Buffalo Bills Reportedly Won't Use Franchise Tag On Stevie Johnson

That said; he is more talented, stronger, taller and more likely to succeed than Berrian as a true #1.

I would not be mad if we landed him, but I would prefer someone like Colston or Bowe.

I think it was mostly the result of just being young. He’s a good player, and guys like AP and JA should keep him in line.

He, along with Pierre garcon are the youngest of the big names at 25 years old. This past year he cut out the drops, was able to repeat his production, and he was the first receiver I’ve seen beat Revis one on one throughout a whole game. If the biggest knock on him is one stupid TD celebration and two T-shirt under the jersey incidents which he only received one penalty for I don’t see why the Vikings wouldn’t want him. Stevie reminds me of a taller Steve Smith(CAR) the way he goes after the ball and I think he’s the best route-runner available this year. The main thing though is that he’s produced at a similar level to Bowe, Jackson, and Colston but he’s much younger and his price tag should be about 2 million cheaper.

But man I just hate having to worry about a guy making stupid mistakes. That 15 yd penalty for celebration is just unacceptable. Shows how he plays the game (all about him) but football is a team sport. However I think if the Vikings can get him than they need to make the deal.

The WR free agent class is pretty loaded this year, but I think Stevie could still be a pretty good fit for the Vikes. He can definitely stretch the field, and he’d be incredibly entertaining (in a good way and I’m sure at times in a bad way) to watch.

We don’t need someone who is a distraction from the team effort.

I don’t think you can bring an immature guy into the locker room who has intentionally caused penalties. Lord knows we get enough unintentional ones, and everything that takes away from winning is just wrong. Entertaining, maybe, but just wrong.

In football, dozens of great plays by the whole team can be negated by one idiot individual doing one immature stupid thing. I’m not willing to watch a twit like that make a laughingstock of the Vikings any more than they were last season.

You didn’t mention that Stevie’s agent and the Bills are meeting tomorrow at the Combine. It’s no lock they will get a deal done but negotiations are on-going.

How could Stevie Johnson be worse than that? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I loved watching Moss, antics and all, but we dealt with a lot. Sure, Stevie isn’t as elite as Moss, so it’s tougher to put up with a WR BS when they drop passes and are inconsistent. But, two back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons speaks for itself.

If we can get him for the right price, I say do it.

on par with the Gronk spike, the Victor Cruz salsa, or Wes Welker’s snow angel.

http://youtu.be/XFObX9cgHFs

Receivers are a little bit of an odd breed. He’s a good receiver and i think he’d be a good personality in our locker room. Look at JA, his calf rope was threatened a 15 yard penalty b/c he ‘went to the ground’ but yet hasn’t been flagged yet knock on wood

I think the reason he does what he does is just to bring some attention to the Bills. he’s a showman at heart, most receivers are.

I just don’t think he’ll be worth the money . He’s top 30 over the past two years in Football Outsiders’ “Defense-Adjusted Yards Above Replacement” but he might wind up being paid like he’s top 10. Now, if his price is reasonable, I say go for it.

The guy just wants to have fun.
If a player gets penalized for behavioral issues, I blame the coaching staff. How many tantrums did Moss throw with Patriots? Do you think Welker will ever again bring up Jet Ryan’s fetishes in pressers?

I think, Frazier will be able to handle Stevie and he will be a great fit for Ponder and Vikes.

And we will be able to say: TOUCHDOWN STEVIE PONDER

still no. Diatribe a-comin’…:

I may not like the current structure of some of the ‘excessive celebration’ rules. What harm does it do to anyone when Stevie Johnson writes “Happy New Year” on his shirt and shows it to the camera? None at all. It’s one thing if a player pops the double bird to the crowd after a TD, or does a Family Guy-esque celebration that holds up the game for 10 minutes. I’m all for not letting that stuff happen. But sometimes the stuff guys get penalized for is ridiculous.

That said… regardless of all of that, IT IS STILL A RULE. And a rule players know. I’ve seen some players get caught up in the moment and flagged for something that was a little dumb, but still not really thought out. (Vernon Davis standing atop the camera base, for example.) Then there are players like Stevie Johnson, who don’t give two craps and completely plan something out that they know will get them flagged, and cost their team 15 yards. When you write something on your shirt before the game, and go over to the cameras to show of your aritstry after a TD, you know damn well what’s going to happen. It shows a player who is immature, thoughtless, and more importantly- SELFISH.

Someone brought up Jared Allen’s calf-roping celebration above. That’s a classic example of a player who selflessly adjusts because they really, really don’t want to cost their team a penalty. Johnson shows absolutely no regard for the general well-being of his team or their collective success on the field- just his own. He caught a TD, hooray for him! Screw the penalty, it’s not like his side of the ball will have to serve it. Forget the fact that it’s still HIS TEAM that’s serving it.

To me, again, regardless of how silly the rule often might be, any player who intentionally- and repeatedly- gets excessive celebration penalties shows some key signs of a guy I don’t want on my team, because they’re not a team player. In the end, a team’s success is based off their cohesiveness, their ability to function as a single unit- NOT the talents of each individual players. Just look at the Eagles this past season for no better example; or, on the flip side, observe the Patriots’ various (succesful) Super Bowl runs, when they were somewhat lacking on offense (save for Brady), yet functioned so cohesively and selflessly that they got the big prize, three times.

This is NOT a guy I want catching passes for the Purple Pride. Heck, on top of all that I just said, there’s plenty of other options likely to be available in FA… no need to go for a head case like this. None whatsoever.

…thesis, concluded.

no injuries, produces td’s and gets yards, great athlete, im pretty sure this guy has learned from his mistakes, why not take him?? he’s got my vote

…everyone who says they dont want him b/c of his antics will end up being super excited if we sign him…

stevie just needs to get creative a la steve smith… some of his td celebrations were gold, and not penalized iirc.

and yes, he has been my fav FA target since the season ended (followed closely by brandon carr). i hope we get him.

THAT STATEMENT IS WACKED LIKE YOU CAN PUT A SQUARE PLUG IN A ROUND HOLE !! .WHAT I MEAN IS ANY PLAYER THAT CAN GET THE BALL IN THEIR HANDS HANG ON TO IT AND HIT THE ENDZONE BETTER THAN THE NEXT GUY IS THE RIGHT FIT AND THEN YOU GET THE BEST ONE YOUR MONEY WILL GET YOU !
BUT IF THE GUY HAS HIS HEAD IN HIS ASS AND CREATES AVOIDABLE PENALTIES YOU HIT HIM WHERE IT HURTS AND HARD TAKE HIS CASH 1st TIME 25% OF GAME CHECK AND BENCHED FOR THE REST OF THE GAME 2nd 50% & BENCHED 3rd 75% & BENCHED IF IT HAPPENS A 4th NO PAY AND THEY PAY BACK ANY SIGNING BONUS $$$ AND SENT TO THE LOCKER ROOM FOR THE REST OF GAME WITH NO TV RADIO OR CELL PHONE TO USE FOR THE REST OF THAT GAME AND THE NEXT GAME HE HAS TO JUST SIT IN THE LOCKER ROOM AND THINK ABOUT WHAT HE DID WHILE ALL HE CAN HEAR IS THE CROWD NOISE WHEN THE TEAM COMES IN AT 1/2 TIME HE HAS TO GO STAND IN THE SHOWER ROOM AND NO TEAM CONTACT AND WHEN THE GAME IS OVER HAS TO STAND OUTSIDE THE LOCKER ROOM DOOR AND APOLOGIZE TO EACH PLAYER AND STAFF UNTILL THE LAST ONE IS GONE , AND THE NEXT GAME HE HAS TO DO THE SAME THING BUT WILL NEED TO BE THE FIRST ONE THERE AND OPEN THE LOCKER ROOM DOOR FOR EVERY PLAYER THAT SHOWS UP AND WHEN THE GAME STARTS HE SITS IT OUT AGAIN IN THE LOCKER AGIAIN AND REPEATS THE THE EARLIER ROUTINE AGAIN
THIS SHOULD BE THE RULE FOR EVERY PLAYER AND I DONT THINK YOU WOULD SEE ANY MORE SELFHISH EGOMANIAC BULLSHIT MOSS LIKE CRAP ON THE FIELD ANY MORE YOU CANT EXPECT ANY OTHER PLAYER LIKE AP OR JA TO BABY SIT A GROWN MAN MAKING MILLIONS WHEN THEY HAVE ENOUGH TO DO AS THEY CONCENTRATE ON THEIR OWN RESPONSABILITIES .

AND AS THIS IS EXPLAINED WHEN THEY SIGN A CONTRACT FOR TOO MANY MILLIONS OF $$ THIS IS A FRONT OFFICE GM PLAYER PERSONAL LION TAMER PROBLEM AND THEY NEED TO BE THE ENFORCER NOT THE COACH HE HAS PLENTY TO DO WITH THE PLAYERS THAT WANT TO PLAY BY THE RULES