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blacklabel

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Everything posted by blacklabel

  1. I actually don't think this front office will be too keen on spending high round picks on OL. Beane said it himself during a pre-season game, the learning curve for even more experienced OL prospects is huge these days because these guys all play in schemes where they rarely ever line up with their hand in the dirt. They have to learn a whole other facet of their position once they reach the NFL and it takes quite a while to coach that. I can see them going OL in rounds two or three but I don't think they'll spend their first round pick on OL. If they end up with a top ten pick, I'd bet money that they'll be taking calls all day from any teams looking to come up. The offensive prospects this year aren't the greatest so the value on those players is gonna be in rounds two and three. So I can see Beane trying to stockpile a handful of twos, threes and even some fours if the offer is there. Ideally, I think they'd like to spend some of that cash on a couple of guys with experience who can step in and produce right away. I know the FA crop for OL also isn't great but I think they'd rather find a guy or two that way rather than having to wait it out and develop a guy. They're all in on this youth movement so I'd expect their first round pick to be a guy they feel can start right away or isn't that far away from being a day one starter. Don't be surprised at all if a defensive player is their first pick. If they're sticking to BPA, it's likely gonna be a defensive player that'll be BPA when it's their turn in round one.
  2. Not really, usually just to check the schedule and any player transactions as they do those infographics any time they bring in a new guy. The BBMB was a daily stop for me going all the way back to 2002. They switched message board providers/service in 2004 which, if I recall, caused some grief with the posters at that point. When they got rid of the BBMB they said that fan interaction would shift to social media but any time I scroll through comment sections on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook, it's mostly just people shouting random stuff and no real conversations or interactions going on. The board always provided a good place for fans to come together and (usually) have civil discussions about all things Bills. I don't think social media comment sections have done very good in replacing that. This board was fairly active while the BBMB was still around but it received a huge boom in new posters migrating from BBMB and for the most part, it's replaced the BBMB almost in full. I'm sure there aren't as many posters here as there was on BBMB but overall, it's been a viable replacement.
  3. I think they interviewed Reich after Marrone left but at that time he didn't quite have the experience he has now. I think at that point (early 2015) he had only been an OC for one year with previous experience as a QB and WRs coach. And I think at the time, many fans were all over the Pegulas for being "homers" and "nostalgic for the glory days" when they interviewed Reich. But, you know, hindsight and all that. McDermott is constantly lauded as getting a lot out of a little. Made the playoffs last year with an average roster. Has this current group playing well over the last couple weeks despite the blowouts and tough losses. He's still getting this team to show up everyday and put in the work when guys could easily start mailing it in because they know the chances of returning to the playoffs this year are slim. And this league has consistently tweaked the rules to favor the offense, that plays a huge role in these high-powered offenses we see right now. And let's not act like this is the first time we've ever seen teams score crazy points like this. Rams had the Greatest Show on Turf back in the early 2000s, the 2007 Pats put up crazy numbers, there was a 15-1 Vikings team that set offensive records (late 90s, I think). Plus, teams like the Chiefs, Rams and Saints have a few things: strong OLs and Pro Bowlers at every just about every skill position. But, as always, there are ebbs and flows in the league, which is also a copycat league. Teams will adopt what other teams do both on offense and defense. And sooner or later, defenses always catch up. A decade ago the Wildcat took the league by storm and everyone was all, "It's a new NFL!" but what happened? Eventually defenses caught up and the Wildcat faded away. There's always new trends that come up and eventually there's always an answer to those trends.
  4. I think McBeane have likely determined that these guys have a job here for as long as they'd like. They can keep doing one-year deals if these guys wanna keep playing. In addition to their on-field production, I'm certain McDermott views their experience and leadership as invaluable to his locker room. If they finish the season trending upward, I think both guys would have an interest in coming back for one more go 'round to see where they can go in 2019 with the youth movement that will have some experience under their belts by then.
  5. But have you heard of Darcell Mareus?
  6. I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to go a different direction and I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to stay the course with Crossman. He may have an out with all the punter injuries this season as well as Taiwan Jones, a ST captain, going on IR earlier this year. McKenzie looks like he can provide a spark in the return game, but when it comes to return coverage, that's where they haven't been very good. But again, wouldn't be surprised if they left things as they are and allowed Crossman to stay on and keep working.
  7. Edmunds also played outside most of his college career, so, like McDermott has said about Allen and managing expectations, we should do the same with Edmunds as he's adjusting to a different position as well as the speed of the game at the NFL level. McDermott has a knack for coaching up DBs and LBs, I think the kid will be fine.
  8. Offensive line is supposedly his specialty, but their starting left tackle (Cam Robinson) went on IR early this season. And yesterday, the LG, (Andrew Norwell) went down with an injury. The left side of their line is headed up by Ereck "Turnstile" Flowers at LT and undrafted kid at LG. Fournette has been in and out of the lineup and they lean so heavily on him that they're basically a different team when he's not playing.Also, the whole team seems undisciplined to me, which is weird for a Marrone-coached team. He's a stickler for rules and all that crap. I remember him benching Dareus a couple times because the dude could never be on time. But the way he ran the locker room here in Buffalo left a lot of veteran guys with a poor perception of him. He tried running things as if it were a college program and that stuff isn't gonna fly. So, I dunno if he backed off on being a stickler and is allowing the team to be themselves but I feel like that team could be down 42-0 and the defense would still be talking trash and instigating. And then there's Bortles. Didn't Marrone hire Hackett to be his OC as soon as he was named head coach?
  9. I didn't necessarily mean yesterday in particular, haha. They did indeed get shredded on the ground and Fournette is a straight up dummy for instigating and getting himself kicked out. The crowd response was awesome and the defense's response was even better. To have them go from the one yard line, get stuffed on a couple run attempts, Bortles gets sacked, then have penalties that back them all the way to the 25 yard line and then they miss the field goal was a thing of beauty.
  10. Lawson has been playing well even if he's not showing up in a big way on the stat sheet every week. His versatility to bounce between DE and DT is big for this team. He's very sound in his assignments, he's been getting more pressure on the QB, plays the run well, etc. He's played well enough to retain the starting job over Murphy who was healthy and active this week and was only in there after Lawson was ejected.
  11. Ha, there's those "obviously's" that were sorely missing from his comments back on Wednesday last week.
  12. He's awesome, no doubt. The only receivers to have moderate success against him this year have been Davante Adams and DeAndre Hopkins, and even then those guys didn't rack up a ton of yards and receptions. Hopkins made a wicked catch for a TD and Adams scored on him as well but other than that, he's shut down pretty much everyone they've asked him to cover this year. You don't hear his name mentioned much during games which is a good thing for a CB, means QBs aren't even trying to throw his way. I hope they can coach up this Wallace kid and have him be the #2 CB. Eh, I think it's more than him and Peterson. Marshon Lattimore in New Orleans, Xavier Rhodes in Minnesota, Ramsey and Bouye in Jacksonville, Harris in Denver is still getting it done, etc. Lot of good corners playing right now and I think White is right there with the best of them.
  13. It's a part of his game the Jaguars obviously weren't keyed in on so he exploited that. Even after he picked up first downs and chunks of yards, they still really weren't putting a spy on him. If it's there, take it. Yeah, sure, we don't want the kid getting hit frequently and risking another injury but he's an athlete and running is part of his game. A couple of his runs were by design, not all of them were scrambles. Kid throws for a TD, runs for another, picks up several first downs with his feet (also hit two perfect throws for first downs that were called by back dumb OL penalties) and accounts for 259 total yards and didn't turn the ball over... yet here we are with people saying, "Get yards, score points, but do it THIS WAY." He got the job done today, plain and simple.
  14. For real. I think Walt Coleman needs to hang it up. That game was ridiculous with the penalties. Some of them deserve to be called, others not so much. My main hang up was that every friggin' time they threw a flag they needed to huddle up for a 5 minute discussion. And then he'd go to announce the penalty but another official would be like, "Wait, wait, and then this happened and then number 35 called me a poopyhead." Even the commentary team was getting annoyed with the constant flags.
  15. Thanks to everyone who responded, appreciate it. Murphy is kind of puzzling to me... he went 47th overall in 2014 out of Stanford and for all the "injury prone" labels he gets, he actually only missed two games over his first three seasons. Racks up 9 sacks in 2016, was a top ten pass rusher in terms of QB pressures, looked like he was poised to break out and then he wrecks his knee and misses all of 2017. Missed OTAs, camp and pre-season, plays in 7 games before getting hurt again, has been on the sidelines for four weeks but only missed three games. I know he had the PED thing as well, makes you wonder if he was taking something to strengthen himself against injury or whatever. Obviously players are signed/given deals based on their on-field production but there are off-field things that factor in. With Murphy, you can tell they brought him in here because he embodies the work ethic McDermott wants out of his players. I'm sure he sets a good example on the practice field when he's on it but yeah, hopefully they didn't end up buying a lemon here because a DL of Murphy, Hughes, Williams, Lotulelei ain't bad especially when the rotational guys are Lawson, H. Phillips, J. Phillips, and Yarbrough. Jordan Phillips is a guy I'd like to see them hang onto after the season, I think he's been a nice surprise and he's been energized for a fresh start here. However, this lineup wouldn't stop me from drafting one of these premier DL players coming up if the board falls that way. Adding more strength to an already strong group is never a bad idea. And Carolina did that when Beane was still there. They had a pretty stellar DL in 2015 (their Super Bowl run) and still drafted a DL in the first round in 2016. The draft is just so packed with really defensive players this year that it's difficult to see them NOT going defense early, simply because the value for offensive skill players won't be there until late into the first. Feels like we could see something similar to what they did in 2017 when they dropped all the way to 27th overall and still came away with a great #1 CB in Tre' White.
  16. I searched around online and combed through the pre-game thread for the Bills/Jags game but haven't seen any info on Murphy. Just saw that Lawson and Clay weren't practicing today. Lawson has played pretty well in the DL rotation and he provides versatility in that he can switch up between DT and DE so even if Murphy is back, I'd still make sure Lawson gets some reps. Yeah, anyway, anyone know what's up with Murphy?
  17. Greedy Williams is currently seen as the near-consensus top cornerback. He'd pair up nicely with Tre and they'd be on the same page instantly having been LSU teammates. As for what I would do or what I think McBeane may do... if they end up with a top ten pick, I can see them trading down to acquire more capital ONLY IF a premier player isn't on the board when it's their turn. If one of those top-end DL are still hanging around when they pick at 5, 6, 7, wherever, I'd take one of those guys. So far, every big board of the top 50 or 100 prospects I've checked out is like, 75% defensive players. It's an insanely good year if you're looking to add to your defense... it's not so good if you're trying to build on offense. There are a few top-notch OL but even those guys need time to adapt to the NFL game just because of the offensive styles they're playing in school. Jonah Williams makes a lot of sense given he would have a head start having played for Daboll before. There aren't any clear cut elite QBs, same with receivers... Noah Fant out of Iowa looks like a baller but do you spend a high end pick on a tight end? I don't see this front office prioritizing the TE position that highly. RBs can be found in the mid-rounds... so... don't be surprised if they go defense early and look for a good value on offense in the second or third rounds. Ideally, I think they'd like to trade down in the first round and collect some more picks in the second and third rounds where the it makes sense to spend on offense. I see them working hard in FA to solidify the offense, which makes sense. Sure, you wanna build thru the draft but with the time it takes to develop young offensive skill position players, it makes sense to try and get some guys in here that already have pro experience. And adding to an already strong unit (defense) is a good strategy as it provides really good depth and the ability to keep guys fresh with their rotations. It's gonna be an interesting off-season.
  18. He's a world class athlete, sure. But even a world class athlete can't pick up a sport they've never played, practice for six months and then go play against the best players in the world, which is what he claimed he is capable of... some NHL players were asked about it and most said it takes six months just to get halfway decent at skating.
  19. Haha, I did catch that during highlights before the Sunday night game. He said, "They like to talk a lot, before the game, during the game... but I'm carrying the game ball." And yeah, Ramsey's face at the end was priceless.
  20. Most of those tweets were things he was quoting that were said by his friends to begin with. Ramsey just thinks he's absolutely the most talented football player ever to grace the planet and he wants everyone to know it. He should be sharpening his skates and getting ready to become a pro hockey player because he'll have all kinds of time to practice starting in January.
  21. Whoever keeps saying his time was "cut short" is uh... full of it? The dude quit. He did not initially have an "out" clause in his contract until after the Pegulas took over ownership. The thing is, is the Pegulas had every intention of keeping him. Marrone says he asked for a raise for all of his assistants and was turned down. I've heard the real truth is that he only asked for a raise for himself, which was turned down as the Pegulas told him they would revisit contract negotiations after 2015. On locker room cleanout day, he spoke to the team about their goals for next season and all that. A few hours later, he sent one mass text to the entire team informing them he was leaving... hours after he just laid out next seasons plans. He couldn't handle the Buffalo media, I have no idea what made him believe he would be able to handle the media in NYC. His agent was in his ear telling him the Jets job was as good as his if he walked from Buffalo, so he did. Then he went and laid a massive egg of an interview for the Jets HC job and they said "no thanks." Gus Bradley threw the guy a bone and brought him on as OL coach and surprise, Jacksonville suddenly had one of the worst OLs in the league. He cornered Tim Graham in an airport hangar before the Bills left for an away game because he didn't like an article Graham had written or was about to write. Graham has detailed it before on his Twitter and considers it one of the weirdest experiences he's ever had in his journalism career. He was routinely prickly towards Joe B because Joe was never afraid to call out Marrone for constantly playing the field position game and punting from inside the opponents' 40 yard line. He claimed ignorance on a number of things instead of just providing a decent answer. The organization wanted EJ to start as they had planned to build around him since taking him in 2013. Marrone stomped his feet about that until they brought in Kyle Orton. He also started 5th round rookie Cyril Richardson over a more experienced OG in Kraig Urbik (who had been a starter here for a couple of years at that point). Richardson was abysmal in four of his starts and it was insane that it took four friggin' games before Marrone put Urbik back in the lineup. After Marrone left, Urbik talked about Marrone's stubbornness to adjust in-game and said no matter what, they constantly stuck with outside zone runs even when they were being shut down. He loves him that "3 yards and a cloud of dust" crap that just doesn't work in today's NFL. Just over a year after his departure from Buffalo, Sports Illustrated (I think) got an interview with him. He spoke about Buffalo but never really gave a reason. After the interview, he called the journalist a couple hours later and asked that the interview not be run. The journalist told him that most of the notes had already been turned over to his editor and it wasn't his call to run the story or not. Marrone called back an hour later and said he spoke with his wife and said he was "OK" with the interview being run even though that really wasn't up to him at that point. He also tried to run a professional franchise like a college team and a lot of the veteran players didn't care for that, hence why a large portion of the team was fine when he walked away. Weird dude. Never met him, but I've read enough about him to see that he's just a bit of a whackadoodle.
  22. Yeah, it's pretty much been covered but they're wasting their time starting Barkley if Allen is healthy. 2018 is the sacrifice season for the sustained success they hope to create going forward. This is Josh Allen's team. There's no point in starting your backup guy just because he had a decent game against a completely uninspired team. The Jets are on the verge of blowing it all up and players know this. There are guys on that team headed for free agency who aren't going to ball out to avoid injury so they can land a deal elsewhere. The team apparently likes Bowles, but the writing is on the wall and the entire organization knows that Todd Bowles and his crew will be out come January 2019. The Jets also dropped two picks that Barkley almost handed them on a silver platter. His arm isn't much better than Peterman's. It's nice to have his experience but when he's been "the guy" for an extended period of time, he hasn't been great. He's on his fifth team in six seasons. His TD:INT ratio is 10 to 18. Yeah, he has a couple of 300 yard games under his belt but that's mostly the result of playing in garbage time. It happens every season, an inexperienced or career backup comes in and has a nice game. Or an undrafted no-name kid steps in and lights it up for a minute (Nick Mullens) but they fizzle out rather quickly. There's no replacement for live game reps and that's what Allen needs in order to grow and develop. I'm sure he's learned a lot on the sidelines and I'm sure he's already learned a few things from Barkley. But the front office didn't wheel and deal and make a plethora of trades and cuts to let the 2018 7th overall pick sit on the bench in lieu of a 4th round guy who came from the esteemed QB class of 2013. I've seen more and more fans on this board accept the fact that 2018 is really all about progression for the youth movement on this team. The sooner more people accept that, the easier it'll be to get through this season. What I'm watching for is progress from a lot of these players that are expected to be cornerstones for the next however many years. And so far, I think the draft picks McBeane have brought in are playing well. Tre White is excellent, Zay Jones is coming along, Dion Dawkins is solid and should only get better, Matt Milano seems to find ways to make plays in every game, jury's out on Allen but when you see the good things from him it's like, yeesh, that was *really* good but unfortunately right now he balances that with the polar opposite with plays that'll make you go, yeesh, that was really bad! His ceiling is the highest of any of the QBs taken this year, I hope he hits it. Tremaine Edmunds is another player that should only get better with more playing time and the kid is a physical freak of nature, his length alone causes QBs to be hesitant to throw through any of the lanes he's close to, Harrison Phillips gets to learn the ropes from Kyle Williams, Taron Johnson has me thinking of Antoine Winfield when it comes to tackling (Winfield was honestly one of the best open-field tacklers I've ever seen, severely underrated corner IMO), Wyatt Teller had a nice first start. So, if all of those guys pan out and the only whiffs these guys have are a 5th round QB, a 6th round LB and a 7th round WR, then... how can we gripe? Because that's a massive success rate on their draft picks. It's gonna pick up. This team is gonna be fun to watch in the near future. I got sidetracked but either way, this is Allen's team and if he can play, he plays, it's that simple.
  23. The most surprising thing about this statement is the lack of the word "obviously" being used about 237 times.
  24. The free agent group for WRs this off-season isn't great but I'd like to see them go after a guy like Tyrell Williams or even Devin Funchess. I know that'd be them going back to the Carolina connection but GMs and HCs across the league bring in guys they're familiar with all the time. I also think Tyler Boyd would be a solid acquisition. And he may be available if Cincinnati chooses to focus more on John Ross as the #2 to AJ Green. The other thing that factors in, is that the current FA list as it is now won't be the same when FA actually starts. Guys will work out deals with their current teams before March so the crop of players to choose from could become even smaller. The more I think about it, the more I think they won't be able to acquire a "true number one" WR... and they may not even feel the need to. I think because of the way Daboll wants to run the offense, we could be looking at a "WR by committee" type of thing. I mean, that's how it is in New England where Daboll learned most of what he knows. Aside from Randy Moss, there's never been a real, big time #1 WR up there. They always rotate a cast of different players. One week it's the Gronk show, next week it's Edelman, week after that they're utilizing all their backs out of the backfield, etc. etc. If that's going to be the case, I would most definitely still like to see them go out and get an above average receiver in FA (or via trade). I'd like to see them spend a second or third on another young guy to develop, get a solid TE and a multipurpose back and there you go, you've got a rotating cast of skill players you can scheme things up for based on the opponent.
  25. Dude called back to back time outs at one point and was penalized for it. I know Gruden was in his ear after that. I don't know when this other altercation took place. I'd be pissed if I was Carr. He goes from being part of a core of solid young players to the only guy left standing on a team coached by a guy who probably doesn't want him there to begin with. Plus, if he sticks with the Raiders, he's gonna have to pick up and move to Vegas in another year.
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