2003Contenders

Jackson appears to be one of the most polarizing players in this draft class. I truly believe that there are some teams that do not even see him as a QB and are serious about exploring a projection to WR. Those teams likely would not draft him on day one and probably not day 2. Meanwhile, other teams really do believe that he is one of the top QBs in this draft. As we know, it only takes one team to fall in love with a player -- which is why I think he goes in the first round, possibly before the Bills select at #21. I expect that Petrino will be fielding plenty of questions from NFL scouts/GMs/coaches about whether or not Jackson has the goods to be an NFL QB.

Bingo! Either he is healthy -- which means that it would be foolish to trade him, especially now that his stock is low. Or, he is NOT healthy, in which case it would be very difficult to trade him at all, given his large contract.

If the QBs fall as he has them, it won't even take both first round picks to move up for Rosen. A 1st and a 2nd should get it done.

Word at the time was that if the Bills had not made the trade up for Sammy, they would have taken Ebron at 9. So they definitely liked him back in 2014. Of course, he has done little in the league since then -- and it was the now departed Whaley who was running the draft room for the Bills back then.

Two thoughts come to mind... I remember looking closely at the transcripts from Beane's interviews at the combine this past week. One comment he made that I found very interesting was that there were "6 -- maybe even 7" QBs that could go in the first round this year. Of course, he did not say who they were. But I wonder if the Bills have a higher grade on, say, Mike White and would be willing to take him with one of those 1st round picks. Still, I would hope that he would be available in the 2nd round. Otherwise, I have to look at it this way: if the top 20 picks really are comprised of 6 QBs, then that must mean that only 14 other players at non-QB positions were drafted. That gives the Bills the opportunity to take the 15th and 16th best non-QB prospects in the draft. It would not be the end of the world to address other needs (LB, DT, DL, WR, OL...) with those two picks.

I listened to his interview with Pat Kirwin and Jim Miller on XM this evening. Here is what I took away from it: 1. He had multiple surgeries this off-season. 2. He really liked his time in Buffalo. 3. He LOVES McD. 4. Credits the Bills' medical folks with getting him the proper diagnosis on his ankle/knee. 5. He is a newlywed, and his wife is a professional soccer player in DC. They are expecting a baby soon. 6. Realizes that he is hitting free agency at an inopportune time given the recent injuries. 7. Hopes teams will look beyond the recent injuries (also played with a bum ankle in 2016) and work him out. It sounded to me like his first choice would be to play close to DC given his wife's situation. But if he does not return to play for the Bills, it sounds more like it is the Bills who may not be interested.

Almost makes me wonder if the Pats are leaking stuff to reporters like Breer in hopes that Jackson will fall in the draft.

While trading from #1 overall down to 21 may seem like a steep drop, the Browns could easily package all the picks they have to move BACK into the top 10 without much effort. Heck, just the 2 first-round picks they would hypothetically acquire from the Bills would be enough to get them back to anywhere from 4-8 (depending upon which draft value chart you believe).

Now you are simply spreading "Fake News" to make your point. But just in case you really do not know, here is the breakdown of Tyrod's contract and the cap ramifications for this season: Base salary: $10 M Roster bonus: $6 M Signing Bonus amortization ($2.08 M) Total cap hit for 2018: $18.08 M Dead cap: $8.64 M So this $23M figure you keep spouting is a myth. If we keep him, the cap hit is $18M this year, whereas if we release/cut him it is $8.64 M. Furthermore, if he is gone that is $8.64 M PLUS whatever we would have to pay for his replacement. That means, assuming you are looking for a bridge veteran QB, finding someone willing to play for less than $10 M in 2018 whose future dead cap space in 2019 is no more than $5.6M (as Tyrod's would be). Playing devil's advocate, I would challenge anyone to name such a player. Please know that I am NOT necessarily advocating keeping him but pointing out the justification for why the Bills may ultimately do so -- and bracing the "Never Tyrod" crowd for what MAY end up happening. I agree 100% that Tyrod is not the answer at QB. I really hope that the team lands a future franchise QB in the draft, one that could potentially start from day one.

I am not sure it would cost THAT much to move up. Let's look back at a similar trade-up between Atlanta and the very same Cleveland Browns (to get Julio Jones) a few years ago (2011). In order to move up from 27 to 6, the Falcons gave up the following: #27 pick, 2nd rounder and 4th rounder in 2011, and the 1st rounder and 4th rounder in 2012. Notice that the Falcons did not have an additional 1st round pick in 2011 to work with as the Bills do. That additional 1st rounder (21/22) is worth more than the future 1st and 4th rounder combined. Hence, I would think that a trade of 21 and 22, coupled with one of the 2nd rounders this year would be enough to get into the top 5. Maybe sweeten the deal with one of the two 5th round picks. And, if Cordy Glenn truly is healthy, I would rather hold onto him.

Except for the following: 1. While Tyrod may cost $18 M, cutting him costs several million PLUS whatever his veteran replacement costs, which is likely to be well over $18 M combined. I am fine with that provided that the replacement is better than Tyrod. But who out there do we believe will be better than Tyrod and cost LESS than, say, $12-$13 M (which would still cost more against the cap than Tyrod)? 2. Tyrod's a big boy and understands that it is a business. It is pretty obvious that he was not the Bills' first choice last year either. The team forced him to re-work his contract. He could have declined and forced a parting of ways. The fact that both sides came to the resolution they did makes it pretty clear that the Bills did not see a viable and affordable replacement available, and Tyrod and his agent realized that they were not going to get a better deal from any other team. The team appears to be planning for multiple contingencies at the QB position this year, which is a great thing to do. Listening to both McD and B yesterday it is pretty clear that they do not see Tyrod as the long term answer. While pimping his positive aspects, neither was willing to endorse him. That sounds like either a sales pitch to potential trading partners or to fans like the OP should the team decide not to part ways with him. With the league so starved for QBs, I remain hopeful that there will be a trading partner out there. Who knows? If a starter for one of the other 31 teams goes down in training camp, Tyrod would suddenly become a very hot commodity (a la Sam Bradford to the Vikings a couple of years ago). Of course, for even that situation to work, the Bills themselves would have had to address the QB situation in the draft and/or free agency.

I think he is saying that the Browns would select Darnold with the #1 overall pick then have the 21 and 22 picks (acquired in a trade down with the Bills) to make giving up the #4 pick appear rather palpable.

Nothing new here. The book has been out on Tyrod for a long time. He is mobile and does a great job protecting the football. However, when he HAS to throw -- that is, the element of running the ball by him, Shady or whomever is taken out of the equation -- he simply cannot get the job done.

LOL some guy named Alan Hopkins is calling them out in the Comments section for overlooking Buffalo entirely.

Remember that in addition to paying (and in this case likely over-paying) for a veteran QB, the Bills would also be on tab for some of Tyrod's money both in terms of real $ (if we believe that they intend to pay him the $6 M bonus that is coming up) as well as cap space if he is traded/cut. That is why I think it is highly unlikely that the Bills will pay big $ for a UFA QB this year. I believe that they are planning on going all in on drafting a rookie QB this year. If they manage to get the guy they really want at the top of the draft (Rosen/Mayfiled/Darnold), then Tyrod may not even be on the roster on Opening Day. If they have to settle for a Jackson/Rudolph type, then Tyrod serves as a bridge until the new QB is ready. Given the quick hook to Peterman in the midst of last season's playoff run, that could even come early in 2018.

In 2015 it was Bryce Petty. LOL

I am in no way defending Russ as it relates to football decisions he was a part of... However, guys in the know back then told me that even though he was the de facto GM in 2008/2009, Russ pretty much left all of the heavy lifting in the drafts to Tom Modrak. Modrak did not especially like the limelight and preferred staying down in Florida, as opposed to Brandon who was a Buffalo guy through-and-through and loved getting all the attention he could get. I am told that Brandon's involvement in day-to-day operations, scouting, the draft, etc. has always been over-stated. While Russ was willing to serve as the face of the franchise back them he relied on Modrak to handle the scouting and run the War Room at draft time. In fact, the 2008 draft in particular was all Modrak (he LOVED Leodis). Dick Jauron reportedly had a greater say in the 2009 draft, and it was Jauron who was allowed to overrule Modrak on that first round pick of Maybin (Jauron REALLY wanted an "edge rusher") over the guy that Modrak wanted (Brian Cushing) with the 11th overall pick (not the 9th as I misstated above). Modrak was so incensed about this that he wasted little time leaking his preference for Cushing to the press the next day. Still, Russ deserves the blame for allowing these things to happen under his watch. Also under his watch: 1. Low-balling and then trading Jason Peters 2. Signing Fitz to an inflated contract at a time when Fitz was on a hot streak -- and believing that Fitz was the "answer" 3. Extending Dick Jauron's contract I am so glad that Russ has been relegated to doing what he does best: team marketing.

Let's not forget that Russ also oversaw the 2009 draft as well, which gave us... A. Maybin ninth overall!

It makes sense that the plan regarding the move-down last season centered on the acquisition of the extra 2018 1st round pick and the possibility that this extra pick would provide the team with the necessary capital to move up and take a bona fide franchise QB in the draft. However, it is unlikely that OBD really thought they would be picking in the 20's with their own pick in 2018, which makes the ability to move up THAT high much more difficult than expected. If we assume that they do everything they can to move up to get the guy of their choice -- and rumors are that they are already working the phone lines as we speak -- and they are UNABLE to finding a willing trade partner, then I am OK with the team essentially trading one of those first rounders to move back into the 2nd round AND get an extra 1st rounder next year. Essentially they would be postponing what they planned to do in 2018 for one more year. Meanwhile, these trades are very common as teams picking in the 2nd round try to get into the first to gain that extra year of eligibility before the player hits free agency.

The 2016 sweep was largely because of the Bills' horrific run defense that allowed Ajayi to rush for well over 200 yards in both games. Tannehill did very little in the first game and did not play at all in the second. Meanwhile, Taylor had his best passing game as a pro in that second game. Aside from those two games, Tyrod is 4-0 against the Dolphins (with and without Tannehill). I am more than ready to see Tyrod go, but there is no way I would say that he is inferior to Tannehill.

Uh, they didn't pay Cordy?

Well, two years ago Cousins did lead the Redskins into the playoffs in a pretty tough division. The Redskins made some horrific off-season moves in which they let go of his top two receivers (Garcon and Jackson) and replaced them with garbage. His favorite target (TE Jordan) was out most of the year. The running game was non-existent, as the team was down to their 3rd string RB by season's end. Yet, despite all of these issues, Cousins still managed to pass for well over 4,000 yards and 27 TD passes -- plus 4 rushing TDs, the same number as the highly mobile Tyrod. Imagine what Cousins could do with a weapon like Shady in the backfield?

The going rate for a starting QB is what it is. Jimmy G just signed a contract that will pay him about $27.5 M per season. Kirk Cousins is going to sign a contract that will put him in the same stratosphere. For those complaining about the $ it would cost to bring in Cousins, think about this: last year the Bears payed nearly $15 M for Mike Glennon. Yes, Mike Glennon -- and then they traded up a spot to draft Trubisky high in the first round AFTER signing him. If the Bills elect to move on from Tyrod, who will cost about $16 M in 2018 if they keep him, they will have to spend about that much money for even a "bridge QB" (Bradford or whomever) in ADDITION to the dead money for releasing/trading Tyrod. Realize also that the cap can be navigated by smart pencil-pushers. For example, there is some dead money (e.g. the un-amortized $ for Dareus and hypothetically speaking Tyrod) that will clear the books after 2018, meaning that the Cousins contract can be structured to push much of the cap hit BEYOND 2018. And the Pegulas' have the deep pockets to pay the contract in such a way that an up-front signing bonus (which can be spread out over the life of the contract) can help negate the 2018 cap impact. That is why I am on board with Plan A being a full court press to attract Cousins -- which will also allow the team to hang onto all four of their picks in the first two rounds, none of which would have to be devoted to a QB pick. That's four players that could hopefully be immediate contributors at a controlled cost. The controlled cost for the 4 players also helps to negate the $ that would have had to be spent in free agency at those respective positions and further mitigates the $ spent on Cousins.

I hear ya, but there is no denying that Gaines made a huge impact on the defense last year. Just look at the team's record in games he played versus games he didn't.

Honestly, if the Bills really are unable to trade up to get a franchise guy and the best they can do in free agency is Keenum, I could live with hanging onto Tyrod AND drafting Lamar Jackson.