Billz4ever

I absolutely agree with you there that what it would've cost us to bring CMC here would be a waste given how we use our backs. If there's one thing we do less than run the ball with our backs, it's throw to them, and that's the other thing CMC does very well.

If you're pointing to once specific game, sure. We were dominated at the LOS on both sides of the ball. Had we still had Von, a healthy Daq, a player like Suh, and Groot, that's probably a different story, especially against a line down several starters. Nothing was going to change our O-line getting dominated like it was though.

The Niners have a great defense. No secret there. Hurts didn't have to play lights out. He didn't turn the ball over and they ran for 150 yards and 4 TDs.

Yep, Dorsey barely threw to our pass catching-type backs we have, and it would've been CMC still running behind our pretty bad line. There's no scenario where I see CMC making the difference where this season turns out any different than it did for the Bills.

I'm guessing Cook adds around 10 lbs of muscle in the offseason with the program the trainers probably have him on. I'm expecting him to make great strides heading into next season.

LMAO, hardly. I'm just not going to poop on what they did this season and chalk it up to schedule. They are solid on both sides of the ball and unlike the Bills, can control the line of scrimmage.

They played 6 games against teams that made the postseason, which is one more than the Bills. We would've played 6 if the Cincy game happened.

OL and WR2 are this team's biggest needs by a mile. No way should we be drafting D in the first few rounds IMO. Finding a team to take Tre's contract given the injury he's coming off and his play this year would probably be a feat all in its own. That would be a huge rolling of the dice for any team. And he still carries big dead cap numbers even if we trade him.

Even though he's aging, he'd have been a force there with a healthy Daquan. I like that tandem much better than Oliver in there, who I think has worn out his welcome here.

What are we getting in return for those guys? And even if you cut them, you're still dealing with dead cap. Tre White coming of a torn ACL tear who clearly didn't look the same this year (hopefully he can rebound next year). That's a huge gamble for any team to take on his contract. A decent but aging and concussion-prone Center. If we traded for CMC doubt the Hines trade ever happens, so he's not here for you to do anything with. And special teams guys aren't getting paid a ton in the first place.

Motor and Cook combined for over 1300 yards, so that's an exaggeration, but it does make my point for me. If we don't run, why would we bother signing CMC in the first place, especially given what it would cost in terms of draft capital and cap #'s?

Say we did the same deal as SF did and we got him and re-signed him somehow this off season even with our cap problems. Where are you getting a legit WR2 and an offensive line revamp to protect Josh and for CMC to run behind? You've definitely now got no cap space and you've got which basically amounts to 1 draft pick this year because unless you catch lightning in a bottle, you're more than likely not addressing the O-line and WR2 with a 5th and 6th round pick.

Carolina got a 2nd, 3rd, and 4th in this year's draft and a 5th in next year's draft for him. And considering he'd have most likely been a rental for this season, that's a lot of draft capital for a rental. The Bills only have 6 total picks as it is this year. CMC on our roster or not, I didn't see him as being the difference maker given our line. Dorsey's playcalling wouldn't have played to CMC's strengths anyway. We never throw to our backs and even after we got Hines, there was no real attempt to do so.

He's going to have to adjust, or Josh is going to have a short career. I don't see the O-line as something we fix in free agency this season either. We need to start growing our own talent via the draft and get guys on rookie contracts. Throwing $6M at Saffold was easily the worst move of last off-season IMO.

He trusted Saffold!!! (who had one of the worst grades I've seen for a starting lineman in years). Whether the player out there is a rookie or not SHOULD be irrelevant. It's about putting your best 11 guys on the field, and when we're talking about protecting the face of our franchise, if a rookie is doing a better job than a vet, I'm doing it without hesitation. If McD doesn't commit to putting the best players on the field, his chances of ever winning a championship dwindle with every passing season.

Based on the grades our line got this season and actually watching them in action, I can't honestly see rookies doing any worse.

IMO, get a top WR prospect in the first round and OL picks for at least the next two or even three rounds.

He's probably going to have to break that habit this season because sticking with the status quo on the O-line is not going to cut next year. Signing another $6M dollar bust like Saffold in free agency isn't the answer either.

Or what if they strike out, which plenty of Beane's picks have done based on track record? What if you draft based on biggest needs and those picks turn into all pros? Even if they don't turn into all pros and just become serviceable players, you still addressed the need. You can play the what if game with any pick, but addressing the team's biggest needs should be the GM's primary focus heading into any draft.

Heading into a draft where your glaring issues are with the OL and WR2? Yes

Speaking in terms of this year's draft anyway...making any defensive picks before at least the 4th round, IMO.

Yep, they do, except some make less mistakes than others and that's what separates great GMs from average or poor GMs. If you strike out with draft picks for a few years, that's going to catch up to you. You're left with too many holes to fill and you don't have the cap space to fill those holes from free agency. Beane needs to ace this year's draft to keep the Bills competitive.

We need to draft our own for once instead of trading for another team's, which is not a sustainable model to build a team with in terms of what it costs in draft capital and $$$ against the cap.

I doubt CBS would be reporting it as a done deal if it weren't. https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/nfl-head-coach-gm-interview-tracker-dolphins-land-vic-fangio-as-new-dc-rams-name-mike-lafleur-next-oc/

Brady threw for 4700 yards, 25 TDs and only 9 picks, which everyone considers a down year for him. Most teams in the league can only dream about getting that kind of production from the QB position. And based on the lack of talent Rodgers had to work with, it's not surprising he had a down year.