Shaw66

Right. Article demonstrates broad ignorance of what the Bills are doing and of McD's philosophy. McD intends to make the playoffs in 2018, and his plan is to do it with an improved offense and a much better defense. Theres a difference betwewn building and rebuilding. Rebuilding involves tearing down. Bills are essentially done with that. They're still building.

I'm getting close.

I will be there with a priest. I hope that helps.

My comment was comparing Edmunds to Keuchly. Read the OP and tell us if you disagree.

6. He's a good teammate. 7. He loves to compete. McDermott loves this guy.

Yes, Berg and Hapless. You're right on. He's going to keep on doing the same thing - talking to a lot of insiders, getting to cover the big games. But he won't be responsible for a lot of stuff that adds stress to his current job. The stuff about giving the youngsters a chance is pure bull ****. If he liked his job at SI, or if SI had reduced his responsibilities and given him more money, he would have stayed, youngsters be damned. My opinion of King changed the day he told this story. He went to spring training and was sitting down the right field line. Some young phenom he'd come to see, like Mike Trout, someone who has really highly touted but hadn't yet made a big splash in the majors, was playing. The guy homered to right, and King wanted to save the ball as a souvenir. He was pretty close, so he left his seat and headed to the open space behind the fence. The ball was there on ground, and there was another ball out there, too. Some nine year-old kid ran out to get the ball, and he asked King which ball was the home-run ball. King, in his column explained that he identified the wrong ball, so that the kid wouldn't take King's souvenir. I'm not buying that King is leaving SI to give the youngsters a chance.

The guy writes a great column. He's plugged in all around the NFL and gets great information. He has great insights into the game. He also has an enormous ego. He can be pompous and condescending. He's Boston centric to a fault. Still, he's great at what he does. I'm glad he isn't retiring.

This is the point. And it's a point that I think many people miss. Coaching is really important. In football, it is more important than anything else, including total team talent, except for the QB. Did you see Al Horford after the game on Saturday? He was asked about the in-bounds play that got Horford a layup late in the game. The first words out of his mouth were "Brad Stevens is a genius." In football, the differences between teams in total team talent (other than QB) are minimal. Except for the occasional horrible team or two, my team's total talent is always pretty close to your team's talent. The draft, free agency and the salary cap make that happen. Are there some differences? Sure. And do those differences make a difference in games? Yes. But coaching makes a bigger difference. Belichick doesn't have better talent than everyone else, year after year. Andy Reid doesn't. It's too early to tell about McDermott, but his first season in Buffalo certainly was encouraging. This season is a big test for him. Many of his players are returning and know the system. He's gotten rid of the guys he thinks didn't fit. He's added players he thinks do fit. As he's said, they aren't done. He needs 2019 to add more rookies and free agents, but then he'll have a roster full of the kind of guys he wants. This season, he's still working with less than he wants. If he's a great coach, the Bills will win 2018 like they did in 2017, by being really well prepared and doing the little things right. I think they've won three. Merger was about 35-40 years ago. I first learned the lesson about the importance of coaching 30 years ago, when Jim Calhoun came to UConn. Prior to Calhoun's arrival, UConn was pretty bad, pretty consistently. I went to a game in Calhoun's first season. The opponent pressed, and UConn broke it easily. That's when I knew things were going to be different. Those players, more or less the same players that had been there the year before, were prepared for whatever came. Calhoun got them ready. It wasn't about talent. It was about coaching.

Well, the first 20 yards are the most important, so that's an edge to Keuchly. But it's not a significant edge. As I said, I think it's a push. If the discussion is whether one is a little better athlete than other, i think the discussion is over. You're talking about premier athletes. Bills got one.

That's the concept I was thinking of but couldn't put my finger on. Shrink the windows. That's what he's going to do. He's going to make the 3rd and 7 completion for a first down tougher. It's not that he's going to get 14 interceptions and 20 breakups. He's just going to make it harder to throw into the middle medium zone. He's going to force the Qbinto lower probability throws, which should result in fewer third down conversions for opponents.

Oh, yeah. I was doing a simple comparison with Brown, and Keuchly was the other natural comparison. I don't think anyone has any business declaring that Edmunds is the next Keuchly. Edmunds COULD be that guy, but that's a truly high standard to get measured against. Keuchly is truly special. He's not the classic old-time MLB, who were more down hill run stoppers with speed. Keuchly is only a bit less of a run stopper, but he's also damn near a defensive back. With Keuchly on the field, that defense is sort of simultaneously in a 4-3 and 4-2-5. That's special, and it takes football smarts and hard work to be that guy. Edmunds has the physical tools to do what Keuchly does, but it'll be some time before we find out if he can play at the level. We might see flashes, maybe many flashes, but he'll need time to become a Keuchly.

I hadn't really focused on who populate the defense in 2018, and this thread is a really good summary. Good to great discussion. I read and I get excited. It isn't going to fall exactly like any of you say, because there will injuries and other surprises. A guy who isn't even on the team yet could be a significant addition. And there's a broader, organizational point: the Bills run a true team defense - it's about everyone doing his job., and a lot of these guys now have a year under their belts in this system. We could see the defensive backfield growing during the season as they learned how to flow with one another within the system. This year, those guys will be teaching the newcomers (there'll be two to three or four across the front seven, and a couple guys working into the backfield. This defense will be further along in September than it was last season, and the new guys learning will be upgrades physically over the guys they've replace. Pretty exciting.

That's my reaction. Milano is one of those guys (I'm guessing) who will show flashes but who will have weaknesses that get exploited, weaknesses they can't overcome. It's what I've been saying about Brown and Edmunds. Brown made the most of his talents, but he's hit a ceiling because of his lack of speed. Milano has weaknesses that will limit what he can do. The interesting thing about McDermott is that his approach WILL make stars of an occasional guy, despite the guy's limitations. Those guys play better than their talent projects, but they only can do in the environment the coach built. Like all the players who looked like stars playing for Belichick, and were only okay or worse elsewhere. If McDermott makes Milano into a stud outside linebacker tor the next ten years, it will mean the Bills have one of the great head coaches in the league.

Tweaked me good with the slide rule post. I liked it. (In my defense, I began the post by saying I wanted to quantify it because I was curious. It's not like I didn't already know he was faster than Brown.) I'd disagree with your assessment of Brown, but I haven't watched the All 22. Brown seemed to me to be just a step or two out of position, not my-little-brother out of position. Someone else started talking abut 35-yard passes. Most passes are shorther than that, and the 35 yard passes are typically to the sideline, and Edmunds won't be defending those. I think where we'll see the difference is throws over the middle - QBs will learn that nothing's open over the middle, because Edmunds is standing right in the middle of the target area.

This is something I've only thought about a little. Others have commented on it. There are a lot of solid players on the defense. Hughes and Lawson and Star and Kyle and Phillips. Edmunds and Zo. DBs and safeties. The defense was pretty good last season, when everyone was just learning. Now they're going to weave in the new comers, and the talent upgrade should make the defense really tough tough this season. Then Zo and Kyle will retire, but they'll be replaced. The defense in Buffalo will a force.

Only a bit better all around, but Keuchly's 20 time is faster, which means that Keuchly's better in the first ten steps. That's why I think it's a push. The point is that Edmunds has all the physical tools to be as effective as Keuchly. Keuchly was built for McD's defense, and Edmund's is too. That's why when you read the articles today where Beane talks in depth about the draft, Beane says they were overjoyed after the first night. They didn't think they had a chance to get BOTH a QB they wanted and Edmunds. It fell perfectly for the Bills.

McD won't tolerate mental laziness. Nor worries there.

Edmunds is slightly faster in the 40. a little slower in the 20, so I'd guess their ability to drop is about the same. Edmunds is two inches taller. So I'd say that physically it's a push.

I wanted to see specifically how much difference Edmunds' size and speed should make over Preston Brown, so I calculated it. If the QB delivers the ball in two seconds and throws a 35 yard pass, the ball arrives at its destination about 3 seconds after the snap. Based on their combine times for the 20 and 40, Edmunds will get 1.5 to 2 yards deep (on a deep drop) or wider (if he's going to the flat) than Brown. Plus, Edmunds is 4 inches taller and has slightly longer arms. My continuing memories of Brown in pass coverage was that his drops regularly weren't deep enough or wide enough. He read the plays correctly, but the ball always seemed to pass six to twelve inches over his outstretched arm. Assuming Edmunds can learn to make the reads as well as Brown did, those balls are going to be incomplete or intercepted. Bigger, better, faster athlete.

I think you're right about the Jets. They couldnt get one or two, they certainly could afford to let the Bills get three. I think they swallowed hard and leapt. Beane's patience got him Edmunds. Lovin it.

I'd guess that Beane had Brown and the News in together. Gave them a dual exclusive interview. Among other things McBeane are doing is working to repair relations with the News. They call reporters by first names in the press conferences. They say stuff like "that's a good question." These guys know what they're doing.

That's great stuff. Plenty of details. One thing that's changed under McBeane is that they aren't afraid to tell you stuff. They are confident about what they can and can't say, and they share information. That's great for the fans. One question. Beane says he knew very very little about the qbs on the day the Jets traded up. Beand saod, essentially, that he was in no position to make a move like that at that time. Well, the Jets traded a boat load to get to three, so they to know there were three qbs they would take. How could they be so sure about threw when Beane didn't know anything? Were the Jets just stupid and got lucky?

This is a good description of the likely scenario. I do think then OP is correct. This was unusual. If you bring in a Chip Kelly or an Ndy Reid, if he tells the owner the GM hasntongo, fine, I get. But this was a young, rookie head coach. What happened here, I would guess, was anyoung combination of pre-existing dissatisfaction with Whaley and Brandon and a very positive impression made by McD.

I think you're exactly correct. Exactly.

I dont think the Pegulas will have a quick trigger with these guys. They're good for at least two more years, probably three and maybe four or five.