Cash

The Bills, at least, seem to consider NCB and boundary CB as different positions, and also seem to think NCB and S are a lot closer to each other than either is to boundary CB. We've seen a number of S/NCB depth guys - Siran Neal and Cam Lewis both come to mind - but very few boundary/nickel depth guys. Jamarcus Ingram is about the only one, and even then he's only played on the boundary when there was no one else available. Both Neal and Lewis have also filled in at boundary CB, but only when there were multiple injuries in the same game. My guess is that Parrino has internalized that after a number of years covering this team, and was meaning "boundary corners" specifically. Also worth noting: Parrino isn't allowed to report on where players are lining up, but he is able to witness it and remember. It's possible that Hancock has been practicing exclusively at S all spring. If that's the case, Parrino would probably not think of him as any kind of corner at this point.

Agree with this. LB is one of the few spots where I could see us in the market for a veteran cut. Spector gets hurt every year and is in the last year of his deal, so they won’t hesitate to move on if they think a fading vet will be an upgrade this season. Bernard getting hurt is probably the biggest risk on the defense. Plus there could be a slight trade market for Spector - meaning maybe you get a low 7th rounder for him instead of cutting him outright. I have no idea if this Bungles guy would be an upgrade over Spector in 2025, but if any of the Football Knowers on the board have a take, please weigh in.

I don't generally re-watch a lot of games, and pretty much never re-watch losses. So for me, the list is more about which painful losses I HAVE re-watched. There are a few: -All 4 Super Bowls (I think; I was pretty young and maybe just rewatched 1 or 2 of them) -Bills/Titans wildcard Jan 2000, aka Music City Miracle. Really hit home how bad Rob Johnson was prior to the final drive. I also spent a LOT of time obsessing over whether the 'lateral' itself went forward or not. -Bills/Chiefs divisional Jan 2022, aka 13 Seconds - but I should disclose that I haven't rewatched anything that came after Gabe's final TD. Same. Any time it's come up, I tell people "I don't need to watch it; I lived it." I hear from reliable sources (Bills fans and non-Bills fans) that it's great, and I have no problem recommending it to other people. If we ever win a Super Bowl, maybe then I'll watch it, who knows?

Offense: More effectiveness when running 2 TEs. I'd also like to see more of a multifaceted gameplan, at least for the playoffs. What I mean is that we have Plan A, then we anticipate how the defense will adjust to stop Plan A, and Plan B is there to take advantage of that defensive adjustment. Defense: More multiplicity. In McD's early years, we had a lot more of guys moving around the formation and offenses not knowing what looks we were going to run. Lorenzo Alexander was particularly key in that regard. But the last few years, there's been less disguising and especially less-effective disguising. I don't know the stats, but it feels like ages since one of our zone blitzes or delayed blitzes resulted in a free rusher. Personnel-wise, we need guys to be better at defeating blocks. But scheme-wise, we need to be better at confusing the offense. This is extra important against good QBs who can get the ball out quickly and accurately.

Thank you. By the “only a Super Bowl matters” logic, none of us should ever watch a regular season game. Or playoff game pre-Super Bowl, for that matter. Just show up for the one game that matters. That would free up a lot of my time, but I don’t think it would enhance my life. And again - yeah, I very much want the Bills to win a Super Bowl in my lifetime. (Preferably if it’s also in my dad’s lifetime.) But while the end of each season in the Allen era has been rough, the first and the middle parts have been great. Watching these teams week in and week out has been a true joy and an absolute delight.

I love it! I’ll be watching.

https://ras.football/ Hairston: INCOMPLETE, but on pace for 9.63 pending agility drills. (And based on his highlights, he probably would've done well on the agility drills.) Hancock: 9.82 - and that's at CB. Likely would be even higher at S if that's where he winds up. Strong: 8.34

I think we’ll have to wait for the Swimsuit Competition to find out. Is that in OTAs or training camp this year?

My two cents: because Jordan Poyer was in a fairly similar boat when we first signed him.

Yes! Finally an area where I can weigh in as an expert. Here's my rankings: Jackson #94 - A+. Scorching. One of the best EDGE numbers, should look great on him, and I don't mind the connection to the Aaron Schobel legacy. Hancock #37 - A+. Oh my, yes. The Nate Odomes Classic is one of the best numbers for the secondary. It works great for boundary CBs, nickel CBs, and safeties. Which also fits well with Hancock, since he'll probably play a bit of everywhere early in his career. Prather #81 - A+. Great fit for a fairly tall deep threat WR who isn't super fast. Just looks right. Great choice, Kaden - no notes. Hawes #85 - A+. Excellent choice for a blocking TE. I would've also accepted 87 or 88. Hairston #31 - A. Solid number, although I wouldn't have minded a number in the 20s for such a fast guy. I'm somewhat of an old curmudgeon on numbers, but I think Hairston could also pull off single digits. Still, 31 should be a nice fit for his frame, and I like that we don't have a lot of prominent #31 already. Opportunity for Hairston to own that number. Walker #96 - A. I was worried he'd try for a single-digit number like in college, which would've been an absolute disaster on his giant frame. (Zero was salvageable because of roundness, but Keon has that locked down already.) A giant like Walker needs a number that won't make him look silly. This might have been the best options available - I think only 99 would be real competition. Lundt #77 - A-. Good fit for his frame; those 7s look good on a tall and lean guy. Very solid choice! I tend to prefer 77 as a defensive number, but it'll look good on a RT as well. Note that my rating will drop to a B+ if Lundt moves inside to G. Sanders #98 - B. I don't love 98 for a quick, penetrating DT, but it's not awful. Would've preferred most other options in the 90s, but at least it's not in the 70s or something gross like that. The 70s are for DEs, not for DTs. Strong #43 - C-. I'm sorry, but 43 is a safety's number. Unless he's planning to switch positions, I can't get behind this.

For the record, I never complained about the lack of prime time games. One of the few nice aspects of the drought was having nearly every game be Sunday 1pm Eastern.

Cook is a tough prospect for armchair GMs, because he's clearly a tier below the truly elite guys, which last year was Barkley & Henry, but he's also good enough that he's very hard to replace. Contrast that with Singletary, who was (and is) a good NFL RB, but ultimately doesn't give you much more than a guy off the street. A lot of those runs where Cook got into the secondary untouched weren't just due to the O-line. It was also Cook using his vision to pick the right hole, then using his elite acceleration to burst through before the defense could get there. We've seen a ton of outside runs the last couple years where Cook just turned on the jets and was able to turn the corner on the edge defender. They didn't all go for long runs, but every one of those was a significant swing for the Bills. Turning a potential -1 to 1 yard play into a 7 yard play makes a big difference, especially when it keeps going our way over and over. In summary, I would love to have Cook back beyond this year. I'm also weary of paying money to any RB, and extra weary of paying Cook elite money when he's been a step shy of elite. I'm hoping that he balls out this year, and either we re-sign him longterm, or we get some real compensation for him in like a tag-and-trade scenario. (By which I mean something better than a 3rd-round comp pick in 2027.)

I've heard some of the same speculation, and I'm with you on Carter. From the way Beane was talking in post-draft, it sounds like Carter is going to "move" to primarily 1tech instead of primarily 3tech. Sanders and Ogunjobi are primarily 3techs, per Beane. Walker is a little different in that he played more 3tech in college but it sounds like the Bills want him to play more 1tech for them, maybe. But in any case, they need at least 2 guys capable of adequately playing 1tech on early downs. If Carter just bombs out, then sure he might be cut. I don't see that as super likely, and frankly it's bad business to cut a 3rd-round pick in year 2 unless you're certain he can't play. Regarding Jones, any cap implications if he's cut in week 6? His salary would be guaranteed by then, so Pegula would have to eat that, but that aspect doesn't impact the cap.

Just for that, I'm starting another one.

And he *should* be better. Last year was his first year on the job and I expect him to have learned some things.

Interesting! Did he say why he thinks that?

Big if true.

My take is a little different: I think they're taking a swing at having a real superstar for once, and being relevant. No one cares about the Jags. No one's ever cared about the Jags. Trevor Lawrence is a good(?) QB, but not cool enough to be a major star without major wins. Hunter is potentially the coolest player in a long time. And as a bonus, he's from Georgia and appears happy to be playing close to home. A potential superstar who actually wants to be there? That could be a game changer for a franchise like Jacksonville. If Hunter makes it as a two-way player in any meaningful capacity, he will be the favorite player of a whole generation of young fans. And it could work on-field as well. I assume the plan is for Hunter to shore up the pass defense at CB and be functionally the WR2 to BTJ on offense. (I know the GM has said they're going to lead with WR and ease him into defense. In the interview I watched, that sounded like an onboarding plan with the goal of Hunter playing both ways this year and beyond.)

You seem a bit confused. Are you aware that all of your sternly-worded letters on here do not, in fact, go straight to the Buffalo Bills organization? Reading the last couple pages of this thread, I gotta tell ya: You come across as a really angry dude who is taking out his frustration on other posters. My impression is that you’re mad that other people are happy. Just FYI. Go Bills!

Too gritty, or not gritty enough?

When was the last time we cut a 5th-rounder in his rookie year? I can't think of one off the top of my head. Hardy was a 6th rounder last year and did clear waivers, which was a mild surprise to me. The year before, 7th rounders Alex Austin and Nick Broecker both got claimed when we cut them and are still rostered by those teams. In 2022, 6th rounder Luke Tenuta got claimed. In 2021, 6th rounder Rachad Wildgoose and 7th rounder Jack Anderson both cleared waivers, but then both were poached off our practice squad during the 2021 season. In 2020 & 2019, I don't think we waived any drafted rookies. The closest is 2020 5th rounder Jake Fromm, who made the team in 2020 but was cut the following year and signed to the PS. Of note, he was poached by the Giants later that season. So, going back through 6 years of drafts, we've cut 3 6th rounders and 3 7th rounders, and 5/6 were snapped up by other teams before end of the regular season. I think it's a pretty safe bet that Hancock either makes the team out of camp, gets put on IR, or is not a Buffalo Bill in 2026.

Thanks, Paul. Yeah, Moore clearly isn't "that good", and if he was, we wouldn't be able to afford him. And that's fine. What he is, is insurance against another Texans game from last year, where Allen completed 9 passes and it looked like our WRs were a freshman team playing against varsity DBs. Put another way: Before the Moore signing, we were guaranteed to have at least 1 WR make the team who was such a question mark that he might be totally worthless. Basically Shavers, Prather, or Shenault. But now, if one of those guys winds up making the team, I'll feel a lot better about it. Because it will mean he beat out a real NFL WR in training camp, and thus is hopefully a real NFL WR himself.

Only problem there is that 5th round picks usually don't clear waivers. If it does come down to Hancock vs Lewis and Lewis wins, that probably means bye-bye to Hancock.

Off the dome, didn't Spencer Brown move into the starting lineup around the middle of his rookie year? Maybe at the bye week or something? Matt Milano is another one, mid/late in his rookie year. In general, I think the team philosophy across the board is that guys compete for jobs, and once someone wins, it's "his" job... until it isn't. For example, Beane post-draft talking about what Hairston might do if he wins the starting job across from Benford. He wasn't pretending that Benford will have to win a starting job in camp the way I've seen some NFL coaches or GMs do. Honestly, I think the Bills' take is a good middle ground. I hate the performative nonsense of coaches pretending their guys with 8-figure contracts are on the same level as rookie UDFAs, even if I get the idea behind it. On the other end, I still remember Doug Whaley declaring Sammy Watkins and Cyrus Kouandjio "starters off the bus" in his post-draft presser. Too much overconfidence and entitlement there.

If you buy the idea that Jimmy Haslam mandated the Shedeur pick, it might actually wind up rigged in Sanders' favor.