Buffalo Bills GM Buddy Nix hints at drafting franchise quarterback soon – NFL News
Despite giving a long-term contract to their current starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, Buffalo Bills general manager Buddy Nix seems to have a change of heart after watching the quarterback’s current form.
Talking to WGR-AM in Buffalo on Friday, November 02, 2012, Nix indicated that he has plans to draft a franchise quarterback for Bills. He said:
"Listen, we have said from Day 1, that we want to draft a good young quarterback, I don't want to leave here without a franchise guy for the future in place. I have not said that before, but I'm saying it now because it's a fact."
The comments from Nix come at a time when Fitzpatrick is going through a rough patch of performance.
Since signing a six-year, $59 million contract extension in October 2011, Fitzpatrick has not been able to meet the growing expectations of the team as well as fans.
Fitzpatrick’s performance has been up and down this season. Even though he has finished four out of seven games with three or more touchdowns, he has also thrown as many as nine interceptions in that same period.
Nix is certainly up for acquiring a young quarterback who could represent Bills in the longer run. Fitzpatrick is currently 29 years old and will not likely remain the starter for the rest of his contract years.
Nix has not been able to draft a franchise quarterback ever since he has joined Bills. The main reason behind it is that Bills were not ready to give away good number of draft picks to get higher position in the draft. Talking about this issue, Nix said:
"We had so many needs that we would have had to give up what Washington gave up to get there and the same with Carolina, that got there by losing. So it's a deal here where that has to fall into place for us and hopefully it will."
This news should be alarming for Fitzpatrick. The quarterback must improve his performance in order to solidify his prospects with the team.
Tags: