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***UPDATE*** GO TO PAGE 4 FOR FINAL 3.0 VERSION Here is my official version 2.0 on a first round Mock. Not sure I will do a v3.0, this one took me 3 days and a lot of hours of research and calls to some people I know and trust with actual insider insight. I would love to update one before the draft Thursday, but not sure I will have the time to put in between now and then to make a meaningful stab at it. I still want to expand it to a 2 rounder at some point as well and do have a working draft, however, since this one took me 3 days with lots of changes along the way as new info came about, it kept affecting my 2nd round and I didn't want to just throw up a round 2 without properly working through it. So hopefully I can find some time to finish that as I was enjoying round 2 as well. CLICK HERE FOR LINK TO v1.0 NOTE: Trades are color coated. The two teams linked in the trade are marked with *TRADE* in the same color to easily track who that trade played out on both ends of it. Compensation in bold of the same color on the higher pick of the trade. Chicago - Caleb Williams, QB, USC: No brainer here, everything points to this being their guy. Washington - Drake Maye, QB, UNC: I have believed him to be the pick over Jayden Daniels, and I have someone I trust who has insight who tells me that which QB is still unsettled and that there are supporters for both Maye and Daniels and he thinks its going to fall Maye when its all said and done. And as we get closer, the odds for this pick being Jayden are going down while Mayes are going up...just saying. New England - Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU: In v1.0, I previously had them passing on a QB to take MHJ as I kind of thought their eyes were set on Maye, but now there is buzz and stuff I am hearing that they like both Maye and Daniels, so with that in mind, NE now makes the smarter choice and goes and gets a QB. *TRADE* - Giants (via Arizona): JJ McCarthy, QB, Michigan: This is the same trade I made in the TSW mock draft as GM of the Cardinals, moving back to 6 with NY Giants, who know Jones ain't their guy, and that teams at 11, 12, and 13 who are all looking for a QB. So Giants take their shot here and move up to insure one of the other teams doesn't leap frog them at 4 or 5 and gets their guy. Giants have been doing a LOT of homework on the QB's and reports are that they have had great meetings with McCarthy and a great dinner with him at Ruth's Chris and are high on him. Cardinals already armed with 2 first rounders and 3 third rounders don't need a bounty on a move back here, so they opt to take the smaller offer and stay within range to still get one of the big 3 WR's. Comp received: ARI gets 6 & 70 - NYG gets 4 Chargers - Marvin Harrison, Jr: Chargers win the lottery here landing what is seen as the best player in the draft thanks to the Giants move up to McCarthy as they give Herbert an elite talent after losing their top 2 WR's. (Odunze wouldn't surprise me here either). *TRADE* - Cardinals (via Giants): Rome Odunze, WR, Washington: Previously, I have had Nabers here, but I am hearing more and more that there are teams who have Odunze as the 1st or 2nd WR in this draft. Murray had his best success with a big WR with excellent hands and catch radius in Hopkins, so I am starting to think Odunze could be the pick here. Having lost their top WR's, they still add an elite weapon for Murray while adding some extra draft capital along the way. Cardinals are in a great position to really reset their foundation with the amount of draft ammo they have in the first 4 rounds of this draft. (Would be MHJ if Chargers went Odunze) Titans - Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame: Not a lot to say here, maybe the safest mock pick in the draft outside Caleb...Having the best OT in this draft fall in their lap here is a gift they sprint to the podium to select. Atlanta - Byron Murphy, DL, Texas: Atlanta looks to bolster their DL with the best DT in the draft who is a guy that just moves different than the other DT's in the draft, who can get off the ball and shoot the gaps to wreak havoc. He is as much a force against the run as he is the pass as well and who could become an anchor up front for Atlanta for years to come. One of the edge rushers could be in this spot too such as Turner or Verse. *TRADE* Colts (via Chicago) Malik Nabers, WR, LSU: While I know WR is a popular pick here, but its a bit of a luxury pick based on the needs of the team already having a long term WR1 and Keenan Allen for at least this season. This is a deep WR draft, they can find a guy to play opposite Moore later with the draft pick ammo they just added. There is just more and more buzz I am seeing about Bears maybe looking OL early, especially since Caleb has even been on social media about the importance of OL and having that been an issue for him at USC. And if they are willing to pass on Nabers, they can move back here and still snag a premiere prospect on the OL and add more draft capital given they only have 4 picks. For me, I think to move back and pass on one of the big 3 WRs, there needs to be enough draft compensation to do it, so I am looking at Colts here who are now staring down the barrel of a loaded Houston team in a loaded AFC conference in general. So they make a move here to get an elite weapon to pair with Richardson and Pittman. Comp received: CHI gets 15, 82, 117 - IND gets 9 NY Jets - Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia: With the Jets spending in FA on the OL (albeit short term help) I think it's a pretty good bet they look to appease Aaron Rodgers and go Bowers here, who is a mismatch nightmare, and maybe the best TE prospect of the past decade. If one of the big 3 WR's land here, then may be that player over Bowers. But I think they will be gone inside the top 10. Although I still wouldn't rule out OL here either as there are some real talented guys they could take to help anchor that line for years, but given they are in a win now mode, I think with the short term OL help addressed some already in free agency, they go ahead and take Bowers. Vikings - Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Toledo: After not matching what Arizona wanted to move for a QB, Vikings stay true to their board and add what many regard as the top corner in the draft who has been lighting up the offseason. Broncos - Bo Nix, QB, Oregon: Originally had Penix here, but after reading more into it, seems there is more Denver interest in Bo and it feels like his accuracy and intelligence will be something Sean Payton will be more intrigued by given his days with Brees where those were 2 of his strong suits. Raiders - Michael Penix Jr, QB, Washington: This is another change for me, there seems to be a lot of growing buzz about Raiders and Penix. And HC Pierce has been vocal about the need to get a QB in a division with Mahomes and Herbert. There are a lot of injury concerns with Penix though, so while this may feel early, there is also the fact that Vikings pick again at 23 and with Nix gone here, Penix could easily be in play there. And trading back up above 23 would be costly. If they really like Penix as much as being stated, then trading back up in bottom of first or waiting and hoping he falls out of the first would be a huge gamble for the Raiders. I try not to get too caught up in buzz, but I have a hard time believing Raiders feel good about Aidan and Uncle Rico as their 2 QB's this year, so the Penix interest feels plausible. Saints - Olu Fashanu, OT, Penn St: With big needs at OT, Saints also have the draft fall well and are able to take the 2nd best OT prospect in the draft. *TRADE* Bears (via Colts) - Troy Fautanu, OL, Washington: As I mentioned in pick 9, there seems to be a growing sentiment the Bears may look to bolster their OL to help their young QB who has already been on social media about the importance of OL. Adding Troy who can come in and push someone like Bates who struggled last year on the inside or compete to start as an upgrade at tackle is exactly the kind of versatility Bears would be thrilled to add. I was tempted to go Jared Verse here as they need help on the DL too, but for the reasons above I came back to Troy. Seattle - Dallas Turner, EDGE, Alabama: The draft falls favorably for Seattle here as they really need help all along the DL and are able to scoop maybe the best edger rusher in the draft. If Byron Murphy doesn't go to Atlanta at 8, I could see him going here too. Jaguars - Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama: My heart wants to write *TRADE* here and input Buffalo Bills name to take Thomas, but I think this may be out of the range Beane will go up to for Thomas where it still likely takes our next years first. But I know its probably going to take a first, so not only do I not want to do it, I don't think Beane will either. So, Jags stay put and address their secondary in a division that is starting to have the makings of a high powered juggernaught and take one of the top corners in the draft. Bengals - JC Latham, OL, Alabama: 3 straight Bama guys come off the board as Bengals have to find a way to keep Burrow on his feet and healthy and signing Trent Brown on a one year deal with his injury history isn't enough to keep them from looking to the future here. Bengals are fortunate this a great OT draft early and land one of the best RT ones here to hopefully be the long term guy opposite Olrando Brown for years to come. LA Rams - Laiatu Latu, EDGE, UCLA: Buzz here is that McVay is gonna go offense in his first ever first round pick, and I get that. And there are some medical concern rumors around Latu as well that put this pick here in doubt. But, they need to bolster their pass rush, especially since they both need help on the edge and they have lost the QB pressure from inside that Donald brought for so many years. Which leads me to Latu here, the hometown star from UCLA staying home in LA. Pittsburgh - Jackson Powers-Johnson, IOL, Oregon: Steelers need a Center and here is their chance to add maybe the best IOL prospect in the draft who can potentially come in and shore up that Center position for years to come. There is some chatter of this being a place Brian Thomas Jr. goes via them picking him or someone like Bills trading up to get him. So won't surprise me to see BTJ go here in some fashion, but I just think JPJ is just a different breed and the kind of player Steelers covet. Miami - Jared Verse, EDGE, Florida St: With big needs in the trenches on both sides of the ball, they have a lot of options here. Miami did sign like 7 guys on the DL this offseason, but all of them are more suited as role players. So I flipped flopped between Jared and OL help (like Barton, Mims, etc) here several times before settling on Verse, and still tempted to flip again lol as I think this could go either side of the trenches. But I feel the value is higher on OL in round 2 than DL, so I used that as the defacto tie breaker and went ahead with Verse even though I am still torn on this one. *TRADE* Buffalo (via Eagles): Brian Thomas Jr, WR, LSU: Bills see the chance to lock in and insure they get BTJ moving up to 22 to get him for picks 28, 128, and 2025 3rd rounder. Originally I had Bills trading back from 28, but that was with BTJ off the board in the teens. With him getting into the 20's, Beane felt the value was there to go get a 6'3" guy with 4.3 forty speed to pair with Allen during this next era of his prime and hopefully giving DC's nightmares for years to come. *TRADE* Washington (via Vikings) - Taliese Fuaga, OT, Oregon St: Having missed on trying to get McCarthy followed with both Nix and Penix coming off at 12 and 13, the Vikings trade back and add a 3rd rounder (as they have no 2nd or 3rd round picks coming into the draft). Commanders are chomping at the bit to move back up and get one of these OT's, which is why I think if the Bills hold on to 28, Washington is a major potential trade back partner if they haven't moved up already. But, with how this draft played out, this Vikings pick is a great spot for the Commanders to go get a premiere tackle prospect to help protect their new QB, especially with teams looming after this pick that could be looking for OL help as well like the Cowboys up next. Comp received: MIN gets 36 & 67 - WAS gets 23 Dallas - Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas: There are some guys here at OL that make a lot of sense for Dallas, but Jones and company are drooling over that 4.2 speed in the dome and decide they can't pass up the opportunity on adding this kind of elite speed to his dome team to play opposite Lamb and makes the move to add some much needed firepower to the offense. Packers - Nate Wiggins, CB, Clemson: With the trade of Douglas to the Bills, GB looks to the draft to find its next CB opposite Jaire and take one of the top corners in the draft in Wiggins. If Wiggins is gone in the real draft here, I can also see some OL help in bound with this pick as well. Tampa - Graham Barton, IOL, Duke: Bucs considered bolstering their pass rush here, but were stoked to find Barton still on the board and decided that his versatility and strength was too good to pass up to bolster that interior OL to help Baker succeed. Arizona - Jer'Zhan Newton, DL, Illinois: In my v1.0 Newton was off the board to Miami, but with Verse falling there in this one it allowed Newton to fall here to where I think is a highly likely destination for him. Newton has even been vocal about loving the Cardinals and if he is here I think this will most likely be the pick as AZ looks to bolster a unity very much in need of the help. *TRADE* Eagles (Via Buffalo): Cooper DeJean: After the trade down with the Bills, the Eagles land the man dubbed the "Swiss army knife" and look to bolster a secondary very much in need of the help. Cooper is interesting to me, I can see him going earlier too starting in the mid teens. Detroit - Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama: Lions could very well take Adonai Mitchell here or even someone on the OL, but with a high powered offense already in stow, I have changed my mind and have them addressing their biggest need and taking the talented corner from Alabama to help bolster their defense. Ravens - Jordan Morgan, OL, Arizona: I have moved off WR here for Ravens given the fact they lost 3 OL this offseason and if they want Lamar and Henry to be at their best, they need to bolster this unit and Morgan can potentially play RT or G giving them a versatile player to plug in. 49ers - Amarius Mims, OT, Georgia: Trent Williams is about to be 36 and their RT was a mixed bag last year, so they look to the future here knowing they need 2 new OT's sooner rather than later and take the mammoth Mims. While someone like Guyton could go here and has maybe a higher floor, the potential of Mims is too good to pass up. Mims is another one of those guys I can see going as earlier as well, just gonna depend on which tackle a team prefers as there are several strong prospects that will be on the board between picks 10 and 32 and at the top of round 2. Chiefs - Ja'Lynn Polk, WR, Washington: A controversial pick I am sure as many think this would be CB, OL, or a different WR. But...I have now had some people I trust tell me several times that Polk is quietly one of the biggest risers in the draft and has end of first, top 10 of 2nd potential to go. One of them told me that both Balt and KC are very high on him. Polk makes so much sense for them both. Chiefs are sick of drops and Polk has some of the best hands, body control, and ball skills in the draft. He also plays physical and go over the middle where they have relied on Kelce for years who is probably in his last season. He is also the best blocking WR in the draft and KC throws the most passes at or behind the LOS in the league and relies a lot on blocking. So while I can see a number of players at CB, OL, and DL here as well along with a different WR too like Mitchell or McConkey, I am gonna go with the Polk as he is also a personal favorite of mine. NOTES: This came about through individually researching each teem, their needs, insight from people I know personally and general chatter, buzz, and rumors online around certain players/teams. And it took me 3 days to get to pick 32 as I was making many amendments along the way as new information was being discovered. One change already that I am eyeing if I do a v3.0 is what to do at 12 and 13. I cover this more in "Surprises" below, but will the Raiders pull the trigger at 13 for Penix is a big question for me and I think it is highly impacted by who ends up trading for McCarthy and maybe even what Denver does at 12. But all the buzz around Penix seems to lie mostly with the Raiders. This is a fun draft to mock. There are a lot of scenarios that can play out at the top which impact how this draft falls. Unlike some drafts where the first 7 to 10 picks were highly predictable. I think it is a safe bet that Washington will be trading back into the first as it's been widely reported they want some OL help for their new QB. And if Bills don't trade up for Thomas, I do think they make a lot of sense as a trade back partner, assuming they haven't already traded up before our pick. Im still torn on passing on OL for Miami at 21 and taking Verse. Fastest offense in the league and can't win a playoff game or their division with a 4 game lead late. Why...because it's too easy to disrupt getting to Tua early and disrupting his early reads. But, like I said on that pick, the OL depth is better in round 2 than DL. Surprises: I think the biggest surprises of the this mock are: 6 QB's going top 13 - This is the one thing that is sticking out to me the most as the questionable. Will both Nix and Penix go back to back 12 and 13? Well, to be honest, I think Penix going 13 may come down to whether or not Denver takes Nix at 12. Vikings are looming in this mock at 23 where they could easily take Penix if they wanted after missing out on moving up for McCarthy as I have them in this mock. So, if that happens, then Bo going 12 puts a lot of pressure on Raiders to take Penix sooner rather than later by trying to trade back up into the first. If Denver passes on a QB at 12, then I am not sure the Raiders feel as much pressure to take Penix at 13. If Vikings end up being the one to trade up for McCarthy then I doubt Nix and Penix go back to back as I think the Raiders would feel more comfortable looking to trade back in towards the end of round 1 for Penix with Vikings out of the way at 23 and Denver reportedly preferring Nix. Thomas makes it out of the 12-18 pick range he is most often believed to go to teams like Den (12), Indy (15), Jags (17), Bengals (18) and he very well could. But, my thinking was I would be surprised to see him go to Denver over other players who should be higher on their boards still there at 12, plus the 2 QB's. Indy very well could take him, although I think if they don't trade up for one of the big 3 WR's there are CB's there they would take before Thomas at 15. Jags signed Davis to go along with Kirk and Zay, so while thats not great, its also not their biggest need where they really need a CB, especially with what Houston is doing. And Bengals must keep Burrow healthy, I have a hard time seeing them not go OL at 18. Steelers passing on Thomas at 20. One, I think Bills could trade here with them and there is some buzz about it too. But they have glaring needs on the OL and there are multiple top prospects likely there at 20 who can bolster that unit, including the 2 best centers for a team who needs a center. Ja'Lynn Polk sneaking in first round. I think most have him as a round 2 guy, but he fits so well the Ravens and Chiefs offense. His combo of size, catch radius and blocking really complement those offenses and both teams I believe are very high on him. So in v1.0 (Ravens) and now 2.0 (Chiefs) I have him sneaking in ahead of some of the other guys like Mitchell and McConkey more often seen as going in the 1st. And like with any mock, take it with a grain of salt as I am sure, like just about all mocks, it will look quite different on draft night anyway lol. But it was a real fun exercise getting in tune with all 32 team needs and the prospects that might fit there. Especially since its changed my view on who I really want to see the Bills go after this draft, including finding a way to get some guys in round 3 via trade back at 28 or trade up from one of our 4ths.

[Note 1: Doubleheader this week is FOX.] [Note 2: There is *no* more ManningCast until Super Wild Card Weekend.] [Note 3: Remember: the TNF game is free and legal to all on Twitch--no Amazon Prime account needed.] [Note 4: The Christmas Day game on MNF is on ABC only as ESPN is airing the NBA the entire day.] [Note 5: There are no regular season more byes left this year.] [Note 6: There are two Saturday, one Christmas eve, and two Christmas day broadcasts as well this week.] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NFL Week 16, 2023 - December 24, 2023 NATIONAL BROADCASTS: https://506sports.com/nfl.php?yr=2023&wk=16 https://archive.506sports.com/wiki/2023_NFL_Season TNF - Amazon Prime Video/Twitch (free) Thursday, December 21 - 8:15 PM ET: New Orleans at Los Angeles Rams Al Michaels, Kirk Herbstreit, Kaylee Hartung [simulcasts: WDSU (NBC/6) New Orleans and KTTV (FOX/11) Los Angeles] SNF (Saturday Late) - NBC Saturday, December 23 - 4:30 PM ET: Cincinnati at Pittsburgh Noah Eagle, Todd Blackledge, Kathryn Tappen SNF (Saturday Primetime) - Peacock Exclusive Saturday, December 23 - 8:00 PM ET: Buffalo at Los Angeles Chargers Mike Tirico, Chris Collinsworth, Melissa Stark [simulcasts: WGRZ (NBC/2) Buffalo and KNBC (NBC/4) Los Angeles] Also being replayed Sunday, December 24 at midnight on NFL Network. [thanks to @Limeaid for mentioning this to me!] Christmas Eve Primetime - NFL Network Sunday, December 24 - 8:00 PM ET: New England at Denver Rich Eisen, Kurt Warner, Sherree Burress, James Palmer [simulcasts: WCVB (ABC/5) Boston and KMGH (ABC/7) Denver] Christmas Day Early - CBS/Nickelodeon Monday, December 25 - 1:00 PM ET: Las Vegas at Kansas City (A) Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson [Nickelodeon will air a family simulcast entitled "NFL Nickmas Game" with Noah Eagle, Nate Burleson, Dylan Schefter, Rafael, and Donatello for the third straight year. This simulcast will feature plenty of slime.] Christmas Day Late - FOX Monday, December 25 - 4:30 PM ET: New York Giants at Philadelphia (B) Joe Davis, Darly Johnston, Pam Oliver MNF - ABC only Monday, December 25 - 8:15 PM ET: Baltimore at San Francisco Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Lisa Salters ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CBS Single Sunday, December 24 - 1 PM and 4:05 PM ET: █ Alaska █ Hawaii █ Red: Cleveland at Houston (B) Ian Eagle, Charles Davis, Evan Washburn █ Green: Seattle at Tennessee (D) Andrew Catalon, Tiki Barber, Matt Ryan, AJ Ross █ Yellow (Yellow): Washington at New York Jets (E) Spero Dedes, Adam Archuleta, Aditi Kinkhabwala █ Blue: Jacksonville at Tampa Bay (LATE) (C) Kevin Harlan, Trent Green, Melanie Collins ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FOX Early Sunday, December 24 - 1 PM ET: █ Alaska █ Hawaii █ Red: Detroit at Minnesota Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma, Shannon Spake █ Blue: Indianapolis at Atlanta (C) Adam Amin, Mark Schlereth, Kristina Pink █ Green: Green Bay at Carolina (F) Chris Myers, Robert Smith, Jen Hale █ Gray (Blackout) [Gray (Blackout)]: Houston is exercising its right to enforce a blackout in its DMA on KRIV (FOX/26) Houston in the early Sunday timeslot. [Home teams have to allow the other network to air a competing game in the same time slot four times a year but can enforce a blackout if that number has been or will be exceeded that season. This will be the fifth time this year in Houston.] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FOX Late Sunday, December 24 - 4:25 PM ET: █ Alaska █ Hawaii █ Red: Dallas at Miami (A) Kevin Burkhardt, Greg Olsen, Erin Andrews, Tom Rinaldi █ Blue: Arizona at Chicago Kevin Kugler, Mark Sanchez, Laura Okmin ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Byes: None ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- UK and Ireland: https://www.skysports.com/watch/nfl-on-sky https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/tv-listings/ TNF Friday, December 22 - 1:15 AM GMT: New Orleans at Los Angeles Rams Sky Sports NFL and Sky Sports Main Event SNF (Saturday Late) Saturday, December 23 - 9:30 PM GMT: Cincinnati at Pittsburgh Sky Sports NFL; Sky Sports Main Event (joined in progress at 11:00 PM) SNF (Saturday Primetime) Sunday, December 24 - 1:00 AM GMT: Buffalo at Los Angeles Chargers Sky Sports NFL; Sky Sports Main Event Sunday Early Game Sunday, December 24 - 6 PM GMT: Cleveland at Houston Sky Sports NFL only Sunday Late Game Sunday, December 24 - 9:25 PM GMT: Dallas at Miami Sky Sports NFL; Sky Sports Main Event (joined in progress at 11:00 PM) Christmas Eve Primetime Monday, December 25 - 1:15 AM GMT: New England at Denver Sky Sports NFL and Sky Sports Main Event Christmas Day Early Monday, December 25 - 6:00 PM GMT: Las Vegas at Kansas City Sky Sports NFL only Christmas Day Late Monday, December 25 - 9:30 PM GMT: New York Giants at Philadelphia Sky Sports NFL; Sky Sports Main Event (joined in progress at 11:00 PM) MNF Tuesday, December 26 - 1:15 AM GMT: Baltimore at San Francisco Sky Sports NFL, Sky Sports Main Event, and Channel 5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Australia: https://www.ussportsdownunder.com.au/blogs/tv-guides/australian-nfl-tv-guide TNF Friday, December 22- 12:15 PM AEDT: New Orleans at Los Angeles Rams ESPN SNF (Saturday Late) Sunday, December 24 - 8:30 AM AEDT: Cincinnati at Pittsburgh ESPN SNF (Saturday Primetime) Sunday, December 24 - 12:00 PM AEDT: Buffalo at Los Angeles Chargers ESPN Sunday Early Game Monday, December 25 - 5:00 AM AEDT: Cleveland at Houston 7mate Detroit at Minnesota ESPN Seattle at Tennessee ESPN2 Sunday Late Game Monday, December 25 - 8:25 AM AEDT: Arizona at Chicago 7mate Dallas at Miami ESPN Christmas Eve Primetime Monday, December 25 - 12:20 PM AEDT: New England at Denver ESPN MNF Tuesday, December 26- 12:15 PM AEDT: ESPN2 [Note: The usual station ESPN is showing wall-to-wall NBA coverage on Boxing Day] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Zealand: TNF Friday, December 22 - 2:15 PM NZDT: New Orleans at Los Angeles Rams ESPN SNF (Saturday Late) Sunday, December 24 - 10:30 AM AEDT: Cincinnati at Pittsburgh ESPN SNF (Saturday Primetime) Sunday, December 24 - 2:00 PM AEDT: Buffalo at Los Angeles Chargers ESPN Sunday Early Game Monday, December 25- 7:00 AM NZDT: Cleveland at Houston Free stream on NZTV+ Indianapolis at Atlanta Free stream on NZTV+ Detroit at Minnesota ESPN Seattle at Tennessee ESPN2 Sunday Late Game Monday, December 25 - 10:25 AM NZDT: Arizona at Chicago Free stream on NZTV+ Dallas at Miami ESPN Christmas Eve Primetime Monday, December 25 - 2:20 PM NZDT: New England at Denver ESPN MNF Tuesday, December 26 - 2:15 PM NZDT: Baltimore at San Francisco ESPN2 [Note: The usual station ESPN is showing wall-to-wall NBA coverage on Boxing Day] ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Maurice Linquist needs to be fired. UB Bulls football are looking at needing a total rebuild. So there is no point keeping Maurice Linquist who is 14-21 with two games left on the season after three years. UB Bulls have no quarterback on the roster so they are going to have to go to the transfer portal. My solution since UB Bulls football has no money is hiring UB alum Joe Licata as both head coach/athletics director of UB. Hoping UB Bulls football hits lightning in a bottle. Since Joe Licata is a local maybe he stays 20 years to build a real MAC football program at UB that is good long term. Again it starts with hiring someone that will stay and being honest with Western New York community we are a MAC program that doesn’t have the support for a higher conference. Starting with the truth to the Western New York fans will go a long way with building trust from UB athletics. Last point I have a hard time understanding why UB athletics doesn’t lobby the state for money for renovations to UB stadium. The Buffalo Bisons owner Rich products whose owner is a multi billionaire is asking for state money to renovate Sahlen’s Field that has more going for it than UB Stadium. I don’t understand UB the schools reluctance to ask the state for money for renovations for UB Stadium to remove the track the worse the state can say is no. Again hope that Joe Licata is a Nate Oats hire is all I have. Combine the athletics director job to help with the money having to go out to buyout Maurice Linquist contract. Is my plan great? No there is risk reward but at this point UB has nothing to lose with Joe Licata because Maurice Linquist and Mark Alnutt are not the answer and have to both go combining the two jobs saves UB athletics some money in my opinion. UB Horns Up! Go Bulls! Let’s Go Buffalo

Allen also complained about calls in the later pressers by talking about the grounding. It’s well known the NFL fines and doesn’t tolerate talking about refs/ calls later. Appropriately, haven’t heard him complaining about the fine , as I’m sure he can afford it if he keeps choosing to whine about calls. He ie becoming the Jason TATUm (Celtics star who complains of non calls almost every possession ,and has often given up fast break buckets while standing and complaining) of the BILLS. Just focus more on what you can control. In addition, i find it pretty ironic that the team captain , qb, was NOT the guy calling an offensive players only meeting; maybe he knows not to throw stones if you live in a glass house. Just saying, he is playing ok, but he is just as an important part of the losses as he is a part of the wins. Sorry, not sorry, but it just seems desperate when a guy B’s about so many calls , and at times he over acts so much , it’s like he was trained by soccer players to embellish calls. Maybe turning to the refs begging for a call after every other hit and crying wolf so much results in not getting calls that ARE justified. It’s just a cheap tactic, so MAYBE stop looking for flags, read progressions better and maybe all the ints start disappearing. Maybe it’s me , but I don’t remember guys like Kelly, elway, or Marino always turning to the refs begging for calls. It was a tougher time to play, and Perhaps because their offenses could get first downs and score without needing ref help? Qb protection has gotten to the point of absurdity. ( btw , don’t look now but the Texans are leading the bengals at half 10-7 ,STROUD w almost 200yds passing against the D we put up only 7 going into the 4th quarter, and we were never really challenging in that game despite the final score. Texans look to have great team speed and Cincy’s tight ends aren’t controlling the game like they did against our lb corp. The issues aren’t just offensive , as the d has fallen off at every level. Throw in Minnesota playing great offense w Hobbs , and you wonder why our offense is “too complex “ for a guy like Hines to get snaps a year ago ; our team is in full meltdown) Love the BILLS , but not a fan of excuses for everything now that we are losing , mostly by playing inconsistent, mistake , penalty prone football. Hold the complaining about calls cuz other teams seem to overcome things. Hey , injuries ARE important too , just compare the colts giving up 6 to the pats today compared to our d giving up 29 and the game winning drive to a qb who was benched again today. This team has many issues ( as the Texans go up 20-7 in Cincy as motor ram one in ) and I’m very skeptical any player only meeting turns this around. Even Nate burleson picked the broncos in tomorrows game, wow, just seems like a down year! How can coaching at all levels not be an issue if the bills miss the playoffs?

When he was first hired, I had no opinion one way or another because I did not know much about him. After the playoff drought the bar for success for a Bills head coach was probably lower than the bar for success for any NFL head coach. My recollection of the drought is not that we were constantly among at the bottom of the NFL, but constantly about 10th from the bottom and drafting 10, or thereabouts. It was a low mediocre team. The first season of making the playoffs at 9-8 was refreshing, but the early bow out, meant we had move to high mediocre team. The next season, Josh Allen blew me away in the preseason games. It was impossible for to imagine not starting him right away. But I accepted the "let him learn logic". But at the point another rookie Nate Peterman was brought in to start before Allen, I had my first twinge of "does this guy know what he is doing" doubts. But he corrected that error and the team made great progress from that point. (Side note, I did not like the "keep everything in front of you soft defense for a long time, but came to accept that it worked well and stopped being concerned about that generally) I found his clapping after bad plays as a bit bizzare but was more amused by what I considered a weird personality quirk, than thinking it was a question of competence. From the moment Allen was made the starter until the Houston playoff game everything was great with McDermott. Others may disagree, as is there preogitive, but I felt the loss to Houston was primarily coaching errors. It was the first evidence that McDermott is not a great closer in key games. We moved forward with some great preseason play and playoff play, until the 13 second game. This game is so haunting, it is discussed quite a bit still on national media, let alone in local discussion circles. There were two upsetting parts to this to me. One, it seemed to be a complete coaching error. And yet, after the game McDermott did not accept responsibility and blamed others for execution problems. (as an aside, its odd to me for coaches to thinking they are doing a good job coaching, if players do not know the play or assignments). At this point "inability to close" became a meaningfull concern of mine. At that point, I felt as though the onus was on McDermott to prove he could. So far he has not. Most NFL coaches don't get to year 6 without advancing to the super bowl at least once. It is rare enough that some of the names of those that did are etched in NFL lore, Marvin Lewis, Marty Shottenmeimer, and a couple of others. The only precedent I know for any NFL coach to get to year 6 with a top tier QB on the roster and no super bowl appearances is Dan Reeves with John Elway. Dan Marino made it to the Super Bowl with Shula, his second season. On a separate path, until the 2023 draft, I did not agree the roster was being properly constructed to win in today's NFL. I don't know how much McDermott had to do with that. But it seems from public appearance, he did not have a lot of say in the extensive focus on building the defense. The reason to keep McDermott for season 6, is the excellent regular season results he has generated. Those are not in dispute. I began the season hopeful that McDermott could prove he was a closer in this years playoffs. He still has the chance. If we go on a tear and make the playoffs and advance until at least the AFC championship game, its an easy decision to bring him back next year. If the team actually fails to make the playoffs, It is not clear to me what the case for bring him back for year 7 would be. The narrative would have to be "even great coaches have down years, plus "injuries", he deserves a shot at a bounce back year. If the team makes the playoffs but goes out in the divisional round again, I don't think there is a compelling case either to retain him or to fire him. Kind of coaching purgatory.

Nate is trying to be too smart here. What I get out of it is that if the offense is on schedule on first down, Cook is basically a cheat code. This is one of those things where a team says “we’ll keep calling it until you stop us”. We have certainly smashed our RB into a brick wall over and over again in past games. I reserve the right to criticize that too. Ha!

5 of the 6 Cook runs were converted for 1st downs. The one that wasn't was a play Josh HAS to kill and get out of - the first 2nd and 2 where he goes ahead and runs a play that just runs Cook right into an overload. I understand the predictability point that Nate is trying to make. But James Cook was executing better than anyone else on offense.

I know this is about what we should do with Elam, but I dislike the narrative that McDermott "doesn't like to play rookies," or that he makes the young guys sit just because he doesn't trust them. Yes, I know Elam isn't a rookie anymore, but many people still seem to think Elam sits inactive because the HC has a thing for vets > young guys. 2017: Tre White - Started 16 games (he was the #27th overall pick vs Elam being the #23 overall pick) Zay Jones - Started 10 games, played in 15 (79% of offensive snaps) Dion Dawkins - Started 11 games Matt Milano - Started 5 games, played in 16 Nate "The Goat" Peterman - Started 2 games (unfortuantely), played in 4 2018: Josh Allen - Started 11 games, played in 12 (missed games due to injury) Tremaine Edmunds - Started 15 games Taron Johnson - Started 2 games, played in 11 (another CB, 4th round pick, 57% of defensive snaps) Wyatt Teller - Started 7 games, played in 8 (5th round G, now consistent starter in Cleveland) 2019: Ed Oliver - Started 7 games, played in 16 (54% of defensive snaps) Cody Ford - Started 15 games Devin Singletary - Started 8 games, played in 12 (67% of offensive snaps) Dawson Knox - Started 11 games, played in 15 2020: AJ Epenesa - Only started 1 game, played in 14 (only 31% of defensive snaps) Zack Moss - Started 0 games, played in 13 (45% of offensive snaps) Gabe Davis - Started 11 games, played in 16 Tyler Bass - Started 16 games, kinda 😆 Dane Jackson - Started 2 games, played in 5 (another CB, 7th round pick, worked his way into a lot more play time) 2021: Greg Rousseau - Started 16 games Spencer Brown - Started 10 games, played in 13 2022: Kaiir Elam - Started 6 games, played in 13 (57% of defensive snaps) Khalil Shakir - Started 2 games, played in 14 Christian Benford - Started 5 games, played in 9 (6th round CB, injured/inactive for 7 games, 62% of defensive snaps when available) 2023: Dalton Kincaid - Started/listed as a starter in 5 of 7 available games (63% of offensive snaps) O'Cyrus Torrence - Started all 8 games Dorian Williams - Started 2 games So after looking through this objectively, it seems pretty clear our first round picks play EXTENSIVELY. In 2020, there was no 1st rounder, and the best value came later in the draft. But it's clear Elam is the odd man out here. It's not a "McDermott doesn't like to play rookies" thing, it's a "he doesn't like what he sees from Elam" thing. However, you can also see the early years of building through the draft, as opposed to more recent years & less need for immediate help via draft picks. So while it's more difficult for a rookie to see as much play time now compared to the past, you also see late round picks (including other CBs) seeing their play time increase. Either way, the one constant is that the 1st round picks are drafted with the intent to see the field immediately & be the starters. Elam failed that. Unfortunately, I think the best time to trade him would've been before the deadline. Teams in the hunt may be more eager to find help midseason rather than when they have all the time in the world in the offseason.

The last corner we had that did that was Nate Clements...been a while

We don't know the details of the medical personnel and trainers who assisted Damar last night. These men and women are highly trained and from the reports they were quick to act. Unlike other medical professionals who deal with these emergencies daily, this had to be traumatic for them being thrust into last night's situation. I also imagine the Bengals Trainers and Medical Staff were involved. I just wanted to acknowledge and thank them in total as I looked up their names on the Bills website. Athletic Trainers: Nate Breske: Head Athletic Trainer Denny Kellington: Assistant Athletic Trainer Joe Micca: Rehabilitation Coordinator - Physical Therapist Tabani Richards: Assistant Athletic Trainer Also, we don't know which team physicians were present for the road game. Medical Staff Dr. Leslie Bisson: Medical Director Dr. Andrew Cappuccino: Team Orthopedist - Spine Dr. Marc Fineberg: Team Orthopedist Dr. Mark Kim: Team Internist Dr. Tom White: Team Internist

More like Nate brews a mean pot of ayahuasca tea. All organic, of course. Nate's primary qualification in getting hired in Denver was "Aaron Rodgers homeboy." Once Rodgers decided to take the bag in GB, the Broncos were hosed.

Nate didn't even call plays in Green Bay. He made the coffee in the offensive meeting rooms real well though. Not sure about that but he did turn down interviews. Certainly with Philly. Not sure he turned down a job offer though. I find that hard to believe.

I would hate that hire as a Panthers fan (all 12 of them). I think he has done some good things and is growing in the job. But it’s one to inherit raw Allen like Daboll did and help him become the player he is. It’s another to inherit this version of Allen. it’s like Nate Hackett. Dude kinda has sucked as an OC everywhere (EJ’s rookie OC (and his first nfl OC job), EJ never had a chance!). But he worked with Rodgers and gets a head coaching job. Who won’t be good in that situation?

wouldn't Nate Hackett be cheaper?

Thats Nate Peterman like impressive.

Election denier alert!! Hahahahahaha Sorry Nate - we have more evidence Covid was an actual coup/assault on the West then we do January 6th was a well planned insurrection Nate's logic here - if you thought vaccines didn't slow the spread in March 2021 then you were a Vaccine Denier.

Joe DiBiase or Nate Geary need to be next. I like them both and will miss Howard a lot.

I have always enjoyed listening to Howard Simon in the mornings. He just seems friendly, which is a lost art that modern DJ's or talk hosts seem to lack. I was thinking about this the other night listening to a local radio station... A really good DJ (or in this case talk host) makes such a difference for the experience of the listener and it's becoming such a lost art in the current age of louder, more shocking, more stupid. Your listeners don't want to feel attacked or put down, nor do they want their blood pressure to double. Some of these young guys are terrible to listen to, and are obviously being taught poorly. Nate Geary is the one (I think) who sometimes does mornings when Jeremy or Howard is out, and oh my god is it terrible... Talks over the other host, never stops for a second, and seems like he's just trying to get as much on tape as possible. It's hard to listen to. It's like he's paid by the word. A good DJ or good talk host is one who feels like listening to a friend, even if you disagree sometimes or get annoyed sometimes, and even if it's not for everyone. You have an audience, and you connect with that audience. I always loved Art Bell's show, for example. It felt like a community, like you were listening to the show with a bunch of other people (which of course you are literally) but it felt like a conversation. Anyone who is really into radio knows what I mean by that. Too many people on the radio today are about rants and monologues and trying to be over the top, which has its place from time to time, but as a default approach is not fun to listen to. Plus your audience is just sitting there, listening to an angry person or hyper person rant and rave. I know that works for some, but even then, it's really very very few who can pull that off AND have it work. You'd think being a DJ is easy: you just play music. But it's what you play, when, in what order, and how you slip stories about the musicians or concerts in between, and maybe a bit of a persona you have that differentiates you from others, but isn't overboard. I think it's the same for sports talk (or any talk). It's way more than just talking about sports on the radio, and it's a lot harder to be good at that many realize. IMO Howard is a true pro.

Sad to see Howard go. You may disagree with the flagship host opinions, but at least Schopp, Bulldog, Jeremy, and Howard all present and sound like pro broadcasters. Sneaky Joe is young, but seems like he takes his craft seriously and is trying to improve. I wish he wasn’t so onboard with the Mike Schopp track of thought, but that’s his mentor. Hopefully he grows his own thing. Nate Geary… OMG. Is there anyone at the station that is offering him critiques? Telling him to pump the breaks? Loud, bombastic, interrupting, inserting himself when room to breathe is needed. I actually frequently agree with his opinions, but the delivery is just soooooo grating. I’m glad I’m not the only one. It needed to be said. Paul is the master of talking while saying nothing. And it seems like he doesn’t have any more access than the average fan, which is less than ideal for a beat reporter.

These are HOFer Bill Polian's picks as Bills GM. Every GM has his share of misses. Note the misses in bold among the 1st 5 picks. Buffalo Bills - 1992 Draft Results Round Overall Player Position School 1 27 John Fina T Arizona 2 55 James Patton NT Texas 3 83 Keith Goganious LB Penn State 4 111 Frank Kmet -- Purdue 5 139 Matt Darby DB UCLA 6 167 Nate Turner TE Nebraska 7 195 Kurt Schulz DB Eastern Washington 8 223 Leonard Humprhries CB Penn State 9 251 Chris Walsh WR Stanford 10 279 Barry Rose WR Wisconsin - Stevens Point 11 307 Vince Marrow TE Toledo 12 355 Matt Rodgers -- Iowa Buffalo Bills - 1991 Draft Results Round Overall Player Position School 1 26 Henry Jones DB Illinois 2 54 Phil Hansen DE North Dakota State 3 82 Darryl Wren DB Pittsburg State 5 138 Shawn Wilbourn -- Long Beach State 6 166 Millard Hamilton WR Clark Atlanta 7 194 Amir Rasul -- Florida A&M 8 222 Brad Lamb WR Anderson (IN) 9 249 Mark Maddox LB Northern Michigan 10 277 Tony DeLorenzo -- New Mexico State 11 305 Dean Kirkland -- Washington 12 333 Stephen Clark -- Texas Buffalo Bills - 1990 Draft Results Round Overall Player Position School 1 16 James Williams DB Fresno State 2 42 Carwell Gardner FB Louisville 3 69 Glenn Parker T Arizona 4 100 Eddie Fuller RB LSU 6 154 John Nies P Arizona 7 166 Brent Griffith G Minnesota-Duluth 7 170 Brent Collins -- Carson-Newman 7 181 Fred DeRiggi NT Syracuse 8 208 Marvcus Patton LB UCLA 9 238 Clarkston Hines -- Duke 10 265 Mike Lodish DT UCLA 11 292 Al Edwards WR Northwestern State - Louisiana Buffalo Bills - 1989 Draft Results Round Overall Player Position School 3 82 Don Beebe WR Chadron State 4 109 John Kolesar -- Michigan 5 137 Michael Andrews -- Alcorn State 6 164 Sean Doctor -- Marshall 7 173 Brian Jordan DB Richmond 7 193 Chris Hale DB USC 9 249 Pat Rabold -- Wyoming 10 276 Carlo Cheattom -- Auburn 11 305 Richard Harvey LB Tulane 12 332 Derrell Marshall -- USC Brett Young -- Oregon Buffalo Bills - 1988 Draft Results Round Overall Player Position School 2 40 Thurman Thomas RB Oklahoma State 3 65 Bernard Ford WR Central Florida 5 123 Zeke Gadson -- Pittsburgh 5 135 Kirk Roach -- Western Carolina 6 150 Dan Murray LB East Stroudsburg 7 177 Tim Borcky -- Memphis 7 184 Bo Wright -- Alabama 8 204 John Hagy DB Texas 8 213 Jeff Wright NT Central Missouri State 9 235 Carlton Bailey LB North Carolina 10 262 Martin Mayhew DB Florida State 11 289 Pete Curkendall -- Penn State 12 309 John Driscoll -- New Hampshire 12 316 Tom Erlandson Jr. LB Washington Buffalo Bills - 1987 Draft Results Round Overall Player Position School 1 8 Shane Conlan LB Penn State 2 29 Nate Odomes DB Wisconsin 2 33 Roland Mitchell DB Texas Tech 3 60 David Brandon LB Memphis 3 78 Jamie Mueller RB Benedictine 4 109 Leon Seals DE Jackson State 7 171 Kerry Porter RB Washington State 8 209 Bruce Mesner NT Maryland 9 227 Keith McKeller TE Jacksonville State 11 283 Howard Ballard T Alabama A&M 12 311 Joe McGrail NT Delaware Buffalo Bills - 1986 Draft Results Round Overall Player Position School 1 16 Ronnie Harmon RB Iowa 1 20 Will Wolford T Vanderbilt 3 77 Leonard Burton C South Carolina 5 111 Carl Byrum RB Mississippi Valley State 7 168 Bob Williams -- Penn State 7 178 Mark Pike DE Georgia Tech 7 180 Butch Rolle TE Michigan State 8 202 Tony Furjanic LB Notre Dame 9 222 Reggie Bynum WR Oregon State 10 251 Guy Teafatiller DT Illinois 11 278 Tony Garbarczyk DE Wake Forest 11 282 Billy Witt DE North Alabama 12 313 Brian McClure QB Bowling Green State 12 331 Derek Christian -- West Virginia

Nate Peterman, a 5th round draft pick, outplayed 1st round Josh Allen in the 2018 preseason.

Nate Peterman all over again.....

Joe D and Nate Geary are brutal. Turn off the radio bad.

I laughed so hard listening to that WGR broadcast that I spit out the beer I was drinking. The caller was totally serious. "Casey Kasem (yep, he confused our 2nd string QB with the disc jockey lol) looked amazing, 16-18 for 190+ yards...We could get a boatload of #1 draft choices for Josh Allen. What do you say?" Nate Geary's reaction was also classic: "I'd say you're crazy"

The group hasn't played a game yet, they show promise but we will see. I would take the 1985 draft class over this one: Bruce Smith Derrick Burroughs (unfortunate that injuries curtailed his career) Chris Burkett Frank Reich Andre Reed Dale Hellestrae (over 200 games as a long snapper) Hal Garner Ron Pitts They also picked up UDFA Scott Norwood 1987 was also very good: Shane Conlan Nate Odomes Roland Mitchell (ended up in the Leonard Smith trade) David Brandon Jamie Mueller Leon Seals Keith McKellar Howard Ballard UDFA Mitch Frerotte Bill Polian had a 4 year run in the draft (1985-88) that was amazing.