Super Mario not so super so far

[srrono]

http://www.buffalonews.com/article/2...120919877/1004

Damien Woody played many years on the offensive line for the New England Patriots and New York Jets.

This year, he has been a huge Buffalo Bills fan.

Woody has been banging the Bills' drum in his role as an ESPN analyst. He predicted they would make the playoffs because he thought free-agent defensive end Mario Williams was that influential, that dominant.

But after what Woody witnessed from Williams in Sunday's season-opening 48-28 loss to the Jets, he's not sure what to think anymore.

"Mario had no effect on the game. None. Zero." said Woody, who watched the game from the stands next to some Bills fans at the Meadowlands.

Against a right tackle with four games of NFL experience and one previous start, Williams recorded no sacks. His lone tackle came on the fourth play. He didn't appear on the official play-by-play rundown for the rest of the game.

In the Bills' locker room after the game, Williams complained that replacement officials kept ignoring Howard's hands being jabbed in Williams' face.

"For him to blame replacement officials as the reason he got dominated yesterday, I think that's pathetic," Woody said. "There's no ifs, ands or buts about it.

"You're the big free agent. You're the $100 million man going up against a guy that was on the practice squad and inserted in the starting role just a couple weeks ago. I saw a lot of times Mario was one-on-one and couldn't do anything."

The Bills made Williams the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history, signing him to a six-year contract worth as much as $100 million and with $50 million in guarantees.

Woody didn't see any justification for those dollars Sunday.

"I give all the credit to Austin Howard, but this is opening day," Woody said. "If there's any day that you're going to be riled up, it is opening day. You're on the road against a divisional opponent. You're feeling good about your team.

"To not have any production? And then to try to blame it on replacement refs? I mean, come on, man. You've got to be kidding me."

Jets coach Rex Ryan denied that Howard did anything illegal. Bills coach Chan Gailey dismissed any overlooked calls.

"Our offensive guys probably had a couple," Gailey said. "It's going to happen. Maybe it happened more to him than other people. We've just got to keep fighting through that kind of stuff."

The official NFL game book credited the Bills with no quarterback hits, although Williams did knock Mark Sanchez down once. Sanchez had one of the best games of his career, throwing for three touchdowns and registering a gaudy 123.4 passer rating.

Some might say the Jets negated Williams with quick throws, but Jets receivers were getting open in the secondary with double moves. Double moves take time to execute and require pass protection.

"He was doing all right," Gailey said. "He didn't use the power rush maybe as much. If you'd go back and ask him, he might say he should have used the power rush a little bit more than he did, the edge rush."

A lot of players who perform "all right" make a fraction of the salary Williams does. When asked whether "all right" is enough from a player of Williams' stature, Gailey was cautious in his response.

"It's hard to put too much pressure on guys like that," Gailey said. "You just want every guy to be a factor in the game at whatever position they play. I want them all to be more of a factor.

"We point him because he's a highly touted signee and all that. He's going to be a good player here for a long time. I don't have a problem with that."

[Texecutioner]

Looks like he saw the same thing I used to see since season one for the Texans. I won't ever feel sorry for Mario Williams when he is criticized. THe guy got huge bucks here when he hadn't earned it, and now he is getting it in Buffalo and he won't earn it there for sure considering what they decided to pay him.

[kwayshauntay]

Just finished watching the full game, and wowwww. I don't remember Mario ever sandbagging an entire game as blatantly as he did this one.

That was a pathetic effort. He was barely even trying, as if he was doing non-contact practice drills.

[grasping at] Maybe he's not fully recovered from his pec injury? [/straws]

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by kwayshauntay

whooooosh

msr

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by Texecutioner

That's what I said about Mario the entire time he was here. Can't count the times Dale and I were either laughed at or spewed at for pointing out the obvious with Mario. He is going to really stink in Buffalo. They're going to be really bad for years, and he'll hate that cold weather over there. He'll be cut after his 3rd season there.

Don't know if anyone ever laughed at you. But I've always defended Mario when he was here & I'll continue to defend him. He is elite.

I didn't watch the Buffalo game, so I have no idea what was going on there. Can't tell you how well he played/didn't play. But just because he didn't show up on the stat sheet doesn't tell me he didn't play well.

Jared Allen didn't show up in the box scores either, doesn't change the fact that he's elite & Mario is a more well-rounded DE.

Ω

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by Texan_Bill

I'm guessing the Bills fan base isn't the most intelligent in the league:



Didn't Marion go out in the 5th game of the season?? Obvioulsy, but wouldn't that be less than even 12 months ago???

Yes, he was leading our team in sacks after 5 weeks, after 6 weeks, after 7 weeks, I think after 8 weeks.

But yes, he went out in the 5th game of the season.

[Playoffs]

Pretty harsh Buffalo News article for this early in the season:

http://www.buffalonews.com/apps/pbcs...120919626/1004

Jerry Sullivan: Super Mario gets a reality check

But evidently, Williams didn't have the necessary means to know he was being roasted in the national media. Williams said he was unaware that former NFL star Rodney Harrison had ripped him Monday on his debut show on the NBC Sports Network.

Really, you didn't hear?

"I don't watch TV, man," Williams said. "Never have, never will. I think I've said that about a million times in my last seven years."

I'm not sure what's harder to believe - that any red-blooded American would claim to have never watched a minute of television, or that an NFL player with a Twitter account and a cell phone, not to mention friends, teammates and relatives, could be ignorant of a public media attack.

"Mario didn't hear it?" Ryan Fitzpatrick said. "Oh, I didn't either, then."
.....
When you hand a player $50 million in guarantees, you expect greatness, not excuses. Maybe it's sour grapes, but Houston fans and players don't seem to miss him. I'm already wondering if what they say is true, that there's a lot less to Mario than meets the eye.

[GP]

You can ALWAYS gauge the greatness of a player by visiting a diehard fan message board and reading the reactions of the fans regarding a departing player.

How many fans, here, went to the length or to the level of gnashing of teeth and wailing in the Mario Leaves Houston for Buffalo thread versus the DeMeco Leaves Houston for Philly thread?????????? Night and day difference.

In one thread, people were arguing more about how early or how late people were to realize the player was not worth the money. In the other thread, there was heated remarks and great debate amongst the fans about the departure of the other player. Meh in one, OMG! in another. Night and day difference.

And whattya' know? One player is getting the usual remarks, and the other is getting the usual remarks. What you do when you leave for a new team, how you handle it and how you perform in your new jersey, is the mark of a great NFL player. Ryans is not a stud superstar LB, never was...he is genuinely energized and would chop an arm off to get out there and play. The other guy? Well...ummm...sort of.

Big ups to Philly for making a good deal for their team, both in terms of player need and contract friendliness. We ended up, IIRC, getting a decent draft pick for Ryans as well. Win-win.

[Texn4life]

Sound Familiar?

Mario Williams hints at undisclosed injury

Mario Williams hints at undisclosed injury
Posted by Mike Florio on September 13, 2012, 10:22 PM EDT
Mario Williams AP

Lost in the reaction of Bills defensive end Mario Williams to the criticism of his Week One performance is the reality that he apparently has an injury that the Bills have yet to disclose.

Coach Chan Gailey revealed that Williams suffered a wrist injury in the preseason, according to Jerry Sullivan of the Buffalo News.

“I had a little bit of a freak deal a couple of weeks ago,” Williams said. “Unfortunately, it was right before the regular season. Like I said, by any means necessary. I’ve got to take care of it, put everything to the side, and try to get to the quarterback.”

[Rey]

Mario is going to get his sacks I think. He is a good player but he wouldn't have been close to being the best player on this defense. He wasn't worth 100 mil.

Jj watt is already a better player than Mario.

[CloakNNNdagger]

Originally Posted by Rey

Mario is going to get his sacks I think. He is a good player but he wouldn't have been close to being the best player on this defense. He wasn't worth 100 mil.

Jj watt is already a better player than Mario.

History tends to repeat itself. Mario was taking plays off and disappeared in a game........already. He is again injured........already. First game or not, he is failing to meet high expectations.........already. Yet he has fattened his super-sized wallet.......already. And I am tired of hearing about how good Mario really is........already.

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by Rey

Mario is going to get his sacks I think. He is a good player but he wouldn't have been close to being the best player on this defense. He wasn't worth 100 mil.

Jj watt is already a better player than Mario.

I don't know. In this defense, Mario was on track to record 15 sacks. He may very well have gotten close to 20 sacks. Add in all the hurries, pressures, & tackles for losses that would have gone along with 20 sacks in this defense. Who knows?

WOLB in Wade's defense is like a RB in the ZBS, the QB in a WCO... however good the player is, the scheme is designed to "inflate" his production.

When healthy Mario is one of the best DE in the league, even when he "takes plays off & disappear for a while."

[TheIronDuke]

I can name 5 DE's I'd rather have over Mario, so I have no idea why he's being paid like the best defensive player in football.

[EllisUnit]

The man i getting 50 million dollars regardless of what he does. He is prob set for life, i doubt he really cares.


fool them once shame on them,,,,fool them twice,,,,now he's rich

[Vinny]

Originally Posted by Texn4life

Sound Familiar?

Mario Williams hints at undisclosed injury

classic

[Double Barrel]

Originally Posted by Vinny

classic

Turns out he was not using an ergonomical pen when he was endorsing one of his big-ass paychecks. That'll learn him!

[Rey]

Originally Posted by Fiddler

I don't know. In this defense, Mario was on track to record 15 sacks. He may very well have gotten close to 20 sacks. Add in all the hurries, pressures, & tackles for losses that would have gone along with 20 sacks in this defense. Who knows?

WOLB in Wade's defense is like a RB in the ZBS, the QB in a WCO... however good the player is, the scheme is designed to "inflate" his production.

When healthy Mario is one of the best DE in the league, even when he "takes plays off & disappear for a while."

Yeah, I disagree.

I would have loved to have him in this defense, but not for that price...even if we could afford it. He's not worth that much money when he is so often hurt and can be taken out of games so easily. He's 6'6" with a freak vert and rarely puts his hands up... Doesn't cause a lot of turnovers...has avg tackle numbers...

Not worth 100 mil even if he does occasionally dominates and gets to the qb.

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by Rey

Yeah, I disagree.

I would have loved to have him in this defense, but not for that price...even if we could afford it. He's not worth that much money when he is so often hurt and can be taken out of games so easily. He's 6'6" with a freak vert and rarely puts his hands up... Doesn't cause a lot of turnovers...has avg tackle numbers...

Not worth 100 mil even if he does occasionally dominates and gets to the qb.

I agree with you there. I don't think anyone is worth that kind of money, especially after learning that the cap remained flat over the last two season & may very well be flat for the next few.

I'm shocked & concerned that we're spending $15M/yr on Schaub.

[Thorn]

I'm not going to start a new thread for this. But just wondering, in restrospect, if the draft could be done over again for that year, and knowing what we know now, who would you take? Mario, VY or Bush? Frankly, even though he wasn't worth the money, I'd still take Mario over VY or Bush.

And yes, I know, a better answer would be none of the above. But that isn't what I asked. LOL

[The Pencil Neck]

Originally Posted by Thorn

I'm not going to start a new thread for this. But just wondering, in restrospect, if the draft could be done over again for that year, and knowing what we know now, who would you take? Mario, VY or Bush? Frankly, even though he wasn't worth the money, I'd still take Mario over VY or Bush.

And yes, I know, a better answer would be none of the above. But that isn't what I asked. LOL

DEMECO!!!!!

Actually, you could break it down like this... who are the "leaders" from that class:

Jay Cutler, QB
Maurice Jones-Drew, RB
Brandon Marshall, WR
Marques Colston, WR
Demeco Ryans, LB
Chad Greenway, LB
AJ Hawk, LB
DeAngelo Williams, RB
Nick Mangold, C
Devin Hester, PR/KR
Haloti Ngata, DT
D'Brickashaw Ferguson, T
Jahri Evans, T
Tamba Hali, DE
Mario Williams, DE
Elvis Dumerville, DE
Antonio Cromartie, CB
Cortland Innegan, CB


If I had a do-over and 20-20 hindsight, I'd probably go DeMeco or MJD. If I just had to pick from the original options, I'd go Mario.