2011 Draft Hat is out: Clues for new unis?

So, anyone who gets the Bills daily email has seen it, but the new draft hats are out and ready for you to purchase. Check em out at the bills store online.


In trying to figure out what the new uniforms will look like I think the new draft hat and all items on the draft gear page can provide some insight. As stated before, we got ourselves the charging blue buffalo but it looks as though we're going back to the red, white and blue hues of jerseys past. The new hat is predominantly red with the blue buffalo on it and plain old white along the brim (with some blue stripes).


Speculation? Throwback unis with the blue buffalo (I think that's what most people figure right now) but the red cap makes me think red helmet too. We'll find out when they come out with the new uniforms this summer. Let's hope two things:


1) We are a better team in the new uniform.

2) We actually see the Bills play in the new uniforms this season.


GO BILLS

Is There a Must-Have Prospect For the Bills?

Hey, I see you prognosticating in the corner over there. Yeah, I'm talking to you, Maylock, Kiper, and anyone with a blog and 20 minutes of spare time. None of the mock drafts mean anything until next month when you might actually get some real news leaked from a legitimate source. Until then, we the fans must listen to every sporting news outlet change their picks from week to week as a new "Must-have" prospect has his workouts.

So, in pooling through draft mocks, in reading about the depth of the draft pool at defensive line, and about how "safe" a pick Patrick Peterson is(my initial pick for the Bills in round 1), it got me thinking: Is there really a must-have guy in this draft? If someone is available at the third overall pick, are the Bills idiots for passing on him?

Amidst all the lockout colloquy, this year's NFL draft has become something momentous for all NFL clubs. With the uncertainty of the intricacies of a new CBA and the talk of the implementation of a potential rookie pay scale, there is more talent across the board than I can remember in any recent draft. This, of course, comes with the disclaimer that I have only really paid attention to the draft in the last 4 or 5 years, so grain of salt for sample size. Still, in comparison to the past few years, where there were one, two, maybe three people that you knew were locks to be off the board in the first 5 picks, this year's draft seems more and more a crap shoot.

Go ahead and take a look at mock drafts from a month or two ago and see how those same draft experts have changed since the combine and individual workouts have taken place. I remember Cam Newton being "the guy" initially, then it was Blaine Gabbert, then the Nick Fairley or Bowers debate, followed by the Jones or Green debate, then it became the Patrick Peterson show, then Von Miller, and now everyone is left scratching their heads because, in essence, there are so many talented prospects this year that the next NFL superstar could come out of the second or third round.

For the Bills, I don't think there's a guy they must have at the third overall pick if he's there. Arguably their most pressing need is defensive line, and there seems to be no shortage of talent there this year. A cult favorite who is on the rise right now on the D-line is Cameron Jordan, but who knows how long those rumors will last.

If there's one thing that I learned last year, it is that the front office at OBD may give a few subtle hints as to who they would like in the draft but only as we approach that time and the media starts to get hungry for sports information at a slow time for Buffalo sports. If you were paying attention last year, they said they wanted the most talented player available and a play-maker. Weeks later they had selected Spiller (let's hope he hits his stride this season). There are at least ten or more players who are talented enough to be taken first overall, and more that should be considered as the third overall selection. Buffalo Rumblings is breaking down their top 13 which I feel is a good place to look for insight into who the Bills might like most (they tend to get a lot of traffic and post great links to draft rumors; credible or not it's a good source of news that's not always lockout related).

Bottom line, this is a redemption year for the Bills in terms of drafting. There are many experienced, proven producers at many different positions that there's no need to take a shot in the dark on a surprise candidate like an Aaron Maybin or Willis McGahee. It's time for the Bills to draft for need, draft for the long haul, and draft wisely. No, there's not one player who they must take if he's there, but at the same time, they can't afford to leave any stone unturned. We'll see what happens in the next month and see if we can't pick up on the way Ralph, Buddy and Chan are leaning pre-draft. Time to re-Billd... meh, I'll work on that one.

Wise Decisions Made and To Be Made

In the past few weeks, the Bills have made some wise decisions in tendering Poz, Whitner and Sanborn and re-signing Wilson. In the event that a new CBA is reached by the NEW deadline today, those are some great moves which will ensure that we have at least one SS ready to start (Whitner or Wilson) and that some other productive players will more than likely be in a new uniform... but still as a Buffalo Bill.

I see nothing wrong with these moves, and I think tendering Whitner is a great move. In the event he wants out of Buffalo, he can explore the free agent market where he is likely to find he is not worth Ed Reed money, and if a club wants to sign him, we'll have first dibs on matching the offer or receiving compensation in the form of a first-round pick. He's going nowhere and may even be relegated to backup duty depending on how George Wilson does with his shiny new contract. I think they'll share SS responsibilities if they're both in Buffalo, but I don't think Whitner will be with the Bills much further than this season unless he deflates his head a little bit.

The only bad thing is that these moves may be nullified depending on the result of the CBA negotiations going on at this time. Nobody knows if the franchise tag and tenders will exist in the next CBA, let alone if there will even be NFL football next season, but as it appears now, these are some pretty solid moves from a head office that seems to have their priorities straight and know talented, motivated players when they see them.

The 11th Hour

Been on hiatus due to extraneous factors, but back on the blog circuit. Just a quick note as the NFL's CBA is set to expire tonight at midnight. I find it ridiculous that the owners have not been able to come to an agreement with the players at this point. The reason being is that they are already making bank on the work done by the players on the field and have come into this labor agreement asking for an even larger share. This comes in the midst of this concussion-focused era of the NFL where we hear reports linking concussions suffered while in the NFL to myriad other negative health-related outcomes in the years post-NFL. Add that to the fact that there is not health insurance or adequate pensions for former NFL players, something you'd see with most any job you get in the "real world," and it just seems all the more ridiculous.

Not all NFL players are millionaires, and most NFL players have very short careers. When an NFL career is cut short by debilitating or life-threatening injury, Darryl Stingley and Kevin Everett most notably, there are very few services the NFL have in place to help cope with and adapt to such injuries. Everett was aided by the fact that our Bills kept him on the roster long enough for him to receive lifetime disability benefits but by most accounts the pensions and disability benefits of the NFL laughable

Other issues besides revenue and benefits that are coming to a head at the CBA negotiating meetings are the proposed 18 game schedule and rookie pay scale. I support the rookie pay scale and there are two very good reasons why. One is Jamarcus Russel and the other is Aaron Maybin, but those are the two most salient at the time I'm writing this. Just look at the ridiculous guaranteed money some of these guys receive for the little work they do in relation to workhorses like Stevie Johnson and Fred Jackson who earn much more than what they are paid currently (thankfully, incentives in some of players' contracts can help balance the iniquity but it remains a great disparity).

As for the 18 game schedule, I've heard arguments on both sides and it's hard to say definitively which side I support more. I would say I am in support of the 18 game schedule with many qualifiers. They would need to expand the active roster from 53 to about 60, add another bye week, and increase player salaries a percentage (5-10%?) if they are taking preseason games out and replacing them with regular season games. These are pretty common ideas I've heard thrown around in the case where an 18 game schedule is adopted. I think you'd also need to up player benefits before the NFLPA would agree to this because injuries would be more likely if you have two more meaningful games tacked onto an already grueling schedule. As a fan on the game, I'm in support of more regular season games, and as a fan of the players, I feel you'd need to give them more of the money they'd earn playing more meaningful games, putting more asses in the seats and raising television revenues for the owners.

Anyways, NFL fans worldwide are holding their collective breath as the collective (owners and NFLPA) collaborate on closing on a new collective bargaining agreement. I pray they do find some middle ground and there is no lockout, but right now that scenario seems far-fetched. At the very least, and this is my plea, extend the deadline and get a new CBA done. We want football, and if there is a lockout, fans will side with the players (who they can speak to via twitter nowadays, something that is and will become even more powerful an asset for NFL players to lobby for fan support) not the owners and the NFL's money machine will lose billions. I hope some wise business decisions are made in that meeting room today. Keep your eyes peeled for news folks. Stay classy 716.