typical connotations doesn’t apply to every player that appears on this list (and the list could be much, much longer, as well). Therefore, we urge you not to equate “boom or bust” to “make or break” – for the majority of these players, the 2010 season will not be the sole deciding factor regarding their future inclusion in the team’s re-building plans.
Five Bills entering a boom-or-bust ‘10 season – continue reading…
Now that it’s common knowledge the Philadelphia Eagles are at least entertaining trade offers for Donovan McNabb, it’s only logical for the Buffalo Bills to be linked to rumors. The Bills are one of the few teams in the league with a completely unsettled quarterback situation, so much that as of now Chan Gailey claims there will be an open competition come training camp.
It’s being reported the Eagles could part with McNabb for a second round pick. It’s also been reported that the St. Louis Rams have already offered their second round pick (33rd overall) to the Eagles, though both sides have denied such an offer.
Buffalo owns the ninth pick of the second round, the 41st overall.
An Examination of Bills Second Rounders – continue reading…
Chan Gailey’s first, and already his boldest, move as new head coach of the Buffalo Bills has been to install a 3-4 defense, led by defensive coordinator George Edwards. While no one’s sure exactly what that 3-4 system will look like, it’ll be a fairly dramatic change for a Bills team that has run the 4-3 as its base defense since Gregg Williams’ arrival as head coach in 2001.
While the majority of that overhaul will take place in the defensive front seven, perhaps Gailey’s smartest coaching hire came in the retention of defensive backs coach George Catavolos. Hired by Dick Jauron in 2006, Catavolos has decades of experience coaching in the secondary, and having spent four years in Buffalo already, he’ll be keenly aware of exactly what type of talent the team possesses in the defensive backfield.
Bills Roster Review: Safety – continue reading…
As we continue to wait for news to break regarding the Buffalo Bills’ search for a new head coach, we thought it’d be prudent to break away from the repetitive coverage and start talking about the shell of a football team that’s on the verge of getting re-molded.
One of the key sticking points that’s often bandied about when talking about top coaching candidates’ unwillingness to come to Buffalo is their overall lack of talent. This is a valid concern, even if it’s hyperbolized in Buffalo to an extent. Let’s face it – Seattle isn’t exactly brimming with untapped potential, either. While it’s true that Buffalo does lack young, potentially elite talent in key positions, namely quarterback, there are young players on this team with the ability to turn into star players at their respective positions.
Six young Buffalo Bills with significant upside – continue reading…
Congratulations to Buffalo Bills rookie safety Jairus Byrd, who was elected to the Pro Bowl.
Despite not beginning the season as the starter and being forced to miss a game (and another coming Sunday) with a groin injury, Byrd is tied for the NFL lead with nine interceptions, a honor he shares with Asante Samuel and Darren Sharper. Beginning in week five against Cleveland Byrd intercepted at least one pass in five games and had eight during that span.
Bills’ rookie Byrd voted to Pro Bowl – continue reading…
One of the few bright spots on a dismal 2009 Buffalo Bills team, rookie safety Jairus Byrd has been placed on Injured Reserve, reports BuffaloBills.com. His stellar rookie campaign is now at an end. Veteran linebacker and special teams ace Josh Stamer was signed to to fill Byrd’s spot on the active roster.
A second-round pick out of Oregon this past April, Byrd made a position switch from corner to safety despite not participating in mini-camps and dealing with a nagging groin injury. To say he exceeded all expectations is an understatement; Byrd hits IR as the NFL’s current interceptions leader, with nine on the season.
Byrd had been seeing limited playing time in recent weeks, as the groin injury he suffered prior to training camp never really went away. George Wilson and Donte Whitner will remain Buffalo’s starting safeties for the remainder of the season – if they, themselves, can stay healthy, that is.
The Buffalo Bills needed a playmaker. Well, to be fair, they needed more than one playmaker back in late April during the NFL Draft, but for a franchise in the midst of a decade’s worth of bad luck, one playmaker is what they got. Buffalo got said playmaker with pick No. 42 overall, when, much to the chagrin of its fan base, the team selected Oregon DB Jairus Byrd.
All these months later, Byrd – who intercepted his ninth pass of the season in the Bills’ 16-10 road victory in Kansas City – re-established himself as the NFL’s interception leader. His nine picks set a Bills franchise record for most interceptions by rookie in a season. Much more importantly, his presence has helped spark a stagnant playmaking Bills defensive unit, transforming it from one of the league’s worst units into the NFL’s best play-making secondary.
Byrd making case for Defensive ROY honors – continue reading…
No player is more popular in Buffalo right now than Buffalo Bills rookie free safety Jairus Byrd. A second-round pick out of Oregon in this past April’s NFL Draft, Byrd – a college cornerback making the switch to free safety in Perry Fewell’s Cover 2 defense – has been a revelation for a Bills defense that picked him simply because they had a desperate need for a playmaker defensively. Byrd has started in four of his first seven career games – all in the past four weeks – and he’s recorded a whopping five interceptions in a three-game period, including two each in Buffalo’s last two games (both wins).
Byrd’s interceptions in and of themselves have been impressive, but they’ve been especially critical for a Bills team that struggles with giving up big yardage defensively, as well as scoring points offensively. In the past two weeks alone – again, games in which Byrd has intercepted four passes – his big plays led directly to 21 points on the board for the Bills. They’ve only scored 36 points in wins over the Jets and the Panthers. Not only are Byrd’s picks big plays, but they’re clearly helping the Bills win close games.
Bills’ Byrd continues scorching start to NFL career – continue reading…
There’s still a pulse in Buffalo. The Bills turned a pair of rookie Jairus Byrd interceptions into 14 points and played excellent overall defense in defeating the Carolina Panthers, 20-9. They improve to 3-4 on the season.
Byrd continued his superb rookie season in the first quarter, picking off an overthrown Jake Delhomme pass and returning it to the Panthers seven. Two plays later Marshawn Lynch scored an easy touchdown on a seven-yard run to give Buffalo the 7-0 lead. It was the Bills first rushing touchdown in 213 attempts, going all the way back to last season.
After a punt by Jason Baker pinned the Bills inside the five, followed by a false start by Demetrius Bell backing them another two yards, Fred Jackson was tackled in the end zone by Hollis Thomas for a Carolina safety.
Opportunistic Bills Pounce on Panthers, 20-9 – continue reading…
