blacklabel

Come off the stats. They aren't the be all end all metric. It's not what scouts, coaches and GMs focus on. They look at what a player can do, how they can reach them to best coach them, how to maximize their strengths, what can be done to adjust flaws, and how the players skills project to the NFL level. There's a place for numbers but teams don't emphasize them as much as some fans do. Looking at Allen, they're gambling that he can reach his full potential, and if he does, he's a franchise QB capable of making throws only a handful of QBs right now can make. Can't remember who said it on here last night but they said there will be so many people on this board waiting to strike whenever the kid displays anything that would reinforce their negative outlook on him instead of getting behind the team and trusting that this group of executives and coaches can build and coach this team into consistent contention. And I checked, I don't have any brooms.

Wwaahh! Epic! WAAAAHHHHHH!!!

Here are two sets of combine measurables... Who's who?

No and no. Hughes is absolutely here for 2018 at least. McDermott strives to have his DL be one of the strongest units on the team. He's not going to weaken it by sending away his best pass rusher.

Well, they needed something to slap on the free magnets you get at the bank.

Josh Allen cut in front of me at a CVS. He's an entitled jerk-face. I almost judo-chopped him straight back to Wyoming but I restrained myself.

Somebody's baking brownies!

Nah. He's coming out of the same system that made the Browns believe that Brandon Weeden was a first round pick.

I'm gonna go with Fred Warner from BYU. His scouting report has a number of things that would "check the boxes" for McDermott. Warner has some positional versatility which McDermott loves, plus he's played special teams, another McDermott gold star. The things he needs work on are all very coachable. According to the scouting report on NFL.com. Warner sometimes takes poor angles, at times his tackling technique isn't great, and he switches his motor on and off sometimes. All of that stuff he can be coached up on and I just see his traits and can envision McDermott viewing him as a lump of clay he can mold into the type of player he wants.

If they don't come away with one of the top QB prospects, everything they've done in preparation for this draft is going to get scrutinized non-stop until next years draft. Obviously, they've needed a franchise QB for a long time. Huge swing and miss with EJ Manuel in 2013, but that dissuaded them from picking one in 2014 (Carr, Bridgewater, Garoppolo). Then they rolled with Taylor in '15 which kept them from considering making a run up the board for Mariota (Tampa Bay was locked in on Winston as soon as the draft order was finalized that year). No one else of note was available in 2015. In 2016 they went with Taylor again which meant they wouldn't bother trying to get into a position for Goff or Wentz. Word was they wanted Prescott, and they could've had him in the fourth round as they had pick #117 (Prescott was taken at #135) but they gave that pick to Chicago in order to move up to #41 in the second round for Reggie Ragland. With their other 4th round pick (#139) they took Cardale Jones. Both players stuck around for one full season and the 2017 pre-season before being shipped out. In 2017, they went with Taylor one more time, traded down from #10 to #27 (don't get me wrong, I love me some Tre' White, think he's going to be a good one for a long time) and took themselves out of contention for Trubisky, Mahomes and Watson. Derek Carr is a solid starter. Teddy Bridgewater looked like he was on his way to being a decent starter before the injury, no idea if he'll ever get a serious crack at a starting job again, and Garoppolo looks like he may wind up being the best out of any of the QBs taken in 2014. (Yeah, I know Bortles was also taken in 2014 but I don't think there are any other teams out there saying, "Damn, we should've taken Bortles.") Winston and Mariota have both been inconsistent but shown flashes. It's not the worst thing ever that they didn't get one of these guys. Goff, Wentz and Prescott have had a few bumps in the road but overall, each of them is starter material. Each of them has a Pro Bowl on their resume, Wentz has a first-team All-Pro on his resume and stood an excellent chance at winning league MVP if not for his injury. Watson set the league on fire before his injury. Andy Reid and the Chiefs must be seeing the goods from Mahomes if they were confident enough to trade away Alex Smith. Trubisky had a rough rookie year but has potential, plus he could use some actual weapons to throw to. Can the Bills pass on a QB and use their picks to fill some important spots on the team? Sure. Was that their plan when they acquired an extra pick in each of the first three rounds? I doubt it. I know it has the potential to cost them a ton in draft capital but they really can't stand on the sidelines anymore. While this group of QBs may be over-hyped a little, a couple of them are going to pan out into quality starters. Team McBeane has a great opportunity to start their tenure together on a high note by finally pulling the trigger and doing whatever it takes to land the guy they think is their franchise QB. If they sit around and kick the can down the road another year, this front office is going to have a miserable season when the first question they're asked every single time they speak with the media will be, "Why didn't you take a quarterback?" I'd love for them to be able to sit at 12 and have their guy fall to them and retain all their picks and fill positions of need, just don't see that happening. It's now or never, really. They have to do number two or get off the loo... I'd use the customary language but this board censors it. Friggin' Go Bills and can we just skip to Thursday?

For sure. I still maintain that the Giants are just waiting it out to see if they can squeeze another team for more than what the Bills are offering. If the Broncos are now saying they wanna trade down, are they for sure in the QB market? Who knows. Thursday just needs to hurry up and get here haha. I didn't say that there "must be" a good QB in this draft, my assumption was is that the Bills likely have a QB or two on their "must have" list or they've determined that this is the year to finally pull off a trade to get themselves what *they* think is their must-have guy. That, IMO, is why they've put together so much capital. It's the opinion of plenty of others as well. Not many people expect the Bills to sit where they're at and let the board fall to them. Most are convinced that they will do everything in their power to trade up. Their actions over the last 8-10 months kind of point in this direction.

Like the very few educated, patient, understanding and well-informed board members here, he'll get roughly his first nine plays before I jump on here like a screeching lunatic demanding he be benched, the coaching staff terminated (by like, a real T-1000) and the front office demolished (with a real wrecking ball). And of course I'll squeal for the complete deconstruction of the entire franchise. Why? Because I'm an extremely important fan with many medium level business meetings and my stance on how much time the rookie deserves before being shown the door is the only one that counts.

They're probably in the most unique and favorable set of circumstances they've ever been in for a draft. Two picks in each of the top three rounds. They have the ammo like no other team does in this draft. They've relentlessly studied these QBs for this year and must have one or two on the "must have" list because otherwise, why make all those trades and gather up all this draft capital? Sure it'd be good to stock up but if they go through another draft neglecting the most important position in all of sports, this regime is going to get crucified endlessly. They have to take their shot at some point. Obviously the thinking that you can win consistently without a franchise QB but with a decent team around him just doesn't cut it. I think they wanna be able to obtain their QB while retaining enough picks to obtain starters in other positions they prioritize.

The most important question needed to be asked about him is, can he translate the lyrics of international superhit and one of Earth's greatest musical compositions of all time, the classic song, "Despacito?" If not, I don't want him anywhere near the Bills. I don't care if he can throw a 900 yard pass and hit a Target (yes, the store), if he don't know those words, he no play foosball in Billstown.

Staying where they're at with the picks they have isn't the worst thing that could happen. Two picks in rounds 1-3 ain't too shabby. But I just don't believe that they did all that legwork starting last summer up through the Glenn trade to sit back and take whatever's left to them. It may not be the Giants but at this point I'm more convinced that they'll manuever into the top seven, at least. The Giants don't have very many picks and still believe Eli has a few good years left. They could rake in a haul and fill a bunch of spots over these next two drafts and then go for their next QB with a readymade team already set around him. Giants are just waiting it out because they wanna see if anyone else comes at them with a better deal. I actually don't buy that they have legitimate interest in any of the top QBs. They're just posturing like they do because of the position they're in.

Dave Hasselbeck...the least known Hasselbeck brother. First team Gatorade cooler operator.

Oh, for sure. All these GMs throwing around false information, leaking different things, etc. It's all a game. They try to visualize every sort of scenario to be as prepared as they can but at the end of the day they won't have a clue until the first domino falls.

Tony Pauline. He runs draftinsider.net. He's been doing scouting stuff for years, he's pretty good. He kinda flies under the radar compared to other draft guys but he knows his stuff. Not sure how legit his sources are but we've heard for a while now that there's an "in principle" deal between the Bills and Giants. And there probably is...these guys talk more and more as the draft gets closer so they can say, "OK, if our guy is available at your spot, this is what we're prepared to give you."

Didn't you guys know that's why they signed Conor McDermott? It's so Rosen has a pal when he arrives in Buffalo.

If this dude seriously believes that, he has no business refuting any sort of criticism he gets when it comes to the game of football. On the other hand, this is exactly the kind of crap someone tweets out to stir up attention and get reactions. If Paxton Lynch was better than Darnold, Mayfield, Rosen, Allen, Jackson and Rudolph he would've been starting in Denver last season. And he's not an upgrade over Tannehill.

Yeah. Kelly wanted to play for Penn State but they wanted him to play linebacker. In fact, I think several schools had the intention of switching his position. Miami was one of the only "big name" schools to come through with a scholarship and the guarantee that he would stay at QB.

The buzz has been all about Allen but there are several media folks that have maintained that the Bills have had their sights set on Darnold since early last year. When you look at all the QB prospects and try to find the best match for the Bills, it's Darnold. Not exactly because of the type of athlete he is or how he plays the position but because of how he carries himself and his attitude. Rosen is a good kid, but he may challenge coaches and some coaches won't like that. Mayfield is also a good kid, but some probably feel like he might be a bit of a loose cannon. Allen is all potential at this point and I don't think the Bills wanna take the risk with him. Darnold needs work, sure. But of the top four guys, he's the one that has natural leadership ability, maturity beyond his years, an understanding of how to present himself to the media as the face of a franchise, and overall he seems to have this very easy-going vibe to him where it seems like no amount of pressure can get to him. Put those things together with "the process" and it makes sense that Darnold is their top target.

Your last statement here is perfect. I think a lot of people fail to realize that these guys are human with flaws and other interests and hobbies, etc. I cringe when an athlete tweets out a photo of him and his family having fun, or just the athlete alone doing something unrelated to football and the comments are flooded with BS from people saying, "You should be watching film!" or "You sucked last year, you should be in the weight room!" Some people seem to truly believe that athletes should be living and breathing their occupation 100% of the time. And that's crap. No matter what your occupation is, you should never allow yourself to be completely consumed by it. There must always be a work-life balance in order to stay healthy both physically and especially mentally. These guys are regular people with a very interesting and high profile job. They need time away just like anyone else. I think it shocks a lot of people when an athlete retires early for reasons other than injury. They see it as, "How can you walk away from that opportunity and all that money?" Well, easy...if your heart isn't in it, should you be doing it? And these guys are in the position to decide things with that in mind because they don't have to worry about continuing with the daily grind just to make a paycheck. Most regular schmoes don't have those options so I think they have a warped view of how athletes handle their jobs. And, to clarify, I include myself as a regular schmoe. All I mean is most average everyday people do jobs they're not passionate about but can't just walk away from because they gotta earn a paycheck. Some people may be surprised to know that a moderate percentage of players in the league don't play for love of the game or to win titles or to even rack up crazy stats. Some play because they discovered they were good enough and knew they could make some serious money. For some it's the achievement of a dream, for others it's just a job.

You're forgetting the true gem of that class, one JP Losman. 10 wins, 23 losses, 59.2 career completion percentage, 6.6 YPA, 33 TDs, 34 INTs. Frickin' Hall of Fame numbers if I've ever seen any, huh? HUH?! Nah, for real though, I'd say Ben, Eli and Rivers. Eli gets the edge of Rivers because of the championships.

Accuracy, throwing receivers open, making tight-window throws, reading defenses, working through progressions, the willingness to take some risks in order to allow his teammates to make a play.