OldTimer1960

Kris Jenkins in round 2 could be someone to watch.

First round is too rich for me for a 165lb receiver with real elite speed and quickness, but just OK hands. I think his floor is pretty solid as a dangerous playmaker, but one with size (and maybe durability) issues. He *could* do much better than that, but I would be concerned about durability and NFL DBs beating him up physically. I won't question a team if they take Worthy in the first, but I am hoping it isn't the Bills.

The Bills appear to have done what they could to shore up the secondary before the draft. They now at least have veterans who have played S in the NFL in FA signees Taylor Rapp and Mike Edwards. At CB they still have Rasul Douglas and Christian Benford to start with Kaiir Elam the top remaining backup - and he is questionable after 2 seasons in which the coaches did not trust him to play much. Given that Douglas is close to 30 and is expensive and neither Rapp nor Edwards have been consistent starters so it is conceivable that they take a CB or S early - even round 1 if they really like the prospect. Now, I'm not advocating using their 1st on a DB this year, but I could really imagine Beane and McDermott loving Cooper Dejean - though he has yet to workout while recovering from a broken fibula. We have reports that the Bills met with the following DBs at the Combine (list may be incomplete): - Cooper Dejean - He is the opposite of DE Chop Robinson, Dejean has outstanding production and really fits the McDermott profile. Don't know if he can play CB to 1st round level in the NFL, but he could be a dynamite S. - Kamari Lassiter (CB) - He is very quick, but he skipped the 40 at the Combine and ran 4.61 at his pro day. I think the 4.61 eliminates him from consideration before the 3rd at the earliest. Bills' new DB coach coached him previously. - Javon Bullard (S) - Could see the Bills being interested, but nowhere near the 1st round. Bills' new DB coach also had Bullard at Georgia. - Kamren Kinchens (S) - his athletic numbers at the combine were borderline undraftable, but the Bills have strong connection to Kinchens (new DB coach had him at Miami) - Calen Bullock (S) Let's discuss!

I am not yet knowledgeable about what proper hand usage looks like in pass rushers, but I was really pleasantly surprised at Chop Robinson. I watched his games against Michigan, Iowa, and Ohio State. I thought he was quite disruptive, stouter vs. the run than I expected and generated a good amount of pressure on the pass rush. I'm not pounding the table for him, but I was really surprised at what I saw after reading the concerns about his pass rush production.

I understand your point and agree mostly, but I think the play to to trade up into maybe the 3rd using the glut of later picks where the value of those picks moves the needle in the trade. The earlier of the two 4ths would maybe move them two spots up in round 1 - perhaps worth it if they could get someone like Thomas or Mitchell, but I think they might need to go further up for those guys.

I think that if a trade down is considered, it will be because they have multiple guys that they like, but not love, at key positions available to them. I’ve come around on Mitchell enough to nab him if he is available, but after him I don’t know that there will be a player that I really have enough conviction on to say no to a fair trade down proposal. At WR, Legette is a possibility, but we clearly seem higher on him than most. I don’t personally think that Franklin is so good that I couldn’t pass on him, Worthy is too small for my tastes and I don’t think Coleman is worth that pick. Could 1 or more of these guys be great? Sure, but any of them could be just OK or worse. Newton and Murphy are good enough to take there, but they do duplicate Oliver’s skill set a bit too much. Could you play Oliver and one of them on passing downs? Yep, but that front likely struggles against the run. Latu has injury concerns and Chop Robinson has production concerns. The question is, who would be interested in trading into that spot, how far would you have to go down and what would you get in return? I do think if they moved back 10 or 15 spots, they could still have at least 1 of Legette, Worthy, Franklin and McConkey left. I know that not all are the X guy that they ideally seem to need, but those are all still good WR prospects that could help the team.

The speed is a concern, but I am as concerned about his quickness/lateral movement skills too. He is very smooth with some agility for his size, but with that he has rarely gotten open in a good college conference.

I am really not crazy about Worthy in the first. He IS super fast, but he is terribly thin and he has OK hands. I get the idea that he is a deep threat for a big armed QB, but I fear he won’t stay healthy and that NFL DBs may man-handle him. I know he is quick and will avoid jams and hits sometimes, but he won’t avoid all of them. I don’t think that any other WR that might be available there is free of concern either, so I would understand the pick. I would not criticize a high upside OT. By pick 60, the options at DT, DE and S will be pretty limited. While they need each of those positions, it’s better not to reach for the position and take a better prospect at a position of lesser perceived need. I think there will be a step-back on defense no matter what they do in the draft, so get the best prospects you can regardless of need this year.

I’m not quite a hard pass, I would think about it late 2nd. He could turn out to be great, but I am worried he won’t be able to get open and he won’t dominate as much at contested catches in the league. There are many receivers I would take a chance on before him - even guys who aren’t fits as the X.

I don’t disagree with that. I wasn’t passing judgment on him as a prospect, just that he likely knew that he put his best time up. I’ve read that the Combine surface was exceptionally hard and fast this year and that many who ran at the Combine and their Pro Days are posting slower times at their Pro Day. That being said, I think the Bills could be within a small trade up distance at pick 60 to get Coleman, if they like him. I don’t think he will go in round 1 or the top 1/2 of the 2nd.

He probably knows he ran as fast as he could at the Combine. The Combine provides an even field to compare relative speeds of the players there. A different 40 time on a different track isn’t very comparable. Even if he ran 4.5 on a different surface, it doesn’t change the fact that he was considerably slower (at the 40 yd dash) than his competitors.

This is a key point. Being an outlier reduces competition for the type of players you need.

You might get to 10, but I don’t want to give up next year’s picks. From now until Allen is done, cap is going to be tight for this team. It’s a good problem to have a top QB, but it constrains your FA spending and causes you not to keep players you want to keep. They will need those picks.

It would take every pick the Bills own this year to get to the middle of round 1 and that won’t be high enough to get him.

I think you could be right - though unsure there will be a really good prospect at DE available at 28. I was pleasantly surprised at how much havoc Chop Robinson created in a couple of games I watched, while he had a few good pressures, he couldn’t get home. So, maybe on him. If they were higher in round 2 maybe Braswell. I guess some like Kneeland - I have to find and watch some of his games.

My guess: DE Braswell, WR Burton, their two CBs, and they have another DL who could be a day 3 pick. Always smart to go to the schools that get the top high school recruits like Bama, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State… Miami should be looking at the Texas DTs after losing Wilkins. They likely have seen plenty and while Beane has final say (with McDermott), he relies on the scouting department as well.

I don’t think they can handle the cap hit to trade Diggs and after his down last third of the season, unsure who would bite.

They were going to draft a safety either way, but a 1 year deal.seems pretty temporary- like they plan to take one who could compete to start in a year (or sooner). Not a premium position, but still a hole to fill.

I am not arguing against using a high pick on a WR. I hope that they do draft one in the first or second round and I hope the one they draft turns out to be great.

I think that you have to count the draft choice used to acquire Stefan Diggs as being used on a WR. When Allen was young, they filled in at WR with vets to help him out. I do hope that they take a WR early, but they should do that because there is a need at WR and hopefully there is a good WR available at their pick - they should not do it just because they haven’t recently drafted any WR early.

Basham was mainly a DE and drafted late 2nd. Oliver is a fine player. Are you talking about Harrison Phillips who was picked in the late 3rd?

Yep, the Super Bowl Champs just paid their star DT huge money - they think DT is important.

There was a lot of hype around the receipt class and it looks very good, but it may have been over-hyped a bit.

I guess mine aren’t either!

Everyone’s highlights are good.