Can Beane and McDermott judge offensive talent, and build that side of the ball?

[KOKO NFL]

Watching the precocious, mobile, and accurate Patrick Mahomes, and the GOAT Tom Brady do battle Sunday night, like many Bills fans, I couldn't help reflect on the current Bills state of affairs, offensively (pun intended). First of all, it's only fair to say, the Defensive side of the ball looks great - with numerous draft picks and FA performing well. (Good job GM Beane and, former defensive coordinator, Coach McDermott). The offensive side, not so much... 

 

While it may be too early to judge Josh Allen's prospects for success, by any reasonable account, he is a serious "project" - with concerns over his ability to process reads and throw accurately. Clearly, the FO fell in love with his size, athleticism, and character/personality. But for those of us who are generally patient, but still 'results-oriented', the question remains: can you learn to be a winning NFL QB when you've never showed you could be a good college one? Then there's the decision to trade all that draft capital to move up to get your guy. The track record for the FO to acquire other 'offensive' players has been, well,  just that: Kelvin Benjamin has size, no speed, questionable hands, and no detectable heart; Zay Jones, whom they traded up to get in the 2nd RD., remains an enigma with dubious hands and separation skills; Ray-Ray is small, plays that way, and is a special teams liability. And then there's drafting the likes of Nate Peterman and Ricky Proehl (sigh). The jury is still out on Wyatt Teller, who is purportedly a mauler but somehow isn't good enough to crack an average OL, let alone get activated on a weekly basis. To date, Dion Dawkins is the only positive addition via the draft. As far as FA's, Chris Ivory is the only real upgrade, over last year's Carolina Panther du jour, Mike Tolbert. That's about it... The FO couldn't "see" what Andy Reid and the Chiefs did in Patrick Mahomes, falling in love instead with Nate Peterson's "outstanding character" in the 5th round.  (Note: with the rare exception of Tom Brady,  unlike RB's, great QB's are generally not available after round 2). Further, "McBeane" didn't have a back up plan this year at QB, striking out on AJ McCarron and creating the current mess by their lack of foresight and talent awareness. Okay, the offence is not very good. 

 

There is, however, a glimmer of good news . The Bills have 10  2019 draft picks. Having said that, a casual fan with a draft magazine could hit on say, 40% of them. A Rhesus monkey maybe 30%. The current Bills brass has been at about 20% - with, again, a clear preference to draft guys who can tackle. 

 

So, two questions Bills Mafia: ( 1) is the current FO truly capable of appraising and acquiring good players for the offense? (Early returns aren't good); (2) If JA continues to resemble a strong armed LB versus a playoff caliber QB, and a weak 2018 season, 2019 draft, and 2019 season is produced, do Beane & Company deserve to see year 4 (2020) in Buffalo? 

 

 

 

[Fadingpain]

McD and Beane will both go when the Allen experiment fails.

 

I think he'll get around 20 games, more or less.  Expect some regime change not this upcoming off-season, but the next one.

 

PS:  Why is it too early to judge Allen but perfectly clear that Nate is garbage?  I'm not asking this of the OP specifically.  Both have played a grand total of 5 games in the NFL.

 

Just curious why we all can see Nate should be cut yesterday, but Josh is gonna be a good one.

 

[KDIGGZ]

They preach 1 of 11. Unfortunately the QB is much more valuable than that and they have proven that they have no clue when it comes to the most important position in all of sports.

[billsfan89]

We will see just how much cap space and draft picks they invest into the offensive side of the ball now that they have pretty much all or most of the pieces in place on the defensive side of the ball. I would hope they use all 3 picks in the first three rounds on the offensive side of the ball. I would also hope that they sign at least 3-4 starting caliber players on the offensive side of the ball in free agency (Particularly 1-2 players that can catch a pass and 2 interior OL players.) 

 

The offense needs at least 6 new starters if not more and the regime has no need to spend major money or early round draft resources into securing the defense (The depth needs can be filled out in the mid rounds and they can sign 1-2 players with cap space if the right players come at the right price, but the defense in 2019 does not need a major infusion of talent.) 

 

I am not sure how confident I can be in this regimes ability to sign or draft offensive talent mainly because they haven't really had the cap space to sign any offensive free agent over 3 million aav besides AJ who they shipped out (idiotically.) Their only major draft choices on offense (Besides Allen) are Dion Dawkins (who looks to be a pretty good pick) and Zay Jones (Who got off to a rough start to his career but is showing signs of life now.) 

 

There just really hasn't been much to go off of to see if they can acquire talent on the offensive side of the football. 

Edited October 15, 2018 by billsfan89

[Mark Vader]

12 minutes ago, Fadingpain said:

McD and Beane will both go when the Allen experiment fails.

 

I think he'll get around 20 games, more or less.  Expect some regime change not this upcoming off-season, but the next one.

 

PS:  Why is it too early to judge Allen but perfectly clear that Nate is garbage?  I'm not asking this of the OP specifically.  Both have played a grand total of 5 games in the NFL.

 

Just curious why we all can see Nate should be cut yesterday, but Josh is gonna be a good one.

 

Fair question....

 

One reason is because of draft status. Peterman was a 5th round pick & Allen a first round pick.

 

Peterman was a projected back-up NFL QB, Allen a potential solid to good if not great NFL starter.

 

Peterman has looked bad since he started playing. Granted he was dealt a bad hand and was thrust into the spotlight when he probably shouldn't have. Those interceptions has left all Bills fans with a bad taste, and they don't want to see anymore from him. It may be unfair, but that's how it goes.

 

Many people feel that Allen can and will be the future of the Bills, myself included. He was given a bad deal and thrust into action immediately, when some of us wanted to see him holding a clipboard all year. That's not how it turned out and here we are.

 

I personally hated the Peterman pick. Even though it was a 5th round pick. I saw nothing from him in his college career that convinced me he was going to be a starter in this league. Josh Allen was not my top QB in the draft this year, but I was fine with the Bills selecting him. He's raw, but I believe that he has good to great potential.

 

I feel that Allen is progressing. Slowly, but progressing. I really think we would have won today, had he not gotten hurt. That pass to Benjamin was big and you could see that he was hyped and hungry and ready to go on the attack, but he had to accept that he was injured.

 

That's the best way I can put it. Peterman got sucked into a no-win situation and now he has been stigmatized. He threw two very nice passes to Zay Jones & Andre Holmes today and then he threw two awful interceptions. The loss goes with him, that's a bad deal, but that's how it goes sometimes.

[SoTier]

I have questioned McDermott and Beane's competence about anything to do with offensive football since last TC when, after letting Woods and Goodwin walk in FA, they traded away Watkins, too, essentially stripping the offense of all its NFL caliber WRs and all its ability to stretch the field.  At this time (even before Sunday's game), I have become convinced that McDermott not only doesn't care about offensive football but that he views it as a necessary evil, most especially that new-fangled invention called the forward pass.  He apparently thinks to resurrect the 2005 Bears that went to the playoffs with a great defense, a great running game, and a rookie QB ... or maybe he wants to resurrect the 1973 Bills that rode rookie QB Joe Ferguson feeding OJ Simpson the ball on nearly every play (to the tune of 2003 rushing yards for OJ) to a 9-5 record. 

 

Whatever the motivation, McDermott and his henchman Beane are clueless about how to build a modern NFL offense.  They don't value offensive football, and moreover, McDermott seems to be more interested in players' character or attitude than in their talent.  Sorry, Sean, but work ethic and "buying into" your outmoded offensive philosophy do NOT trump talent.

[atlbillsfan1975]

31 minutes ago, Fadingpain said:

McD and Beane will both go when the Allen experiment fails.

 

I think he'll get around 20 games, more or less.  Expect some regime change not this upcoming off-season, but the next one.

 

PS:  Why is it too early to judge Allen but perfectly clear that Nate is garbage?  I'm not asking this of the OP specifically.  Both have played a grand total of 5 games in the NFL.

 

Just curious why we all can see Nate should be cut yesterday, but Josh is gonna be a good one.

 

Arm strength , mobility, and Peterman has never shown he can make the plays Allen has. 

Couple those things with the fact that Peterman has had a year on an NFL team already and that how I come to that conclusion. 

McDermott and Beane I believe will get all of this year and next to show improvement. 

[SoTier]

7 minutes ago, Mark Vader said:

Fair question....

 

One reason is because of draft status. Peterman was a 5th round pick & Allen a first round pick.

 

Peterman was a projected back-up NFL QB, Allen a potential solid to good if not great NFL starter.

 

Peterman has looked bad since he started playing. Granted he was dealt a bad hand and was thrust into the spotlight when he probably shouldn't have. Those interceptions has left all Bills fans with a bad taste, and they don't want to see anymore from him. It may be unfair, but that's how it goes.

 

Many people feel that Allen can and will be the future of the Bills, myself included. He was given a bad deal and thrust into action immediately, when some of us wanted to see him holding a clipboard all year. That's not how it turned out and here we are.

 

I personally hated the Peterman pick. Even though it was a 5th round pick. I saw nothing from him in his college career that convinced me he was going to be a starter in this league. Josh Allen was not my top QB in the draft this year, but I was fine with the Bills selecting him. He's raw, but I believe that he has good to great potential.

 

I feel that Allen is progressing. Slowly, but progressing. I really think we would have won today, had he not gotten hurt. That pass to Benjamin was big and you could see that he was hyped and hungry and ready to go on the attack, but he had to accept that he was injured.

 

That's the best way I can put it. Peterman got sucked into a no-win situation and now he has been stigmatized. He threw two very nice passes to Zay Jones & Andre Holmes today and then he threw two awful interceptions. The loss goes with him, that's a bad deal, but that's how it goes sometimes.

 

Peterman should not have been the Bills backup last season or this one because he was absolutely not ready to play.  Maybe he shouldn't have even been drafted as high as he was since he lacks an NFL caliber arm.  Maybe if he was afforded time to learn the nuances of pro football and been introduced slowly into game action (as in garbage time), he might have eventually figured out how to compensate for his physical shortcomings and become a modest backup QB.  Now, I don't think he has any chance of doing that at all simply because McDermott had the need to "prove" that he was right about whatever stupid point he was trying to make ("football character" trumps talent perhaps?) by throwing Peterman into the fire.

 

[Alphadawg7]

ONNNNNEEEE DRRRRAAFFFFTTT!!!!

 

Why do people keep asking this question?  Beane told them it would take TWO seasons to fix the cap situation.  You people act like THIS IS the offense they sought out and built.  Geezus, Beane was here ONE draft.  Our rookie QB has nothing to work with, was ALWAYS going to take time to develop.  

 

The D is playing outstanding, they already built it back up.  Next 2 years will be about building the offense and balancing the team.

 

All you instant gratification people freaking out are out of touch with the reality of what they are doing.  Will they succeed, maybe or maybe not.  The only thing for CERTAIN is you won’t know this week, next week,, the week after, etc.  It’s going to take a couple years.

 

So maybe there should be a therapy section on this board where people can go calm them nerves for the rest of the this season which will be rough on offense cuz it’s devoid of talent and has a rookie QB learning in harsh conditions.

 

 

[Heitz]

6 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

ONNNNNEEEE DRRRRAAFFFFTTT!!!!

 

All you instant gratification people freaking out are out of touch with the reality of what they are doing.  Will they succeed, maybe or maybe not.  The only thing for CERTAIN is you won’t know this week, next week,, the week after, etc.  It’s going to take a couple years.

 

Was going to say the same thing - it’ll be a little more clear next year!

 

Seems that those that are “generally patient” are often not... ?

[fridge]

50 minutes ago, Heitz said:

 

Was going to say the same thing - it’ll be a little more clear next year!

 

Seems that those that are “generally patient” are often not... ?

 

We've seen this script several times over.  If they make it to 2020 it won't be because they really nailed their highly anticipated second** draft. For them to have a chance, Allen will have to defy all logic and actually improve dramatically, to the dismay of most scouts and analysts.

 

**McDermott's third.

[CaptnCoke11]

What’s offense?

[The Process]

It pains me to read the words "next year" ....but it's reality. With a strong draft on offense a cpl FAs...... minimal change to the D, we should be playoff caliber. If not, then it's fair to say the current regime is blind to building the offense. Let's not forget the weird O line events that took place this year. 

 

Arm chair coaches and GMs are abound!!

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

...pretty painful assessment from the D&C's Maiorana...

 

"Buffalo’s quarterback situation has reached the depths of the 1-12-1 team of 1968 when the Bills trotted out Dan Darragh, Ed Rutkowski and Kay Stephenson; or the 1-13 team of 1971 that had Dennis Shaw and James Harris; or the 2-14 teams of 1984 and 1985 that actually gave snaps to the likes of Joe Dufek, Matt Kofler and Bruce Mathison. "

 

"Tyrod Taylor, E.J. Manuel, Trent Edwards, Rob Johnson, Alex Van Pelt. Kelly Holcomb, J.P Losman, and Thad Lewis? You’d sign up for any of them right now. Well, maybe not Lewis. "

[AllenWillBust]

4 hours ago, Fadingpain said:

PS:  Why is it too early to judge Allen but perfectly clear that Nate is garbage?  I'm not asking this of the OP specifically.  Both have played a grand total of 5 games in the NFL

 

This is why it is so important they picked the right QB on draft night.  1000's of excuses will be made for Bust Allen over the next 1.5 seasons.  This is how many Bills fans do it, they simply never learn.

 

Just remember, Pegula hiring McDermott started this ball rolling, picking a defensive minded HC over an offensive, in a league tailored to passing.  He's an idiot owner. 

[Jpsredemption]

No they can't.

[vorpma]

Fire owners, Beane, McDermott, front office, scouts, coaching staff, players, media, and the fans; ya all happy. Now back to adult discussion!

[downunderbill]

If half of you guys had your way the coaching carousel would continue every time the team had a bad game.

Rex has a bad time in Buffalo we called for his head, and rightfully so. New regime is brought in and starts the process of culling the team to bring in their guys for their system, you know, like every NFL head coach in history.

 

Normally it takes about three years to build a team and start seeing consistent results of that build, but because they didn't draft the QB you wanted, that Leash is shortened to one and a half seasons. 

Edited October 15, 2018 by downunderbill

[ProcessTruster]

3 hours ago, Alphadawg7 said:

ONNNNNEEEE DRRRRAAFFFFTTT!!!!

 

Why do people keep asking this question?  Beane told them it would take TWO seasons to fix the cap situation.  You people act like THIS IS the offense they sought out and built.  Geezus, Beane was here ONE draft.  Our rookie QB has nothing to work with, was ALWAYS going to take time to develop.  

 

The D is playing outstanding, they already built it back up.  Next 2 years will be about building the offense and balancing the team.

 

All you instant gratification people freaking out are out of touch with the reality of what they are doing.  Will they succeed, maybe or maybe not.  The only thing for CERTAIN is you won’t know this week, next week,, the week after, etc.  It’s going to take a couple years.

 

So maybe there should be a therapy section on this board where people can go calm them nerves for the rest of the this season which will be rough on offense cuz it’s devoid of talent and has a rookie QB learning in harsh conditions.

 

 

All correct.    Run game , Defense rebuilt  and cap space relief all happening right now and on schedule.   QB is in place.   all is well

[papazoid]

passed on Mahomes

signed McCarron then traded him....stuck with $5 mil of dead money

drafted Allen.....gave up two very valuable 2nd round draft picks to move up

stuck with Peterman....who sucks

exercised 5th year option on Kelvin Benjamin $8.5 mil....he sucks

traded away starting LT (Glenn) to move up in draft

pushed all pro RG Incognito out the door by low balling him.

drafted Zay Jones instead of juju smith shuster (who has more catches than Antonio brown)

 

umm.....i'd say they are struggling with decisions on the offensive side of ball

[Radar]

I have little confidence in Beane. Having said that I'm for giving him another year in case my feelings may be unfounded. I think McDermott is okay as a coach. Not great but okay.

[Heitz]

3 hours ago, fridge said:

 

We've seen this script several times over.  If they make it to 2020 it won't be because they really nailed their highly anticipated second** draft. For them to have a chance, Allen will have to defy all logic and actually improve dramatically, to the dismay of most scouts and analysts.

 

**McDermott's third.

 

While I agree with the first sentence, I disagree that a good next draft won’t help the team and Allen improve.

 

Let’s see what happens if / when we get WRs that can catch and OL that can block...

 

Definitely a little nervous, but super interested in seeing where we are after this off-season.  ?

[nucci]

3 hours ago, The Process said:

It pains me to read the words "next year" ....but it's reality. With a strong draft on offense a cpl FAs...... minimal change to the D, we should be playoff caliber. If not, then it's fair to say the current regime is blind to building the offense. Let's not forget the weird O line events that took place this year. 

 

Arm chair coaches and GMs are abound!!

This offense does not get fixed in one off-season.....other teams will have cap space to sign FAs...not going to be as easy as some here think

[Jobot]

Obviously we don't know. Good post

[BillsMafia13]

5 hours ago, SoTier said:

I have questioned McDermott and Beane's competence about anything to do with offensive football since last TC when, after letting Woods and Goodwin walk in FA, they traded away Watkins, too, essentially stripping the offense of all its NFL caliber WRs and all its ability to stretch the field.  At this time (even before Sunday's game), I have become convinced that McDermott not only doesn't care about offensive football but that he views it as a necessary evil, most especially that new-fangled invention called the forward pass.  He apparently thinks to resurrect the 2005 Bears that went to the playoffs with a great defense, a great running game, and a rookie QB ... or maybe he wants to resurrect the 1973 Bills that rode rookie QB Joe Ferguson feeding OJ Simpson the ball on nearly every play (to the tune of 2003 rushing yards for OJ) to a 9-5 record. 

 

Whatever the motivation, McDermott and his henchman Beane are clueless about how to build a modern NFL offense.  They don't value offensive football, and moreover, McDermott seems to be more interested in players' character or attitude than in their talent.  Sorry, Sean, but work ethic and "buying into" your outmoded offensive philosophy do NOT trump talent.

Your perception of them is absolutely wild,  but also accurate which terrifies me. Its not even  neglect of the offensive side of the ball, its like they've been sabotaging it since they first flew in

     Would you guys rather we spent all our FA money on the offensive side and draft picks on the defensive side?  Not to one extreme but should we look for one side in FA?

Edited October 15, 2018 by BillsMafia13

[MAJBobby]

Based on current Trends. NO THEY HAVE NO IDEA how to build an offense for the Modern Era of Football. 

[White Linen]

Obviously in 2 off seasons for McDermott and 1.5 for Beane - everything should be fixed by now.  I mean how much time is really needed?  

 

Our owner is staying with these two guys way too long - probably because they pray.

[mjt328]

Our offensive futility all comes back to the Quarterback position.

 

Right now, the Bills have the worst starting QB in the NFL in Josh Allen.  They have the worst backup QB in the NFL in Nathan Peterman.  It would be very hard to dispute either of those statements, whether statistically or judging by the eye-test.

 

Although we certainly aren't loaded with talent on offense, I believe we have good enough players to at least be competent.  The Offensive Line looks worse because our QB is holding the ball too long and bailing from the pocket.  The Wide Receivers can't catch passes that aren't thrown accurately, and getting open means very little when the QB doesn't see it.  Our Running Backs have no space, because teams are crowding the line of scrimmage.  Put even a below-average veteran under center, and we are sitting at 3-3 without question... and we would be a legitimate wild card contender.

 

For the most part, I think Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott have done a masterful job with the Bills roster.  This was a project destined to take 2-3 seasons, and at this point we've used 75% of our rebuilding resources on the defense.  Most of the resources we traded away or lost to retirement came at the offense's expense.  It's not surprising the talent level is way behind on that side of the ball.  I expect next offseason to be very heavily slanted towards the offense, both in the draft and free agency. 

 

So no... I'm not worried that Beane and McDermott can build a strong offense... when it comes to the other 10 guys. 

However, I am very worried about whether they have made the right decisions regarding the QB position.  I'm worried that Allen was the right pick.  I'm worried that he's too raw, and our coaching staff doesn't know how to teach him.  I'm worried they are ruining his development by playing him too early.  I'm worried that our front office/coaches don't have a real plan, and are just winging it.

 

[Tyrod's friend]

4 hours ago, Alphadawg7 said:

...  Our rookie QB has nothing to work with,...

 

Shady McCoy, Charles Clay, Kelvin Benjamin, even Zay Jones. Compare that to what Baker Mayfield has to work with, Sam Darnold with the Jets supporting cast.

Not to attack, but it strikes me that line of thinking is lazy.

There is a part of Josh Allen that is on "repeat". 6 of his last 17 games have resulted in passing yards around 80 (part games, whatever). The same guy that jumped over Anthony Barr thought it might be a good idea yesterday to physically challenge a linebacker on a scramble and then prolly was surprised when a 340 pound lineman hit him simultaneously. 

The crazy interception in his first pre season game has replayed itself numerous times already. The two are connected; the idea that he really wants to be Brett Favre, that he purposefully avoided check down passes in college and went for the big gains ... all of it. I can imagine that someone that plays that way would appeal to a fan named "Alphadawg", just like it doesn't appeal to fan named "Tyrod's Friend". 

Cheers.
 

[The_Dude]

No

[oldmanfan]

Yes.  They will figure it out.  And Allen will continue to develop.

[Fixxxer]

6 hours ago, Fadingpain said:

McD and Beane will both go when the Allen experiment fails.

 

I think he'll get around 20 games, more or less.  Expect some regime change not this upcoming off-season, but the next one.

 

PS:  Why is it too early to judge Allen but perfectly clear that Nate is garbage?  I'm not asking this of the OP specifically.  Both have played a grand total of 5 games in the NFL.

 

Just curious why we all can see Nate should be cut yesterday, but Josh is gonna be a good one.

 

 

 

lol, really? Are you serious? 

 

now I understand your Allen hate. 

[SoCal Deek]

People, please. You wanted to see Allen play, and now he has been. This season was always going to be a rough one, and now it is. On the glass half full side, the defense looked horrible in weeks one and two but now look at them.

[Coach Tuesday]

No, and before handing Beane $80M to spend next offseason, the Pegulas need to hire an experienced football mind to serve as a consultant to vet every decision that gets made.  Mis-spending that money will sabotage this team for 4+ years.

[BillsInWilmingtonNC]

One thought I had on the way into work this morning was that McBeane only have had so many resources at their disposal to turn this team around (I know some will disagree and say they created holes and have wasted picks to trade up, but they felt they needed to trade/cut people in order to get everyone to buy in and be "pulling in the same direction" so to speak) and complete their vision.  To establish culture, they may have felt it better to focus most of those resources on one side of the ball (defense) and have a strong unit that will not second guess their coaching ability and/or THE PROCESS.  And it only made sense to use the defensive side of the ball considering McDermott's background.  Next year, they will have tons of money/draft picks and the ultimate goal is to replace almost the whole offense, besides Allen, Dawkins, Zay, Clay (Maybe), and McCoy (Maybe).  So the new group coming in will not have gone through this train wreck season of offensive performance and should buy in to whatever the coaching staff is asking of them.  Whether that turns this unit around is yet to be seen, but it does seem to make some sense to me.

Edited October 15, 2018 by BillsInWilmingtonNC

[MAJBobby]

Remember this is the regime that thought Sammy had a Bad attitude and Traded for the Attitude of Benjamin 

[Doc]

1 hour ago, AllenWillBust said:

 

This is why it is so important they picked the right QB on draft night.  1000's of excuses will be made for Bust Allen over the next 1.5 seasons.  This is how many Bills fans do it, they simply never learn.

 

Just remember, Pegula hiring McDermott started this ball rolling, picking a defensive minded HC over an offensive, in a league tailored to passing.  He's an idiot owner. 

 

Another moron to the ignore list.

[BillsVet]

14 minutes ago, Coach Tuesday said:

No, and before handing Beane $80M to spend next offseason, the Pegulas need to hire an experienced football mind to serve as a consultant to vet every decision that gets made. Mis-spending that money will sabotage this team for 4+ years.

 

This. They need that Coughlin type in Buffalo now given the state of the team after 2 off-seasons of rebuilding. Unfortunately, the Pegula's seem content to hire people, give them resources, watch those hires struggle, and then fire them only to start it all over again.

 

McCoach wanted absolute control to come here and received it, yet after 2 off-seasons he's demonstrated no ability to grasp the modern game. It may affect the OBD dynamic, but waiting another 1-2 seasons for "the process" to work is an eternity in the NFL. 

[SoTier]

1 hour ago, Coach Tuesday said:

No, and before handing Beane $80M to spend next offseason, the Pegulas need to hire an experienced football mind to serve as a consultant to vet every decision that gets made.  Mis-spending that money will sabotage this team for 4+ years.

 

The Pegulas need to do this, or this team will continue to be a disaster for a whole lot more than just 4 years.  They will never become a top echelon team as long as McDermott is HC because of his lack of interest/knowledge of offensive football, but if he's allowed to continue to mismanage player personnel as he has for the last 2 years, it will take 4 or 5 years after he's gone just to bring the team talent, especially on the offensive side, up to the NFL average.

[RochesterRob]

8 hours ago, KOKO NFL said:

Watching the precocious, mobile, and accurate Patrick Mahomes, and the GOAT Tom Brady do battle Sunday night, like many Bills fans, I couldn't help reflect on the current Bills state of affairs, offensively (pun intended). First of all, it's only fair to say, the Defensive side of the ball looks great - with numerous draft picks and FA performing well. (Good job GM Beane and, former defensive coordinator, Coach McDermott). The offensive side, not so much... 

 

While it may be too early to judge Josh Allen's prospects for success, by any reasonable account, he is a serious "project" - with concerns over his ability to process reads and throw accurately. Clearly, the FO fell in love with his size, athleticism, and character/personality. But for those of us who are generally patient, but still 'results-oriented', the question remains: can you learn to be a winning NFL QB when you've never showed you could be a good college one? Then there's the decision to trade all that draft capital to move up to get your guy. The track record for the FO to acquire other 'offensive' players has been, well,  just that: Kelvin Benjamin has size, no speed, questionable hands, and no detectable heart; Zay Jones, whom they traded up to get in the 2nd RD., remains an enigma with dubious hands and separation skills; Ray-Ray is small, plays that way, and is a special teams liability. And then there's drafting the likes of Nate Peterman and Ricky Proehl (sigh). The jury is still out on Wyatt Teller, who is purportedly a mauler but somehow isn't good enough to crack an average OL, let alone get activated on a weekly basis. To date, Dion Dawkins is the only positive addition via the draft. As far as FA's, Chris Ivory is the only real upgrade, over last year's Carolina Panther du jour, Mike Tolbert. That's about it... The FO couldn't "see" what Andy Reid and the Chiefs did in Patrick Mahomes, falling in love instead with Nate Peterson's "outstanding character" in the 5th round.  (Note: with the rare exception of Tom Brady,  unlike RB's, great QB's are generally not available after round 2). Further, "McBeane" didn't have a back up plan this year at QB, striking out on AJ McCarron and creating the current mess by their lack of foresight and talent awareness. Okay, the offence is not very good. 

 

There is, however, a glimmer of good news . The Bills have 10  2019 draft picks. Having said that, a casual fan with a draft magazine could hit on say, 40% of them. A Rhesus monkey maybe 30%. The current Bills brass has been at about 20% - with, again, a clear preference to draft guys who can tackle. 

 

So, two questions Bills Mafia: ( 1) is the current FO truly capable of appraising and acquiring good players for the offense? (Early returns aren't good); (2) If JA continues to resemble a strong armed LB versus a playoff caliber QB, and a weak 2018 season, 2019 draft, and 2019 season is produced, do Beane & Company deserve to see year 4 (2020) in Buffalo? 

 

 

 

  Mahomes had a year to sit and learn.  In Buffalo he would not have had Andy Reid to tutor him and might have been thrust into action after one of Tyrod's 150 yard performances last year.  It's like asking if a guy who went to Harvard and had contacts to build a multi-million dollar fortune if he would have done the same going to community college and working at Walmart.