NastyNateSoldiers Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 I've taken some time recently to think bout what direction the Bills should take with the most important position in sports QB. I think the majority of fans have also we fall into basically 3 categories #1 Team Trade Up #2 Sign a Vet and draft QB to develop. #3 Sign Cousins and use our draft pks. I thought about these 3 plans and read about many opinions on this board . The best one i believe is #3 sign Captain Kirk. Signing Kirk makes sense on so many levels When building a team the most important factor is building threw the draft i can't see the Bills giving up nearly 2yrs of pks to bank on a QB developing or even worse not developing . McBeane want to build this team in there image and there not gonna do it via free agency . These guys want custom made culture guys that fit there systems and the best place to find them are in the draft. Cousins fits the Bill. This is where Cousins comes in . Captain Kirk is a process type guy. If the Bills were drafting a QB i believe Cousins would be the type of guy they draft. He has all the characteristics and intangibles there looking for as far as Durability, Leadership, Work ethic and being a God fearing man . Ntm he's ready made top 12 QB in the NFL averaging 4250 yds, 31 TDs and over 65% completions over his last 4 seasons. The arrow is pointing up with Cousins as he's just entering his prime at 29yrs old. Now i know people will say 27-30 mil per season that's alot of money and i agree it is but the Bills set themselves up for this type of cap hit . Going into 2019 we have nearly 90mil in cap space with no big dollars free agents on the horizon we should be able to absorb that cap hit easily. Ntm we should be able to land cheap talent and starters at the top of the draft. The Plan Well this is where the fun starts not only for McBeane but for us the fans. We get to use all our high pks 5 in top 95 to fill major holes on this team. This gives McBeane great flexibility during the draft to trade down and even collect more assets . Imagine what these 5pks can do for us moving forward these players will get some much needed experience as rookies in 2018 . With these pks and some savvy free agent additions the Bills will be able to again compete for the playoffs in 2018 hopefully get there and win a gm or 2. But the eye of the prize will definitely be on 2019 where we still will have great cap flexibility with a Franchise QB in place and a young nucleus of talent and another draft to really begin to build for the future yrs and make some noise while doing it. This is the Cousins plan and hopefully we get to see it happen. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunnerBill Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) I am firmly in Team Trade Up and I actually believe the Bills will. EDIT: I don't hate the Cousins plan and I do see the advantages but I just feel like he is going to get an astronomical sum for a QB of his standard and he pretty much fixes you into building through the draft around him. The Bills may have cap space going into 2019 but they will hopefully also be starting to think at that stage about signing a young shutdown corner long term (Tre) and a young franchise left tackle long term (Dion). So while you have some cap space for short term FA deals in 2019 and 2020 you don't have room to tie yourself into big FAs on 4 or 5 year deals. I think if you find your Quarterback in the draft you have a little more flexibility as to how you build the team around him. Edited January 30, 2018 by GunnerBill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NastyNateSoldiers Posted January 30, 2018 Author Share Posted January 30, 2018 9 minutes ago, GunnerBill said: I am firmly in Team Trade Up and I actually believe the Bills will. I am also to a certain extent. But i just can't see McBeane giving up the house for a unknown commodity. 13 minutes ago, GunnerBill said: I am firmly in Team Trade Up and I actually believe the Bills will. EDIT: I don't hate the Cousins plan and I do see the advantages but I just feel like he is going to get an astronomical sum for a QB of his standard and he pretty much fixes you into building through the draft around him. The Bills may have cap space going into 2019 but they will hopefully also be starting to think at that stage about signing a young shutdown corner long term (Tre) and a young franchise left tackle long term (Dion). So while you have some cap space for short term FA deals in 2019 and 2020 you don't have room to tie yourself into big FAs on 4 or 5 year deals. I think if you find your Quarterback in the draft you have a little more flexibility as to how you build the team around him. I think that's what they want to do build threw the draft. McBeane are not gonna be signing much big money free agents. In this case there signing 1 big guy that fills the biggest need on the team at QB . Plus he's a culture fit . They wont have a prb overspending on a QB then lets say other postions that usually don't end up panning out for teams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunnerBill Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 I have to say I'd be surprised if they are willing to go to the $$s Kirk wants. I think they'd rather move up in the draft (people remember the trade back last year but McDermott traded up twice too for Zay and Dion) than do that but I might be wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NastyNateSoldiers Posted January 30, 2018 Author Share Posted January 30, 2018 11 minutes ago, GunnerBill said: I have to say I'd be surprised if they are willing to go to the $$s Kirk wants. I think they'd rather move up in the draft (people remember the trade back last year but McDermott traded up twice too for Zay and Dion) than do that but I might be wrong. If they trade up to #3 or #4 , its gonna cost them 3 firsts , 21,22 and 1 in 2019 so with that how do we fill our needs then. Via free agency right. We are gonna spend the money anyways. In this case id rather spend it on the QB. QBs especially the good ones and there hardly available via free agency there usually great pkups even though u might be overspending some. There are far more big money signings that flat out bust at other positions. Look at Suh or Haynesworth, Mario etc, etc The price for them 3 firsts are low cost players that fit needs immediately. I'd rather have Cousins and my 5pks . Then Mayfield and some extremely overpaid free agents. We all know big name free agents don't come to Buffalo unless we are severely overpaying. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davefan66 Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Too many other teams want a QB this year, unless it’s a smokescreen (don’t believe it is). Cost would prevent a trade up. Probably our 2 firsts this year, an early rounder this year and a first next year. Not with it for this QB class IMHO. The Bills need more than a QB. Need Oline, RB, LB, WR along with QB. Need to hit a few in FA, but drafting starters and depth will be very important also. I believe there are enough FA QB’s this year to address that position for us. I also believe the Bills May want to give Peterman another year to develop before tossing in the towel on him. I prefer they use all there picks to draft new players because it helps keep salary cap down, and sign a few good 2nd tier FA’s. As far as QB, sign a starter in FA, that’s where they’ll need the $$$$. All that that being said. If they have a conviction about a certain QB in the draft? then just do it. Whatever the cost is, just get your guy. I just don’t believe there is that guy this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NastyNateSoldiers Posted January 30, 2018 Author Share Posted January 30, 2018 4 minutes ago, davefan66 said: Too many other teams want a QB this year, unless it’s a smokescreen (don’t believe it is). Cost would prevent a trade up. Probably our 2 firsts this year, an early rounder this year and a first next year. Not with it for this QB class IMHO. The Bills need more than a QB. Need Oline, RB, LB, WR along with QB. Need to hit a few in FA, but drafting starters and depth will be very important also. I believe there are enough FA QB’s this year to address that position for us. I also believe the Bills May want to give Peterman another year to develop before tossing in the towel on him. I prefer they use all there picks to draft new players because it helps keep salary cap down, and sign a few good 2nd tier FA’s. As far as QB, sign a starter in FA, that’s where they’ll need the $$$$. All that that being said. If they have a conviction about a certain QB in the draft? then just do it. Whatever the cost is, just get your guy. I just don’t believe there is that guy this year. No matter what QB cost money via free agency at the end of the day id rather spend 27mil on Cousins then 21 on Keenum. Btw i got that # from spotrac. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefenseWins Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 I'm going to ask this question again... What makes any of you believe that Cousins would want to sign with Buffalo vs Denver, Ariz, Wash, NYJ etc... He can have his choice of any of these cities assuming he doesn't want Clev which has the most $$$ to pay him whatever he wants... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 1 hour ago, NastyNateSoldiers said: No matter what QB cost money via free agency at the end of the day id rather spend 27mil on Cousins then21 on Keenum. Btw i got that # from spotrac. So you want Cousins and Keenum. How about neither. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunnerBill Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 15 minutes ago, DefenseWins said: I'm going to ask this question again... What makes any of you believe that Cousins would want to sign with Buffalo vs Denver, Ariz, Wash, NYJ etc... He can have his choice of any of these cities assuming he doesn't want Clev which has the most $$$ to pay him whatever he wants... Oh he won't. I am convinced Cousins ends up in Denver. Elway is starting to face questions about his job... he is not going to risk missing on a 1st round QB twice in 3 years. He is going to throw cash at the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Call_Of_Ktulu Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 7 minutes ago, GunnerBill said: Oh he won't. I am convinced Cousins ends up in Denver. Elway is starting to face questions about his job... he is not going to risk missing on a 1st round QB twice in 3 years. He is going to throw cash at the problem. This is my gut feeling as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoTier Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 2 hours ago, GunnerBill said: I have to say I'd be surprised if they are willing to go to the $$s Kirk wants. I think they'd rather move up in the draft (people remember the trade back last year but McDermott traded up twice too for Zay and Dion) than do that but I might be wrong. I think it all depends upon which college QB the Bills like in the draft -- if they like any of them enough to consider trading up -- and if the team thinks it's possible to get to him. In this case, the Bills won't consider Cousins. If they don't like any of the college QBs or if they don't think they can get to him, then maybe Cousins is in play -- if Washington lets him finally walk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CommonCents Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 I can entertain the Kirk Cousins plan but I'm not sure if it's just because I want to expedite the entire process. I never thought he was great or even good. I'd put him in the solid category. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D. L. Hot-Flamethrower Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 3 hours ago, NastyNateSoldiers said: I've taken some time recently to think bout what direction the Bills should take with the most important position in sports QB. I think the majority of fans have also we fall into basically 3 categories #1 Team Trade Up #2 Sign a Vet and draft QB to develop. #3 Sign Cousins and use our draft pks. I thought about these 3 plans and read about many opinions on this board . The best one i believe is #3 sign Captain Kirk. Signing Kirk makes sense on so many levels When building a team the most important factor is building threw the draft i can't see the Bills giving up nearly 2yrs of pks to bank on a QB developing or even worse not developing . McBeane want to build this team in there image and there not gonna do it via free agency . These guys want custom made culture guys that fit there systems and the best place to find them are in the draft. Cousins fits the Bill. This is where Cousins comes in . Captain Kirk is a process type guy. If the Bills were drafting a QB i believe Cousins would be the type of guy they draft. He has all the characteristics and intangibles there looking for as far as Durability, Leadership, Work ethic and being a God fearing man . Ntm he's ready made top 12 QB in the NFL averaging 4250 yds, 31 TDs and over 65% completions over his last 4 seasons. The arrow is pointing up with Cousins as he's just entering his prime at 29yrs old. Now i know people will say 27-30 mil per season that's alot of money and i agree it is but the Bills set themselves up for this type of cap hit . Going into 2019 we have nearly 90mil in cap space with no big dollars free agents on the horizon we should be able to absorb that cap hit easily. Ntm we should be able to land cheap talent and starters at the top of the draft. The Plan Well this is where the fun starts not only for McBeane but for us the fans. We get to use all our high pks 5 in top 95 to fill major holes on this team. This gives McBeane great flexibility during the draft to trade down and even collect more assets . Imagine what these 5pks can do for us moving forward these players will get some much needed experience as rookies in 2018 . With these pks and some savvy free agent additions the Bills will be able to again compete for the playoffs in 2018 hopefully get there and win a gm or 2. But the eye of the prize will definitely be on 2019 where we still will have great cap flexibility with a Franchise QB in place and a young nucleus of talent and another draft to really begin to build for the future yrs and make some noise while doing it. This is the Cousins plan and hopefully we get to see it happen. As you know, I am behind this plan from my posts in other threads. I'll remind you that as Plan A, this requires strong contingency plans because it likely will be tough to make happen. There will be a ton of competition for Cousins, and it really will depend on the situation he wants to be in. The money will all be relatively equal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddaryl Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Cousins will at least be tagged by Wa so we will have to give up some picks no matter what.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Kirk Cousins is the most expensive path to perennial mediocrity out there... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobH063 Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 No offense to the OP. Nothing wrong with what he would like to see happen and his post is well thought out but shouldn't all threads like this one start with "I hope the Bills can do something like this", or "I fantasize the Bills can do this", or "In my dreams the Bills did this" etc. Nothing can happen without a willing partner and although it seems likely that Washington will release Cousins, until they do, this can't happen. The Bills also can't trade up, trade down or sign any other QB in free agency until there are free agents to sign. So you can come up with all sorts of scenarios about how you can get done what you want to see, but right now, none of it can happen. Cousins could sign a long term deal with Washington at the 11th hour, there may be no willing trade partner up or down and there may not be any free agents available that the Bills want. All of those things could happen too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCOrange Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 1 hour ago, DefenseWins said: I'm going to ask this question again... What makes any of you believe that Cousins would want to sign with Buffalo vs Denver, Ariz, Wash, NYJ etc... He can have his choice of any of these cities assuming he doesn't want Clev which has the most $$$ to pay him whatever he wants... I don't foresee Cousins being a Bill, but looking at the other options: Denver: About the same cap space as Buffalo (for now...sounds like they plan to release Aqib Talib and possibly Demaryius or Sanders), I think Denver is a low-key bad situation though; old team that's rumored to be cutting one of the few weapons Cousins would have to throw to Arizona: Nowhere near the cap space needed to sign him Washington: Definitely have the cap space. Is their relationship too fractured at this point though? Not to mention that's another team with poor weapons around him and a pretty bad defense NYJ: Seems like a good fit if the Jets are interested; I've seen rumors stating that the Jets plan to bypass free agency and focus on the draft to address the QB position though. But hypothetically speaking, they have a lot of cap space, a pretty talented defense, and a couple promising WRs. They'll need all of the cap space they have to fill other holes though. Cleveland: Probably unlikely due to their reputation, but I think it's his best option honestly. $111 million in cap space, an extremely talented WR in Gordon, a promising young TE in Njoku, a great receiving RB (which Cousins loves) in Duke, a talented but injury prone WR in Coleman, a good O-Line, and a pretty solid defense (they really just need an upgrade in the LB core and maybe one corner). Sign Cousins, take Barkley and Fitzpatrick/Edmunds/Roquon, probably sign one of the solid WRs in free agency and that team could be pretty good pretty quickly IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mabden Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 3 hours ago, NastyNateSoldiers said: I've taken some time recently to think bout what direction the Bills should take with the most important position in sports QB. I think the majority of fans have also we fall into basically 3 categories #1 Team Trade Up #2 Sign a Vet and draft QB to develop. #3 Sign Cousins and use our draft pks. I thought about these 3 plans and read about many opinions on this board . The best one i believe is #3 sign Captain Kirk. Signing Kirk makes sense on so many levels When building a team the most important factor is building threw the draft i can't see the Bills giving up nearly 2yrs of pks to bank on a QB developing or even worse not developing . McBeane want to build this team in there image and there not gonna do it via free agency . These guys want custom made culture guys that fit there systems and the best place to find them are in the draft. Cousins fits the Bill. This is where Cousins comes in . Captain Kirk is a process type guy. If the Bills were drafting a QB i believe Cousins would be the type of guy they draft. He has all the characteristics and intangibles there looking for as far as Durability, Leadership, Work ethic and being a God fearing man . Ntm he's ready made top 12 QB in the NFL averaging 4250 yds, 31 TDs and over 65% completions over his last 4 seasons. The arrow is pointing up with Cousins as he's just entering his prime at 29yrs old. Now i know people will say 27-30 mil per season that's alot of money and i agree it is but the Bills set themselves up for this type of cap hit . Going into 2019 we have nearly 90mil in cap space with no big dollars free agents on the horizon we should be able to absorb that cap hit easily. Ntm we should be able to land cheap talent and starters at the top of the draft. The Plan Well this is where the fun starts not only for McBeane but for us the fans. We get to use all our high pks 5 in top 95 to fill major holes on this team. This gives McBeane great flexibility during the draft to trade down and even collect more assets . Imagine what these 5pks can do for us moving forward these players will get some much needed experience as rookies in 2018 . With these pks and some savvy free agent additions the Bills will be able to again compete for the playoffs in 2018 hopefully get there and win a gm or 2. But the eye of the prize will definitely be on 2019 where we still will have great cap flexibility with a Franchise QB in place and a young nucleus of talent and another draft to really begin to build for the future yrs and make some noise while doing it. This is the Cousins plan and hopefully we get to see it happen. Yeah, but we only have 30mil this year. With ~10mil for rookie contracts, resigning our free agents and/or signing other free agents, not a lot of money to work with UNLESS the captain is willing to back load his contract and accept 5 to 10 mil this year with a whole lot of guaranteed money to offset risk of injury. http://www.spotrac.com/nfl/buffalo-bills/cap/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFan130 Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) I do not want cousins. No way I would like to see the bills get an above average QB and pay him 25 Mil per year Edited January 30, 2018 by billsfan11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freddie's Dead Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 1. Captain Kirk 2. Alex Smith 3. Draft 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like A Mofo Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) I like Kirk Cousins as a QB, but the issue is the $ and he is 29: The Bills still need some work to be a MAJOR contender and by that time he would be 32-33 and the decline might begin. Not against this ideally totally though. My crazy thought on where Cousins, if I were him, should consider: The Minnesota Vikings clear out their QB stable (lets Keenum and Bradford walk, and keep Teddy or deal him) and bring in Cousins on a roster fit to win right now in 2018. Edited January 30, 2018 by Like A Mofo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest K-GunJimKelly12 Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 50 minutes ago, ddaryl said: Cousins will at least be tagged by Wa so we will have to give up some picks no matter what.. The Skins are going to Pay $34 million, $7 million more than the second highest QB in the league for a QB they seem to not want? A few months ago I would have agreed with you but I don't think they are going to take the risk. I would bet they are just going to let him walk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebandit27 Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 4 hours ago, GunnerBill said: I am firmly in Team Trade Up and I actually believe the Bills will. EDIT: I don't hate the Cousins plan and I do see the advantages but I just feel like he is going to get an astronomical sum for a QB of his standard and he pretty much fixes you into building through the draft around him. The Bills may have cap space going into 2019 but they will hopefully also be starting to think at that stage about signing a young shutdown corner long term (Tre) and a young franchise left tackle long term (Dion). So while you have some cap space for short term FA deals in 2019 and 2020 you don't have room to tie yourself into big FAs on 4 or 5 year deals. I think if you find your Quarterback in the draft you have a little more flexibility as to how you build the team around him. I'm okay with any plan that results in bringing in a potential long-term solution to the game's most important position. My opinion is that what happens with Cousins is going to dictate what occurs in the top-6 of the draft. For example, if Cousins either re-signs in Washington or signs with Arizona, then you're probably looking at as many as 4 QBs in the top 6. On the other hand, if Cousins were to sign with, say, Denver, then the Giants have the pick that shapes the top-6. If they take a QB, well, then that's still most likely going to be 3 QBs in the top 6. If, however, they pass on a QB for, say, Barkley, then you're looking at a QB at 1 and then no chance of a QB until 6, which softens the leverage of the teams looking to trade down. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest K-GunJimKelly12 Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 13 minutes ago, Like A Mofo said: I like Kirk Cousins as a QB, but the issue is the $ and he is 29: The Bills still need some work to be a MAJOR contender and by that time he would be 32-33 and the decline might begin. Not against this ideally totally though. My crazy thought on where Cousins, if I were him, should consider: The Minnesota Vikings clear out their QB stable (lets Keenum and Bradford walk, and keep Teddy or deal him) and bring in Cousins on a roster fit to win right now in 2018. QB's seem to be like goalies and hit their prime a little later than other positions. There is a fine balance between when skills start deteriorating and the knowledge and instincts for the game solidify. I would be confident that if we did sign Cousins, he would get 4-5 years of him playing at the level he is currently playing at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnBonhamRocks Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 I am team trade up. However, the thing I like about throwing money at Cousins is that it allows us to fill out the rest of our roster with our plethora of picks and draft a QB or 2 this year. And next year. And the next year. Until you have a guy that is better than Cousins. Because Cousins is not or at least shoudl not be our goal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddaryl Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 14 minutes ago, K-GunJimKelly12 said: The Skins are going to Pay $34 million, $7 million more than the second highest QB in the league for a QB they seem to not want? A few months ago I would have agreed with you but I don't think they are going to take the risk. I would bet they are just going to let him walk. With the possible suitors and QB desperate teams out there they won't let him walk. Cousins is the surest QB to be had this year. $34 million for 1 more year with no cap hit if he walks next year means Washngton IMO will hold onto him with the transitiion tag or work out a sign and trade deal. No way they let Kirk just walk.. Thats a very useable asset whether they keep him trade him or transitions him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aristocrat Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 to get him the skins would have to transition tag him and the bills would have to send a crazy deal to him...6 year 150 mil all guaranteed. then you draft well and win. it's funny. people look at the pats and earlier this year say they won't win it all because their defense was getting shredded. yet, they don't want to sign cousins cause he can't do it all and win by himself. You give him a good defense and you will win a lot of games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Call_Of_Ktulu Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Cousins is going to cost an astronomical amount of money. He is going to blow away the Andrew Luck deal. Would I be energized if we somehow signed him, hell yes. In the end I don't think Cousins will choose Buffalo if their is a bidding war between 3 teams. I think Cousins and AJ McCarron will both have similar seasons next year statistically. My main focus would be getting one of these guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloRebound Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Drafting where we're drafting, we'd be foolish not to go after Cousins. There's 4 teams in top 6 of draft who absolutely need a QB. The cost to trade up will be more exhorbitant than $27m per year for Cousins versus $20m for a Tyrod type starter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleeding Bills Blue Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Just now, ddaryl said: With the possible suitors and QB desperate teams out there they won't let him walk. Cousins is the surest QB to be had this year. $34 million for 1 more year with no cap hit if he walks next year means Washngton IMO will hold onto him with the transitiion tag or work out a sign and trade deal. No way they let Kirk just walk.. Thats a very useable asset whether they keep him trade him or transitions him Transition tag doesn't provide any compensation - and its 28 million vs 33 million. A bunch of teams have a TON of cap and could front load a deal that would literally be impossible for washington to match without gutting their already gutted roster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Chandler's Hands Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Let's not lose focus of what's most important here. If we sign Cousins we completely screw up our Comp picks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hapless Bills Fan Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 4 hours ago, GunnerBill said: I am firmly in Team Trade Up and I actually believe the Bills will. EDIT: I don't hate the Cousins plan and I do see the advantages but I just feel like he is going to get an astronomical sum for a QB of his standard and he pretty much fixes you into building through the draft around him. The Bills may have cap space going into 2019 but they will hopefully also be starting to think at that stage about signing a young shutdown corner long term (Tre) and a young franchise left tackle long term (Dion). So while you have some cap space for short term FA deals in 2019 and 2020 you don't have room to tie yourself into big FAs on 4 or 5 year deals. I think if you find your Quarterback in the draft you have a little more flexibility as to how you build the team around him. If there's someone there they feel "Oh yeah. He's the one. He's an 80% guy" they may try. But it's far from a sure thing that they'll be able to, if so. Almost all of the top players this year have, as far as I can see, some question mark to their games. Of all the guys, the one that I feel best about (assuming in interviews, he comes across as loving the game and really having the "want to" factor) is Rosen, and a nice smart chap here just scared us about his "bust" potential based upon rush yards from scrimmage for college QB. The cap space issue, IMO, is overblown. I think the issue to ponder is that trading up has a large (but less obvious) salary cap impact. Let's say for the sake of argument, trading up costs us 3 first round picks and 2 seconds. That's 5 quality players expected to be contributors that we can't draft and reimburse at a low rate while we evaluate them. Let's say 3 become high-quality starters, 1 becomes a contributer, and 1 busts. Since you didn't draft them, you need to pay 3 quality free agents and 1 second-tier guy to replace them. Look for 2 quality DLmen - not the top guys, go back about 10 on the salary lists - and the very best ILB you can grab. Heyward, Jordan types and someone as close to Luke Kuechly as you can sign, and a quality WR. Don't you think you've spent $36M in salary cap or more with those 4 acquisitions? Now, assuming we pick in a similar or lower place next year, the CBA would put the cap hit at about $2M each for each 1st round rookie and $1M for each 2nd round rookie. Total cap for draftees at the position of $8M The difference is $27M - exactly the cap hit of a top QB such as Stafford. And that's not taking into account the higher salary you pay Mr Top of the 1st Round rookie. Back of the envelope bottom line: full court press for Cousins vs trade up for Mr Right is probably closer to a salary cap wash than you think for a team with lots of holes that wants to compete. And we've seen for years the effect of paying top salaries to DL, DB, OL - "everyone but QB" as well as the effect of what I'll call "serial QB monogamy" (pick a guy who might have potential to develop into Mr Right, focus on him for 3 years, divorce him, pick again). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleeding Bills Blue Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 4 minutes ago, ddaryl said: With the possible suitors and QB desperate teams out there they won't let him walk. Cousins is the surest QB to be had this year. $34 million for 1 more year with no cap hit if he walks next year means Washngton IMO will hold onto him with the transitiion tag or work out a sign and trade deal. No way they let Kirk just walk.. Thats a very useable asset whether they keep him trade him or transitions him The franchise tag costs them 33 million of their 52 in projected cap space.... they don't have any talent at WR, or at RB. And their defense sucks. When does Washington just look at it and say you're just spinning your wheels if you sign this guy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddaryl Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) 3 minutes ago, dneveu said: Transition tag doesn't provide any compensation - and its 28 million vs 33 million. A bunch of teams have a TON of cap and could front load a deal that would literally be impossible for washington to match without gutting their already gutted roster. My bad they will use the franchise tag not the transition tag... There is no way Washington lets Cousins just walk.. IMO Edited January 30, 2018 by ddaryl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SouthNYfan Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 2 hours ago, DefenseWins said: I'm going to ask this question again... What makes any of you believe that Cousins would want to sign with Buffalo vs Denver, Ariz, Wash, NYJ etc... He can have his choice of any of these cities assuming he doesn't want Clev which has the most $$$ to pay him whatever he wants... I said this on numerous other threads. We have delusional people who think we are honestly a preferred destination over az or Denver. I don't think he goes to nyj because I'm not sure he likes the big city life. He wants to be out west from everything I've read prior. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleeding Bills Blue Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) 4 minutes ago, ddaryl said: My bad they will use the franchise tag not the transition tag... There is no way Washington lets Cousins just walk.. Right - and they will probably hover around 7-9 again. They'll have no cap space and more holes than last year. At least if you trade cousins, you likely bottom out and get a shot at a top QB in 2019. The Redskins are sort of in that bradford/Rams situation - they have a pretty good QB, whos overpaid... and the rest of the team is crap and needs to be blown up. Edited January 30, 2018 by dneveu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aristocrat Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 4 minutes ago, SouthNYfan said: I said this on numerous other threads. We have delusional people who think we are honestly a preferred destination over az or Denver. I don't think he goes to nyj because I'm not sure he likes the big city life. He wants to be out west from everything I've read prior. denver is high enough to get a rookie as are the jets and maybe even the skins. they could use the cap space to sign other guys. we're just having fun with it no need to trash the city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebandit27 Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 3 minutes ago, SouthNYfan said: I said this on numerous other threads. We have delusional people who think we are honestly a preferred destination over az or Denver. I don't think he goes to nyj because I'm not sure he likes the big city life. He wants to be out west from everything I've read prior. I don't think anyone thinks that the city of Buffalo is a preferred destination over areas like Arizona or Denver. It is silly, however, to rule out a big FA signing in Buffalo because "it's Buffalo". Mario Williams signed the richest defensive player contract in history to come here when he had many other suitors, so it's not like it's unheard of for good players to sign here. The biggest thing that FAs look for is comfort level, both on and off the field. Why would a guy sign here? Well, he'd have to like the coach and front office, he'd have to think the team was heading in the right direction, he might have tight relationships with other players already here, and he might like that Buffalo has a relatively low cost of living. Combine those factors with a willingness to pay market value, and you can certainly be in the conversation. Now, do I think Cousins will sign here? Probably not. I don't think they'll give him the $27-28M AAV he's looking for, and I think he's more likely to go to a place like Denver or Arizona that have a more recent history of winning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddaryl Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Just now, dneveu said: Right - and they will probably hover around 7-9 again. OK then they go 7-9 .. Washngton is not giving up on a very functional underrated QB for nothing... I just don't see that. 15 + teams in this league would look at Cousins as an upgrade IMO. Cousins is a top 10 QB in this league or at least has been a consistent top 10 the last 3 seasons. Where is Washington going ot find a consistent top 10 QB to replace him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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