Before the deluge of news surrounding the Buffalo Bills' hiring of head coach Chan Gailey, I detailed my thoughts on the good value players on Buffalo's 2009 roster. Within a short time frame, people were already asking for this article. Bills fans are out for blood, and I can't say that I blame them. Several Bills underachieved this year.
Looking back at last year's list, it was nice to see the Bills jettisoned several top over-earners; Angelo Crowell (No. 1 last year), J.P. Losman (No. 4), and Melvin Fowler (No. 8) left, along with honorable mentions Duke Preston and Robert Royal. Donte Whitner (No. 6) and Aaron Schobel (No. 5) did enough to get themselves out of the Top 10 as well.
The number next to each player's name is their cap value. In short, it's their base salary, any performance or other bonus that player earned in 2009, and the prorated portion of the signing bonus. It's the most even way of addressing guys with very different contracts.
Honorable Mentions: Donte Whitner ($4,823,750), Aaron Schobel ($8,564,431)
10. Ryan Denney ($2,651,560) Aaron Schobel narrowly escapes the list thanks to his DL teammates. Only two sacks, 27 tackles, and one forced fumble for the reserve DE this year, all while making more money than Andy Levitre, Jairus Byrd and Paul Posluszny combined.
9. Chris Kelsay ($5,600,000) After finishing third last year, Kelsay's numbers went up significantly under the tutelage of DL coach Bob Sanders. Kelsay had 5 sacks (a half-sack off of his career-high), 62 tackles (career-high), and started all 16 games. Still, earning more than a million dollars per sack isn't what I call great value. He made more money than our top six best bang for the dollar Bills did combined.
8. Terrell Owens ($6,250,000) Off the field, Owens probably made back the money it cost to sign him in jersey sales and national publicity. On the field, Owens underperformed, putting up some of the worst numbers of his career. He did have his moments, however, as his team-record 98-yard touchdown would attest to.
7. Josh Reed ($3,675,000) Reed had half the stats of Owens for almost 2/3 the price. He was held under 30 catches and 300 yards for only the second time in his career, and had trouble returning punts in spot duty.
6. Marshawn Lynch ($2,208,233) Lynch missed the first three games of the season following his suspension on gun charges; then he proceeded to play himself out of the starting spot in lieu of value pick Fred Jackson. Lynch's end of year totals were staggeringly bad - 120 carries, 450 yards, two touchdowns. Some higher salaries prevent him from breaking the Top 5 despite his awful numbers.
5. Leodis McKelvin ($2,816,455) If I mention his name - which I just did, obviously - the first and only thing you think about from the 2009 season is a fumble. In three games, he had 11 tackles, but I hesitate to put him any higher on this list simply because he was hurt, not bad. I can't say the same for the guys higher on the list.
4. Lee Evans ($6,577,182) A name many were sure would top this list comes in fourth in this author's opinion. He was the last player to chart on our list in 2008, coming in tenth due to his massive contract extension that paid him a large up-front salary. This season, Evans never clicked in, though the constant struggles at quarterback didn't help. Again. He finished the year with 44 receptions and 7 touchdowns. He was the second-highest paid Bill this year, but produced like a role player. The 7 touchdowns kept him from climbing any higher on the list.
3. Aaron Maybin ($1,850,000) Many Bills fans may not believe it, but Maybin actually had 18 tackles this year and a forced fumble. With that being said, his impact on defense was negligible, and the FF and majority of the tackles were on special teams. The money spent on this kid was like paying him to stay in college and develop, minus the experience.
2. John McCargo ($1,837,500) John McCargo started his first NFL game this year at Tennessee. That's about the only notable accomplishment McCargo made this year. Last year, he was No. 1 on our list after failing to record a single stat. This year, he comes in second thanks to his 11 tackles.
1. Roscoe Parrish ($2,720,000) No. 7 last year after catching 24 passes and scoring a TD, as well as a punt return TD. This year, he had three catches for 34 yards and lost his job returning punts for a chunk of the season. He also fumbled five times, losing three. His punt return average of 5.5 YPR was half of his previous career low. Yeah. He was a waste of money.