Logic

I thought Melissa Fumero from Brooklyn Nine Nine was sufficiently hot to make me start watching whatever shows she's been on since, and I haven't liked any of them. And yet...I watch. I started watching Euphoria even though I'm a lame old guy who can't relate to any of it solely because of Sydney Sweeney. IYKYK.

Whatever the reasons for it may have been, the fact remains that Hollins started on the outside more last season than did Coleman. Further, nothing in Palmer's career statistical production indicates to me that he's a "legit" #2 receiver. His career high in receiving yards is 769, and that was three years ago. He hasn't topped 590 in either of the past two seasons. I like his youth and potential, and maybe he becomes something more here. But it's only projection and hope at this point. His actual career production paints him as an average, replacement level journeyman type.

I'm confused by both of these replies. Hollins WAS the X WR on the outside. Hollins WAS, for all intents and purposes, a starting outside receiver. Will Palmer be a one-for-one swap for Hollins? No, because their skillsets are different and they'll likely be employed somewhat differently. Is Palmer taking over for Hollins as the veteran sacrificial X receiver and starter on the outside? Yep.

This is true. I come down in the middle of the argument. On the one hand, I think Cover 1 at times provides valuable insight to fans and educates them on some of the nuances of the game with which the average fan is likely not familiar. I think there's great value in talking about advanced level football strategy and technique in a way that is accessible to fans. I also think it's great when they have players on to actually discuss football. That type of content doesn't really exist anywhere else. It SHOULD, but it mostly doesn't. It's refreshing. On the other hand, I DO think the whole Cover 1 team -- particularly Erik and Greg -- can be very condescending, smug, and dismissive. They know more about the game than most average fans, and they act like it. They let you know it. And if, God help you, you disagree with them, they're quick to remind you. Overall, I like Cover 1. But it's important to keep who they are and what they do in perspective.

Thanks. It makes sense. Backs up my notion that he shouldn't receive a big money contract from us. If you aren't a workhorse three down back, require load management, aren't the 3rd down back, don't pass block well, and are just good (not great) in the passing game...I'm sorry, but I don't want to allocate big money to you. I'd rather spend it on nearly any other position.

I think he'll be a Bill in 2025. If he doesn't get a contract, I believe he'll skip all voluntary activities and OTAs and then report for training camp. Now...has he talked himself off the team in 2026? Maybe. I still think Beane and McDermott like and want to re-sign him, but if he prices himself in a way that Beane doesn't find tenable, I can see Beane letting him walk. As I've mentioned before, I hope Beane lets him walk either way. I think there are much better ways to spend big money in the 2025 NFL than handing a second contract to a non-elite running back who doesn't pass block well and gets subbed out on 3rd downs.

I think it was the perfect storm of bad coaching decisions, bad execution, and bad calls. The Bills' defensive gameplan was head-scratching. We saw all season long and then emphatically in the Super Bowl that if you press the Chiefs receivers and get physical with them and contain rush Mahomes, you can hold them under 25 points. Confoundingly, the Bills decided to do neither of those things. The Chiefs looked like a COMPLETELY different offense against the Bills than they had looked all season (and in the Super Bowl). Sure, the Bills were lacking some pop in their defensive personnel, but still. What in the ACTUAL HELL was that defensive gameplan? The decision not to lean heavily into the run game from the first snap onward was also frustrating to me. I get what they were trying to do: they figured the Chiefs would be selling out against the run, so they'd capitalize and build an early lead by going play-action and more pass heavy and THEN switch to the run. It didn't work. Cook was on fire from the jump and it should have been a legacy game for him. So the offensive gameplan ALSO confounded me. On the other hand... Josh Allen did not have his best game. He just didn't. I was fully confident we'd see unstoppable Terminator Josh Allen in that game, and that's not who we got. He was a little off his game for a good portion of the first half, and even parts of the second. You can often tell what kind of Josh Allen game its gonna be from the first few throws, and this game was no different. Greg Rousseau, Kaiir Elam, Dalton Kincaid, and others...also did not have their best games. Rousseau, in particular, had one of his WORST games (if not his outright worst) as a pro. Our defensive line was mostly invisible. So...I wish I could just blame the coaches, but if Josh was on his game (and others, to a lesser extent), the Bills still likely win. I wish I could just blame the players for having an off night, but given a better gameplan on both sides of the ball, the Bills likely win. Even with the failures of both coaching AND execution, the Bills STILL could have won, but for some egregiously bad officiating. When your coaches, your players, and the refs all have an off night, you're probably not winning an AFCCG. The reason the game frustrates me the most is that I'd bet that's the most beatable/vulnerable the Chiefs will ever be under Reid/Mahomes. The Bills were the better team, and didn't get it done. Again. It's never going to get easier against those guys. Frustrating.

Lately, I just can't seem to get a quote out of my head that I read from an anonymous NFL front office person at The Athletic recently: "Josh Allen covers up for a lot of problems in that building". Now I'm on record here as being a Brandon Beane fan overall, and I can't ignore the GOOD of what he's done during his tenure here. But at the same time, the continued inability (going on 7+ years now) to draft difference makers is starting to wear on me. Josh Allen was an obvious and undeniable and massive hit. Since then, there have been plenty of singles and doubles, an occasional triple, and zero home runs in the draft. If you're listing out elite Buffalo Bills players drafted by Brandon Beane, it's Josh Allen and......who else? Anyone? "Josh Allen covers up for a lot of problems in that building".

Absolutely. Jeudy was one I really wanted the Bills to go after. Low cost, low risk, high reward. For whatever reason, they seemed to have zero interest. Last year's draft really was the ultimate kick-in-the-pants, though. I know it feels like beating a dead horse, but...to have the year in which you want to completely re-make your WR corps line up perfectly with the year in which the draft is historically deep at WR, and to take just ONE receiver (who you traded DOWN for, no less), feels inexcusable. The Bills took Dewayne Carter in round 3 over fast and explosive guys like Troy Franklin and Devontez Walker. And while neither of those guys are guaranteed to work out, the fact remains that the Bills are right back in the DT market this year, and right back in the "we need a speedy and explosive wideout" position this year, but in a less talented WR class. We still need a good wideout AND we don't appear to have moved any closer to solving our DT issues. And just generally speaking, refusing to trade UP for an elite WR prospect and instead trading DOWN and taking a lesser one, then using the pick you added to take a rotational DT whose primary virtue is "leadership and character" is emblematic of the exact type of indifference toward offensive playmakers we're discussing here. Beane and the Bills operate as if WR isn't a premium and important position in the 2025 NFL, when every trend and bit of evidence tells us otherwise. It's maddening.

That kind of IS a response though, no? 😅 And...not more internet arguments? Sheesh. You should probably just retire your TBD account now then.

I wouldn't be surprised to see one or two more modest additions before the draft. One year deal, vet minimum type guys. Maybe another addition on the DL due to the suspensions. Maybe a tight end for camp competition if Morris doesn't re-sign. Beyond that, I think any remaining FA additions will come post draft.

Disagree. Justin Jefferson was pick 22. Brian Thomas just last year was pick 21. Both of those slots are achievable with a modest trade-up by Beane. Beyond that, guys like Chris Jones and Alvin Kamara and Tyreek Hill and so many more were drafted AFTER the 1st round altogether. Heck, in the draft where the Bills took Dalton Kincaid, Sam LaPorta was next off the board, taken in the 2nd round. I doubt there are many Bills fans right now who wouldn't take LaPorta over Kincaid. Beane needs to do better in rounds 1 and 2, and "we draft too low" is NOT an excuse. Never has been, never will be, and I hate when he says it. It's a copout.

It's BEEN time to do this, and for whatever reason, Beane has been unable to get it done. Just last year, the Bills had a crying need for a wide receiver in a draft with several rare and elite looking prospects, and Beane refused to use the ammunition necessary to move up high enough for any of them. Brian Thomas looks to be the next great receiver in this league -- certainly a needle mover -- and was available 8 spots ahead of where the Bills picked. Instead they traded DOWN and picked a guy who, at best, appears to have the potential to be a high end WR2. I don't disagree with the notion that the Bills need another elite guy on offense or defense (or both). But...ya know...I'm not holding my breath. Someone wake me when Beane finds one.

I believe most offensive coordinators have a page of key plays for each of their best playmakers. The Khalil Shakir page, the Amari Cooper page, etc. These are plays where if you need to get a certain guy going, or if it's 3rd and 9 and you absolutely need a first down, you flip to this page, and you find your key guys, and you dial up a play that he excels at. As the saying goes, in the biggest moments, "think players, not plays". I never felt like Brady had that page or that mindset. When it was a do-or-die play or do-or-die drive, I never felt like he had that "go-to Dalton Kincaid play" or "go-to Amari Cooper play". More importantly, when "everybody eats" wasn't working and the offense was slumping, I never felt like he had the ability to say "***** it, today is gonna be a Dalton Kincaid day" or an Amari Cooper day, or whatever, and just FEED those guys. If Brady's goal was to fill the offense with Easy Buttons for Josh Allen, then: mission partially accomplished. Josh won MVP and the Bills made the AFCCG. However...IF, as Shaw observed and as we saw at times throughout the AFCCG, those Easy Buttons are starting to be recognized and taken away by opposing defenses, then Brady's offense is going to need to evolve and throw some counter-punches. I'd like to see him start by showing that he can capably feature the team's best playmakers when the chips are down.

I said some version of this in another thread, but since this is the actual Dalton Kincaid discussion thread I'll reiterate what I think happened: 1. Kincaid's injuries likely affected him more than fans are aware of. Beane said he thought Kincaid came back earlier than he could have because he's a competitive guy, but he could tell the injuries were still affecting his play. In particular, I can see how a bum PCL would affect a player like Kincaid in terms of his ability to separate and run nuanced routes. 2. Defenses likely adjusted to how they defended Kincaid. Namely, with more physicality. Hence the comments from Beane and McDermott about wanting to see Kincaid get stronger this offseason. 3. As the Bills offense became run-first, Knox -- as the superior blocker -- took playing time away from the still-injured and under-strength and inferior blocker in Dalton Kincaid. 4. Joe Brady, in my opinion, failed to deploy both Kincaid and Knox in ways that best highlighted their respective abilities. As much as I like Brady, one concern I have about him is his ability to use premiere playmakers to their strengths in the passing game. We saw it with Diggs, then Cooper, and in my opinion, we've seen it with both Knox and Kincaid. Overall, I'd say this: In his rookie year, Kincaid had multiple really productive outings, had a nice rookie year overall, and was chosen by nearly everyone as a year two breakout candidate. I do NOT believe that he simply failed to progress, forgot how to play football, or that he's not going to be a quality NFL tight end. I simply think that the combination of the above factors -- injury, sophomore slump, having another good tight end on the roster, and failure by the OC at times to creatively deploy his tight ends -- led to a down year for Kincaid. I'm betting that last season and the way the Chiefs game ended and the comments by his coach and GM will light a fire under Kincaid, and he'll come back and -- health permitting -- have a big 2025. I'm betting on a big time bounce-back season.

Man....looking at Bosa's contract on Spotrac is a great illustration of how creative GMs are able to get around the cap. Mind you, the bill always comes due eventually. But the next time you see a cap-strapped team sign an expensive player and think "how the HECK did they afford that?!", just think of this contract. FOUR void years on a "one year deal". Wild. https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/player/_/id/18951/joey-bosa

I just stopped in to say that I miss the day of having enormous fat guys at DT. Guys that couldn't rush the passer to save their life, but who were so enormous that you simply couldn't run on them, and they occupied two blockers and thus allowed the edge rushers 1-on-1 opportunities. I know that the changing style of NFL play and trends in both offensive and defensive scheme and personnel have largely rendered them extinct, and that they probably don't make as much sense in today's game, and blah blah blah... ...but still. I miss them. Gimme a big ol' 335 lb NT all day long. I'm here for it.

I think that this year's free agency period was an example of a growing trend in the NFL: Teams and GMs have gotten much better at finessing the cap, at finding loopholes and financial tricks like the use of signing bonuses, void years, contract incentives, etc. This, along with the franchise tag and an ever-rising salary cap, has allowed teams to increasingly keep their best players and to never allow them to see free agency during their prime years. Whereas in the first decade or two of the existence of unrestricted free agency, the salary cap meant that elite players hit the market at a pretty good rate, times (and methods) have changed. Teams' abilities to circumvent the salary cap (or to at least "creatively massage" player contracts) has caught up to free agency. As this happens, we're beginning to see free agent classes filled with less and less marquee players -- culminating in this year's highly lackluster free agent class. Nowadays, teams' stars come mostly from the draft or via trade. The marquee players acquired via trade has, in my estimation, far outstripped the amount of marquee players acquired via free agency in recent years. As it stands now, free agency is primarily a vehicle with which to fill out your depth chart and churn the bottom of your roster. To fill roster vacancies with mostly replacement level veteran players, while teams devote the REAL cap dollars to their best players instead. Time will tell if there is any kind of course correction and if the pendulum of free agency ultimately swings back toward more star players becoming available. A stronger NFLPA with a bit more balls and gumption would certainly help in this regard. To his credit, Beane has mostly been ahead of or apace with this trend throughout his tenure as GM of the Bills. He has, with few exceptions, mostly used free agency exactly as described above, resisting the temptation to go "star-hunting", and stating instead that his main objective is to draft, develop, and re-sign his own players. This offseason was a great example of his mostly sticking to his word.

I think @HappyDays explained it pretty well on page three of this thread. Basically, a team comes to a player and says "hey look, we don't want to cut you but your current cap number is gonna leave us no choice". Said player probably consults with his agents and, if the consensus is that he'd likely get even less than the revised cap amount on the open market, and/or the player just WANTS to stay on the team (which seems very possible with a guy like Milano), then he takes the paycut because it's still the better option than having to find a new team and potentially getting paid even less. It's sort of a "bird in the hand" situation. The player isn't doing it out of the goodness of his heart, most likely. He's doing it because it's his best option from a monetary (and maybe also happiness) standpoint. At least the team appears to have thrown him a bone and made it so that he can earn back what he gave up via various incentives. Though, in all likelihood, they are mostly of the "unlikely to be earned" variety.

I previously read a different in article (which may also have been from Berry) in which it was definitively stated that it WAS a Bills staff member that said they think Cooper might be cooked.

Caution: This podcast is not for children. Decidedly.

I'm gonna give you a little bit of a lesser known suggestion, but one I really enjoy: Behind the Bastards, by Robert Evans It tells the stories of the most infamous (and awful) people throughout history, in a very in depth way. Each episode picks one person and devotes an hour or two to telling their whole story, including stuff that you don't often read in the history books. Warning: Despite talking about some of the most awful people ever, Evans is a very funny, joyful, irreverent guy, so the episodes are not downers. But also, if you like your history dry and by-the-numbers, this show is probably not for you. There is an absolutely ENORMOUS library of episodes to pick from. I suggest just finding a person or situation that interests you and starting there. I recently listened to the Pat Tillman episode (not that HE'S awful, mind you. The episode is about the ret-conning of his story by the NFL and what ACTUALLY happened to him), and found it quite informative and enjoyable. Fascinating stuff.

I think they were gonna take a linebacker regardless, but this maybe moves it further up the needs list. Post Matt Milano, they have Dorian Williams and Edefuan Ulofoshio at outside linebacker. So maybe a backup MIKE to compete with Andreesen and one more OLB. I'd bet one or both come from a low cost veteran free agent, too. They don't want ONLY young unproven guys as backups, I'm guessing.

I always appreciate when veteran players take pay cuts to help the team. To echo others, I have to think this is likely his last year in a Bills jersey. Dorian Williams and Terrel Bernard appear to be the linebacker duo of the future. Milano's been a hell of a player for us. Here's hoping he stays healthy all season and ends his Bills career by helping to bring home a Lombardi.