Since the Bills season is over and I still don’t feel like writing about the Sabres, I thought writing some hot takes about the Bills roster, where they have needs, where they have depth, and where they could go next, would be a great way to waste time until the Olympics or until the Sabres start making trades. Up first is the QB situation.
EJ Manuel – As I’ve said a few times here, the Bills are NOT drafting a QB with their first two – or even first four – picks and you can go to the bank by checking the official Futures with oddsmakers on that. In the last 25 years, only the Panthers have selected QBs in the first or second round in back-to-back years (Jimmy Clausen, Cam Newton). The Bills will do the whole poker face crap that always happens with the draft and say “If we can improve a position, we will do so” which will get MSM and some fans speculating about the team selecting a QB. I can’t wait for Doug Whaley to get asked about “Johnny Football.” He will say he likes him, and then we will have about 3 days of WGR coverage on whether or not “Johnny Football” is the right fit. Of course, you could ask Whaley about a meth-head prospect and he’d probably say something nice about him too.
EJ played like a normal rookie QB. Forget the narrative about Luck, RG3, and Wilson being Rookie Gods last year, because that, to me, is kind of an anomaly based on the history of the NFL. EJ met the minimum expectations for a rookie QB. He had some good, some bad, and some meh moments. EJ will be the starter on opening day, and I doubt the Bills will sign or draft anyone who could threaten that.
Thad Lewis – I laughed my ass off when I read Jerry Sullivan’s piece a few weeks ago about not being happy with Thad Lewis. There are about 20 different angles I can pick on in that piece.
That was nothing more than Sully beating a dead horse about how his boy Fitz was cut. On top of that, he was politicking to sign Matt Cassel and Chad Henne? Are you fucken kidding me? Those guys are terrible. Sully’s smoking gun seemed to be the Cleveland and KC game.
Memo to Sully: Yes, Jeff Tuel blows, but most backup QBs who come into a game in the 4th quarter are going to be cold as an Eskimo.
Look at Frank Reich. If you gave him a week to prepare, he was a really good QB, but when he came in cold, forget it! He was awful. Can you name any instances when a backup came in during the game and willed his team to victory?
Then Sully does the old “Let’s use the Bills past memories of doom” with the Losman/Holcomb controversy of 2005 to fuel the fire and to make his point. First off, that whole thing wasn’t really about Losman’s play as a rookie pissing off his teammates. It was more about how the vets were pissed that the Bills got rid of Bledsoe after being a game away from making the playoffs and how they fucken hated JP Losman because he was kind of a cocky douche as rookie. Troy Vincent purposely broke the guy’s leg for crap sakes. EJ doesn’t seem to have that problem with ego, and he’s not following in the footsteps of a playoff caliber QB, is he?
As for the KC game, the Bills were down to their 4th QB when you factor in Kolb, which really isn’t something you can prepare for. I mean, what team plays its 4th QB? None of them do. If Thad had started against KC, I think the Bills win. Trust me, I was pissed off at the backup QB situation in the summer and after I saw Jeff Tuel play against Cleveland, but once I saw Thad hold his own against the Bengals and win on the road against Miami, I was sold on him as a backup.
Thad was fine for what he was. His numbers were decent and I’d be fine with him having to start a few games here and there. He played well against New England and Cincinnati, showed his toughness against the Saints, and did okay in the shitty elements against Miami.
Now, we still don’t know exactly what Thad really brings to the table. But who is to say he doesn’t play a few games next year and get better? Maybe he becomes like Matt Schaub in Atlanta and we can trade him. That’s why I prefer having a young backup like him over a veteran. There would be no trade market for a guy like Cassel because we already know what you have with him. Again, it is kind of a pipe dream, but you never know.
Lastly, I hate the narrative of bringing in a veteran QB to help EJ out. That’s complete garbage. Did Peyton Manning have some sort of old, wise Jedi behind him, teaching him the ways of the Force? How about Donovan McNabb? Cam Newton? Jim Kelly? John Elway? Troy Aikman? Andrew Luck last year? Russell Wilson? Joe Flacco? Brett Favre? Big Ben? I can keep going.
Tony Romo and Tom Brady had Bledsoe, and he was probably pissed off for most of that time because they took his job. Aaron Rodgers learned how to hate Brett Favre more than I did during Favre’s indecision about playing. Oh, and Mark Brunell and Matt Hasselbeck really did wonders with Mark Sanchez and Jake Locker, right? The vet backup narrative is bogus. It is just easy for someone to write over and over.
Coaches and playing time make a franchise QB, not some over-the-hill mentor.
Jeff Tuel – Get bent.
Possible upgrades – I am assuming the Bills won’t select a QB within the first 4 rounds. I don’t think it would be smart to get a guy in the 5th or 6th rounds either because, at this point, that player would pretty much be a prospect like Thad. Not many late round QBs become NFL stars or even starters. We already know Thad can handle his own in short-term situations. Why would you roll the dice with someone else in a round that doesn’t exactly churn out NFL-ready QBs?
As for vets, maybe the Bills look at Josh McCown. I mean, here’s a guy who did well in Chicago and he’s obviously used to playing in different systems because he’s been on seven different teams. They could make a run at Matt Schaub if the Texans decide to cut him loose, but I think he’d probably favor a starting gig or a team that has question marks at QB rather than a prospect like Manuel.
Other than those guys, there really isn’t much out there. Chad Henne and Matt Cassel have pretty crappy track records and don’t bring in a winning attitude because their teams have mostly sucked.
Final word: Would I rather have Matt Schaub or Thad Lewis? Probably Schaub. Yes, he stunk this year, but he has a lot of nice years on his resume. However, this is all about giving EJ a clear path to becoming a franchise QB, and I think Schaub could put pressure on him that the franchise doesn’t really want there right now. I’m fine with the Bills going with EJ and Thad. The other options for backup are pretty slim, and there’s no way the Bills are abandoning the EJ experiment yet.
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