Jump to content

Will the Bills be a good fit for any QB this year?


Recommended Posts

There is a great article on ESPN's website today by Bill Barnwell that thoroughly chronicles how hard it is to evaluate a QB in the draft.  It is definitely worth the read.  There is one paragraph in particular that really struck me, and I'm inclined to agree with it.

 

"As I mentioned earlier this year in talking about Case Keenum, the old trope about how there aren't 32 good starting quarterbacks to go around is naive. The problem is that there aren't 32 good quarterback situations to play within, a reality that was reinforced by the success of Keenum and Foles after they looked disastrously bad under Jeff Fisher with the Rams. Teams that are spending every waking hour worrying about picking the right guy are likely kidding themselves to think that they can reliably pick the best quarterback from this group. They should worry about making themselves the right fit for whoever they end up choosing."

 

It made me think about the current state of our Bills.  If we do trade up to grab one of the Blue Chip QBs this year, it will take the lion's share of our draft capital this year and possible our first round pick next year.  As any Bills' fan will admit, we have a lot of holes on this team.  Our WR corps is incredibly suspect.  We have major holes at LB, and our O-Line is not what anyone would call a strength. (UPDATE:  Incognito just retired) Enter a rookie QB on this team that is more than just a QB away from being a contender.  Who does he have on the coaching staff to help guide him to become a franchise QB, to help him overcome a less than stellar supporting cast?  Who is the QB whisperer for the Bills?

 

What about the head coach?  Nope, it's not going to be McDermott, he's a defensive guru. 

 

What about the Bill's QB coach?  The Bills QB coach is David Culley.  He was hired last year by the Bills and this is his first shot at being a QB coach in the pros.  He has been a NFL coach since 1994 but has been a wide receiver coach for all of it.  He was a QB coach at the college level, but that was from 1985-88 for Southwestern Louisiana.  What ever you feel about Tyrod Taylor, he didn't really blossom last year under Culley.  I don't think we can call him a QB Whisperer. Below is his coaching resume'.

 

1994-95   Tampa Bay WR Coach

1996-98   Pittsburgh WR Coach

1999-10   Philly WR Coach

2011-12   Philly WR Coach / Senior Offensive Assistant

2013-16   Kansas City WR Coach / Assistant Head Coach

2017-       Buffalo QB Coach

 

What about the Offensive Coordinator Brian Daboll?  Is he a QB Whisperer?  Below are his NFL coaching positions since he joined the NFL.  I don't think anyone can look at his resume' below and objectively and say that he is a QB Whisperer.

 

2000-01    New England Defensive coaching assistant

2002-06    New England WR coach

2007-08    New York Jets QB coach (Chad Pennington's last NYJ year / Kellen Clemens)

2009-10   Cleveland Offensive Coordinator  (Derek Anderson)

2011         Miami Offensive Coordinator   (Chad Henne / Matt Moore)

2012         Kansas City Offensive Coordinator   (Matt Cassel / Brady Quinn)

2013         New England Offensive Assistant

2014-16   New England  Tight End Coach

2017        Alabama Offensive Coordinator and QB Coach (Jalen Hurts)

 

So we have a team full of holes including the O-Line and WRs, and no one on the coaching staff that has demonstrated any ability to nurture a QB.  The question may not be which of the QBs in this year's draft is the best fit for the Bills, but rather, are the Bills going to be a good fit for any of the QBs in this year's draft?

 

I don't want to poke a stick in the eye of the "draft a QB this year no matter the cost" crowd, but it looks like we might just be setting up whomever we draft this year for failure.   Might it be better to fill the holes in the roster with this years draft?  Unload a bunch of Terry and Kim's money to lure away a proven QB guru from another team in the 2019 off season,  and then "sell the farm" next year to grab the best QB in the draft.  Then you will give whomever we draft, the player we are "selling the farm" for,  the best possible chance to succeed?  We need to maximize the chance that our QB is not just the right QB, but also in the right situation to succeed.

 

Some may counter that we should "sell the farm" for a QB this year and then have him sit a year behind McCarron.  My response would be that if there is a QB in this year's draft who is such an amazing prospect that it will be worth it to "sell the farm" to get him, then why does he need to sit a year?   Luck didn't sit.  Newton didn't sit.  Wentz didn't sit.  Mariota and Winston didn't sit.  Eli, Peyton, Big Ben, Russell Wilson, Derek Carr etc, etc...  All of them played rookie year.   If this year's QB is all that and a bag of chips, why cant we just start him this year? 

 

Ultimately, we may be a year too early in rolling the dice on our franchise QB (and a roll of the dice it will be as evidenced by the perpetual "which QB do we draft" battles on this board). If there was an Andrew Luck in this year's draft I would be all for doing whatever it takes to grab him.  But the truth of the matter is... there isn't.  There may be some wisdom in building a team that will support our rookie QB first, instead of having a rookie QB come in who will be expected to succeed in-spite of his supporting cast.   Just some food for thought before the draft.  

 

 I will now sit back and await my public lashings...

 

Edited by Inigo Montoya
  • Like (+1) 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think this is a pretty well-thought out post, and the Barnwell quote is great. Ask not what your rookie QB can do for you, ask what you can do for your rookie QB.

 

I have serious concerns about what this team can do for whoever they draft; it's a pretty dire situation to come into IMO.

  • Like (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 minutes ago, nucci said:

Not sure what you mean? You put a roster together and play football. Everyone just overthinking stuff around here

No it isn't.   The blocking scheme has to match the QB.  A pocket guy needs a different line than a  guy who has wheels.  A QB with a good arm but who is just okay on the short stuff, needs some WR with speed to get the long balls and get medium stuff more open.  If most of the players already on the team don't match, you have more rebuilding to do.  Are you tired of rebuilding?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It’s Beanes job to figure out who or if there’s a QB that fits.

Whatever banter evolves from this board regarding which one is irrelevant. We do not matter.

 

We all have opinions but it’s been quite funny to see the plethora of excuses why we shouldn’t trade up or draft a QB.

Im sure someone else will think of another reason that is different from the others. The attempt in changing the minds of those who believe we need a QB is futile.

We need a QB. There are no other positions.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, maryland-bills-fan said:

No it isn't.   The blocking scheme has to match the QB.  A pocket guy needs a different line than a  guy who has wheels.  A QB with a good arm but who is just okay on the short stuff, needs some WR with speed to get the long balls and get medium stuff more open.  If most of the players already on the team don't match, you have more rebuilding to do.  Are you tired of rebuilding?

You get good players and the coaches adjust the plays and system....and I sat through 1-13 and 2-14 seasons and 4 Superbowl losses in a row. I can handle anything

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 minutes ago, nucci said:

You get good players and the coaches adjust the plays and system....and I sat through 1-13 and 2-14 seasons and 4 Superbowl losses in a row. I can handle anything

  Well our offensive line and wider receiver core looks like it needs a rebuild, so they could rebuild those around the new QB.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Any other year and Josh Rosen is the #1 pick and going to a horrible franchise with nobody on the roster. The fact that a playoff team has a chance at drafting him is nuts. Maybe we took a slight step back but nothing we can't fix through this draft, next draft, and next year's free agency when we won't have a bazillion dollars in dead cap space

Edited by kdiggz
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It’s not just about this year.  Personally, I want a guy who can beat out AJ right away.  But if our talent is as poor as it looks right now, we might have to watch a season of AJ getting thrown to the wolves.

 

But if you like a qb, you take him and don’t think twice about it.  Much easier to build talent around a franchise guy than not having one.

2 minutes ago, kdiggz said:

Any other year and Josh Rosen is the #1 pick and going to a horrible franchise with nobody on the roster. The fact that a playoff team has a chance at drafting him is nuts. Maybe we took a slight step back but nothing we can't fix through this draft, next draft, and next year's free agency when we won't have a bazillion dollars in dead cap space

We were probably one of the worst playoff teams in a while but your point is well taken.  It’s nit like this was some 1-15 team last year.

  • Like (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 minutes ago, nucci said:

You get good players and the coaches adjust the plays and system....and I sat through 1-13 and 2-14 seasons and 4 Superbowl losses in a row. I can handle anything

 

On the one hand, I understand what you mean.  I share your experience.

 

On the other hand, please don't tempt fate with a line like that

  • Haha (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 minutes ago, kdiggz said:

Any other year and Josh Rosen is the #1 pick and going to a horrible franchise with nobody on the roster. The fact that a playoff team has a chance at drafting him is nuts. Maybe we took a slight step back but nothing we can't fix through this draft, next draft, and next year's free agency when we won't have a bazillion dollars in dead cap space

 

News flash very few teams draft a QB high in the 1st round because they're equipped to be great immediately

  • Like (+1) 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Given the really really bad state of the offensive line, the best fit is clearly Lamar Jackson. They will no doubt need a QB with the best wheels since Michael Vick.

 

Worst fit would be Josh Rosen because he's the least elusive and concussion prone.

 

 

Edited by 1billsfan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, 1billsfan said:

 

Given the really really bad state of the offensive line, the best fit is clearly Lamar Jackson. They will no doubt need a QB with the best wheels since Michael Vick.

 

Worst fit would be Josh Rosen because he's the least elusive and concussion prone.

 

 

But it’s not just about this year and it would be a terrible decision to think like that. 

  • Like (+1) 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 minutes ago, C.Biscuit97 said:

It’s not just about this year.  Personally, I want a guy who can beat out AJ right away.  But if our talent is as poor as it looks right now, we might have to watch a season of AJ getting thrown to the wolves.

 

But if you like a qb, you take him and don’t think twice about it.  Much easier to build talent around a franchise guy than not having one.

We were probably one of the worst playoff teams in a while but your point is well taken.  It’s nit like this was some 1-15 team last year.

I would gladly take the Browns situation over the Bills current situation honestly.

  • Like (+1) 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...