Steve and T-Wreck break down the Bills/Patriots game, the NFL draft, Buffalo sports in general and the Bills coaching staff moving forward
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Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Emerson Etem Piece of shit
Oh you didn't see the tweet yet from some little bitch ass bitch ripping up the host city of the 2011 IIHF World Juniors hockey tournament? Here it is :
BUFFALO — United States forward Emerson Etem has retreated on his “tweet” blasting world junior hockey host Buffalo.
The 18-year-old from Long Beach, Calif., who plays for the Western Hockey League’s Medicine Hat Tigers, posted this on his Twitter account Monday: “buffalo is a ghost town!! the worst city ever, it makes medicine hat look like paradise, never thought ide (sic) say that.”
I don't give a shit what his excuse or back tracking was after the tweet, this blog will be booing the shit out of him for every team USA game we attend which is at least tonight and Thursday. He should probably go back to ass hat or where ever he's from.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Trade anything to get Andrew Luck
by Steve
I'll be brief. Ryan Fitzpatrick is not good. He will not win playoff games. The Buffalo Bills are not good. They will not get to the playoffs. The only way to win, get to the playoffs, and have a sniff at (dare I say) a Superbowl championship is to.... TRADE ANYTHING YOU CAN TO GET ANDREW LUCK.
The guy will be a stud. I hated Sam Bradford last year coming out of the draft and I was wrong. The St Louis Rams will probably make the playoffs with a rookie QB. True it is an aberration because the division is so weak and the the schedule so easy, but the QB is the key.
No matter the cost, the Buffalo Bills needs to trade up to get Andrew Luck. You watched the dismantling yet again of the Bills by the Patriots. It isn't luck, it isn't all coaching, it is a superior quarterback. Luck is that quarterback. Trade to get him Ralph.
I'll be brief. Ryan Fitzpatrick is not good. He will not win playoff games. The Buffalo Bills are not good. They will not get to the playoffs. The only way to win, get to the playoffs, and have a sniff at (dare I say) a Superbowl championship is to.... TRADE ANYTHING YOU CAN TO GET ANDREW LUCK.
The guy will be a stud. I hated Sam Bradford last year coming out of the draft and I was wrong. The St Louis Rams will probably make the playoffs with a rookie QB. True it is an aberration because the division is so weak and the the schedule so easy, but the QB is the key.
No matter the cost, the Buffalo Bills needs to trade up to get Andrew Luck. You watched the dismantling yet again of the Bills by the Patriots. It isn't luck, it isn't all coaching, it is a superior quarterback. Luck is that quarterback. Trade to get him Ralph.
Friday, December 24, 2010
The Buffalo Bills 2010 Superbowl
by Coast
The Bills are 4-10. They are playing for nothing except pride and their careers in the National Football League. The Bills are being led by a bunch of low draft picks playing their hearts out in Steve Johnson, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Fred Jackson. On Sunday, the Bills have a chance to salvage their 2010 season by beating the Patriots who are 12-2 and will clinch the AFC East and home field advantage throughout the playoffs with a win in Orchard Park.
Do the Bills have a chance to win this game? No, probably not. The chances are less than 1%. The Patriots have beaten the Bills 19 out of the last 20 and have won 14 consecutive. This is one of the most one sided rivalries, if you can even call it a rivalry, in sports right now.
The 2nd game against New England has been even more troubling for the Bills since this streak began. Since the 2000 season, the Patriots are 10-0 in the 2nd meeting of the year. They have outscored the Bills 261-75 in those games for an average margin of victory of 18.6 points. The Patriots have been able to figure the Bills out in the first meeting and then demolish the Bills in the 2nd meeting while the Bills coaches and players apparently figured out nothing.
The major different between these two teams is obviously coaching. Bill Belichick vs. Gregg Williams, Mike Mularkey, Dick Jauron and Chan Gailey. The 2nd major difference is quarterback play. Tom Brady vs. Rob Johnson, Drew Bledsoe, JP Losman, Kelly Holcombe, Trent Edwards, Ryan Fitzpatrick and probably Alex Van Pelt back in 2001.
The front office led by owner Robert Kraft, has actually drafted good players in the first round. Since the 2000 draft, the New England patriots have had 10 first round picks. 6 of those picks currently start for their team: McCourtey, Meyo, Meriweather, Mankins, Wilfork and Warren. The other 4, Maroney, Watson, Graham and Seymour, all were starters have left via trade or free agency. Seymour was traded for another first round draft pick.
The Bills are a different story. Their first round picks since 2000 have been Spiller, Maybin, Wood, McKelvin, Lynch, McCargo, Whitner, Losman, Evans, McGahee, Mike Williams, Clements and Erik Flowers. Of these picks, Flowers, Williams, Losman, McCargo and Maybin are 100% complete busts. The Bills have given up draft picks to draft players like JP Losman and John McCargo. They have completely given away players like Marshawn Lynch and have overpaid average players like Lee Evans. My point is, these two franchises may be the two most polar opposite franchises in sports. It is completely embarrassing.
What about the 2010 teams? The Patriots are led by a 6th round pick in Tom Brady. The Bills are led by a 7th round pick in Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Patriots running game is led by an undrafted rookie free agent in Benjarvus Green Ellis. The Bills running game is led by an undrafted rookie free agent in Fred Jackson. That is where the similarities end. The Patriots average 31.9 points per game, 1st in the league. The Bills allow 25.2, 25th in the NFL. In the last 6 games, New England has embarrassed two division leaders at the time in the Jets and Bears and defeated playoff contenders Green Bay, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh. The Bills have beaten 4 playoff teams since 2003.
What the Bills must do, somehow, to win this game is run the football and run it often. If this game turns into a shootout, the Bills stand no chance. The Bills need to keep New England’s offense off the field and they may be able to do just that. New England ranks in the middle of the pack in running defense. Peyton Hillis shredded the Patriots defense in New England’s last loss against the Browns. The Bills need to feed Fred Jackson as much as possible. Yeah, I would like them to just feed CJ Spiller but we all know that isn’t going to happen. Each week that draft pick looks worse and worse. The Bills also need to blitz Brady often. Brady normally isn’t touched by Bills defenders which allow him to pick the Bills apart. Too bad the Bills don’t have the personnel to actually pressure Brady because of the lack of real NFL players at linebacker.
This season has been brutal, 11th straight season without the playoffs. The only thing that can make this season worthwhile is beating New England at home when they can clinch the division and home field advantage. 37-29 Bills, you heard it here first.
The Bills are 4-10. They are playing for nothing except pride and their careers in the National Football League. The Bills are being led by a bunch of low draft picks playing their hearts out in Steve Johnson, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Fred Jackson. On Sunday, the Bills have a chance to salvage their 2010 season by beating the Patriots who are 12-2 and will clinch the AFC East and home field advantage throughout the playoffs with a win in Orchard Park.
Do the Bills have a chance to win this game? No, probably not. The chances are less than 1%. The Patriots have beaten the Bills 19 out of the last 20 and have won 14 consecutive. This is one of the most one sided rivalries, if you can even call it a rivalry, in sports right now.
The 2nd game against New England has been even more troubling for the Bills since this streak began. Since the 2000 season, the Patriots are 10-0 in the 2nd meeting of the year. They have outscored the Bills 261-75 in those games for an average margin of victory of 18.6 points. The Patriots have been able to figure the Bills out in the first meeting and then demolish the Bills in the 2nd meeting while the Bills coaches and players apparently figured out nothing.
The major different between these two teams is obviously coaching. Bill Belichick vs. Gregg Williams, Mike Mularkey, Dick Jauron and Chan Gailey. The 2nd major difference is quarterback play. Tom Brady vs. Rob Johnson, Drew Bledsoe, JP Losman, Kelly Holcombe, Trent Edwards, Ryan Fitzpatrick and probably Alex Van Pelt back in 2001.
The front office led by owner Robert Kraft, has actually drafted good players in the first round. Since the 2000 draft, the New England patriots have had 10 first round picks. 6 of those picks currently start for their team: McCourtey, Meyo, Meriweather, Mankins, Wilfork and Warren. The other 4, Maroney, Watson, Graham and Seymour, all were starters have left via trade or free agency. Seymour was traded for another first round draft pick.
The Bills are a different story. Their first round picks since 2000 have been Spiller, Maybin, Wood, McKelvin, Lynch, McCargo, Whitner, Losman, Evans, McGahee, Mike Williams, Clements and Erik Flowers. Of these picks, Flowers, Williams, Losman, McCargo and Maybin are 100% complete busts. The Bills have given up draft picks to draft players like JP Losman and John McCargo. They have completely given away players like Marshawn Lynch and have overpaid average players like Lee Evans. My point is, these two franchises may be the two most polar opposite franchises in sports. It is completely embarrassing.
What about the 2010 teams? The Patriots are led by a 6th round pick in Tom Brady. The Bills are led by a 7th round pick in Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Patriots running game is led by an undrafted rookie free agent in Benjarvus Green Ellis. The Bills running game is led by an undrafted rookie free agent in Fred Jackson. That is where the similarities end. The Patriots average 31.9 points per game, 1st in the league. The Bills allow 25.2, 25th in the NFL. In the last 6 games, New England has embarrassed two division leaders at the time in the Jets and Bears and defeated playoff contenders Green Bay, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh. The Bills have beaten 4 playoff teams since 2003.
What the Bills must do, somehow, to win this game is run the football and run it often. If this game turns into a shootout, the Bills stand no chance. The Bills need to keep New England’s offense off the field and they may be able to do just that. New England ranks in the middle of the pack in running defense. Peyton Hillis shredded the Patriots defense in New England’s last loss against the Browns. The Bills need to feed Fred Jackson as much as possible. Yeah, I would like them to just feed CJ Spiller but we all know that isn’t going to happen. Each week that draft pick looks worse and worse. The Bills also need to blitz Brady often. Brady normally isn’t touched by Bills defenders which allow him to pick the Bills apart. Too bad the Bills don’t have the personnel to actually pressure Brady because of the lack of real NFL players at linebacker.
This season has been brutal, 11th straight season without the playoffs. The only thing that can make this season worthwhile is beating New England at home when they can clinch the division and home field advantage. 37-29 Bills, you heard it here first.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Buffalo Sabres season report
by CT
Thirty-four games into the 2010-11 NHL season and the Buffalo Sabres find themselves 6 points out of the 8th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Is this a surprise? No. Do they have what it takes to make the show? Probably not.
The blue and gold found themselves in an unusual October slump. I say unusual because the Sabres have something like a .700 win percentage in October since the lockout. They have been struggling ever since. Their offense is a joke, their defense has been slightly above average at best, and the goaltending has, at times, been nothing more than average. We have an average team, playing below-average hockey.
The Hockey News had the Sab-rez finishing 6th. I on the other hand didn't know what to expect. "We have the best goalie in the league" people said. "Myers was the rookie of the year and is a potential Norris trophy candidate" they gleamed. "Vanek will earn his money this year" another fan told me. Yet, as has been the case since 2005-2006, something didn't feel right. It was hard to like this team.
The signing of Jordan Leopold, Shay-on-ee Morrison, and Rob Niedermayer were anything but sexy. Again we were force fed the idea that our "core" was enough to succeed. "Number 1 centers are not available" we were told. Why are things that seem so simple to even the casual fan, made seemingly impossible by Darc and crew? Why are we constantly fed the idea that "there is no one else besides Lindy." Shit, I hope T-Pegs gets this organization and cleans house. If we were to re-sign no UFA's or RFA's our salary cap would be at roughly $36 million. The following are guys in each category with their salary in parentheses:
UFA's:
Tim Connolly ($4.5mil)
Craig Rivet ($3.5mil)
Steve Montador ($1.55mil)
Mike Grier ($1.5mil)
Rob Niedermayer ($1.15mil)
Patrick LaLemon ($600k)
RFA's:
Drew Stafford ($1.9mil),
Andrej Sekera ($1 mil)
Chris But(plug)ler ($850k)
The only guys warranting their current salary or still have some upside/value are Grier and Stafford. Stafford won't need much of a raise and if he goes to arbitration wont get more than $2-3 mil. His production is worth that. Grier, will resign for a low amount and brings intangibles that are hard to come by.
The moral of the story? The Sabres need to clean house to succeed. This team will not win a cup with the current squad and will be lucky to make the top 8 in the Eastern Conference. There aren't a whole lot of free agents worth signing out there so Darc/Quinny need to do this damn thing through the draft and trades. Drop Connolly and others at the deadline or say goodbye to some picks.
Use the cap space to sign a backup goalie that actuall belongs in the league and perhaps is better than 0-4. Get a big name like Semin to build around. Get some 1 or 2 guys that are worth more than their salary. I.E Matt Moulson, Andrew Brunette, Erik Cole, or Justin Williams. GET ZDENO CHARA! Any of these things would be an upgrade. Granted it most likely won't happen overnight, why not? Shitty franchises, have experienced success quickly. See Chicago Blackhawks 07-08 to 09-10. It can happen.
Until we clean house, we will be stuck wondering what would've happened if we had Briere and Drury and got 4 first round picks for Vanek.
Thirty-four games into the 2010-11 NHL season and the Buffalo Sabres find themselves 6 points out of the 8th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Is this a surprise? No. Do they have what it takes to make the show? Probably not.
The blue and gold found themselves in an unusual October slump. I say unusual because the Sabres have something like a .700 win percentage in October since the lockout. They have been struggling ever since. Their offense is a joke, their defense has been slightly above average at best, and the goaltending has, at times, been nothing more than average. We have an average team, playing below-average hockey.
The Hockey News had the Sab-rez finishing 6th. I on the other hand didn't know what to expect. "We have the best goalie in the league" people said. "Myers was the rookie of the year and is a potential Norris trophy candidate" they gleamed. "Vanek will earn his money this year" another fan told me. Yet, as has been the case since 2005-2006, something didn't feel right. It was hard to like this team.
The signing of Jordan Leopold, Shay-on-ee Morrison, and Rob Niedermayer were anything but sexy. Again we were force fed the idea that our "core" was enough to succeed. "Number 1 centers are not available" we were told. Why are things that seem so simple to even the casual fan, made seemingly impossible by Darc and crew? Why are we constantly fed the idea that "there is no one else besides Lindy." Shit, I hope T-Pegs gets this organization and cleans house. If we were to re-sign no UFA's or RFA's our salary cap would be at roughly $36 million. The following are guys in each category with their salary in parentheses:
UFA's:
Tim Connolly ($4.5mil)
Craig Rivet ($3.5mil)
Steve Montador ($1.55mil)
Mike Grier ($1.5mil)
Rob Niedermayer ($1.15mil)
Patrick LaLemon ($600k)
RFA's:
Drew Stafford ($1.9mil),
Andrej Sekera ($1 mil)
Chris But(plug)ler ($850k)
The only guys warranting their current salary or still have some upside/value are Grier and Stafford. Stafford won't need much of a raise and if he goes to arbitration wont get more than $2-3 mil. His production is worth that. Grier, will resign for a low amount and brings intangibles that are hard to come by.
The moral of the story? The Sabres need to clean house to succeed. This team will not win a cup with the current squad and will be lucky to make the top 8 in the Eastern Conference. There aren't a whole lot of free agents worth signing out there so Darc/Quinny need to do this damn thing through the draft and trades. Drop Connolly and others at the deadline or say goodbye to some picks.
Use the cap space to sign a backup goalie that actuall belongs in the league and perhaps is better than 0-4. Get a big name like Semin to build around. Get some 1 or 2 guys that are worth more than their salary. I.E Matt Moulson, Andrew Brunette, Erik Cole, or Justin Williams. GET ZDENO CHARA! Any of these things would be an upgrade. Granted it most likely won't happen overnight, why not? Shitty franchises, have experienced success quickly. See Chicago Blackhawks 07-08 to 09-10. It can happen.
Until we clean house, we will be stuck wondering what would've happened if we had Briere and Drury and got 4 first round picks for Vanek.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Grading the 2010 NBA draft
2010 NBA Top 10 Draft Picks Report Card:
-Andrew S.
I know the NBA Draft is usually full of more busts than super stars, but the 2010 draft has been brutal. Besides Wall and Cousins, the rest of the top 10 players are just stealing money from their team’s pay roll department. If I were these teams next year, which I assume more of them besides the Jazz will be in the lottery, I would trade down. There is a connection between teams like the Spurs and the Lakers always picking low and always being in the hunt come playoff time.
-Andrew S.
- Washington Wizards, John Wall, PG- The only top ten pick of this draft class that is actually contributing and succeeding. He is averaging 38 minutes a game with 17 points and 9 assists. He has been hurt a few times, but his play has been good enough to shine when compared to the rest of his class. Grade: A
- Philadelphia 76ers, Evan Turner, SG- So far a disappointment in Philly. Averaging 24 minutes and 7 points a game. He is shooting an abysmal .167 from beyond the arc. I’m sure the Wiz are happy they didn’t stick with Agent 0 and bring in Turner. Grade: C-
- New Jersey Nets, Derrick Favors, PF- What happened to playing Lopez and Favors together to form a formidable front line? He plays behind Kris Humphries. Who? Exactly. He is averaging 7 points and 6 rebounds a game, but only playing about 19 minutes a game. Grade: C
- Minnesota Timberwolves, Wesley Johnson, SF- Averaging 9 points and 3 rebounds a game but has been very inconsistent. He is starting, something the two picks before him can’t say, and so I guess you can say Kahn made a steal here at number 4. Grade: B-
- Sacramento Kings, DeMarcus Cousins, PF- Only thing he has going for him is his Rookie Camp Dougie Dance Off on YouTube. But seriously, he is actually playing well. He is bringing in 12 points and 7 rebounds a night. His minutes per game average are low, but that will increase as his conditioning and the season go along. Grade: B
- Golden State Warriors, Ekpe Udoh, PF- Hard to judge and grade because he did have wrist surgery and has only played in 4 games. His scoring will never be very high, but his defensive presence will be. Grade: TBD
- Detroit Pistons, Greg Monroe, PF- Just recently moved in the starting lineup. He is averaging 5 points and 5 rebounds in 20 minutes of work. Not a bad stat line, but on a struggling team, he should be doing more. Grade: C
- Los Angeles Clippers, Al-Farouq Aminu, SF- Would think he is a better option that Ryan Gomes, especially for this team trying to find a W every now and then, but in his coaches’ eyes, he isn’t. Averaging 7 points and 3 rebounds in 17 minutes of play, shows this guy can score, but like many others in his class, just need to be more consistent. Grade: C+
- Utah Jazz, Gordon Hayward, SG- Some had this kid projected as high as a top 5 pick; boy were they wrong. He is bringing home a minuscule 2 points and 1 rebound in 8 minutes of work. True he is behind AK47, who is out there to play D, so it will be hard for Hayward to find minutes there, but for a number 9 overall pick, these numbers are atrocious. Grade: D
- Indiana Pacers, Paul George, SF- Trying to find minutes behind the Pacers best player and leading scorer just isn’t going to happen. George has only played in 8 games and is averaging 5 points and 3 rebounds. Hard to tell his impact on the team, but in his last 5 games he hasn’t seen the floor. Grade: D
I know the NBA Draft is usually full of more busts than super stars, but the 2010 draft has been brutal. Besides Wall and Cousins, the rest of the top 10 players are just stealing money from their team’s pay roll department. If I were these teams next year, which I assume more of them besides the Jazz will be in the lottery, I would trade down. There is a connection between teams like the Spurs and the Lakers always picking low and always being in the hunt come playoff time.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Adios Andrew Luck
by Steve
They did it again. No, I'm not talking about the Buffalo Bills winning another game. They've now won 4 of their last 6, Stevie Johnson is a stud yadda yadda yadda .I'm referring to the Bills effing up and losing ground on the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. Go look at the box scores folks. Carolina won, Cinci won, Detroit won and the Buffalo Bills defeated hated "rival" the Miami Dolphins. Yippie we'll pick 7th!
True, before the game I wanted the Bills to win. The Dolphins are still much hated and winning a division game was better than going 0-6 against the three teams we hate the most. Butttt that was before I could have imagined three teams ahead of us in the draft poll position winning and allowing us to slip further down (or up?) the poll.
Ryan Fitzpatrick is still just a nice player. He isn't uber talented, he has a talent ceiling. Every time he throws a pass it seems like his arm might fall off because he is over throwing. Does he have to ice down his shoulder after each game like Pedro in 2005? But at this point I am resigned to the fact that he will be the Bills' starter in 2011.
Build the defense, build the defense mix in a tight end and a tackle and build the defense. The fall after Andrew Luck in QB talent in the draft seems prohibitive in taking a Locker or Mallet in the top 5. So build the defense and ugh build the team around Ryan Fitzpatrick. See you at the Ralph for the season finale agains the Pats Sunday (i'm going to go throw up now)
They did it again. No, I'm not talking about the Buffalo Bills winning another game. They've now won 4 of their last 6, Stevie Johnson is a stud yadda yadda yadda .I'm referring to the Bills effing up and losing ground on the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. Go look at the box scores folks. Carolina won, Cinci won, Detroit won and the Buffalo Bills defeated hated "rival" the Miami Dolphins. Yippie we'll pick 7th!
True, before the game I wanted the Bills to win. The Dolphins are still much hated and winning a division game was better than going 0-6 against the three teams we hate the most. Butttt that was before I could have imagined three teams ahead of us in the draft poll position winning and allowing us to slip further down (or up?) the poll.
Ryan Fitzpatrick is still just a nice player. He isn't uber talented, he has a talent ceiling. Every time he throws a pass it seems like his arm might fall off because he is over throwing. Does he have to ice down his shoulder after each game like Pedro in 2005? But at this point I am resigned to the fact that he will be the Bills' starter in 2011.
Build the defense, build the defense mix in a tight end and a tackle and build the defense. The fall after Andrew Luck in QB talent in the draft seems prohibitive in taking a Locker or Mallet in the top 5. So build the defense and ugh build the team around Ryan Fitzpatrick. See you at the Ralph for the season finale agains the Pats Sunday (i'm going to go throw up now)
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