Since being promoted to the position of general manager, Buddy Nix's teams have gone 4-12, 6-10 and finally, 6-10. That's a crappy record that no general manager can actually defend. Why does he still have a job in the NFL? The worst part is 6-10 seems to be the high water mark for the Bills again this year.
Yesterday I wrote that the Browns had essentially given up on their 2013 season, and that's still true. The difference is that the Browns are planning for next season. The Bills just don't seem to get out of their own way.
With the sixteenth pick of the draft, the Bills selected E.J. Manuel. They got the guy they wanted. The problem was that they drafted him at least two rounds too early, and they sacrificed the opportunity to draft a more valuable player with their pick.
I preach, and will continue to preach, that to succeed, every team needs a solid quarterback. That's a premise the Bills seem to be embracing, but they seem to lack the draft savvy to actually obtain a quarterback for a good value.
Now, E.J. Manuel may turn into a great quarterback, and the move to draft him so early in the draft may prove to be the best pick of 2013. The problem is that, considering the Bills' recent problems finding a competent quarterback, Buffalo isn't a place that Manuel is likely to flourish.
For some perspective, the Bills have finished dead last in their division five seasons in a row. The last time the Bills had a winning season was 2004, and the team last made the postseason in 1999, nearly 15 years ago. That's not a place for someone that is "raw talent." That's a place for a pro-ready quarterback that simply can't fail, a prospect like Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III.
