The Athletic: Inside the Bills’ decisions, meetings and scouting trips that led to Josh Allen

[YoloinOhio]

This piece from the TBN dives deeper into the Bills scouting of Allen in college and his respect for Brady’s approach 

As much as I hate to say it, it's Tom," he said with a sheepish grin.

Allen knew very well his comment would offend a fan base that feels contempt for Brady and his team, the New England Patriots. Allen is all about having as strong a connection as possible with "Bills Mafia," a term he frequently uses and demonstrated as much during this summer's training camp at St. John Fisher College by consistently being the last player out signing autographs, especially for kids.

"But you've got to respect the guy," Allen said of Brady. "I grew up loving him and what he did on the field and how he was off the field. Just the way he carries himself, the way that people regard him, the respect that his teammates give him when they’re not there, the way they talk about him when they’re on a different team. I think everybody in the league can look at him and wish for that sustained success that they’ve had for so long.

"Every year, year in year out, he’s still doing the right things. Looking at the little things like him never walking on the football field when he goes out to practice. As soon as he steps between lines, he starts jogging. Just little things like that that not many people pick up on, but I kind of look at. I’m not saying that I want to be Tom Brady, but as a young kid, I looked up to him like he is the role model. He is the Mecca. He is what you would strive to be as a quarterback."

https://buffalonews.com/2019/09/04/buffalo-bills-josh-allen-tom-brady-new-england-patriots-brandon-beane-jim-kelly-bill-polian-nfl-football/

A longer meeting with Allen was set for a couple of weeks later in Laramie, Wyoming. Besides Beane and McDermott, it included team owners Terry and Kim Pegula, assistant GM Joe Schoen, offensive coordinator Brian Daboll and then-quarterbacks coach David Culley.

The plan was for the whole group to have dinner with Allen at the Cavalryman Steakhouse. Reservations were set for 7:30 p.m. However, Allen's flight from Los Angeles was delayed due to bad weather.

Little did he realize that his handling of the circumstances would play a huge role in the Bills' evaluation of him. "That night was a testament to who Josh is," Beane said.

First, Allen impressed the Bills' hierarchy by staying in touch the whole time, providing updates on his ETA. Once it was known he wouldn't land in Denver until 8 p.m., and would still have a two-hour drive to Laramie, the Bills' contingent decided to go ahead and eat without him. But Allen assured the team he still planned to attend the meeting.

"He could have made a lot of excuses," Beane said. "I’ve had it happen before with players where something comes up. ‘Hey, I can't make it. Can we just do this tomorrow?’ Josh let us know his whereabouts every step of the way. 'I just landed in Denver. … We're heading out.  … I'm an hour away.' That's a pro. We didn't have to reach out to him. So many young kids, including my own, will say, 'I'll be there when I get there.' "

The restaurant was scheduled to close at 10, before Allen's arrival, but the fact he was a local celebrity made it easy for Bills officials to convince the manager to keep it open.

Allen finally showed up a little after 10. Despite the late hour and long journey, he was upbeat and engaging. The hourlong conversation primarily focused on the quarterback's personal life, although there were football topics tied to a packet of material Daboll had sent with basics about the Bills' offense.

"That’s crazy travel, but he was not acting tired," Beane said. "I’m sure, inside, he was going, ‘Man, I’m trying to make a good impression on this team and the flights are screwed up.’ But he came in and he was relaxed. He was calm. He knew the stuff. When Dabes was asking him questions, he spit it off."

Even more impressive, though, was how he behaved around everyone else in the restaurant.

"He spoke to every person in that place that he passed when he was walking in and walking out. 'Hey, how you doing?'" Beane said. "People know who Josh Allen is in Laramie, Wyo. You’re watching how people are treated. He was very courteous. I didn’t see a guy who was trying to impress. I saw a guy who was comfortable with where he was."

[Coach Tuesday]

“Dabes” 

 

“Mountain wave“

 

I learned some stuff.

[formerlyofCtown]

On 8/29/2019 at 3:35 PM, jletha said:

I disagree with you. While they were busy figuring out whether they were worth trading up for the Jets actually moved up and made their situation much more difficult. You can move up to 3 in the mean time and figure it out from there. If you determine you need to get to 2 then its a lot easier to get there from 3 than it is from 12. By delaying any decision at all until a full evaluation was done the Jets got up there and it made it almost impossible to get ahead of them. If Beane ultimately wanted Darnold after their evaluation, they screwed themselves. Of course we will never know and I dont want to imply that Beane did want Darnold, but the concept still applies.

 

"so that they wouldn't be stuck with a high pick they paid a premium for and then not have a QB they loved when it was their time to pick."

 

They were taking a QB 100% so they should be putting themselves in position to draft the guy of their choosing at all times, if you like the guy it doesnt matter that you had to trade up for him. For any other position you want to protect assets but for QBs, you go up and get them. By letting the Jets get ahead of them they were letting the Jets dictate part of their decision.

We got our guy and it cost us a lot less.

[jletha]

8 minutes ago, formerlyofCtown said:

We got our guy and it cost us a lot less.

But you dont know exactly who was Beane's guy. He easily could have had Darnold ahead of Allen.

[formerlyofCtown]

7 hours ago, jletha said:

But you dont know exactly who was Beane's guy. He easily could have had Darnold ahead of Allen.

I don't think so.  Turnovers are a pet peeve of both Beane and McDermot.  Darnold is a turnover machine and always has been.

 

They have rehashed at times when it wasnt necessary that he was there #1 QB.  Also Gettleman had Allen as his top QB.

Edited September 6, 2019 by formerlyofCtown

[jletha]

25 minutes ago, formerlyofCtown said:

I don't think so.  Turnovers are a pet peeve of both Beane and McDermot.  Darnold is a turnover machine and always has been.

 

They have rehashed at times when it wasnt necessary that he was there #1 QB.  Also Gettleman had Allen as his top QB.

You don’t think but you don’t know. Nobody knows. And by Beanes own admission even he didn’t know when the Jets traded up. If he wanted Allen and the Jets took him at 3 it’s the same mistake. I’m not gonna argue over who beane wanted and/or didn’t want. The point is the process was flawed

[formerlyofCtown]

30 minutes ago, jletha said:

You don’t think but you don’t know. Nobody knows. And by Beanes own admission even he didn’t know when the Jets traded up. If he wanted Allen and the Jets took him at 3 it’s the same mistake. I’m not gonna argue over who beane wanted and/or didn’t want. The point is the process was flawed

No they didnt expect anyone to do that because it was insane to trade up before evaluations were even done.  I have no issue with them not moving up so soon.  What the Jets did wasnt very process like.  I could have ended up being a foolish move.

[Mark Long Beach]

7 hours ago, jletha said:

You don’t think but you don’t know. Nobody knows. And by Beanes own admission even he didn’t know when the Jets traded up. If he wanted Allen and the Jets took him at 3 it’s the same mistake. I’m not gonna argue over who beane wanted and/or didn’t want. The point is the process was flawed

 

I agree with you that we got lucky.  The Jets PAID for the right to basically guarantee picking ahead of us.  It was a steep price, but worth it if Darnold pans out.

 

However, we DO know that Beane had Allen #1.  There's the leaked picture of the whiteboard from the draftroom.  It shows the QBs numbered 1-6 by their school. Next to it is circled our draftpicks #12, 22 & 53 with an arrow to Denver #5.  This trade offer has been independently reported.  The QBs were Wyoming( Allen), USC (Darnold), OK Univ (Mayfield). Not making the trade cut were #4 UCLA (Rosen), #5 Ok St ( Rudolph ), and #6 Richmond (Lauletta).  NOTE that Lamar Jackson wasn't even on our list as we had just escaped, I mean traded away a run first QB in Tyrod Taylor.

 

Interesting that the top three QB needing teams all ended up drafting their #1 choice.  Hopefully we're right.

[jletha]

12 hours ago, formerlyofCtown said:

No they didnt expect anyone to do that because it was insane to trade up before evaluations were even done.  I have no issue with them not moving up so soon.  What the Jets did wasnt very process like.  I could have ended up being a foolish move.

We disagree. I think trading up before evaluations are done is fine because eventually they will be done and you will want to be in the best position possible to get the guy that you evaluate highest. The Bills were not in that position on draft day. The Jets were as best as they could be.

5 hours ago, Mark Long Beach said:

 

I agree with you that we got lucky.  The Jets PAID for the right to basically guarantee picking ahead of us.  It was a steep price, but worth it if Darnold pans out.

 

However, we DO know that Beane had Allen #1.  There's the leaked picture of the whiteboard from the draftroom.  It shows the QBs numbered 1-6 by their school. Next to it is circled our draftpicks #12, 22 & 53 with an arrow to Denver #5.  This trade offer has been independently reported.  The QBs were Wyoming( Allen), USC (Darnold), OK Univ (Mayfield). Not making the trade cut were #4 UCLA (Rosen), #5 Ok St ( Rudolph ), and #6 Richmond (Lauletta).  NOTE that Lamar Jackson wasn't even on our list as we had just escaped, I mean traded away a run first QB in Tyrod Taylor.

 

Interesting that the top three QB needing teams all ended up drafting their #1 choice.  Hopefully we're right.

Yes any trade up for a QB is worth it if they are good.

 

I havent seen this photo, can you possibly find it for me? Id be very interested.

[dave mcbride]

21 hours ago, formerlyofCtown said:

We got our guy and it cost us a lot less.

I will go to my grave thinking the Bills wanted Darnold above all else. They liked Allen too, however. 

6 hours ago, Mark Long Beach said:

 

I agree with you that we got lucky.  The Jets PAID for the right to basically guarantee picking ahead of us.  It was a steep price, but worth it if Darnold pans out.

 

However, we DO know that Beane had Allen #1.  There's the leaked picture of the whiteboard from the draftroom.  It shows the QBs numbered 1-6 by their school. Next to it is circled our draftpicks #12, 22 & 53 with an arrow to Denver #5.  This trade offer has been independently reported.  The QBs were Wyoming( Allen), USC (Darnold), OK Univ (Mayfield). Not making the trade cut were #4 UCLA (Rosen), #5 Ok St ( Rudolph ), and #6 Richmond (Lauletta).  NOTE that Lamar Jackson wasn't even on our list as we had just escaped, I mean traded away a run first QB in Tyrod Taylor.

 

Interesting that the top three QB needing teams all ended up drafting their #1 choice.  Hopefully we're right.

I don't believe that they had Allen #1. The fact that Allen was first was perhaps he was the only one who they could likely get at #5 because the other two would surely be gone. 

Edited September 6, 2019 by dave mcbride

[Punching Bag]

On 8/29/2019 at 6:43 PM, sherpa said:

 

 

Per your claim, I'd like to know when mountain wave, which is a cruise altitude phenomena, which it was in this case, has caused "loss of control accidents."

The Pegulas fly small private jets, but that isn't important regarding this incident.

 

Mountain wave is a form of Lee wave.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_wave

The rotor turbulence may be harmful for other small aircraft such as balloons, hang gliders and paragliders. It can even be a hazard for large aircraft; the phenomenon is believed responsible for many aviation accidents and incidents, including the in-flight breakup of BOAC Flight 911, a Boeing 707, near Mt. Fuji, Japan in 1966, and the in-flight separation of an engine on an Evergreen International Airlines Boeing 747 cargo jet near Anchorage, Alaska in 1993.^[14]

[formerlyofCtown]

11 hours ago, jletha said:

We disagree. I think trading up before evaluations are done is fine because eventually they will be done and you will want to be in the best position possible to get the guy that you evaluate highest. The Bills were not in that position on draft day. The Jets were as best as they could be.

Yes any trade up for a QB is worth it if they are good.

 

I havent seen this photo, can you possibly find it for me? Id be very interested.

Ok Mr. Whaley.

11 hours ago, dave mcbride said:

I will go to my grave thinking the Bills wanted Darnold above all else. They liked Allen too, however. 

I don't believe that they had Allen #1. The fact that Allen was first was perhaps he was the only one who they could likely get at #5 because the other two would surely be gone. 

Why because you liked him.  

[Albany,n.y.]

On 8/29/2019 at 11:37 AM, Logic said:

This article alone is a good reason to get a trial subscription to the Athletic, if you don't have one already.

It's articles like this that make me feel that my money is well spent.

I picked it up for $24 for the 1st year today.  It goes up next year, so I'll see how it goes, but for $24 I can't go wrong.  

[Albany,n.y.]

On 9/5/2019 at 12:37 PM, jletha said:

But you dont know exactly who was Beane's guy. He easily could have had Darnold ahead of Allen.

According to the alleged leak of the Bills board before the draft, they had Allen on top, it even includes the proposed trade with Denver.  It looks like they would have traded up for Darnold, or Mayfield, if Allen was gone before 5.  Notice they weren't looking to trade up for Rosen, and that Jackson wasn't in their top 6. The order on the board is 1) Allen-Wyoming, 2) Darnold USC, 3) Mayfield-Oklahoma University, 4) Rosen-UCLA, 5) Rudolph-Oklahoma State, 6) Lauletta-Richmond   

If you click on the image, it will open up on Twitter, then click on the left side & you'll get a good look at the board.

Edited September 7, 2019 by Albany,n.y.

[Mark Long Beach]

On 9/6/2019 at 6:43 AM, jletha said:

We disagree. I think trading up before evaluations are done is fine because eventually they will be done and you will want to be in the best position possible to get the guy that you evaluate highest. The Bills were not in that position on draft day. The Jets were as best as they could be.

Yes any trade up for a QB is worth it if they are good.

 

I havent seen this photo, can you possibly find it for me? Id be very interested.

 

This is a blowup of a picture taken of a Bills conference room IIRC.  There's more info available in threads/online about this picture that aligns with what we know about what the Bills did or were rumored to do (such as the trade w/Denver, not wanting Lamar, etc). I'm getting too old to remember all the details.

 

Edited September 8, 2019 by Mark Long Beach
Albany had the better (full suite) of pictures than me.

[Nextmanup]

On 8/29/2019 at 12:46 PM, Logic said:

I know that at the end of the evaluation process, the Bills had Josh Allen ranked as their number 1 QB in the draft. It worked out well for them that the first two teams taking QBs didn't see things that way.

t's funny, looking back, knowing that the Dolphins were looming and wanted a QB, that they wound up with Rosen just a year later.

I also remember hearing on draft night that the Cardinals LOVED Josh Allen and were absolutely crushed when they couldn't jump the Bills to get him. Not surprising, then, that they player they "settled" for, Josh Rosen, is no longer a Cardinal.

Oh, and one of the little tidbits I found interesting: Josh was scheduled to fly to New Jersey to meet with the Jets after his workout here, but his flight was cancelled, so he stayed in Buffalo for the night and wound up having dinner at Bar Bill with some of the Bills braintrust and bonding more. Kind of neat.

Last but not least: I don't want to be a downer, but speaking of the plane turbulence thing: They make it sound pretty serious in the article. Like, Daboll was Facetiming with his wife because he thought they might not make it. Can you imagine if that plane DIDN'T make it, and the Pegulas, Beane, and McDermott, well, ya know...Yikes. I don't want to even ponder that reality. Phew.

If it's true that the Bills had Josh Allen as the #1 overall QB in the draft, then we know their evaluation process was flawed.

 

I think we have already seen enough to know that Baker Mayfield is clearly the best in that group, and Cleveland actually did a great job of not screwing up the #1 pick.

 

 

[oldmanfan]

18 minutes ago, Nextmanup said:

If it's true that the Bills had Josh Allen as the #1 overall QB in the draft, then we know their evaluation process was flawed.

 

I think we have already seen enough to know that Baker Mayfield is clearly the best in that group, and Cleveland actually did a great job of not screwing up the #1 pick.

 

 

They have had one season each.  Not enough data to make this statement

[eball]

20 minutes ago, Nextmanup said:

I think we have already seen enough to know that Baker Mayfield is clearly the best in that group

 

Umm, no, no we haven't.