First Glance: The Bills are entering the 2010 campaign with a new head coach and a new outlook on the offensive side of the ball, but unfortunately for them, their division rivals have all stacked up on proven talent, leaving Buffalo once again at the back of the bus.

2009 Record: 6-10 (4th AFC East)

Key Additions: OT Cornell Green, DE/DT Dwan Edwards, ILB Andra Davis, ILB Reggie Torbor

Key Losses: WR Terrell Owens, WR Josh Reed, TE Derek Fine, OT Jonathan Scott, G Richie Incognito, DE Aaron Schobel, DE Ryan Denney, SS John Wendling

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It’s not often that talented pass rushers are released in the middle of training camp, but that’s exactly what Buffalo is set to do with two time Pro Bowl defensive end Aaron Schobel.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Bills will let Schobel walk from his current contract this morning, despite a need for playmakers on their defense.

Schobel finished the 2009 campaign with 56 total tackles, 10 sacks, three forced fumbles, and one interception, likely making him a hot commodity on the market if he chooses to return to the game rather than retire as he has contemplated doing throughout the off-season.

Schobel is a native of Houston, and would almost certainly accept a contract with his home town team if they chose to offer him one. Other teams that will likely be interested in acquiring his services include Kansas City, Oakland, Detroit, Seattle, and St. Louis.

Over the past few days, speculation has run rampant around the league about the Steelers decision to quietly shop starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to other franchises.

Despite their initial intentions, word quickly leaked out of Pittsburgh’s discussions with other clubs and up to now it seemed as though the frontrunners to eventually acquire the embattled quarterback were the Bills and the Raiders, given their defined need at that position.

But be that as it may, for now it seems as though those two teams have no intention whatsoever of consummating a deal with the Steelers in the near future, and their departure from the list of potential destinations for Roethlisberger leaves Pittsburgh with very little to work with.

The news of Buffalo and Oakland pulling out of the race so to speak, comes from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who has had both ears to the ground on this and almost every other story hitting the wire for some time.

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The AFC East has been a hotbed of activity this off-season, with just about every team upgrading its roster via trade or free agency. The only club that hasn’t done much is Buffalo, but they’re expected to make headway with their draft picks next week, so in the long run, every team in the division should be improved, on paper anyway.

With just a week left to go before the NFL Draft commences at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, it’s a perfect time to start our analysis of how each division is shaping up, and break down each team’s needs as it stands right now. Enjoy and feel free to let us know what you think via the comment section…

Buffalo Bills (6-10)

Analysis: The Bills have more than a few holes to fill with this draft, especially after they failed to do much of anything in free agency this off-season. The additions they did make are nice, and will likely help next season, but the players they’ve lost outweigh that group by a long shot, and as such, Buffalo’s brain trust will have their work cut out for them next week. Read the rest of this entry »

After trading away quarterback Donovan McNabb to their division rivals in Washington last week, it seemed as though Philadelphia would be content to stick with Kevin Kolb and Michael Vick next season, and possibly signing a veteran or drafting a late round prospect to fill out the depth chart.

But that doesn’t appear to be the case, as the Eagles are actively looking for a trading partner to unload Vick prior to the draft on April 22nd, and while they may find the market for Vick’s services to be less than they would prefer, a trade involving Vick is likely at this point, according to Paul Domowitch of the Philadelphia Daily News.

Domowitch believes the Philadelphia head coach Andy Reid isn’t convinced that Vick could consistently run the offense if Kolb were to get injured, and as such, signing a veteran to back up Kolb next season is the expected course of action for the Eagles once things are all said and done.

The most likely candidate to fill that role is former Rams quarterback Marc Bulger, who has been adamant in his desire to start someplace next season, but will undoubtedly come around on that very soon as the market for his services dries up.

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Multiple sources are reporting that the Buffalo Bills have signed free agent defensive end Dwan Edwards to four year contract, worth an estimated $18 million.

Edwards is slated to start in Buffalo’s 3-4 defense with the release of fellow defensive lineman Chris Denney and defensive end Aaron Schobel mulling retirement

Edwards also visited the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks. Denver has already signed Justin Bannan, Jamaal Williams, and Jarvis Green to bolster their defensive line, and Seattle plays a 4-3. Both were likely significant factors in the result of signing with the Bills.

The Buffalo Bills have contacted free agent linebacker Joey Porter to see if he is interested in a visit. This is likely to spur a lot of interest among the Buffalo fan base, but don’t get your hopes higher then a hippie on this one.

Even if the Bills came in and dumped an armored truck with a $20 million signing bonus, Porter has publicly stated he wants to play closer to his hometown in Bakersfield, California. He has listed the Arizona Cardinals, San Diego Chargers, and San Francisco 49ers as his most desirable landing spots.

He already has an official visit lined up with the Cardinals, who recently let linebacker Karlos Dansby swim his way to riches with the Miami Dolphins for $22 million in guaranteed money.

Arizona will be pushing very hard to land Porter after losing arguably their top defensive player. The Cardinals have already been pro active in replacing their top defensive back in safety Antrel Rolle, by trading their fourth and seventh round picks this year for Jets safety Kerry Rhodes.

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A new day is come for Bills fans everywhere, with the team seemingly set to hire Chan Gailey as their new head coach this afternoon, and while some fans may find excitement in his arrival, the signal it sends to the rest of the league is not one to be proud of.

Before I get into why this move is so lacking in inspiration, allow me to first say that Gailey is an extremely likable coach and has plenty of offensive acumen to back up his impressive resume. He did well with the horrific level of talent he was given two seasons ago in Kansas City, and while his stay at Georgia Tech left many Yellow Jacket fans feeling angry, Gailey accomplished quite a bit in developing several collegiate players into NFL stars.

That said, the hiring of Gailey in Buffalo paints a picture of desperation, in that the franchise is so adamant in having a offensive minded head coach that they passed on bringing in a quality candidate like Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, in favor of doing a bit of revisionist history with Gailey. Far from being a superb choice, Gailey is known quantity who is a capable coordinator, but has shown time and time again to be severely lacking in his ability to manage an entire team of egos and personalities, which is priority number one as a head coach in the NFL.

Gailey’s own personality conflicts with this, as he is such a nice guy that he is incapable of maintaining the discipline needed to keep his team on the straight and narrow. That’s not to say that its imperative that a coach be strict all of the time, but not being able to have a healthy mix of the two has derailed many a head coaching career, as Gailey could likely attest in his previous stops around the league.

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Headed into the off-season, Buffalo’s upper management had reason to be excited about their chances of landing a top flight head coach, given the level of talent already in place and a 6-10 finish to their season.

But after being jilted by one big name after another, the Bills are down to just a few candidates to fill their opening, none of which have any head coaching experience to speak of. So at this point, Buffalo is seemingly at a crossroads of sorts, having to choose between bringing back their interim head coach in Perry Fewell or going with a rookie to lead the team in the future.

Fewell did well in the half season or so at the helm, but newly promoted general manager Buddy Nix has been adament in his desire to bring in a seasoned head coach to run the show. That said, the other candidates available at this point have even less experience, so Nix is going to bend on his wish sooner or later.

The most likely candidate right now seems to be Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, who reportedly interviewed extremely well, and is seen as the best young talent available. If the Bills choose to go down that route, there is little doubt that it will be a widely praised move around the league, but it could be problematic for the fan base, given the expectations that this team be competitive in the near future.

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With the majority of the top candidates spurning them for gigs elsewhere, the Bills have moved to a second tier of potential replacements for former head coach Dick Jauron.

One of those individuals is former Ravens head coach Brian Billick, who, according to WGRZ-TV in Buffalo, NY, is said to be reaching out to assistants around the league to begin building his staff. WGRZ also reported that current Jacksonville assistant Mike Tice is among the coaches called by Billick.

Obviously this doesn’t necessarily mean a hiring will happen any time soon, but the fact that the Bills are looking at a potential staff as a whole does indicate a deeper level of discussion between the two sides.

As always, we’ll keep you posted.

1:06 pm – ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that Cowher is not likely to coach next season.

11:35 am – Buffalo made a semi-surprising move this morning by sending their entire coaching staff packing, including interim head coach Perry Fewell.

It was expected that the Bills would drastically overhaul their system in the off-season but the dismissal of Fewell was somewhat shocking, as he was believed to be a serious contender to become the permanent coach going forward.

Candidates already linked to the job in Buffalo include fomrer Ravens head coach Brian Billick, Chargers defensive coordinator Ron Rivera, Jets offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, and former Steelers head coach Bill Cowher.

With most of its high profile targets choosing not to talk with Buffalo for the time being, the Bills have opened up their search to include several well known candidates that should be more than willing to discuss the head coach position with team officials.

According to Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports, former Baltimore head coach Brian Billick is expected to interview with Buffalo soon, potentially next week. Billick has thus far refused to comment on the speculation, saying he has not yet head any contact with the Bills, but it’s doubtful that he would decline an opportunity to get back into the league after being unceremoniously dumped by the Ravens in following the 2007 season.

Cole also indicated that New York Jets offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer will also interview with the Bills, and could be a serious contender for the position given his father’s close relationship with newly hired general manager Buddy Nix.

We previously reported that Chargers defensive coordinator Ron Rivera is expected to sit down with the Bills this week, and while it would seem that both Billick and Schottenheimer are stronger candidates, Rivera has interviewed for head coaching positions in the past and is capable of showing himself in a good light to owners and front office personnel.