OldTimer1960

No argument there. My point is to accept that it is an inexact endeavor and realize that there are good reasons that a team might pick someone who a poster might not agree with.

Is it maybe possible that they did not think that Taylor could get them where they want to go and, therefore said “let’s take what we can get for Taylor and take our chances finding someone better”? Sorry, I obviously can’t hang with your intellect.

I’m not arguing to take Rudolph at 12, but if they value him, they should not wait to 53.

You are one BAD mo fo! You runnin the mean streets of Amherst?

That may be true, but the team’s job is to maximize the value of the picks they have for the purpose of fielding the best team that they can. It isn’t beyond debate that selecting Rudolph at 12 and still having 22, 53, 56, 65, 96 and all of next year’s picks won’t be a better option than trading, say 12, 22, 53 and a top 10 pick next year for one of the higher rated QB prospects.

Unfortunately, Bradford was draftseveral years ago.

Some thoughts about the draft and our opinions of it. For 35+ years I have consumed as much draft information as I can find/absorb. This post is intended to ameliorate a bit the absolute black and white if you don’t agree with me you’re a moron posts. It it is great that folks have passion about the team’s fortunes and strong opinions about prospects and what the Bills should do. However, any of us who thinks that if our team doesn’t do what is “clearly obvious “ to us, then they are incompetent - we are fools. Sure, maybe our opinion turns out to be right, however that doesn’t mean that the opinion was formed with the most complete information available. Across a wide swath of posters, someone’s opinion formed on incomplete information is bound to be right sometimes- doesn’t make those who disagreed morons. I enjoy reading the comments of those who really do put significant time into watching game videos of the prospects. Still, “the tape that doesn’t lie” may be a big part of evaluations, but there are other significant factors that we don’t have good access to: - we can’t interview the players to understand their personality, get a feel for how they learn, how dedicated they are - some here can generally speculate about how a prospect processes what he sees and how quick his decisions are, but we don’t have the benefit of talking to college coaches who actually know what the player was asked to do and how he did it - we don’t have access to the background checks that NFL evaluators have. A prospect might be able to fool in interviews, but teams can talk with teammates, coaches, support personnel from college and HS to get a better picture of how a guy works, treats teammates/others, reacts to adversity, etc. - we cannot really know how much room for improvement physically or mentally any of these prospects have. We can speculate about what they have/have not done, but if a prospect hasn’t been asked to do something in his college scheme, that doesn’t mean that they can’t do it, but I bet that their college coaches would have some good insights. - we don’t truly know how competition levels really highlight or downplay a prospect. - how does the talent that a prospect plays with affect his performance? For those who rail against a given prospect in round x because draft pundits say he is a round x+1 prospect, get some perspective. What is a “reach”? There is so much that goes into a”grade” for a prospect: - how do his skill match what you need him to do? - do his preparation and instincts overcome some physical limitations? - has he reached his physical peak or does he have room to add strength, improve skills - does he fit the culture/is he more professional in his approach than maybe more physically talented prospects? - what is the likelihood he will be unavailable due to off field problem? - what is his injury history and can he overcome that? Surely we can all see how complicated and uncertain these evaluations are. Try to keep in perspective that the pro evaluators have access to information that we don’t. That doesn’t mean that your opinion might not be right in the long run, but that your opinion is probably based on less than full information. Have fun with the speculation and enjoy the debate, but if the Bills pick players you don’t agree with, taken a balanced approach to your criticism. None of us know how these guys will pan out.

That is too rich for my blood for any of these QBs. I would consider trading up to 12 & 22 and maybe 53 for Darnold, Mayfield or Rosen. I would not trade up at all to get Allen. For me, any deal that requires 12, 22 and next year’s 1st would be out of bounds. My reasoning is that none of these guys carried their teams, except maybe Mayfield.

Unsubstantiated, but Carl Falk (Rochester radio) mentioned a text suggesting Pats are trying to move up for Rosen.

He also threw for >75% more yards as a Junior when he had a better supporting cast. He isn’t my favorite, but I can understand why a team might take him high.

I am not anti-Lamar Jackson, but I would prefer Rudolph over him. I see Jackson as very hit or miss while I think Rudolph is a pretty safe choice. I agree that Rudolph’s arm isn’t at the top of this group, but I think his arm is more than good enough and he appears to have the leadership, smarts, work ethic and size that can make him a long-term answer.

Or other teams not being willing to trade their pick for any price...

No, I don't think so. Let's say a realistic expectation for any of these QBs is a career equal to Phillip Rivers. Are you willing to trade 3 #1 picks plus more to get a QB of that level. Note that Rivers has not led his team to a lot of playoff games.

I think he knows less. These guys post/say nonsense just to be noticed. I think several of the TBD posters are much more informed than Cowherd.

Colts did not trade anything to pick Luck. Multiply by 10 if you trade 3 firsts plus for a QB.

Agreed - I have a difficult time thinking that they might trade 12, 22, 53, 65 and next year's first for any of these QBs. Sure, I'd like a shiny new QB in the draft for hope, but I am thinking that given the price to move up for one of the "big 4" would preclude the ability to build a competitive roster. I think there really are 3 QBs that are very good prospects: Darnold, Rosen and Mayfield. Beyond that, I would not trade any picks to move up for Allen or Jackson. I'm not very confident that either of them is better than Mason Rudolph, Kyle Lauletta or Mike White. If they trade up for a QB, 2018 will need to be a red-shirt year for the rookie QB, otherwise he could easily lose confidence or get hurt in a significant way behind this OL.

Beane has been spotted at Area 51 and claims he was abducted by "alien beings". That isn't even as wild a theory as the above.

Andrew Luck says it sucks to be a QB when your OL is bad. NOT saying that they should skip drafting a QB because of this, but the rookie should not see the field this year under any circumstances behind this line.

Even among very good NFL QBs, it is truly the RARE guy that doesn't need OL protection, receivers that can get open and catch and a good run game. Anyone that feels that all the Bills need to do is trade a ton of picks to move up for "their guy" are likely in for a let down when they don't see him light up the league with the supporting cast such a move would allow. I'm not saying that they should not consider trading up, but rather if they do - even if they find a good QB, it will likely take 2-3 more years - maybe by 2020 - to build the talent level around him to be a contender.

That is true, but they had and have a lot of high draft choices on that team before the trade.

I'll keep saying it: the Rams had A LOT more talent in place before their big draft trade to get Goff than do the Bills.

Mayfield also played in that conference and the Pac10 where Darnold and Rosen played is not exactly known for top defenses either.

I agree with this - I think he could be a good starting NFL QB that has a team with sufficient talent always in the playoff mix. I don't think he is going to be able to carry an under-talented team on his shoulders to the championship, but there are *very* few QBs in the history of the NFL that could really do it.

King has a strong leg - he might kick one out of the stadium in Denver.

I do agree with this- smaller LBs and DL to provide coverage and pass rush could be taken advantage by a contrarian power run game approach. Not sure if that would be enough to overcome other teams if you don’t have at least a competent passing game.