SoTier
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Posts posted by SoTier
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51 minutes ago, Dillenger4 said:
I agree. And yet they beat us last season and the one before. With their additions this past off-season they will be better. That's all I'm saying. We too have "new" OC and new DC. We will see.
I agree to a point. Highlighted above: If we lost Josh last season on opening day our season would have been even messier than it was. Not many teams in teh NFL can overcome that. Anyway, we will see. Exciting games coming this season that's for sure!
Divisional games are always wars, especially for the divisional doormats. When the Raiders finally beat the Chiefs in KC a few years ago, they drove their team buses around the stadium jeering all the way. Sweeping divisional rivals is exceptionally hard.
Losing your starting QB is almost always a disaster but good FOs can sometimes mitigate the problem. When the Vikings lost Cousins, they traded for Joshua Dobbs. When the Browns lost Watson, they brought in Flacco -- and they made the playoffs. IMO, the Jests FO just gave up when Rodgers went down and Wilson quickly demonstrated he wasn't a NFL QB. That's a loser's attitude.
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13 hours ago, JimBob2232 said:
The thing that scares me is if they hit on a QB. A good defense. A solid offense. And if they get a young QB playing on a rookie deal - they could be a real contender. Not concerned with Aaron Rodgers though. Dude is done.
Don't worry too much. The Jests haven't hit on a QB in 2 decades (Chad Pennington, 2000), and they've only hit on 2 QBs in the draft in 60 years (Namath). It's not that they haven't tried: Mark Sanchez (#5) in 2009, Sam Darnold (#3) in 2018, Zach Wilson (#2) in 2021. Chicago, Washington, and NE all need QBs, so I doubt they'll trade out of the top three spots. The Giants may take a QB at #6. That leaves the Jests to go for one of the lesser QBs -- or trade up to get ahead of the Giants for the fourth best QB in the draft.
30 minutes ago, BobbyC81 said:
The Jets sold their souls to win Super Bowl 3. They’ll be paying for it forever. Two years ago, Breece Hall got injured. Last year it was Rodgers. I expect injuries on their defense this year.Pay back is a you-know-what!!!! Then again, I have to thank them for their sacrifice!
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One of the great groups of the early 1960s ... the Drifters (1962)
and how different popular music sounded just a few years later ... the Byrds (1967)
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6 hours ago, Dillenger4 said:
I respect your opinion. But this is the furthest ting from reality. Jets will be a power team in the AFCE. We will dog fight it out with them and miami who is also quietly building a good roster. I do believe the Jets will be our main comp in the AFCE no doubt. If they were smart, they will move up and snag a good QB. Not out of the question.....
Building a winning team takes more than simply assembling a group of talented players. Neither the Jests' FO nor their coaching staff have shown they can turn a bunch of guys, even talented guys, into an effective team, especially on offense. They also haven't shown that they can handle adversity well as last season demonstrated. I will remain skeptical that they can even win more games than they lose until they actual do it. The Jests have the stink of perpetual loser about them, and that's always a sign that the problems with the franchise are much further up the team food chain than the players on the field.
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9 hours ago, Buffalo_Stampede said:
They’ve been pretty quiet this offseason, just building one of the best rosters in the league.
Say what you want about Saleh but when he arrived they were 2-14 with one of the worst rosters in the league.
^^^
1 hour ago, dave mcbride said:This offseason, they signed Ravens starting guard John Simpson. They traded for Ravens longtime starting RT Morgan Moses. They signed all-pro LT Tyron Smith, who did miss four games last season but was otherwise dominating. They have 2023 2nd round pick Joe Tippman at center, and the highly talented Alijah Vera-Tucker, who is now healthy, will be the other guard.
Their problem is no longer offensive line; it’s second receiver. However, this is a great receiver draft and they have the 10th pick.
I will address both these posts below:
The Jests FO with help from their coaches have again built a great team on paper but we all know that the Jests are the champs of winning the off-season. They've built a roster filled with lots of expensive, older, often injured players that makes it absolutely necessary for them to make a serious playoff run in 2024 because not only are they're operating in "win now" mode, but because the owner is likely to fire their collective arses if they fail to make the playoffs again.
Salah simply hasn't shown that he's a good enough HC to even get his team to the playoffs much less win in the post-season. The AFC remains significantly tougher than the NFC, so just getting to the playoffs will be hard. In the AFCE, the Jets likely have to get past the Bills and/or Fins to grab a playoff berth. It's likely that multiple AFCN teams make the playoffs again (three made the playoffs last season, including 1 with a backup QB and the other with a pretty poor starting QB).
Moreover, several of the moves the Jests made last season, most notably signing Rodgers' buddies and then failing to sign an adequate back QB after Rodgers' injury, suggests that there's dysfunction and/or incompetence in the FO. I got the impression that essentially everyone on the Jests bent over backwards to accommodate Rodgers. Maybe this wasn't their choice but a dictate from owner Woody Johnson.
IMO, the chances of the Jests making the playoffs is south of 50% because they are depending upon a HC who hasn't demonstrated much growth after several years in the job and so many older players with injury histories to make it through the entire season unscathed.
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21 hours ago, Ethan in Cleveland said:
This is a falsehood. If anything sets you up for failure, it is wasting draft picks trading up for a specific player.
I think it depends upon the specific player they draft -- and the priorities of the FO that led them to make that trade. It's easy for fans to say, "we have to draft a QB in this draft!" but that's not always possible.
It was a big-time fail when the Bills determined they were going to take a QB in the first round of the 204 draft, so they traded their 2005 first rounder plus a second rounder and another pick to move back into the first to take JP Losman at #22 after taking Lee Evans at #13 when the top three prospects in that draft class (Manning, Rivers, and Roethlisberger) were gone by pick #11. If a QB isn't a good value to take at #13 why ever would you trade so much to take him 9 picks later?
It was also a fail in 2013 when the Bills traded back to take EJ Manuel because he wasn't really a first round prospect at all -- none of the QBs in the 2013 class were -- but the Bills took him anyway.
Drafting a QB in the first round -- and having him play early -- is a sure way to excite fans into buying tickets, especially if the team has missed the playoffs for several years. The top priority of the Bills FO during Ralph Wilson's last years was to maximize profits by putting butts in the seats.
It sure wasn't a fail for the Bills to trade up to #7 in 2018 to take Josh Allen. I doubt that they would have made that move up to draft any of the other QBs in the 2018 draft because McBeane's top priority has always been to win football games, and they wanted Allen. Would they have settled for one of the other first round QBs in 2018 if Allen was gone earlier? I'm really not sure.
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7 hours ago, Paup 1995MVP said:
Come on Jersey. Have you watched either guy play the past couple seasons? Fields will get swallowed up by the AFC North. And Wilson has fallen off a cliff the past few years. If say Washington or the Giants had made these moves everyone would be saying they are a 5 win team at best. Because it’s Pittsburgh, and King Tomlin it has to be the bomb. Everyone seems to revere Tomlin. But McDermott gets all sorts of flack on here, when he has been a much better coach of a much better team over the past 7 years.
The difference between Pittsburgh and Washington and/or the Giants is that the Stillers have an elite defense, an excellent running game, and a solid OL and decent receivers. IOW, they're a much better team than either the Commanders or Giants. In fact, the Stillers have the same kind of team that Wilson had during his successful seasons with the Seahawks.
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8 hours ago, SoCal Deek said:
What if it turns out that McGovern actually makes a great Center? What if he was sitting there waiting for Morse to retire? Do we know that he isn’t?
Asking that question means that you are just another one of the lemmings who think that maybe, just maybe, Beane and McDermott actually might know what they're doing.
5 hours ago, Sweats said:You know, for years i've always just wanted the big "splash" player in the drafts, but i saw an interview with The Hoodie a couple of years back and it completely changed my mindset.
I can't remember the interview word for word, but it was basically about how a good OLineman can anchor the trenches for years, help protect the QB (arguably a teams biggest asset)....they are for the most part fairly cheap at re-negotiating contracts, no divas involved and can play the position for a long time.
The interview actually made a lot of sense to me and completely changed my whole mindset.
Watching Russ Brandon trade away All Pro LT Jason Peters and replacing him with waiver-wire refugees in 2009 convinced me of the importance of having a solid OL. I think it was 2 or 3 years before the Bills got around to even drafting an actual LT.
4 hours ago, Ethan in Cleveland said:Bills need WR and Edge in the worst way for 2024 but even more so for 2025.
I don't hate taking a C in the first round but they can do that next year. This year getting younger better pass rush and planning for a life without Diggs is the priority.
Prioritizing need over talent sets up a team for failure. A team like the Bills has to make its high draft picks count because the draft is the best place to find the difference makers they need. If there's a WR and/or DE as well as a C on the board that the Bills have graded as first round talents, they should take the one they think is likely to become a stud. If there's a first round C on the board but none of the WRs or DEs left are close to his quality, it's a no-brainer to take the C.
1 hour ago, Paup 1995MVP said:Who was the last great center drafted in the NFL? Not good. But great. Dermonti Dawson or Dwight Stephenson back in the 90's? There have been some good ones. Humphrey for KC is good. But he is not overly dominant. Mitch Morse is pretty good.
We need some very good to great WR's. Josh Allen can escape most pressure, but he can't escape not having elite WR talent. And for those who were really not paying attention during the second half of last season, Stefan Diggs was not playing pro football at anywhere near an elite level.
Maurkise Pouncey went to the Stillers at #18 in 2010. Nine times Pro Bowler, 2 time All Pro. He retired after the 2020 season. The only season he failed to make the Pro Bowl was the season he suffered a season-ending injury in the opening game of the season. He came back the next season to be selected All Pro a second time.
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I'm in!
I've already advocated drafting a center at #28 in a couple of other threads. Even if there's not a run on WRs, the fact is a great center will help Allen more than a good WR, and you're more likely to get a great IOLer than a great WR at #28
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I haven't watched a lot of Fields, but I think he has a skill set reminiscent of Russ in his prime, so they can both work in the same type of offense. My guess is that Russ will start the season with Fields as his backup. If he can't recreate the form he had in Seattle, then Fields will get his shot. Even if Russ excels and Fields doesn't see much playing time, I think that the Stillers may re-sign Fields for the future if he looks good in practice.
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I picked Thanksgiving or Black Friday because I think they've done pretty well on Thanksgiving. Allen and the Bills made the NFL pay attention to them in 2019 when they smacked the Cowboys around 26-15 on Thanksgiving Day.
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2 hours ago, Royale with Cheese said:
This guy is where he needs to be.
I lived in a townhouse for 18 months during covid. A guy that lived a building down was arrested on a sting operation for child pornography. He was released on bail and the HOA couldn't do anything about it. Because he wasn't on the lease, his sister who he lived with was and he hadn't been convicted yet. Courts were delayed because of Covid and they couldn't legally have him removed until he was officially sentenced in court. Insane in the membrane.
I disagreed with you because it's not "insane" to wait until somebody is actually convicted before penalizing him/her. Even perverts have rights.
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11 hours ago, SoCal Deek said:
These are some very odd comments. You’all are aware that Christmas isn’t always on a Wednesday, right?
Most people don't like change. The NFL traditionally has only played on Christmas when it fell on the weekend or Monday. Christmas coming on Wednesday has just magnified the change in NFL policy to play games on Christmas. Obviously, it's too much change for some people.
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2 minutes ago, BillsPride12 said:
It's one thing if Christmas falls on a Saturday or Sunday but to start putting NFL games on a Wednesday because it's Christmas is just another Greedy Cash Grab from the NFL...$$$$$$$$ all they care about
The NFL is a business, that's it's purpose.
The ratings were so high for last year's Christmas game that Christmas Day games were inevitably going to become a fixture on whatever day Christmas falls on.
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I hope he can make a great comeback!
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I'm sure it's not a 50-year-old VW bus conversion.
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4 hours ago, NoHuddleKelly12 said:
Not cool, imho. For those of us with young-ish kids (and lots of relatives who don’t watch football), this feels like a trampling on what is supposed to be a special day set aside to focus on what matters most “in real life.” Hopefully it’s not us!
The NBA has been scheduling games on Christmas for decades. The NFL scheduling games on Christmas is only "different" because you obviously aren't an NBA junkie.
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I would definitely return it. I've had more PCs, lap tops, work stations etc over the years than I can count, and have never have one "pop". I doubt it's an "undocumented feature".
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1 hour ago, julian said:
I thought Levis flashed and looked good at times, that’s what you’re hoping for from a rookie, kinda what Allen did, it might be early to declare they have no QB.
They definitely don’t have a proven QB but I won’t be surprised if he takes a 2nd year jump and cements himself or he falls apart and is outta the league in a year or two.
I find it interesting that many of the same individuals arguing for failed first round QBs to get second or even third chances are so fast to dismiss Levis after his rookie campaign, even though he played better as a rookie than numerous first round QBs in the last few years.
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20 hours ago, Ethan in Cleveland said:
My bias against McDermott is well documented.
Wondering how others view his post-season PC and recent interview calling critics narrow minded. He also stated its hard to win in the NFL. I recall a prior HC pilloried on this site for saying the exact same words.
My take on the PC was that he was very defensive. Without even being asked. He launched into a defense of his tenure as coach even dating back to prior seasons.
And now he calls critics narrow minded for wondering if the Bills will win a SB with him as HC. You have to belive at this point the thought has crossed Beane and Pegula's mind. He's trying to defend at best status quo to perhaps taking a step or two back from 13 seconds.
Then the most ridiculous statement of all.
"We're looking for Josh to really be that face of the franchise, like he's been, and continue to evolve."
I mean WTF. What team has he been coaching? Does he think Hyde and Poyer were the face of the franchise?? Is he trying to lay blame on Allen? Without Allen McDermott might be coaching DBs in Kansas City. Was Allen on the field when the defense crumbled multiple times against Denver,Philadelphia, and others. KC only stopped themselves in the playoff game. If not for a goal line fumble the Bills are not even close in that game.
It may not seem that I'm open minded but I really try. I've gave McDermott praise many times last year.
So what does the board think?
For those that crucified Jauron how do you take the It’s hard to win in the NFL line?
For those that defend McDermott, what do you all think?
Name one NFL HC, current or since the merger, who ever said anything but "it's hard to win in the NFL". McDermott may be defensive-minded and rather conservative but he coaches to win football games. Jauron coached to not lose football games by too much. He was "risk adverse" to the max.
If you think that Dick Jauron has been "crucified", during his tenure 1) you were too young or too far away geographically to watch the Bills often or 2) you never watched the Bills while sober or 3) you are suffering from serious memory loss. I was a Bills season tix holder during part of Jauron's tenure, so I had an "up close and personal" seat to his incompetence.
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17 hours ago, H2o said:
If I trade our 1st next year it would have to be for MHJ, Nabers, or Odunze.None of them will make it to 17 or 18.
Absolutely agree. At the Bills' talent level, they need players who will make significant impact even as rookies. MHJ, Nabers and Odunze are the guys most likely to be studs from the get-go. They are significantly better than the rest of a very deep WR class where potential good WRs are likely to be available even in the second round. If a team can't move up high enough to get one of the very top guys, what's the point of spending next year's first when sitting tight or trading up only a couple of spots can yield a WR of about the same caliber of any other WR they could get at #17 or #18?
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Woody doesn't want to admit that drafting Wilson was a mistake like drafting Darnold in 2018, Sanchez in 2009 and then giving him an extension, and signing Favre in 2008. People might begin to think that he's the problem with the Jests since he's been the owner since 2000 with a succession of GMs.
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17 hours ago, PauleeeWalnuts said:
Feeling indifferent. They haven’t done anything that would indicate they will take the next step and get over the hump next season. Another Divisional Round loss is probable, maybe even a Wild Card knockout. Can’t beat Burrow or Mahomes when it counts and they didn’t get any better this offseason.
What exactly does "take the next step" look like to you? Fire the coaching staff? Sign some big name defensive or offensive player(s)? Trade all their draft picks to move up to #4 or #5 in the draft to take Marvin Harrison, Jr???? Instead of just whining, actually make some suggestions.
Realistically, Beane had/has limited options in significantly improving the team because of the cap. Every team paying a franchise QB shares those limitations to varying degrees. They are going to lose some good players every season, and they're not going to be able to sign many big name talents in their stead. It's a balancing act and a hope that all goes well. The Chiefs, for example, chose to resign Chris Jones and trade away L'Jarius Sneed for very little compensation. It looks like a reasonable move now but what if Jones suffers a season-ending injury in September, and the Chiefs' D struggles to stop teams, especially in the red zone?
5 hours ago, GASabresIUFan said:I’d give Beane a solid B for this off-season so far.
He was facing a huge uphill battle to get under the cap (a problem of his own making). However, with a little help from the NFL, Miller and Knox he managed to get the job done with minimal damage to the starting group.
With the retention of Jones and Epenesa, Beane brings back 17 of 22 starters on O & D. On offense starts Morse and Davis depart and on defense Hyde, Poyer and Floyd depart, but Floyd is replaced by Espenesa.
Reviewing the major areas of change:
OL - Out with Morse and Bates. In with the Clapp. McGovern moves to center and Edwards moves to from back up guard to starter. The line was a major strength last year and could be again if McGovern can replace Morse effectively.
WR - Out with Davis, Harry and Sherfield. In with Hollins and Samuel. Samuel and Hollins are upgrades over Harty and Sherfield, but neither stretches the field nor are they a replacement for Davis. Samuel is a slot receiver whose numbers, such as Yards/catch, catch%, YAC/catch, and explosive plays, are all inferior to the slot receiver we already have in Shakir. When they draft a boundary receiver, Samuel will ultimately be relegated to our 5th best receiving option. Not sure spending $8 million on the 5th option is a wise cap decision. That said this group is deeper and more talented than last year.
D Line - Out - Floyd, Settle, Ford, Phillips and Lawson. In - Johnson and Toohill. Obviously, we are still down a few players and this is where the biggest questions lie. Can Miller, Epenesa or a draft pick step-up to replace the loss of Floyd? Can Jones stay healthy? If the answers are yes, then the line will be fine. I’m also interested to see what Jonathan can do.
Safety - Out with Hyde (?) and Poyer. In with Edwards. Rapp becomes a starter. Going from aging stars Poyer and Hyde to Rapp and Edwards is a downgrade. Beane says he’s open to Hyde returning. I’d be happier with a stud early in the draft like Bullard, Bullock, Kinchens, or Hicks. Beane needs to invest here finally.
Overall the two lines and the safeties have been downgraded on paper this off-season, but I’m not overly concerned about the lines. The safeties do concern me. Edwards and Rapp only played 50% of their team’s snaps last season for a reason. Each guy only started because of injuries and neither graded out all that well. PFF graded both at 56.5 & 56.4 respectively.
Only the WR group has been upgraded, but not in the area of greatest need.
The bottomline is with the starters mostly intact, the team will be very good assuming they stay healthy. The offense should be more dynamic with Samuel and assuming they draft a deep threat. Hopefully Miller, Epenesa and Jonathan step up on the D line to actually make it as effective as last year and that McGovern plays as well as Morse did to anchor the OLine.Excellent post. I like posters who provide some reasons for their stands rather than simply complaining or praising.
Depending upon how the draft falls out, I would not be opposed to the Bills taking one of the two centers projected as first rounders at #28 or even higher if they feel they need to move up to get one, but I'm always in favor of BPA because the Bills need difference makers not just "good" players in order to improve. A lights-out C can help Allen more than a "pretty good" outside WR who probably can be had in the 2nd round in this deep WR draft. If one of the highly rated defensive players falls or the Bills move up to get one, I'm good with that, too.
I think Beane has filled the gaping holes in FA with an eye to drafting BPA in the first round in order to get a potential stud regardless of positon.
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On 3/23/2024 at 1:52 PM, Virgil said:
As we get ready for the draft, and I get ready for the TSW Mock Draft staring next weekend, there's been a lot of conversation about needing to draft a wide receiver early. While I don't disagree with this, I do wonder what type of receiver we are looking for and what impact will they make on the offense. Before I can make that decision, there's a few things that need to be considered
- Diggs is under contract with a sizeable hit for this year and next. We could release him next season, but it would incur a 22 mil dead cap hit and only save us 5 million. Diggs has also gone on record saying that he will not restructure his contract to help the Bills cap space.
- If we bring in a capable number one receiver, how does Diggs handle being the number 2 guy? Emotional support isn't high on his capacities.
- We are stacked at inside receivers. Between Shakir, Knox, Kincaid, and Samuel, the slot position is locked up and deep.
- How do we even utilize a receiver that's not Diggs or a slot? My biggest criticism of Brady is that I don't feel like he really took advantage of the mismatches we could have created with two Tight Ends and doesn't scheme players open very well. McVay is a great example of a coach who gets people like Kupp wide open. Brady doesn't seem to be able to do that
- Was Davis' decline due to his ability or playcalling? To me, it's a little of both. Davis had some mental blunders in both routes and drops, but he was a big body speed guy, that on paper, most of us would clamor to draft again. So even if we get another player like Gabe, will we be able to utilize him?
- Free Agent Wide Receivers in 2025 look rough. There's isn't a #1 guy that will be available
- Some mock drafts only have 5 wide receivers going in the first round. If that's the case, there will be some great talent available in round 2 that is more than capable of becoming WR1
With all that being said, do we need to prioritize a receiver that can become out WR 1, knowing Diggs is here for the next two years, or do we just need another weapon that can compliment what we have? Even with Davis being MIA in most games, Josh put up good numbers with who we had.
To me, the secret answer is what Beane did with Samuel. Samuel is documented to have the 3rd best separation in the NFL on cut routes, something badly needed on this team. Beane also wanted to bring in Harty for a similar goal. I think Beane wants quick guys that can create space, that Brandy can use wherever he wants on the field.
So what receiver, if any, needs to be a priority? A 6'+ receiver who can eventually take over for Diggs in 2 years? A burner, like Hill, who we can move around in motion a lot to create mismatches from motion?
My answer, and I vomit saying this, is best player available. If that happens to be a receiver that can lineup outside, then okay. But if there is a difference maker at another position available or a receiver that is only going to be lumped into our slot guys, then I go with the difference maker at another position. If this draft is so deep at receiver, I might wait and get someone in the mid rounds with the potential of a #1 guy, and if it doesn't work out, we have two more years to draft the right person.
Here are ESPN's rankings of WR's with a grade of 80 or higher. Only one player is shorter than 6'. Quite a few of these guys could easily be there in the second round:
- Marvin Harrison - 94 - 6'3"
- Malik Nabers - 93 - 6'
- Rome Odunze - 92 - 6'3"
- Adonai Mitchell - 90 - 6'2"
- Brian Thomas Jr - 90 - 6'3"
- Xavier Legette - 89 - 6'1"
- Ladd McConkey - 88 - 6'
- Xavier Worth - 87 - 5'11"
- Keon Coleman - 87 - 6'3"
- Troy Franklin - 85 - 6'2"
- Devontez Walker - 84 - 6'2"
- Jermaine Burton - 82 - 6'
- Ricky Pearsall - 6'1"
Excellent post.
I think that the Bills are at the point where grabbing a real difference maker in the first round regardless of position will pay the biggest dividends in the future, especially when the depth of the WR class means that there will be good WRs available in the second. I think that Beane's moves in FA suggest that he's leaning that way himself; he's filled the glaring holes so he has the freedom to take somebody he likes best, especially if one of the two centers projected as first rounders happen to fall.
If the Bills don't go WR in the first round, I wouldn't be surprised if they traded up in the second to grab one.
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Haason Reddick Traded to Jets
in The Stadium Wall
Posted
All four of those QBs were considered likely to go in the top ten. In fact, Rodgers was expected to go #1 overall in 2005. I think that QBs that aren't/weren't considered likely to go at the top half of the first round and who were drafted in the second half of the first round are those I'd consider "lesser QBs": Lamar Jackson (2018), Paxton Lynch (2016), Johnny Manziel (2014), Teddy Bridgewater (2014), EJ Manuel (2013), Brandon Weeden (2012), Tim Tebow (2010), Joe Flacco (2009), Brady Quinn (2007), Jason Campbell (2005), and JP Losman (2004). Only Flacco and Jackson have become successful NFL starters. Bridgewater had a decent career.
In the 2024 draft, the four QBs talked about as likely to go at the top of first round are Williams, Daniels, Maye and McCarthy.