Things to Think About

by: Michael Steffes

Now that I have had a minute to digest my dinner, and the roster cuts, there are a few things that have popped into my head that are worth sharing with you.


First, Olindo Mare is the kicker. Why do I say this? Because Mare is a veteran. The moment that he suits up week 1, his entire 1.75 million dollar salary is guaranteed. Now, if he has a meltdown, the team will probably be willing to move on. But in the meantime, they will let kicker needy teams snatch up other rookies like Conner Darth and Taylor Mehlhaff tomorrow, and slip Coutu onto the PS with little problem next Tuesday. I would expect that they will pay him his full wage in an effort to keep him there until they need him.

Second, Branch is on the active roster. Good! Its no secret that I was in favor of PUPing him, but as I said all along, I don't have access to the medical reports. I was just going on generalities about ACL injuries. If he comes back soon, even if it is for 15-20 snaps, it will be better than than going with another young guy for 7 weeks. I expect we won't see Branch until after the bye, but hey, who knows? He has a chance to be a difference maker in the second half.

Third, every week, when the team has to declare its 8 inactive players, there are going to be some good players on that list. This is a deep team at every position. If, and this is a big if, they can weather the storm before the bye, and then get the veteran WRs back, this team will be in great shape. Buffalo is going to be a stern test, even more so without Rocky, but as Deon Grant said last night, this team gets to learn to be a road team before they are a home team this year. I think that is a good thing. How can they not be amped up for week 1, right? ~END~