mjt328

If that is coming from an NFL executive, I feel sorry for whatever team he's running. You don't like the players the Bills signed? Fair enough. But to say they don't have a PLAN? That's just odd. If anything can be gathered from this offseason, it's that Beane had a clear strategy on where he wanted to improve and he executed it. We filled almost all of our holes prior to the draft, still have nearly $30 million in cap space and made virtually no long-term financial commitments. Our blocking was terrible last year. He has signed six new players to the O-Line. Our receivers were bad last year. He's added two new players to that position. He's even addressed the special teams with a handful of guys who are considered ST aces. We go into the draft in 3 weeks with only a few needs - DE, DT and TE. The strongest positions in this draft class? DE, DT and TE.

I like his strategy. And I think his master-plan for rebuilding the roster has been very sound. Beane's first 12 months were all about drafting a potential-franchise QB, and purging the salary cap of bad contracts. He executed both moves to perfection. But ultimately, he must also be great at evaluating talent and bringing in the right players. Only time will tell if he's been good enough on that end. What happens if Josh Allen turns out to be a bust? What good is cap space if he doesn't properly utilize it to restock the roster? I admittedly feel very optimistic about both of these issues. But we won't know until the Bills actually hit the field and start racking up wins.

What is the obsession about having players change positions? Cordy Glenn played here for 6 years at Left Tackle, and did a pretty good job at it. Yet some fans never stopped suggesting that he get moved to the right side. Now, I understand the questions about Dion Dawkins, considering his struggles last season and us totally rebuilding the O-Line. But I have a feeling that even if Dawkins rebounds in 2019, the talk of moving him to guard will never go away. When it comes to Edmunds, I think his skill-set is exactly what McDermott wants for the MLB in his defense. Too many people are still looking at Brandon Spikes/Reggie Ragland as the prototype, and that's clearly not what the Bills are looking for. The NFL has moved to the quick/short passing game. McDermott wants a guy that is really athletic, can run sideline to sideline, and will be pretty good in coverage. We have Star Lotulelei to take on the blockers, keep them off the linebackers and let the LBs make the plays (but convincing people of the value in that is a whole other story).

If you build a roster that is "top-heavy" with highly paid stars, then you aren't going to have the cap space for strong depth. Would you rather have three solid guys at $4 million per year or one Top 10-15 guy for $12 million? To me, the NFL's best teams seem to be those with a franchise QB, a small handful of stars and strong depth throughout the entire 53-man roster. Not the teams who are relying on 5-6 guys to do everything (and hope they don't get hurt). Personally, I was most impressed with Beane's ability to avoid long-term cap commitments. Listening to him speak, he definitely understands that long-term success comes through the draft. Not through free agency. He knows that free agency is necessary right now to help fill-in the weak points. But long-term, he wants to build this roster with guys he selects in April. Not March.

If you look hard enough, you can find flaws in every prospect. According to 99% of draft coverage, Nick Bosa is one of this year's can't-miss elite prospects (along with Quinnen Williams). I just don't see any scenario where he falls to #9. Now depending on how desperate teams are for a QB and whether teams are willing to reach for need, it's possible Bosa or Williams fall to #5-6. In that case, the Bills are within striking distance to move-up a couple spots without selling the farm. But if they stay in their current slot and go D-Line, we are probably looking at someone like Montez Sweat, Brian Burns, Ed Oliver or Christian Wilkins.

Bills fans should know better than anybody. If you don't have a top QB (Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tyrod Taylor), it really doesn't matter how good the rest of your team is. Even if Eli Manning isn't technically "done" - his best days are clearly behind him. Even at the top of his game, Manning was a very inconsistent QB who was average most of the time and had only a couple stretches of greatness. He's not going to be a player who can lead you to a Super Bowl anymore. Especially not with this roster. And if you aren't gunning for a championship, then what are you doing? The Giants were in a perfect position (drafting #2) last year. They had their choice from a handful of good QB prospects and passed. They should have a pretty good prospect in Dwayne Haskins fall into their lap at #5. Rumors are they are passing again. So either Gettleman is poor at scouting the quarterback position, or he's just terrible at understanding how to build a winning roster. If Gettleman is purposely gunning for someone specific in 2020-2021, then he's a fool. The landscape of the NFL, the NCAA and the Draft can change dramatically in 12 months. Players can get hurt or decide to go back to school. With a year of film, the top guys can suddenly have their flaws exposed by college defenses. I can't count how many times I've seen a can't-miss Top 5 quarterback plummet as a prospect in the span of one college season. Gettleman doesn't know who is going to be available, or if they will still be good enough to warrant a top pick. And even if the Giants tank, there is no guarantee they will even be high enough to get the QB they are targeting. All of the non-QB talent Gettleman is pulling together will totally go to waste if he continues to push-off taking a QB. In most cases, it will take 2-3 years to develop a QB after drafting him. By the time the Giants finally get a guy in place, Barkley's prime will be gone and the team will be in salary cap trouble.

My guess is they like some RBs in the draft better... they plan on drafting one... and they probably won't keep more than three on the roster.

I'm sure the Bills are prepared for any scenario, and have internally discussed a trade-up. Doesn't mean it will happen. Nobody knows what's going to happen on draft day, or how far some players may fall. I can tell you that Beane doesn't seem the type to trade away multiple 1st Rounders for an edge rusher. Now if Murray, Haskins and Lock go early, AND some other Top 8 teams decide they need a linebacker (White) or left tackle (Taylor) with their first pick -- then it's totally conceivable that Nick Bosa, Quinnen Williams or Josh Allen gets to within striking distance. In this situation, I could see him packaging a mid-rounder to jump up a few spots from #9.

You are right. I was thinking about free agent signings and completely forgot about the trade for Osemele.

The Jets clearly upgraded the running back position. But they did virtually nothing on the offensive line, which was one of their weak points last season. So at the end of the day, how much did they truly upgrade their rushing attack? How much does that marginal improvement in the run game actually help the offense? And will it be enough to make the team better in the win column? FYI - I do realize the draft has not happened yet. Just like us with Josh Allen, the biggest difference will ultimately be how much Sam Darnold improves in his second year. I liked Darnold a lot as a prospect, and I thought he showed a lot of promise last season. So although I do anticipate the Jets improving in 2019, very little of that is due to Le'Veon Bell. When it comes to building a roster, I definitely prefer Brandon Beane's approach. Instead of making a huge splash on ONE guy, we spread our dollars out and brought in solid starters/competition at multiple places. At the end of the day, I think Morse, Gore, Brown, Beasley, Nsekhe, Long, Feliciano and Waddle will be a bigger boost than... Bell.

Even if running back was our biggest need, this is not the year to spend a high pick on one. This is not a very good class. Josh Jacobs is considered the best RB in this class by far, and most see him as a early-mid 2nd round pick. After that, you have about 10-15 mid-round guys who nobody can agree on, and will likely start coming off the board between the late 2nd and 4th rounds. So unless you are a huge fan of Jacobs, the sweet spot for RB is early on Day 3. On top of that, many of us believe that most of LeSean McCoy's problems last year were due to the O-Line. Nobody could have had success behind our blocking last season. Especially not a RB who relies on elusiveness, and isn't great at breaking tackles. Not Ezekiel Elliott. Not Saquan Barkley. Not Todd Gurley. It was a total disaster. Since Beane has focused heavily on fixing our O-Line (five free agents added), there is plenty of reason to be optimistic for the running game to recover next season. If McCoy is truly done, then we simply put Frank Gore into the lineup. Sure, Gore is not the long-term answer. But he was still one of the NFL's best running backs last season and should still be very effective. Running back isn't a position that needs grooming and development. Most of the league's top runners played great as rookies. So if we can get ONE good season out of either McCoy or Gore, we can plan on drafting a guy earlier in 2020 - hopefully with a better class of RBs available. As a final point, I think many of us recognize the importance of having a Pro-Bowl workhouse running back is passing away. The Patriots have been successful for years with a committee approach. The Saints too. The Chiefs and Steelers lost their top guys last season and never missed a beat. Gurley was totally ineffective down the stretch, and the Rams still made the Super Bowl by plugging in a guy off the street. The Giants immediately drafted/inserted a Top 5 guy into their lineup, and he made no impact on the team's record.

Possible. But your theory depends on us drafting a WR high, which I just don't see happening. We haven't replaced Kyle Williams, and will have a handful of talented DTs staring us in the face at #9. We are clearly in the market for another DE, but were unable to get one in free agency (at least not yet). Our weakest position is Tight End. If Daboll is trying to copy the Patriots at all, this will not be the case for long. Now that he's got some freedom with the cap, you can see how Beane likes to approach the roster. Instead of going top-heavy, he likes stockpiling depth and making them fight for a roster spot. I don't see him considering Zay Jones expendable yet. I also don't think he's ready to hand Robert Foster a Top 3 spot after handful of good games his rookie season.

I see running back being a Day 3 selection. Probably the 4th Round. Round 1 will be a DT or DE Round 2-3 will be TE and whatever we didn't get in the 1st

Biggest Needs: Tight End 3-Tech Defensive Tackle Medium Needs: Defensive End Offensive Guard or Tackle Depth/Looking to Future Needs: Running Back Strongside Linebacker Wide Receiver

I think the Bills have a Top 5 fanbase in the NFL. But going against the Packers this early is going to screw us. Packers probably are #1.

Some of the responses are interesting. I don't see this is as a big need at all. At least not before the 3rd-4th Round. With the amount we are in nickel defense, you are only going to see two linebackers on the field most of the time. And unlike the D-Line, you don't see a heavy rotation at linebacker. Barring injury, the starters will play 95%+ of the snaps. Backup linebackers are mostly used for special teams. - In my opinion, Matt Milano has flashed big-time playmaking ability in his first two years. I'm absolutely shocked that some people think he should be upgraded. We should be set here for the next several years, and I can't believe it's even a question. - Tremaine Edmunds definitely had struggles as a rookie. But it should have been expected from someone with his experience. He definitely improved as the year goes along, and I think he makes a huge jump this year. Again, I find it shocking how quickly some fans want to move-on from young players. - Lorenzo Alexander is aging, so I definitely wouldn't mind grooming someone behind him. But I can't see using a really high draft pick on someone. Taking someone like Devon White would be a waste. The only reason Alexander even plays the number of snaps (I think he was around 60 percent) is because of his versatility. He was a chess piece for McDermott. Would another SLB be flexible to also play DE and DT?

As free agency has progressed, this is a question also crossing my mind. The roster is a numbers game. As we continue to add solid veteran depth, we are quickly running out of places for draft picks. Considering we still have a nice amount of cap space, it's possible we aren't even done with free agents. The only clear remaining holes on the roster are at TE and DT (3-Tech). The coaching staff is clearly looking to add another pass rusher at DE, so you can add that as well. And it couldn't hurt to add another OT or OG into the competition. But both would probably be overkill. Outside of that... anybody we draft or pickup as an UDFA is going to be competing for third string/practice squad reps. Another QB is going to be developmental/practice squad. Another RB is going to be #3 behind the vets for at least a season. Another WR is probably going to be #5 on the depth chart. Barring injury, backup linebackers rarely get on the field outside of special teams. Another CB is going to be #6 at best. I can't see another Safety even making the roster. More likely than a trade-up from #9, I can see us trying to get back into the back-end of the 1st Round. Or packaging some of those mid-rounders into another 2nd or 3rd. Personally, I would love to get someone like Ed Oliver at #9 and then possibly get back into the mid/late 20s again for TJ Hockinson (not sure he falls), Noah Fant or Irv Smith Jr.

It's important to keep in mind what our coaches are trying to do. They are building a puzzle (which is going to be different than other teams), and we need strong pieces that fit into their scheme and system. Don't worry so much about snap percentage. Sean McDermott's defense is built on a heavy rotation of defensive linemen. He doesn't send a lot of blitzes, so he likes to have front rushers fresh. And he likes to adjust personnel depending on how the offense is attacking. Last year, we had a 4-man rotation at DT between Star Lotulelei, Kyle Williams, Harrison Phillips and Jordan Phillips. We lost Williams and don't have anyone on the roster who is a pure 3-Tech. It's a huge need. And to my knowledge, there haven't even been rumors of us showing interest in a DT replacement on the free agent market. On the offense side, our coordinator Brian Daboll seems to be heavily influenced by the Patriots. He doesn't want our quarterback zeroing in a primary target, like you may see in Cincinnati with AJ Green. He wants his quarterback to identify the matchups, and utilize all of his targets on the field. Based on comments from both McDermott and Brandon Beane, I think they have the same philosophy on offense. We may not have a single #1 guy who will get you 1300 yards and 10 touchdowns. But Cole Beasley is one of the best slot receivers in the NFL. John Brown is one of the better deep threats. When you add up everyone's skills, you should have enough talent to be dangerous on offense (assuming Josh Allen develops into the QB we need him to be). With that said, I definitely could see us targeting a tight end high in this draft.

All of the signs are pointing to us going D-Line in the first round. I just don't see us taking a WR that early anymore. Based on free agency, this is starting to become a numbers game with the roster. The majority of NFL teams only keep 6 wide receivers. We may make an exception and go with 7 because of Andre Roberts being a returner. Either way... out of that group you are only going to see 3-4 guys get significant snaps on offense (barring injury). - They haven't been pursuing John Brown for two offseasons, just so he can sit the bench. - You can guarantee Cole Beasley is going to be our top slot receiver and will get a bunch of targets. - Robert Foster earned his way into a good chunk of playing time last year. - Zay Jones has shown progress, and will certainly get one more season to prove himself. Drafting a WR high pushes one of these other guys down the lineup, and gets them virtually no snaps. So either you signed guys in free agency for no reason, or you give young/developing guys no chance. Nobody sitting in the #5 slot is going to see more than 15-20 targets on the season. Now, I know that some people are hugely critical of Zay Jones and have already given up on him, but I don't think the coaching staff is there yet. Maybe he loses playing time by mid-season if he fails to get better. But if you draft a rookie at #9, then you are basically signaling Jone's time in Buffalo is already over.

Let's see what happens in the draft first. But I'm leaning towards yes. He's clearly an improving player. We have plenty of cap space again next season, and the option is basically just tacking one season onto his contract. If he doesn't get any better or declines, we are basically stuck overpaying him for one season. Not a big deal.

It's a little early, since we haven't had the draft yet. Lots could still change. But let's try anyway. I always try tackling the schedule from a few different angles. Based purely on last year's results, the Bills will play 7 games against teams with winning records in 2018 (NE x 2, BAL, PIT, TEN, DAL, PHI). They will play 9 games against teams with losing records (MIA x2, NYJ x 2, CIN, CLE, DEN, WAS, NYG). They will play 5 games against teams who finished with the same or worse records than us at 6-10 (NYJ x 2, CIN, DEN, NYG). Based solely on my own personal roster assessments (no scientific evidence), I anticipate NE, PIT and MIA to be marginally worse next season. I also anticipate NYJ and CLE to be better next season. I consider BAL to be a total wildcard, depending on the development of Lamar Jackson. The other teams appear on the surface to be roughly the same as last season. Depending on the draft results, we could face up to 5 teams with rookie QBs this year (MIA x2, DEN, WAS, NYG). The only teams we seem to be facing with elite level QBs would be NE x 2, PIT and PHI. Bottom line -- Our schedule next season (at this point) appears to be one of the easiest I've seen in awhile. Outside of New England, we don't play any of the elite teams from last year like KC, LAC, NO, LAR. We aren't facing many of the young up-and-coming teams like IND, HOU or CHI. Our toughest opponents just may come from the other teams with developing quarterbacks like NYJ and CLE. We finished 6-10 last year, despite a brutal schedule, a rookie QB and virtually no talent on offense. That record also counts Nathan Peterman and Derek Anderson basically throwing 4 games in the trash and Charles Clay dropping a game-winning touchdown. Clay makes that catch and we go 4-2 after Allen's return from injury. I think we are better everywhere on offense and face a significantly easier schedule. If Allen makes any kind of progress, I fully expect us to win at least 9-11 games this year.

I think the chances of us going D-Line at #9 are immensely high. There are generally considered two elite/can't miss prospects (Nick Bosa and Quinnen Williams), who have no chance falling to us. Josh Allen is probably a slight notch below those two, and also has no chance of falling out of the Top 5. Being the top QB, Kyler Murray is a lock for Top 5. With New York/Oakland drafting before us and Denver/Miami/Washington trade up options, I think there is a very good chance Dwayne Haskins also goes before #9. This particular class of RBs, CBs and Safeties is considered weak, and will need to be overdrafted to make the Top 10. Interior O-Line only goes Top 10 when there is an elite prospect. And I don't see one in this group. In my opinion, that leaves the following 11 realistic options at #9. Six of the guys on this list are on the DL. Depending on the QB situation, I see at least 7-8 of these guys being available at our pick. DK Metcalf, WR TJ Hockinson, TE Jawaan Taylor, OT Jonah Williams, OT Montez Sweat, DE Brian Burns, DE Clelin Ferrell, DE Rashan Gary, DT Ed Oliver, DT Christian Wilkins, DT Devon White, LB

Wow. Do you apply the same standards to every NFL front office when it comes to drafting? Every successful player that we didn't draft is a "big mistake"? Do you really expect us to walk out of every draft with 7 All-Pro players? If you look around the league, a successful draft will yield about 3 starting-level players and some quality depth. A fantastic draft might get you 4 starters and some depth. Getting more than that is extremely rare. Either way (good or positive), it's really too early to determine how well this regime has drafted. You really can't make a definitive judgment on a player until at least 3 seasons. Which means certain players could still move up or down. Some of the young guys on our team could still BECOME game-changers. The 2017 class could yield us a few Pro-Bowlers and some solid starters. It's also possible we only get two long-term guys out of this group. So far: - Tre'Davious White looks like a future Pro-Bowler. - Zay Jones had a bad rookie season, and an OK second year. At this point, he's not starting material, but can he continue to progress? - Dion Dawkins showed promise as a rookie, but slid backwards last season. Can he turn it around and become a dependable starter? - Matt Milano was good as a rookie and even better last year. If he keeps progressing, we may see him in the Pro-Bowl too. It's really tough to say anything about the 2018 class. Josh Allen, Tremaine Edmunds, Harrison Phillips, Taron Johnson and Wyatt Teller - along with Levi Wallace and Robert Foster (UDFA) all flashed various levels of long-term starting potential. But it will be another season or two before we can be confident whether they will work out or not.

The more I examine the roster and our recent additions, I agree that we still need to draft another O-Lineman high. We are set at center with Mitch Morse, and we need to have confidence that Dion Dawkins returns to form after a sophomore slump. I think that Ty Nsekhe will be a significant upgrade over Jordan Mills, but he's already 34 and can't be counted on as a long-term answer. We added some nice competition at the guard position, but neither Spencer Long or Jon Feliciano are guaranteed upgrades. And we have no idea whether Wyatt Teller will develop. I'm comfortable enough in our additions at Wide Receiver to let things play out, and we don't need to draft anyone else high. Our biggest remaining needs (in order): 1. Tight End 2. Offensive Line 3. Defensive Tackle/3-Tech 4. Defensive End

There are lots of moving pieces, so it's hard to make a statement like "playoffs or bust." What if Josh Allen throws for 4000 yards and 40 touchdowns, and somehow the defense falls apart and we miss the postseason?