most mocks have bills taking williams

[fansince88]

so what would an expert, one who claims the team isn't any good anyways, use the first pick for?

 

mocks and smoke always give the impression of what player they may draft but I know a lot of so called experts have them going defense, not QB or WR at 10.

 

I feel they go defense or they could surprise by picking OJ Howard at 10?

 

 

anybody's guess at this point

I agree. Not sold that Williams will be a great receiver in the NFL. He can catch well....thats it

[JaCrispy]

I'm finding it hard to pick a guy at 10...really hoping we trade down so i can feel better about whoever the Bills take

[PromoTheRobot]

Mock drafts really seem like a monumental waste of time. Even so called "experts" are rarely correct. It's one of the most mystifying things in sports, why so many care so deeply about them and try to predict the mental processes of 32 different groups of professional talent evaluators who rarely have any interest in telegraphing their actual thoughts.

THANK YOU. I've felt the same way about them. And then people re-mock over and over. Then add in the fact that none of us actually scout these players to the level the pros do, or base decisions on "things they hear" which are really just other agents fluffing their clients to amateur bloggers. What's the point other than to be able to claim you "predicted" a pick?

Edited April 2, 2017 by PromoTheRobot

[Brianmoorman4jesus]

I would be thrilled. The way I see it, WR is our biggest weakness. WR was already a major need for this team last year and we lost 1 of the few good ones we had. The way it looks today We have the worst group of recievers in the NFL. Unless we plan to throw less then 10 passes a game, we are going to need another good one. If we don't teams are just going to double Sammy and make one of these other guys beat them. Nobody else on this roster is capable of scaring anyone IMO

[Zulu Cthulhu]

wr is not that thin for a run first team and we have no corners. get the point now?

Not yet. You seem to be assuming a lot about a brand new coaching staff. And how is having only 1 proven WR not thin? No corners? Darby doesn't count anymore? Pretty sure he had a decent rookie campaign. So no, i don't get your point.

[Coach Tuesday]

Draft good players at premium positions; worrying about needs is a fool's errand IMO

 

That said, Williams isn't a tier 1 NFL WR threat IMO. Nice player, but there will probably be better investments available at 10.

 

I totally agree with this and so does Football Outsiders:

 

http://www.espn.com/nfl/draft2017/insider/story/_/id/19023666/projecting-top-wide-receiver-prospects-2017-nfl-draft

 

Williams strikes me as a slightly worse version of Mike Evans. Very good prospect but lacks the elite skills to create mismatches on his own. I'd rather Ross if they're going WR in Round 1, but frankly maybe Howard would be the better pick than either of them in terms of pure versatility and mismatch-creating ability.

 

All of that said - something tells me that McDermott comes from the Dave Gettleman school of using high picks on the front seven, which I've always preferred...

[Jamie Muellers Ghost]

I would not say that most of the mocks that I have seen have picked Williams.

 

Mayock usually gets close in his mock to us.

 

Sal .C picked Hassan Reddick yesterday, usually he does have some slight insight into what might be going on into their thinking.

[Manther]

I would be thrilled. The way I see it, WR is our biggest weakness. WR was already a major need for this team last year and we lost 1 of the few good ones we had. The way it looks today We have the worst group of recievers in the NFL. Unless we plan to throw less then 10 passes a game, we are going to need another good one. If we don't teams are just going to double Sammy and make one of these other guys beat them. Nobody else on this roster is capable of scaring anyone IMO

Agreed

[JaCrispy]

I would not say that most of the mocks that I have seen have picked Williams.

 

Mayock usually gets close in his mock to us.

 

Sal .C picked Hassan Reddick yesterday, usually he does have some slight insight into what might be going on into their thinking.

Reddick is my choice...I think he fits perfectly into the gaping hole we have at WLB...he would be our Von Miller

[buffuct]

darby was bad last year in same scheme, who ya got after that ? seymore ? thats called thin . not saying has to be cb in first just not williams . is reddick the best olb ? still hoping for zb to come back.

[JaCrispy]

darby was bad last year in same scheme, who ya got after that ? seymore ? thats called thin . not saying has to be cb in first just not williams . is reddick the best olb ? still hoping for zb to come back.

I think Reddick has the potential to be better than Brown...and he's a 3 down LB

[jimmy10]

 

They are a bit of fun. Anyone who gets so worked up about them needs to chill out.

Not worked up, and I get that it's a fun exercise for some... To me it's just the time and energy one would have to invest in paying attention to college football to know anything at all about these guys coming out. And then look at all 32 NFL teams and their needs. And then try to predict success at the pro level. And then slot dozens if not hundreds of those college players? For what? Bragging rights on those few you may hit on? Again, I get that people love doing it. I just can't wrap my head around why.

[GunnerBill]

For what? Bragging rights on those few you may hit on? Again, I get that people love doing it. I just can't wrap my head around why.

It isn't about bragging rights. It is enjoyable. Speaking personally it has hugely improved my knowledge of the sport. I do it for fun.

[richardb1952]

I believe the Bills will take an OLB with the first pick at 10, especially if ZB isn't re-signed. If they see a real good OLB that could be picked up in a latter round, I believe OJ Howard could be in play. Peppers is a wild card but I believe they would like to trade down if they think he would be available later. Definitely could use the extra picks. Of course, if one of the top safeties, Lattimore or one of the projected top DL fall, all bets are off.

[Blokestradamus]

It isn't about bragging rights. It is enjoyable. Speaking personally it has hugely improved my knowledge of the sport. I do it for fun.

 

Because I've been very Bills-centric with what I've watched and written about, mock drafts are a good way of taking time away from that to assess the rest of the league. Even if it's just as simple as spending time reading through depth charts to get a feeling for a teams' biggest deficiencies. I assess scheme fits and skill sets for fun but I lose a little perspective at times on where they best fit within a 32-team league.

 

I don't think I've ever published a full 32-pick 1st round mock because I'm pretty **** at slotting players. I think I nailed 4 last year and that included the 2 QB's that we knew about

[BarleyNY]

WR unit is just as thin as the LB and DB units, so not sure what your point is.

I'd say WR and DB corps are both incredibly thin. LB isn't as bad as either of those though. Obviously, your point stands.

 

Projecting a WR to the Bills at 10 is just looking at a team need matching up with likely player availability at that point. The top notch DB prospects will likely be gone by 10 and Williams and/or Davis will likely be there. I'm not enamored with Williams though. I'd rather Hooker or Adams be the pick, but they will be long gone unless Adams has worse injury concerns than are public. I don't know that CBs are valued highly enough in McD's defense for the Bills to take one at 10.

 

McD does need a stud LB for his defense though. If he thinks there is one available at 10 I see that being the pick.

Edited April 2, 2017 by BarleyNY

[thebandit27]

 

I totally agree with this and so does Football Outsiders:

 

http://www.espn.com/nfl/draft2017/insider/story/_/id/19023666/projecting-top-wide-receiver-prospects-2017-nfl-draft

 

Williams strikes me as a slightly worse version of Mike Evans. Very good prospect but lacks the elite skills to create mismatches on his own. I'd rather Ross if they're going WR in Round 1, but frankly maybe Howard would be the better pick than either of them in terms of pure versatility and mismatch-creating ability.

 

All of that said - something tells me that McDermott comes from the Dave Gettleman school of using high picks on the front seven, which I've always preferred...

Re Williams, that's the EXACT comparison that I thought of--a slightly less athletic Mike Evans.

 

As to the drafting philosophy, I'm really hoping for a focus on excellent football players. If they happen to be front-7, that's fine with me.

[bigK14094]

You might be right about the mock drafts on espn, etc. I recall Shaq getting the most votes in the pre-draft poll on TSW, though. FWIW

My view was that Shaq was an easy call for the predraft mocks, as R Ryan was always advocating for him...and he made the selection for the Bills. Clemson was Rex second team as his son was on the team. He saw Shaq a lot.....I have no allusions that Rex picked the best candidate...he picked the candidate he had seen a dozen times. I am not sure Shaq is a pro....we will see...but there was a lot of emotion in his selection....and the Ryan judgement was clouded imho.

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

I would not say that most of the mocks that I have seen have picked Williams.

 

Mayock usually gets close in his mock to us.

 

Sal .C picked Hassan Reddick yesterday, usually he does have some slight insight into what might be going on into their thinking.

....seem smallish in the Kiko mode......many thought Alonso wore down as the season went on because of his size...is this a concern (don't get to see college ball)?..............

[San-O]

Draft good players at premium positions; worrying about needs is a fool's errand IMO

 

That said, Williams isn't a tier 1 NFL WR threat IMO. Nice player, but there will probably be better investments available at 10.

 

+ 1

 

Don't draft a WR that high, please.