billsfan89

I would actually be shocked if you could get anything more than 2 mid-round picks for Shady. What team is going to empty out a 2nd round pick for a 29-year-old running back with a lot of years in the league? On top of that Shady is highly paid esp for his position. Shady has at best 2 elite years in the league left. I doubt any team is going to trade a 2nd round pick for at best 2 years of elite production. No team is an elite RB away from being in contention. So if the choice is to keep McCoy or get a 2018 4th and a 2019 5th, I would just rather hold onto him and have some hope of being competitive this season and then try to get one more really good year out of him. If hypothetically you could get a 2nd round pick for Shady, I think you have to consider it. But there just isn't that trade out there.

His run blocking and physicality will be helpful. He won't be a dynamic play maker like he once was. But he can still make some catches over the middle. If he gives the Bills what he gave Detroit last year they will get a solid but unspectacular receiver. I expect 50ish catches 500 yards 4-5 TD's. Good blocking and a nice locker room presence.

If some team offers a 4th round pick, I would drop Reggie. But I honestly don't see a team offering more than a 6th round pick. If it's a choice between a 6th or 7th round pick and keeping Reggie, I would rather keep Reggie. Reggie is a year removed from a major injury to his knee. Bills have a lot of options at LB and can basically redshirt Reggie as a backup this year. Let his knee heal and have him focus on learning the system. Then give him another full offseason of rest and see what he can do next year. Reggie has good instincts and is a very physical player. He just seems to lack the range needed to play in the current system. I think it is possible that more time removed from his injury could lead to him getting back some of his range and maybe being better able to play in the system. Granted it is possible that he just isn't a fit and is too slow. But unless I get a 4th round pick I would rather try to rebuild him and get something out of him than selling low.

I think the coaching staff brought him in for depth and to help the other players learn the scheme. The problem is he doesn't even look like a competent backup and is taking away reps from players that need them to learn. The only silver lining is that if they cut him before week 10 he doesn't count against the comp picks formula.

I don't think you can draw a comparison. Leavy was an old GM drafting and operating under what he knew. The game had passed Levy by and he entrusted a lot of the organizational and football decisions to Jauron. Jauron was a coach with a less than stellar track record who lucked into being a head coach for an incompetent team. Beane and McD are both young guys who are trying to make their mark on an organization. They are fairly modern NFL thinkers who are trying to move forward. I think they are more so comparable to Donough and Greggo than Leavy and Jauron.

The front 7 looks like a swarming defense. The secondary is going to be a big concern but they look better than I thought they would considering the unproven talent. If White is an impact player, Gaines has a strong year, and Seymour is competent then the team could be good enough in the secondary. This defense isn't going to be 2014 (I think that defense had a much better secondary) but it could easily push to be a top 10 unit if they don't get hit too hard with injuries.

I think the team might be better off "Redshirting" him this season unless they get a good offer for him (I think you have to consider trading him for a 4th round pick and you would have to do it for a 3rd rounder which I don't think you would get offered.) But he is about a little over a year removed from a major ACL surgery. Let him learn the defensive system for a year and have him ride the bench. Right now he just seems to lack the speed to have enough range in the system. But maybe he just needs some more time to recover from his injury? Not everyone has the same time table to return at full strength. He is good enough to be a backup esp on early downs and running situations. Keep him as decent depth and see if he can return to form next year. I think it is possible he might just have lost a little due to injury or isn't a fit for the system. That's why I think if a 4th round pick or higher is offered you take it. But why sell low if you don't need to?

The Jags would have to at least throw in a 2nd round pick for it to be a consideration. Tyrod is a proven solid starter, while Bortles is a mess of a project. There would have to be some major draft capital thrown in for the Bills to take him on. Also, this just doesn't seem to be a move you make once half the pre-season is over. QB's need time to learn a system and gel with the receiving core.

I think with a completely new receiving core and a new offensive system you are going to have some growing pains. Hopefully, in the third pre-season game they look a little bit sharper and more in sync. Tyrod made some really good throws but it looked like the receivers just didn't know where to be. Tyrod was also forcing some throws up in a more careless and aggressive fashion than he normally does (That INT to Boldin is a throw away in a regular season game in my opinion.) If Tyrod looks better in the third pre-season game I think you will be looking at him having a solid season. He doesn't even have to look "good" next week, just look like you are starting to put it together.

You could do worse if you are trying to find some depth at corner. If your team is thin and you need some competition at corner I think you could do worse than McKelvin as your 5th corner.

I don't know why Gordon hasn't been given a chance to be reinstated. Suspend him for the entire 2017 season but tell him if he keeps his nose clean he can come back in 2018. OR just ban the guy for life. I feel like the NFL holding this guy in limbo for no real reason. Allow the guy to move on or move forward.

If Matthews and Gains are so good the team needs to resign them then they will have done extremely well in the trade.

WR1- Boldin (Really a WR 3 but Matthews is better suited in the slot) WR2- Jones WR 3- Matthews WR 4- Holmes (Justin Hunter redzone specialist) WR5- Brown WR6- Tate I suspect that Holmes could slot into the WR1 Role if he has a strong pre-season. Then Jones at the 2 and Matthews in the slot with Boldin coming into a lot of different situations. I also think in the passing offense Charles Clay becomes much more important. Getting better production out of Clay could help mitigate the loss of Watkins in the passing game.

This trade could be a potential windfall for the Bills or a trade where the Bills outsmart themselves giving teams young talent in exchange for a small return. The trade will make the Bills look like geniuses if 2 things happen. 1- Gaines is a good player for the team and 2- Watkins gets hurt while the Matthews plays all 16 games and is solid. Gains could end up being a better fit than Darby and while Watkins is undoubtedly the more talented player between him and Matthews, Matthews is the more durable player and a solid player in his own right. The Bills are banking on landing a windfall of draft picks and that Gains will be a better fit than Darby while Matthews over 16 games is more productive than Sammy over a lesser amount.

It's a soft tank. It is possible that Gains is a better fit for the system than Darby. And while Watkins is a much more talented player than Matthews how much can Sammy produce if he is hurt? Matthews is much more durable and a pretty damn solid player when on the field. The Bills also pocket legit draft picks that could help them escalate a rebuild or make a major move if a high-end QB prospect is available. I like it but they could also be outsmarting themselves by giving up two talented young players for picks and lesser players.

The trades could either be a stroke of genius or another LOLBILLS giveaway of talent. It should concern the Rams that the Bills traded away Watkins. The Bills must know that Sammy's foot and ability to stay healthy must not be a sure thing. I think the Bills front office is trying to have their cake and eat it too. The Bills are betting on a healthy Matthews over 16 games being more of a contributor than Sammy over 7-10 games if they feel Sammy is more than likely to get hurt. They are also betting on Gains returning to form another year removed from injury and just being a better fit than Darby. If Watkins gets hurt while Matthews has a solid year and Gains steps in and plays well this trade is a stroke of genius. They get better production this season while adding 2 high picks to their draft cache in 2018. It's a good type of calculated risk to take. Of course, there is a chance that Sammy is healthy and a stud while Darby plays really well for the Eagles. While Matthews is solid but unspectacular and Gains isn't anything. Then the success of the trade highly depends on the team's ability to use those draft choices to rebuild. But this trade allows the Bills to possibly be better or the same in the short term while adding picks that could help them in the long term.

Good signing. I always loved Boldin as an offensive player. Not only was he a super talented receiver but he always was a super physical player who took a lot of pride in hurting the defense with his run blocking and his blocking for other receivers. He always added that edge to an offense in addition to adding firepower in the receiving game. At this stage of his career, he isn't as great as he use to be offensively (Although he hauled in 8 TD's and nearly 600 yards last year so he can still be fairly productive esp in the red zone) but he is still a presence on the field blocking and can contribute offensively. Good signing. Adds depth and leadership at worst. At best it adds a competent compliment to Sammy and moves Zay to the slot where he will be most effective.

Greggo was an old school disciplinarian defensive coach. A coach whose mentality was from a different era who was much better at building a defense than building a team and even his success as a DC was above average at best. McD to me seems more like a modern coach who is much more interested in building a culture. Now he could fail at that but he seems to have the right philosophy and the full weight of the organization behind him. It might not work out, but I think that you need to take these types of risk with coaches. I think that McD is the type of coach philosophy wise and track record wise that is worth taking that shot for.

I think Tyrod is a lower mid level to mid level NFL QB. I believe there is some room for growth being that he has only been a starter for two full seasons. But at best he in my opinion only projects to be an above average QB at best. I just don't see him being a top 10 QB in his career. That being said you can win with even an average QB. The talent at Quarterback in the league is in a state where having one that is mid level is a modest advantage if you are paying him for the right type of contract. A mid level QB on an affordable contract or even a good value contract is something that teams can win with if the rest of the team is stacked (Which with fewer dollars and draft picks dedicated to the QB position makes it easier to build up the rest of the roster.) I like Tyrod since the Bills have him on an affordable contract and I do think the team is in a good position with him. At worst he allows the Bills to compete while picking their spots to bring on a higher potential QB. At best he develops a bit more and the team can build the roster around him for more serious contention.

Glenn going down would be a huge blow. Wish they held onto Cyrus. I know he was a marginal player but they didn't gain much by not bringing him into camp just as a failsafe. You could have always cut him later on.

The defense is going to need a good impact from Shaq if the unit is going to be good this year. The defensive line being a very dominant unit rests on Shaq and Dareus in my opinion. Kyle and Hughes will be good but just how great the D-line will rest on if Shaq can make an impact off the edge and if Dareus can dominate the middle again. The linebackers, in my opinion, will be an OK unit. The secondary will be a bit up and down. But the D-line being a good or above average unit just simply won't cut it. They need to be dominant to avoid hanging the secondary out to dry and to make life easier for the LB's.

I doubt you couldn't get a late round pick for him from some team running a 3-4. That being said I think you could give him some time to feel his knee and trust his body coming off a major injury. He is a big slow but the major injury is an easy explanation.

Sounds like the offer is on the table but Boldin isn't 100% sold. If I am the Bills I give him a week to make up his mind then move on. You can't seem to hung up on a given player for too long. Two weeks should be plenty of time to make a decision.

He had a pretty good run in Baltimore but he was absolutely terrible with the Titans. He bounced back in Carolina for one season as a really good starter, but it just looks like the concussion issue will likely end his career somewhat early.

The secondary is much less proven and much less likely to produce a top 5 defense. In 2014 Gilmore and Graham anchored them at corner while Robey and even McKelvin had good years at nickel and dime back. But that secondary was anchored by A.Williams and Searcy on the backend. Both safeties had great years and they really bailed out the corners when they needed it once in awhile which made everyone look good. The front 7 has a chance to be very good this year as long as Dareus can return to be a force up front and the combo of Lorax and Shaq can be a pass rushing presence. Although it is possible that Kyle Williams and Hughes could decline as they are both 3 years older now. But even if the front 7 is very good the team is unlikely to see a good secondary unless White is an impact player, Seymour gives them something above average, they find a safety to play well next to Hyde, and Darby returns to form. So I think the defense should be better than it was the past two years under Rex but I think it is at best a year away from really becoming an elite unit. They need to play under the coach for a full season, the younger guys need to develop, and maybe add 2-3 more pieces of talent around the existing core before they are ready to take that step up. If they can get the young secondary straightened out they might have a chance down to be very good in the future.