1. New Orleans Saints – The Saints finished last season as champions so they get the top spot by default, but I fully expect them to drop once the season starts. For one, they will be dealing with the Super Bowl hangover which has plagued recent champions. Two, Drew Brees is on the Madden cover, which isn't good for the overall karma of the team. Three, no more Kim Kardashian in the press box.

2. Indianapolis Colts – The Colts are the most boring team on this list. All they do is win; year in and year out. Of course as Scott told me in our fantasy draft, watch this be the year that Manning finally goes down with an injury. You know, since I spent $49 of a $200 cap on him in our auction draft.

3. Green Bay Packers – I really like the Packers this year. A lot. Aaron Rodgers showed me a ton last year and they are only going to get better as an overall team. On a side note, am I the only one who cracks up every time he does his 'championship belt' celebration? It's hilarious.

4. Dallas Cowboys – I think it's safe to say that Wade Phillips has a pretty good grasp on the defense in Dallas. If there is one thing Wade is good at, it's defense. And punt catching. On the other side of the ball, Dallas has a real opportunity to unleash an elite offense upon the NFL. They have the good quarterback, two good running backs, a handful of good receivers and an elite tight end. It also looks like they could have Kim Kardashian in the press box.


5. Minnesota Vikings – As if there was any doubt, the Wrangler God will be gracing us with his presence for a 20^th season. Anybody that actually believed he was going to retire should also check the mirror to see if 'moron' is written across their forehead. Favre signed a two year deal with the Vikings last year so coming back was a 100% certainty for this season. The only reason it took so long to make his "decision" was because he wanted to see how much training camp he could skip out on. Plus he loved the attention of his teammates begging him to come back and stroking his ego a little more. Among other things, the Vikings missing the playoffs this season is on my list of things that would make this season a success in my eyes.

6. San Diego Chargers – The biggest thing standing in the way of the Chargers winning the AFC West yet again is the status of Vincent Jackson. They just traded for Patrick Crayton so things aren't looking good on the Jackson front. Otherwise, San Diego is looking pretty good. Phillip Rivers continues to improve and the offense as a whole should be much better since they upgraded their running back situation by drafting Ryan Matthews and ridding themselves of LaDanian Tomlinson's corpse. Then again, Norv Turner is still the coach of this team so anything is really in play.

7. New England Patriots – No attempted reverse jinx here, New England is winning the AFC East this season. People just seem to forget about them because they aren't on HBO trying to name off all their illegitimate children and crowning themselves as the Super Bowl champs yet, but the Patriots are still pretty good. Just in case anybody forgot; Brady, Moss and Belicheck are still on the team.

8. New York Jets – I have the Jets still in the top 10 despite my mean spirited words above, but I don't have them winning their division and I most definitely don't have them winning the Super Bowl. They'll grab a wildcard spot and make the playoffs, but they won't make it past the second round this time around. I have several theories as to why this will happen but I'd rather not waste all my material before the season even starts. Let's just say the biggest thing holding them back rhymes with franchise.

9. Baltimore Ravens – The Ravens and Packers facing each other in the Super Bowl this year has a nice ring to it, but I doubt it happens. Mostly because 99.9% of preseason Super Bowl predictions never pan out. I do hope Baltimore Runs the AFC North though. Mostly because it would mean Pittsburgh isn't winning it, which is on my short list that was first mentioned in the Minnesota section.

10. Atlanta Falcons – Assuming the Saints fall a little bit, which I fully expect, Atlanta could very well swoop in and take the division. I think it's safe to say it's between those two teams to begin with, so I don't think this is much of a stretch. Without doing an ounce of research, I'd have to think that Matt Ryan will be much better this season than he was last season. Most times players dip a little bit during their second year and then show improvement in the third year.

11. Cincinnati Bengals – The Bengals were looking good until they slowed down last December and completely fell off the cliff in the first round. I guess it's to be expected for the franchise in general. Then again, I'm a Bills fan who hasn't seen playoff football for a decade now, so who am I to throw stones? For the record, I'm now a fan of Terrell Owens and I think he's going to light it up in Cincinnati this season. Or at least I hope so.

12. Miami Dolphins – Either I'm overrating the AFC East or minus Buffalo, it's one of the hardest divisions in the NFL. The biggest question mark I see for the Dolphins is Chad Henne. At times last season Henne looked really good, others he looked like a pile of crap. My guess is he'll look just fine because he has two good running backs to lean on, which is always a huge help for young quarterbacks.

13. Houston Texans – Is this the year Houston finally makes the playoffs? Probably not, but I sure hope so. There is something I like about Houston and it's about time they get to the playoffs and reward their fans with a little success.

14. Washington Redskins – I like the Redskins to make a run at the playoffs this season. Donovan McNabb is not only a good QB, but he will no doubt have something to prove to the fans and organization in Philly. Combine that with Mike Shanahan getting back on the sidelines and fans in Washington can finally be optimistic heading into football season.

15. Tennessee Titans – I'm not crazy on the Titans this season but I'm not sure I ever really am. One season they do good with Vince Young. The next season he sucks and Kerry Collins lights it up. The next season Collins sucks and Young lights it up. It is literally a QB carousel in Tennessee and to be honest, it's pretty annoying.

16. New York Giants – I gotta be honest, I don't know a ton about the Giants this season. I know that with blood gushing from his head, Eli Manning looked pretty tough and not like the dorky kid down the block who gets his lunch money stolen. I also know Perry Fewell is the new defensive coordinator. That last comment isn't exactly a positive note.

17. Philadelphia Eagles – I'm hesitant to put Philly near the top 10 just yet. I know people seem to think Kevin Kolb will make the transition just fine, but I'm a tad more hesitant. The guy has roughly two games under his belt and is now the starter in Philly, a town that doesn't exactly give their players time to develop. Kolb may very well light things up, I'm not saying he won't, but I could also see him struggling and losing confidence quickly as his own fans throw batteries at him and boo him off the field.

18. San Francisco 49ers – For the first time since my early youth, I feel that the 49ers should be the favorites to win their division. Ok, maybe it hasn't been that long, but it sure feels that way. Ever since making Mike Singletary the head coach, it seems like the 49ers continue to made moderate improvements. With Kurt Warner retiring in Arizona and the Seahawks and Rams still being awful to mediocre at best, the time is right for San Francisco to make their move towards the postseason.

19. Pittsburgh Steelers – The Steelers finished 9-7 last season which is great by Buffalo standards, but disappointing by Pittsburgh standards. It was a rough year for Ben Roethlisberger, both on the field and in the bathroom stall. Their schedule doesn't do them any favors as their first four games are against Atlanta, Tennessee, Tampa Bay and Baltimore. They could easily be 1-3 heading into the bye week and it's almost guaranteed with Dennis Dixon being the starter during Big Ben's suspension. I thought Dixon wasn't too horrible, but he was horrendous in the preseason. But who knows, maybe the Steelers respond to all the adversity and actually get better. It would most certainly ruin my season.

20. Denver Broncos – The Broncos made potentially the biggest splash in the draft when they took Tim Tebow in the first round, despite already having Kyle Orton and Brady Quinn on the roster. While Brady Quinn is a new level of bad, Kyle Orton is serviceable and seemed to play well in Josh McDaniel's system last season. McDaniels showed a lot of trust in Orton so it was surprising to see them acquire two additional quarterbacks this offseason. It will definitely be interesting to see how they work Tebow into the offense. There is no way they wasted a first round pick simply on some depth at QB. Although waste + first round pick + depth at QB = Brady Quinn.

21. Carolina Panthers – The Panthers finally ditched Jake Delhomme and handed the keys to the offense over to Matt Moore. While I mocked Moore quite a bit in my rankings last season, he played very well in the final four games and he will be worth watching. In those final four games, the Panthers went 3-1 and Moore threw for 829 yards, eight touchdowns and zero interceptions. The only thing not going for Moore this season is the potential short leash he may be on after the Panthers grabbed Jimmy Clausen in the draft.

22. Chicago Bears – I'm not sure what to make of Chicago. They were supposed to improve last season when they ditched Kyle Orton for Jay Cutler, but they didn't. You start to think about it and wonder why, then you realize, oh yeah, Jay Cutler sucks.

23. Arizona Cardinals – Arizona returns as defending NFC champs and I would gladly hand them the title this season, if it wasn't for the retirement of Kurt Warner. Not only does Arizona lose a potential Hall of Fame QB, but they are replacing him Derek Anderson, who actually beat out Matt Leinart for the starting job. Combine that with the subtraction of Anquan Boldin and you see where I'm going with this. I'm not saying it's impossible for Arizona to take the division again, wait, yes I am.

24. Seattle Seahawks – One of the more peculiar moves this offseason was Seattle giving up on Jim Mora Jr. after one season and luring Pete Carroll away from USC. Then we saw all the trouble USC was in and it made perfect sense. I could see the Seahawks being competitive in the division if Matt Hasselbeck stays healthy. Ah, the advantages to playing in the NFC West.

25. Jacksonville Jaguars – I'm pretty sure the biggest news of the offseason for the Jags was their half empty stadium getting new naming rights. EverBank Field. Good times in Jacksonville.

26. Oakland Raiders – Getting rid of JaMarcus Russell and the purple drank for Jason Campbell was an immediate upgrade for the Raiders. I also liked their decision to draft Rolando McClain in the first round. For once the Raiders did the right thing when drafting instead of the insane thing. Al Davis must've forgotten that the draft started on a Thursday night this year.

27. Detroit Lions – I like the direction the Lions are heading; too bad they are in the same division as two of the best teams in the league. Regardless, they have their franchise QB in Matthew Stafford and he has plenty of weapons in Calvin Johnson, Nate Burleson, Kevin Smith and Jahvid Best. Adding Ndamukong Suh and Kyle Vanden Bosch will also no doubt improve their defense quite a bit.

28. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – The Bucs were another team I could have probably listed below Buffalo, but I didn't want to risk moving the Bills too high before we see just how bad they'll be in real games. But the Bucs…I don't know. They weren't any good last year and I'm not exactly sure what they've done this past offseason to improve significantly. The first two rounds should improve their defense a great deal, but that still doesn't help them put points on the board. Nor does it help the fact that their Head Coach has one more year of head coaching experience than I do.

29. Buffalo Bills – Both ESPN and CNNSI had the Bills ranked 31 in their respected rankings. Now although I'm a bit of a homer, I just don't see them being that bad. Last season was one of the worst in recent memory and the Bills still managed to win six games. Now you're telling me they will be worse? How so? They have a new GM and coach, both of whom seem to know which direction they want to take the team. In fact, the new regime has already shown that they won't be running camp the way Dick Jauron did, which would signal an improvement in that respect. Chan Gailey is an offensive coach which bodes well for the Bills, despite their lack of QB. It will be a losing season for sure, but not in the bottom two teams in the league. Or so I hope.

(Note: I wrote the above paragraph before the last three preseason games were played and C.J. Spiller truly showed off what he can do. I stand behind the above paragraph even more now. 7-9.)

30. Kansas City Chiefs – I don't know what to make of Kansas City just yet. They were a four win team last season and I doubt Thomas Jones is going to change that significantly. Their running game will no doubt be one of the better ones in the league, but they also still have Matt Cassel as their starting QB. His 69.9 QB rating last season wasn't exactly tops in the league. Funny how opinion of him changes when he isn't throwing to Randy Moss and Wes Welker.

31. Cleveland Browns – The Browns appear headed in the right direction with Mike Holmgren taking his position in the front office. They traded away Brady Quinn and might have stolen Colt McCoy in the third round, both of which are good moves. Potentially, we'll see on the McCoy front. Unfortunately, they also acquired Jake Delhomme to be their starting QB this year. Delhomme is awful...just awful.

32. St Louis Rams – The Rams might be headed in the right direction now that they hopefully have their franchise QB, but it will still take a long time. And who knows, will Sam Bradford even be the franchise QB that they hope? I would think so but drafting a QB first overall is always risky, unless that QB has the name Peyton Manning.

Since we're roughly a month into free agency for the NHL and camps will be opening up sooner than we think, I thought it would be fun to play GM again. I took my first stab when I ranked the upcoming free agent class and while none of it came to fruition, there is still plenty out there. Plus I figure with the more I write, I might actually get something right for once.

Thanks to Cap Geek and there new and improved cap calculator, it literally is amazing, I was able to have some fun with the roster and easily see the cap numbers.

So as it stands now, the Sabres have 13 forwards signed for the 10-11 season with another looming, Tim Kennedy. Kennedy just finished up his arbitration, as he was awarded $1 million for next season. Since the number is below a certain amount, the Sabres don't have the option of walking away from the number (not that I would expect them to anyways).

Kennedy was awarded a $1 million/1 year deal.

With that in mind, the Sabres have 14 forwards signed, which is a few too many seeing they still haven't upgraded much either. This leaves Buffalo with $6,689,643 in available cap space. As you can see, it's plenty of money to still be creative. Here are a couple of moves I'd highly consider if I were running the show.

My first step would be moving Tim Connolly and Drew Stafford for whatever they can get. I know this isn't the Sabres style but both contracts run out after this season and neither are worth keeping at this point, so why not get something in return? Neither player is completely useless and I'm sure some team would value those guys. My hope would be the Maple Leafs but I'm guessing that Brian Burke isn't biting on that one. Unfortunately I think Burke would want Derek Roy in a trade and he isn't someone I'm so quick to let go, although I could be talked into it.

In fact, if trading Roy and letting Stafford and Connolly walk after the season resulted in gaining a new top 6 forward and having the money to lock Tyler Myers up for the long haul, I'd gladly sign off on that deal, but that is another discussion for another day.

So for the sake of argument, let's pretend the Sabres could move Connolly and Stafford and acquire some guy with the last name of Kaberle. (I know…work with me on this)

This now leaves the Sabres with more cap space, $8.8 million to be exact, and clears up some of the roster jumble. Now we're down to 12 forwards and seven defensemen, which allows for Chris Butler and Andrej Sekera to compete for the 6^th d-man spot. Perfect. This also gives the Sabres their much coveted PP QB. Kaberle is a UFA after the season but so is Craig Rivet, and assuming he takes a rather large pay cut, it's safe to say this might be his last season in Buffalo.

We're missing one more thing. A top six forward. This is a risky proposition, but the Sabres have nothing to lose. They need to throw an offer sheet out to a restricted free agent. Specifically, they need to go after Bobby Ryan.

The Ducks have already offered Ryan a 5 year, 25 million dollar deal which has been turned down. If I were playing the part of GM, I'd be more than willing to offer a 5 year deal worth $30 million. At $6 million per season, it's a significant raise and might be just enough to have Anaheim take the draft picks in return. If it doesn't work and Anaheim matches, no harm no foul. Again, for the sake of argument, let's pretend that works and he comes to Buffalo.

This move would leave the Sabres with a nice $2.8 million dollar cap cushion for the season, which could give them some flexibility down the road for the trading deadline or even next season. It also adds a 30 goal scorer to the team in addition to Thomas Vanek.

Playoff disappointments aside, the Sabres accumulated 100 points and were division champs last season. They also survived the Olympics and Ryan Miller's added work load in the process. They won't have that distraction this year. They would be replacing Stafford and Connolly's production/disappearing act with a 30 goal scoring, 23 year old Olympic forward. They would also be adding one of the better PP defensemen in the league.

Yes please. Where do I sign up?

Back in 2008 when I wrote articles here and there at Billszone, I tried my hand at projecting the Bills schedule before the season started. In that article, I made one huge fatal mistake that doomed the entire article. For a brief moment, I turned into a total homer and completely forgot that the team was still coached by Dick Jauron. Looking back at it, I can't believe that I actually thought the Bills would finish 10-6. At least my negative opinion on Brett Favre has remained consistent throughout the years.

I never projected the 2009 Bills schedule; however I did predict them to finish 5-11 in my AFC East preview, so that kind of counts, right? Unlike the Bills, I made a huge improvement within one season. This excites me greatly. And with that, let's break down the 2010 Buffalo Bills schedule in brutal game-by-game detail.

Week 1: Miami Dolphins

I can see the Bills winning this game for a couple of reasons. First, it's opening day and that is usually the week where most upsets occur. Let us not forget that on two separate opening weeks in Foxboro, the Bills came within a handful of points of upsetting the Patriots. Second, spinning off my first point, the Dolphins aren't the Patriots and this game is being played in Buffalo. Third, the Bills throttled the Dolphins at home last season and I'd like to think the Bills are a little bit better going into this season (maybe). On a positive note for the Dolphins, Brandon Marshall will play a huge role in this game since it's unlikely that he'll be arrested this early in the season. (1-0)

Week 2: @ Green Bay Packers

I really see no way that the Bills can beat the Packers, let alone beating them in Green Bay. The last time Buffalo and Green Bay faced each other, the Bills came out on top thanks in large part to multiple bonehead turnovers from the turnover machine himself, Brett Favre. However Green Bay has moved on and improved greatly in this area. The Bills strongest point is their pass defense, but I still don't think it will be good enough to stop Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay passing attack. In case everyone forgot his last meaningful game, Rodgers went off in Arizona to the tune of 28 for 42, 423 yards, 4 touchdowns, and a 121.3 QB rating. Granted the Green Bay secondary was shredded worse by Kurt Warner, but um, the Bills will most likely be starting Trent Edwards, who isn't exactly Kurt Warner. Interesting note, this game has the potential to be the Brian Brohm grudge match if he wins the starting job. Seriously, this is what we've resorted to as Bills fans. (1-1)

Week 3: @ New England Patriots

It's been so long since Buffalo defeated New England that I can barely remember when it happened. I'm not even going to look this up but I feel pretty confident in stating that the Bills have never won a game in Gillette Stadium since it became the new home for the Patriots several years ago. With that in mind, I see no reason to think that this year will be any different. My Boston angst continues. (1-2)

Week 4: NY Jets

The Bills and Jets are usually good for splitting the season series, despite how good or bad each team is. Last year they split and the Bills were a five win team while the Jets were one win away from the Super Bowl. In 2008 the Jets swept Buffalo, but that is only because the glorious combination of Losman and Jauron decided to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. They must have been returning the favor because in 2007 the Bills swept. In 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006, all splits. So really for me, it's a matter of which game do the Bills get and which do the Jets get. Since their second meeting will be in Week 17 where the Jets will probably have the playoffs locked up and playing scrub ball, I'll give this game to the Jets and that game to the Bills. (1-3)

Week 5: Jacksonville Jaguars

Last season the Bills almost beat the Jags in Jacksonville. Given the circumstances, it really showed how bad the Jags were. The Bills had just fired their coach and Ryan Fitzpatrick was starting the game. If that wasn't enough, Fitzpatrick hit Terrell Owens for a 98 yard touchdown at one point in the game. I have to be honest, even in past seasons when the Jags were playoff bound, I've never really thought of them as a good team. Given that this game is early in the season and in Buffalo, I can very well see the Bills stealing this game with a last second field goal. (2-3)

Week 6: BYE

Week 7: @ Baltimore Ravens

Coming out of the bye week, it's the Willis McGahee revenge game: part two. The first revenge game was won by Buffalo, but to be honest, it felt like a loss. If it wasn't for Rian Lindell bailing out the pathetic Bills offense with four field goals, the Bills easily lose that game. In addition to that, the Bills benefitted from some horrendous play calling by Baltimore and their now former coach, Brian Billick. Finally, McGahee scored on a 46 yard touchdown run and finished the day with 114 yards, so it wasn't like the Bills shut him down and proved any point. If anything he stuck it to Buffalo a little bit, despite losing the game. This time the game is in Baltimore and the Ravens have Joe Flacco, not Kyle Boller. (2-4)

Week 8: @ Kansas City Chiefs

For as bad as the Bills have been the past two seasons, Kansas City has actually been worse. If you don't believe me, please see exhibit A and exhibit B. In fact, the Chiefs haven't defeated the Bills since 2003. You can go ahead and put me in the group of people that was never really impressed with Matt Cassel and figured that Kansas City was making a huge mistake last season. I don't see any reason why this year will be any different. Plus I'm sure Chan Gailey would like to get back at his former team just a little bit. (3-4)

Week 9: Chicago Bears (Toronto)

I'm sure the Bills could beat the Bears, but that would require the Bills to actually win a game in the lifeless "Bills in Toronto" series that makes just about every Bills fan sick. I have absolutely no fear of the Bills leaving for Canada, so that isn't the reason this game bothers me at all. It's more along the lines of the Bills throwing away a home game, playing on a crappy field in the Rogers Centre, and playing in front of about 30,000 fans who could give a damn about the Bills. It's practically a neutral field game. Reminds me of those junky bowl games in mid-December that nobody cares about. At least the Bills smartened up and stopped giving away division games. (3-5)

Week 10: Detroit Lions

The Lions might be an improved team, which isn't saying much, but the Bills should be able to get a win here. Don't get me wrong, the Bills are a bad team, but please also remember that the Lions are a team that has two combined victories in their last 32 regular season games. It will be interesting to see these two teams actually play a real game though. I'm so used to just seeing them play their annual scrub bowl game in the last week of the pre-season that this should be a nice change of pace for sure. Then again, a week 10 meeting between the Bills and Lions isn't exactly a marquee matchup. (4-5)

Week 11: @ Cincinnati Bengals

I bet you're thinking there is no way the Bills can beat the Bengals on the road this late in the season. This is where I say you're wrong. I know this means absolutely nothing in regards to the game this year, but does anybody realize the last time the Bengals even defeated the Bills. I'll give everyone a hint: I was only three years old. That's right; it was in January of 1988. Again, I know this has no bearing on the game this season, but when you're a Bills fan, crazy trends and statistics are about all we have to go on. (5-5)

At this point I'd like to note that this will officially start the "mathematically in the playoff race" talk for the Bills, when in reality, there is no way they are making the playoffs. It's an annual tradition for us Bills fans and late November seems like a good time to start it off.

Week 12: Pittsburgh Steelers

For me personally, not all Bills fans, these two weeks of the season are going to be pure hell. Even the occasional reader of this site should be able to pick up on the fact that I really dislike all Pittsburgh sports and I'm not exactly wearing Wranglers and joining the Brett Favre fan club anytime soon. Honestly, the Bills could go 2-14 this season with these two games being the only wins, and I'd be perfectly content with that. All that being said, the Bills will lose these two games and make my life a living hell until at least early February. On the positive side, I'm pretty sure I'm going to break the record for most rapist jokes told in a one week span. (5-6)

Week 13: @ Minnesota Vikings

If I were a fortunate sports fan, things would make sense, and Brett Favre would turn the ball over at least four times and throw away an easy victory against the Bills. Watching Brett Favre play is like being a little kid and waking up on Christmas morning. The anticipation of the inevitable turnover that costs his team the game is overwhelming at times. Last season Favre did his best to disprove this theory, but the world righted itself when it mattered most and as we all know, the Saints went on to win the Super Bowl. So like I said, if things made sense, the sports gods would throw me a bone and let the Bills win this game while forcing multiple turnovers. But that isn't the way things work for Buffalo fans and I'm starting to accept that. Instead Favre will most likely go off for at least three touchdowns while posting a perfect 158.3 QB rating. Oh and I'm pretty sure whoever I'm playing in fantasy that week will start Favre and ruin my season there as well. (5-7)

Week 14: Cleveland Browns

The Bills should be able to beat the Browns at home. Then again, they should've been able to beat the Browns at home the past two seasons as well. In fact, the Browns have actually defeated the Bills in the past three seasons, all by a combined 13 points. This includes a game that ended 8-0 and 6-3. Let's just say these two teams don't get together and put on the greatest show for the fans. Something has to give though. I can't possibility mark down a fourth consecutive loss to the Browns. (6-7)

Week 15: @Miami Dolphins

I hate how the NFL schedule has the Dolphins in Buffalo for the early game and the Bills in Miami for the late game. We all know it should be flipped around so the Dolphins are playing in the elements. Not that it matters though. By this point in the season the Bills will probably have an NFL leading 26 people on injured reserve and starting players that just finished their UFL season. (6-8)

Week 16: New England Patriots

If the Patriots haven't sealed the division by this point of the season, this game should do the trick. The Patriots have dominated the Bills so much recently that I wouldn't be surprised if they just became part owners of the team. The trend has to end sometime but there is no way I'm predicting it. I've been down that road before and it's ruined my credibility. What? I never had any credibility to start. Hmm, oh well. (6-9)

Week 17: @ NY Jets

As I highlighted above, the Bills and Jets are a safe bet to split the season series which would give the Bills the Week 17 victory and a solid seven wins for the 2010 season. One way this would be avoided is if the Jets need this victory to make the playoffs and actually show up to play. Otherwise, mark it down as a split. (7-9)

I have to be completely honest; predicting the Bills to finish 7-9 is taking a gigantic leap of faith. They could realistically be a two or three win team in 2010. However, that would give the Bills the number one or two overall draft pick in 2011, and we wouldn't want that to happen. The Bills have specialized in being bad enough to consistently miss the playoffs, but good enough to at least have mid-round draft pick. 7-9 sounds just right.

The news on July 1^st that the Sabres only signed Jordan Leopold was met with this type of reaction.

Sabres: "The Sabres have reached an agreement with Jordan Leopold"

Generic Fan A: "Who is that?"

Generic Fan B: "Some guy from Pittsburgh."

(Frantically Googling 'Jordan Leopold')

Generic Fan B: "He isn't a big name, I hate this."

Generic Fan A: "Wow, the Sabres are awful. How could they do this to me?"

Needless to say, it was an overreaction of epic proportions. Is Jordan Leopold the answer? Hardly. Is he a great signing? Not really. Was it that terrible? No, it wasn't.

Combine this with the overreaction to losing Toni Lydman and Henrik Tallinder and what you're left with is a massive headache. Just to review a few things, Lydman and Tallinder are easily replaceable. Neither was overwhelming during their time in Buffalo. In fact, before last season, most of the Sabres fan base wanted Tallinder run out of town. You can put me in that crowd. In fact, I wrote numerous times last offseason that I wanted the Sabres to dish off both contracts before they expire, even if it resulted in them getting a bag of pucks in return.

Flash forward to this season and all of a sudden losing both guys is a bad thing. Just for the sake of argument, here are the numbers for all three players for the past two seasons. Numbers don't tell the whole story, but they help paint a picture.

2009-10

	GP	Goals	Assists	Points	PP Points	+/-
Leopold	81	11	15	26	1	-2
Tallinder	82	4	16	20	0	+13
Lydman	67	4	16	20	0	+10

 
2008-09

	GP	Goals	Assists	Points	PP Points	+/-
Leopold	83*	7	17	24	1	-15
Tallinder	66	1	11	12	0	-2
Lydman	80	3	20	23	0	0

*Traded at deadline which accounts for one extra game played.

Leopold got identical money as Lydman got from Anaheim. +/- is the only real stat that Lydman was better than Leopold in. Otherwise, they are basically the same. The real difference between the two is that Leopold scores more goals. Just throwing this out there, but the Sabres could use some more goal scoring from their blue line.

As for Tallinder, where do we start? I already mentioned how nobody wanted him around but what changed this past season? Well for one, he had a major bounce back season that must have brain washed the fans' minds into thinking he was good again. So why did he have a bounce back season? Contract year? Paired up with Tyler Myers? You decide. I'm no expert (obviously), but watch New Jersey regret his contract roughly halfway through its tenure.

Again, I'm not getting on my soap box and backing this decision 100%. In fact for the sake of argument, here is what I wrote about him just before free agency started. But I also realize that it's only July 6^th and the Sabres don't lace up the skates for a number of weeks still.

In a solid and under the radar signing, the Sabres re-inked Cody McCormick to another one year deal. The big difference this season compared to last is that this year it's a one way deal, which would indicate that he'll be spending the entire season up with Buffalo as opposed to Portland.

I was extremely high on McCormick in my Sabres season preview, maybe even a little too high on him seeing that he didn't even make the roster. That being said, he was called up during the playoffs and played very well in the final three games. Apparently the Sabres front office agrees because it looks like he'll be replacing Adam Mair or Matt Ellis. Actually, both might not return with this move.

From what I know about McCormick, I'm pretty excited to see him in Buffalo all season long.

So what's the next move gonna be?