Ethan in Cleveland

When is the QB not the main ingredient? I'm in no way suggesting TT is the future in San Diego. Hell he could get beat out by the rookie they draft. But if he stays as error free as he has been in the past, he gives the Chargers a shot to be competitive for a WC spot late into the season. As for my RB prediction I was way off in yards but correct in which player would have a better year. McCoy posted 4.6 YPC which is a full 1 YPC more than Gore. Gore had 130 more yards but on 60+ more carries. Only he and Andy Reid know why he didn't get that many carries as the season wore on. Fumbles? Seems odd as he was never a chronic fumbler. Hope he gets a chance somewhere.

I could see Denver making a leap too. But I'm not sold on any of their skill position players on offense and I really liked Noah Fant in 2019 draft. Agree Lock looked like he was on the right path but it will be wait and see just as it was with Josh.

Roman and TT had NFL #1 rushing attack in 2015, and TT had 568 yards rushing and 5.5YPA . TT made the ProBowl (after the top 4 or 5 guys dropped out I thinkt) but was never anywhere close to what Lamar Jackson was this past year (1000+ yards and almost 7 YPA).

4th place schedule, 10th easiest strength of schedule, 9 of their 11 losses were by 7 points or less with a QB that threw 1.25 INT/game They need several pieces to improve but I think they will win at least 8 games next year.

Rivers threw 20 picks in 16 games last year. Tyrod has 20 interceptions in 70 career games. They have a good WR group but need work on their line. No doubt he is a placeholder for Tua or Herbert who they will draft at #6. But if they improve the o-line TT will win 8 or 9 games next year in a division with Las Vegas and Denver.

What does this comment mean? Is he cowardly? Not have a brain? Not have a heart? Does he like to wear women's shoes? Or does he melt in the rain?

This is excellent work. Very nicely done. I would put Milloy over Williams as a true SS. Maybe add Sam Gash as a FB?

Christie was in the SuperBowl and still holds the record for longest SuperBowl FG at 54 yards

If Allen improves, then this team is only 2-3 players away. Two edge pass rushers and an elite WR. I'd agree on DE in the first round but if they got an instant impact WR with a trade I could live with it. If Allen regresses it won't matter what they do.

1. Murphy - hate this guy but as others have said they need bodies at DE. I'd try to restructure as opposed to cut him. 2. Kroft - no reason to cut him. He will be fine paired with Knox. They would need to find another TE elsewhere like Howrd, Ebron, etc and they will cost as much or more 3. Smith - good bye 4. Yeldon - should have been on the filed over Gore. We all know it but folks on this board keep defending McD's game day decisions. His contract is not that much. Keep him as a veteran and add a fourth or firth round draft pick to the mix. 5. Sweeney - nobody cuts 7th round second year players for cost savings. His contract is so small it is barely above the 51st cut off for the salary cap calculation. If he is not the third TE then that is fine but it will be based on ability not money. As others pointed out. I think Long will be let go and they will find another interior guy in FA or the draft. With Feliciano able to back up center Long's days are numbered. Haushka finished 2020 strong and I don;t see them cutting him unless he is beaten out in training camp. I would be fine with drafting both a PK and punter in round 5 or 6 for camp competition- they have 5 picks in those two rounds

At first I was going to say trade a number 1 for a proven pass rusher. But after further consideration I don't think that is the right move. The money difference is too much between a rookie deal and a star player on their second contract. Even if the first rounder is only a capable player you get your money's worth. Adding that a first round DE can contribute immediately I think the best route is DE or Edge in the first round. Now if you can get a star WR with a second round pick, then I'd be fine with that even if I had to shell out the dollars. WR's take longer to make an impact and the Bills need a guy that can contribute from day one.

Why? It is a reasonable theoretical question and a good thread so far.

They have $80 million in cap space. They can do both. The upside of the tag is it is only one year and no long term commitment or prorated signing bonus that hurts the cap in 2021 and beyond. Personally I would let Phillips walk and favor keeping Lawson. But I think in the end both will be gone. It would nice to get some compensation, but probably the best hey can do is comp picks. No way Lawson takes a team discount after the way he has been treated by this staff and regime. Phillips on the other hand may test the waters and find out the market isn't as high as he thinks and signing back with the Bills who have treated him well may be best step. It's amazing the duplicity of McD here. Phillips was playing better than the hot shot rookie so Phillips started. Lawson has been better than Murphy every day they have been here and yet Murphy kept getting the starts until the very end of 2019.

Using the tag as a tool to control the situation has long been underutilized by this organization. Belichick used the tag on his PK twice and a back-up QB. They have the cap space to apply the tag and still be able to sign other free agents. Even if Lawson or Phillips played 2020 under the tag amount they would still have plenty of money to spend. I of course don't think either is worth that amount of money but being able to avoid a long term commitment, a signing bonus, and the dead cap hit if they were to be released later makes a lot of sense - even if the one year amount of cash is higher than you would want to pay.

You think that is his worth? I think Tampa could get higher than a 5th for Howard. Or that Bill's TE situation is good enough to not invest more than a 5th? That may be a reasonable argument. Knox and Kroft may be enough at TE for 2020.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/28640475/32-nfl-players-use-fresh-start-offseason-qbs-injured-stars#BUF Three interesting tight ends on this list. I loved OJ Howard as a draft prospect. David Njoku and Eric Ebron are interesting too. If these guys have truly fallen out of favor I would give a 3rd round pick for Howard or Njoku to pair with Knox and then let Kroft go. Ebron has never lived up to the hype so I would pass on him. A few guards on the list are intriguing too. I'd be fine if Spain was signed. However if he walks and they want to keep Ford at RT, Peat and Glasgow look like decent options to target. And then there is QB. I'd probably stand pat with Barkley, but noone really knows how he has looked in practice. The Jets game was unfair as it was our number 2s against their number 1s. That said I would not mind bringing in Marriota on a one or two year deal. I don't think he will get signed to be a starter anywhere and his skill set is similar to Allen. This means the offense doesn't change much if Allen missed some time. I'd pass on Dalton.

It's only relevant if they dont learn from their mistakes. McD let Gilmore go, passed on Mahomes, and Beane traded away more talent than he brought in. Beane admitted the 2018 team was not competitive. So they wasted a season and multiple draft picks to get Allen and Edmund's. Their fates are all intertwined. So far Beane has shown that he seems to overpay in free agency, drafts reasonably well but the jury is still out on most of their picks, and gets higher compensation back in trades than would be expected.

Sunk costs and opportunity cost. It is basic economics and accounting at this point. Beane and McD were so desperate to rid themselves of Dareus that they went into salary cap hell and then overspent on Star to replace him. But that is the past and his dead cap hit and the cost to replace him far outweighs keeping him on the roster. The fact they can lower his salary a little bit helps and if he stays healthy they only need to find a backup 3 technique DT for the next year or two. J Phillips will leave. They don't need him with Oliver on the roster. They need two starting edge players in this offseason. I'd prefer a DE in free agency and an OLB in the first round.

100% agree. Want him on a short term deal as you suggested. 3 years tops. Make the first two guaranteed and hope you get two great years. I have no interest in Cooper on a 5 or 6 year massive deal. That would eat up too much cap needed in 2022 and beyond

Beane signed an injured PED busted Murphy. Kroft had injury history and so did Morse. Spencer Long as well. There is nothing in Beane history to say he would avoid signing Green if he is cleared to play.

The author is correct. NFL fans have to live with a predetermined schedule and the risk of dud games or the inconvenience of travel and gameday that a switch from Sunday to Monday might cause. It would be a nightmare for folks like me that have to travel long distances for a home or away game. Bills fans travel well and this change could make that harder. But given enough lead time it may be possible. I'm on the west coast, have a full time career that rarely gets me home before 6 or 630 pacific time. I rarely watch a game unless it is a great matchup.

I think the team blocking rate is probably accurate. For the most part Dawkins held his own. Spain was stellar in pass blocking. Morse and Feleciano were ok. As this thread has pointed out, the real issue is RT. Either Ford gets better or they need an upgrade in talent.

You are partially correct. He wasn't considered a top candidate but no one was shocked that he got hired so quickly either. Rex and Greg Roman built a top 5 scoring offense. He was perfectly fine with clock management and game decisions. He should have been told he can be HC but Schwartz is staying as DC. Rex should have been smart enough to just add a few wrinkles to a top 5 defense. Pegs blew it. And Whaley never got a chance to pick his HC

1. Toronto games 2. Russ Brandon as GM 3. Marv Levy as GM 4. Hiring Rex Ryan 5. Wasting draft picks repeatedly to move up the draft

Yes. But why do the players have to honor the contract? If the market says they are worth more, why shouldn't they try to get paid?