Alphadawg7

Sorry you are just showing how little you know about the situation with this post. First of all, who the heck cares where a player was drafted. Once you get to the NFL, you are in the NFL and its what you do on the field. Darryl is a ST ace, and one of our most important guys on ST. When you are talking about the 4th depth spot, ST is a major factor. The sheer fact you are disparaging Darrlys value based on his draft slot just shows how off base you are.

Man...you had me with the first sentence. Then wow, you just lost me with the 2nd. Its utterly crazy how many people can not seem to grasp the logic in why AJE didnt dress week 1. Hughes and Murphy, ONLY DE's on the team with experience in our system. Murphy reportedly had a very strong camp, and combined with having 2 years in our system gave him the lead on starting. Addison, a perennial double sack player, was literally our 3rd DE. So that means AJE would have had to beat out Addison, which was never going to happen going into week 1. Daryl is a ST ace, and him as the 4th spot was never up for grabs because of his significant importance to ST. Jefferson is really a DE helping at DT with Star opting out and Butler out week 1. So he is someone can easily swing over to DE if injuries happened to our top 3 guys. COVID had no preseason nor very little contact reps in camp for rookies to get up to speed and earn a bigger role. And DE has a log jam, so AJE is a luxury, not a player at a position of need. McD loves bringing rookies around slow when possible. We open the first 2 weeks with important divisional games, in a season where we have a real shot to contend and our schedule gets toughest down the stretch. Meaning these are important for us to win, so those most ready to play will get priority, which lends itself to vets and returning players over rookies. Same reason Murphy started over Addison even though Addison is the more accomplished and better all around player. AJE was a luxury pick at our deepest position that was chosen for the future, not to be an immediate contributor. Why are so many people completely deaf to these facts. They are not excuses, this is reality. Is it common for a 2nd round pick to not dress week 1 when injuries were not a factor? No...but its also not common to have no preseason, very little contact, etc in camp. Its also not common that 2nd round picks come into a team positioning for a SB run while playing a position on a team that is as deep as the Bills DE rotation. The AJE not dressing week one is literally a non story in terms of the arc of his career. It was actually not surprising at all to me.

I think the bigger issue is how many times people read stat sheets and draw (incomplete) definitive conclusions on this board. I mean Oliver was getting all kinds of penetration yesterday, especially in the first half. I thought it was one of his better games in terms of disruption. People make big deals out of sack numbers...but if Oliver has 8 - 10 sacks on the season, that will be seen as a big season. But that is literally just 8 to 10 total plays all year...the vast majority of what DT do in the middle don't always burst on the stat sheet. Some insane freaks like Donald pile up the stat sheet, but that is not the only way a DT makes a big impact, or even the most common. So I think people just get frustrated by the hyper focus at times by posters on certain stats vs the context of the game and how they actually played on film. And yesterday, our DL dominated the Jets across the line. Run stuffed, 3 sacks, disrupted Darnold all day, etc. It was quite the team performance, especially with multiple new pieces and no preseason. And Olive played a big role in all of that.

You just knew there were going to be silly threads today...it would not be TSW if not.

Agreed, and with him and Hughes being the only ones with experience in our system, it was pretty easy to see he was likely opening the season as the starter. I do think Addison will eventually take over the duties as a "starter" being a more complete DE and once he shows he is up to speed with our scheme. But at the end of the day, starter designation isnt a big deal as McD loves rotating guys and keeping them fresh. So all 3 will see a lot of reps regardless who is listed as the starter. And this is why AJE was no surprise to not dress week 1...like you pointed out too, the 4th DE spot was never his to grab because Daryl is such a ST ace. So it was up to AJE to overtake Addison essentially, which is pretty silly thing for anyone to think was a legit option for week 1. Bonus point: Jefferson is more of a DE anyway even though they have rotating into the DT area more due to Star opting out, Butler hurt, and Harrison being brought along slowly after his injury (as they should). So they really had him available too to play DE in the event of injuries in game. AJE will get his time...right now, opening the season with 2 divisional games and having quality players ahead of him, I just think the focus and priority is on winning those important games and not developing a 2nd round pick at a position we are so deep at. And its pretty clear, they feel the same.

Man this board is obsessed with releasing Murphy. AJE is a rookie, playing behind 3 vets, 2 of them are pretty damn good too. Gunner pointed out, the 4th spot isn’t up for grabs because of ST contributions. This is not common, but also not a big deal. This is COVID era, no preseason, limited camp reps, etc. They went with the two vets who KNOW our defense in Hughes and Murphy and also the guy they signed as a FA whose been a stud in Addison. How is this so hard for so many people to grasp? If we had losers at DE ahead of him, that would be a concern. But week 1 against a divisional opponent they rolled with their ST ace, our two starters who know the D, and our FA guy whose a double digit sack DE (and also learning the D). Seriously, this is no where near the issue like 99% of the people here are making it out to be. And let’s not forget, McD loves bringing rookies along slow as well. End of the day, AJE was a luxury pick (in terms of this year) at a position we are deep at for the intention of being a guy for our future to take over for our older DEs. It was never about week 1.

having the depth we have at DE is not common. You’re making way too much of this.

Sent you a DM.

For snacks, I made homemade brisket beef jerky and London broil beef jerky yesterday. Then made homemade honey siracha BACON jerky too all on my Traeger smoker. Today, making a full pork loin roast, although cutting into 3 different roasts first since it’s like 2 feet long. This way I can make 3 different flavor profiles for each. Smoking those on the Traeger too. It’s gonna be a good day. The jerky is bomb, but the Bacon jerky is utterly insane meat candy. I need to give some away to my friends today so I don’t eat it all, definitely dont want to eat 2 pounds of bacon lmao.

Why don’t you ask all the young players who were cut because they didn’t have a real opportunity to show what they can do with no preseason and barely any camp contact. The preseason is a lot more about finding your depth players, developing them. It’s not all about getting Patrick Mahomes ready. While highly drafted rookies are almost always safe, it’s the mid round and lower guys down to UDFA that it becomes a bigger uphill battle if they don’t get the opportunity to play in live game situations to make the coaches give more consideration to keeping them over another player. Then there are other new players from highly touted rookies to free agent or trade acquisitions. Some positions need a lot more reps to blend in and find cohesive timing. A RB for example is a pretty easy plug and play spot. But a WR and a QB need as many reps as possible to develop timing. OL players have to be able to gel with the lineman around them is another example. Finally, new coaching staff needs the reps and time to help install an entirely new system and playbooks. So sorry, looking at the best team in football and reigning champs last night with their core roster still intact is NOT an universal application to every other team on whether they needed preseason games. I think we should cut down to 3 or 2 preseason games. 4 is not necessary, but they need at least two, if not 3.

We will be fine. Jets dont exactly have a dominant run game with their weak OL and also all reports so far are that Bell has not looked good in camp and even looks like he lost a step. Bell was always one of those guys that I felt was great because of his OL in Pittsburgh more than his ability as a runner. His patient style works with a good OL, but when the OL isn't strong he needs to create more for himself and burst through small holes before they close. I am not saying he wasn't talented, just that he is no Barry Sanders who can make things happen even with a struggling OL. So, I am not too concerned about the Jets run game, plus I think we have a pretty talented DL overall and will do just fine. Even if we have an inconsistent performance this week stopping those runs up the middle, I think the D will more than make up for it with how good we are else where. For me, I just don't see our DL up the middle being what wins or loses this game. Its more on the offense as a whole for me...both for us and Jets. With no preseason and limited camp, which ever QB can find a groove first will take control of this game. And given Josh is facing a depleted Jets D and Darnold is facing our vaunted defense, its pretty clearly a strong edge right now for Josh before the game kicks-off on who more than likely gets their rhythm flowing this week.

This. AJE May or may not dress week 1. It’s a testament to our talented DL and also impacted by no preseason and very limited camp. It literally means nothing at this stage. AJE has a bright future ahead of him still. But Bills want to start with a win week 1, and rookies with no preseason and very few full contact reps due to COVID are not likely to see much playing time over quality vets ahead of them during this first week. McD has consistently brought rookies along slow in a normal year, this year AJE is a luxury pick essentially given we had good depth there already heading into draft. He’s a pick for the future, to eventually take over for our aging vets at the same position. It was never about him being a force ready to unleash week 1. This is literally just a non-story in the reality of his career regardless of he dresses or not.

Of course Bills D, I have them in both leagues. I was just talking individuals and left off kickers and D. My bad, should have mentioned Bills D, and even Bass is draftable as kickers are so easy to replace. But I really like Moss as a drafted player this year. He's been drafted in every league I am in and every mock I have done, and I only got him in one of my leagues as someone snagged him just before I was going to take him. The reason I like Moss is he is likely going to be a TD guy at the very least. So he should have some flex value compared to other "handcuff" RB's around the league. Plus, all the talk is it sounds like its going to be a situation where both Devin and Moss get a good amount of touches and I expect a similar situation to Chubbs/Hunt or even DeAngelo/Stewart in Carolina were. Means, Moss has potential value even without an injury to Devin. And the final reason is Devin isn't the biggest guy, and already got a little banged up last year. So if he misses any games, Moss could be a weekly beast until Devin returns. I have done 2 drafts so far, and Moss went in round 8 both times. Got a third one tonight, and expect a similar draft slot for him. I wouldn't draft him to lean on, but I do like him a lot as a bench RB grab in rounds 8-10.

Reviews on this years maddens are atrocious. Probably be the first one I skip ever. Bought every madden since the first one came out on Sega Genesis.

In both my drafts Devin went in 4th or 5th round. And for me, I don’t like that value. Personally I went RB, RB, RB in one draft because WR is so deep. And still ended up with Keenan Allen, Devante Parker, and Stefon Diggs as my top 3 WRs, with Brandon Cooks and Diontae Johnson as backups. Also have Mark Andrews at TE. So didn’t need to consider Devin in the mid rounds either. So Devin was a fade for me. Personally, I don’t think Devin will be as good as last year in fantasy. Moss and Allen really hurt his TD work, and I think Moss is more involved than Gore was last year. Plus, our passing game should be even better too. So while I really like Devin the football player, I’m not liking his draft value in fantasy. Now if Moss got hurt, Devin’s value shoots up considerably and vice versa too.

I wasn’t asking because I am worried. Was more just curious after seeing some of the rumblings.

Only 3 worth drafting IMHO is Allen, Diggs, and Moss. Brown still has later round value, but I’ve landed Diggs in all my leagues which takes Brown off the board for me. I faded Singletary. While I expect him to have a good season for the Bills, that doesn’t translate into good fantasy value where he is being drafted. Allen and Moss will keep Devin from being a consistent starter in FFL scoring. Upside is totally capped. Where as Moss I think has more upside because of his TD capabilities and also Devin is smaller build, so if he gets hurt, Moss value will go way up. Brown was great for me last year, and Knox is a potential breakout. But going into the season I faded Brown because I already have Diggs on all my fantasy teams. And Knox, well he’s not really getting drafted, so I have taken better FFL options and will monitor Knox on the waiver wire as a potential add. While I do think Knox will be good for us on the field, I’m not expecting a huge fantasy season from him. With Devin, Moss and Allen, I think we will have a wicked run game inside the redzone. So I think Knox TD opportunities will be limited, plus he’s still learning as a receiver. Not to mention, we have a lot of weapons now. So I don’t see him as a fantasy football consistent TE like some of the other choices available. I much prefer potential breakout guys like Herndon, Hurst, etc

I’ve seen some rumblings on Twitter and some mentions about that on TSW over the weekend that basically suggested Moss has blown everyone away and Devin was having some fumbling issues in camp. They also alluded that because of that, Moss was making a push to over take Devin on the depth chart. Anyone have any first hand insight on this? I can’t find anything concrete or official really, and seems like this talk originated from a reporter that was at practices and other people just repeating it. But I haven’t heard anything or even really been able to find anything that suggested anything negative about Devin in camp. Although, there are several reports saying Bills are going to split carries between the two and could rotate who starts or sees more carries based on the different strengths/weaknesses of the defense they are facing each week. But that could just be because Moss has shined, doesn’t mean anything about Devin per se. Again, to be clear, I am NOT suggesting any of this and I do really like both Devin and Moss. I am just asking if anyone had any better info on this or heard anything similar or anything that refutes this. End of the day, I think we all have been pretty clear about the fact Moss was going to be involved every week. No surprise there, now it’s just a question to how much as the season goes on each week.

Lions have a more crowded RB room than Chiefs. AP is at best third in depth chart in Detroit all year unless injuries happen and could see a lot of inactive too. In KC, he had a shot at earning the backup spot.

I avoided Singletary. He’s going to have too many points vultured between Allen and Moss is my fear. But I drafted Allen, Diggs, and Moss in one league. In my biggest league I drafted Diggs and Bills D.

agreed

So you think one thread I started equates to namath being talked about more than Brady. No offense, but literally dumbest comment in this thread.

I get that, but at the same time, Sweeney isn't a rookie either, he already learned the offense last year. And he's not expected to have a large role from the get go with both Knox and Kroft healthy. So I think at this point, they saw enough upside in him last year and pretty much know there isn't much Smith brings into the fold outside his stewardship anymore. I get he's a good blocker, but he is also been too easily penalized. With this team full of leaders on and off the field now, I think Smith's value is diminished and the edge goes to Sweeney despite him missing a lot of camp. I could be wrong on this of course, definitely not a declaration here. Just my gut thinks Sweeney will make the cut and its most likely at the expense of Lee Smith. Also, seems like there were some rumblings about Croom having a strong camp this year too. So if thats accurate, I would assume his name is in the mix still. Of course, they could also keep 4 TE's as well, although I suspect they go for extra depth at other positions this year rather than keep 4 TE's. But you never know, maybe they feel safer with 4 given Krofts injury history.

I do think Sweeney makes the 53 roster and probably at the expense of Lee Smith if I had to make a guess now. While they do love Smith's locker room presence, we have other leaders on this team too now. I just don't think he brings enough to the table on the field and is a penalty risk too often to continue to hold a roster spot on this much improved overall roster.

I think CorkScrweHill said it best here...