59-year old head coach Chan Gailey too over a mess of a team last year and he led them to a 4-12 record.  He has now been a head coach in the NFL for three years and he is 22-26 (45.8%) during the regular season and 0-2 in the playoffs.  Gailey is an offensive head coach and he worked miracles with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick in 2010.  Hopefully he can repeat his magic with the offense, while at the same time, the defense gets better.  I think Gailey is the right guy to get the Bills on the right track, but it’s going to take some time.

The Bills are likely going to try to run the ball a little more in 2011 to help control the clock and protect their defense.  30-year old Fred Jackson will likely be the main ballcarrier for the Bills once again in 2011.  Jackson played in 16 games (13 starts) for the Bills last year and he carried the ball 222 times for 927 yards (4.2 ypc) with 5 TD runs.  He also caught 31 passes for 215 yards (6.9 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Jackson has now played in 56 games (28 starts) in his first four years with the Bills and he has carried the ball 647 times for 2,860 yards (4.4 ypc) with 10 TD runs.  He has also carried the ball 136 times for 1,093 yards (8.0 avg) with 4 TD grabs so far in his career.  Jackson is a good all-around back, but the Bills might lessen his workload a tad in 2011 in order to get their young RBs some carries.  That will keep Jackson fresh and healthy in 2011.

24-year old C.J. Spiller will likely see a larger load offensively in 2011 for the Bills.  Spiller played in 14 games (1 start) for the Bills last year and he carried the ball 74 times for 283 yards (3.8 ypc).  He also caught 24 passes for 157 yards (6.5 avg) with 1 TD grab last year.  Spiller has the speed to be lethal on the edges of the D and that’s where the Bills need to get him the ball.  Look for him to have a larger role on offense in 2011.

23-year old Johnny White was a 5th round pick last April out of Louisville.  White gives the Bills a new look as he is a power runner.  I look for him to get some work in short yardage situations and around the goal line in 2011.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BILLS RBS IN 2011:  B-

The Buffalo Bills are depending on 28-year old QB Ryan Fitzpatrick to start at QB and be effective again in 2011.  Fitzpatrick played in 13 games (all starts) for the Bills last season and he completed 255 of 441 passes (57.8%) for 3,000 yards with 23 TD passes and 15 INTs (81.8 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 40 times for 269 yards (6.7 ypc) last year.  Fitzpatrick’s mobility is a big key behind a Bills’ O-Line that isn’t that good.  He doesn’t have the strongest arm around but he can get the ball field when he needs to.  He has played in 42 games (36 starts) in his first six years in the NFL and he has completed 679 of 1,175 passes (57.8%) for 7,104 yards with 44 TD passes and 42 INTs (73.0 QB Rating).  Fitzpatrick has also carried the ball 148 times for 778 yards (5.3 ypc) with 5 TD runs in his NFL career so far.  As you can see from his career numbers, Fitzpatrick has never played near as well as he did last season, which makes him a risk as a starting QB.  He owns a 12-23-1 (34.3%) record as a starting QB in the NFL.

27-year old Tyler Thigpen will be Fitzpatrick’s backup.  He played in 5 games (1 start) for the Dolphins last year and he completed 33 of 62 passes (53.2%) for 435 yards with 2 TD passes and 2 INTs (73.0 QB Rating).  Thigpen also carried the ball 13 times for 73 yards (5.6 ypc) last year.  Thigpen has a similar skill set at QB to Fitzpatrick’s as he is a mobile QB without a big time arm.  Thigpen won’t be a threat to Fitzpatrick’s starting job in 2011.  Thigpen has played in 22 games (12 starts) in his first four years in the NFL and he has completed 269 of 496 passes (54.2%) for 3,167 yards with 21 TD passes and 17 INTs (73.7 QB Rating.  Thigpen has also carried the ball 77 times for 462 yards (6.2 ypc) with 3 TD runs in his NFL career so far.  Thigpen is an amazingly bad 1-11 (8.3%) as a starting QB in the NFL.

24-year old Levi Brown will be the Bills’ #3 QB in 2011.  He is a developmental project.  Brown played in 1 game (0 starts) last season for the Bills and he completed 2 of 3 passes (66.7%) for 24 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT (51.4 QB Rating).  If Brown has to play in 2011, the Bills will be in big, big trouble.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BILLS QBS IN 2011:  C-

29-year old RB Fred Jackson got most of the work as the kickoff returner in 2009 for the Bills.  He played in 16 games for the Bills last season and he returned 41 kickoffs for 1,014 yards (24.7 avg).  Jackson has now played in 40 games in his NFL career and he has returned 56 kickoffs for 1,241 yards (22.2 avg).  I have a feeling that the Bills are going to have Jackson focus more on playing running back in 2010 and let other guys return kicks.

28-year old WR Roscoe Parrish is a tad small at 5’10″, 168 pounds but he has a lot of nice moves in the open field and he’s fast.  Parrish played in 12 games for the Bills last season and he returned 11 kickoffs for 258 yards (23.5 avg).  He has now played in 67 games in his NFL career and he has returned 29 kickoffs for 685 yards (23.6 avg). 

First round pick C.J. Spiller a RB out of Clemson will get some chances to return kickoffs in 2010 and I wouldn’t be surprised if he were the Bills’ main man in that role.  His combination of speed and power would make him a very scary weapon for the Bills on special teams.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BILLS KICKOFF RETURNERS in 2010:  B

The Bills O-Line looks solid in the middle but not so much on the outside.  Starting Demetrius Bell at LT means Bills’ QBs will have to have their heads on a swivel.  Bell is a decent run blocker but he has issues blocking in the passing game as speed rushers seem to run right around him.  LG Andy Levitre was a rookie last season and he was very solid.  He will help Bell whenever someone crosses his face to the inside.  Levitre is a player on the rise.  Center Goeff Hangartner is a solid finesse player especially when pass blocking but he does have trouble with big, strong nose tackles.  Lucky for Hangartner, he has help on the inside with Levitre on one side and Eric Wood on the other.  Eric Wood will start at right guard for the Bills in 2010 and he was the best lineman on the team last year before his season ending with a gruesome injury.  The Bills will have a new right tackle in Cornell Green.  Green is more of a run blocker than a pass blocker. 

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BILLS O-LINE in 2010:  C-

58-year old Chan Gailey was hired during the off-season to give the offense a jolt.  Gone are the defensive minded coaches (Dick Jauron and Perry Fewell) and in their place stands Gailey.  Gailey was last seen as a head coach in the NFL in 1999 with the Cowboys.  He was 18-14 (56.3%) during the regular season in his two years with the Cowboys leading them to the playoffs each year.  Gailey was 0-2 in the playoffs.  Just having a coach with the track record of Gailey has to get the people of Buffalo excited.

33-year old Rian Lindell is one of the most underrated kickers in the NFL.  A recently poor offense and some terrible weather in Buffalo can’t stop him from putting points on the board.  Lindell played in 16 games for the Bills last season and he connected on 28 of 33 field goals (84.8%) and all 24 of his extra points good for 108 points.  He has now played in 156 games in his NFL career and he has made 233 of 288 field goals (80.9%) and he has never missed an extra point (306).  Lindell has scored 1,005 points in his NFL career. 

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BILLS KICKERS in 2010:  A

29-year old Lee Evans is without a doubt the best WR on the Bills heading into 2010.  Evans played in 16 games (all starts) last season for the Bills and he caught 44 passes for 612 yards (13.9 avg) with 7 TD grabs.  He has now played in 96 games (89 starts) in his six years with the Bills and he has caught 340 passes for 5,356 yards (15.8 avg) with 39 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 10 times for 145 yards (14.5 ypc) in his career with the Bills.  Evans will likely face a ton of double teams this season as the rest of the Bills WR corps is pretty darn weak.

23-year old Steve Johnson will probably get the first shot to replace Terrell Owens opposite of Lee Evans.  Johnson played in 13 games (5 starts) for the Bills last season and he caught 2 passes for 10 yards (5.0 avg).  He has now played in 16 games (1 start) in his two years with the Bills and he has caught 12 passes for 112 yards (9.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  This will be Johnson’s big chance to show what he can do in the NFL.

28-year old Roscoe Parrish will likely have a much bigger role on the offense this year.  Parrish played in 12 games (0 starts) last season for the Bills and he caught only 3 passes for 34 yards (11.3 avg).  He has now played in 67 games (6 starts) in his six years with the Bills and he has caught 100 passes for 1,086 yards (10.9 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Parrish has also carried the ball 11 times for 48 yards (4.4 ypc) with 1 TD run in his career. 

24-year old James Hardy has not done much in his career with the Bills but they’re still holding out hope that he will produce soon.  Hardy played in 2 games  (0 starts) for the Bills last season and he caught 1 pass for 9 yards.  He has now played in 16 games (3 starts) in his two years with the Bills and he has caught 10 passes for 96 yards (9.6 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Hardy could work his way up the depth chart if he plays well this year.

Rookie Marcus Easley was a 4th round pick out of U.Conn this April.  He has nice size at 6’2″, 216 pounds and he could easily move up the depth chart with a fast start to his career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BILLS WRs in 2010:  D

The Bills have a collection of five TEs between 24-26 years old who are short on experience but they have potential.  As of right now it would appear that 24-year old Shawn Nelson would be at the top of the depth chart at TE.  He played in 12 games (all starts) for the Bills last season and he caught 17 passes for 156 yards (9.2 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Nelson is probably the best all around TE the Bills have on the roster.

25-year old Derek Schouman got off to a fast start last season before a serious injury cut his year short.  Schouman played in 2 games (both starts) for the Bills last season and he caught 9 passes for 103 yards (11.4 avg).  He has now played in 21 games (15 starts) in his 3 years with the Bills and he has caught 27 passes for 275 yards (10.2 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Schouman is the best receiver of this group but that doesn’t matter if he can’t stay healthy.

25-year old Jonathan Stupar got some work as a rookie for the Bills last season.  He played in 14 games (2 starts) for the Bills last season and he caught 6 passes for 40 yards (6.7 avg).  Stupar will have to play better than he did last season to keep his roster spot.

26-year old Joe Klopfenstein is more of a blocker than a receiver.  He played in 1 game (1 start) for the Bills last season and he caught 1 pass for 11 yards.  Klopfenstein has now played in 49 games (38 starts) in his four years in the NFL and he has caught 34 passes for 397 yards (11.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He has the most experience on the roster but that might not secure him a spot on it.

26-year old Michael Matthews will have a hard time making the team as his game is his blocking.  He played in 7 games (0 starts) for the Patriots & Lions last season and he didn’t catch any passes.  Matthews has now played in 39 games (11 starts) in his NFL career and he has caught 8 passes for 54 yards (6.8 avg).

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BILLS TEs in 2010:  D+

UPDATE: (7/23/2010) – The Bills will be without Joe Klopfenstein in 2010 as he has been placed on I.R.

The Bills are happy with 31-year old Corey McIntyre who is a solid all around player.  He can block and he helps out a lot on special teams.  McIntyre played in 15 games (4 starts) for the Bills last season and he carried the ball 5 times for 34 yards (6.8 ypc).  He also caught 7 passes for 55 yards (7.9 avg).  McIntyre never got a carry in the NFL until last season despite playing in 59 games (7 starts).  He has caught 10 passes for 64 yards (6.4 avg) in his career.  McIntyre’s main job will be blocking for Fred Jackson, C.J. Spiller and Marshawn Lynch in 2010 and I think he will do a good job.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BILLS FBs in 2010:  B