quick hits

Boy a lot has happened.  I don't even know where to begin.

First, Ralph Wilson Stadium is getting an upgrade.  Basically a bunch of new bells and whistles to keep "Joe fan" happy.  I love the thought of two new video boards and WiFi, but let's not kid ourselves here.  The Bills wanted almost double for renovations then what they got.  That tells me something.  "The Ralph" is not aging nearly as well as we've all been lead to believe.  A new stadium is GOING to happen sooner, rather then later.  Personally, I'd like to have it right next to the one we have but I don't see that happening.  The proposal on the outer harbor seems to be picking up steam with the Buffalo Common Council sending a letter to the NFL saying they will endorse the project, but parking there will be a nightmare.  Tailgating will be even harder.  I'm still hoping for a dark horse proposal in the next year or two.  Keep your eyes peeled on this one.

Doug Marrone has had his first year as head coach in the NFL.  His dog was awfully lonely during the season.  It's nice to finally have a coach with an attitude on the sidelines in Buffalo.  Not since the days of Marv "Over-officious jerk" Levey have we seen that kind of emotion.  After the monotone of Jauron and the same answers every week by Gailey, it was a nice change.  I hope he's around for years to come.

People are upset that our defensive coaches are leaving for Cleveland?  Let them go.  We don't want the reputation of  a franchise that kills coaching careers.  It's hard enough to get coaches here to begin with.  If we blocked these guys, the only candidates we'd get are bottom of the barrel guys.  If we block these interviews, we might end up bringing Gailey back as our next offensive coordinator.  Let that sink in for a minute. . .Yeah, I know.  I don't want that either.

I hear people saying EJ Manuel is made of glass because he's had three knee injuries this past season.  The only think I can say is at least he didn't screw up his knee walking TO practice like some other big-named quarterback did this year.  Look for Kolb to be cut this year either before or during training camp.

Speaking of cuts.  If Jeff Tuel is no longer practice squad eligible then I think the Bills will cut him as well.  Thad Lewis has shown just enough that placing him on the practice squad means he's playing someplace else next season.

Stevie Johnson is gone.  Too many drops at clutch times.  Not just last year, but throughput his entire career.  Granted, we didn't have as many antics this year as in years past, but it is worth noting that EJ had his best career game when Stevie was hurt.

I think Byrd will sign a contract soon worth 43 million over 5 years with 22 million guaranteed.  A little more guaranteed money then he's (reportedly) asking and a lower overall value then he's wanting.  I'd also front load his contract so as to keep cap room when we need it down the road.

My pick at 9?  Watkins.  We need to give EJ all the tools necessary to succeed and he'd be a good start.

Don't let Brandon fool you.  The Toronto series in it's present form is over.  At the same time, he WILL make his money back somehow.   He always does.  Ticket prices haven't been announced yet, but I'd expect them to go up $3-$7 a seat, possibly more in some areas ( upper deck corners, for instance)  In my opinion, that's a small price to pay for getting our 8th home game back.  Let's just hope the Bills don't follow the Lions lead and introduce Variable pricing.

Enjoy the ride, Bills fans.  It may be bumpy for a while longer, but I want to go on record right now as saying we will win 9 games next year.  Hopefully, that's enough for a Wildcard, but if not, at least our December games will still have some importance to them.