Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

‘The obvious takeaway for me was that the Bills will try their absolute hardest to pick a quarterback in the first round, and if they don’t, the past nine months have been one of the great draft smokescreens of our time.’

‘”It’s genius what he did because he was taking out a serious candidate to buy the team and then hope that he would get it at a bargain price,” Bon Jovi said. “But we were as real as real got and, you know, I’m brokenhearted because I would have loved it.”‘

‘Before joining coach Nick Saban’s staff as offensive coordinator at Alabama, Daboll was tight ends coach last year for the Super Bowl champion Patriots. He coached with New England from 2000-06 and again from 2013-16. In all, he has coached 17 NFL seasons as an offensive coordinator or positional coach, including quarterbacks. He was an offensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns (2009-10), Miami Dolphins (2011) and Kansas City Chiefs (2012) in between his time with the Patriots.’

‘Because Doug Whaley and his staff had done all the work on the draft prospects, they were retained until the draft was complete. Once they were let go, the Pegulas struck it rich again by plucking Beane from Carolina. The fact that McDermott and Beane had six years of history together with the Panthers was vital because it meant that, finally, the most important men in the football operation would be operating from the same blueprint, with a similar set of ideals and values.’

‘While it was true that Dennison didn’t exactly hold a strong hand in Buffalo, given that his quarterback was the maddeningly inconsistent Tyrod Taylor, and his wide receiving corps was among the least-talented in the league. Still, Dennison confounded many this season with some of his play-calling and personnel usage, and he never found his groove.’

‘Assuming Taylor is gone, Glenn becomes the biggest 2018 cap hit at $14.4 million. If they cut him after June 1, they’d have to eat $4.7 million in dead cap this year and another $6.4 million in 2019, so that hurts big-time. However, the savings on the 2018 cap would be $9.7 million. Glenn has not been healthy for two years, and he may have already passed his prime. Now that Dawkins has proven he can play left tackle, now might be the time to move on from Glenn.’

‘Best rookie: Hands down, Tre’Davious White. He probably should have earned a Pro Bowl berth as he made four interceptions, broke up 18 passes, and by midseason was being asked to cover the opponents’ best receivers. In the playoff game, he didn’t allow a single completion into his coverage area.’

‘Since the start of the 21st century, the Bills have finished in the top 10 in the NFL in points scored just twice (seventh in 2004, 10th in 2016), and they have placed in the top 10 in total yards just once (ninth in 2000).’

‘It will be ignored because the Bills finished 9-7 and ended their playoff drought, but McDermott and coordinator Leslie Frazier’s first Buffalo defense was statistically worse across the board than either of Ryan’s units. In 2017, the Bills’ defense ranked 26th in yards allowed, 29th in rushing yards allowed, 20th in passing yards, 30th in first downs allowed, and 31st in sacks per attempt.’

‘Not that there’s much of a résumé, only 30 playoff games in the 58-year history of the franchise, but the three points against the Jaguars were the fewest the Bills have ever scored in the postseason. And while NFL nation was likely aghast watching this game, it really wasn’t all that surprising to Bills fans who have grown accustomed to this level of ineptitude on offense.’

‘“We are literally just evaluating,” Beane said. “We spent all day (Monday) talking with players, just getting some recon of plans for the off-season, feedback, and Sean and I are going to sit down over the next few days and start evaluating a lot of the things that happened this year and how we’re going to take it forward.”’

‘ “We’re building this together,’’ McDermott said. “We’re aligned philosophically how the process should take shape.”‘

‘Incognito did not speak to reporters Monday when the media was in the locker room for a 75-minute period of time as the players packed up their belongings. He still has not commented on the accusation, though Beane said Incognito is trying to reach out to Ngakoue. Beane did not know if that contact has been made.’

‘They were the team that shed that ugly gorilla from their backs, and the backs of every former Bills player who was part of the drought. Yes, they needed a miracle in Baltimore to make it happen, but it happened, and this was an accomplishment they could revel in.’

‘You have to give McCoy credit because he’s a gamer. His ankle had to be killing him, yet he played 57 snaps, which tied his season-high workload. He ran 19 times for 75 yards and caught six passes for 44 yards and, as usual, was the Bills’ best player on offense. I’d love to see what McCoy could do in Buffalo if the Bills ever put together a semi-decent passing game, rather than the mess he’s had to deal with all three years he’s been here.’