BADOLBILZ

It was the worst and most unjustifiable free agent signing in Bills history, IMO. Some point to Derrick Dockery but he played every snap and every game and was actually a solid, overpaid guard........his crime was getting paid more than Jason Peters, which ultimately lead to Peters being disgruntled and the Bills losing a HOF LT. Star was a sub 50% of snaps early down DT who some thought might be stuck with a 1 year $4M deal............and Beane gave him $50M with $25M guaranteed over 5. A flabbergasting over pay.

Why is it "likely" that Star Lotulelei has handled his money well? That is an extremely random, unsubstantiated take. You go on rants against far more "likely" opinions than that. And just because you have made millions of dollars in your career doesn't mean that adding another 9%-10% more to your career earnings wouldn't be a huge incentive to you when you are about to retire in your mid-30's and aren't likely to find even remotely that kind of employment anywhere else. For as much time as you dedicate to this hobby..........you really should be smarter than to think that a guy like Snacks Harrison can be forced to be on practice squads in 2020 and a guy with Star Lotulelei's recent track record is going to find someone to give him $3.5M-$4M per season in 2022. And yes, the minimum salary of a vet like Star is over $1M. But what are you forgetting? That said vet has to be on the active roster in week 1 to guarantee that pay check. I'm saying Star will not be on someone's active roster week 1 if it's not in Buffalo. At this point he's a spare part that would be tying up a roster spot, which is valuable when teams are poaching young talent around final cut-down day. His guarantees remaining in Buffalo have no bearing on that........he gets that whether he plays or not in 2022 so long as he doesn't voluntarily retire.......that was money he mentally banked 2 years ago. Could he be picked up on a week to week pay basis or be on a practice squad? Sure. But we both know that will likely not suit him when he's accustomed to so much more money and security. At this point the only real question about Star Lotulelei is 'terrible free agent signing" or "worst Bills free agent signing ever".

Braxton Berrios would give them a much better returner and a guy with a younger Beasley's ceiling, IMO. But he reportedly thinks he is getting $9M per year and I'm not sure the Bills would/could go there for a slot guy. Nor do I know if he and his beach-friendly girlfriend would want to come to Buffalo.

First of all.......again, I'm all for moving on. But I would have cut bait after the 2019 season rather than guarantee his 2020 salary in exchange for saving a couple million on the cap. Obviously my way would have been the right way.........re-structuring his contract in the manner they chose was a predictable failure. But with about $4.2M in earnable but unguaranteed money in his 2022 contract...........there is CERTAINLY a way to change his contract or make new conditions........that's called a "re-structure". And he ain't making anything with an "$" on the front and "M" on the back in 2022 if it ain't with the Buffalo Bills. And this time, the team has all the leverage........as opposed to back in February of 2020 before he had opted out on his team, suffered multiple injuries, refused vax and then got ill with covid etc.. As for not being able to incentivize people with money............you obviously haven't done much employing or hiring of contract work. Money contingent on performance makes people WANT to do things they wouldn't otherwise want to do. It is human nature. Thinking otherwise is very naive/ignorant.

God only knows where he'd be without the Bills

What it showed was how little you understand the basics of the salary cap. You can't seriously suggest a trade for a high cap figure veteran without accounting for that cap figure realistically. You refused to even take a stab at how the Bills were going to structure a deal to convince a RB that has earned on-average $7.5M per year in his career to accept a new-team-favorable re-structure to significantly lower his $7.2M cap hit............when that $7.2M 2022 salary is fully guaranteed and he has the promise of unrestricted free agency after the season. And I've seen it projected that he will get another 1 year $10M deal.........which seems outrageous to me. He's a legit HR threat.........when he's actually available...........but I'd think anything more than $2M with a whole lot of incentives would be hard to justify after he basically took last season off.

That would be shocking to me. He was a nice but very raw baseball prospect.........he was a .260 hitter in college and I think only hit over .300 in HS once..........all tools and little production. It's a VERY rare baseball player that skips all 5 levels of minor league baseball and plays immediately in MLB. Murray would probably start out in low A ball if he tried to play baseball now. Also doubt the A's would be interested in re-visiting their offer to him.........and if they did he would have to get to the majors, which realistically could take 2-3 seasons, and then wait 6 years after that to hit major league free agency. There is A LOT more money to be made in a much shorter time being a QB in the NFL............and the NFL really doesn't have a legitimate PED program so while Murray might be toast as a MLB player by 32-33.........he might play another 5 years as a QB in the NFL.

I think that's more what people expect from this move than just one man's theory. You don't hire Lovie Smith if you are thinking "turnaround" right now. He's washed.

Reportedly they leave all of that decision making to Beane and McDermott. As Paul Hamilton has said on WGR...........they agreed to turn over all decision making wrt the Bills to them and they now regret it............but I don't suppose they are in any position to re-negotiate that arrangement now considering how well it's going on the football side and how tragic/disastrous it is on the hockey side.

As I am sure you are aware despite your protesting.......he has a $250K workout bonus. He is paid to be at voluntary OTA's. He might have been able to excuse his way out of that last offseason..........but it's reasonable to assume that covid isn't going to serve as an excuse to skip offseason workouts this year. That said, I'd be heavily leaning toward cutting him John Brown-style. No call, no re-structure offer.............ghost him just like Star ghosted them last offseason. There needs to be an understanding if he stays though. No more half-stepping. I suspect he would have a hard time catching on another opening day roster than Buffalo for even the veteran minimum given his recent track record of low production, questionable decision making and his age.......so if he is planning to continue his career he probably needs to buy-in to it or hope that the NFL practice squad rules allow for vets to be kept around and do that.

Also they've spent 4 years trying to protect Tremaine Edmunds from mean ol' runnin' backs...........go to a wide nine.......funnel the run to the middle..........and yikes.

I'd like to see them get more talent at CB.........but my rationale is more about them being more flexible/multiple on defense and making more plays on the football. Which I have no reason to believe are priorities to Beane/McDermott. If you are going to play mostly zone either way then elite traits at CB can be overkill/overdraft. In this system one of Nick McCloud, Cam Lewis or Olaijah Griffin might be able to step in and fill the role that Jackson did last year..........and Jackson replace Levi. I also believe White will be back on opening day and play well next season. Not likely as well as he was THIS season but better than Levi or Dane. I guess my take is they aren't any worse at this point than they seemed to be at this time last year when it was also assumed that Levi Wallace would sign elsewhere........and Dane was the next in line to start then. I could see them adding a cheap vet like Richard Sherman to the mix and a late round traits guy like Josh Williams and calling it a day.

The atrocious contract Beane gave him was much like the one the Pegula's gave Rex Ryan...........so unexpectedly/undeservedly large that it only served to disincentivize the employee. I know there isn't much cap difference between cutting him or keeping him but expecting him to repeat even what little he did this year is foolish. If he is going to be kept I'd insist that he be there for the offseason and OTA's to prove that he cares about being the best player he can be again. If not, let him go so he can retire.

I don't remember the "had the advantage of a 2nd year in the system" part. At this time last year Beane was really talking up Dane Jackson quite a bit. They like Dane Jackson a lot.........I think for the most part he played as well as could be expected in White's absence...........and they see him as maybe more than just a system guy..........which is how I think they (rightly) view Levi.

I'd value Wallace around $4M per..........he's very sound but his lack of athleticism limits what they can do on defense. Donte Jackson with Carolina is a zone scheme fit and may be viewed as an ascending talent like Wallace........but Jackson has 4.3 speed. Also has a connection with Tre White as both were at LSU and White lobbied Buffalo to draft him in 2018. Below is some info from PFF who ranked him 48th best potential UFA for 2022 (Levi was not in their top 100)..........with just a projected 2 year contract the short term numbers could be a bit too big of a hit..........but he might enable them to upgrade the corps with speed. 48. CB DONTE JACKSON, CAROLINA PANTHERS The Carolina Panthers used the No. 8 overall pick on South Carolina standout Jaycee Hornand then traded for two cornerbacks in Jacksonville Jaguars 2020 No. 9 overall pick C.J. Henderson and Stephon Gilmore this season, but they remain steadfast that this doesn’t say anything about their plans for Donte Jackson. It would appear he will at least have a chance to test the open market as Carolina prioritizes signing Gilmore to an extension to mentor their young collection of cornerbacks. Strengths: -Speed and recovery speed -Explosive vertical leap -Zone coverage Weaknesses: -Man coverage -Missed tackles -In-breaking routes Scheme Fit/Role: NO 2 CB IN A ZONE SCHEME: Donte Jackson has the speed to burn, but is at his best in zone coverage where he can keep his eye on the quarterback and use his athleticism to break on the ball. His best plays come using that speed to attack out-breaking routes. The Steelers or Seahawks run perfect schemes for Jackson. Recent Injury History: Jackson battled a toe injury for much of 2020, but he has been healthy so far in 2021(actually finished 2021 on IR). He has yet to clear 1,000 snaps in a season. Contract Projection: Two years, $20 million ($10M per year, $11.5 million total guaranteed) Bottom Line: Donte Jackson has exceptional speed and athleticism but doesn't have the man-cover skills to match them. He can be a playmaker in the right zone scheme, where he can key the quarterback and break on the football, but is limited to a No. 2 role.

You can try to deny it all you want............but you are the one who put that Saquon thread out there and then defended the idea of paying him $7.2M to the bitter end.

Pretending that the Bills have receivers who can excel after the catch in a short passing offense is utterly foolish. That's not their skillset and that's what they need to make it less work for Josh Allen to play the position. Calling being THE WORST YAC team in the league "a fable" is weak.........it's not simply the system........watch the lack of space defenses give these receivers underneath.......they do not fear them turning the ball up and beating them after the catch. But this is awful take is not surprising coming from someone who adamantly believes in trading picks or players for a $7.2M RB who has only been unproductive and repeatedly injured when he's played the last two years.

It doesn't look like a "great" draft but not sure about a lot of the day 3 players yet..........and that's what will decide the overall quality of the draft..........but yeah as @GunnerBill said it's a bad year to be in the top 10. Not a lot of "quick turnaround" kinda' talent.

Yeah and with 5th year options being both expensive and fully guaranteed when exercised now..........it's not going to be as appealing to teams to trade back up into round 1.

Yeah. A LOT can happen. There was no combine last year so the hot takes had to wait for individual workouts so when Josh Imatorbhebhe vertical jumped 46.5" at his pro day TSW's @glazeduck became absolutely convinced that the Bills would have to draft him in round 1 to get him. He went undrafted and is currently a free agent. One thing to keep in mind about the Senior Bowl too...........the draft is generally about the underclassmen. And scouts generally have their regions they focus on..........they don't necessarily see and evaluate every player available.........so where they think a player may go isn't necessarily based on an assessment of the full class.

Yep, Johnson is officially now one of 50 players that someone on TSW will insist has no chance of falling to #25 overall. I like draft season but the amount of hot takes that come in from people who just started looking at the available talent two weeks prior is always

The reason why the Bengals defense did better than the Bills wasn't because of talent............it was because they were willing to make huge adjustments. Which is also their reputation. The Bills coach their style/system of defense and do not make significant adjustments to opponents. That's what needed to change more than anything. It's why I'd like to see them get a new MLB that they can trust and run some more 4-3. It's crazy that the average back 7 player in this defense has over 4 years experience with the team and they can't be more multiple.

The need is to clear that $7.5M off of the books. Beasley hit the wall hard in 2022. The way cap hits work...........you could easily ink Von Miller or Cam Jordan(if released) on a backloaded deal with LESS than that amount of 2022 cap space...........it's a huge amount for a slot receiver whose on his last legs. Braxton Berrios has been mentioned as a replacement...........All Pro return man who is an ascending player from the slot but hasn't yet put up the numbers to get grossly overpaid in UFA..........and the Jets may want to keep him but they already have a guy in Elijah Moore that could develop into the league's best slot receiver in the next few years. I will be shocked if Beasley isn't cut...........as Joe Schoen said in his Giants PC........the Bills were planning to have a bunch of money to spend in UFA............and we know that right now they have very little 2022 cap room..........and Beasley and Mitch Morse are the only big numbers they can create by cutting them.

This kind of cracked belief about the importance of drafting defense in round 1........which makes little sense long term..........is how Green Bay wasted Aaron Rodgers career. The Bills defense was literally as good as any in the NFL............they've drafted a defensive player in round 1 in all four seasons that they've had a first round pick to use. And yet they are watching a Bengals team that has drafted terribly in round 1 the past decade(except their 2 most recent in Burrow and Chase) play in a SB which they reached because they went HEAVY on playmakers on offense instead of trying to distribute talent evenly............ and they literally have a defense built of free agents and later picks. Their most recent first round pick on defense, William Jackson, doesn't even play for them anymore. I'm not saying what Cinci has done is the gold standard...........but learn from the Chiefs and Bengals...........they aren't fixated on having the most talent on defense or defensive rankings.

I thought it was a solid draft. Didn't care for the Basham pick but better to take a swing at a pass rusher in round 2 than a player at a position they could fill inexpensively in UFA. TDN recently did a "re-draft" and Groot went 21st overall. He was good......the most productive of the DE's in the class..........he tied for the NFL lead in run stops with 32 despite being a rotational player. Brown showed a lot of promise at RT for someone who on paper looked like a guy who would definitely need a redshirt season or two. What hurt the appearance of their draft was carrying so many veterans on the roster which kept rookies on the bench and cost them guys like Wildgoose and Anderson. Hopefully Beane doesn't f*ck around with re-structures for some of these guys(Feliciano, Beasley etc..) this offseason who need to be cut outright and then replace that veteran quantity with quality and then all of this years draft picks can stick. Pay cuts don't work, Beane. Every one he has offered and was accepted lead to diminishing returns or player regret.