GunnerBill

I had Deone on my good list and he was in pass rush - reason I left him off the list was I rewatched some run defense snaps and he is having real issues there still. He really is Jordan Phillips mkii. Built like a 1T plays like a 3T.

So another pre-season comes to a close and it's time for the final 2025 edition of Good Night / Bad Night! Let's get started Good Night for... Tyrell Shavers - Shavers makes it the rarely seen GN/BN hattrick and gets his third positive call out in three games. I think he came into camp as the leader in the clubhouse for WR6 after two years on the practice squad and flashing with the long touch down against the Jets last season. However, I thought his path to the 53 was narrow. This summer he has improved his special teams play, getting on the field in coverage units, has been the stand out receiver in pre-season and put the cherry on the top with the stunning one handed touchdown grab last night. Even more telling he was pulled from last night's game at the same time as the other "they're on the roster" guys. I do still have a question about his ability to separate against NFL corners but I think he has made it. And boy has he earned it! Shane Buechele - Having seen limited action through the first two pre-season games Buechele got the start and performed admirably as the Bills Quarterback going 25/30 for 278 and a touchdown as well as showing some mobility with his legs. What does it all mean? I don't think he is in the competition for the #2 Quarterback position but I suspect the Bills have decided who has won that job (and I think it's Trubisky) and are preparing for a world where Mike White doesn't come back to our practice squad. In that situation I think this was basically Buechele's audition to be the Bills break glass in case of emergency QB3. Dorian Williams - I think Williams has had a nice pre-season and there are signs of his play recognition skills improving. He started last season well in that regard and then regressed as the year went on when it feels like he increasingly just slips back into bad habits. This is a big, big year for Williams. It feels now or never for him if he is going to put himself in pole position to succeed Matt Milano after this coming season. Last night he was positive, decisive and showed off that closing speed and hard hitting that has always been there. KJ Hamler - I don't think Hamler is making the roster but he had a nice night including a touchdown grab and the speed and burst is still there with him. It's the consistency and the mental side that has always held him back. The Bills likely bring him back again to the practice squad but if not there is enough on film that someone else will. That feels like his lot now in the NFL, but I think he can make that work for another year or two. The backup tight ends - Zach Davidson has had an interesting summer. He started it potentially in competition with rookie Jackson Hawes for the 3rd tight end role vacated by Quintin Morris and has ended it with a bit of a fight to hang on to a practice squad spot. I particularly like the look Keleki Latu who had a long catch and run but Davidson had two nice grabs of his own so that practice squad contest for TE4 is intriguing. Bad Night for... Daequan Hardy - This time last year a lot of us thought Hardy had made the roster and were surprised when he ended up cut and on the practice squad. However, this summer he has not shone at all and the Buccaneers picked on him relentlessly last night. I think he was in coverage on both touchdown passes for the home side and he was out of position so often it was almost funny. He might stick on the practice squad, but he might be done here too. DeWayne Carter - Sound the alarm. DeWayne Carter was out there right to the end last night playing with such luminaries as Nelson Ceaser, Marcus Harris and Paris Shand alongside him on the defensive line. He made zero impact. If he makes the roster it is because Brandon Beane has gone to bat for his 3rd round pick of just over one year ago. The coaches are telling you what they think of where he is through their usage. And it is not good. Kendrick Green - Generally I think the backup offensive linemen have had a reasonable summer - but Green gave up a bad sack in the two minute drill and generally last night seemed to struggle with his balance. He is likely in a battle with Dan Feeney as the vet interior offensive lineman on the practice squad and despite arriving on the roster much later I think Feeney's center ability gives him the inside track and I think he has been the more consistent through three pre-season games. Coverage units - The first two games were a pretty good look for new special teams coordinator Chris Tabor - however, last night less so. Returns of 39, 42 and 57 yards respectively will cause serious concern among the Bills staff and while it's true that in the final pre-season game a special teams coach might not have all of his guys this was a really disappointing effort. The Buccaneers play-by-play guy - Who spent the first two series calling running back Elijah Young "Jarveon Howard." In fairness to him it is probably partly on Bills PR as Howard was signed then immediately waived hurt this week only to have Young replace him.... but even when the game feed was clearly showing close ups of Young's jersey the play by play game continued. Eventually a producer pointed out his error. But it was funny while it lasted. That's a wrap folks. Let's hear your thoughts.... we are on to cutdowns!

I did think he had a chance as a STs ace and 5th safety. But he has been passed by others even within teams considerations. I never thought he was making this team through safety play. That always felt a stretch.

Getting rid of a plodder.

He isn't a scheme fit for them.

Oh ffs. Awful for the player. Disaster for the team.

TJ is gonna be a real good player. If I had to nail my colours to the mast on any of the top 3 picks from this year he is the one.

Indeed they fooled QBs. The Bills used to run disguised coverage at the highest rate in the NFL. They are struggling to do that now with sub standard safety play. Belichick used to call them the smartest safety duo in the league. With good reason.

I think they will end up starting the rookie Fairchild at LG. Ford might get the edge week 1 given his experience but by week 4 or 5 or so I expect him to be riding the pine. Agree they have not got their line sorted. Their roster has plenty of holes. If they are going to win it is on Burrow, Chase, TeeHig, Chase Brown (underrated RB) and the tight end duo of Gesicki and Fant.

We have held Mahomes down in the regular season, we have held Lamar down, we have held Stafford down (though agree not last year), we have held Rodgers down even when he was still a Packer.... have we done it as much the last 2 seasons - no agreed, we haven't. That is talent. The talent on the D right now is not where it was with peak White, Hyde, Poyer, Milano, Taron etc as those guys have aged and got banged up. And we haven't come up big when it matters in the playoffs. Oh and while Lamar might not be Allen, Mahomes, Burrow he is MUCH better in the pocket now than you are giving him credit for. He is not an elite pocket passer but he is damn good. His improvement is consistently overlooked IMO.

Ah so if we are not allowed to count the games where the defense looked good against a good QB when did they last look good against a good QB? Errmmm well you sure got me there. 🙄 I have already accepted they have not got it done in the playoffs. There is no doubt about that.

He is a bust but the Niners are desperate. He lost his job in year last year in any event. A guy I liked his year coming out though. He was one of my Shrine Game stand outs that year.

They have not got it done in the post season, that's true but it is simply not true to say every time they play a good offense with a good QB they get exposed.

The Eagles definitely watched the Bills to learn something. Vic Fangio ran the 2021 (regular season) Leslie Frazier gameplan in the Superbowl.

Oh I did. They were both B+/A- players individually, extremely consistent and their partnership was absolutely A+ elite.

On all NFL teams the defensive linemen rotate. I haven't crunched the 2024 numbers - but I did for 2023 and the Bills were right there on a par with most of the top 6 or 7 teams in the league. Our #1 guy generally plays a tiny bit less - but broadly all the good teams have at least six guys getting 40% plus.

Sanders is gonna play. And play plenty. He probably won't start... but he is gonna be in that 40-45% range I'd guess.

I'd add professionalism the list of qualities that have helped him make his way. He really knows the job, works hard and executes his plays. He doesn't try and riff or freelance he does his job, gets up, moves onto the next play and does his job again. I completely agree with the rest of the post. He is your classic PS back. There will always be a guy "more talented" but if say Ray Davis got dinged up and the Bills needed to elevate Gore for a game or two they could be extremely confident in him not letting them down or doing something moronic to lose them a game.

I mean we certainly could lose week 1. It's possible. When the best teams play each other in the NFL they are flip of a coin games. I don't see us being blown out though. I would genuinely be surprised if we were. Yes, the Ravens blew us out last year week 4 - the only regular season loss by more than once score in almost 3 years - but everything that could have gone wrong that day for the Bills did, basically. Including their rookie DC having an absolute meltdown for the rest of the first half after the first play touchdown. I think looking purely at yardage in the playoff game is a bit of a misnomer. The Ravens were behind basically the whole game from 7-0 and in catch up mode and the Bills had two scoring drives where they started 20 yards further up the field because of Ravens turnovers that as a result didn't net the yardage they might have otherwise even though they netted the points. So game flow and field position were a factor. Would the Bills have won that game without the turnovers? No, probably not. But they did get the turnovers. They have been almost historically consistent over the McDermott era in terms of generating turnovers on defense. For a stat that generally has high volatility the Bills have shown remarkable consistency. It's Ravens - Bills. They are both excellent teams. One will win and one will lose. The result might make a difference to the one seed at the end, possibly, but otherwise it doesn't mean the winner can with the superbowl and the loser can't.

And I not only liked Worthy more than Coleman I liked Hicks more than Bishop too. 😔

They can't "claim" him for their PS. If they claim him off waivers he must go on the 53. Another team can try and sign him once he clears waivers, and sure, he could decide to go there. But generally the advantage there is with the club they are at. If the Bills wanted him on their PS they likely get him.

I very very much doubt a team is claiming him for their 53.

Oh he isn't here for the 53. He was a guy they met in the pre draft process. I think he is a potential PS add if he can prove he is healthy. Now Couch has gone their depth beyond the guys likely to make the roster at corner is thin.

Yep. That is a misunderstanding as to what a S&C staff does.

I like him. I liked him as a fit for our scheme too. I support this 100%.