Dick Jauron was hired as head coach of the Buffalo Bills on January 23, 2006, by Marv Levy - then the team's General Manager and easily the most heralded head coach in Bills franchise history. Coming off of a 5-11 season in 2005 led by predecessor Mike Mularkey, Jauron inherited an underachieving, veteran squad and quickly began re-assembling his roster.
With the help of VP of College Scouting Tom Modrak and VP of Pro Personnel John Guy, the Bills have spent four off-seasons completing a roster overhaul (though one could argue these overhauls are never complete). The result is that from those '05 Bills - themselves removed by a year from a 9-7 2004 season and flirting with the playoffs - just ten players remain on the squad today.
Here's a look at the Buffalo Bills that Jauron and the current regime inherited at the end of the 2005 season, side-by-side with the team that the Bills will field in 2009. Your task: deciding which Bills team is better (on paper).
Quarterbacks, 2005: Kelly Holcomb, J.P. Losman, Shane Matthews, Tory Woodbury
Quarterbacks, 2009: Trent Edwards, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Gibran Hamdan
Running Backs, 2005: Willis McGahee, Shaud Williams, Joe Burns, Lionel Gates
Running Backs, 2009: Marshawn Lynch, Fred Jackson, Dominic Rhodes
Fullback, 2005: Daimon Shelton
Fullback, 2009: Corey McIntyre
Wide Receivers, 2005: Eric Moulds, Lee Evans, Josh Reed, Roscoe Parrish, Sam Aiken, Jonathan Smith, George Wilson
Wide Receivers, 2009: Terrell Owens, Lee Evans, Josh Reed, Roscoe Parrish, Steve Johnson, James Hardy, Justin Jenkins
Tight Ends, 2005: Mark Campbell, Tim Euhus, Ryan Neufeld, Brad Cieslak, Kevin Everett
Tight Ends, 2009: Derek Fine, Shawn Nelson, Derek Schouman
Offensive Tackles, 2005: Mike Gandy, Jason Peters, Mike Williams, Greg Jerman, Dylan McFarland
Offensive Tackles, 2009: Langston Walker, Brad Butler, Kirk Chambers, Demetrius Bell
Guards/Centers, 2005: Bennie Anderson, Chris Villarrial, Trey Teague, Duke Preston, Justin Geisinger
Guards/Centers, 2009: Eric Wood, Geoff Hangartner, Andy Levitre, Seth McKinney
Defensive Ends, 2005: Aaron Schobel, Chris Kelsay, Ryan Denney
Defensive Ends, 2009: Aaron Schobel, Chris Kelsay, Aaron Maybin, Ryan Denney, Chris Ellis, Copeland Bryan
Defensive Tackles, 2005: Sam Adams, Tim Anderson, Justin Bannan, Ron Edwards, Jason Jefferson, Lauvale Sape
Defensive Tackles, 2009: Marcus Stroud, Kyle Williams, Spencer Johnson, John McCargo
Outside Linebackers, 2005: Takeo Spikes, Jeff Posey, Angelo Crowell, Mario Haggan, Josh Stamer
Outside Linebackers, 2009: Kawika Mitchell, Keith Ellison, Pat Thomas, Nic Harris, Alvin Bowen, Blake Costanzo
Inside Linebackers, 2005: London Fletcher, Liam Ezekiel
Inside Linebackers, 2009: Paul Posluszny, John DiGiorgio
Cornerbacks, 2005: Nate Clements, Terrence McGee, Jabari Greer, Eric King
Cornerbacks, 2009: Terrence McGee, Leodis McKelvin, Drayton Florence, Ashton Youboty, Reggie Corner, Cary Harris, Ellis Lankster
Safeties, 2005: Troy Vincent, Lawyer Milloy, Rashad Baker, Jim Leonhard, Coy Wire
Safeties, 2009: Donte Whitner, Jairus Byrd, Bryan Scott, George Wilson, Ko Simpson, John Wendling
Specialists, 2005: Rian Lindell, Brian Moorman, Mike Schneck
Specialists, 2009: Rian Lindell, Brian Moorman, Ryan Neill