Lee Evans traded. Aaron Maybin cut. Goodell screws Buffalo. Merriman busted?
Could there be a worse start to the newly reinstated NFL season than the one occurring at One Bills Drive?
I suppose they could go 0-4 to start the season. Hell, at the rate they’re going I’d almost consider another 4-12 season a success for the plundering franchise.
Sure, saying things look bleak for the Bills this season is probably giving them too much credit, but isn’t this all just a part of Buddy Nix’s plan?
His apparent philosophy is to build through the draft with his own players, which was made evident this year when the second-year GM allowed Paul Posluszny to walk, cut Aaron Maybin and traded away Lee Evans.
What does he have to show for shaving away three players who were once thought to be the future core of this football team? Well, nothing really. Just an additional fourth round pick in this April’s draft.
But, if Nix can turn that fourth round draft choice into a productive player like he’s done multiple times in the past, maybe we can assume his “plan” maybe, just maybe, could be working after all.
The Bills sure haven’t had a very high success-rate resulting from their recent late-round draft choices. But our current GM isn’t named Donahoe, Levy or Brandon. So we should give Nix the benefit of the doubt when it comes to making the most out of the return he received from Evans, right?
As many of you know, before Buddy arrived in Buffalo he served eight years as the San Diego Charger’s Assisstant GM, where he oversaw the Charger’s entire college scouting department and served as the most influential voice to GM A.J. Smith when it came to selecting draft picks.
Throughout those eight season, Nix and the Chargers had relative success, drafting all-pro players such as Drew Brees, LaDanian Tomlinson, Eli Manning (Phillip Rivers) and many more who have since then experienced productive careers in the NFL.
Not only does Nix want to build the Bills’ future roster by selecting his own talent, but since he arrived in Buffalo he’s also brought in the likes of Shawne Merriman, Drayton Florence, Craig “Buster” Davis and Scott Chandler, all of whom were once drafted by Nix in San Diego.
It’s no secret that Nix has built a successful track record of drafting players towards the top end of the draft, but history actually shows he’s found a few gems in the late rounds as well.
If this trend continues for Nix and Co., then that fourth round choice acquired for Evans last week has a good chance to prove worth while in the end.
Will the pick come to fruition and play an essential role in the Bills future or will it eventually prove right everything the fans and media have been uttering of the Evans trade — that the Bills gave away arguably their most influential player left on the roster for virtually nothing?
Only time will tell.
In the meantime, let’s take a look at some of the late-round gems Buddy Nix has uncovered throughout his career with the Chargers.
2001
Nix’s first draft with the Chargers was easily his most successful one. ’01 was the year San Diego selected five-time Pro-Bowler LaDanian Tomlinson fifth overall and with the 32nd overall choice in round two took former NFL passing leader Drew Brees. Not a bad haul for a first-timer.
Despite the success Nix had early on in the 2001 draft, that year’s draft class failed to yield any significant talent from the later rounds.
The Chargers five choices from round five on that year were LB Carlos Polk (112th overall), OT Elliot Silvers (132nd overall), LB Zeke Moreno (139th overall), OT Brandon Gorin (201st overall), and CB Robert Carswell (244th overall).
Who? Exactly.
Throughout their NFL careers, those five players have combined for a whopping total of 48 career starts. Nothing to speak of there.
2002
The Chargers ’02 draft turned out to be nowhere near as successful as the previous year.
Again Buddy Nix and Co. held the fifth overall selection and this time chose CB Quentin Jammer. Following Jammer at the top of the draft were picks OG Toniu Fonoti (39th overall), WR Reche Caldwell (48th overall) and LB Ben Leber (71st overall) — a decent haul.
The late rounds again failed to produce much talent, though, as the Chargers selected TE Justin Peelle (103rd overall), WR Terry Charles (142nd overall), Matt Anderle (178th overall) and QB Seth Burford (216th overall).
2003
The 2003 haul failed to yield any top-end talent for Nix although it did include current Bills CB Drayton Florence (46th overall). But it was the first year Nix had relative success in the late rounds.
With the 149th overall pick the Chargers selected who would turned out to be their franchise punter Mike Scifres in the fifth round.
Scifres has started every game of every season since 2004 for the Chargers and has been named to the Pro-Bowl as an alternate three times over that span.
2004
The 2004 NFL Draft was certianly one to remember for Nix and the Chargers. They held the first overall selection and subsequently took a disgruntled Eli Manning despite warnings he had no desire to play for the franchise.
What appeared to be a huge disaster at that point turned into one of Nix’s defining moments with the team as he and A.J. Smith were able to ship Manning off to the New York Giants, who held the fifth-overall selection, for what would turn out to be their new franchise quaterback in Phillip Rivers.
Not only did Nix have a hand in drafting two of today’s premier quarterbacks in ’04, but also found a plethora of talent beyond the third round.
The Chargers had seven selections following round three that year and with them took LB Shaun Phillips (98th overall), DE Dave Ball (133rd overall), HB Michael Turner (154th overall), TE Ryan Krause (169th overall), DT Ryon Bingham (204th overall), OT Shane Olivea (209th overall) and Carlos Joseph (254th overall).
Shaun Phillips has had a very productive career in San Diego compiling 56.5 sacks and 293 tackles in eight seasons with the team. He had his most successful year playing alongside Merriman in 2006 and has since then filled the void left by “Lights Out” when he went down with injuries and ultimately left for Buffalo.
Phillips was named to his first Pro-Bowl last season after totaling 11 sacks and 47 tackles for the Chargers and remains their most effective linebacker.
Michael “The Burner” Turner is without a doubt Nix’s top find in the draft’s final rounds as he played a prominent backup role for Tomlinson during his time in San Diego.
After leaving the Chargers to join the Atlanta Falcons in 2008, Turner has compiled almost 4,000 rushing yards and 39 touchdowns in three seasons with the team and was named to the Pro-Bowl twice in that span.
Nix’s seventh-round choice Shane Olivea turned out to be quite the find as well.
Olivea started 57 games for the Chargers from ’04-’07 and was signed by the New York Giants during the 2008 off-season.
Since then though Olivea has failed to garner much interest from NFL teams due to a recurring back injury and is still searching for suitors. However, despite never being named to a Pro-Bowl, Olivea was still considered one of the main pieced to the offensive line that allowed Tomlinson to shatter the NFL rushing records.
2005
Buddy Nix followed up his impressive ’04 class with an even more daunting haul in 2005.
The Chargers selected LB Shawne Merriman (12th overall), DE Luis Castillo (28th overall) and WR Vincent Jackson (61st overall) with their first three picks in ’05. All three players have since then been named to at least one Pro-Bowl and by most accounts were considered one of the best at their respective positions at one point.
The talent dropped off after the third round in’05 for Nix but he still managed to uncover one fairly impressive fourth-rounder when he selected HB Darren Sproles 130th overall.
Sproles remains one of the NFL’s most electric play-makers after he burst onto the scene and has since become one of the best return-men in football.
He also played a substantial role in San Diego’s daunting rushing attack in ’06 and ’07 when the likes of Tomlinson, Turner and Sproles ran wild over opposing defenses. Sproles complimented his counterparts perfectly with his ability to catch the ball in the backfield and create his own space down-field.
Sproles recently finished up his final season in San Diego and signed on with the New Orleans Saints this off-season as a free agent.
2006
Although Nix again found good talent in the early rounds of the ’06 draft (Antonio Cromartie, Marcus McNeill, Charlie Whitehurst), none of his choices beyond round three have been able to establish themselves in the NFL.
LB Tim Dobbins (151st overall), OT Jeromey Clay (187th overall), K Kurt Smith (188th overall), DT Chase Page (225th overall) and C Jimmy Martin (227th overall) have combined to start just 58 games in the NFL — 48 of which belong to Clay, Nix’s sixth-round pick that year who remains a viable starter for the Chargers offensive line.
2007
Nix’s sixth draft with the Chargers is the draft that today holds the most effect on the Bills’ current roster.
His first-round choice in ’07, WR Craig “Buster” Davis, is one of the Bills’ newest additions after signing with the team a few weeks ago and his fourth-round pick that year, TE Scott Chandler, signed on with Buffalo last season.
Nix’s best pick in 2007 came in the fifth round when he selected WR Legedu Naanee 172nd overall.
Naanee has since proved to be a viable option as a wide receiver in the league and caught 63 passes for 746 yards and three touchdowns during his four seasons in San Diego.
Naanee recently signed with the Carolina Panthers as a free agent this off-season.
2008
This would turn out to be Nix’s last draft with the Chargers as he was hired as National Scout for the Bills the following season.
Nix’s last draft in San Diego was by far his worst one with the team as the members of that ’08 class have combined to start just 39 games so far in their careers.
The best returns from Nix’s draft in 2008 was his first round choice CB Antoine Cason who played 15 games for the Chargers last season, totaling four interceptions last year and third-round pick FB Jacob Hester who remains one of the better fullback options around the league.
With the Bills
Although Nix’s time with the Bills has not yet amounted to the point where we can officially judge the success of his draft classes, the picks he has made thus far seem to be positive ones.
Of Nix’s two draft classes (not including 2009 when he served as national scout), the GM has drafted a number of starters in both the early and late rounds. Not to mention, the selection of Marcel Dareus third-overall this year is already shaping out to be a phenomenal pick.
In fact, a few of his late round selections are beginning to play a big role for the Bills. From the 2010 draft, WR Marcus Easley (107th overall), OT Ed Wang (140th overall) and LB Arthur Moats (179th overall) all have a very good chance at earning a starting role on this year’s roster.
If this trend continues, there’s no telling what the Bills’ second fourth-round selection in this year’s draft could hold for the franchise.
If you ask me, it had better turn into something worth justifying trading away one of the team’s most valuable assets. Don’t let us down, Buddy.
What do you think? Be sure to leave your opinion in the comment box below or, better yet, follow Brandon on Twitter! @THWGoldSchlager
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