OldTimer1960

I'd say at 280lbs he could play DE in the 3-4. I don't know if he could play OLB or not.

Like you, I'd have loved for our rookies to have made a much bigger impact this year than they did - especially on a bad team. However, it IS a frequent coaching comment that players make their biggest performance jump between their rookie year and year 2. Cam Thomas managed 7 total tackles last year as a rookie. I wouldn't say that he dominated and by the standards of "nobody improvesafter their rookie year" I'd say he isn't any good. Now, I am not saying that Ed Wang will ever be any good (indeed, I think that there is a lot to suggest otherwise), but I am suggesting that writing off players after 1 year is not a good idea. I do believe that Peyton Manning was AWFUL as a rookie. I think he turned out OK.

I agree with you that many fans expect too much of rookies. However, I disagree that "first rounders should eventually be pro-bowlers". They definitely should develop into good players, but there are clearly not enough Pro-Bowl positions to cover accommodate any 3 years worth of 32 first round players. Now, add in that some positions might have 4-5 (or more) players from the same position drafted in round 1 of any given draft. There *might* be 6 Pro Bowl LTs across both teams, but some years that many are drafted in round 1. Also, figure in that some later round draft picks do become Pro Bowl players (eg Brady, Brees, etc) and there is simply not enough room on the Pro-Bowl rosters for every first rounder to become a ProBowl player. First round picks should develop into good quality starting players. Some might become Pro Bowl players, but to say a team "blew it" because a first round pick of theirs starts for several years but never makes the ProBowl I think is unfair.

...or be able to out-quick lumbering 320lb OL trying to block him. Now, to be clear, I am not necessarily advocating drafting Von Miller at 3. I also would prefer Da'Quan Bowers or Fairley (based on what I've read so far), but I am saying that you should not write Miller off just because he "only" weighs 237.

I don't think that it is accurate to say that Maybin's problem is that he weighs "only" 245-250lbs. His problem is that he has only 1 pass rush move (wide and deep speed rush) and that he does not have good lateral quickness. Miller has multiple pass rush moves, has elite quickness and has far more of a track record of production at the collegiate level than Maybin had.

Pittsburgh's James Harrison is listed at 6'0" and 242lbs. I think Miller is already well in the neighborhood of that and at 6'2+" might have a little more growth potential. I know that I wasn't completely filled out at 21 years old, perhaps Miller isn't either.

I'd consider a 3rd, but no higher than that. Kolb is a better prospect than anyone that they'd have a shot at in the top of the 3rd, but no better than a prospect that they'd be able to draft at the top of the 2nd (just my humble opinion)...

Do you know how big 6'3 and 237lbs is? I have a friend that competes in the "strongest man" competitions. He is incredibly big at 6'0" and 220lbs. I agree that I'd like a 250 pounder at OLB, but most 200 pounders can't move like Von Miller, let alone anyone larger. He is incredibly quick and fast. IMHO, in the Senior Bowl he showed that he can play run D, too. Yep, I'd like someone 6'4" 255 that could run like Miller, but there are VERY FEW of those guys. As for the comparisons with Maybin, Maybin has adequate to low lateral quickness and has only his speed rush as a pass rusher. Miller looks to me like an ELITE athlete who has shown multiple pass rush moves over > 1 season and can play the run, too. I would prefer Bowers or Fairley (a little), but Miller looks great to me.

First, I am confident that you cannot judge a draft class for at least 2-3 years. Second, I always hear coaches say that a players greatest improvement is between year 1 and 2. Not just Bills coaches, but many coaches say this - it was definitely one of Marv Levy's mantras. Also, I think that Gailey insisted that the rookies EARN their playing time rather than just give them time because they were drafted. I think that is an outstanding approach and was in part responsible for the effort that Gailey got out of his team each and every week (no doubt they didn't play well every week, but I can't think of any game where they didn't battle hard - even if outclassed and behind by a lot. Some teams play their rookies a lot even if they haven't beaten out the player ahead of them.

I completely agree, but unfortunately this isn't a great year for LBs unless there are some college DEs that can make the transition. Unlike many here, I like what I have seen of Von Miller, but if they want him they will have to take him at #3. He isn't as big as I'd really want a 3-4 OLB to be, but he isn't tiny at 6'2" 237 and is very close in size to Pittsburgh's Harrison (6' 240). Miller is ultra quick and has proven over the last two seasons that he can rush the passer. He played the run well in the Senior Bowl (IMHO). Beyond Miller though, there doesn't appear to be much to like at LB, however ratings do change over the months leading to the draft.

I like Kerrigan, but I don't know if he can play anywhere in a 3-4. He is very small for a DE in the 3-4 and I have read that he really isn't quite athletic enough to be an OLB in the 3-4. Maybe what I've read is wrong, but I think he might struggle in that situation.

Boy, I still don't see the similarities. NO OLB makes every tackle. Yes, there were some plays where he ran himself out of position on a running play. Every LB does that sometimes. Yes, I saw the play where the RB knocked him back a bit on short-yardage - that happens occasionally to every LB, too. With regard to the pass rush, I saw several plays where he put pressure on up the middle and some where even though he went wide and didn't make the sack, he did force the QB up into the pocket which is part of his job. I am not saying that he will or won't be a great NFL player, but I guess I didn't see where he was awful as Maybin is. BTW, there aren't that many 250+lb OLBs that can rush the passer like Miller looks to be able to. Yes, he will sacrifice some stoutness against the run by being a little undersized, but this team also needs pass rush. Again, I am not saying the Bills should draft him. I am only saying that I don't see the indications that he is a tremendous bust in waiting.

Miller is not that small. I don't know where this line of thinking comes from. He is 6'2"+ and 237 as weighed at the Senior Bowl. Poz really isn't any heavier than that and he is playing inside. I am not saying Miller is or is not a great prospect, but he certainly isn't too undersized to consider to play OLB in a 3-4 or 4-3 defense in the NFL. Beyond that, I really don't see the comparison to Maybin at all. Miller has produced at a high level in a very good conference for 2 years. Maybin had one good year at Penn State and wasn't even slated to be a starter at Penn State heading into that season. He "won" that starting job when the player ahead of him was suspended for drug use. Even further, Maybin had not played any LB in college and Miller has played there for at least 2 full seasons that I am aware of. Miller has shown that he has LB skills whereas Maybin did not. I have no issue if you want to find fault with Miller as a prospect, but I'd like to see more than "he is Maybin 2.0" because some people consider him a tad undersized.

I don't really see the LB depth in this draft. Granted, it might not take a lot to be better than the LBs the Bills have, but I haven't read a lot of good things about this LB crop.

I think EJ Henderson and Ray Edwards are too old for a team this far away to bother with. I'd love to see David Harris here, but I don't think he will even get to FA as the Jets will either sign him or tag him (hope I am wrong because he'd be a great addition). No thanks to the N.O. OL.

No argument that the Bills need a RT and TE. However, if you assume the guys that the original poster said would resign with their original team, then who is left? Not much as far as I can see. Maybe Bo Sciafe from Ten, but other than him the crop looks real thin. Maybe they can find a decent starting RT in FA. I hope so, because I'd love to be able to concentrate the draft on defense.

I agree with the sentiment here - that if a great QB is available then the Bills should draft him. Unfortunately, I don't think a great QB option is available in this draft. I am not sure that any of them will even turn out to be decent starters. I am not a qualified NFL scout, so maybe I am wrong, but I'd stay away from the QBs until after the first few rounds - again, not because I don't think we need one, but rather because I don't think there is a good one to be had, so improve other positions.

If I am not mistaken, Bruce Smith played at closer to 260-265 in his prime. That doesn't make him an ideal multi-purpose 3-4 DE, but he was a Hall Of Fame all-around DE in any defensive scheme. A 280 pounder is not too small to play 3-4 DE in today's NFL. The skill level is more important than the size IMHO

Nice analysis and I generally agree with your premise, however the BIG challenge is IDENTIFYING the franchise QBs. I don't think that there would be any debate that Tom Brady, Drew Brees or Kurt Warner would have been taken #1 overall instead of in the 6th round, 2nd round and not at all respectively -IF teams knew that they were going to be franchise QBs. Problem is, teams didn't know that. Likewise, it would be very interesting to see for each of those years other QBs that were picked in the first round and didn't pan out as even OK starters. The issue isn't whether a team should draft a sure-thing franchise QB, it is whether a team can identify a franchise QB. If they see one and are sure, then they absolutely should draft him regardless of other needs.

I slightly disagree. I think that even a truly great QB can't look very good with no supporting cast. I think the definition has to be a little more fuzzy like "can elevate at team to succeed at a level greater than the sum of their collective talents would reasonably be able to". Something to that effect anyway. To saddle Rodgers with responsibility for all of the injuries that his team suffered seems harsh. Likewise, to lavish too much praise on Mark Sanchez because the Jets's D and OL are really outstanding seems a bit generous. I think to *some* extent that Fitzpatrick elevated the play of the Bills' offense above what could be reasonably expected of a team with questionable talent at OT, inexperienced and questionable talent at WR, an OK running game and virtually no TE. Yet, I wouldn't argue that Fitz is a "Franchise QB". Is he someone that a very good team can win with and make the playoffs with? Yes, I think so. Given the exact same supporting casts, would he be a prohibitive underdog against Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Phillip Rivers? Again I think yes.

Word! Indeed, they should take a step back to consider how hard he would be crying for his mommy if Mr Whitner's Mommy were to confront them in person! Donte Whitner is a professional athlete who works hard at his profession. I don't fault him for the fact that the Bills over drafted him. He was not the worst top 10-15 pick in that draft for sure. He tries hard and plays to the best of his ability as far as I can tell. I'll bet that he'd look a LOT better if his primary job wasn't trying to cheat up to play the run to overcome the poor LB (and to some extent DL) play. I can't imagine a tougher job than check run first and foremost and then try to cover a talented TE after he has a step on you... BTW, that ties in to the lack of a TE on the Bills' offense...

I agree. The TE position on this team is a huge weakness. You are right, most successful QBs/offenses have a very good TE to hit 4-5 times a game. Some of these TEs have the speed to be down-field threats, but even the good ones that don't have tremendous speed have great hands. I am not a huge Fitzpatrick fan, but I think that he would look much better with a good TE to throw to.

Thank you. I am not a huge Whitner fan, but he is clearly a good player with a good work ethic. Is he one of the top 2-3 safeties in the league? Probably not, but the team could do far worse. They should keep him if his salary demands are to be paid like a good starting safety. If he insists on top 3 money, then they have to make the business decision about whether to pay him that or not. But if they don't re-sign him, they'll have yet another hole to fill on an already poor defense. Regarding the obnoxious smart-a$$ put downs that a small number of people throw around at him and others around here, it is absolutely shameful. These guys are all professional athletes and are very talented. Even the very worst of them are still great athletes. Most of them work and play very hard. They don't deserve the crap flung at them by a few around here. To be clear, I am not saying it is out of bounds to criticize a player or coach or even to suggest that someone needs to be replaced, but some around here make Jerry Sullivan sound like the Pope. To those people: sharpen your writing skills and formulate well-thought-out posts with fair and balanced analyses rather than sarcastic rants that simply boil down to "he sucks because I said he does". Well, there is more to it than just upgrading the position. Given that the Bills (and most teams) have a limit to what they are willing to spend for salaries overall, the question is more what is the best way to optimize the value they get for the money they spend? Just as an example, let's say that Whitner will sign for $5Mil/yr. I think that he is somewhat better than George Wilson, but would the Bills be better the spend that $5M on another FA at another position (maybe a LB) and let Wilson take over the SS position? IMHO, it would be a bit of a downgrade at SS, but might be a significantly smaller downgrade than the upgrade that they might be able to make at another position.

Fortunately, NFL scouts don't rely on 2 minute Youtube highlight clips for all of their information. Bowers is definitely not weak. He doesn't quite have the quickness of a truly dynamic pass rusher, but at 280 lbs he is supposed to be an outstanding run defender with good (not great) pass rush ability. I do agree that it would be great if they could trade down 5-10 spots and pick up an extra 2nd round pick, but that is going to be tough to do. You'd have to find a team that really is desperate to move up to 3 for someone. Who that player might be, I don't know - perhaps AJ Green, *maybe* one of the QBs (but I don't think that is likely). If they could trade down, they'd still have a shot at tough run-stopping DEs like Adrian Clayborn, Heyward and I think the kid from Cal is rated pretty highly too. I don't think that there is a true HUGE NT available in round 1, but there is one currently thought of as a late 1/early 2 kinda player (think it's Powe).

I was comparing Miller's current weight to Maybin's when he played his last game at Penn State (225lbs from what I could find).