‘If they want to carve out space under the salary cap for a big expenditure, giving quarterback Josh Allen a contract extension surely would be a much higher priority than adding an expensive older veteran.’
Archives for July 2021
How the Bills stack up at each position entering camp, what the final roster may look like
‘Sal’s picks for the 53: Diggs, Beasley, Sanders, Davis, McKenzie, Hodgins.’
Peter King: Bills should offer 1st-round pick for Cardinals’ Chandler Jones
‘Per the NFLPA’s public salary cap report, the Bills currently have $9,880,008 in cap space. If they were to try and trade for Jones they have some chips in defensive end Mario Addison and defensive tackle Vernon Butler – for example – to make the money work. Addison has a $8.17 million cap hit in 2021 and Butler’s is just north of $5 million. Rousseau and Basham both have the flexibility to move inside and the Bills have plenty of depth on the line overall.’
Patriots point-counterpoint: Will the Pats overtake Buffalo to win the AFC East?
‘They weren’t lucky to win the title — they were lucky to finish 13-3. The win total is what’s coming down — right into striking distance. The Bills play at Kansas City, Tampa Bay, New Orleans and Tennessee. The Pats will get the Bucs, Saints and Titans all at home and miss the Chiefs. While Buffalo was the fourth-healthiest team in football in 2020, the Patriots lost more games to COVID-19 than anyone — that isn’t happening again. Bet on the ascending team with the best coach, a deep defense, top-5 running game and offensive line, not one that’s betting on Josh Allen to make another unprecedented leap in NFL history and more good luck. The AFC East race will come down to the Pats-Bills showdowns in December. Stephon Gilmore missed both Bills games last year. If he plays, these should be toss-ups, and the Pats are due for a date with Lady Luck.’
Opinion: Bills One Big Question: Offense
‘There has been, and continues to be, a lot of speculation surrounding the Bills and Philadelphia Eagles tight end Zach Ertz. His situation in Philly doesn’t appear to be resolved and many still think the Bills are a fit and would pursue adding him either via trade or if he’s ultimately released. That’s not to say the Bills don’t like this group of players. They do, and Knox has shown to be perfectly capable in the lead role. Hollister is a valuable addition, as well. However, but a talent like Ertz may be too tough to resist for a team that has Super Bowl aspirations, if the price is right.’
7 biggest storylines as the Buffalo Bills begin training camp
‘Let’s be clear — I don’t think the Bills will cut Beasley or the wide receiver will be forced into retirement as he suggested on Twitter. But I do think this is going to be a big topic as camp begins and until Beasley speaks, it’s going to be something that lingers.’
Bills 2020 draft class rookie season review and expectations for year 2: WR Gabriel Davis
‘During training camp last year it was clear Davis was ready for the NFL despite dealing with the virtual offseason. John Brown even commented on how prepared Davis was, even helping out some of the veterans during training camp.’
Bills 2020 draft class rookie season review and expectations for year 2: QB Jake Fromm
‘“Just a young player, kind of again almost like a rookie in a sense just from what happened last year but great attitude, good toughness about him, mental toughness about him and he’ll have an opportunity to show what he can do here come July.”’
Bills 2020 draft class rookie season review and expectations for year 2: CB Dane Jackson
‘Now Wallace is of course also in the mix as he’s heading into his fourth season. He’ll once again compete for the starting job. If the season started today, Wallace would likely be the starter. He’s got the edge over Jackson when it comes to experience but the corner from Pitt could make a strong case during training camp for himself.’
Bills 2020 draft class rookie season review and expectations for year 2: WR Isaiah Hodgins
‘“Those things have a way of working themselves out, when I was around Andy Reid in Philadelphia he always told the guys not to count the numbers in the line just to make the reps count. A guy like Isaiah who you mentioned is off to a phenomenal start, he got himself healthy and here we stand, the last week of offseason practices, and he’s put himself in a position to make a real move, it remains to be seen, but very proud of his mindset and how he got himself physically ready to go,” Bills head coach Sean McDermott said in June.’
Bills 2020 draft class rookie season review and expectations for year 2: K Tyler Bass
‘His strong, young leg was a big reason the Bills drafted him and it certainly showed up during his rookie season. After maybe getting the nerves out early in the year, Bass proved the Bills made the right choice by going with him as their starter and he should be able to pick up right where he left off from last year.’
Bills training camp preview
‘Probably unlike any other team, the Bills are returning all starters except for one in receiver John Brown who now with the Las Vegas Raiders. But the players aren’t the familiar face, the Bills returned both coordinators as well in Brian Daboll and Leslie Frazierr.’
Bills camp preview: Defensive backs
‘Jackson played five games in 2020, started two and made his first NFL interception. He had me at Hopkins (on this play against Arizona), but I think Jackson showed all the tools to be, at worst, an upper half starting NFL corner.’
Bills open camp with Super Bowl optimism
‘As quarterback Josh Allen says, “If the team is not looking to win the Super Bowl, they are doing it wrong.”‘
Identifying five breakout candidates for the Bills ahead of training camp
‘Epenesa was a healthy inactive in Week 1 against the New York Jets last year, and he took a while to find himself. He ultimately played 27% of the defensive snaps as a rookie, although that playing time ticked upward as the season went on. Now, with veteran Trent Murphy gone and the Bills expected to give Mario Addison a reduced workload in an effort to increase his production, Epenesa’s playing time should benefit.’