Logic

I'm just sitting here thinking about the Cowboys trading a 4th for Jonathan Mingo and a 5th (albeit in a pick swap) for Kaiir Elam this year. I generally favor giving a second chance to physically gifted, highly drafted players who flamed out with their first teams. But it seems like the Cowboys are giving up a bit too much in draft compensation to take those swings. Ah well. The Bills benefit.

So is the 5th round of this year's draft like...JUST the Bills now? In all seriousness, getting a 6th for 5th pick swap AND a future 7th for Elam is a huge win. Thank God for Jerruh "glory hole" Jones!

Yeah reports are that they really wanted Chris Godwin there as a steady, reliable slot option for Drake Maye. They supposedly offered big money, too. Now that they struck out on Godwin, it wouldn't surprise me at all to see Kupp become a Patriot. Also...very good white slot receivers just...kind of seem like New England Patriots by default.

This signing is giving me Jordan Poyer vibes... A guy many haven't even necessarily heard of, but who has great athleticism and has flashed playmaking ability. He signs and everyone says "looks like a depth and special teams guy", and then he comes out of nowhere and wins a starting spot. I'm not saying he'll be as good as Poyer. I'm just saying...before you say "depth only"...give the guy a chance. If there's one area where I'll happily defer to McDermott and co, its the safety position. In any case, Bishop, Rapp, Forest, and Hamlin are likely your four safeties. Drafting one now seems unlikely.

I think the Bills were one or two drives away from representing the AFC in the Super Bowl last year. Since then, they've either held even or potentially even gotten a little better. They still have 10 draft picks to utilize and will surely sign more free agents. Young players like Cole Bishop and Keon Coleman and Dalton Kincaid should improve. Oh...and the best quarterback on planet earth still wears Buffalo blue. I feel good about the Buffalo Bills.

GOOD safety? Not really, no. Capable depth and special teams player whose play shows that he likely deserves to be on an NFL roster? In my opinion, yes. It's all about expectations, I guess. It's just weird to me that Hamlin gets so much more attention and hate than, say, Cam Lewis. Cam Lewis is ALSO not a "good" or starting level safety in this league, but I don't hear people bagging on him all the time the way they bag on Hamlin. And I don't think Lewis is appreciably better than Hamlin (nor did the coaching staff last year, since Hamlin started at safety and not Lewis). So it brings me back to the conclusion that his whole medical situation and the fallout thereafter negatively impact many people's ability to view Hamlin in a detached and rational way.

I would just like to say that we have some fun names to say. They roll off the tongue well. Ogunjobi. Hoecht (Hoyt). Epenesa. Groot. I assume that's Beane's primary criteria in signing these guys.

This may be wishful thinking, but I really believe they'll be signing a veteran CB. It may only be a baseline, guy-you-want-to-upgrade-from type like Dane Jackson, or it may be a legit starter like an Asante Samuel. But I DO think they'll sign a guy. I also believe they like Ja'Marcus Ingram, Daequan Hardy, and Te'Cory Couch. I also think they envision Bishop and Rapp as the starters this coming season (though Bishop needs to earn it, blah blah blah), and Hamlin just re-signed. DT, WR, EDGE, CB That's where my eyes will be come draft day.

I truly believe that Damar's cardiac arrest incident forever clouded many people's ability to evaluate his on-field play in a clear-headed way. No, I don't believe Damar Hamlin is a high level NFL starter. Yes, I DO believe that he constitutes good depth, provides a baseline level of acceptable play when he's on the field, and is a great fit in the locker room and the community. Every team in the NFL rosters backups that aren't high level starters but can contribute and play useful football. Damar Hamlin is one of those, but to hear some people tell it, he belongs nowhere near an NFL field. Do I want him penciled in as starter? Nope. Do I think he can get you out of a three-week stretch with minimal negative fallout if your starer goes down? Yep, absolutely. I think the emotionality, the politics, the super weird "he's a Make-a-Wish player" argument...all of it...shrouds many people's opinions in emotionality that they can't shake off, and doesn't allow them to respond to or evaluate Damar THE PLAYER in a reasonable way. I will die on this hill.

Yeah I think the biggest argument FOR the move is that it's a one-year deal which is significantly below market for a very good edge rusher. Now obviously he has to stay healthy and prove that he still IS a very good edge rusher, but... A one year deal for the amount of money he's making is what I'd classify as a low risk, high reward deal. He continues to be injured and doesn't contribute much? Oh well, you still have the baseline of Rousseau, Epenesa, Hoecht, and Soloman, and you move on next year with no long term cap implcaitons. But if he actually stays healthy and proves that he's still JOEY BOSA?! Then you just got in insane deal on a one year mercenary, and a head start on potentially re-signing him if that's a thing both sides want. Low risk. High reward. Hard to hate on it.

Can I just float one thing out there? What if Bosa stays healthy? The idea of a healthy Joey Bosa on one side and Rousseau on the other -- which, mind you, should also free up Oliver and whatever DT they draft high to make plays -- I mean... That's pretty ***** enticing, no?

I'm glad to see Beane take a swing. The Bills already have a solid foundation of good players that set a consistent floor. What they need is some difference makers. Bosa -- WHEN HEALTHY, which is obviously a huge caveat -- has been that at times throughout his career. This, to me, is Beane saying "we know we need to take some swings and find some game wreckers" and taking a chance. If he strikes out, he still has the consistent but unremarkable Rousseau and Epenesa duo and the young and promising Soloman. I'm in favor of taking a chance like this. High risk, high reward. BUT...no risk it, no biscuit. Besides, I once read that Bills Mafia is all mentally ill Italians and racist hill people. Bosa is both, so he should fit right in.

I just know this dude has his computer password written on a piece of paper from a yellow legal pad and taped to the top left corner of the keyboard on his Dell desktop computer on which he's accessing the forums using Netscape Navigator Gold. I know it more deeply than I've ever known anything in my life.

If we're going back to 2024, I'm stocking up on eggs.

Coming off the Tennessee and Seattle games, he was really starting to look like a player, and was really starting to build chemistry with Josh. After the injury? Not good. If you look at any split imaginable -- be it analytics-based, pure volume stats, efficiency, whatever -- from before his injury and after he returned, it's night and day. If we get pre-injury Keon (plus some growth and maturity) this coming season, I'll feel pretty good about his future. If we get post-injury Keon, I won't. I'm STILL mad that we only took one receiver in a historically loaded WR draft, but that's not the purpose of this thread...

Thanks. It's that whole "Twitter isn't working today" thing happening again. Won't let me embed any Tweets. Lame.

Reading that he was a DT that transitioned to OLB just gave me Spencer Johnson flashbacks… Did I dream that?! What a weird time to be a Bills fan that was…

I know he was an all-time great personality, and that he run blocked his ass off and was a special teams and locker room asset, but… He also posted 378 receiving yards and was absolutely limited as a pass catcher. I little sorry to see him go, I guess, but let’s not pretend he was anything more than a journeyman WR4/5 type with a likable personality.

Seems to be a movable chess piece. A guy that started at DT, transitioned to OLB full time, and has even played snaps at nickel corner 😳. I’ll be interested to see what the Bills have in mind for his usage. Intriguing player, and the (early, incomplete) contract numbers indicate he may have a bigger role than some might think…

Fair enough. From my perspective, it'd be nice to add a difference maker on offense AND defense. I realize that's easier said than done, of course. When it came down to crunch time -- by which I mean the AFCCG -- I didn't see any offensive players other than Josh Allen stepping up and elevating the offense. In those "gotta have it" moments, I'm not sure who the no-doubt-about-it go-to playmaker on this team is. There doesn't seem to be one at the present moment. Case in point: not a single receiver or tight end on the Bills roster had over 1,000 yards last year. And yes, I know, "everybody eats", but...still. And before anyone says "they set a team record for points scored last year": Yes, I know. But if you asked Sean McDermott or Brandon Beane or Joe Brady, I bet each of them would tell you it's a goal this offseason to improve the offense. It's a new year, and last year is in the past, and there's no guarantee they'll replicate their success. I still feel the Bills offense is a true WR1 away from being "complete", and I don't think Palmer addresses that issue. He seems to be of the John Brown, Curtis Samuel, Mack Hollins ilk, which is to say: a functional NFL receiver that doesn't elevate the Bills offense or scare the opposing defense.

I can recognize and appreciate the "separation and man beating ability" argument, but... Ultimately, we were all saying "if this offense needs one thing, it's another difference maker", and Palmer simply doesn't feel like that. Now...to be fair...there really weren't/aren't many difference makers available in free agency, short of maybe a Davante Adams. But still... League average receivers who can pitch in 400-500 yards and be effective role players are pretty much all we HAD last year, and so far appear to be all we'll have THIS year. Granted, they haven't yet re-signed Cooper or Hollins, so I suppose from a sheer numbers standpoint, they had to do SOMETHING. But...a year after everyone got excited for career long average receiver Curtis Samuel (and even HE had more career production than Josh Palmer), it's hard for me to get too excited for career long average receiver Josh Palmer. I'm sure he'll play a role. I'm sure he'll have some nice moments. I'm not sure I see how it IMPROVES our offense in a tangible way, though.

Respectfully... Josh Palmer has been in the NFL for four years, playing with a good quarterback. He has averaged 571 yards and 2.5 TDs per season. WR1? Steal of FA? Seems like QUITE the projection.

He should probably get a towel.

I'm genuinely curious: As a man-to-man beater who gets big time separation...why do you feel he didn't excel in what surely seemed to be a wide open wide receiver room in LA last season?