To the surprise of absolutely no one, former Buffalo Bills cornerback Nate Clements and linebacker London Fletcher-Baker were two of the first players to jump to new teams after the National Football League's signing period opened at 12:01 a.m. on March 2.
Nor was it a shocker that Clements will be wildly overpaid by his new team, signing a surreal eight-year, $80 million contract with San Francisco. Fletcher-Baker proved a relative bargain for Washington at $25 million for five years -- still a pretty healthy wage for a small, 31-year-old inside linebacker from a defense that got gutted on the ground on a weekly basis for the last couple seasons.
What couldn't have been expected, especially in light of Marv Levy's announcement of Buffalo's "spend to the cap" approach to free agency -- meaning any signing bonuses would be considered part of the $109 spending ceiling for 2007, rather than spread over the life of each contract -- was that, as of Sunday morning, no team in the AFC had signed more free agents than the Bills. And in the entire league, only San Francisco's four signees exceeded Buffalo's three.
The Bills were the first ones into the free-agency pool, making the NFL's initial signing of 2007 in the wee hours of Friday morning. They stayed in while much of the league watched, with 20 teams not making a single acquisition in the first two days of the signing period.
Who Buffalo signed, of course, will ultimately be far more important than when. While the other early spenders, like the 49ers, Redskins, Buccaneers and Patriots were stocking up at the glamour positions -- cornerback, wide receiver, running back, quarterback, linebacker -- Levy's front office focused narrowly on the offensive line, the team's weak spot through the tenure of the last four head coaches.
Compared to the incomprehensible contracts given to Clements and others over the next few days, Buffalo's first pick-up was akin to a trip to the dollar store. Veteran offensive lineman Jason Whittle, who spent last season in Minnesota, agreed to a one-year deal with a base salary of $720,000.
Levy showed that he wasn't limiting himself to the bargain bin later in the day, though, when he got the signature of Washington guard Derrick Dockery on a seven-year, $49 million contract that equaled the largest ever given at that position. Then he inked Oakland tackle Langston Walker to a five-year, $25 million deal.
During his first year since returning to the Bills as general manager, Levy took heat for nibbling at the corners of free agency. Whether the new trio of linemen solidify a unit that's been constantly mutating for nearly a decade or not, you can't say Buffalo hasn't gone bold this time around.
Looking at the first few days as a whole, Levy gave up:
He got:
And he saved some money in the process that could be used to fill the holes left by the departing.
Buffalo is reportedly looking to get younger and better by shopping around running back Willis McGahee and hobbled linebacker Takeo Spikes.
McGahee didn't do anything to endear himself to fans or the organization with his comments about Western New York and suggestion that the Bills move to Toronto during an interview with "Penthouse" magazine other than to remind everyone that the cheesy publication is still in business.
Somehow, it was a fitting forum -- pardon the pun -- for McGahee to empty out whatever thoughts were rattling around his brain. His entire professional career has been rather gauche.
During the draft, he and agent Drew Rosenhaus chatted intently on their cell phones any time ESPN's cameras were on, supposedly indicating that they were talking to various NFL front offices. This was apparently meant to put additional pressure on any team willing to use a first-round draft pick on a running back who would miss an entire season rehabbing the gruesome knee injury he suffered in his last college game.
In reality, they were talking to each other.
After the Bills bit, McGahee continued acting like a superstar, even as he limped around during his rehabilitation. Once he got on the field, McGahee's first season was easily his best, as he ran for 1,128 yards and 13 touchdowns, most of it as the Bills ran off a six-game late-season winning streak to the brink of, but not into, the playoffs.
That 2004 season was the only one in which he managed to reach an average of 4 yards per carry, hitting that number on the nose. He's had his moments since, usually against the New York Jets, but has never been able to overcome shortcomings on the line and at quarterback to carry the offense. That's the least you would expect of a first-round back, particularly one making noise about renegotiating his contract.
McGahee has chosen not to take part in the team's offseason workout program, instead staying in Florida, presumably so that he can hang out and play video games with the ever more creepy Rosenhaus.
But forget for a moment where he chooses to work out, the "Penthouse" comments and the blase attitude he demonstrates in just about every interview. Forget the serial paternity suits. McGahee has offered plenty of on-field evidence that he's not worth the trouble, or money, required to keep him around.
At best, he's a solid running back. While it's tough to guess, in retrospect, what Tom Donahoe was thinking at times during his tenure as Buffalo's football czar, it's safe to say he didn't spend a first-round pick and then wait a year for solid.
You can get more for less cash and with fewer hassles in the draft, well after the first round, as well as in free agency or trades. Assuming a stronger offensive line and continued improvement by J.P. Losman, the ground game should improve, whoever does the carrying. Levy should get what he can -- Denver and Baltimore are said to be among the interested -- and be done with it.
Other than their common misfortune of enduring tremendously limiting injuries, Spikes couldn't be more different from McGahee unless they belonged to different species. While also in possession of a yacht-sized ego, Spikes had actual accomplishments as a professional football player to justify it.
Spikes' work ethic and intensity have never been questioned. Nor is there a doubt that since tearing his right Achilles tendon in the third game of the 2005 season, he hasn't been the same kind of explosive sideline-to-sideline force. So if the Bills can trade him, save some money and replace him with a younger, cheaper linebacker, well, it's just business.
NON-FOOTBALL SPORTS DIVERSION OF THE WEEK: Niagara Falls High School's boys basketball team won't be challenging for a state championship this year. The Wolverines lost to Sweet Home in the Section VI, Class AA title game Saturday night at Buffalo State, ending a streak of six straight sectional championships.
But coverage of Sweet Home's 66-64 win showed just how prominent the Niagara Falls program has become since absorbing LaSalle High School.
"Sweet Home pulled off one of the biggest wins in its history and one of the greatest upsets in Western New York history," wrote Keith McShea, the excellent high-school writer for the Buffalo News.
The loss was only the second to a team from a local public school since the 2001 merger, the first coming to Bennett in 2002.
Though it marked a disappointing end to the spectacular high-school career of Syracuse-bound guard Jonathon Flynn, who fouled out in the final minute, the game also showed that the Wolverines aren't going anywhere anytime soon, as junior guard Rashon Tabb poured in 26 points in defeat.
NON-SPORTS DIVERSION OF THE WEEK: It might be the first time anyone has had a beer in the halls of Niagara Falls High School without getting in trouble.
The school's former home, which now hosts the Niagara Arts and Cultural Center, is the site of "Art of Beer" on Thursday, March 8.
In addition to beer samples from local microbrewers and food from neighboring restaurants along Pine Avenue, the festival will feature displays of beer-related memorabilia and artwork. Exhibits will include more than a century's worth of advertisements, as well as labels created by the likes of Ralph Steadman, whose iconic work illustrated some of the late Hunter S. Thompson's finest writing. A film documenting the history of brewing in the area will be shown on the NACC's full-size screen.
Tickets are $20 in advance, $22 at the door, with all proceeds going to the center, which is home to 70 artists' studios, dance and music schools, two theaters and a recording studio. Admission includes food samples, film admission, a souvenir tasting glass and free parking. Tickets are available at the NACC and on its Web site (www.thenacc.org), as well as at Niagara Tradition Homebrewing Supplies, 1296 Sheridan Drive, Tonawanda, and Flying Bison Brewery, 491 Ontario St., Buffalo.
Sorry, kids: You must be 21 to attend.
WING REPORT: It hurts my fingers just to type this, but BillStuff gave up wings and all other deep-fried food for Lent. Since I'm not Catholic, I'm not even really sure what that means, other than that I could really, really go for a couple dozen -- half hot, half butter-garlic -- right now.
But you can help. If you've had a really good batch lately, send an e-mail with a few dozen words including the location and a loving description of the flats and drumettes to DStaba13@aol.com, and we'll assemble the best for the next edition of BillStuff.
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | March 6 2007 |