Logic

Oh yeah. I don't expect the Bills to draft a RB at all necessarily, and if they do, it won't be as early as Johnson is going to get taken. My draft crush is not in relation to the Bills. I don't think the Bills are drafting Kaleb Johnson. But purely as a draftnik, just watching the player...he's my (not so) early draft crush.

Personally, I don't think it was probably very likely for the Bills to sign a big time Edge AND a big time CB, especially with Benford's extension looming. I may have WANTED it to happen, but it probably wasn't likely. If given the choice between spending 12.6 on Bosa and signing a baseline/floor guy like Jackson or spending 12.6 on a big time corner and signing lesser edge, I'm taking the Bosa option. Defensive line was/is by far the thing that was most in need of an upgrade this offseason. That having been said, I think the signing of Dane Jackson makes it so that the Bills don't have to take a corner in the 1st round. They'll surely draft one or two of them, but I don't think it needs to be a first round guy. I think and hope that they feel the flexibility to take a D-lineman or receiver or safety or whatever if that player is higher on their board than whatever corners are left at 30. I think, for instance, that Jackson vs round 2/3 rookie vs Ingram/Hardy/Couch is a perfectly reasonable camp battle. You're hoping that your drafted guy or one of the youngsters can beat out Jackson, but if he doesn't, you know that you've gotten capable play out of Jackson in the past. The baseline/floor at CB2 has now been established. Draft pick(s) incoming, but not necessarily from round 1.

I know that I'm not digging very deep here and not picking a "sleeper" or anything, but... RB Kaleb Johnson looks pretty special to me. The box was always loaded against the Hawkeyes, because everyone knows what they wanna do on offense. But I read today that when facing a light box, Johnson ran for over 9 ypc, which was best in the nation, and a pretty insane number. I've been watching all of these running backs because its such a special class. Everyone knows Jeanty, Hampton, and Henderson look special, but I've been trying to wade through the guys beyond them. So far, Johnson has stood out to me with his combination of speed, power, vision, contact balance, and breakaway ability. He's a little tall and runs a little upright, but other than that...impressive stuff.

Yeah, I agree that the premise of the new season at least sounds interesting and like it can present some fresh ideas. To be honest, I always need more happy/positive content in my life that makes you feel good. There are too many dark, depressing, post-apocalyptic type shows on TV these days. And for, well...reasons related to the current state of the world...I always appreciate some content that makes you feel nice instead. Ted Lasso certianly does that. Some shows really should leave well enough alone, though (Shogun, Squid Games, seasons 7-9 of the office, I'm looking at you).

I keep thinking about how Codrington -- despite being a good returner all year long -- was inactive for the last few weeks and in the playoffs. I think it got to the point that they felt the roster spot was more valuable than whatever value Codrington offered as solely a returner. In other words, with roster spots being limited and depth needs elsewhere, it's hard to justify making a guy gameday active whose only role on the team is to kneel the ball in the end zone 9 out of 10 times. That's what brings me back to the idea that maybe they feel like its a more efficient use of a roster spot to have a returner who can ALSO be useful on offense. And I do think that as WR depth and a guy who can take reverses and orbit motions and screens, Shenault could be more useful than Codrington. I could be way off base, but it's food for thought.

I find the "receiver who can't really play receiver very well"/returner/gadget player guys to be so interesting. To varying degrees over the years: Deebo Samuel, Curtis Samuel, Laviska Shenault, Cordarelle Patterson, Percy Harvin, even Roscoe Parrish and Isaiah McKenzie. Guys who are shifty and elusive and whose hands you want to get the ball into, but you have to find creative ways to do it, because they don't fit into the classic WR or RB roles. These guys just fascinate me. Cordarelle Patterson found a way to hang on in the league for a long time, aided by his switch from WR to RB. Obviously not everyone is cut out for that kind of switch (though Shenault is about the same size and weight as Patterson), but...it helps these guys get matched up on linebackers and safeties rather than corners. In any case...like everyone else, I'm expecting Shenault to factor into the return competition and to make a few plays in preseason that get everyone excited for him, only to see him released on cutdown day. One thing that occurred to me is that maybe they'd rather have their returner be capable of pitching in on offense. Like...Codrington is/was never going to be used much on defense (other than in garbage time), so you're rostering a guy with just ONE purpose. If Shenault could have TWO purposes, by being a returner and also being at least somewhat capable receiver depth...maybe that's an improvement in terms of roster spot usage.

AJ Epenesa

Rousseau Bosa Epenesa Hoecht Soloman On a team that usually makes four to five edge rushers gameday active. Unless we're trading or cutting Epenesa, I don't see where Fowler (or any other edge addition) would fit in at this poin.

Ugh. I was a very big fan of this show, but I wish they wouldn't. Sometimes, I wish showrunners would know when to just stop. The Brits have it down pretty well. Americans? Not so much. I thought they left the show off in a good place, and I'm just not sure there's much story left to tell. Seems like a cash grab to me. That said...I'm sure I'll still watch, so I guess I'm contributing to the problem.

This is one I'm keeping my eye on, as well. I'd find it quite feasible that Douglas went looking for one last big payday and hasn't yet found it. Like with other veterans left on the market, I could see him returning to Buffalo on a one year deal.

It's really my only remaining wish for free agency: Sign a corner that at least COULD start capably. At the very least, a Dane Jackson type. I really doubt that players of his tier would command much, and the Bills certainly have the money to do it. If they sign a corner, they'll truly be going into the draft able to take a DE, DT, CB, WR, or S in round one, knowing that if they DON'T opt to take someone from any of those positions, they'll still be okay. Besides, this isn't exactly the best year for corners. I'd much rather see them lean into the strength of the DL class or finish off this receiving corps with a premium talent.

I'm a Brandon Beane fan, but... Two of the bones I'd like to pick with him are: 1.) He talks a big game about "BPA at a position of need", but nine times of ten, he just picks based on need. It has hurt the roster building of this team repeatedly. 2.) Part of the reason he feels like he HAS to do the above is that he has a habit of taking care of all but ONE position leading into the draft. Everybody and their brother then knows what position he's going to take. It can lead to teams jumping on front of him, and it also (as mentioned above) leads to him taking inferior players simply because he has painted himself into a corner. I really, REALLY hope he has learned his lesson on these issues. But maybe a leopard really doesn't change his spots...

I think cornerback is just a tricky market, made all the more so by some of the recent deals. Some players are happy to get a deal done early and sign to team friendly terms, but not ALL players. Maybe negotiations just haven't gone as swimmingly as they did with the players who already signed. Maybe Benford is someone they're gonna do this coming offseason. Lots of variables behind the scenes to which we just aren't privy.

I think maybe I either didn't word my criticism properly or you misread it. I'm actually criticizing the Bengals for not locking the guy up. For letting him negotiate a trade with other teams to begin with. If I had Joe Burrow, I'd prioritize locking up his two favorite targets and my stud edge rusher and let the rest of the chips fall where they may. It's just like the Cowboys: waiting til the last possible moment and then playing contract chicken with their best offensive playmaker and star edge rusher. It's craziness.

If the Bills don't learn from the mistake they made the year they drafted Elam, and they go into the draft with a gaping hole at CB2 and the whole world knowing they need to draft a corner....I'm gonna scream. Luckily, I think (hope?) that Beane is not stupid enough to make that mistake again. Even Dane Jackson or Tre'Davious White would provide a baseline/floor so that the Bills aren't desperate on draft day.

I don't disagree with this premise. I'm thinking that Samuel Jr still being on the market at this point in FA may mean that either teams have questions about his neck being fully healed, or his asking price is too high. Either way, it wouldn't surprise me to see him take a one year "prove it" deal somewhere, with the desire to re-enter free agency next year. In that scenario, I could foresee a Benford extension, a one-year Samuel deal (a la Rousseau and Bosa), and then the Bills drafting a mid-to-late round guy to groom behind Samuel and hopefully take over next year.

I honestly can't believe that Sean McDermott ever let a player named WILL CLAPP out of the building.

Get me a Dion Dawkins restructuring to free up $10million, a Benford extension, and Asante Samuel Jr, and then bring on the draft and get me BPA all day.

Yep. If anyone ever fails to realize or appreciate what having GOOD team ownership and general manager looks like, I'd direct them to look over at the Cincinnati Bengals. THAT is what it looks like to have bad, cheap ownership and a bad general manager. Waiting on the Chase extension only to see him post one of the best WR seasons ever and up his pricetag considerably, waiting on the Tee Higgins extension only to have to try to get it done at the same time they're trying to extend Chase, agreeing to let their all-world EDGE seek a trade. WOOF. Sometimes I hear people say that Beane or McDermott are wasting Allen's prime. But if you want to see what wasting a quarterback's prime REALLY looks like, let me present the Cincinnati freakin Bengals.

The question for me with the "and more" part is....HOW much more? Because if its, say, a 1st, a 2nd, and a 4th, I'd do that deal. Look at the Bills' recent track record in the 1st and 2nd rounds. Hendrickson is already a finished product and likely gives 3-4 years of top end defensive line play. So how much more is "and more"? All of that said, it seems highly unlikely. The Bills just paid Rousseau and signed Bosa, plus they have Epenesa, Hoecht, and Soloman. So unless they're cutting/trading Epenesa, I'm not seeing a Hendrickson trade on the horizon.

Fair enough. But whatever the reasons for Cook not ever having shown workhorse ability, the fact remains that we don't know if he can do it, because he never HAS done it. That may very well be the fault of coaching, but still. The entire sample size of his playing career, from his Bills days back through his days at Georgia, show that he's never been a three-down, workhorse running back. Now that CAN be fine IF you're an excellent pass-catching 3rd down back. But Cook isn't the Bills 3rd down back, either, which likely owes largely to his inadequacies in pass blocking. So to me, if you haven't demonstrated workhouse ability, haven't demonstrated major pass catching or pass blocking ability, and aren't the 3rd down back on your team, why am I giving you a big second contract? Just my opinion. I realize I'm in the minority here.

Thanks, Shaw. I share your view that Beane's record in the 1st and 2nd rounds hasn't been very good. On the other hand, in the mid to late rounds, it HAS been very good. Better than average, I'd say. Christian Benford, Terrel Bernard, Khalil Shakir, Spencer Brown -- some very good players taken in round three or later. I agree that the Elam miss was enormous. HOWEVER...I'd suggest it's probably the only outright bust the Bills have drafted in round one under Brandon Beane. Some other players like Tremaine Edmunds haven't seen second contracts here, but they're still in the league and still producing at some level. Elam stands out as probably the darkest spot on Beane's draft resume. That said, if we're going to ding him for missing in Elam, it's only fair to also give him credit for hitting on Christian Benford in round six. The Bills needed to find a good corner in that draft, and they did. Just not in the 1st round like everyone imagined it would be. I don't think it's easy to find a player in the 6th round who is as good as Benford, a guy who has arguably become one of the top ten corners in the league. So yes, we should hold Beane accountable for his early misses, but we should also celebrate his mid to late hits. Re-signing, re-structuring, and handling the financial aspects of the team is also an important aspect of GMing, and on that front, I'd list Beane as better than most. He routinely gets ahead of the market, signs players to team friendly deals, and rarely lets his best players walk out of the building or get into ugly, public contract standoffs. Lastly, he has overseen the construction of a roster that has the 2nd most wins in the league since 2020, has won six straight division titles, and is a championship contender every single year. I'd argue that if not for some McDermott coaching blunders and if not for the HOF Mahomes/Reid duo, he'd have collected one or two Lombardis by now. All in all, I share your view that Beane needs to step up his game in rounds one and two, and Kaiir Elam is a glaring example of that. But his great work in the mid to late rounds of the draft, excellent work with contracts and player retention, and the consistent winning nature of the team he oversees all point to a very good GM.

Indeed. But Cook's lack of workhorse size, build and pass blocking ability -- the likely reasons he didn't approach the level of touches those guys got -- is another reason I believe he's not worth top dollar. If I'm giving a running back a second contract and paying him like one of the five or ten best backs in the league, I want him to be able to handle a Henry/Robinson level workload if called upon to do so.

To be fair, he just baaaaarely cracked 1,000 yards rushing. Derrick Henry and Saquon Barkley and Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson...now THOSE dudes were tremendous! I think there's a tier break between the elite backs in the league and James Cook. He's pretty darn good, yes, but I tend to think that only the most elite backs in the league should get second contracts. MAYBE if they're a huge part of the passing game, you can justify extending them if they're less than elite. But even then, Ty Johnson is our 3rd down back, not Cook, and that likely won't change any time soon. I think any running back with a decent amount of talent will be successful behind this offensive line and in this scheme. We can agree to disagree though.