TE Position

[ngbills]

Looking around the league there are a ton of productive TE's. What do the Bills do here? I like Knox but the drops are alarming. Kroft seems to be a flop and contract we will be getting out of in the offseason. Looking at the past drafts you have a high correlation of 40 time and NFL success. This includes Engram, Fant, Howard, Kittle as the 5 fastest in the past 5 drafts. Slightly lower you have guys like Hockenson, Smith, Andrews, Samuels, Goedert, Gesecki, Njoku, Everett, Hooper, Henry, Higby.

 

Point is seems easy to hit on a fast TE being successful than a fast or tall WR. Tons of good TE's have come out and still dont see how Kittle was a 5th rounder...one of the best blockers in the draft and a 4.5 40 time. 

 

Upcoming draft:

Albert Okwuegbunam Missouri

Jared Pinkney Vanderbilt

Hunter Bryant Washington
Mitchell Wilcox South Florida

NFL combine fastest TE's here
 

 

[Nester]

i like our current young TE's and i think we should let them develop.

 

Knox will be a beast, but its only his first year.

[Nick the Greek]

Knox need to make catches. He single handedly killed a couple drives yesterday. Those could have been game changers. 

[bigK14094]

I still have hopes Croom will return and win a job next year....he is the receiving TE we don't have this year.

[Process]

Kroft is useless and should be cut this off-season. That signing was a head scratcher from the beginning. 

 

Knoxs drops are a huge concern. Even if he ends up getting over it and becoming a good player for us, plenty of teams use two TEs.

 

Bills should go all out for Hooper this off-season.

 

Sign Hooper, sign a young RB, draft a WR in the first round. Offense set.

 

Edited December 10, 2019 by Process

[Mr. WEO]

7 minutes ago, Nester said:

i like our current young TE's and i think we should let them develop.

 

Knox will be a beast, but its only his first year.

 

Can't catch.  Can't block.

 

He can develop behind a better TE.

[Poleshifter]

6 minutes ago, Nester said:

i like our current young TE's and i think we should let them develop.

 

Knox will be a beast, but its only his first year.

Again, Knox is a rookie so we need to cut him some slack. He was primarily a blocker at Ole Miss, and he really seems to kick butt as a blocker.

 

Yes, the drops are annoying, but when he catches it, he has shown some beast mode after the catch.

 

Belichek wanted Knox during the draft, so that tells me a lot about Knox's abilities.

 

[GregPersons]

Knox can stay. Kroft needs to go. 

 

Don't wait until the offseason. This position is in bad shape and we need reliable TEs to be productive on offense. Let's see Duke Williams line up off tackle, and run a hook up the middle of the hash. Just... try it. 

[White Linen]

I'd apologize to him and resign Charles Clay in the off season. 

[Apocalypse Nuts]

15 minutes ago, Nester said:

i like our current young TE's and i think we should let them develop.

 

Knox will be a beast, but its only his first year.

 

This.

 

Seems utterly ridiculous to throw out Knox based on a few drops in his ROOKIE season.  Seems just as utterly ridiculous to give up on the whole lot at this point as well.  When everyone at the position is new to Buffalo, I think it's best to give some of them a season to acclimate. 

[Bob in STL]

The drops have reached a point of concern but if you look at how little he saw the ball in college it should not surprise.  

 

Work, work, and more work is what Knox needs.  He has size and he had some speed too.  He blocks well and he gets open.  Yesterday he dropped a ball and then he made a brilliant one handed catch.  He can be a beast running in the open field and he has blown up a few DBs this year.  

 

I like him and I say keep on developing him.  

 

I’m not impressed with Kroft or Smith.  Sweeney has done ok in his limited reps.  

 

I would not hesitate to take a TE if the right one is there.  

Edited December 10, 2019 by Bob in STL

[djp14150]

It’s a combination of grass is greener and fantasy football stat lines....

[billsfan89]

I like Knox but I think he is still super raw and will likely need at least another year to develop into a starting caliber TE. Sweeney in my opinion is nothing more than a decent backup, maybe he can develop into a quality backup or at best low end starter. Lee Smith is a blocking TE a niche player. Kroft was supposed to be the veteran stop gap while the young guys developed but he has been often hurt and should be cut. I would heavily support brining in another vet TE to help alleviate the pressure on Knox. But I do think Knox has a bright future. 

[Formerly Allan in MD]

Cease the knock on Knox.  He's a rookie with little college experience.  He's shown a significant upside along with a "rookie downside."  If he doesn't show development thru next year, yes, I'll reconsider.

[Beast]

16 minutes ago, Distorted One said:

 

This.

 

Seems utterly ridiculous to throw out Knox based on a few drops in his ROOKIE season.  Seems just as utterly ridiculous to give up on the whole lot at this point as well.  When everyone at the position is new to Buffalo, I think it's best to give some of them a season to acclimate. 

Knox will be back and competing next season but to not look for an upgrade would be silly. Lots of drops and he was manhandled on the Allen fumble.

 

The kid should get better but you can’t just assume that’s a sure thing.

[CincyBillsFan]

I think we need to differentiate between Knox as he is today and what can be expected over the next few years.  I agree with others here that like Allen was a raw QB, Knox is a very raw pass catching TE. 

 

He has shown me enough this season to be confident that he will be a very productive TE going forward.  At the same time the reality TODAY is that we get very little production from our TE's in the passing game. 

 

As others have pointed out Kroft seems to be the odd man out here.  Smith will have value as a blocker.  If Sweeney can develop in the off season as a pass catcher then we could go into next season with an excellent compliment of TE's (Knox, Smith & Sweeney).  If we're that lucky we can put resources behind the O-line and at WR's/RB instead of TE.  This would be an ideal outcome.

 

 

[ngbills]

I don’t think you give up on Knox. Kraft is a different story given his cost. 

 

Still think you you need to add either an upgrade or complement to Knox. Most teams have at least two solid TE’s. Look at Bal and NE with Gronk and whoever for years. 

 

Been a strong position in the college ranks as of late. Talk to scouts, high school and college coaches. Kids want to play TE now and it is turning into your best athlete. 

Edited December 10, 2019 by ngbills

[Solomon Grundy]

51 minutes ago, Nick the Greek said:

Knox need to make catches. He single handedly killed a couple drives yesterday. Those could have been game changers. 

And in prior games

46 minutes ago, Process said:

Kroft is useless and should be cut this off-season. That signing was a head scratcher from the beginning. 

 

Knoxs drops are a huge concern. Even if he ends up getting over it and becoming a good player for us, plenty of teams use two TEs.

 

Bills should go all out for Hooper this off-season.

 

Sign Hooper, sign a young RB, draft a WR in the first round. Offense set.

 

I'd use Kroft, Lee Smith and Murphy money to re-sign Shaq

Edited December 10, 2019 by the skycap

[Rob's House]

Is catching ability something that typically improves significantly with time? 

 

It seems like it could, but I'm struggling to think of an example of someone with consistently bad hands who turned it around.

[Solomon Grundy]

Go straight to Stanford and get a TE

[Rc2catch]

Why is Kroft so hated? How many balls did he drop? How many were thrown to him? 
Are we saying the one year he actually played and was involved  in Cincinnati Dalton could find him open but in buffalo he’s covered every route? Could it not be Allen doesn’t look to throw his way? Like ever? Or that Daboll doesn’t want him open so it frees someone else up one on one? Can’t be any form of a weapon in the receiving game if there’s no targets.

 

Is his blocking bad? The blocking part is serious on my end cause I honestly don’t pay attention to tight end blocks ever in a game. 

 

Just don’t get why there’s such a need to upgrade a position we’re not heavily using in the pass game. Knox will progress, we haven’t seen Sweeney in real games, how many balls are we throwing to tight ends next year we ain’t Baltimore here. 

Edited December 10, 2019 by Rc2catch

[Dkollidas]

Knox needs time to develop. He was barely thrown to in college because they were loaded at receiver and used him mostly as a blocker. He was a QB in high school and had never played the position until he got to a school that doesn’t utilize the position.

 

I think he’ll be better next year, hopefully significantly. He’s probably going to get 400yds receiving as a rookie. Not too terrible.

 

Sweeney has the upside of a solid #2 tight end. Good fundamentals, solid blocker.

 

I feel bad for Kroft but I think he’ll end up getting cut next season. Too much money for too little production. 
 

Lee Smith is hot garbage. Croom May come back and try to do something but I have little faith in that.

 

i could see them bringing in another veteran to compete with Smith and Sweeney. 

[Rc2catch]

9 minutes ago, Rob's House said:

Is catching ability something that typically improves significantly with time? 

 

It seems like it could, but I'm struggling to think of an example of someone with consistently bad hands who turned it around.

Kinda tricky. Not sure how many examples there are of players in college who don’t catch any passes but have insane talent and start catching in the NFL. 
 

Knox is gonna be fine. More practice reps with Allen, hopefully in the offseason too and some time with the machines chucking him fastballs mid route and he’ll be ok. 
Guy has a lot to learn this season. Monster playbook plus audibles for pass routes and blocks, and learning to run routes. They didn’t use him in college his route tree was probably like 2 routes. “Hey kid run an out to the sideline but just try and get ready to block cause we’re not throwing it your way” 

We should be pretty thankful with Kroft hurt the first part of the season we got any production from him at all and he didn’t have huge costly turnovers or penalties. 
So much focus on what he does wrong everyone forgets how far he’s come in less than one full season. 

[Augie]

1 hour ago, bigK14094 said:

I still have hopes Croom will return and win a job next year....he is the receiving TE we don't have this year.

 

This may be unpopular, but I like what he presents as a matchup problem. A long shot for sure, but maybe he’s learning and growing during this time off. 

 

Knox has too many drops, but I’d like to think he can shake that. I love his upside and attitude! 

[BillsCuse]

 Give Knox time to develop.  He has super potential, time will tell if he reaches it.   Kroft is definitely out of here next year.  Hooper or Hunter Henry would be great additions to add with Knox.  I would spend the $ on them, then get a WR high in the draft.  

[Nester]

6 minutes ago, Rc2catch said:

Why is Kroft so hated? How many balls did he drop? How many were thrown to him? 
Are we saying the one year he actually played and was involved  in Cincinnati Dalton could find him open but in buffalo he’s covered every route? Could it not be Allen doesn’t look to throw his way? Like ever? Can’t be any form of a weapon in the receiving game if there’s no targets.

 

Is his blocking bad? The blocking part is serious on my end cause I honestly don’t pay attention to tight end blocks ever in a game. 

 

Just don’t get why there’s such a need to upgrade a position we’re not heavily using in the pass game. Knox will progress, we haven’t seen Sweeney in real games, how many balls are we throwing to tight ends next year we ain’t Baltimore here. 

 

His biggest problem is his $6mm a year cap hit. Not a big deal this year, but will be in the next 2 years. 

In 2019 he has 53 yards in total receptions and has a buy-out option next year that if used will only cost us $1.6mm in cap space. 

 

 

 

 

[LB48]

1 hour ago, Bob in STL said:

The drops have reached a point of concern but if you look at how little he saw the ball in college it should not surprise.  

 

Work, work, and more work is what Knox needs.  He has size and he had some speed too.  He blocks well and he gets open.  Yesterday he dropped a ball and then he made a brilliant one handed catch.  He can be a beast running in the open field and he has blown up a few DBs this year.  

 

I like him and I say keep on developing him.  

 

I’m not impressed with Kroft or Smith.  Sweeney has done ok in his limited reps.  

 

I would not hesitate to take a TE if the right one is there.  

Let's see what Knox can do next year.  I don't know why his catches are always downfield rather than quick shots to get pressure off Allen?

8 minutes ago, Nester said:

 

His biggest problem is his $6mm a year cap hit. Not a big deal this year, but will be in the next 2 years. 

In 2019 he has 53 yards in total receptions and has a buy-out option next year that if used will only cost us $1.6mm in cap space. 

 

 

 

 

The Bills have never used a TE well.  It's about time they do.

[Rc2catch]

3 minutes ago, Nester said:

 

His biggest problem is his $6mm a year cap hit. Not a big deal this year, but will be in the next 2 years. 

In 2019 he has 53 yards in total receptions and has a buy-out option next year that if used will only cost us $1.6mm in cap space. 

 

 

 

 

Buffalo is in fine shape for the cap until they need to hand out quarterback money. It’s not our cash we save nothing advocating for cuts. Why create a possible hole over money? If he’s that bad or he’s not what they expected I expect they will cut him but for us as fans to clamor to get rid of a guy over money we aren’t paying doesn’t make sense to me. We had the same issue with shady. Washed up or not people wanted him gone cause of his salary. And now he’s gone. Washed up or not they definitely could of used him this season. 
Same risk next year. 
Sure let’s sign Hooper. Nothing wrong with that. Let’s say he blows a knee in preseason then we’re rolling with Knox and Sweeney and some guy let go at final cut downs. Just risky over money they don’t really need. If we’re cap strapped and need money for Hooper yeah cut the guy. I mean shoot we have what 25 million in star and Murphy and kroft? 

[Solomon Grundy]

1 hour ago, LB48 said:

Let's see what Knox can do next year.  I don't know why his catches are always downfield rather than quick shots to get pressure off Allen?

The Bills have never used a TE well.  It's about time they do.

The K-Gun was named after Keith McKellar, Bills TE 

[Gambit]

1 hour ago, BillsCuse said:

 Give Knox time to develop.  He has super potential, time will tell if he reaches it.   Kroft is definitely out of here next year.  Hooper or Hunter Henry would be great additions to add with Knox.  I would spend the $ on them, then get a WR high in the draft.  

I'd go all in for Hooper. Henry has had some injury issues so for less money I'd be down.

[Ed_Formerly_of_Roch]

2 hours ago, Process said:

Kroft is useless and should be cut this off-season. That signing was a head scratcher from the beginning. 

 

Knoxs drops are a huge concern. Even if he ends up getting over it and becoming a good player for us, plenty of teams use two TEs.

 

Bills should go all out for Hooper this off-season.

 

Sign Hooper, sign a young RB, draft a WR in the first round. Offense set.

 

 

Agree with everything except WR in the first round.  My thought is DE or LB in round 1.  My rational is it's easier to find high level FA WR than it is pass rushers or DE.  Sign a good WR and dtil ldraft one in the 2nd  or 3rd, but use the 1st round on pass rush.

[Maybe Someday]

Knox can catch. For all the drops he's made a few really good catches. The 1 handed yesterday was awesome. He just needs to concentrate on the easy ones and look the ball all the way in rather than looking to run.

 

On the Allen sack fumble he should have never been left 1 on 1 with their best pass rusher. No TE should. 

Edited December 10, 2019 by Maybe Someday

[BrownNgold]

Could of had Hollister for league minimum.

[Mark Vader]

1 hour ago, Gambit said:

I'd go all in for Hooper. Henry has had some injury issues so for less money I'd be down.

Who is Hooper?

[Gambit]

35 minutes ago, Mark Vader said:

Who is Hooper?

Austin Hooper is Atlantas TE

Edited December 10, 2019 by Gambit

[JoPoy88]

Be fun to see if Knox gets more or less rope than Zay did around here for his horrific hands. Not to mention Knox’s suspect blocking. Guessing people will be a lot more tolerant of Knox. 

[Virgil]

Hooper.....

[Boatdrinks]

Knox was drafted to be the future, where Kroft was signed to be the current starter. Kroft missed a ton of time and has basically been invisible, pressing Knox into service. He might develop, but he’s a couple years away. A playmaking vet TE should be on the FA shopping list, as well as a WR. The defense is championship caliber now, so they need plug and play weapons for the offense. There isn’t time for a drafted WR to develop. They should still draft offense to keep the cupboard stocked , but FA dollars need to be allocated to vets while Allen is still cheap. 

[Buffalo Junction]

3 hours ago, Rob's House said:

Is catching ability something that typically improves significantly with time? 

 

It seems like it could, but I'm struggling to think of an example of someone with consistently bad hands who turned it around.

Knox can make the difficult catches. His issue seems to be focus related. That can be improved with reps, practice, and experience... Same with the blocking. 

[Boatdrinks]

6 minutes ago, JoPoy88 said:

Be fun to see if Knox gets more or less rope than Zay did around here for his horrific hands. Not to mention Knox’s suspect blocking. Guessing people will be a lot more tolerant of Knox. 

Well, Knox is a pretty good run blocker not a suspect one. He was also the 96th player selected in 2019 and didn’t catch many passes in college as he wasn’t featured that way. Zay Jones caught a ton of passes in college and was the 44th player selected in the 2017 draft. 52 slots lower of draft position will buy you a little bit of “ rope” with the fans. Essentially , Jones had already proven he had good hands in college but forgot how to catch when he got to Buffalo. He was pretty much a head case. 

Edited December 10, 2019 by Boatdrinks