Logic

I think this effectively takes DT off the table as a round one or round two draft option. I know, I know: "Beane will take BPA regardless!". Yeah, yeah, yeah... They have their four-man defensive tackle rotation, and a guy they like a lot in Eli Ankou on the practice squad, to boot. A mid round guy? Sure, maybe. Early pick? Ain't happenin', in my opinion.

Settle and Jones play different positions in this defense. You also NEED a four man defensive tackle rotation, so this was a need. 3T: Oliver, Settle 1T: Star, Jones

I'm sorry, you're correct. The indication on Twitter is that they are using the low tender, with right of first refusal, on Bates. They have not re-signed him, though. Sloppy word choice on my part.

If it wasn't clear before, it is now: Beane's top priority this offseason was to fortify the trenches and get better up the middle. Only day one of tampering period and the Bills have already upgraded at guard, re-signed Morse, tenderedBates, and signed two quality defensive tackles. It may be "old school" and make some roll their eyes, but the Bills are making every effort to be much better at running and stopping the run in 2022.

Some really impressive highlights here. The stuff against the Falcons particularly stands out. Whew.

Very sad to hear that Hall will be taken off life support today. An absolute all time wrestling legend. One of the most entertaining guys to ever lace 'em up. Sad day for wrestling fans everywhere. RIP Scott Hall.

From Settle's draft profile on NFL.com. I italicized the strengths that I like or that I feel make him a great fit in Buffalo. By Lance Zierlein NFL Analyst Draft Projection Round 2-3 NFL Comparison: Vince Wilfork Overview Settle has rare gifts for a big man with good mass, play strength, quickness, and agility. His substantial jump in production in 2017 was due to weight loss and additional conditioning that allowed him to play more snaps and play faster. He's a disruptive, versatile defensive lineman who offers enough pass rush potential to warrant reps on passing downs. Settle is a natural 4-3 fit but can play in a 3-4 as well. He has the potential to become a very good starter with a Pro Bowl ceiling if he controls his weight and maintains his conditioning. Strengths Accepted his coaches challenge to lose weight and improve conditioning and has done just that Thick and broad across lower body Rare agility for a man his size Plays with infectious energy Built low to the ground Blasts out of his stance to capture the neutral zone Able to play under and through the edge of blockers Can be destructive along the interior when he has his wind Power in upper body for quick punch and shed at point of attack Good pursuit motor around the field Locates ball early in the snap and plays off blocks to make tackles Pad level is good Has ability to penetrate and two-gap Arm over can get early wins Legitimate pocket pusher who can force quarterback to throw from unbalanced platform Weaknesses Wears bad weight around his midsection Maintaining weight loss and conditioning could be a concern when he has to become a self-motivator on next level Playing style is frenetic and leads to balance issues Over-extends and finds himself on the ground too often Played in just 23 college games Can be inconsistent with hand usage Will need additional technique work to better take on double teams Moved by down blocks when he doesn't stay square Sources Tell Us "I need to watch him more but Bud (Foster) moved him around and I saw a guy who can play both nose spots, 3 (technique), 4i, and maybe 5. Reminds me of when (Dontari) Poe came out. He ain't Poe, but he can play all over the line like Poe could." -- AFC defensive line coach -------------------------- And here's Joe Marino's pre-draft scouting report on Settle:

Red flag? Not to me. He only played that many snaps in 2020 because of injury to Matt Ionaidis. The WFT D-line is STACKED. Chase Young, DaRon Payne, Matt Ionaidis, Montez Sweat. Whole lotta talent in front of Settle, and not every team rotates their d-line as heavily as McDermott does.

I'm reading through all the comments on Adam Schefter's Tweet announcing this signing, and it's a whole lot of WFT/Commanders fans saying how good he is, how they wanted him back, how Buffalo got a real gem. Usually, when a free agent leaves a team to sign elsewhere, fans of his former team defensively say that he's overrated, overpriced, they aren't sorry to see him go, whatever. Not the case here. Every WFT/Commanders fan that responds in the comment -- every single one -- has nothing but good things to say about Tim Settle.

https://washingtonfootballwire.usatoday.com/lists/washington-commanders-2022-free-agency-preview-tim-settle-will-have-options-nfl-free-agent/ The above link states that in 2020, despite only playing 33% of the defensive snaps on the season, Settle had five sacks and ten pressures. Sounds to me like he just needs some opportunity, which he should get in Buffalo

God I hate when I agree with you. He's Jordan Phillips-esque. His body type and weight suggests he should be a run-stopping 1T, but he's been much more effective as a pass rusher in his career.

Really glad they tendered him. $2.4M, if that's what he ends up playing for, is peanuts for a player of his talent level. I don't think that a starting guard job will be handed to him, however. I believe that, all things being equal, the coaching staff liked having Bates as a primary backup for all three interior positions, and that they'd rather he return to that role. I expect them to draft a guard or to sign another one in free agency, and for Bates to have to compete to start. That said, if Bates is clearly one of the two best guards no the roster, I hope they do the right thing and start him -- versatility as a backup be damned.

This isn’t quite “day 1 of free agency”, though. It’s PRE free agency with a player that was cut. We have to hope the lure of Kromer and chasing a ring is what brought him here, not a mega bucks contract. I have faith it will be a reasonable deal, but time will tell.

Yeah, $18M is still a lot. The cost for good WRs has certainly ballooned in recent years. It’s rise has coincided with the devaluation of running backs.

Saffold couldn’t stop talking about the training facility. The training facility continues to be one of the very best and smartest things the Pegulas have done since becoming owners. It cannot be overstated how big a role it plays in luring quality players here, getting players to re-sign here, and keeping players healthy.

The first number released is always by the player/agent, and it’s never accurate. The devil is in the details, but “up to”. 84M is not 84M. I think that, as with all free agency deals, if we wait to see the actual numbers, they’ll be quite different and will make much more sense.

“Up to” $84M. The first number you hear is always released by the player/agent, and it’s always overly generous. His real numbers will not touch $21M per year. The devil is in the details. Wash, rinse, repeat.

No doubt about it. We’ve also seen multiple Bills players over the past couple seasons leave money on the table to re-sign here. If the reports are to be believed, two big time free agents this year reached out to the Bills at the combine to let them know they’d like to play here. That is definitely a first for this organization. As you said, there are a myriad of reasons. I really think, though, that the biggest reason is Josh Allen. Players know heart. They recognize and respect will. They want to play with Josh Allen. Huge deal. Sea change. New era.

I'm not disputing the notion that he is declining, BUT.....he did make his first Pro Bowl ever last season. I know, I know...Pro Bowl voting is a joke. Anyway....I'd say this makes it quite likely that the Bills draft a guard no earlier than round 3, with an eye on developing him for a year and having him take over for Saffold next season. I didn't necessarily view guard as a likely 1st or 2nd round pick anyway, but it was at least a reasonable possibility. I don't think it is any more. You can lecture me all you want about how Beane will take BPA no matter what, but based on how this regime seems to value (or NOT value) interior linemen in the draft, I predict it'll be a mid-round selection, nothing earlier. CB, WR, DT still the round 1 and 2 favorites, IMO.

If we're paying 12M for a 34 year-old-guard...yeesh. I hope it's less than that.

I know he's a "name" and that he's worked with Kromer before, but he's aging and declining. I'll wait to see the contract numbers before I form an opinion. I doubt he'll be worse than Williams. He also doesn't count against the compensatory pick formula because he was a cut player, so there's that.

I’m not sure why anyone is surprised by this. He signed a tackle contract after a Pro Bowl caliber season at RT, then wound up at guard, where he was mediocre. I don’t think the Bills had any interest in paying him that money to be a mediocre guard. Also, as the report says, it’s quite possible he returns at a lower pay rate. Honestly, though, if the Bills want to upgrade the o-line, RG is where to start.

What Hapless said. There is no faster way to get Bills signings and news than Twitter. It’s faster even than the mighty YOLO. Just follow exactly who Hapless said. If you do that, your Twitter feed will just be one big NFL/Bills instant news feed.

Now that the true details of the contract are known, are you still grumpy about it, @BADOLBILZ? 😆

Sounds like a fever dream to me.