Logic

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.

I haven't participated much in this thread, but... With all the 4th and 5th rounders we have and the depth of this RB class, the way Ray Davis flashed at times, and Ty Johnson being locked in for a couple more seasons... I'm fully abord team "Let Cook walk". He's a good back, but he's not so good that he deserves a big second contract, IMO. Draft a kid this year, let Cook play out the final year of his deal, and roll into 2026 with Davis, second year RB, Johnson as your depth chart.

Feels like the sum of whats left out there ranges from baseline safe signing (Dane Jackson or Levi Wallace), to upside guys looking for fresh starts (Jeff Okudah, Benjamin St Juste) to more "premium" names like Asante Samuel Jr or Rasul Douglas. Will be interesting to see which route the Bills go. Wouldn't surprise me if they're letting Douglas test his market and he ultimately doesn't get what he thinks he's worth and he comes back to Buffalo on a one year deal.

I view the entire continuum from the Senior Bowl, to the combine, to pro days, to free agency, to the draft, to post-draft free agency...to be pretty damned fun. Maybe it's from all the drought years where the offseason was all we Bills fans had, but...I love this time of year! Then there's a brief lull, and before you know, it's time for the schedule release, OTAs, minicamp, and training camp. Gotta love the year-round way the NFL has built their schedule. Beats any other sport by a country mile.

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?