BillsFanForever19

Hodgins was not and is not a slot WR. Too tall and too slow. We pulled Bease out of retirement because Crowder got hurt and McKenzie wasn't getting the job done. I believe Shakir probably could have held the role down but for whatever reason McDermott likes to bring Rookies around slowly. He has to take the training wheels off this year with how he performed in spot duty. But last year was another example of why you don't carry 3 slots. It left us with Diggs, Davis, and nothing else. We were putting Kumerow in the starting lineup when Davis got dinged up because all we had was slot. We signed our slot in Harty and Shakir will cycle in. We released McKenzie in large part bc the position was covered already. As he said "don't want too much duplicate".

We signed Harty to a two year deal. Shakir may be able to play Outside, but he's been primarily used in the slot. The slot is covered this season and next. Outside of Diggs and Davis we have Sherfield and nothing. Slot is covered for this season. We need another boundary. Johnston, Addison, Hyatt, Downs, and Tillman are either outside guys exclusively or have played both roles. And of course there's still OBJ or trade options. Either way, with Diggs, Davis, Harty, Sherfield, and Shakir - there's room for one more WR on the 53 and he has to be an outside guy.

I keep seeing we need a slot guy and I couldn't disagree more. Khalil Shakir showed flashes of being our best slot guy last year and has earned more reps. Then we went out and signed Deonte Harty. You don't need more than two slot guys on the 53, which was a big reason as to why we released McKenzie. We have that position covered. What we need is another outside WR we can rely on alongside Diggs and Davis. Last season we had to trot out Jake Kumerow when Davis got banged up. Davis isn't as bad as this board would lead you to believe and I think he'd be a very good 3rd option. But Diggs and Davis alone is not enough. Boundary WR is what we need, not another slot.

While I don't think it's fair to compare Davis to a blank slate, as he was more than solid in his role as WR3, I think that says more than anything we need another outside WR and not a slot. Round 1 or a FA like OBJ or a Trade. We need one more there. Last season when Davis was banged up we were trotting out Jake Kumerow. Can't rely on Davis and that both are going to stay healthy all year long.

The slot is covered with Harty and Shakir. We need another boundary WR he can rely on outside of Diggs and Davis.

I don't think either will be the pick at 27. Campbell is too much of a reach there. Wright would be an outright replacement of Spencer Brown, which Beane seems hesitant to do, citing his lack of an offseason and minor injuries being the cause of his less than stellar performance last season.

You are assuming that a.) Beane is fixated on one single LB, Campbell in particular and b.) That Campbell is the same value as Edmunds was in the 2018 Draft (which is not true, Edmunds was considered a steal where we took him) When I talk of value, i'm talking about where the LB prospects are ranked and expected to go in this Draft. Jack Campbell is universally considered to be a mid-2nd Round Pick. As are most of the MLB prospects. Outside of fans, Jack Campbell isn't seen in mocks near pick 27. He could very well be had at 59. Most of them don't even have a MLB selected in Round 1 at all and practically all of them don't have Campbell as the first to come off the board. I know we have a need to fill, but you don't reach for need. When I say move up if players at the position start going - I mean one or two of Drew Sanders, Trenton Simpson, Jack Campbell, Daiyan Henley, and Noah Sewell. Brandon Beane, as most GM's picking late, don't fixate on one player at a position. Sure, they're going to say whoever they pick was "their guy". But Beane will have rankings of preference at every position. He'll let the board fall to him and if LB's start moving earlier than expected, he'll move up. Or maybe he'll move down from 27. But again, you don't reach for need. And Jack Campbell at 27 would be a big reach.

Depends who's available at each position. I'd prefer a WR2. But if there's a run on them and there isn't someone Beane liked and there's someone like Dalton Kincaid or Michael Mayer on the board - I'd be happy with it. Unless Beane likes Drew Sanders and he's on the board still, the value isn't there at 27 for a MLB. Trade up from 59 for Edmunds replacement, if MLB starts moving before then. Shouldn't cost much in this Draft.

You yourself implied this came from Hopkins or his camp. Wouldn't that mean he wants off the team? And how would teams wanting to trade for him saying they think he's going to be released push the Cardinals to move him? What would be the point of teams putting that out there? Also, on my "butchering" of the numbers - the 3rd Pick in the Draft alone is a 6.9 million Dollar Cap Hit. Our Drafts are a lot cheaper because we're generally picking at the bottom of the Draft: https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/draft/ And I'm not someone who is pushing for him to be on this team. I don't think it works out for us any way you slice it. Though I wouldn't be opposed to it if it were to happen, it's kind of funny that you're claiming I'm making stuff up because I "want him". I've been called a "bully" on this thread for poking holes in the legitimacy of sources and the likelihood of it happening.

What's that have to do with the Draft?

They'd save 19.45m by designating him a Post 6/1 cut: https://www.espn.co.uk/blog/arizona-cardinals/post/_/id/36243/answering-the-big-questions-about-deandre-hopkins-future-in-arizona They have 20, but they're going to cut into that by half for their high Draft picks and their Practice Squad. And what they need more than anything is help in the trenches. If they're interested in guys like Leonard Floyd, Frank Clark, Yanick Ngakoue, Isaiah Wynn, Dalton Risner, etc. and/or want to trade for players at other positions, they can do a lot with that extra 19.45 to rebuild their team. And if he wants out and is going to be a malcontent on a rebuilding team, would you rather spend 30m in cap space to keep an unhappy player or save 19.45? Seems a no brainer regardless of their cap situation.

I disagree. I think it's legit. I don't think any team in the league is willing to take on that contract for a 31 year old WR. It's more about his contract than the trade compensation. And now that the league has all sort of agreed they aren't paying the price, they've all realized that the team is going to have to cut him if they want any sort of savings. And if they do, they'll be able to get him for a MUCH cheaper price than his current contract and for no compensation.

Addison and Hyatt are both 6'0" - which is the same height as Stefon Diggs. Hyatt runs a 4.4 40 and graded out best overall amongst all WR's at the Combine according to NFL.com's metrics. So while i'd prefer a taller WR, 6' even is fine if you have the experience playing Outside and have above average qualities elsewhere such as speed and route running. Agreed on Johnston though. He is my favorite. Though he has some issues with contested catches. I think he will be gone, but it wouldn't shock me if he fell due to some inconsistent game footage and teams falling for JSN, Flowers, and Hyatt.

Zay Flowers height is a definite concern. But his route running, speed, and game breaking ability could lend itself to the Outside. Smith-Njigba may or may not be able to play on the Outside. Quentin Johnson, Jordan Addison, and Jalin Hyatt are all Outside guys.

Exactly. We should be looking to add 1 more Outside WR. So it's either someone like Quentin Johnson, Jordan Addison, Zay Flowers, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, or Jalin Hyatt in Round 1 or a veteran FA like OBJ or someone in a trade. After Harty and Sherfield in conjunction with Diggs, Davis, and Shakir - we're not doing more than 1 more.

Good to have flexibility if we're in a bind, but Edwards is a Guard.

We re-signed Jordan Poyer, have Micah Hyde returning from injury, and just signed one of the top FA Safeties who could start elsewhere as a Backup. Safety is covered.

What if they take 1 OT and 1 IOL between Rounds 2 and 4, in addition to McGovern, Edwards, and re-signing Quessenberry and Boettger? This is my expectation. Fact is, between our cap situation and what Beane has said about the OL postseason - the idea that we were going to completely overhaul the OL was just wishful thinking from certain fans. He still has faith in Spencer Brown and there is merit to the idea that Back Surgery, the lack of an offseason, and being dinged up stunted his ability and growth. So outright replacing him was something he was never interested in. You may look at McGovern as "mid level". But with how quickly he was signed and especially for what he was signed for says to me he was valued by our scouts and scouts around the league. We had to pay what we had to pay because there was competition. Beane isn't sitting on his hands and doing nothing. He's covering his bases, filling the holes, and bringing in competition - and I'm expecting more in term of Draft Picks. But we were never going to overhaul the line and bring in Orlando Brown or Ben Powers level FA's. We couldn't, even if he wanted to. Given we were able to get 24 million under the cap with 24 FA's, I think he's done a good job addressing the OL so far. 1 more OT and 1 more OG in the first 4 Rounds and I think he'll have done an even better job and maybe the best he could.

Exactly. I feel everyone's made their offer to him and none are to his liking, which is why he hasn't signed anywhere yet. Eventually when push comes to shove, he'll realize this just is what his market is and take one of them. I'd be surprised if one of those offers isn't ours. But if we take one in Round 1 or 2 (which is a decent possibility) after signing Harty and Sherfield, that offer is probably coming off the table.

We usually keep 9-10 OL on the 53. Generally, 4-5 OT's. We have Brown, Quessenberry, and Doyle (not to mention Dawkins locked in at LT). My guess is we Draft our 4th OT around the same area we Drafted Brown to compete with Brown and at least replace Tommy Doyle. As for Guard, we have Connor McGovern locked in at LG. I think Ryan Bates is safer at RG than most give him credit for. But it wouldn't shock me to see him usurped by David Edwards or a high Draft Pick. I think a 1st Round OG is more likely than a 1st Round OT, but I still don't think that's very likely. I believe Round 1 will be a WR, LB, TE, or DL. But I digress, I think we'll Draft 1 IOL. We have McGovern, Bates, Edwards, and Boettger right now (not to mention Morse locked in at Center). We generally keep 5 Interior Lineman. I think McG, Bates, and Edwards (and of course Morse at Center) are locked in. So yeah, 1 OT and 1 IOL between Rounds 2 and 6.

If anyone was coming close to what he's asking, even on a 1 year deal, he'd have signed by now. I'd be shocked if anyone offers him more than what I suggested when push comes to shove.

We signed our RT FA - it's David Quessenberry. They decided with what they could pay and the options that are out there that he was who they wanted. Beane was never going to outright replace Spencer Brown. He's consistently said he feels he had a down year due to not having a Training Camp after having Back surgery and was dinged up throughout the year. So a low level Free Agent and a mid round pick was always my guess for what his competition would be. I'd be surprised if they Drafted a Tackle in Round 1 because to me that's Beane giving up on Brown, which I don't think he's ready to do this season. Expect an OT somewhere between Rounds 2-4 to join Brown and Quessenberry. There will be a competition. One will start, one will be our backup Swing Tackle, and one will replace Tommy Doyle. Dawkins isn't moving to Guard. He's being paid good LT money. He's a 28 year old 2 time Pro Bowler that could play LT elsewhere. We're not going to pay him what we're paying him to play Guard and he's not going to take a big pay cut and a demotion to Guard willingly. He's locked in at LT this season and he'll either be the LT in 2024 (the last year of his deal) or he'll be released or traded to play LT elsewhere.

No one's going to pay him $15m. I'm not sure if that's accurate or a case of someone spitballing what they think it is. But when it comes down to it, he's going to have two options. a.) He takes the best offer he's given. Which is most likely going to be a 1 year prove it deal so he can try and get closer to what he wants next season. b.) He doesn't play Football this season. Which, if he doesn't, he'll probably never play again. Because at his age, coming off the injury he had, and being 2 years removed from the game - his price will go down further, if anyone wants to sign him. I still say offer him 6-7 with incentives to earn more and a voidable year added on to boost his signing bonus or keep him if he proves that worth this season. He's not going to sign for that now, if his asking price is nowhere near that. But when push comes to shove and he realizes what his options are - it probably will be the best he's going to get.

I know everyone loves Jack Campbell. But I think he's just poor value at 27. I'd hope we'd trade down from 27 or up from 59 if he's who they want. It's odd to me that a place that I see so often posting "you don't reach for need" is so keen on it this year with Campbell. A lot of people were torching Beane for "reaching" for Elam last year. Campbell seems to be a much bigger reach at 27 this year than Elam was at 23 last year.

Seems as though Beane wanted to get him back league minimum again and Shaq was hoping for more this time around. Time will tell if he gets any other offers. https://heavy.com/sports/buffalo-bills/bills-shaq-lawson-subtle-shade-brandon-beane/