WideNine

Despite the highlight reel someone pieced together for him catching passes downfield, I don't expect him to be much of a downfield threat. We have TEs for that. Opposing teams forgetting about him usually blocking and him slipping out for a quick few yards to move the chains I could see.

Also, I am pretty sure that it may not be particularly easy to find a field stretcher, with good hands and catch radius, who is unselfish - what I mean is that he can play in an offense that distributes the ball and balances pass with the run without throwing a sideline or social media tantrum, that will be a good locker room presence, that also has early round grades. There is likely more to it than some seem to be suggesting than just take a WR with talent early.

I have stated before that there was a lot of meat left on the bone as far as scheming Kincaid open and Allen connecting with him. I hope they worked in the offseason on that timing and precision route running as they just seemed to be always a tick off and Kincaid was left making too many circus catches. They get that figured out it will go a long way to adding more production - heck KC marched to a SB one season with virtually no WRs of note and it was just the Jason Kelce and Mahomes show. We forget about the coaching turnover an organization has year over year - it is the nature of the business. I think this team misses Chad Hall a bit when it comes to WR development - he was a good coach in that regards that players seemed to connect with. They also realized that the defensive line took a step back last season when Eric Washington took his gig in Chicago and OBD took steps to address the coaching talent needs around the DL in anticipation of an infusion of rookies and FA players that will need to be coached up or acclimate to our defensive playbook.

Gives this kid a year to ramp up with some depth. We have not had a physical blocking TE since Lee Smith. Not sure Daboll, or Dorsey really would have gotten too much out of that kind of role in their offenses, but Joe Brady likes creating mismatches at the LOS with personnel groupings, alignment, and motion and seems to be on the same page with Kromer.

I don't think Allen's hand/wrist injury was from getting beat up in the pocket. I think it happened when he was doing a super Josh thing earlier in the year on a scramble. Easy to reaggrevate though as I think we saw it as a nagging issue throughout the season from contact as benign as Josh breaking a fall when pushed, etc. There seemed to be an epidemic of hand/wrist injuries across the team last year. As far as the Cook situation there is no sense getting wrapped around the axle and we have some solid backups in Davis and Johnson and they both have good hands and decent speed. Worse case is that Cook plays out this season committed to showcasing his value so he can hit free agency with the best negotiating position possible.

Did Cooper really do that much? How many TDs did he reel in? Granted, I will always love his unscripted lateral back to Allen that led to a rushing score as that was pretty fun. We still scored the 2nd most points across the league and I believe Allen was one of the least sacked QBs and the INTs were way down too. Not a bad recipe for wins if you are not just looking for style points.

Also, Allen did not take a beating last year waiting for things to uncover deep. We were balanced and moved the ball pretty consistently against some tough defenses. We also have some pretty fast receivers that we really did not unleash as well as we could last year for a variety of reasons and I think the addition of Palmer will get some of the focus off of Shakir who was drawing a lot of attention down the stretch.

Just add that bar code on the back of that head...perfect.

From all accounts a beast blocking, a nasty streak and the best in this class for those tangibles. This brings something we have not had from that position for quite a while. Finesse route-running and receiving TEs we already have a-plenty. This fills a positional need that may allow for some more flexibility out of similar personnel grouping, or think of those short yardage and goal line packages where the Bills bring in Alec Anderson as that 6th lineman where you add this guy too. He should be fun to watch and be a great asset to outside or split zone runs and special teams too. I am pretty excited about what these new guys and FAs may add to our Bills who were already pretty good last year...with the exception of those defensive gaps Beane really focused on shoring up.

Truth.

If folks get a chance check out the Locked on Bills squad with Jerry O commenting. He really sheds some light from a player's perspective on the injury, Walker's toughness playing through pain his last season, and perhaps how confident OBD felt that they could rehab him to a much better place. Made a great parallel with Spencer Brown, tall guy, a bit stiff and imbalanced, with back issues that they rehabbed and conditioned to be a player who could play at a high level and one they locked up for a longer term deal. A good positive spin, where if the kid really is committed to the NFL-level rehab and training program the Bills can provide, not only will he make the pain more manageable, but also be able to tap into his pre-injury potential. I wish him the best for both our team needs and for his own well being.

Well they did trade away a first for Diggs and for a few seasons that worked pretty well I think. I expect they will invest again at some point in a vertical boundary receiver that can stress cover 0 (or cover 1 - Happy Days call out earlier in the thread). Assume with defensive needs and a limited pool of speedsters with hands the board did not fall that way this year.

Some folks act like OBD had a lot of options to pass on a deep defensive class with all the expiring contracts across our D-line. Addressing the line and DB position was not optional. As far as the doom and gloom time will tell this season. We are not the only AFC team that hits the KC wall...and likely one of the few that is close enough to topple them. One would think we had a sick offense last year. We did not. More than a few games where Allen got to sit and relax as his backup closed out the games. Teams that know us better play us better, but that is not unique to the Bills.

I agree they have to get it right, but they brought in a lot of help in free agency for the D as well Granted, there are the suspensions, but those assets should be available down the stretch. A field stretcher would be nice, but I do think we have man-beaters the can use scheme and routes to create separation, not to mention how good we were at running the ball. All teams have gaps, it is how well our staff coach up the talent we have and put them in position to succeed. Our biggest obstacle has been KC, and their ability to lock up their conference, rest their starters, and game plan for us each year. Even then it has been really close...maybe more mental now than talent gap...tough to say.

It's not like this team has no speed and it looks like the Bills drafted a DB that should be good at negating a burner from opposing teams without having to leave safeties deep. Samuel is not exactly slow, but the turf toe really limited what he could do. Palmer is an instant upgrade on the boundary and honestly Allen and Kincaid left a lot of meat on the bone with the lack of chemistry. In regards to Kincaid it was not the personal connection as teammates, just anticipation and ball placement has been a tick off between them to unlock the potential that is there. This offense will likely be productive, and if the defense can maximize the investments OBD made this offseason we will be taking about less 3rd down conversions by opposing teams (our D sucked allowing 3rd down conversions and getting off the field last year) providing even more scoring opportunities for our offense.

Especially how quick they were to distance themselves from the punt god. OBD did not say that kid was guilty, just that it was a distraction for the team and they needed to part ways so he could take care of his personal legal business. I think or hope they would have done their due diligence this time prior to drafting a kid this high. Will trust OBD and how they value culture.

Rest in peace bro.

This. Some fans think we are talking about a Ted Washington, but that's not it. But someone like a younger version of DaQuan who can attack the A-gaps and force the double teams, sometimes split the doubles and collapse the pocket. Someone who can read leverage and anchor on inside runs...not rocket science. This kid has back problems and some of that may be due to how imbalanced his frame is... He's top-heavy and needs work to strengthen that lower body so he is not trying to do everything from up top. Our strength and conditioning team has some work ahead, but could mold this kid into something special if he is willing.

Folks will say this, but if one blocker can put him on skates, and pushed him out of the A gaps how is he attacking a gap? I hope I am wrong as he is a Bill now, but I do think he is a project and hope he can be developed. DL development has not been this Orgs strength to date, but they brought in some new coaches on the defense we will see.

With all the solid 1-techs the Bills go for a project. Big. Yeah, but playing nose is about leverage and this guy plays tall and small. Gets rooted out of gaps and turned around. Not sure what made the Bills go that's our guy. Maybe there is more to the story, injuries or a high ceiling they see. Just an interesting roll of the dice. You don't look at this guy's tape and say yeah, were set when D. Jones leaves.

Totally agree, why can't the Bills brass scout decent 1-tech players. Sure this guy has size, but look at the tape - he gets rooted out of gaps even when blocked by one dude. Gets turned around, plays with poor leverage and gets stonewalled. Not sure if the motor is there from play to play either. Really poor lower body strength which does not pair well with the fact that he plays too tall with poor pad level. Sure, you don't want just a space eater, but a guy that can anchor and force a double-team. Someone who is gap-sound and can play the run and also compress the pocket on cage rushes.... Really feel that Bean has done a decent job in this draft, but this pick just made me think "what about this guy says future replacement for DaQuan Jones?". Bean and his scouts seem to have a 1-tech DT glitch where they undervalue the very thing that frees up their other DL players and LBs to wreak havoc

Yeah, that 3-down back argument is a key sticking point in regards to where Cook wants to get paid - being able to understand protections and block on passing downs and not just whiff or be an insignificant speed bump. To be fair, the early critiques of Cook (too much dancing behind the line, not lowering his pads to run through contact when needed) he banished pretty well last year and really was fantastic with the ball in his hands and not afraid to pop the pads. But he has a slighter build so not sure how much he can anchor and improve in pass protection. If he does take a big step forward in that area and is trusted to stay on the field on more obvious passing downs, he would be a very complete back and probably deserving of more money - not sure if we would have enough cap to retain him though. I would not be upset if he felt compelled to test the market, as some folks pointed out running backs in the NFL (in general) are not getting big long-term deals and most do not have a long shelf life before they start to decline. A player has to make hay when he can. I do think we have an excellent offensive line that is very capable of creating holes for our running backs to exploit - would be interesting to see the metrics of how many yards our running backs got before contact last season. Regardless, Cook has given us that breakaway speed that has been missing from our backfield for such a long time. We have had good running backs, but we always knew they were not going to break the long one and score. I can still easily recall last season when Cook broke free of the attempted "hair tackle" and just sped away from pursuit. If we have to lose him, Beane just has to ensure we get something in return - trade or some form of compensatory picks.

Moving him during the draft is a possibility; although I have heard that there is a decent crop of RBs available in the draft and that may limit deals, but who knows. Could be a team misses on their guy at RB and are looking for the traits that Cook brings to the field. We will see how this plays out, but hoping it does not become a distraction

I believe it is the final year of his deal. The Bills would love to pay everyone, but that is not realistic. I also think they frown a bit when players try to negotiate deals in the domain of social media. Either way, I agree that he is elite with the ball in his hands and should have a great year if he is a Bill and is playing for the market next year.

With the recent signing of defensive coaches and in particular someone to assist with the defensive backs and defensive line, it is not a stretch to assume they will invest via the draft in those areas and took steps to get the right guys in the house who can coach up those players better and faster than what we have seen over recent seasons. Going out on a limb here, but with Rebrovich coming in to assist with the d-line and both Nielson and Pellegrino having strong DB resume's OBD seems to be stocking up on the coaches that can get the job done in those areas. Just my opinion, but I think it makes sense... then I would expect them targeting someone who can stretch the field with hands to challenge some of the matchups we had at the boundary. I feel good about our depth at TE and OL, even our depth at RB is not terrible although I would hate to lose Cook. The kid had a great year so of course he would look to parlay that into $. Depth at LB is never a bad idea with Milano usually dinged up and that position is one where we have a lot of injuries over the course of a season. I know there are folks that want us to break the bank on getting a premier veteran DL prospect - I struggle with just the idea of being in cap jail for many seasons like we had with the Von Miller deal. I always prefer to build through the draft, but who knows if Garret really wants to be on a contender he should know that the Bills have been knocking on the door for a while now.