rayonsports.com

Buffalo Bills’ fans can rejoice after this weekend’s round of NFL football games. For the first time this season, their Bills didn’t lose, as they were on their bye week. Hopefully the coaching staff is working diligently to fix all the problems this team has, including an inconsistent offense, poor special teams kick coverage and the worst defense in the NFL.

The offense has actually been steadily improving since Ryan Fitzpatrick took the reins at quarterback. The running game has been good since Fred Jackson became the lead back after Marshawn Lynch was traded. The offensive line play is much improved as the line looks like it is starting to show some cohesion, and the coaches have made some subtle moves, waiving Jamon Meredith and slowly working Craig Urbik and Mansfield Wrotto, two players signed after the final cuts, onto the field. Fitzpatrick has done a decent job of spreading the ball around among the receivers, with Lee Evans, Roscoe Parrish and Stevie Johnson all making contributions, something that wasn’t happening when Trent Edwards was directing the offense.

There isn’t much the coaches are going to be able to do to improve the defense this year. The players just aren’t there. They can’t stop the run at all, have generated no pass rush at all, and, despite supposedly having pretty good athletes in the secondary, have had problems covering receivers, especially opposing tight ends. In my opinion the problem lies with a weak linebacker corps. In a 3-4 defense, the three down linemen are supposed to tie up blockers, freeing up the linebackers to make plays both in the running game and the passing game. The Bills linemen aren’t superstars, but players like Kyle Williams, Marcus Stroud, Spencer Johnson, and Dwan Edwards have held their own. I do believe the Bills have good athletes in the secondary, but when there’s no pass rush the secondary is going to wind up looking bad. Jairus Byrd was a bright spot for the team last year, as he picked off 9 passes and was a candidate for defensive rookie of the year. This year Byrd has been invisible defensing the pass, and has missed a lot of tackles, as run support is not his strength. That is part of the problem. The players in the secondary are having to make a lot of tackles since the linebackers seem to be nowhere to be found on most plays. They are either out of position or getting blown off the line of scrimmage on almost every play. Chris Kelsay is not making the adjustment to linebacker very well, although the coaches must think differently since he was signed to a contract extension. Paul Posluszny has had trouble avoiding injuries, and although he consistently is among the team’s leading tacklers, most of them seem to come 15 yards downfield. Keith Ellison is a good special teams player but he’s a backup at best at LB. Andra Davis, Reggie Torbor and Akin Ayodele  were all brought in off the street, which was a sign that the front office wasn’t thrilled with what was on the roster to begin with. Coach Chan Gailey was quoted as saying that he likes how rookies Arthur Moats and Antonio Coleman are improving, and is anxious to get them some playing time. The fact that he didn’t mention Aaron Maybin along with them speaks volumes. Chris Ellis, another defensive end trying to transition to LB, is already off the roster, and Maybin may be the next to go.  

The Bills will need to address the linebacker position in the off-season, but if they wind up with a top 3 draft pick they will almost certainly pick a quarterback. Taking a look at defensive players on the Bills’ roster who become free agents after this season, the team has an opportunity to clear out some big “high draft choice” salaries of players who haven’t lived up to their potential. Those players include Posluszny, safety Donte Whitner and end John McCargo. That will free up some salary space for a potential free agent or two to help the defense. So, after daydreaming last week about the possibility of adding Andrew Luck as the future franchise QB, here are some stud defensive players who are free agents after this season who could help the Bills:

Shawne Merriman, LB (San Diego) – Merriman may actually be released by the Chargers soon, and the Bills, with their winless record, would probably have an opportunity to claim him off waivers. Merriman was drafted by San Diego when Bills’ GM Buddy Nix was there, so there’s a history. Merriman, though, is a risk. His play has deteriorated over the years and he’s been suspended for performance-enhancing drugs. He’s not the type of player the Bills would normally go after, but they are so desperate to generate some kind of pass rush that they might claim him if he’ll sign cheaply.  

Lamarr Woodley, LB (Pittsburgh) – Woodley plays second fiddle to James Harrison with the Steelers, and may want to change teams to establish is own identity, like Bart Scott did when he signed with the Jets. The team has a history of letting good LBs walk, and then replacing them with somebody better, so there’s a good possibility Woodley could be available.

David Harris, LB (NY Jets) – Harris is a young star playing on a team loaded with high salaries, and could be available also. He is head and shoulders above anybody on Buffalo’s roster now.

Richard Seymour, DT (Oakland) – Seymour was a star on New England’s Super Bowl teams, then was traded to the Raiders and it seems like he fell off the face of the earth. He is still a productive player and could bring some valuable experience to the team’s defense.

Of course, the chances of the Bills actually signing any of these guys is remote. Remember, in last year’s off-season, while Miami was acquiring WR Brandon Marshall and LB Karlos Dansby, the Bills were signing Torbor and WR Chad Jackson (cut in the preseason).