Billl

You want the wealthiest owners to just buy up the best QBs and then have a full cap to work with? That’s what would happen.

So you're of the opinion that these two drafts are roughly equal? Clyde Edwards-Helaire Willie Gay Jr Lucas Niang L'Jarius Sneed Michael Danna BoPete Keyes vs AJ Epenesa Zack Moss Gabe Davis Tyler Bass Isaiah Hodgins Dane Jackson

Their passing defense isn’t even remotely bad. They’re 7th in yards per attempt allowed, 2nd in sacks, and their top 4 CBs are Sneed, McDuffie (R), Watson (R), and Williams (R).

Are you high? Sneed is a top 15 CB in the league. That’s an A+ pick for a 4th rounder. Danna was never a starter, but he’s been a huge contributor who was incredibly raw but is turning into a key piece on a team headed to the Super Bowl. Even Keyes made the roster of a Super Bowl winning team and saw playing time. He was the 23 pick in the 7th round. Jackson would have been a better pick, but that’s not an F.

As long as we’re talking about things people don’t want to hear, Whaley was WAY more responsible for the recent run of success than he’s given credit for, arguably more than Beane. On his way out the door, he drafted White and Milano while stacking up the picks that allowed Beane to trade up for Allen. Yes, Beane chose correctly and deserves credit for that, but really his success boiled down to choosing Allen over Rosen. Darnold and Mayfield were off the board. Had the Browns or Jets taken Allen, which easily could have happened given the fact that he was in the discussion, Beane would be long gone by now. He’s had 4 drafts in which to pick players without the benefit of extra first round picks, and he’s come up mostly empty.

Who is the last TE taken in the first round that turned into a star? For whatever reason, it’s the biggest crapshoot of any position. I’d never take one in the first round.

If you think the defense that played the Bengals last Sunday had more talent on it than the Ravens, we’re just going to disagree.

Here are the players who played the most defensive snaps against the Bengals: Lawson Rousseau Oliver Settle Milano Edmunds Johnson Elam White Marlowe Poyer Poyer and White were clearly less than 100%. There is not a DC in the history of the league who could take that group of players and consistently slow down Burrow, Mixon, Chase, Higgins, Boyd, and Hurst. Had Von, Hyde, Poyer, and White all been available and close to 100%, it’s a different conversation. Instead, Frasier brought a knife to a gun fight.

2023 is likely going to be the team’s last run at a championship before a serious re-tooling is required. This is not the time to overhaul the front office and cause massive disruption. At this point, you’re pot committed. If it fails, then you can have serious talks about going a different direction. The organization went all in this year, and I have a feeling Beane is going to do some serious borrowing from the future in order to do it one more time. If it works, he’s untouchable. If it fails, it’s not going to be his problem to deal with anyway. IMO, the franchise is past the point of being able to press for a championship in the short term while working to build a sustainable long-term contender. It’s become an either/or proposition. In the past 5 years, Beane has shown that he’s adept at making moves to improve the team in the short-term (trading for Diggs and signing Von). He’s been inept when it comes to building for the future, though. Might as well lean into it at this point and throw a Hail Mary in 2023 with the current staff. If it’s a disaster, you strip the roster down and build for 2026 with a 29 year old Allen who will still be very much in his prime.

Something about Orlando Brown brings out the stupidity in Chiefs fans. He's a top 10 LT and would be a huge upgrade. He left Baltimore because he refuses to play RT which is a shame because he's elite at that position. The only way he leaves Kansas City is if he completely prices himself out. Given their relative cap situations, there's no realistic scenario in which Buffalo could afford him in that scenario.

How long does Beane get to ride the wave of funding a great QB with the 7th pick in the 2018 draft? That was 5, soon to be 6 drafts ago. His draft record since then has been abysmal. He's done a nice job with trades and FA signings, but drafting is the most important part of building a championship team.

On a similar note, it seems like fans hate the idea of trading up in the draft, but I feel a lot better watching my GM make a move to go get the guy they covet in the first round. It beats the hell out of watching another team trade up in front of your team and snag the player they think you were targeting. If you have to choose on missing out on the first round player you really wanted (because he didn’t quite fall to you) or the third round player you wanted (because you used the third round pick to move up in the first round), you’d be crazy not to take the latter every time. Besides, if a team really believes in a guy in the third round, they can always find a way to trade for that pick. Trading back in the first round is basically hoping that you’ll be smart enough to draft a guy that all the other GMs overlooked. Go get the guy you really want early and then let the draft come to you in the later rounds.

Such as?

If someone offers a 3rd or 4th round pick for him, that’s a no-brainer.

In Dorsey’s first season, he coordinated one of the best offenses in football. Frasier has consistently coordinated one of the top scoring defenses. Beane hasn’t drafted a pro bowl player in 4 years. One of these things is not like the other. To the extent that fingers need to be pointed after a great season that ended with a loss to a more talented team, they should be pointed at Beane. He’s done a lot of really good things, but his drafts since 2018 have sucked out loud.

What’s the deal with Elam? I liked him as a prospect, and in the limited amount of time I’ve seen him play, he looks like he belongs. Has anyone ever really said why he didn’t play more?

That’s exactly what happened. Problem is, White was overmatched by Chase. Chase plowed through White and got a first down, but he was stopped short of the goal line. The Bills lost the battle, but they were able to hold the Bengals out of the end zone and made them settle for a FG…the exact same result as if White had made the tackle. If Frazier had asked White to press Chase, the most likely result is that Chase beats him for a TD. The same physical mismatch that allowed Chase to drag him for a first down would have given him the advantage against White’s press. However, in the event that White had stepped up and made a great play…the Bengals would still would have kicked a FG. Buffalo needed a stop there, and they got one. They held Cincy to a FG, and then only allowed 10 more points the rest of the game. That’s not bad. You can beat the Bengals when you allow 27 points. You can’t beat them when you score 10. Leslie Frazier couldn’t shut down one of the best offenses in football without Miller, Hyde, Hamlin, or DaQuan and with White and Poyer at considerably less than 100%. That’s not surprising. Scoring 10 points was the surprise.

The last 2 Superbowls were won by QBs ages 34 and 44. The last 2 Superbowls were won by QBs ages 34 and 44.

Players line up behind the first down marker on nearly every play. White was 3 yards behind the marker. Chase was lined up 6 yards from it. White had to close 3 yards in the amount of time it took Burrow to catch the snap, throw to Chase, and for Chase to run forward 6 yards. White did so in plenty of time. (That’s a coaching win). White missed the tackle because Chase big-brothered him. That’s not a coaching failure. The Bengals players were bigger, faster, and stronger than the Bills players all day long. Some of that was due to being without Von and Hyde and White and Poyer being less than 100%, but in the end it was their Jimmies beating your Joes. No amount of firing the guy who presided over the number one and two scoring defenses the past two seasons would have changed that fact.

Why would anyone want him? He averaged 4.4 ypc in the running game and 4.4 yards per target in the passing game. Add to that the fact that he had 352 touches last year (the exact same number as his rookie season), and he's likely to get hurt again.

Allen, Miller, Diggs, and Milano alone are due for $53,000,000 worth of salary increases in 2023. The days of being buyers are probably over for a bit. I’m just not sure where you’re going to find $15,000,000 for a WR on the wrong side of 30. It’s time to start drafting well. Buffalo had the 4th oldest roster coming into the season, and that was prior to adding Von Miller who turns 34 in March.

From a coaching standpoint, yes. White was in position to tackle Chase short of a first down. That’s all a coach can do. If your best CB misses a tackle, you’ve got a personnel issue.

Just noticed the emoji…I retract my previous statement.

That has nothing to do with Hamlin.

That’s great and all, but sometimes one guy is just better than the other guy. Chase is a far superior player to White at this point in White’s career. White had a chance to tackle him short of the first down. Frazier put him in the position to make a winning play. Chase trucked him. Not much you can do about that as a DC. Cincy’s best offensive players (Burrow, Chase, Higgins, Boyd, Mixon, etc.) are simply better than Buffalo’s best defensive players. Milano is a good player, but when he’s easily the best guy on your defense, you aren’t stopping a team like the Bengals. That’s not a coaching deficiency. It’s a talent (and health) imbalance.