That Aud Smell

Oh, man. Now I'm all excited for that to happen. (It won't happen.) Yep.

Let's put the broad brushes away. Bills Mafia was also the "group" that generated ~$400K of donations to charities associated with Dalton and Boyd. There are elements of the Bills fan base that will maintain thinly veiled hostility toward (just about) any black QB. That much is true. Fu#k those fans, though.

I'll take the intensity, sure, but if the entire team had his hockey IQ, we might be a full blown AHL team. A bit on the nose, eh?

From what I've seen and read, Jackson is not a running QB per se. He can run, sure. But he can stand in and deliver as well. Of all the prospects, he's the one about whom I'd be most excited. That's without knowing anything about his mentality, disposition, etc. I just really like what he can do and a lot of what he's done (the 4 INTs in his bowl game were not great, though). I can't imagine that Jackson is there when the Bills pick first -- unless they make a small move into the teens to grab him.

Good look with that. Could’ve been stronger if a reference to scrambled eggs or a bell rung had been included.

holy smokes - I'll say. (For those who don't click: Eichel is getting nearly 62% o-zone starts this season; he got 55% in his rookie season and 52% last season.)

I took it as a reference to the risk that Kane might get injured by an angry teammate.

They did separate all of Bylsma's staff, yeah - that's pretty SOP when a change is made at the top. I forget the guy's name who had the PP last season (Woods?), but I think I remember reading that he's elsewhere (Minny?) with a top-10 unit PP again. Edit: Minny is now 17th overall. Maybe they were better than that at one point in the season. Edit 2: Cripes. I'd lost track of how the team was 1st in power play last season. FIRST! 24.5%! This season, it's 12.9%. The projected delta between the two season's total PP goals is ~25 goals. God almighty. Housley and his coaching staff are squarely to blame for that. I think that's an interesting way to turn the matter on its head, a bit: Should Housley be credited or blamed for implementing a system and style that are ill-suited to the talent on the roster?

Yeah - I just disagree. Intuitively, should the same group (substantially) play harder for a soulless curmudgeon (pardon the poetic license) or a power of positive thinking ginger and HOFer? I'm saying the latter. My bet is that Housley asks them to do more -- way more -- than Bylsma did. And they're not up to it. I believe he also scored more on the power play last season. The failure of that unit is an indictment on Housley, for sure.

^ Eejit.

I know he scores a lot. I still believe that getting rid of him is part of the solution. Physically gifted to the extreme; (hockey) dumb as a box of rocks.

Well stated. I don't regret the team's moving on from Bylsma. I'm sure I've said it in the past: Bylsma's small ice, chip and chase, grind 'em down system and approach were designed/intended to compensate for a host of shortcomings and deficiencies in this group. Stated another way: Bylsma's system was basically a set of training wheels that allowed this group to appear as though they could ride a bike.* Housley seems to have said "to hell with the training wheels." My understanding is that Housley demands that this team play a style and system befitting the league's better, more competitive teams. And this group has been utterly exposed as a consequence. * Ride a bike = be a competitive NHL hockey team.

Ahhite. Fair deuce. I do think Smith can be enough of an improvement to warrant bringing him in. But, as others have noted, I hope the team would not over-spend for that right. It's difficult for me to contemplate another season of Tyrod at this point. Maybe that feeling will fade with time.

I'm not sure I get the argument that Smith and Taylor are basically a wash. Smith threw for over 4000 yards and 26 TDs this season (while adding about 350 on the ground). Taylor threw for about 2800 yards and 14 scores (while adding about 425 on the ground). Smith had passes go for 20+ yards 65 times (13 of which actually went for 40+); Taylor did so 40 times (4 times for 40+). Smith can serviceably play a timing, tempo west coast offence; Taylor can't.

Sabres are bad at the hockey. Never was his style.

^ Hear, hear

I should say. I'd reckon a 4th rounder is a more likely value. But maybe the trade is made conditional on what Taylor does for the acquiring team, with a ceiling of a 2nd and a floor of a 4th.

Ah, gotcha. My point was that, after coming off the bench to lead his team to the national championship (not unlike Tua did), Cardale was not named the starter for the following season, and that, even though Cardale was eventually named the starter days before the opener, he did not hang onto the job for the entire season (he was benched in favor of Barrett). So maybe Hurts looks at that scenario and sees that he still has a shot with Bama. Or maybe not.

fwiw - from his wikipedia page: After entering the 2014 season as a redshirt sophomore, third on the Buckeyes' depth chart, Jones made his first start of his college career in the Big Ten Championship Game in place of J. T. Barrett, who had been injured the prior week versus Michigan. Jones led the #6 (AP) ranked Buckeyes squad to a 59–0 victory over the #11 ranked Wisconsin Badgers, on the eve of the NCAA football committee's inaugural playoff selection.[21] Jones was named MVP of the game. Cardale Jones made the second start of his college career, and the Ohio State Buckeyes defeated #1 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide 42–35 in the Allstate Sugar Bowl to advance to the College Football Playoff National Championship against the Oregon Ducks. In the championship game, he excelled once again and led the Buckeyes to a 42–20 victory over the Ducks. Jones recorded 280 all-purpose yards, scoring two touchdowns. He completed 16 of 23 attempted passes for 242 yards, with one touchdown and one interception and ran for another 38 yards and a touchdown.[22] The day after winning the National Championship, Jones discussed his future football career. In a news conference, Jones said that while he did not officially rule out declaring for the 2015 NFL Draft, he believes that he is "not ready for that level yet," partly because he has only started in 3 college football games.[23] Jones confirmed on January 15, 2015 that he would not declare for the 2015 NFL Draft, and would stay with Ohio State for at least another year, most probably until he graduated.[24] 2015 season[edit]After a competition with Barrett that lasted the entire offseason, Jones was named the Buckeyes' starting quarterback immediately before gametime in Ohio State's season opener at Virginia Tech. Both he and Barrett remained listed as co-starters on the depth chart headed into September 12 meeting with Hawaii.[25][26] He set career highs in passing yards and completions and passing yards against Maryland on September 10, 2015 with 21 completions, 291 passing yards, and two passing touchdowns.[20] After starting the first seven games of the season, he was benched in favor of Barrett.[27] After Ohio State's final home game, he announced his intention to enter the 2016 NFL Draft.[28]

I'd dispute the conclusion that Smith ~ Rivers. The latter has thrown for about 20,000 more yards and 150+ more TDs than the former. As for Mariota, I know that his inclusion is shaky. I think that bomb-ass block he threw at the end of the Chiefs game tipped it for me. I will readily admit that my criteria were undefined and vague. Fair on Mariota. I do think he gets it sorted out and becomes a good NFL starter. Jameis? I'm not sure what's going on with that guy, man.

I'd say NFW Cousins can be had for a fair price or (amortized) term. I love the idea of two QBs at the lower half of the 1st round, but the team also has many holes to fill. Meh. I'd say nay.

Just for discussion's sake, I'll define the first twelve overall picks as top of the 1st round (which I think is fair for the QB position). Below are the QBs picked within the range since 1990. I've bolded the ones that would likely be considered true "hits" -- and that includes 2 guys who are still just getting started (Goff and Wentz), one guy who's had some struggles early (Mariota), and another guy who flamed out spectacularly but did enough to be really good for a time (Vick). It is not quite a 50-50 proposition. Closer to 1-in-3. 1. Peyton Manning Eli Manning Drew Bledsoe Carson Palmer Alex Smith Jeff George Michael Vick Matthew Stafford Cam Newton David Carr Sam Bradford Andrew Luck Tim Couch Jameis Winston JaMarcus Russell Jared Goff 2. Donovan McNabb Rick Mirer Robert Griffin Marcus Mariota Carson Wentz Ryan Leaf 3. Steve McNair Matt Ryan Joey Harrington Vince Young Blake Bortles Heath Shuler Akili Smith 4. Philip Rivers 5. Kerry Collins Mark Sanchez 6. Trent Dilfer David Klingler 7. Byron Leftwich Andre Ware 8. Ryan Tannehill Jake Locker 10. (None at 9.) Blaine Gabbert Matt Leinart 11. Ben Roethlisberger Jay Cutler Daunte Culpepper 12. Christian Ponder Cade McNown +++ Another thought: Holy moley, once you get outside the top-4.

Didn't Cardale do something similar for Ohio State? And then he didn't even start the next season? (Maybe Cardale played because of an injury, though.) I went to bed around half-time. The Oklahoma-Georgia game was glorious. Last night's game, or first half anyway, was a reminder of how tedious college foobaw can be.

There is something to this. OTOH, I genuinely hope that the Bills FO is not prioritizing that consideration (a'tall) when making decisions. I think that's right. I know zilch about any of the prospects, of course, other than to know that there are many names out there. Take your shot, I say. But don't trade up and expend capital. That's especially so because I envision the team parting with a pick or picks to get Alex Smith.

my recency bias says "no." this is fair. i guess i wish smith would come cheaper than a 2nd. maybe he would/will. if tyrod stays, then something's gotta change with the O. does dennison go? that too seems counter-productive. but maybe not as counter-productive as having a QB who's such an ill fit for the passing scheme.