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BigAl2526

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Posts posted by BigAl2526

  1. 4 hours ago, Not at the table Karlos said:

    Im pretty sure the Ford at RT experiment is over and they want him focusing on Guard. Bates,Brown, Doyle are fine as depth 

    I have a feeling Bates is being regarded primarily as a backup center now, who could slide into another interior line spot if needed.  I think he'd be a tackle of last resort.  Hart obviously is not an answer at tackle.  Brown and Doyle are on steep learning curves.  Bean will be looking at the waiver wire, but might not see anything until closer to the regular season.

  2. 11 hours ago, NickelCity said:

    Somehow, someway, we need to add CB depth and a swing tackle. I doubt we do the latter, but good God do we need the former.

    Spencer Brown wasn't great, but has massive upside.  He's on a steep learning curve this season.  Bobby Hart is bottom of the barrel trash.  I expect an early cut for him, and the Bills will be looking at cuts from other teams to find a veteran candidate, but that might not come until later in the cut down process.  CBs didn't have a great outing, but I'm not sure how acute the need is there.  If it looks like a gem has become available, then yeah, Beane should try to snap him up.

  3. The Bills are a lot stronger at linebacker than given credit for.

    Jake Fromm was handicapped by poor line play.  Thank you Bobby Hart.  There's no reason to keep Fromm over Webb however.  Webb is clearly better. 

    A few bad/stupid penalties.  Also the officiating is in midseason form (terrible). 

    Reports of Stevenson's demise seem to be premature, but there's not much room at the back of the roster at WR.

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  4. Looking ahead to the preseason game versus Detroit, it's a different feeling this year.  In the past, I think there was always some concern about starters getting a little work to get ready for the season, balanced against the concern over the possibility of injury.  This year there seems to be far less pressure to get starters ready for the season.  They already look ready.  There is also far less of a sense that we should expect poor sloppy football with reserves on the field.  Instead, Buffalo has a backup QB who has ample starting experience, and actually looked like a starter when he was doing it.  We have a receiver group in which the 4th through 7th receivers all look they could compete to start on some other teams.  There will be five defensive ends in the game (not necessarily at the same time) who seem to have a lot of promise even without the grizzled vets.  The linebackers look far deeper than most expected a few months ago.  In short, this is a team where we're not afraid of how the team will look with lots of depth players in the game.  A few years ago, I think there was a far greater expectation of groan worthy play in the preseason.

     

    That's what I think.  We'll see if I'm right, but I think Buffalo handles Detroit.

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  5. I don't think most NFL coaches and talent evaluators are gamblers.  By nature, they like to play it safe whenever they can.  Josh Allen's occasional hero ball tendencies and high risk plays scare them.   I think Josh himself will become a bit more careful as he gains experience.  That will gain him the consistency to get into the top tier of that particular survey.  I think he's top three in the league in terms of actual talent, skill set and athleticism.

  6. I think Vernon Butler is a trade possibility.  Reportedly, he's been outplayed by cheaper players like Harrison Phillips and Justin Zimmer.  

     

    On the offensive line, I'm less certain, Forrest Lamp maybe, or Bobby Hart.  There are a bunch who have no trade value and will get cut.

    • Like (+1) 1
  7. I can buy that Levi will win the starting position, but I think Dane Jackson will still get quite a few reps.  I think both are likely to improve.  They both came out of college lacking strength.  Jackson had just adequate speed and Wallace was downright slow.  Players can get stronger, and if they hadn't trained for speed in college, I think they can improve their speed too.  That seems to apply to Levi Wallace.  I don't think either one will ever be much more than adequate, but as others have mentioned, with the D-line getting more pressure, they will start to look quite a bit better.

  8. Accepting the reality of the NFL and the valuations that premium QBs command across the league, I'm happy with the deal.  It would be wonderful if he were to commit to 10 years and 20 million per year, that would be wonderful.  That would allow the Bills to keep a bunch of really good players on the team around Allen.  Unfortunately, that line of thinking is a pipe dream.  This is about as good as we can hope for.  Inn a couple years when contracts for top QBs have compensation of 45 - 50 million per year, this is going to look really good.

  9. New England enjoyed a situation for years where quality free agents would sign below market rate contracts for the chance to gain a Super Bowl ring.  If Buffalo can maintain their superiority over New England this season, that bonus will continue to dry up of the Patriots, and they will start having to pay market rate.  Conversely, Buffalo may start enjoying more of a "winners' discount" with free agents.   Whine on Stephon!

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  10. Years upon years of mediocrity has conditioned Bills fans to be forward looking.  Obviously, success breeds cap challenges, and it's no different with the Bills.  Everybody knows you need a top shelf QB to stay among the elite in the league, and at some point you're going to have to pay that QB an elite salary.  That happens in 2023 for Buffalo.  Brandon Beane has proven to be a very smart and down to earth GM, but he's never had to manage an elite QB's contract as part of the cap before.  I think he'll do well, but we can't be certain until it happens.  Personally, I don't think I obsess too much about the cap, but I have an awareness in the back of my mind.

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  11. Having been a fan for the last 52 years, I've experienced extended periods of mediocrity as well as the "golden age" of four straight Super Bowl appearances.  I know that "what goes around comes around."  I tend to be a little wary about making prognostications about future success, having been burned more than a few times over the past 5 decades.  I was impressed early on by McDermott and Beane.  I was intrigued by Josh Allen's physical traits before he was drafted, and more so after he was drafted, but I still saw it as a risk.  Had Allen not turned out to be a success, I thought there was still a good chance that Beane and McDermott would get fired and we'd be looking at yet another rebuild.  Making the playoffs started to make me think the team might be on the right path.

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  12. 2 hours ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

     

    Bryce Paup 6'5" 247

    Aaron Schobel 6'4" 243

     

    Again, it's really a matter of the player's frame and athleticism, what weight they play best at

    Agreed!  You can't stereotype in the NFL.  Every player's body and athleticism is unique to him.  I can see where a player might actually need to try playing at different weights to discover what works best.   Sometimes players can fulfill different roles that require different weights.  Lorenzo Alexander came into the league as a defensive tackle weighing around 300 lbs.  Of course, he finished his career with the Bills as an outside linebacker weighing a little over 240.  It's definitely not "one size fits all."

  13. When you have the kind of continuity the Bills nave been able to achieve during the Sean McDermott tenure, you have less reason to play starters in preseason.  I could see Buffalo playing Cody Ford and Dawson Knox among players expected to start on offense, but not many more.  On defense, I think Levi Wallace and Dane Jackson will get some preseason playing time, as will the younger defensive linemen: Rousseau, Basham, Epenesa, Phillips etc.  Otherwise, there will be a lot of players from the back of the roster.

  14. 6 hours ago, Coach Tuesday said:

    I'm not sure where to put this but it occurs to me the Bills might be able to trade a couple of bubble players for draft picks this offseason.  Specifically, I'm thinking a guy like Daryl Johnson who can play STs and is a decent backup pass rusher might fetch a 5th or 6th from a team like Seattle, and perhaps Horrible Harry could be dealt as well.

    If you trade Horrible Harry, who will your second 1 tech be?  Butler, Zimmer and Oliver are all 3 tech.  Brandin Bryant and Treyvon Hestor are probably 3 techs as well.  As 1 techs, you're down to Star Lotulelei and Eli Ankou.  I haven't heard a lot about Ankou.  If he turns out not to be good enough, you'll be left with Oliver and/or Butler playing out of position again.  That didn't work out so well last season.

  15. 4 hours ago, YattaOkasan said:

    I am coming around to McKenzie being return guy.  Mostly cause of the improvements hes shown as a receiver.  If hes committed to returns in that way then I think he may have learned a lot from Roberts last 2 years.

    The only downside is that a player whose primary role is as a returner, he may not be as available to run plays on offense.  That, according to special teams icon Steve Tasker, who says it's really tough to do both.

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