Bills Mafia — #BillsMafia

 
Originally posted at YardsPerPass.com.

Photo lifted from AthlonSports.com.

All the pieces of the puzzle were there..

Rumors about the Bills offense were leaking out:

-No huddle, up-tempo
-Read Option
-Spread offense
-Down the field passes
-The extreme secrecy on what the Bills were going to do

There is only 1 QB in the draft that made sense when you think about it, and that is Manuel. Nobody picked up on it (me included) but looking back on things it all makes sense.

We are going to see the Bills run the full college hyper speed spread offense. If everyone knew this then they would have known that EJ would be the guy. Who knew that the “Chip Kelly” offense wouldn’t only be in Philly… but also 6 hours northwest in Buffalo.

Get ready for a huge year from CJ, he is the perfect spread option RB… now the Bills need that movable FB/TE player (I’m not sold on Dickerson).

Was he my favorite QB? Nope, but it doesn’t matter b/c none of the other guys can do athletically what Manuel can. The real question is throwing the ball. Either way, the Bills offense will be a lot more fun to watch this year. I just hope it doesn’t implode.

Thanks to YardsPerPass.com for sharing this with us. Check them out on Twitter at @yardsperpass.

Welcome to our 2013 Draft Prospect Profile series, written by Rob Quinn. Rob is putting together quick, digestible summaries for highly publicized discussed prospects, prospects that interest him, and prospects that interest YOU.

If there’s someone out there who has piqued your interest and you want to know a little but more about him before April rolls around, get at Rob and request he put a profile together. You can email him at RQUINN619@billsmafia.com with a request.

The series isn’t Bills-centric necessarily; however, when the occasion calls for it, Rob will include thoughts on how a player might impact the Bills were they to draft him. But overall, the goal is to educate you on some of the names you’ll hear called in April.

Matt Elam: S, Florida (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)

Matt Elam
5’10″ 202 lbs
Safety
Florida Gators
Junior
@ElamVsElo

Matt Elam is a versatile, play-making safety for the Florida Gators. He is an old-school, in the box, physical defensive back. Elam is one of the most highly touted safeties in the 2013 draft class, and is a personal favorite of mine. In his three seasons with the Gators, Elam’s racked up 176 tackles, 22.5 of which came for a loss. He’s intercepted six passes, recorded five sacks, defended 13 passes, and forced three fumbles. Elam will fit very well in a scheme that asks him to play in the box and play physically.

The Good
Elam, while known for his devastating hitting power, is also a very scheme-versatile player. At Florida, he’s lined up at strong safety, free safety, played single-high, nickel cornerback, and was even asked to line up at outside linebacker in pass rushing situations. Elam is an excellent run defender, and excels in covering the short-to-intermediate zones and flats. He’s old school, and opposing wide receivers fear him. He wasn’t asked to blitz often, but he showed above-average skills rushing the passer. He’s competitive and intense on the field, and rallies his team around him.

The Bad
Elam has average athleticism, and his ability to cover the pass at the next level is in question. He far too often goes to deliver powerful hits rather than make tackles, which can result in some missed opportunities. His tackling skills are average, and will need to significantly improve in the National Football League. His speed is average, and he may not be able to keep pace with slot receivers or speedy tight ends.

How He Impacts The Bills
Buffalo Bills’ safety George Wilson is nearing the end of his playing career, and Da’Norris Searcy hasn’t proved that he’s capable of a full-time starting role. Elam is a physical defender, and playing the run is his strength, something the Bills desperately need. He brings physicality and toughness to the defense that the team lacks, and has no character concerns to point to. If the Bills didn’t have more pressing needs elsewhere, Elam would be a highly targeted player for the team.

NFL Player Comparison
Bernard Pollard/Quintin Mikell

Projected Draft Position
Second Round

As frequent flyers on this ‘ride out the season’ mode, Bills fans have developed many techniques for surviving large chunks of seasons when the Bills are already eliminated from playoff contention. It comes with experience, and one cannot overestimate the importance of employing the right tools to survive yet another horror show of a football season.

Bills fans have developed many different techniques on how to “ride out the season.”

First and foremost, if you didn’t read the chapter on Strategies for Preventing Heartbreak & Disappointment, you might want to start by doing so before launching into this one. It will save you the possibility of reaching this state of hopelessness before it happens. Remember the old adage, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”? If you find that you are already too far gone after reading the prevention chapter, then this chapter should provide some assistance.

You can now safely begin by bringing back all your fragile objects into your man or woman cave. The temptation to break something should now be long gone. You can at least ride out the rest of the season with all your stuff put back out in place for you to enjoy!

Once you’ve got your cave properly restored, it would normally be time to turn your attention to the Buffalo Sabres. However, as this is now the second time in eight years that there is no hockey season, I feel I must address this crisis as well. This is why you always need a “Plan B”.

College football?

Whatever interests you at this point is the key here. This is where Bills fans diverge from one another. Some of us only have being a Bills fan in common, and are as diverse as any population of football fans. So this is the time to seek out whatever other interests you have going on in your life.

Furthermore, what I believe to be the most important strategy to employ in this situation is what is often referred to as “compartmentalization”. You put your fanhood back into that Jack in the Box for the annual hibernation period.

The hibernation period goes on until usually around mid-March when mock drafts are starting to show up everywhere in the national media. When ‘friends’ or co-workers start taunting you about being a fan of a team that stinks, the best response is to agree with them.

Then proceed to blame whatever relative you hated the most as a kid for turning you into Bills fan as a child. Remark that you think that there ought to be a jail sentence for such abusive behavior. That will bore them instantly and they will go away.

Finally, just remember that your best weapon is your sense of humor. Only a tried and true Bills fan is guaranteed to have a sense of humor. It must be developed in order to put up with this most twisted of all football teams! The greatest of all accomplishments made by this franchise is their uncanny ability to continuously stink with such consistency.

That, in and of itself has kept me pondering in hibernation for the better part of the last 20 years. Carry on, Bills fans. No one does meaningless seasons better than the Buffalo Bills!

Young brings a competitive and unique skill set that will make competing for the backup position that much more exciting. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

We as football fans know how important it is to have a franchise quarterback on your team. The franchise quarterback is looked upon at all times throughout the season when things are going good for the team as well as when things are going bad. What some fans don’t realize is how important the backup or second string quarterback can truly be essential to a franchise. Injuries happen on a regular basis in the NFL and are very hard to predict. This is why it’s so important to make sure you have replacement players that can step in to fill the void where the starters had left off. This brings us to the recent addition the Buffalo Bills just made this past Friday with free agent Vince Young.

The Bills signed Vince Young to a one year deal worth $2 million dollars with a $1 million dollar incentive bonus if he meets certain criteria. Some fans may say that is way too much to pay a quarterback that is going to be competing for a backup spot, but on the other hand there are those that love the idea of what Young brings to the table. Vince brings a competitive and unique skill set that will make competing for the backup position with the likes of Tyler Thigpen, Alex Tanney, and Aaron Corp that much more exciting.

Our General Manager, Buddy Nix, likes the idea of having Young on the roster; he feels as if Young will elevate everybody’s play on the entire roster. “We think adding Vince to our roster will create more competition for the backup quarterback position,” Nix said in a statement. “He brings with him some unique physical abilities that most are aware of and that will make the competition interesting. It’s all about improving our team.” Coach Chan Gailey is enthused of the idea of having Young come in and compete for a spot on the quarterback depth chart. Here is a statement the coach made after hearing the deal that solidifies his opinion of Young, “All I know is he’s a talented guy that said all the right things when he was here and I’m looking forward to working with him”. Vince may come in and run a wildcat-like offense which would allow for Brad Smith to fully commit to being a wide receiver; Smith did show some signs of being a threat at the receiver position last season. Young’s unique football intangibles tend to set him apart from the prototypical NFL quarterback. His ability to step in and fill the void when called upon may be something we all can expect him to do without hesitation.

Another great facet of Vince’s game that he brings to the Bills organization is the fact that he went on record and stated his true feeling about the Bills. “I have always respected the Bills organization and I am looking forward to being a part of the team.” The key word in this statement is the word “Team,” the importance is in the sense that it symbolizes what the Bills are becoming this offseason. Coming in and competing for a position on the “Team” and helping the team strive for their seasonal goals. They are building an organization that brings in players that are team-oriented and that are all there for a few reasons: to play football, win games, go to the playoffs, and ultimately win a Super Bowl. The signing of Vince Young is one of excitement for the Bills, it strengthens and adds depth to yet another spot on the roster, which is putting them in position to be a force to be reckoned with in the AFC East.

Chris Brown
Bills Mafia Blog