Jump to content

Front Seven projections?

The Now Moment
 Share

Recommended Posts

The Now Moment Veteran

The Now Moment

Posted
Posted (edited)

What is everyone expecting from the reshaped defensive front?  The defense did about as well as you can without a very good pass rush last year.  This regime has done a nice job reshaping the defensive front this offseason to something with a lot of potential.  The sack numbers were dreadful.  There was a lack of pressure up the middle and the edge guys were just too late.  With the injection of a space eater in Star, a potential solid pass rusher in Murphy and a lot of depth including the third pick, Harrison Phillips.  With a lot of new faces, what are the expectations for the upcoming year with the defensive front? 

 

Personally, I've loved the additions on the front line.  Murphy, Star and Phillips seem to fit Buffalo like a glove.  I am interested to see how these three impact Hughes, Lawson and Williams play.  Those three had a tough time last year getting to the QB.  I am hoping that better talent at DT will eat up more blockers allowing other players to get to the QB as opposed to last season getting pushed around at times.  

 

I expect this defense to turn it around a bit in the sack category and be much more effective against the run.  This regime really has done a nice job of injecting a lot of talent in the front 7.  I see Hughes having a better year as well as Lawson.  I am in the pro-Lawson camp, I know that crowd as thinned a bit but Lawson really looked solid against the run at times and made a good amount of tackles for a guy that was in a rotation.  I think he would have ended with 6-7 sacks last season and 50 tackles if he didn't get hurt, I am happy with that for now.  Murphy will be a nice pass rushing piece as well. I would love to see a little more Alexander blitzes and am hoping to see a good amount from Edmunds as well to create a lot of pass rush this season and let those DBs do what they did best for a good portion of the season last year. 

 

I was hoping for significant improvement of the front 7 this offseason and the front office did not disappoint.  Very interested to see how all of those pieces plays together.  With a lot of solid talent in front of Edmunds, I expect him to quickly become very productive and Milano will have his opportunities to shoot the gaps as well.  The potential on this defense is very exciting, can't wait for camp!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by Buffalo30
  • Like (+1) 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
TheBeaneBandit Veteran

TheBeaneBandit

Posted
Posted (edited)

Solid upgrades for one offseason as far as i can tell.  I think if we can land one more elite prospect to the line and one more above average LB the D could be a close to finished product if you will..... Next offseason that is. 

Edited by TheBeaneBandit
More to add
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Blokestradamus Veteran

Blokestradamus

Posted
Posted
2 minutes ago, Kirby Jackson said:

Hughes, Star, Kyle, Murphy

Alexander, Edmunds, Milano

 

I think this is probably how the majority of the snaps shake out. I am interested in how they use Murphy/Hughes on obvious run downs and what kind of role Shaq plays.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Doc Hall of Famer

Doc

Posted
Posted
12 minutes ago, jr1 said:

Hughes, Phillips, Williams, Shaq

Alexander, Edmunds, Milano

 

Did you miss FA?

 

2 minutes ago, Misterbluesky said:

If Alexander is a starter next September,that will be a problem.The second big wave of releases will be happening soon...we will get another olb...one year deal.

 

Why?  The defense did well last year with him starting and over the off-season added a lot of talent.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The Now Moment Veteran

The Now Moment

Posted
  • Author
Posted
3 minutes ago, Misterbluesky said:

If Alexander is a starter next September,that will be a problem.The second big wave of releases will be happening soon...we will get another olb...one year deal.

I think we will see Alexander blitzing more and covering less.  Last year, we didn't have a lot of depth.  I think this year we will use him less in coverage.  He is an effective pass rusher.

5 minutes ago, Blokestradamus said:

 

I think this is probably how the majority of the snaps shake out. I am interested in how they use Murphy/Hughes on obvious run downs and what kind of role Shaq plays.

They have really nice depth for the rotation.  Am excited to see how keeping the players fresh helps out a talented group of guys such as this.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The Jokeman All Pro

The Jokeman

Posted
Posted
15 minutes ago, John from Riverside said:

I think he is with us one more year

 

Lorax is extremely versitle.

Yet he looked like he was a step slow last season as he missed quite a few tackles. Personally I think we should find a MLB (Navarro Bowman's on my short list) and have Edmunds play SLB.

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

noacls

Posted
Posted

       Shaq   Star   Kyle   Jerry

Edmunds     Stanford     Milano

 

 

But i also think they play  a lot of big nickel with a extra safety. I think Neal is going to surprise people.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites
GreggTX Veteran

GreggTX

Posted
Posted

I think Hughes benefits tremendously. Also, by the end of the season, Harrison Phillips will be the best DT on our roster. 100+ tackles in 14 games from the NT position at Stanford! He will be VERY successful and will remain a long time Bill and fan favorite.

14 minutes ago, wppete said:

 

This is it. On the back end we all know.

 

Tre White, Micha Hide, Poyer and Davis. 

And Taron is the starting Nickel Back. I like that pick. We still need another CB outside because of Davis' age, but we'll have plenty of money to spend next year to plug holes. Looking forward to seeing the OL upgraded. I hope Allen and Edmunds were worth trading up because we could have drafted a new starting C and G with those 2nd round picks.Still need an OLB to replace Lo soon as well as a speed receiver.

  • Like (+1) 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites
NewEra Hall of Famer

NewEra

Posted
Posted
41 minutes ago, Kirby Jackson said:

Hughes, Star, Kyle, Murphy

Alexander, Edmunds, Milano

This.  Although I do expect them to add another LB that can hopefully help Edmunds and Milano in the LB room as well as play MLB or SLB. Alexander is one of my favorites, but the majority of his experience is on the DL and pass rushing. I’m sure he can and will help the kids, but I’d like to add someone else.  Our depth is terrible and Alexander is not really equipped to be a dependable SLB.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites
msw2112 Veteran

msw2112

Posted
Posted

I agree with those above who projected our front 7 to be:

 

Hughes, Star, Kyle, Murphy

Alexander, Edmunds, Milano

 

This is, of course, based on WHO IS ON THE ROSTER RIGHT NOW.  We may well add a LB between now and the start of the season who could start (likely in Lorax's spot).  I think we are set on the line.  I also agree with the post directly above this one that says we are thin at LB.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
BuffAlone Veteran

BuffAlone

Posted
Posted (edited)
2 hours ago, jr1 said:

Hughes, Phillips, Williams, Shaq

Alexander, Edmunds, Milano

And sit the $10 million dollar man? 

It'll be Hughes/Star/Kyle/Shaq with Murphy and Phillips subbing on plays.

Secondary is obvious

Edited by BuffAlone
Link to comment
Share on other sites
TigerJ Veteran

TigerJ

Posted
Posted

Hughes - Lotulilei - K. Williams - Murphy

Alexander - Edmunds - Milano

 

While those are the starters, the Bills  are going to use a robust rotation with Shaq Lawson and Harrison Phillips getting a lot of reps on the line (and others to a lesser extent.  On likely passing plays I think Alexander gets pulled in favor of the extra DB, and the Bills are going to try and sub in some other more athletic players, especially for Alexander.  Thus while Alexander might technically be a starter, he could end up with only in the range of 20% of the defensive snaps.  Milano and Edmunds will be 3 down backers, who come out for rest on occasion.

  • Like (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
3rdand12 Hall of Famer

3rdand12

Posted
Posted
6 hours ago, Misterbluesky said:

If Alexander is a starter next September,that will be a problem.The second big wave of releases will be happening soon...we will get another olb...one year deal.

yes please

 If we are relying on Milano as  a starter i have concerns. No knock on him, but i feel he also like Alexander are package players.

 Very very  good situational guys.
 FA needs to drop a couple players for the Bills.
But i sure as heck bet Bills can stop the run this year !!

6 hours ago, Blokestradamus said:

 

I think this is probably how the majority of the snaps shake out. I am interested in how they use Murphy/Hughes on obvious run downs and what kind of role Shaq plays.

all the above

6 hours ago, John from Riverside said:

I think he is with us one more year

 

Lorax is extremely versitle.

I think it is suggested he is a 3 -4  down player. I agree that he should be situational/ rotational player.

 

again , he is a smart player more than a fearsome athlete . But he can get after the ball. and should play that role imho

  • Like (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Mat68 Veteran

Mat68

Posted
Posted

Hughes  lotuliea  williams  murphy

  Alexander   edmunds   milano

 

Outside of trading Lawson for a LB, i dont see any changes.  Humber could take the spot from Alexander if they see him as a special teamer and pass rush specialist.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Doc Hall of Famer

Doc

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, 3rdand12 said:

yes please

 If we are relying on Milano as  a starter i have concerns. No knock on him, but i feel he also like Alexander are package players.

 Very very  good situational guys.
 FA needs to drop a couple players for the Bills.
But i sure as heck bet Bills can stop the run this year !!

all the above

I think it is suggested he is a 3 -4  down player. I agree that he should be situational/ rotational player.

 

again , he is a smart player more than a fearsome athlete . But he can get after the ball. and should play that role imho

 

Milano started the final 5 games at WLB last season.  Maybe that was by necessity, but given that they signed/drafted no one to compete with him, I think they like him a lot and I'm sure he's pencilled-in as the starter there again, and I'm fine with that and excited to see what he can do this year.  I've heard he's a hard worker so I'm sure that he hit the weight room hard over the off-season and added strength, if not weight, to the 223# frame he played at last year.  And having his rookie season behind him/a year to learn the system will help a lot as well.  I see him as a 3-down player with Edmunds, and LorAx as being a 2-down player at best. That still doesn't mean they won't look to add players to the LB corps (the DL and secondary are set, IMHO), but I doubt you're going to find someone now to seriously challenge any of them. 

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

Green Lightning

Posted
Posted
15 hours ago, Kirby Jackson said:

Hughes, Star, Kyle, Murphy

Alexander, Edmunds, Milano

These are who will start, but there's going to be such a heavy rotation on the D-line, it almost doesn't matter who starts. LBs are still the weak link.

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

NeverOutNick

Posted
Posted

How awesome is it that we have real options on the line! I love the Bills depth at pass rusher and DT now:

 

DT: Kyle Williams, Star Lotouleli, Harrison Phillips, Adolphus Washington

 

Pass Rush: Jerry Hughes, Shaw Lawson, Trent Murphy, Lorenzo Alexander

 

Having Edmunds in the middle on 3 downs and our surprise of last season Nick Milano at WLB the Bills front seven is going to be sick especially with our already top secondary (Tre White, Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer and Vonte Davis). 

 

Go Bills!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
thurst44 RFA

thurst44

Posted
Posted (edited)
18 hours ago, Misterbluesky said:

If Alexander is a starter next September,that will be a problem.The second big wave of releases will be happening soon...we will get another olb...one year deal.

Not necessarily. He looked very solid in the last few games and great in the playoff game, so I think calling it a "problem" is an exaggeration, but at 35, yes, it should be a concern. 

Edited by thurst44
wishful thinking, i guess :)
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Doc Hall of Famer

Doc

Posted
Posted
2 minutes ago, JerseyBills said:

I'm very optimistic and like you said, will make our back 7 that much better.

Hoping Adolphus and Shaq step up and reach their potential and we got a great rotation on our hands..


I think Adolphus is what he's shown, which is very little. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MrEpsYtown Veteran

MrEpsYtown

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, NewDayBills said:

Murphy, Lotulelei, Phillips, Hughes

Neal, Edmunds, Milano

 

Kyle and Lorax rotate in on occasion.

 

They will not be playing a 200 lb safety at SAM. I like Neal, but he does not have the size or length to play there. I think he could be a sub package backer, but won't play there in base imo. I also think Kyle definitely starts. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
thurst44 RFA

thurst44

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, Green Lightning said:

These are who will start, but there's going to be such a heavy rotation on the D-line, it almost doesn't matter who starts. LBs are still the weak link.

LBs are the weakest part of the defense, but if Edmunds has a quick NFL learning curve, Lorax plays like he did in 2016 and playoff game (admittedly a big "if" at 35), Milano continues to improve, Humber is ok as a 4th, they might not be a liability. I'd still love them to pick up another player and there's a few decent LBs out there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
OldTimeAFLGuy Hall of Famer

OldTimeAFLGuy

Posted
Posted
34 minutes ago, MrEpsYtown said:

 

They will not be playing a 200 lb safety at SAM. I like Neal, but he does not have the size or length to play there. I think he could be a sub package backer, but won't play there in base imo. I also think Kyle definitely starts. 

 

 

...do you think the overall menu via starters and rotational backups is strongly promising (sure on paper) so far?...............

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MrEpsYtown Veteran

MrEpsYtown

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, OldTimeAFLGuy said:

 

 

...do you think the overall menu via starters and rotational backups is strongly promising (sure on paper) so far?...............

 

I think it is promising. I like the secondary a lot. I like Neal and I think the Johnson kid is interesting. Gaines seems to have some upside as well. The Bush signing assures we won't be playing a street FA safeties like Shamarko Thomas or Trae Elston in critical spots. However, if any of our four starters get hurt, we are still in a pretty risky spot. 

 

I love Edmunds and Milano. That SAM spot is meh. I mean Lorax was bad there and there is pretty much no one else on the roster to play there. We could sign a MIkE and play Edmunds there, but I hate that idea. The Saints did is with AJ Klein last year. He was the Sam in base sets and moved to Mike in Nickel and Dime sets. I don't like the idea of asking a raw rookie to do that. I want to plug Edmunds in at Mike for the next 10-12 years and never look back. I think it makes some sense to add a grizzled vet there. Bowman, Dansby, Cushing (he can certainly help Edmunds bulk up ;)). Essentially our Sam is only going to play about 30-40 percent of the snaps as a two down player like Lorax did last year, so it's likely they just stick with him. Not sure I love that idea though. 

 

Dline im good with the four defensive ends but I still think we might struggle to create pressure up the middle with only Kyle as a penetrator. Hopefully Phillips can do some of that as well.  I think guys like Lawson or even Lorax  are going to have to rush on guards in sub packages. I kind of wish Washington was better and Palepoi is JAG. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
OldTimeAFLGuy Hall of Famer

OldTimeAFLGuy

Posted
Posted
5 minutes ago, MrEpsYtown said:

 

I think it is promising. I like the secondary a lot. I like Neal and I think the Johnson kid is interesting. Gaines seems to have some upside as well. The Bush signing assures we won't be playing a street FA safeties like Shamarko Thomas or Trae Elston in critical spots. However, if any of our four starters get hurt, we are still in a pretty risky spot. 

 

I love Edmunds and Milano. That SAM spot is meh. I mean Lorax was bad there and there is pretty much no one else on the roster to play there. We could sign a MIkE and play Edmunds there, but I hate that idea. The Saints did is with AJ Klein last year. He was the Sam in base sets and moved to Mike in Nickel and Dime sets. I don't like the idea of asking a raw rookie to do that. I want to plug Edmunds in at Mike for the next 10-12 years and never look back. I think it makes some sense to add a grizzled vet there. Bowman, Dansby, Cushing (he can certainly help Edmunds bulk up ;)). Essentially our Sam is only going to play about 30-40 percent of the snaps as a two down player like Lorax did last year, so it's likely they just stick with him. Not sure I love that idea though. 

 

Dline im good with the four defensive ends but I still think we might struggle to create pressure up the middle with only Kyle as a penetrator. Hopefully Phillips can do some of that as well.  I think guys like Lawson or even Lorax  are going to have to rush on guards in sub packages. I kind of wish Washington was better and Palepoi is JAG. 

 

 

 

...appreciate the in depth assessment....:thumbsup:

  • Thank you (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Watkins101 RFA

Watkins101

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, NeverOutNick said:

How awesome is it that we have real options on the line! I love the Bills depth at pass rusher and DT now:

 

DT: Kyle Williams, Star Lotouleli, Harrison Phillips, Adolphus Washington

 

Pass Rush: Jerry Hughes, Shaw Lawson, Trent Murphy, Lorenzo Alexander

 

Having Edmunds in the middle on 3 downs and our surprise of last season Nick Milano at WLB the Bills front seven is going to be sick especially with our already top secondary (Tre White, Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer and Vonte Davis). 

 

Go Bills!

Nick Milano? That's a new one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...