BigAl2526

I agree with most of your evaluation. II think it is a bit of a stretch to label Mike Edwards and Taylor Rapp as a solid pair of safeties. I kind of like what Edwards brings to the team. He's been a part time starter (starting 28 games over 5 seasons) and brings a decent skill set to the Bills. Taylor Rapp is a big hitter, but has sub par coverage ability and lacks the speed to hang with the better receivers in the league. Fortunately, I think Bishop has a lot of upside and might start before the end of the season.

The guys you're thinking of are all best suited to the slot. Samuel can play on the outside, though he's probably a better fit inside. What Buffalo lacks is a true X receiver with speed.

Buffalo has been quietly building a linebacking corps of players who are smart, instinctive and can all run: Milano, Bernard, Dorian Williams, Baylon Spector. Bernard needed a year to learn McDermott's system, but had a terrific sophomore season. 2023 was Dorian Williams' redshirt season. Spector also started slow, but had some good games in 2023 when pressed into service. Hopefully, Ulofoshio can follow the same path. He's got enough speed.

They needed some quality depth on the interior of the offensive line. If he can push to start, so much the better.

Taron Johnson is 27 years old. Quality players tend to enter their "prime" at about that age. If Johnson has a typical career, he should have a good few years ahead of him. At the very least, he should be a solid special teams contributor and insurance, should Johnson get hurt early in his career. If he proves to be capable early on, he can get some reps and enable Johnson to stay fresh. Of course, he could eventually provide some protection if Johnson comes due for a cap busting type contract.

My guess is the Bills will want him to put on a little weight and see if he can maintain his quickness/athleticism. 306 lbs is a tad light for an NFL guard/tackle.

He's a rotational guy in McDermott's system. He might be getting 40% of the defensive reps by season's end. That's not half bad for a 3 round pick.

The fact that he won't count against the practice squad limit means everything. The Bills can stash him there for a couple years while he learns how to play American football, and then decide how much more time and effort they want to invest in him. Unlike Christian Wade, he's also young enough that taking some time to learn how to play will still leave him enough years to have a decent career if he is able to make the transition.

There were other backs available who combined both more speed and better size. I assume Beane knew all about them and chose to draft Davis instead. I figure they must have known what they were doing.

At this point the DE's on the roster (besides the new guys) consist of Von Miller, (even though he's listed as a LB) Greg Rousseau, Kingsley Jonathon, A J Epenesa, and Kameron Cline. That's hardly a crowded room. Von Miller and Rousseau are the likely starters though nobody knows how effective Miller will be at 35 years old and recovering from an injury that rendered him close to useless last season. Epenesa is going to have a roster spot. After that there's not much. Kingsley Jonathon seems to have a bit of juice, but hasn't really done anything. Cline is more of a DE/DT tweener who is never going to do much in the way of pressuring the passer and generating sacks. It looks to me as if there is plenty of room for one of the kids to make the team. Solomon looks like the obvious favorite over Ugwoegbu based on college production, though Ugwoegbu has decent measurables.

There were no elite safeties in the 2024 draft. If you wanted a quality safety with the polish to step in and make you not miss Poyer of Hyde, then you needed to shell out significant dollars for another of the free agents, like Mike Edwards or better. The draft might have had safeties with a bit more polish and experience, but Bishop has about the best combination of athleticism, size and technique of any pure safety in the draft. I don't think Bishop will start in September, only because Rapp has experience and knows McDermott's system. I would guess Bishop is starting by about mid-season.

That's my biggest worry with the whole draft experience. Maybe the Bills will continue to explore improving their WR room, but I suspect they'll find the pickings pretty slim or the cost pretty high.

Lovely, a cornerback with some speed.

Unfortunately, he's slower than Coleman.

I think the Bills need more speed outside at the receiver position. for that reason, I'm feeling a little disappointed. I hope the Bills don't end up paying a price for that lack of speed.

I'm wary of Taylor Rapp's ability in pass coverage, so I think it was really important to get a quality safety in this draft. I think Bishop fits the bill. Rapp might start out the season as a starter, but I wouldn't be surprised if Bishop starts before the end of the season if Rapp gives up too many big pass completions.

When he plays, can the Bills have an extra player on the field so his entire name can be displayed. It won't fit on one jersey. I'm guessing he's a backup this season at least.

Being an international pathways player, I don't think he'll count against the roster (like Christian Wade) if the Bills want to keep him around. He pretty much has zero football experience, but phenomenal athleticism. If he learns fast, he could be really good in a couple years.

Undersized, but speedy. He's pretty much limited to slot corner on defense, and Taron Johnson is going to get the lions share of reps there for the foreseeable future. He'll make his money on special teams and wait for a chance to play on defense. Good pick at that point in the draft.

He was not the guy I might have hoped for. That said, I'll wait and see. His 40 time was pedestrian at the combine, and I think the Bills need some speed on the outside, but he was terrific (and fast) in the drills. I'd still like to see the Bills try and find a second receiver in the draft with a bit of size and speed. Devontez Walker is still on the board I think.

It tells me they didn't think the two Xaviers were decent values at the spots where they would have had to take them. Beane is very cognizant of value, especially in the first round. I won't know until this evening if they think there is a WR worthy of the 33rd spot in the draft.

The jury is still out for me. I think the Bills need to come out of the draft with a quality receiver that has some speed and athleticism. I don't know what their thought process was regarding Brian Thomas Jr., Xavier Worthy and Xavier Legette. I don't know if they tried to trade up for Thomas and failed to get a fair deal or they didn't think he represented a good value where they would have had to move. My assumption is they didn't like the value of the two Xaviers where they would have had to take them. Obviously, other teams had different opinions. Only time will tell who's right, and only time will tell if Beane's strategy will pan out in getting a quality receiver at a place that represents good value.

I would love to ask Beane if there were any players he would have tried to trade up for if they fell sufficiently, or if perhaps they actually did try to swing a trade and couldn't get a deal done. As far as Worthy and Legette are concerned, I think it is obvious Beane didn't think they represented good value to the Bills at the spots they traded away. I honestly don't know who they will draft at 33, or if Beane will trade down again.

If the Bills want Franklin, I could see them trying to trade down again.

I'm not certain about anything. McConkey may be a more complete receiver at this point, but the Bills may feel Mitchell has more upside due to his athleticism. Then again, there is the nagging question of Mitchell's health long term with the alleged type 1 diabetes. Troy Franklin is likely too much of a reach. There are some who still think of Keon Coleman as a 2nd round value, but I just can't get past that 4.61 40. Then the other day some pundit made the comparison between Kelvin Benjamin and Keon Coleman. Gag! I think the Bills feel the need for speed with KC as a perennial rival (and having just drafted Worthy), Not to mention Miami wanting to dethrone Buffalo in the AFC East with their speed.